The Pride 10km, London

A few weeks ago Gay Pride took over London. A fantastic atmosphere as always.

Last weekend on 15th August was the Pride 10km in Victoria Park in London. It was my first time getting to take part in the event and I was really looking forward to it. Especially as I was given the coveted participant number 69. Couldn't have wished for a better one!

With Victoria Park being in East London it is not an area I have ventured to frequently (with me being based in West London); however arriving at the park it was clear I should make the journey more often. It's a lovely spot and with the sun shining it was shaping up to be a perfect place and day for a race.

I had my two year old niece Jessica in tow with me which meant that my warm up consisted of us doing some spins together and taking her to see the colourful garlands the start marshalls were wearing. I didn't mind as I wasn't particularly aiming for a top time so the day was all about having fun.

There were around 1,200 people running which meant that the start line wasn't too crowded. I handed Jessica over to Steven and got a place in the first wave. The count down happened and we were off. Three circuits of the park ahead of us.

The group spread out fairly quickly and the first lap seemed to go pretty quickly. Jessica and Steven gave me a good cheer. By the second lap I could hear someone just behind me and we stayed that way all the way around. Steven and Jessica gave me a good cheer this time with some rainbow Union Jacks they had managed to get hold of. On the third lap the breathing behind me got closer (in a non slasher movie way) and the runner slightly overtook me. It was certainly good having someone running at the same pace to keep me pushing myself. I kept up with him and and in the last few hundred meters I pulled myself past him and crossed the finish line with a final cheer from Jessica and Steven.

I placed 23rd in a time of 36 minutes and 59 seconds which despite me not aiming for a PB is a good time and my fastest one of the year. So maybe spinning with a toddler is the way to warm up from now on?!

It was a fantastic event and enjoying a picnic in the park post run was a delight. A lovely day and I was proud to be part of it.

Until next year Pride 10km :-)

Breakfast on the tube. What other way is there to dine?

The best race number I have ever been given:

One more hug before starting:

Action shot:

Post race stretching:

The Highland Games: Perth half marathon

I have been lucky enough to live in the following places:

Athens
Brussels
Perth, Scotland
Newcastle Upon Tyne
London
Sydney

My parents were from Liverpool so I also count this as one of my lived in places since I have spent many a school holiday there during my youth.

So long before my Olympic challenge I had said to myself that I would like to run in all of the above places. Perth was the only remaining one and two weeks ago on the 8th August I got to tick it off.

It was the inaugural Perth half marathon which formed part of the Highland Games weekend. Ordinarily the longest event was the Perth Kilt run...a 5km where participants run in kilts. Fairly self explanatory eh? But this year would be the first half marathon. Kilts were not expected but you were encouraged to wear a touch of tartan.

I signed up. I left London on the Caledonian Sleeper on Friday night and arrived into Perth at 6am Saturday morning. A mere 4.5 hours prior to start time of the race. I have the ability to sleep anywhere so I had grabbed a few hours of shut eye on the train, so much so that I had a panic I had missed my stop. Fortunately I was mistaken and was only at Stirling. It turned out to be a good place to wake up as the sunrise was spectacular.

I wandered through central Perth to the park (known as the Inch) reminiscing about my mid to late teen years spent in the city. It felt lovely to be back.

I registered and picked up my number. I stored my cases and jumped onto the bus to the start line. We were taken out of town to the airport. In the three years I had lived in Perth I had never known there was an airport so everyday was indeed a school day. The race would take us through the rural hills and farms back towards the city with the final approach via Scone (that's pronounced Scoone despite what Shakespeare may have thought when he penned Macbeth) and over the bridge back to the Inch where we would finish.

There were around 300 of us running including my friend Lesley and her boyfriend Alan. I hadn't seen Lesley since I was 19 so it was a real treat to meet up again.

The instructions were to keep running straight until we saw either an arrow pointing us to turn or a marshall told us to do so. There were going to be water stops every three miles. Seemed simple. We all lined up at the start and were given a ten second count down. Off we went. I was in the start of the group and out in to the countryside we went.

The terrain was different to my usual London urban training ground but it was beautiful being out in the sunshine, Fairly quickly into the first mile I felt the leader pull me away from those behind us. As we moved up to the first mile marker I couldn't hear anyone behind me and the leader was quickly going out of my view. He was quick.

Three miles came pretty quickly and the first water stop. It was refreshing. We carried on through a few farms including one where a little dog followed me for a while. I was worried if he trailed me for too long he would get lost but he soon stopped and turned back to the farm buildings. Phew.

