After a teary goodbye to Isabella who went to stay at my parents, Lee and I set off for the train to London.
After a reasonably straight forward journey we got to the expo. Wow. It was busy! After nearly 4 hours on trains, waiting in a queue was not top of our list of things we'd like to do. To then be moved to a second queue was equally as un-fun- I don't care that it isn't a word! Lee, having not been to London since attending the theatre to see Cats aged 15 was having a baptism of fire of experiencing London at the busiest time possible.
Finally escaping the expo to head to our hotel was massively stressful (don't talk to me about Oyster cards!), and google maps was incredibly unhelpful; but arriving dishevelled and ready to relax, the hotel receptionist presented us with warm cookies and we headed to the room collapsing on the bed!
After winding down, I insisted on being in bed and asleep for 9pm and thankfully I managed a good night sleep.
The next morning- 6am to be exact I got up and ready. Lee made my wallpaper paste- like porridge which I could barely stomach. My kit bag was ready and my timing chip secured on my trainer we headed to the DLR and Lee left me as I boarded heading to Blackheath for the start. A lovely couple (the lady was also in the blue start) adopted me on the journey as I had no idea where I was going!
Getting to Blackheath and a huge field full of runners it was freezing cold! I found my way to the Lucozade stand where I know Run Mummy Runners and the Shabbas would be. I stayed with the RMR group before heading off and finally finding the Shabbas! The time with them just summed up why it's great to be part of a team :-). A loooong queue for the toilet and kit bag dropped off saw the start fast approaching and we all headed over to the starter pens!
I haven't mentioned my lucky charms! I'm not a great believer in luck (make your own!) but I did carry a couple of things with me. Isabella's hair clip and the blue earrings I wore for Grandad's funeral I had worn for Stafford so I figured I should wear them for the marathon. Added to this Lee's race clips for my number and a coin from my dad with a runner on (that he found when he was thinking about me doing the marathon- spooky). All I was missing was a rabbit foot and a 4 leaf clover!
The start was busy and when we finally got going I discarded my bin bag (that had done little to keep me warm) and walked up to the start of the race. I'd started my music and felt good, I was going to do this!!
The first half marathon flew and I hit my target time, just over 2 hours. I was on track! My next target was to get to 15, then 19- my training distance. 17 miles and I crumbled, the wall came suddenly and out of nowhere and I just couldn't run any more. I started walking and made a couple of emergency calls for some support. Firstly dad- somewhat inexperienced in the 'I can't I can't' speech said 'weeell if you can't finish' to which I replied you aren't supposed to say that so he changed tactics and told me to keep going. Speaking to Lee and I received a stern talking to that I didn't have long now and to pull myself together which I needed! A mixture of running and walking got me to 22 miles. Realisation dawned and I wondered how the hell I had got this far without stopping?! It was time to get myself into gear and as the crowds were building I started running again and pushed myself to keep going right to the end. And I bloody well did with a small sprint finish. I can't even explain the relief of rounding the corner to see the finish line.
I had done it! 4:37:04 I'd actually done a marathon! Receiving a hug from the medal lady after bursting into tears I limped my way along to get my goody bag and kit bag. The road seemed to go on forever! I must have walked about a mile after the finish.
Being 6'2 has its advantages. Especially when trying to spot said person in a huge crowd. Thanks for being tall Lee!
I'm going to round it off here- if you got this far thank you for taking the time to read- it's just a brief write up really. The journey back to the hotel was painful and slow but I can't even explain the relief of finishing.
A lot of people got me through my marathon, those with us and those that aren't- thank you so much to everyone who supported me during my training, listening to me moan and believing in me. It's certainly been....an experience!
Will I do another one? At the moment I'm happy to say I'm 22 and I've done London marathon and I'm not planning to do another one anytime soon; but who knows?!
No comments:
Post a Comment