My sport interests:
On this page I will provide some information about my
sport interests. For instance, you may find some useful links to Marathon
races and / or some of my experiences.
Running / Marathon:
- Marathon
du Medoc: This was my first marathon (September
7th, 2002). For everyone who loves running, fun and good French wine,
I can only recommend to tempt this 'one-in-a-life-time' experience. You
run 42.195 km through the best wine region of France (let's say the world
;-). You pass nice 'chateaux'. You can taste great wine during
the course. There are stops with oysters, entrecote, ... A lot
of music (imagine: blue sky, more than 30 degree Celsius = 90 degree
Fahrenheit, classic music and you are
running through the gardens of one of the most beautiful castles of the
world with a view on that castle) and (literally) tons of spectators all
along the road. About
75% of the participants 8700 participants were running disguised = it is
more looking like a carnival procession. I finished in 4h13 with about 8 nice wine tasting stops on
the way - quite tired but very happy and full of sensations. The
atmosphere was fantastic !!!
- 20
km de Paris: This is a 'classic' 20 km race in Paris (October
13th, 2002). They had about 12,000 participants. Some music on
the road and quite some spectators. But, no real comparison to the
marathon du 'Medoc' ;-) Bad news was: It was relatively cold
(about 10 degree Celsius = 50 degree Fahrenheit) and raining most of the time. Good news is:
The course was quite flat and thus quick. Without drinking wine this
time and a friend (merci, Celine) pushing me a lot, I managed to finish in 1h38 (= I was quite happy).
- Half-Marathon
of Boulogne-Billancourt: A smaller one = 2233 participants
(November 17th, 2002). It is getting better (under 1h42) and for the
first time weather was perfect for running (about 14 degree Celsius = 57
degree Fahrenheit and NO rain :-). The maybe most amazing thing is
that you can see the 'Elite' runners coming in front and passing on the
other side of the road twice (their speed is amazing = still a long, long
way to go).
- Half-Marathon
of Paris: (March 9th, 2003) With about 15,000 participants this is the biggest
half-marathon in France. Weather was just gorgeous (blue sky,
basically no wind, about 20 degree Celsius = about 70 degree
Fahrenheit). Maybe, I shouldn't have 'partied' that much before the
race, but 1h40 was not too bad ;-)
- Marathon
of Paris: You love Paris? You love running? Maybe, you
should consider this one. You will discover Paris starting from the
'Champs', traversing Paris, making a tour in the 'Bois de Vincennes', taking
the 'quais' to cross Paris again, a little 'ballade' in the 'Bois de
Boulogne' and quickly back direction 'en gros Arc de Triomphe'. (April
6th, 2003) There have been about 33,000 participants and tons of spectators
'enjoying' this one with me. Let's say 'the weather was not really on
our side' (about 10 degree Celsius = 50 degree Fahrenheit and cloudy with a
bit 'too much' wind). Anyway, finishing (in good shape and with a real
sprint) in 3h28min gave again extraordinary sensations and was a great
compensation for some hard trainings. But, for sure, this one has
nothing to do with the one in Medoc ;-)
Bernd
Grahlmann (last updated April 7th,
2003)
Back to my homepage www.grahlmann.net