We then were running parallel to the river Tay. It was beautiful. As I was on my own it felt like I had the entire countryside to myself. I had never been around this area and I was enjoying the semi trail run rather than the typical road race I am used to. However; as I glanced at my watch I noticed the time creep passed the time when I would expect to hit the six mile mark. Had I missed a turn? I carried on for you a while. The water stop still wasn't there. About another 5 minutes later I was still firmly on my own and was starting to think that I was either going to have to turn around or stop and wait for a few minutes to see if anyone caught me up. Just as I turned the corner I saw a marshall. I felt elated. I was still on track! It turned out that the water station had been a little before six miles and wasn't quite ready when I had gone past. Nevermind. At least it meant I wasn't running off in the wrong direction into the Scottish Highlands.

The rest of the race went smoothly and crossing the river back into central Perth felt good. It really is a picturesque city. Our last few miles were circumnavigating the Inch which was pleasant and despite me taking a slightly wrong turn where a marshall informed me that "you're ganging the wrong way" (I love the Scottish accent) I crossed the line in second place. Much more than I ever expected. I was lucky enough to be given a porridge mixer (a gift from the Perth kilt run in Canada) as well as collecting a prize from the race today. My time was 1 hour 23 minutes 21 seconds.

The rest of the weekend went something like this:

 - Post race cider celebrations with Lesley and Alan
 - Two nights out with a dear friend
 - 4 mate dates in one day (some whom I hadn't seen for years)
 - A trip on the Caledonian Sleeper back to London in time for work on Monday morning

The race was really good fun and I hope they decide to run it again as I would love to come back. Maybe I could even try and go for first place now I know the terrain and route?!

Thanks Perth!

Waking up to a stunning sunrise in Stirling:

Me, Lesley and Alan post race. Their tartan effort far out stripped (the willow) mine:

Collecting my second place prize:

The Great Newham London Run

Today was the Great Newham London Run.

Last year was the Anniversary Run (of the 2012 Games) in the Olympic Park which took us on a 5 mile loop of the park itself but not going into any of the venues.

This year though we would get to finish in the Olympic Stadium. I was sold and signed up.

The Olympic Park for me still holds the excitement of the Games even though it was three years ago. I love going there. So arriving this morning I was excited about the race.

Today was actually a 10km race rather than the 5 mile that it was last year. Luckily I had met someone in the pub a few weeks ago and after a few drinks were talking about running. We realised we were racing on the same day both in the Olympic Park but I was insistent that mine was a 5 mile and he was sure his was a 10km. A quick check on the trusty smart phone and it transpired he was correct. So there is good that comes out of trips to the pub otherwise I could have been searching for an extra mile for the finish line today.

The atmosphere was great at the start line and it is so nice not freezing your tits off waiting for the gun to go off. After a little delay Paula Radcliffe fired the gun and across the line we went.

It was pretty crowded at the start and was a bit of a bottle neck so I didn't get into my flow until we approached the 1km mark. After that I felt like I was on pace. I was hoping for a PB.

The KMs were going by pretty quickly but the heat was getting stronger. I was sweating and looking forward to the one drink stop at about 5.5km. Prior to the drink stop was a run through shower which was a real treat. The park is surprisingly undulating with some steep climbs which were tough in the heat but in my head I just kept thinking that what goes up must come down right?

7km, 8km went by and then we were heading towards the stadium. 9km went past. I wasn't on track for a PB but wouldn't be too far off so pushed on through. We entered the stadium and ran around (the inside) for about 200m. Then I could see light at the end of the tunnel. We turned a corner and hit the track. It felt cool. The crowd were loud and it was impossible not to watch them. As I rounded the far corner I spotted Steven. I waved. The crowd cheered. I felt like and Olympian.

I carried on for the final 100m and crossed the line. Paula Radcliffe was next to the finish line and I caught her eye as I finished. She congratulated me.

So my results were:

Time: 37m 24s
Place: 60th overall
Gender place (35-39 age group): 12th

So no PB (missing out by 59 seconds) but an awesome run and a good result in the heat. It wasn't an easy one but certainly a good 'un as they say.

I have already signed up for the race next year so let's see what 2016 brings?

The Olympic Park:

The finishing stretch:

The result:

The prize:

My last few hundred meters:

The mighty Paula:

A catch up on the last month: London Triathlon & Liverpool Half

So it appears that work has gotten in the way of keeping up with my blog. How rude.

So in the past month I have had a couple of events which I will now summarise briefly.

