Well, this is my first race this year, and it happens to be a half marathon! This was a little pressie bought and paid for by the Old Boy, because I didn't get a place in the marathon through the ballot! I guess he had forgotten about the club places that we had! And I was fortunate enough to win one of those!
It was going to be tough! The weather forecast was spot on, wind and rain! Not only that but we were all running with one hours less sleep as the clocks were put forward an hour, so now we are in British Summer Time! Of course that is the cue for the wind and rain to arrive! I am changing Naggy Neighbours nick name, so now she will be referred to as OrangeKarin! This doesn't mean that she spends hours under the sun lamps, or that she has a job lot of fake tan! No, but orange is her colour when it comes to supporting football teams during the World Cup! And besides, I realise now that she isn't naggy she is just encouraging!
Hmm, I just had a thought, I could call her Terry's Chocolate Orange as her 'little' pooch (she is huge by the way) is called Chocolate! But then that would make me crave choccies all the time! Anyway, I digress, OrangeKarin was driving and we headed down to Paddock Wood with plenty of time for the start! It was amazing just how quickly we got there!
With our car parked not to far from the start of the race we made our way over. First stop....well always is the loo! We queued for ages it seemed, and the a lady came in with two very large buckets of water! "The cisterns are a bit slow" she said as she saw our quizzical looks, "You don't want to be hanging around waiting for it to fill up, so just use the buckets to pour down the loo!" What a thoughtful and hygenic thing to do! Thank you Loo Marshal! The amount of times loos don't flush I don't think I have enough digits on my person to count up to!
Anyway business done, and there is a little poem at the end of the blog, just because.....well just because my loo visit amused me! My own body has its usual agenda and it will not be side tracked by races or time shifts! Well, put it this way, I was very pleased that there were buckets! Hmmmm, maybe you don't really need to know this bit! This really is for my own thoughts and amusement!
I wandered over to the start, found OrangeKarin, (she had to sort her tag out) and then we made our way to baggage and then to the start! 1;20 1:30, 1:40, 1:50 boards were showing. We carried on walking back until we found our 'finish time' board. 2:00+ board showed us where to stand. I saw loads of other PWR's all way in front of me, not many of them behind me.....hang on, I mean no PWR's behind me! But there were runners, runners from all sorts of different running groups, individuals and teams all getting rather excited. I love this bit of any race!
Then the crowd started to move forward, the 'gun' had obviously gone off. We were all wearing chips, so although the 'gun' had gone off we can still find out exactly how long we took between crossing that mat on the way out and crossing it on the way back. Karin was with me for all of about 10 minutes, and then she started to think about her goal. 2:30 was her goal, mine was to get in under three hours, with a little bit of a sub goal of 2:45!
So, paragraph 8 and I a finally into the running bit! As I said the forecast for todays race was spot on. I had my jacket firmly in place, my wind proof jacket that I was testing a couple of years ago! My hat was on, pulled just a little bit tighter so it doesn't get blown off, and I was wearing my club vest and long jog pants. I should be able to battle the elements. Around the first turn and we were on the road. The organisers had the roads closed or most of them at least. Running down the main street was great fun, all the people out there cheering, all wrapped up nice and warm against the elements! As soon as they had waved at the last runner they will be heading for cover, tea, coffee, cakes!
I kept an eye on my Garmin, I didn't want to go off too fast, or too slow. The first mile seemed to come round so quickly! But I was on track! Just around the corner from the mile marker there was a lad handing out jelly babies. Now I love a jelly baby, and I couldn't resist! Did I need it....no! I just wanted it! The rain kept coming, not pouring down, but just falling softly. Just after the mile marker was the 'hill', apparently the only hill in the entire race! We shall see!
I walked some of it, I ran some of it, but just at the top I saw one of our support team....with his camera out! Of course then I had to make sure I was running! I waved and said hi to Martin who was behind the camera! On wards and upwards.....well actually it was fairly flat run after the hill.
I kept thinking "We will soon be out of 'double figures' miles to do now" as well as other thoughts, like "What the heck are you doing old girl" the 'old girl' tag was very apt at the moment, as I was feeling pretty old! "You got to do a marathon and already you're counting down miles" as another thought going through my mind. Although I am sure I didn't take long too fall asleep when I went to bed an hour early last night, the waking up twice in the night certainly does tell and I was just a little tired!
The next few miles went quite well, I chatted with people who ran on by, I looked around the great countryside, and I tried to really enjoy the whole experience. If only that bloomin weather wasn't here! Just about 5 and half miles there was a pub, and standing outside it waiting and waving was SingstarJo! I was just so pleased that she had waited. I really didn't expect it, as I am one of the slowest runners. I high fived and then gave a wet sweaty hug! A definite high moment! And just after that I was offered a Jaffa Cake from one of the marshals! Oh yes please!
