Marathon Number 2 of 3!!!! Edinburgh 23rd May 2010

Again a cuppa may be needed before reading this!!!! Sorry for the lapse in posting between marathons I will keep posting between now & my final marathon in October so please keep visiting!!!

Marathon Number 4 – Edinburgh - 23rd May 2010 – Running Number 13327
Well exactly 4 weeks after running the London Marathon 2010. There I was on the start line of the Edinburgh marathon….. Training between the marathons was very minimal so I was going for the well rested approach & hoping that when I started running my legs would get a flash back from 4 weeks previous & just keep going….. There was one thing that I really hadn’t accounted for….freak weather!!
The previous day was a completely glorious full on summers day in Edinburgh, the Princes gardens were filled with hundreds of sun worshipers & there was I, praying that very soon it would cloud over so we could have a cool Sunday for the marathon……..didn’t happen!
The morning was cool & even misty/drizzly for a few moments. I went for porridge this time for fuelling & went down to breakfast with my sachet & milk & asked them if they would heat it up for me. There were other runners at breakfast tucking into bacon & eggs and I was thinking….am I missing out on a trick here?? Anyway my porridge arrived back as warm milk, they didn’t know how to make instant porridge & they didn’t have any on offer so I got some special K & tipped it into my warm milk & went with that!!!
Andrew & I got a taxi to the start. There were two starts & typically I was at one & Andrew at the other. We got our bearings & had plenty of time. Andrew walked up to my start line with me so I didn’t get lost…quite hard to do when there are 15000 runners around you!! We said our good byes & good Lucks & he went off to his start with the “Elites” !!!
I wandered into the runners & head towards the toilets as I knew I’d have to queue so thought I best get it over with. I saw a guy I recognised sitting on a wall & I approached him praying it was who I thought it was!!! Neil (Nellymack) was one of the runners on the running forum I use. Luckily he recognised me & I instantly felt calm as I knew someone & we chatted away. I realised that Andrew had gone off with the rucksack I was putting my tracksuit in so Neil kindly let me put my things in his bag. We queued for the loo & then headed down to the start pens to see where we had to go. We were then joined by Ulen another runner we had got to know & we chatted nervously about our preparation & weather & strategies for the race. I was in the purple pen…..basically the back! So I headed over with about 15 minutes to go & joined the thousands of people all waiting for the gun to go off. I felt great & was really looking forward to the race, had heard good things about it so didn’t feel nervous & thought I knew what I had to do & was hoping for a good outcome!
In the distance I could see a pink number 2 helium balloon & I went to the barrier as I thought I’d know its owner. I was right, it was Mandy. The girlfriend of John (yes another runner I know) he is also doing 3 marathons this year & this was his number 2! Mandy carries the balloon to be spotted & it was so nice to say Hi & have a good Luck hug! Back in the pen the heat was rising but the sun had not shown itself yet! I got chatting to a lovely young girl who was running her first marathon. She was so sweet & nervous & thanked me for talking to her as she was on her own. Hopefully I helped settle her nerves! Then it was time….the countdown began….10,9,8 etc BANG……masses of cheers & excitement erupted……and with comedy timing out came the sun!
10 minutes later we were still standing there waiting to get over the line but we gradually started moving. I was telling myself…mind over matter…yes it will be warm like London but just pretend it’s a nice sunny day & all will be fine…….Hmmmm need to rethink this strategy!
The first few miles are very pretty & also down hill, always a bonus! You run past Arthurs seat & through a little park before getting back onto the streets. There were pockets of supporters clapping & cheering but I was merrily listening to my finely tuned playlist & was trying to get into the “zone” I chose some quite chilled tunes to start with just to get me into the swing, building into faster more banging tunes when I was in full swing later on…..well that was the idea.