London World Triathlon

31st May was the World Triathlon in London's Hyde Park. I had entered last year but due to my back explosion (see graphic blog post from this time last year) I couldn't take part. So here I was one year later back to take on the challenge. Except this year my bike had since been stolen so I was on a borrowed mountain bike. Oh well...the bike portion is never my best and I wasn't aiming for a particular time so I was just pleased to be able to take part.

Arriving at Hyde Park there was light drizzle which is not altogether too bad to compete in until I rounded a corner just by the Serpentine and saw a cyclist in an earlier wave take a corner and come sliding off their bike all the way across the road. Ouch. He jumped up and was back on the bike. Good for him although it made me more nervous about the cycle part.

Checked in and all my gear ready at transition my group lined up at the Serpentine to jump in the water...just as the heavens opened. Torrential rain. Not really a problem for me as I was about to get wet anyway but for the spectators that cannot be fun. With the rain easing off we started the race.

The breakdown was:

Swim =  400m
Bike: 15.5km
Run: 2.5km

Shorter than the other triathlons I had done but I was excited about doing it in Hyde Park.

The swim was fun and going past the giant swim models they had in the water was pretty cool. Out of the swim it was a short run to transition and then onto the bike. The mountain bike was ok to ride although the chain was creaking and felt like it came off a few times. It was a pleasant ride though through the splendid surroundings. I fear I may have resembled a Sunday morning leisurely cyclists as there were a lot of people speeding past me; however I was happy to take it slow as on the same corner I mentioned before I saw one cyclist come off their bike on each lap. Safety first for me. Back into transition and onto the run. This was were I could get my own back and speed past others.

I was then in the final stretch in front of the crowd and made my way over the finish line just behind the Brownlee brothers. Just kidding of course. My results were:

Overall: 1 hour 25 seconds placing me 85th out of 239.

Swim: 6 minutes 54 seconds (32nd out of 239)
Transition 1: 5 minutes 57 seconds
Bike: 37 minutes 32 seconds (179th out of 239)
Transition 2: 1 minute 39 seconds
Run: 8 minutes 23 seconds (1st out of 239)

Clear from the above that I am good at swimming and running and clearly suck on the bike!

A good day and I will be back to take part next year as it's such a great event (that's provided I actually buy a new bike.)

Mountain bike to the rescue (thanks Steven!)

Swimming in the Serpentine (in the rain)

Going for a gentle cycle....

Finishing strong!

Done!

Liverpool Rock n Roll Half Marathon

Last year was the inaugural Rock n Roll race in Liverpool. They are well organised events and I have happy memories of running others like Edinburgh and Las Vegas so I was happy to sign myself up for the next Liverpool installment; particularly as they promised me an extra bit of bling in the form of a "Rock Encore" medal for having running the inaugural race and then this years one. I was sold. The race was a few weeks back now on 14th June 2015.

Race preparation the day before took a slightly different mode to my usual. We had a family day out at the beach in Formby enjoying a picnic, a game of rounders and a wander through the squirrel reserve next o the beach. Very reminiscent of the days when we would visit England in my school holidays to visit the extended family. Marvellous. 

Awaking on race morning my legs were a little sore. Who knew a game of rounders in the sand would work so many muscles?!

The start was at the Albert Dock which is just a stunning place to be. I may be biased but Liverpool is indeed a World class city. We started and were on our way along the river and soon up into the town centre. We passed the dog statue thing (Google it) and then through China town which has the oldest Chinese arch in the UK. Through Sefton Park I saw some of my family cheering me on which was awesome (high fives all round) and then on toward the river we went. 

I was making fairly good time and was with the leading ladies when we turned onto the river for a 4 mile stretch back to the finish. As soon as we hit the riverfront I was confronted with the most fierce headwind I have ever run in. It was relentless. It didn't give up for the entire 4 miles to the finish; although neither did I. I knew a PB was out of the question but I refused to walk. I crossed the line just happy to be able to stop! My results were:

 Time: 1 hour 23 minutes 32 seconds

Place: 42nd out of about 13,000 starters

So not a bad performance and rumours were that the wind was adding on about 2 minutes to most people's PBs so I was happy with that.

Plus the bling looked good! Rock n Roll certainly delivered on that front...

Serious rounders game on the beach:

I actually only spotted two of the red squirrels but still a marvellous place:

A mo running in slo mo:

Bupa 10,000 - London

Monday was the Bupa 10,000 in central London.

I was excited about running in my favourite city and 10km is not too daunting for a bank holiday Monday.

