Canberra Marathon 2026 — trading trails for tarmac

A different kind of build-up

Keelan: My build-up was far from textbook marathon training. I managed four or five weeks of around 100 km, but my longest road run was 25 km, and the most work I covered in any single workout was about 15 km. I raced the Washpool 25 km hard three weeks before Canberra as my final hit-out. Would that be enough for my first road marathon?

Annie: I included more workouts than usual in my marathon preparation, but also needed to adapt the block as I went. Preparing for the consistent rhythm of the road called for a different approach to our usual trail adventures.

Keelan — chasing sub-three

My first road marathon came with a clear goal: finish in under three hours. A toilet queue meant I missed my wave by about two minutes and started behind the four-hour runners. I reckon I overtook about a thousand people in the first 5 km, weaving, using the footpath and expending more energy than planned. Trying to catch the three-hour pace group never quite worked, so I stopped letting it dictate my race and kept checking in with how I felt. There was even something fun about overtaking people for most of the way, especially when the half-marathon runners merged onto the course.

My race fuel was one 250 mL bottle of concentrated mix containing 200 g of carbohydrate, plus water from the course aid stations. With 10 km remaining, I thought sub-three was comfortably within reach. At 5 km to go, the doubts started. My watch was showing lap pace rather than a useful overall time, and the course still had hills. On the final uphill I wanted to slow down, but pushing through made the difference.

2:59:35 elapsed on Strava. First road race, longest road run and sub-three goal — all ticked off. The marathon atmosphere was a thrill, even if the training and recovery were less appealing to me. It has made me curious about trying a road half marathon, which I haven’t raced yet. But for now, back to the trails.

Keelan’s Strava recording: 42.54 km · 2:59:35 elapsed · 4:13/km average pace · 315 m elevation gain · 170 bpm average heart rate. Activity data is not an independently verified official race result.

Annie — a race run by feel

I was so happy with how Canberra went. I also missed my start wave — by about five minutes because I was waiting in the portable-toilet line! That meant a lot of catching up and weaving, but I tried to stay calm and enjoy running my own race rather than blindly chasing a pace group.

I set my watch mainly to show heart rate and ran by feel, only checking average pace now and again. It was reassuring to see it sitting on my target of around 5:00/km or faster. My rule was not to go above 161 bpm for the first 30 km, and that patience paid off in the second half.

From about 37 km, cramps made things more difficult. I focused on the finish line and on holding it together over those final kilometres. Despite having to adapt my training block, I felt I’d executed a really good race. I was especially happy to finish without trouble from my ankle tendons. ❤️❤️

Annie’s Strava recording: 42.67 km · 3:33:40 moving time · 5:00/km average pace · 286 m elevation gain · 158 bpm average heart rate. Strava marked it as her fastest marathon. Moving time may differ from the official finish time.

A different challenge, the same love of running

Canberra was a reminder that the point of trying something new isn’t to abandon what you already love. Road racing brought us a different kind of focus: holding an effort, choosing not to chase when the start went awry, and meeting the final hills with whatever we had left. Keelan got his sub-three, Annie had a race she was delighted with, and we both found something worthwhile outside our usual trails.

There’s adventure in unfamiliar terrain — even when that terrain is tarmac.

Keelan & Annie