The
Agony and the ecstasy of
The London Marathon.
Considering how worked up I had become prior to the Marathon, I was remarkably calm on the morning even though I had been awake since 3.30am! I am aware that some of you will disagree with this. I just had this feeling of lets get going and get this thing over with, after months of thinking about nothing else.
One of my biggest worries was the weather. I am not very good at running in the wet and cold, so on the day it could not have been more perfect for me – warm and sunny! The journey to London was easy and the DLR ride across to Greenwich Park. We met up with Derek’s cousin and it was great that Carol, Jon and I could all start in the same pen together. To be able to stand chatting with everyone right up until the start time was good for calming any last minute nerves.
Once out of the park and through the start line, we were amazed at how quickly you could start running and the amount of space you had. Jon went off pretty quick to keep up with the sub 4 hour pace makers. Carol and I just decided to take it easy and see how we went, my cousin Kim’s words of advice ringing in my ears not to get too excited and run off quickly. After a couple of miles Carol stopped for a call of nature and we said our goodbyes.
I spent the first 6-7 miles on a complete high. I could not believe the atmosphere of the spectators. Everyone had said to me how good London was, but this was just incredible. People were calling your name, giving you high fives, sweets/fruit, there were bands playing, at every pub there were people drinking and playing music – it was just fantastic.
As
I approached famous landmarks it bought it home
to me that I was actually running in the London
Marathon, something I had wanted to do since seeing
my cousin Jeff run it for the first time some 17
years ago!
Running over Tower Bridge was very emotional. It
is a flash point of the television coverage and
a landmark I have always associated with the London
Marathon. The noise from the crowd just doubles
in volume as you run this point – it was quite
amazing and will never forget it. Shortly after
this I saw all my family/friends that had come to
support me and this gave me a real spurt of energy.
Knowing they would be there at the half way point
and giving them a wave was fantastic.
Psychologically the next 10 miles seemed quite tough.
Having worked in this part of London, I knew I was
now running in the other direction to the finish
line and you were running parallel with people who
were at the 22 mile mark. However, the crowd, once
again, just kept me going. I did not need to turn
on my MP3 player at all and I was feeling really
good.
Once out of the Docklands and back past Tower Bridge,
I knew I was going to make it and started feeling
really excited about finishing. Running down Embankment
and seeing Big Ben ahead of you was another high
point of the race for me. I was still feeling really
good and kept waiting to hit the wall everyone talks
about and then just a couple of miles from the end
my knee pain started. I was determined to carry
on running and seeing my family and friends
at Bird Cage Walk did the trick. Suddenly there
was Buckingham Palace in front of me
| School Photo's December 2007 | |
| Christmas 2007 | |
| Memories of 2006 | |
| Twin Cites Marathon 2006 | |
| London Marathon 2006 | |
| Ann & Colin's Ruby Anniversary |  |
| London Marathon 2005 | |
London
Marathon 2005 |
|
| Christmas |
and I was turning the corner and heading down The Mall and the finish line I have seen on the television so many times was in sight. As I finished I just burst into tears and just kept saying over and over “I did it – I did it”. Of course so had everyone else around me so no-one was really interested, but I have to say you feel a little delirious after 26.2 miles! Jeff had said to me the first marathon is the best and I can quite believe it, as I cannot imagine anything matching that feeling when you cross the finish line and they hang the medal round your neck, the tremendous sense of achievement mixed with pure and utter relief and exhaustion!
How I managed to walk down Horse Guards Parade to meet up with everyone I will never know. I just kept telling myself not to sit down and thank goodness for the Liquorice Allsorts in the goody bag – they have never tasted so good. When I got to our prearranged meeting point there were literally hundreds of people. I eventually spotted Derek standing on a wall and quite frankly have never been so pleased to see him (other than our wedding day of course!).
We then made our way to the Sense Charity post race reception. After a hot meal, cup of tea and a massage we then made our way home. In my case this was very slowly whilst being supported either side by my Dad and husband!
This has to be one of the best things I have ever done and I would say to anyone who has a slight inclination to run the London Marathon to do it. It was a fantastic day and one that I will never forget!