I was well behaved the night before (unlike in Los Angeles) eating LOTS of pasta and bread (with a quarter of a cheesecake for afters.) A little indulgent I feel but at least I was going to run (a percentage of) it off in the morning.

I arrived at Green Park (so called because the King once gave a flower to a lady in waiting whilst walking in the park so the Queen promptly had all flowers removed from the park) and had to pick up my number as it didn't arrive in the post. Quite a lengthy queue but it moved pretty quickly and it gave me a chance to finish my breakfast :-)

I was in the first start wave so made my way down to the pens. We were starting the race on The Mall with our backdrop being Buckingham Palace. A stunning place to line up. Soon enough the pen was filled up and the familiar feeling of body heat surrounded me.

The elites made their way to the start line and at 10am we were off. Down The Mall and through Trafalgar Square. Along The Strand through The Aldwych and around Holborn where I used to work when I very first moved to London in 2000. Lovely memories. On through The City and St Paul's I was thoroughly enjoying every kilometer that passed and the sights were certainly enjoyable to see.

Soon we were back on The Strand and were passing (in the opposite direction) those from subsequent start waves completing their first kilometer.

The last KM is always a tough one as the end feels so close but yet it's really hard to up the pace. I had forgotten to wear my watch so I had no idea how well I was doing so just kept up as best I could and crossed the line in front of Buckingham Palace with Prince Harry waving to me from the balcony. OK so that last bit is a lie but it's true to say that is where the race finished.

I heard the race commentator saying that we were approaching 37 minutes on the clock which I was happy with. The clock was still showing 36m 50s when I went across meaning that I was inside the 36m mark as I set off a little after the gun start time. My official result was:

Overall place: 301
Gender place: 266
10KM time: 36 minutes 46 seconds
5KM split time: 18 minutes 15 seconds    

Not a bad result at all out of 12,000 runners and a very elite field in front of me! Jo Pavey retaining her title after having been up all night ill the night before baffles me. She is amazing and I love chasing her in races :-)

So I was actually only 20 seconds off a PB which if I had worn my watch maybe I would have been able to make up? Let's see at the next 10KM in a few months time.

Post race I enjoyed a lovely walk through this fabulous city, some retail therapy (a must on a bank holiday) and a swim in the Olympic Pool. Sadly no trace of the Team GB diving team at the pool though. Maybe one day my stalking will pay off eh?

Start line featuring Ms. Pavey:

Waiting for the pen to fill up: 

Looking back to a rather marvellous house: 

City 19 done: Los Angeles

A little bit behind on updating the blog; however I have completed my 19th Olympic City. Los Angeles has been ticked off the list.

My holiday in LA was awesome and included:

 - Shopping in Jimmy Choo on Rodeo Drive

 - Hiking in the Hollywood Hills

 - Riding tandems along Venice Beach

 - Drag shows at Hamburger Mary's

 - Getting very drunk in West Hollywood

 - Manicures on Sunset

However; I should talk about the actual race right? Well I had entered the Tinkerbell Half Marathon in Disneyland and it took place on Sunday 10th May. 

The race was an early one starting at 5:30am. The alarm went off at 3:30am and I showered and was ready to leave for race start at 4am. I didn’t actually feel too tired given the lack of sleep. I made my way through Downtown Disney (eating a bowl of porridge on the way) and dropped my bag off. The atmosphere at the race start area was good and the energy was pumping despite the early start. When I arrived the song playing was by the Spice Girls. Did they know I was coming?! 

Fellow runners were a mixture of civilians in ordinary running gear (like me) and those that had been completely Disneyfied and had transformed into various Disney Princess’ and mostly Tinkerbell. I spotted one male runner in a t-shirt with the slogan “Evil Fairy” which I was very jealous over.

We made our way to the start corals in the fairly pleasant temperature. The race was billed as a female focused half marathon meaning that there wasn’t as much testosterone in the start pens as I am used to. I was in start wave B since the A group was reserved exclusively for woman. I spoke to fellow runners who had all run other Disney events before. I can honestly say that the atmosphere was amongst the most friendly I have ever experienced. This truly was going to be a happy race in the happiest place on Earth. My only slight worry was when one competitor had asked me why I was running in the US. I explained about my challenge and this was the turn of LA. He apologized and said that he didn’t like to disappoint me but we weren’t actually in LA and that Disneyland is actually in the city of Orange County so this wouldn’t count. I humoured him whilst thinking to myself that in my eyes it count as a run in LA and for those who don’t agree I had already done a training run from West Hollywood into Beverly Hills (which incidentally I loved) so I had already covered an LA run if people decided not to accept this one.

