It was great to be back running in London on Sunday, after many “false starts” and a virtual version, London Marathon was back in all it’s glory. I was privileged to be able to take part. I was supporting Brain and Spine Foundation again with my running, (I would really appreciate it if you show me and them support via my Just Giving page).
The weather was kind, the party atmosphere was back and I made the most of it. I’d not trained properly, a challenging August and September personally meant I just hadn’t had the time to get and do the miles, but instead I took the chance to take it steady, snap plenty of photos and just make the most of the experience.
No long runs = painful legs
It was quite clear from my splits that my lack of long runs in the preceding weeks meant that from mile 16 my pace dropped a little, but the amazing support and the festive atmosphere kept me moving and meant that I could mostly block out the complaints from my legs. My only real problem was at mile 23 when for some reason I got a really painful stitch and had to walk and breathe deep for a couple of minutes till it eased. By then I could “smell” the finish and managed to get the legs turning for the sprint (for that read fast jog) down the Mall. The volunteers at the finish were amazing, congratulating and encouraging us as our legs tried to get us to the relevant crate to retrieve our bags and don our coveted medals.
Bike and train is best
There was, of course, only one way to travel to and from London, bike and train. So, yes, that did mean on my return to Coventry I had to get my weary legs moving to pedal the final few miles home. But, actually, it proved a great way to loosen them off! At least that was one part of my adventure that had less planetary impact, I also used a trail pack while running rather than grabbing drinks at every aid station, but it is my one concern with these mass start events – the level of resources used from plastic bottles through to car journeys – we need to get better at planning events to reduce impact.
And next . . .
And yes, even though walking downstairs is a struggle and my legs are a “little” sore today, it didn’t stop me from clicking straight through to the London Marathon website to enter next year’s ballot, are you going to be entering too?
But the next goal is to reach twenty marathons, two more to go and then of course just another eighty to join the 100 marathon club. And while a few of those will be mass start city marathons, I’m also looking forward to running more trail marathons, a much more chilled experience, like this marathon I did in Shropshire.
On social & the airwaves
Of course I shared my adventures on Insta and Twitter (even while I was running!) and Trish from BBC Coventry and Warwickshire Radio thought she would have a chat with me on air about it too, so here’s the interview I did on the Monday after and a gallery of the photos I took while pounding the streets of London.
My stats
If you want to check out my stats, here you go: