Epix Brighton

I got this new Garmin watch. An Epix Pro (Gen 2), Sapphire Edition, 47 mm, to be precise. It’s nice! And it arrived just in time for the Brighton marathon, and to rescue me from another marathon survival slog. Things hadn’t been going great. After Valencia in December and Luxor in January, I had with Sevilla in February yet another marathon experience that was more an act of sheer willpower to complete somehow, than what I would call running fun. And now the prep for Brighton seemed no different. Plus, I had caught a cold just two and a half weeks before, missed out on the last long run, and felt overall in an ever declining running shape. This is when my brand new and shiny Epix watch arrived.

It does HRV (heart rate variability), which was the main reason for me to ditch my old Forerunner 945. About HRV I heard first through Whoop, this bracelet thingy that tells you how you are, before you even know yourself. And that all through HRV, a parameter that shows how your heart rate reacts to change. The more consistent that is, the better. Based on this, Whoop and HRV capable Garmin watches can recommend what’s best for you: resting, moving or really going for it. You need to wear it for a while to collect some heart rate data. And now that I felt at a fitness low point, the watch actually confirmed: training readiness 1 (out of 100). Meaning, it was as bad as it gets. That was Thursday before the marathon. And then I had some leaving drinks from work to go to.

The person leaving was a good friend, so I really did not want to miss it. But I was determined to only stay for 2 pints max, and leave by 7. I was so determined that I even took a bet. After endless glasses of wine, five cigarettes (I am not even a smoker any more), the loss of that bet (five quid) and all of my self-respect, it was midnight when my head hit the pillow. The hangover the next morning was not pretty. I looked at my watch. It said zero. Zero! My training status had dropped from 1 to zero!? What does that even mean? That I am dead? I took a shower and got ready for work. From home. Thank God for hybrid working. It meant no activity, not even walking to the train or cycling to the office. This extreme recovery seemed to work. By the evening, my training readiness was at 18. The next morning, the Saturday before the race, it was just under 50, and my training status had changed from glaring pink (STRAINED!) to a mild orange. I went for a last run: 30 min, base. Same as the other runs that week, and as recommended based on HRV data. Only 30 min slow or slower runs. I couldn’t image in my wildest dreams how this could be a good last week before a marathon. Epix respectfully disagreed by giving me a predicted marathon time of 3:52. I knew this was by far too optimistic, but somehow it felt nice that at least a watch believed in me.

The Brighton Marathon day had finally arrived, and I felt better than I should have. Epix confirmed it with a green status, a first in many days. At the start line, I was also surprised by what this event had evolved to. I had already done it in 2016, and while it had been fun running through this great place and along the coast, it had not felt exactly well-organised at all. In fact, it was the worst organised marathon that I had experienced ever, and the traumatising lack of Portaloos (or alternative options for relieve) had even caused me to miss the start. Not so now. It was marathon-loo-utopia! I have never seen so many, so intelligently placed and managed, so clean, so being looked after Portaloos in my whole life! There were even urinals for women! Come on! No clue how this works, but maybe a female runner feels called to enlighten me one day.

Then there were these starts in waves, grouped by times. That in itself is not unusual, but normally the sub-4 hours group (which I was in) is the last. Not so here. I think there were two or three more groups behind us. This caused the runners to be spaced out perfectly. The roads never seemed too packed or too empty. There was always this feeling of being part of a great event, even as a slower runner. The organisers had definitely done their homework. And they even got our national treasure Paula Radcliffe to stand by the start line and send each wave off. It was amazing, and after my marathon in Gran Canaria in 2015, the second time I saw her.

They even changed the marathon route to avoid these nasty last 10 km through uninspired industrial and soul-crushing concrete desert. This time we were led through a friendly, more residential area with a load of supporters and stuff happening. The stretches along the seaside are one of the highlights, of course. And the route doubled and even tripled sometimes up on stretches, which felt very welcome, because of the incredible cheering crowds that were gathering there. English race events are just the best. I can’t think of any other nation that supports and cheers on runners so good-natured and with such a genuine enthusiasm. Brighton was no exception.

And so it turned out, that the Brighton Marathon 2024 became one of my highlight marathons. The running felt easy and like I am actually racing again, rather than just struggling forward. I had never heard so many “look this loony in flip-flops” voices before (I was running in sandals again). And when it came to the epic final stretch along the beach, I almost wished it could have gone on for longer (well, not really). The medal is very cool and different, and I love every colour of it. My Epix watch prediction of 3:52 was of course not true, but I was so happy with the 4:12 that I did, and even more that it felt like running again, and not only like managing pain. So what can I say? A useful new watch meets an unforgettable marathon experience? That’s an Epix Brighton!