Given my behavior (in terms of alcohol consumption and lack of sleep) the previous few days I wasn’t going to be aiming for a PB. After all; it was only 24 hours earlier that I had gotten home from the Hamburger Mary’s and West Hollywood drinking session so that clearly isn’t on par with my normal race preparation. So I was just ready to have fun on the run.

The ten second countdown then started. We were off. Minnie Mouse and Daisy Duck (still on girl power theme of the event) waved us off as we crossed the line. The ladies in zone A had set off about 8-10 minutes before my group and since I was at the front of my group it meant it was pretty clear as we made our way along Disneyland Drive for the first mile.

I was keeping fairly good pace and there was only one runner in front of me. He was going very quickly so I had no intention of trying to catch him. As we passed mile 1 I had already caught up with the zone A group. As I was going passed lots of the woman were saying “here come the men, good job” which was secretly a bit of an ego boost.

We then entered the first of the two Disney parks and passed a few characters on the sidelines which was fun. We went through the familiar themed lands and soon enough were passing down Main Street USA and through the famous Disney castle. Even the most manly of men (including me) would struggle not to find that part of the run exciting.

As we carried on past miles 3 and 4 I noticed that I was actually catching up with the leading man. Soon I was then running next to him. I thought we would continue to run together but after a few minutes he started to fall behind. I carried on at my own pace passing miles 5 and 6 still overtaking the last few woman from the leading pack. As I reached mile 7 I was running on my own with no runners in sight ahead of me and as far as I could tell none behind me either. At this point we had left the actual Disney parks and were running on the surrounding streets which were (as all things American) huge wide boulevards. There were pockets of supporters which felt great to run past as it felt like my own personal fans. I high fived a lot of them as I went past to say thanks for being up so early and having the energy to cheer at 6am.

So I was running alone bar the official who was cycling next to me as I was the leader of the men’s race. As we passed each mile I could hear him radio in saying “lead male passing mile 8” and would quote the official clock time as I passed the marker. As this happened at miles 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 and 13 I really then wanted to finish in first place out of the men. I had said to myself at the start that I wasn’t interested in doing a good time but when you have lead a race for this long it would be devastating to lose out in the last few hundred meters. As I was nearing the end the man on the bike told me it was just around the corner and I was home. I pushed on through and the crowds were lined up either side of the last stretch of the race. The cheers were very welcomed. Just as I crossed the line I heard the commentator say that “Michael Long from London" coming home in first place out of the men” which was amazing to hear. I had finished in second place overall but first out of all the men. Not a bad feat out of 16,000 people in total. My finish time was 1 hour 21 minutes 27 seconds. So not a PB but I was really happy. Perhaps it was the fairy wings on my trainers that brought me home in second place?

So that's city number 19 done. I can't believe there are only 4 more cities to go. I am getting worried I won't know what to do with myself when this challenge is finished!

Race bling:

Finishers photo:

The main girl of the race:

It's all about the wings:

The Electric Run, London

Hello Wembley!

Tonight was the Electric Run in London which promised to be the brightest 5km in the World. It did not let me down and delivered on the promise.

For my journey to the run I had hidden my flashing bracelet in my bag as it couldn't actually turn it off. Best to keep it hidden as nobody likes a flasher on the public transport do they? I was; however hoping the battery would last until the end of the run.

Stepping off the tube at Wembley Park I was greeted by the magnificent arch of the Stadium completely lit up in pink. It looked stunning. It was a lovely tribute to the main charity of the night (Breast Cancer Care.)

Lining up at the start the DJ was pumping. The crowd were covered in ultra violet glasses, tops, skirts and a plethora of other paraphernalia. Some were drinking. Some were smoking. It was most definitely a fun run. The build up to kick off time was great. Glow sticks were being thrown into the crowd. The lights were every colour imaginable and the music was electric too. Before I knew it a dance version of Wannabe was on and the ten second count down started. I was shamelesely excited by the choice of song for the start and then we were off. The bracelet which I had now retrieved from my bag and placed firmly on my wrist was now gone. Bollocks. Clearly I hadn't attached it well enough.

Running was a light pace with competitors running, jogging, walking and dancing their way along. We circumnavigated the stadium which gave great views of the finish line below as well as those waiting to start in a later wave.

We passed inflatable ice creams, cakes (which amazingly smelt of bubble gum) and people on stilts.