I soon realised that I hadn’t really studied the course very well, all I knew was that it went from the city centre & out towards the seafront, along the seafront & back. After a few miles I needed the loo & the porta loo queues were still long so my normal trick, I popped into a MacDonalds & 3 minutes later I was back on the course but there were very few runners so I was right near the back, I think I tried to push it too quickly to catch up where I left off…bad Idea. We soon turned onto the seafront, the sun was beaming down at full pelt, it was approx 11-11.30 the sea was dead calm & glistening in the sun….how much did I want to jump in there! There were people walking along the seafront with Ice Creams & this was the first time that I thought, I’m feeling the heat & I’m only at about mile 6…not to worry…I’ll get into the zone in a minute….. As I continued along the seafront with the sun beaming down I started to get a headache. I was squinting a lot with the sun as it was right in my eyes & I don’t run with glasses. I stopped at the next St John Ambulance & asked for some paracetamol. I wanted to stop the headache before it started. The lady made me fill in a questionnaire & promise I would not take anymore tablets & I was thinking…yes yes whatever, you are eating up my time woman!!!! Hee hee So she gave me another bottle of water & I felt better knowing that hopefully I’d stopped the headache before it started. So then again I was playing catch up & passing all the runners I had previously overtaken the whole stop starting wasn’t doing me any favours & I was beginning to realise I wasn’t getting into the swing of it.
In the next mile (7) the reality of the weather conditions was being made clear, there was a rush of emergency services vehicles & when I got up to where they were stopped there was a guy on the floor being resuscitated. Terrible. I sadly found out later that the guy died. He was doing the marathon relay and was only 1 mile away from his change over point. 52 years of age. Very sad!
This kind of put me off my swing a bit & I was beginning to feel like what I was doing wasn’t fun & I certainly wasn’t enjoying it & just couldn’t get into my stride. Normally by mile 6 – 10 of a long run I get right into the run & your legs sort of take over for you…not today. I carried on & in the distance I could hear a lot of noise & hustle & bustle of people. I realised that we were running past the finish line, I felt totally gutted that I was then having to run past it and complete another 17 miles……it felt like I had already completed 20 & I was only at mile 10!!!!!
This was the first point where I felt I wanted to call it a day. I couldn’t figure out in my head how on earth I was going to run another 17 miles in the heat & scorching sun. Luckily not long after I had this thought we came into quite large crowds & I realised that the road was divided into two. Within minutes I saw the race car & realised that I was about to see the lead guy & then see all the runners coming the other way to the finish. This was good news as it occupied my attention away from the fact I was feeling half dead with a long way to go. When I saw the lead guy at mile 25 the time on the clock was 2:21 which is a fairly slow time for a fast course, so I realised even the elites get affected by the weather too!! The front runners are awe inspiring. They were practically sprinting & I kept thinking I wonder what they think when they are at the finish & they see people still running at mile 10!!! So for the next few miles my eyes were planted on the on coming runners to see if I could spot any of my friends who were doing quicker times. This really did help distract me for a while. I was literally putting one foot infront of the other. I must have looked like a crazed woman staring at everyone. A few of the runners must have felt my pain as I got a few shouts of encouragement telling me I was doing well & to keep going etc. That cheered me up that they were kind enough to give me a little shout out as I was obviously struggling…..it got to a point that I thought, if I actually stop my momentum of watching the other runners I will probably just fall over. I saw one guy who was totally delirious, he was running all over the place, badly wobbly legs, saying out loud to himself (and anyone else who was listening) “I’m just going to keep going, just keep going, I’m ok am just running over here” about 10 of us around him were poised to catch him as he was imminently going to drop. We all notified the ambulance guys...I hope he was ok….on I carried.
My head at this point was calculating what I should do…..I’m only just coming up to half way and it felt like I had already run the full distance….I feel like death & I need to do what I have just done again….. I cannot tell you how much I wanted to give up…I was having a fight with myself inside….this is a very weird & annoying argument to have!!! My thoughts were, I give up, call it a day, what is the worst that can happen…I wont get a medal, I wont be able to say I have run 4 marathons, I will have not completed marathon 2 of my 3, which other marathon could I do to replace this one? How disappointed everyone would be……but mostly how disappointed I would be in myself for giving up. I couldn’t face meeting up with my running friends afterwards & admitting that I hadn’t managed it. So then my brain switched to……. Why do you want to give up so easily, why have you not got the strength to kick in & get on with it…..and so the argument in my head continued!!!!! All the time I am putting one foot infront of the other & staring at the other runners to see if I can spot my friends.
Out the corner of my eye I spotted the Number 2 pink balloon & thought, Yes! Mandy! So I stopped to say Hi & get off my chest how rough I was feeling. Mandy was great! Really encouraging, just what I needed so I carried on.
At this point you can see for miles in front of you along the shore where you are running to, you can figure out in your head the distance & push yourself along. I remember running in the shade for a bit down a long hill….but quickly realised that they guys running the other way were in the sun & running up hill….I had that to come…oh joy! I know I am not alone when I say this but the biggest thought running through my head at this point was…….there are no barriers to the other side of the course…….all I would have to do is stop on the other side of the road and maybe stretch for a few minutes & “accidentally” start running the wrong way back to the finish….knocking off a good few miles of hell….I didn’t!! I know that nobody would know but one person would know….ME….I couldn’t cheat myself, I’d rather give in than not go the distance!
