The manxathletics.com blog: Clean start for Keith Gerrard who makes his marathon debut in Rotterdam on Sunday

It will soon be four years since the 29 year from Peel ran his one and only half marathon. He took 63 minutes and 39 seconds and was the first British finisher in the BUPA Great North Run.

It will soon be four days before he lines up on the front row of the Rotterdam Marathon, as one of the elite field, to make his debut over double the distance. "I am back from Albuquerque and I am currently in my house in Peel enjoying my taper and some home relaxation" he reported yesterday but described it as the calm before the storm. "Its starting to feel quite real now" he said.

http://www.nnmarathonrotterdam.org/

Since the Great North Run he has had more than his share of setbacks with injuries or he might well have doubled his distance sooner.

Things really did get dirty in between. In 2012 he added his name to the list of winners of a British event with a much longer history that the mass participation Great North Run when he dominated the National Cross Country at Parliament Hill in London. Twelve months later he defended the title in Sunderland when he demonstrated that, apart from the meticulous race preparation for which he is renowned, he has an incredible determination to ensure that his talent is not wasted when he saw off the relentless challenges of Steve Vernon.

Here is my interview with Keith after the first of his victories:

Half of Keith's four Manx track records have been set since he ran that first half marathon:

Event	PB	Venue	Event	Date
1500	03:47.5	Tempe AZ, USA	Sun Angel Track Classic	09-Apr-11
Mile	04:08.2	Oxford	BMC Grand Prix	20-Jul-13
5000	13:50.1	Walnut CA, USA	Mt SAC Relays	20-Apr-12
10000	28:27.0	Palo Alto CA, USA	Payton Jordan Invitational	01-May-11

Sources: Power of 10

http://iomaa.info/records/track-field-records/isle-of-man-tf-records-senior-men/

Keith in action during the 2012 Microgaming Isle of Man Cross Country League at Ballanette

So how does Keith feel about his latest challenge; "I feel like I have prepared sensibly and I am excited to give this a really good go. My training has reached new heights in recent months and hopefully that will be reflected with a good performance on Sunday. What ever the outcome, I know I'm going to learn something about myself and the marathon. I just hope he experience is positive!".

As for expectations: "I feel too respectful of the marathon distance to name any target times. The marathon is an unknown to me and anything could happen on the day. I feel strong and healthy (something I've not been able to say much the last couple of years) so that is uplifting. Anyone who knows me well will realize that I'm not in it for a Sunday stroll, so I will leave any predictions to the public!".

Its just 13 months since I met the Manx hero on the streets of Peel showing a brave face during a period when he was down in the dumps with his injury.
During more than half of the interim period his name has featured in Manx quizzes as the athlete who had the Manx vest taped in error at the Commonwealth Games rather than for the performances that spread his smile to our faces.

I think we'll see that smile again on Sunday - but only after more than two hours of pain. And I hope his name will be in the quizzes next winter for the right reasons. The other name that might appear in the quiz is Dave Cowell. Dave set the Manx record of 2 hours 23 minutes 34 seconds for the marathon on 31 January 1974. I hope to feature Dave here next.