The KMs were passing quickly and soon we were at a water stop. The cups were all different colours and I wish all drink stations could be like this. All too soon we approached the final stretch which saw us under rainbow coloured arches. The 5km had gone by in a flash. I hadn't timed myself but I would say it had all gone by in less than 25 minutes. The time wasn't important. Tonight was all about electricity.

In summary it was lovely. It was fun. It made me want to head straight to Ibiza (or at a minimum to Soho to see the night out.)

Alas I have returned home and am enjoying a decaf coffee and a macaroon whilst I write. I guess I can't be rock n roll all the time eh?

Thanks Electric Run. I will be back to join you again.

Flashing on the tube:

The beautiful Wembley Stadium arch:

Getting ready at the start line:

WANNABE! Let's go!

I can smell bubblegum:

Runners everywhere!

A drinks station like no other!

The final stretch to the finish line:

Easter Isle of Man festival

Over the bank holiday I went to the Isle of Man. I had never been before. I didn't really know what to expect but one thing was for sure. I was going to be doing the three following races that made up the Easter running festival on the island:

 - 10km on Good Friday in Port Erin
 - 4 mile hill race in Peel
 - 4 x 5km relay in Douglas

I was looking forward to the events and the latter two were races I had never done before so it was going to be a challenge.

I left London and made my way to Liverpool to stay with my cousin. We had arranged a family breakfast early on the Saturday morning as my ferry to Douglas was due to leave at 11am. The family came around. We ate lots. We gossiped. We laughed. I got a text saying the ferry was delayed until 1pm. It gave us a little more time for one more croissant and a few more stories.

I then left and boarded the ferry. It didn't move for ages. It tried to move but couldn't. It moved forward and back. The captain said we were stuck. He tried again. It failed. He called a tug and eventually we left dock at 6:15pm. I was happy to be on my way but it meant I would miss the 10km race as it started a mere 30 minutes later. One fellow runner didn't accept this and left the boat to head for the airport. He made it just in time for the race start. He won. It was worth whatever he paid for the last minute airfare. It was a real shame though for the race organisers as there were still around 150 other runners in total on the stranded ferry which when you consider there were just over 500 in total due to take part a significant percentage were going to be missing.

Despite the disappointment the big groups of University running club athletes kept me amused. Many were on the pints. One had a blow up doll. I'm not really sure why.

Arrival on the Island was late so a quick stop by Pizza Hut (along with other delayed sea travellers) it was then on to find the farm I was staying at and then bed.

On Saturday it was the Peel hill race. Peel itself is really beautiful and I could see the top of the hill from where I was staying. It was massive. It was a little daunting but the atmosphere at the race start was fun. There was man dressed as a bride. An accompanying husband suitably dressed too. A gentleman in a mankini (that's going to hurt surely?) The Thunderbirds were there and they were on the pints. A sentence I never thought I would ever hear.

We lined up and then set of. Around the harbour and then up the hill. It didn't seem to hard. Roll forward 3 minutes and it was very hard. There was a lot of crowd support on the summit which gave all the runners a real boost. I took each step at a time and took in the views. It was stunning. I actually preferred the uphill parts as I felt more in control. Going downhill was too fast for me and I was paranoid I would slip and go over on my ankle. Clearly I need to man up as it seemed like every other competitor passed me at some point on a downhill! Despite that I finished the race in 30m 18s placing me 142nd out of 219 which I was pleased with. I am not sure I will ever be a fell runner full time but I would certainly do this event again. The alcohol post run were flowing (sttudents can be guaranteed to always find an excuse to drink / celebrate) and the fish and chip shop had a rather large queue. It was worth it though.

Sunday then rolled around and it was time for the relay race along the promenade in Douglas. It was a misty morning which I really liked as it gave a unique atmosphere to the race and the town. I registered and told the organisers I was friendless and needed a team to run with. They teamed me up with Ed, Jack and Mark. Our team name was Easter Bunnies. It was Easter Sunday after all.

The 5km route took us 2.5km up along the sea front and then 2.5km back. Pretty easy not to get lost even if it was misty. Our running order was:

Mark
Me
Ed
Jack

Mark was uber fast and came back in third place. Wowsers; that's quite a bit of pressure to maintain that place. I set off pretty quick but soon could hear people behind me ready to overtake. I forgot to set my stopwatch so had no idea how long I had been going. Must be ages surely? Then the 1km market came into site. OMG. In my head I had nearly finished my leg but in reality I had a long way to go. The KMs did pass fairly quickly though and running next to the sea was very pleasant. I was pleased with my time. Here's how the Bunnies did overall:

Mark = 15m 21s
Me = 18m 21s
Ed = 22m 25s
Jack = 18m 02s

A combined time of 74m 40s for the 20km which placed us 21st out of 50 teams. Not a bad effort at all :-)

The festival was really fun and I hope one day to return so that I can take part in all three races. I doubt very much I will ever be able to keep up with the Uni runners but then again they are all about 15 years younger than me! Not jealous at all....