I managed finally to spot a familiar face…well a white baseball cap, red shirt & black shorts….it was John! I crossed over to the middle of the road to get his attention. His head was down & I could feel his pain! I waved frantically & he looked up & luckily recognised me! We gave the thumbs up & smiles… this made me laugh afterwards as I know that we both were not feeling at all in a thumbs up & smiling mood but it was a mutual sign of how our days was going! I then very quickly saw Ulen & I told him that I wasn’t going to make it…as at that very point I really didn’t think I had anymore in me. I was thinking there was no way I could get to the point ahead as I could still see runners for miles & what I didn’t realise and I was very soon about to find out, was that not only did you have to get to the turning point ahead, you also had two little loops to complete going off to the right. When I turned into the first loop it was quiet & I stopped to walk. Mile 15 & half…..still 10 bloody miles….10 miles that I knew would feel like 30! I was confused, I was upset, I was hot, I was hurting, I was annoyed with myself for being defeatist, I felt sick, I wanted to be anywhere but there…..when all of a sudden from nowhere a big shout of “NESSIE” came from the other side of the road. I looked up to see “Big Sam” (a runner I have seen in 3 of my 4 marathons!!) with his arms held out & a big smile. He gave me the best bear hug EVER!! Just what I needed! I cannot remember what he said or what I said but all I know is that it helped & I knew I had to keep going. Everyone around this point were walking, I needed to speak to someone so I rang Kim. She stayed on the phone with me and just kept me going. I know I must have looked like a plonker but I needed a familiar voice & for someone to tell me common sense and that’s what she did…she pointed out that I was only 9 miles away & I’d have to walk back anyway so even if I walked so what!...good point!! So I plodded on. Its very hard as I kept thinking to myself, I am not ill & I am not in physical agony, I am just out of steam. It felt like I had no power in my body & I was like a car with a burst radiator with steam coming out!!!!
The run then takes you into the grounds of Gosford House which FINALLY is your turning point to go back to the race ground/finish. I was walk/running & I heard a lady behind me say “I’ve come to the conclusion that I am running slower than I’d walk” I turned & said “I know exactly where you are coming from” We started walking together & chatting about the race…..her name was Claire & it was her first marathon, she was running for Melangitis UK. We talked about the day & she said she would never run a marathon again & I was telling her not to judge marathons on today as it was freak weather & conditions. We decided we’d power walk as we would be going at a good pace & still covering ground & this seemed to work. We covered a fair few miles & Claire’s husband was ahead with some cream for her legs as she was feeling her knees quite badly. We managed to get into the shade as much as possible & it calmed me down & was actually beginning to realise I was going to get to the end with my new found friend. When we got to the top of the last hill and back into a bit of civilisation we decided it was time for running! The end was in site & although we had power walked a lot our time wasn’t that horrific & I could see us getting under 6 hours….even though it felt like I had been on the go for about 10!! The residents of the rest of the course were absolute legends! Hoses spraying onto the road for us to run through, cold cups of water to drink as all the water stops the water was boiling where it had been sitting in the sun. yuk! We spent the rest of the course running as much as we could. We kept overtaking & being overtaken by some guys pulling tyres, they were training for an Antarctic adventure as much as I wanted to beat them, they put in a final burst & got in just ahead of us! Claire spent the last mile saying “C’mon Jo, I can hear the finish line, we are so nearly there & I am not leaving you!” I absolutely owe getting to the finish line to her, she was ACE!! Even though I kept telling her she had to run her own race as I didn’t want to hold her up she just kept saying “I’m not leaving you!”
The LONGEST 500 yards I have EVER done! I remember a lady saying to me, hold your head up & look ahead you will get there quicker……so I did…she was right…. We ran onto the plastic matting of the race course & there it was…the finish line…Andrew was shouting at me to get over the line & I ran as fast as I possibly could, we threw our arms in the air & Claire burst into tears! We had a big hug & FINALLY I could stop running!!!!!!
The worst thing I have ever put myself through….I honestly don’t know how I got to the end as at many points of the race I didn’t think I had it in me to finish.
Would I do it again……………………………………..of course!!!!!