The hotel decided that they would do breakfast at 8am rather than the 7am which I needed! So Claire kindly got up and shot to Maccy D's to get me some porridge. This tasted like puke as my stomach was turning over with nerves and concerns about the run.
Walked out of the hotel to catch the bus, which we must have missed by seconds and the next one was not for half an hour. The time that we got on the bus was 08:20 rather than 07:50 as planned. The tight gits in London made me pay for the bus trip, so not only sit on public transport but have to pay for it. Scuffers everywhere!
Got to the tube station and they let me on for free, but we missed the tube and had to wait for the next! Tried to fill up with liquid but nerves meant that the more I put in, the more wanted to come out! The tube journey seemed to take forever and I am sure that it was slower than normal. A quick change to get me to Charing Cross, as advised by the London Marathon and the normal train, which again was free. I needed to pee pee again so went to the toile only to find that it costs 30p, robbing southerners, shoud have done it on the train for free! Didn't know this at the time, so paid my money and......missed the train. The time was now 09:30 and the Marathon started at 09:45 hours. The next train arrived and we waited, and waited and waited and waited and eventually, at 09:40 the train left. It surprisingly did not take 5 minutes to get there as it appeared to go for one minute and then stop for a minute, much to the annoyance of all the late runners!!
Finally got to Greenwich station at 09:45 and was told to run the 2 miles to the start as the Marathon had started. Nice to know that the route to the start was all up hill and people were walking away and making the journey even harder. Got to the starting line at about 10:15 and joined the very back of the group. No time to warm up my joints or get fluids in and off I went.
It was worse than swimming. Why people enter a 26.2 mile run and walk within the first 500 metres puzzles me. I had to run around all of these and those who wanted to run at a speed that I could overtake walking. The huge asses of some women took minutes to get past and I struggled for the first 6 miles, trying to get around people and a couple of hills. It took me 29:41 to complete the first 5k at a speed of around 5'57 per km (I know that it doesn't correlate but I actually ran an extra mile over the full distance and the shoe timings were between the mileage gates)
The second 5k was reached in 59:12 (about 6 miles) which is about the time which I wanted to hit the quarter mark as I didn't want to go out too fast. The average pace at this point was 5'55, which was probably a little bit too quick but there was no open road and you needed to pass people or I went too slow, to the point of walking at some areas, especially on the inclines. I managed to get fluids onboard every mile and felt fine. The weather was warming up but overcast and I only had the problem of people in front of me.
The 15km point was soon upon me at 1:31'33 which again was on course for a 4:22'00 time and my pace had slowed slightly to 6'29 but again mainly due to heavy traffic on the roads. Water intake and Lucozade was being happily accepted and I was in no trouble other than the usual slower runners and walkers.
At 20km, which is just before the half way point I saw Claire and Megan and this gave me a boost. I had caught up with the 4:30 runners (although I was blissfully unaware of this) and the time was 2:03'22 which again was not too taxing and a pace that I was happy with. The average pace was 6'22 so keeping at a constant pace now. At the half way point I was 2:10'32 and an average pace over the first half at 6'32, which again was comfortable. Over the bridge now and into the Isle of Dogs.
The next 5km was harder to predict as the mileage markers seemed to disappear and it was difficult to pace myself. I hit 25km at 2:37'12 and a pace of 6'50 which again was manageable and not too taxing.
The problems started here, on the second sighting of Canary Wharf. I got the most painful cramp that I have ever had. It came on suddenly and hit both my thighs (just above the knees) on bown legs and my right calf. I had to slow right down or stop. As I have said from the start, no pain, no gain so I continued to run through the pain, not noticing that the sun was out and the temperature had risen to over 23 degrees. My head began to burn, as did my neck and lower legs. It started to become de-hydrated and unfortunately, the water stations were becoming more like oasis spots as they were too far apart and running out of water. I hit 30km at 3:16'11 and my pace slowed to 7'48 due to the above problems, having to walk in between the runs as I could not stop the pain and cramp coming though.
I reached the 35km point at 3:55'14 and was really struggling now with cramp, but grinned and beared it and ran through the pain as best I could. My estimated time of 4:30 was now looking out of reach but I had to complete it in under 5 hours (apprently all times were down by about 30 minutes due to the heat) and my pace remained at 7'49 per km, which is not bad coming into the last 6 miles but not as quick as I wanted, although not too far off the mark!
At 40km I was struggling to move, never mind run. I got to this point at 4:34'05 (which shows that I was struggling as only managing 3 miles in 40 minutes) and was still dodging people walking and stretching as well as moving to the side myself to allow runners to get past.
At the final point, I had no idea where I was, I completely lost the fact that I had run in front of Buckingham Palace and saw the finishing line and I crossed this at 4:49'56, which is slower than I wanted but with the heat and dehydration felt that it was a marvelous achievement that not many people can say that they have either done or tried to do. My average pace was 7'14 over the course, which is not as quick as my training but I had not run in the heat like it was on Sunday. This is the problem with running during the winter and not being able to prepare myself for the extreme heat.
The Marathon was complete and to be honest, due to the time, a bit of an anti-climax. I got my medal and then tried to battle my way through the 20,000 people that were in the area for meeting people. I finished up in 21194 place out of 36000 and got a limited edition t-shirt to prove it, as well as a message from Richard Branson saying congratulations and a card to say that I have completed the Marathon. I was placed 15413 within the male category and 8395 in my age group of 18-39 (last year for this one!!)and with the young bucks who are much fitter than I am. My main concern is that I ran 2 miles to get to the start and one extra mile during the race which completely shattered me.
I felt great at the conclusion of the run, although it was like a sheep dip as you passed through the finshing area and then I had to find Claire, Megan, Holly, Carol and Neil. I had a strange feeling of wanting to cry with Claire but not in front of the girls. It was so emotional as they were so proud of me. I have seen a picture and I looked absolutely knackered. I was dehydrated, sun burnt and aching. My shorts were covered in salt from sweat and I stood there, with all the rest and thought, "I've only gone and done it". Has it hit home yet, not really. I get emotional when I think about it and I immediately said to Claire that I would never do this again, but upto April 2010, I had never even thought I could do it. Will I do it again, probably. Will I do it for charity, probably not. I will post another link with what I have learnt from this experience and what I will do differently next time, if there is a next time!
We walked to the reception area for the runners and had a couple of snadwiches but had massive disappointment when I was told that there were no massage spots left and my aching limbs can feel that now!
Although I have completed the Marathon, you can still sponsor me on the link below, any amount is greatly appreciated for the charity which kindly gave me the chance to complete something which only a handful of people will ever do.
http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/johnwestgarth
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