The journey home to the UK was actually worse than the delayed one on the way out. Hard to imagine so here is the short version. Ferry cancelled back to Liverpool. Put on a ferry to Heysham. Had to look up where Heysham was. Ferry couldn't dock at planned 11pm and circled the harbour for high tide until 2am. Had to drive back to London. Arrived home at 8am ready for work one hour later.

I am reading "Never Let Me Go" at the moment which reminds me of this trip every other page as it is set in a school called Hailsham (very similar sounding to Heysham) where kids are bred for organ donation. If it came to a choice between going to Hailsham or on the IOM ferry again I choose the organ donation.

The journey did allow me fifteen minutes (well fifteen second really) of fame on the news:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-isle-of-man-32203112

However; when it comes down to choosing whether to go to the IOM again and the running festival the answer is a resounding yes. I love it there and will return. I will just travel by plane next time!

Tug boat to the rescue!

The hills are alive with the sound of panting:

Run along the prom:

City 18 done: Seoul

It has been 7 months since my last "Olympic" run. Far too long for my liking so it was nice to get back to my challenge!

I had my eye on the Seoul International Marathon as my event to do in Seoul but wasn’t sure about doing another full marathon. It's been over three years since my last one and I have only done two before.

However; I took the decision to enter the marathon earlier this year so I had three months to prepare and there was no going back. I secretly wanted to see if I could break the three hour mark on race day. Read on to see if I did.....

I arrived in Seoul and it was absolutely freezing. Literally. It was so cold that walking for 8-10 minutes outside left me looking for the nearest coffee shop to go into to get warm. I checked the temperature on my phone. -1 degree centigrade. WTF? I was panicked for a while until I saw that as the week went by it was due to heat up to a tropical 11 degrees on race day. Phew!

Soon enough race day was here. I was excited but also quite nervous. The thought of running 26.2 miles was a little daunting plus I was putting myself under my own pressure of a good time. None the less I showered, dressed and ate a glamourous breakfast of Oats So Simple and bananas in my room before heading to the start line in the center of town.

The atmosphere at the start was good. Everyone was in a cheerful mood and the warm up was done to very upbeat K-Pop (which I became a huge fan of during the trip) with some very energetic girls leading on a podium in hot pants. I have noted a few of the moves for my next night of clubbing.

Then the start gun went off. I crossed the line and quickly got into my pace. A little quicker than I had intended.

The kilometers seemed to be flying by and before I knew it I had passed the 6km and then 16km markers. We were running through the area of town where I was been staying and where I had done my last few easy training runs once I arrived in Seoul. 

There is a sunken river that used to be a motorway which is stunning. We ran all the way along it and even took in some of the end sections where the motorway is still there in semi derelict form. Urban running at its best. We looped back on ourselves during this section and I caught a glimpse of the 3 hour pacemaker. He was way ahead of me on the other side of the river so there was no way I was going to catch him but I thought I seemed to be running at around the same pace. The drinks stations were every 5km and I made sure I filled up on water and iso drinks at each opportunity. I felt good reaching the 20km mark and was still tracking good time. I had filled my pockets with jelly beans and at this point started to take a few to keep my sugar levels up. They tasted good.

The route had remained fairly flat and the kilometers were still going by very quickly. At the half way point I crossed in about 1 hour 22 minutes which I knew was fast. I was happy to be on track for sub three hours and I knew that I had an “extra” eight minutes to do the second half. Just beyond this point I did have to start planning a re-creation of one of Paula Radcliffe’s most famous moments. Where could I pee? I hadn’t really noticed any loos along the route so searching out for a roadside bush was a must. I had noticed a few people doing this way back at the start so I figured I would not get arrested for doing the same. I spotted a place with no spectators nearby and made my way of for some relief. 

