A very pleasant weekend. Actually, I felt really rough on Saturday, but am seeing a doctor on Monday in the hope that they might be able to sort out my custard lungs (which still prevent me from breathing while doing mundane sitting-about tasks, yet allow me to run - seems odd).
Anyhoo, I took the train up to Leicester on Saturday evening where I stayed with a fellow Vegan Runner and her very cute cat. It was her first race (no, not the cat's) and she was doing the half marathon. We headed to the park this morning in nice cool weather and found loads of familiar faces there. It's a pretty big event though the vast majority seemed to be doing the half route. A very good atmosphere and a well marked course with clapping, cheering marshals at every turn.
I was watchless. My Garmin is actually Jim's (to replace the one I carelessly tossed in canal earlier this year) and I'd left it with him for his training run (that's right - Jim is training - for next year's London Marathon no less!). Needless to say I have ordered a Garmin for myself, but it hasn't arrived yet and I forgot to take any sort of watch with me. That was fine as, given how dodgy I was feeling, I had no intentions of worrying about pacing. The start is downhill which always encourages a foolishly fast first couple of miles. Then it's mostly flat with some undules. It stopped being so pleasantly cool and warmed up quite a bit in the sunshine. Past some pretty lakes in a park and the Space Centre (which looks like a rocket sitting in a weirdly-shaped transparent bouncy castle).
I enjoyed the run and managed to get my first sub 4 marathon since the 10 in 10 back in May. Nice, but I'll take a slower countryside ultra for preference any day!I met some Fetchies that I'd heard of but never previously met in the flesh, always good. Also met a follower of my blog, who I ran a few miles with - how did you get on today John? And there were a fair few 100 club folk in attendance, with it being Bob's 100th today.
And I was home while it was still sunny and early. I like running. I might have mentioned that before?
It was good to meet you having read your blog, you're every bit as nice in person as you are here! It all went downhill for me after mile eighteen, but at least I finished. It was my first marathon, and surprisingly I had no aches and pains afterwards so next time I'll know I can do it, all I need to do is find a marathon before Christmas that I can get to. I won't see you on the Ridgeway this year, but next year's a possibility. :-) (also known as Jonathan.)
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