It’s a bit of a misnomer calling this a “race report” as it is impossible for me to separate the race from the entire trip that myself and Mr & Mrs Hauling My Carcass undertook (incidentally, you can read his version of events here). We’d planned this as a road trip, and the whole weekend, from arriving at Hauling My Carcass’s house on Friday night to arriving back at mine on Monday night, was flawless.
We set off early on Saturday, driving to the Eurotunnel and then arriving in Calais. European countries were subsequently ticked off. UK – done, France – done, Belgium – done, before arriving late afternoon in The Netherlands at our hotel in The Hague. A quick swim, a sauna and then off out to Casa Caroni, a great little Italian restaurant where we loaded up on very fine pasta. Our waiter was amazing and seemed to have learned his waiting technique from Derren Brown – all showmanship and misdirection. Mrs Hauling My Carcass ordered only 1 glass of wine, but whenever plates were removed from the table, miraculously her glass was full again. Likewise, the Tiramisu which we all shared, magically reappeared as an additional much smaller portion just for Mrs Hauling My Carcass. Astounding!
And so to race day. Into the city before the buses stopped running and in time to see the Childrens 1k in full swing. Each child had to run with a parent/guardian and there were literally hundreds of joyful kids running, ruddy cheeked, around the perimeter of the park, each wearing a little race number. The adults running with them each had what looked like a race number pinned to them – although upon closer inspection, they turned out to be little signs that said “Coach”. There then followed a 2.5k, a 5k and a 10k before the start of the Half Marathon at 2.30. The fact that there were so many races and for so many abilities, means that the day becomes an event. People turn out to watch the races and soak up the atmosphere, of which there is plenty.
Detremined to not make the same mistake I did at Wokingham, the couple of hours we had before the start of the race was taken up with the serious business of eating. As this was an afternoon race, it took us some deliberation to work out how and when to eat. Too little and we’d run out of energy part of the way through the race, too much and we would suffer from what Mrs Hauling My Carcass referred to as “Food Coma” – that delightful, lethargic sleepy feeling you have after a heavy meal. So it was a sandwich, capuccino, a croissant, a banana and wine gums at a steady pace before ditching the bags and heading to the start. The atmosphere at the start was good natured and the Dutch lady next to me laughed at the yellowy/orange energy drink I had in my running bottle implying it looked like a urine sample (“You taking thishz to de Hoshzpital on de way round, ya!”).
We were off bang on 2.30 and immediately you notice the support from the crowd – I’d decided to run with a playlist of Michael Palin for the first hour and then switch to music for the second hour, which meant I missed none of the noise that the crowd was making. Vuvuzelas, cow bells, inflatable sticks banging together, iPods and docking stations brought out into the street and Brass Bands were all present as were words of encouragement chalked on to the roads, people calling out and waving from their balconies and children waiting excitedly for “high fives” at the side of the roads. The first 5-6kms are fairly densely populated with runners and the field does not seem to thin out so you just run with the pack. The kilometres passed easily and the support was unwavering. The course heads out from the city centre and through leafy residential roads before nearing the coast around 12kms then looping back. I know that kms 11-17 were run with a big grin on my face and it was only at about 17.5kms did I begin to feel like it was getting harder by which point it’s only 3.5kms to the finish and hardly worth worrying about. I knew that the road headed towards the city and then took a left turn for the last 500 metres towards the finish. As I took the final corner, the last track on my playlist stopped, leaving just the sound of the crowd at the finish. I was being cautious after Wokingham so aimed for about 2:05… I crossed the line in 2:04:23 wearing a big, silly grin.
The rest of the weekend was spent refuelling and celebrating my birthday. A magnificent Kenyan meal was had at 3 Stones, there was shisha in the hotel room and the drive back the following day was punctuated by lunch and birthday presents in Ghent. It was a truly excellent weekend during which everything went to plan – A big thank you must go to my 2 companions, Mr & Mrs Hauling My Carcass. The race is excellent – well organised and well supported. Den Haag is a beautiful, clean city and it’s inhabitants couldn’t have been more helpful and friendly. I think this race is probably one of my top 2 half marathons and it is a tough call whether Royal Parks Half (first ever race, personal best) or this occupies the number one slot. I think I may like to come back and do this one again.
Soundtrack to this post: The Young Gods – Lucidogen