Onwards I then went. As I reached the 30km mark I was still pacing well but my legs had started to feel a little heavy. There was a food station at this point so I refueled with a banana (my fourth of the day so far) and more jelly beans. I then didn’t focus on the rest of the race but merely on getting to the 35km mark when I would treat myself to more sugar. The kilometers were certainly not flying by from this point and I could tell I was slowing down. Reaching the 35km mark I was happy (particularly as it had been the steepest incline of the race to reach it) and the views across the river were lovely. That said though I could see the Olympic Stadium where we were due to finish across the other side of the river and realised it was a further 7km before we would be inside it. That’s a long way. 

I knew I wouldn’t make it within three hours at this stage since my pace had slowed quite a lot so I focused on beating the 3 hours 15 minutes. I decided to run each kilometer and then walk for 15 seconds to rest and then run to the next kilometer marker. This seemed to work for me and whilst I was disappointed to have to stop for short breaks I thought it was best to arrive at the finish in one piece. Soon I was at 40km with only 2km to go. I carried on with the same strategy and then there was only 1km to go. Woo hoo! Soon I was then inside the stadium. Less than once around the track and I would be home. I looked at my watch as I crossed the line. 3 hours 3 minutes 36 seconds. Almost all the threes! It placed me 537^th out of 20,000 starters. 

So not quite under the 3 hour mark but still beating my marathon PB by 47 minutes....I'll take that! 

So that is city number 18 done and it's not long until city number 19 takes to the stage. Bring on Los Angeles in a few weeks time!

Until then...... 

Finished at the end

With my South Korean flag. Olympic city 18 done!

Bath half marathon

Today was the Bath half marathon.

Bath is a beautiful place so yesterday was a treat to spend the afternoon there. I had also treated myself to staying in a lovely guesthouse that was part of the Mr & Mrs Smith group...a group of hotels I had always wanted to stay in.

The hotel did not disappoint. I was actually quite pleased that the only dinner reservation time I could get was at 18:30 (since town was totally full of runners) as it meant I got to spend more time relaxing in the room.

The race today was also due to start at 11am. Again another treat in that I could "sleep in" until 07:30 before getting up for breakfast. Race days normally involve a very early rise time due to most races starting at 9am.

So today I had a relaxed breakfast in the hotel and made the short wander to the start line. There were 15,000 people or so taking part so there were lots of runners everywhere. It was a little chilly and about 09:45 the heavens opened and I had to take shelter in one of the tents surrounding the baggage drop area. I was worried it was going to be a pretty miserable race if the weather stayed like this. Rain would mean a very cold wait for the start, a soggy outfit on the way round plus less spectators as they take cover in the warm.

However; after 20 minutes or so the clouds had emptied and the sun actually came out. I made my way to the start line. I was in the first start wave but I didn't push my way to the front because today I was using the race as a training run for the Seoul Marathon on the 15th March. I was therefore not aiming for a PB and wanted to do the Bath Half in my planned Marathon pace (which would mean just under 1h 30m for today.)

The route of the race was gorgeous. I would say it is actually close to being a favourite of mine out of all the races I have ever done. Starting in the city firstly meant taking in the amazing architecture. Secondly the crowds were super supportive. Thirdly we then went out to the countryside which was stunning.

At the start of the race they said that the Bath Half was so good you get to run it twice i.e. it was two laps of the same loop. Ordinarily I am not a massive fan of going back over the same ground but this time it didn't feel like we ran the same route twice. Not quite sure why?!

I felt good all the way through the race despite being a little toasty. I had opted for warmth whilst waiting for the start line and thus was paying for it now. At least I found this out now so that I can adopt my warmth strategy for the start of the Seoul Marathon as it will be pretty chilly there too. I used the water and drinks stations as practice for the marathon day too. I would class myself as a polite runner. I always thank the volunteers handing out the drinks and throw the bottles in the bins provided if there is one. Today though a man just behind me in the race took a drink from a volunteer and belched at the same time. Not quite as polite eh?!

A couple of miles into the race I heard an ambulance siren behind me which is something I have never experienced. All runners moved over to the right to let it go past. I am not sure if it was on its way to rescue someone or already had someone in. Either way I hope whoever it was is ok.

I could tell I was pacing a little too quick versus my planned marathon pace so I eased up a little around 10 miles and didn't race to the finish despite others really going for it in the last few hundred meters.

I crossed the line in 1 hour 23 minutes 53 seconds (with a 10km split of 39m 01s) placing me 264th. Not bad at all.

I loved everything about the race and it made me feel prepared for the marathon two weeks today. Let's see if I can get the pace right then....

Will let you know!

Mid race turn:

My impersonation of a friendly runner:

Almost there....final stretch:

Done:

Done just in time before more rain (check the clouds):