The big day is here!!
After getting through a big bowl of pasta each and some chocolate cake for tea, Boyfriend Andy and I attached our race numbers to our vests, laid out all our running kit, packed our rucksacks and managed to get a surprisingly good night's sleep ahead of marathon day.
This morning the nerves were showing a little, but we both had our parents on hand to keep us calm and help us with our preparations. And to take pictures...
The walk of a mile or so to the start line served as a little warm-up, as we made our way to Regent Road in the (too warm for my liking) sun to join the other runners in the big queue for the Portaloos and eventually in the green starting pen.
Anyhow, here we were, at the start of a pretty long road. The countdown began, Eye Of The Tiger blasted out of the speakers, we said goodbye and good luck to each other, and off we went.
Our parents were in the crowd, waving us off a short way after the start line, and we wound our way towards the foot of Arthur's Seat. Feeling positive and full of energy (maybe a tiny bit apprehensive), I hoped some clouds would come along to save us from the hot sun.
I looked around at the hundreds of runners around me. Most wore t-shirts with charity logos and their names on, there were people pushing wheelchairs, blind runners, and some in crazy costumes - clowns, witches, sumo wrestlers, furry animal outfits - I do not know how they did it. I thought about all effort and all the hours of training that each of us had put in for this day, for all these good causes, and the personal stories behind all of it, and felt privileged to be there. Running a marathon is a more emotional experience than you might think.
I had eaten some Jelly Belly Sport Beans before we go to the start line, and had a belt full of them for along the way. I also had a packet of six Shot Bloks and had decided against taking any gels. I had intended to take one bean every half mile, which had seemed to work in my recent training runs, but I did end up losing track of my fuelling and just taking two at once each time I remembered.
As we made our way towards the water of the estuary and on to Portobello promenade, there were people dotted along the route, cheering us on.
I was keeping an eye to the right, looking out for the outline of the Joppa Turrets guest house, which backs on to the promenade. My Nanna and Auntie Caroline were staying there (their friends are the owners) and I knew they would be somewhere nearby.
The house came into view, and I saw them on the opposite side of the prom! They were waving a huge sign - a big sheet with Go Claire & Andy painted on!! Haha!
It was so good to see familiar faces. Looking out for them had taken my mind off the running, and their support gave me a great boost for the miles ahead. I actually started running a bit too fast after seeing them!
Next it was up on to the road towards Musselburgh. Cockenzie power station looked a long way in the distance. Luckily, by now there were a few more clouds in the sky, and the heat was not so intense.
A couple of little dog legs in the route, and I knew that we were passing the finish line - 17 miles to go. Looking out along the estuary into the distance, knowing that I had to run as far as I could see, plus a bit more and back again, was pretty daunting, but in my mind I was running four 10Ks plus a final two miles. So I was halfway into my second 10K.
It was not far from here that I spotted the timing car coming into view, meaning the elite runners were close behind. We clapped and cheered as Ethiopian Tola Lema passed. The clock showed just over two hours, and he was in his final couple of miles. His closest rivals were a good few minutes behind. Of course, he went on to win. Amazing.
From Prestonpans to Port Seton there were plenty of spectators making a bit of a party of it. Some had music blasting from their houses to help keep us going; some had garden sprinklers cooling the runners; some gave our jelly babies; some had prepared cups of water; and there were even people handing out suncream and Vaseline (for the chafing, I guess!)
There were a few bands along the way too - a samba band with dancers, a group of Taiko drummers and a brass band.
We had made it to the power station - half way! I was beginning to feel pretty tired by this point. Cue some more Sport Beans, a little pep talk and some knuckling down, and I was soon back in my stride. It's strange how you can feel like your batteries are running out, then you find yourself another mile down the road feeling fine again.
But much worse was yet to come. On to the Links Road - a country sort of road by the estuary with few spectators. Even though I was surrounded by runners, this bit felt lonely. Between mile 16 and 17 I reached a low ebb. The sun was out again, the road seemed neverending, there were runners on the other side of the road who were already on their way back and I decided to walk for a few seconds to take on a Shot Blok. Soon I was up and running again, but not feeling good.
The lonely Links Road (imagine more runners, fewer cars)
At last, the turn-around point came into view, and I was so pleased to grab some water from a water station and get going back towards the finish line - only eight miles to go.
Soon we were off-road on a little detour past stately home Gosford House. The path here was quite rocky and a bit uncomfortable to run on compared to the road, but I was looking forward to seeing the 19-mile marker.
There were quite a few people at the sides of the road being treated by paramedics along this stretch - someone having an asthma attack, some looking like they were passing out, a girl covered in blood looking like she'd taken a tumble.
It has seemed like miles since the last water station, and I needed hydration. I was taking on about 150ml at each station, and splashing the rest over me to keep cool, because I'm always too hot. I convinced myself I mustn't have noticed the 21-mile sign, so must be heading towards 22 miles. What seemed like ages later, the neon 21-mile sign came into view. That was a low point to say the least.
But only five miles to go. I was struggling to chew the Sport Beans without choking, so had a couple of little walking breaks for a few seconds to take on some fuel. But it is when you stop running that your body sort of starts shutting down and all your energy seems to drain. Back to it.
As you can imagine, I was running pretty slowly by this point. As I passed the 24-mile marker the four-hour point had passed. I was too tired to feel anything about that.
After the 25-mile marker, the crowds began to build, and the adrenaline kicked in for the final mile. I began to 'feel' more, although the elation you might imagine at the end of a marathon wasn't coming.
The crowds were loud and creating a sort of funnel in the road as the turn towards the finish line came into view. I spotted my mum leaning into the road looking for me. I ran straight towards her, but she still missed me, so I had to grab her as I went past!
On to the final stretch, I could finally see the finish line. I looked at my watch and decided to make a bit of a sprint for it so the clock would still say 4h20. As I crossed, I felt a sort of numb relief.
When I finally staggered out of the runners enclosure, I found my family, who told me Andy had run past only a few seconds before me shaking his head. Bad news.
We found him laid on the ground feeling rather deflated. He had been in a lot of pain with severe cramps in his calves for the last few miles, adding about 40 minutes on to his time. By rights, he should have finished way ahead of me, because he runs so much faster. A disappointing end for him, but still a great achievement and a heroic effort in the final mile running through the pain to the finish.
Here's a little (bad quality) Where's Wally video for you... can you spot me at the 10K mark, and at the finish line?
Four hours 20 minutes. My marathon time.
I am pretty pleased with that. It doesn't have quite the same ring to it as something beginning with a three, but still a great effort. You can't know how hard it is to run a marathon, without having done it, and sitting here I am telling myself I could have gone faster. But really I know that I couldn't. I gave it my absolute best shot. I ran a marathon!!
