【 Road to Shonan International Marathon 2022] VOL.3 What is the new view of marathon seen through "My Bottle"? A report on the day of the marathon!

The day of the marathon was perfect!

The 17th Shonan International Marathon was held on December 4, 2022, marking the first time in three years since the 14th marathon in December 2019. The day of the marathon was a perfect one, with pleasant blue skies over the Shonan area.

There were four categories: "Full Marathon," "Fun Run 10 km," "Fun Run 2 km," and "Run & Walk 1.4 km," with a total of approximately 17,000 runners in all categories. HOUYHNHNM RUNNING CLUB's members participated in the full marathon.

The four members are shown here. From left, HOUYHNHNM's deputy editor Hiroshi Yamamoto, "The North Face Sphere" staff member Saki Yabuki, HOUYHNHNM's editor Hideki Shibayama, and writer Issey Enomoto.

Everyone's motivation for this race was different. Yamamoto and Enomoto did not set a specific time goal and decided to run at their own pace while having fun. Yabuki, who completed the Yokohama Marathon in October in 3 hours and 49 minutes, said she wanted to achieve a sub-4 (under 4 hours) time this time, while keeping her running pace low. Shibayama, who had not run a full marathon in a few years, was very enthusiastic and had set high goals of beating his personal best and running a sub-3.5 (under 3.5 hours) marathon. Let's see what will happen.

New rule: "must have my own bottle."

A major feature of this year's event is the introduction of the new rule of "must carry your own bottle. No paper cups will be provided for water supply, and runners will start the race carrying their own bottles (400㎖ or more) filled to the brim with water, and will be required to drink water themselves at the water supply points provided on the course.

The aim of establishing such rules is to reduce trash, which has been an issue in previous marathons. In the previous "Shonan International Marathon," 31,500 plastic bottles and 500,000 disposable cups were provided, but these will be completely eliminated in this marathon.

Before the start, Enomoto pours water into his own bottle at a water booth set up at the race site. Running with one's own bottle and watering the runners themselves is a common practice in trail run races, but this is an unprecedented attempt in a full marathon on the road.

In addition to the must-have own bottle, it was also recommended to carry own cups for sports drinks and other fun drinks.

Running along the scenic Shonan seaside!

The gun sounded at 9:00 a.m. and off we went!

Looking around, I saw many runners carrying trail-run sacks and a few with belt-type bags around their waists. Each was carrying his or her own bottle and cup in his or her own style.

Here is the course for the full marathon section.

From the Oiso Nishi IC of the Nishi-Shon Bypass, head east on Route 134 and make the first turnaround at the 19.2-kilometer point at the entrance to Enoshima. The race will then continue back the way it came, passing right next to the finish line before continuing on to the Nishinomiya IC of the Nishi-Shon Bypass at the 39.6 km point for a second turnaround, finishing at the Oiso Prince Hotel, a distance of 42.195 km.

As you can see from the course map, the Shonan International Marathon is run almost entirely along the coast. One of the major attractions of this marathon is that you can run while enjoying the view of the beautiful Shonan Sea.

From the course, we could see snow-capped Mt.

A new view of "no paper cup clutter."

No paper cups were provided for water supply, and runners had to bring their own bottles and cups for their own water supply. There were more than 200 water supply points along the course, with an average water stop every 200 meters.

Mr. Yabuki refills his own bottle of water during the race. He is also into trail running these days, so he is familiar with how to handle his own bottle.

In addition to water, sports drinks, barley tea, and calpis were available at the water supply points.

Yamamoto pours a sports drink into his own cup stored in his backpack. Yamamoto said, "I had heard beforehand that there were water supply points about every 200 meters, but I felt the intervals were shorter than that. There were no crowds or lines, so I was able to drink without stress," said Yamamoto.

There are no paper cups littering the streets near the water supply points. This is a new view of the marathon, made possible by the new "must carry your own bottle" rule.

The aid stations were well stocked with refreshments. In addition to the usual refreshments such as hot-air tablets, bananas, and energy gels, there were also unique items such as Shonan's specialty kama-age shirasu (dried young sardines) and individually packaged Uiro (sea urchin).

Now it's time to go to the finish gate!

After turning around at the Enoshima entrance, go back the way you came and continue for a while before entering the Seishon Bypass, where you will see the finish gate on your right, set up at the Oiso Prince Hotel.

The finish gate is right in front of you, and you're just passing it by! All the runners were saying to themselves, "We're not going to pass the finish gate! This is still the 37 km point. There are still 5 kilometers to go.

After another 2.5 km and a second turnaround, we finally reached the finish gate!

And the finish!

All the members of HOUYHNHNM RUNNING CLUB ♡ were able to complete the race safely. The results are as follows

Hideki Shibayama: 3 hours, 41 minutes, 01 second
Saki Yabuki: 4 hours, 01 minutes, 23 seconds
Hiroshi Yamamoto: 4 hours, 11 minutes, 11 seconds
Issey Enomoto: 4 hours, 23 minutes, 49 seconds

Shibayama, who had been aiming for sub-3.5, was running at a brisk 5-minute kilometer pace in the first half of the race, but he suddenly lost steam around the 30km mark. He fell about 10 minutes short of his goal. Yabuki also did not achieve a sub-4 time, but his time was quite good. Yamamoto and Enomoto kept their own pace throughout the race. They completed the 42.195 km without any major disruptions.

How was the My Bottle Marathon?

The My Bottle Marathon was our first attempt. What did you think and feel when you actually ran the marathon? On behalf of the members, we asked Mr. Shibayama of HOUYHNHNM's and Mr. Yabuki of The North Face Sphere what they thought.

First of all, I would like to say something. A full marathon is hard, after all, (laughs). I am disappointed that I could not achieve sub-3.5, but it motivated me to do it again next time! But it motivated me to do it again next time! And about the new rule of carrying your own bottle. Even though there were water supply spots every 200m or so, I never saw any trash during the race.

This would have been unthinkable in a conventional race, and GOLDWIN and The North Face are doing a great job of setting a new standard. A full marathon that produces no waste may seem new at the moment, but I think it will gradually become the norm.

I had a great time at this year's My Bottle Marathon. The temperature was higher than I expected on the day of the race, and I was honestly nervous that I would run out of water. Once the race started, there were more jugs than I had imagined, so I was able to drink water at my own pace, which made it easier for me to run. The jugs were also very easy to handle. My bottle makes running more stress-free than I had imagined, so I would definitely recommend trying it out at other competitions.

I hope that this marathon will encourage as many people as possible to think about the environment, and I would like to spread the joy of the My Bottle Marathon. Saki Yabuki, The North Face Sphere)

The "My Bottle Marathon," a first experience for both runners and organizers, has come to a close, bringing to a close the three-part series "Road to Shonan International Marathon 2022.

The Shonan International Marathon this time made me think about various things through the unprecedented marathon experience of running with my own bottle. Watering with paper cups, which I had previously taken for granted, was actually not the norm. And, as in a trail run race, there is no problem in running a full marathon even if you carry your own bottle and supply your own water. Such realizations and learnings may have been the biggest gain of participating in this year's marathon.

Text_Issey Enomoto