At mile six, we had to go up and over a railway bridge. I ran up and over it! It was tough! I took at picture at this point, almost halfway, of the people in front of me and some of those behind me, but you can see the size of the hump bridge! It's not a little one, not after 6 miles anyway!
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| I had just ran down there! Mile 6 |
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| Me! |
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| The people in front of e |
After running little further and I received a phone call! My eldest brother decides to call me! He was after some company, beer maybe a few muscles in white wine! Right then, at the moment, it sound lovely! "I'm jogging Deano" I said to him
"You're what?"
"I'm out jogging, I'm doing a half marathon today"
"Eh? Well, I just fancied a pint and that, I shall meet you somewhere, where are your"
"Paddock Wood!" was my reply!
"Blimey, you're wearing me out! Why you doing this!" he said, more proud than anything else
"Cos I can bruv"
And now for the next half of this race! My legs were getting a bit tired, nothing new there then, but I pushed on. I tried to run as much of this as I could do. Although I have been training, run a mile, walk a minute, to me this was a run, a race! Although I won't be racing anyone! But I did want to challenge myself just a bit to do well. Beating the elements is a challenge in itself. I remember me and Wendimoo after we got to about 7 or 8 miles in a couple of our planned long runs, the rain and wind was just too much so we decided to call it quits, we were so demoralised! There is no short cut with this run though, there is no calling it quits and going home. I am sure they do have a 'drop out bus' or some other way of getting runners back to the start that can't finish, but I don't want to know about it!
I am going to finish! The 7 mile marker came up. just two more Parkruns to do. That is how I saw it. I can work with that. The rain had stopped for a while, I think, at least it did at some point on the run. The route is a really a lovely route, all through the country sides, passing some lovely houses with the occupants out cheering! There is an upside to having your name on your top as they cheer just for you! It's great to hear 'Come on Donna'.
I walked and ran the next mile or so and just up a head of me I saw a PWR shirt! Now who could that be. It was difficult to tell when everyone has their hats on! I managed to catch up after a while, it was Paula! She seemed to be in a bit of pain though! I walked and ran along with her and another girl, (and I have forgotten her name), but she was suffering with blisters on her foot! When you see people just pushing through to the end and they are having difficulties, then it really is inspiring!
But I was worried about Paula, sometimes you need to just walk, take a break, best take it easy and and not do any further damage! I seemed to be keeping her amused though, either that or she was suffering from delirium! I suppose the the ghost turd story could have been kept until she didn't need to walk any further!
We just kept going, those last two miles seemed the hardest after doing just another 'tiny' hill somewhere around mile 10! Making it back on to the high street was absolutely brilliant, exactly what we needed to pick up our spirits. People there were still cheering, the runners who had finished the half marathon were cheering us as we ran along for the last 400 meters. I saw JanetL, she had done her race, she was cheering us along too. I could hear the announcements, pretty close now. The 200 meter board was in sight, with just the sharp turn left to get back into the finish!
I was running ahead, not sprinting, as Paula suggested I should do, (I think I said something like," really Paula, I don't seem to have enough energy in my legs to be able to do a full on sprint") another laugh for her which I feel maybe she didn't need right then! I could hear the cheers up ahead and I started to just pick it up a tad, I turned around to look at Paula, she was struggling behind, I couldn't leave her, I waited till she caught up, and just encouraged her all the way in, over the mats! It had to be done! I heard the announcer call my name, I smiled, and then counted to two, and then there it was "Oh Donna, hi, how are you?!" It was Robert who kindly offered to be compere at the Spirit of Running Man Event I organised last year!
I heard OrangeKarin calling me, I couldn't see anyone else, but I guess after waiting around, or indeed running around in the rain for hours then they deserved to get on home and warm up. I was pleased with my run today, I did it in under 3 hours, in spite of the weather, which is what I had hoped to do! Fantastic event, brilliant marshals, well organised and a fantastic bit of bling!
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| Me and Paula |
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| OrangeKarin and me |
Geeky stats
By the way, this is the poem I mentioned earlier
Ghost Turd - by Donna Carroll
The feeling grows as you sit and wait
Not just yet, to sit in state
Plenty of time before the mighty arrives
Plenty of time before those sighs
Walk a little, ponder at life
This pleasurable experience for husbands and wives
Small tiny babies, toddlers all
They all learn when nature calls
There, now, its time has come
To take the seat , expose the bum.
The best feeling a person has
As you sit and squeeze to let it pass.
Nothing feels greater as you excavate
The inners of your self and wait
To peer at the mighty job
That feels as huge as a ten ton log
But wait, what’s this where has it gone
The thing that took you all morning long
To expel from your body, the stink is there,
But where oh where oh where oh where?
Straight down the pan and round then bend,
Is that it is that then end?
The clean up now, as the disappointment shows
Glaring at the pan as the water flows
For a moment you wonder, did this thing just go
As you try not to feel so darn low
You know it happened for the splash you heard,
Or was it again, just a ghost turd
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