Valencia Marathon 2024 Report - Danny James

I visited Valencia for the first time back in Jan for the 10k and even though I didn't get to the start line, I was taken aback by the City and knew I wanted to come back and race there. Having only ran one marathon previously - and 3 years prior - I felt it was about time for the challenge again, and so I entered before arriving home.

The plan throughout the summer was to slowly build a larger aerobic base in readiness, but that was  soon scuppered by injury which took me out May through to July. Knowing I was to start a block in September it was doubtful whether I would be in the right place. Thankfully, the legs returned quicker than anticipated and a couple of races reflected this and provided the springboard I needed going in to the block. The block itself couldn't have gone any better. With the ever valuable guidance from Dave, I hit every session as planned, PB'd at MCR HLF in the October and all signs were pointing towards a fairly optimal marathon...

The taper was going well up until the final week where (with a young family) colds were starting to circulate in the house...As hard as I tried, I couldn't avoid it and eventually, started to get that dreaded, scratchy feeling. At first, I had brushed it off as a bit of Mara-noia but by the Wednesday, it was clear that it was more than just a sore throat. Determined, I stocked up on every possible cold remedy and made my way to Spain.

The plan going in to the race was sub 2:30 and training had suggested this was more than attainable, with the view of going out at this pace and picking up towards the latter half. Having discussed various outcomes with Dave, the overriding view was to go out steadier now, and to see how I felt. The first K marker came by and I was a few seconds down on A-Goal pace but reiterated to myself, to simply listen to the body. By the time 5k came, it was a similar story whereby I was a few seconds per K down. In the back of my head, I knew unless something drastically changed in the way the body was feeling, the main goal was likely off the cards. That said, I was still very optimistic and confident in that I was tempering my effort with the view that - if I started to feel better - I could make those 20-30 seconds up which I'd lost in the first ¼ of the race. Unfortunately, other than a few minor ups and downs, it was the same vibe across the rest of the race and I finished in exactly 2:32 which was a relatively even paced effort throughout. However, on reflection there were many positives to take from the race, including the latter and that I took on all 6 gels (Maurten 100) by 2:10 with no issues, hydrated well at every aid station, and most importantly, I was reactive to what the body was telling me, which resulted in a more than respectable finish time. It also magnified the difference in the marathon, compared to my usual 5k-HM races, in that it demands a much higher level of respect. There was times throughout where I was prepared to be chewed up and spat back out, but as much as it was not the race I'd dreamt of, it was still one to be proud of.