Owls Alive's Lee Aldred (Norfolk Owl) gives his account of his first London Marathon

        

Lee in training

The Saturday was spent travelling down to London, on trains and coaches due to rail works, then a tube journey across the city to the hotel. We got there late afternoon and everyone else naffed off out on the piss for the night while I settled in with me water, Lucozade and a romantic meal for 1 at the Italian down the road!! A constant stream of good luck texts kept me company that evening as I headed to my room to pack my race bag and get an early night. 6.30am and the wake up call gets me up, much to the annoyance of my room mates, who had made it in from the night before feeling the effects. I walk over to the window and have a peek outside. “Oh for fooks sake!” I moan, as I’m greeted with clear blue skies and the sun up already, beaming like a good un! The dozing room mates are well happy with the sun, I  most certainly am not!! I had a brekkie of water, bananas and  malt loaf in the room, time for 3 very quick shites (that’s nerves for ya!). Just enough time to read a few more texts from people wishing me well then it's off to the start I go. I got the tube from Paddington to Charring Cross and the place is already buzzing and it's still only half 7! Hundreds of runners are already on the move, heading to the start with their kit bags and drinks, their supporters in tow carrying more supplies and their route maps. All talking about where they will be stood on the course, who’s coming down and what times they should be there. As we get to Charring Cross a quick change and then on to Blackheath.

At this point the supporters are mainly left behind and the train is cram packed full of nervous looking 1st timers, experienced looking veterans and some runners totally zoned into their i-pods.

At this point I was really bricking it and if I had anything left in me, I would’ve been going a 4th time! The chap next to me noticed I looked fairly sheepish and started to put my mind at ease.

He’d done it twice before and explained all about the start, what to do, where to lose your bag and all that, which was a big help.

The train stopped at 3 or 4 stations along the way and more and more people piled on but there just wasn’t the room. The seats were all full, the aisles were full and now, so are the overhead spaces as well, as people were cramming anything up there to allow one more runner to squeeze on!

We get to Blackheath and all wander up to the start together, still talking about planned times, training and not before too long, onto footy.

At the start the nerves were really kicking in again, so I head to the toilet queue.
FOOK ME! Iit was massive and this was just for the blokes urinals!!
Sod this!

I’ll get sorted, ditch the bag and then join the queue to save me panicking.

Now due to the weather, I had to ditch the skin I was gonna wear underneath and run in just my vest. The only time previously I did this I ended my training run with very sore, red and painful nipples. Not good considering I was gonna be running for much longer this time!!
I applied sun cream and Vaseline then stowed my bag away on the trucks. With over an hour to the start, I head to join the queue again but now they were even longer.

I stand there for a bit debating whether I can hold it, should I stop on the course and go, or do I just wait and if I miss the start, I miss the start. I didn’t wanna stop on the course as this would take up precious minutes, so I decided to hold it (thinking I may run it off) and went to my pen.

I was in pen 4 and looking round, they were all kitted out as Joe Runner. Was I aiming to high?
Ok I may not have looked the part with my footy shorts on, but I knew I had done the training so fook ‘em. I was going for it.

The start got closer and closer and so did the desire for me piss. It hadn’t gone away but as the pens started to merge into 1 big pack, there was no turning back or escaping. As we walked towards the start line the countdown had begun. I spotted a fence. I’m having that I thought and squeezed past runners to the side and just went!! The relief was immense!

Now I was focused!

26 miles 385 yards ahead and nothing to stop me. 

The buzzer went, cheers followed and within 60 seconds I was over the start line and running. This was it; I was actually running the London Marathon. The hair was up on my neck, me spine was tingling and the blood was pumping. I was right up for this and I was determined to enjoy every second of it.

The start was congested but I soon got into my stride and looking for a 9 min mile to start with; I was banging out miles at 8.20, 8.27, 8.34, 8.42, 8.28, 8.30 and such like, all bang in my time slot and none were rushed or so quick as to cause me major problems later on in the race.

One thing I did notice though straight away was the support. I was no less than 100 yards over the start line and someone yelled out “Go on Lee!”
I looked over and they were as psyched as me, which got me a bit.

I know you hear about it and how good it is, but I was 100 yards in and they were already cheering me on so keenly.
I got myself together and it all just added to the determination. I was gonna do this as not only do you have all your mates and that urging you on and wishing you well, but you have everyone else doing it too!! Total strangers giving it some and the support just kept getting better and better as you went round the course.

Not one part of it was quiet.
The bands along the route, the pubs were packed outside, music blaring out. People offering you sweets, jelly beans, jelly babies and oranges, they had buckets of ‘em. Kids with handfuls of ‘em. There were so many kids along the route too, wanting high 5’s off everyone, loving it, their smiles so infectious that I really did spend the 1st half of it with a massive grin all over my face!!

Just after the 9 mile mark I saw my mates I’d left back at the hotel and  they all went mental as I came round the corner. They were tracking my chip online so knew exactly where I was and were ready for me, hands out for the high 5’s and to pass me my drink, then I was gone with an extra spring in my step. I noticed the heat very early on as the sun cream I’d put on my face sweated off after a mile or two. It was gonna be a hot one!! By the time I got to half way, I was 1:51:17 and pretty much on my time. I was still feeling fresh legged, but I was hot! I’d taken on water and Lucozade at every opportunity but I was baking hot! At this point on the course, on the other side of the road is the 21-22 mile part and the elite runners are bombing past you at a right rate. This makes you think your nearly home, but your still over 2 hours away!

I get up to 14 miles and my family are waiting for me, jumping about like nutters on a pedestrian crossing.
They are waving my drink at me but I’m on the other side of the narrowing road, and it’s pretty congested. There’s no way I can get across, so I signal to my sister to throw me the bottle. I leap salmon like, but only manage to flap at it as it hits the runner next to me on the shoulder and incredibly bounces back into my open arms. He weren’t happy but I apologised and offered him some. He seemed ok but said he hadn’t seen his family yet, his wife and kids were out here somewhere and he desperately needed that boost from them. I wished him well, apologising again and off I went.

The next 6 or 7 miles were the last that I really enjoyed for a while. I was still clocking 8.30 to 8.40 min miles, the music was pumping out along the course and I remember dancing along with the crowd to the twist about 18 miles in, . It was a carnival atmosphere and I wanted to enjoy it too but the heat was getting up and the smile on my face was slowly dropping. Running round Canary Wharf was hard. Tall buildings reflecting the heat down onto you as they blocked out any chance of a refreshing breeze.

I was really starting to focus on the finish line, wishing it closer. I saw my family again at 21 miles and they said afterwards that I was glowing, they reckon they could’ve fried an egg on me face right there and then. I gave ‘em a tried wave and plodded off.

I got to 23 miles and had readjusted my timings to 9 min miles, knowing I would still be done by 3:45, but then I got cramp. It hit me at the Lucozade station as I slowed to grab a drink. I stopped to stretch it out and took on 2 bottles. The people on the station came and helped me as no matter what I did, I couldn’t shake it. Thanks to their help it seemed to have go and off I went again. It wasn’t long til it was back though, and with a vengeance. This time in the other leg as I hobbled and yelled to an abrupt halt just after 24 miles.

Now I’ve had cramp many times before and it’s nothing a quick stretch won’t get rid of but fook me, this was unbelievable!! I couldn’t stand, walk or even run and again it seemed like no matter what I did, it weren’t going anywhere. I tried walking it off, but that didn’t work and apart from being 10 paces further along it was worse. After a fair few minutes of stretching and swearing my rocks off in agony, debating if I am really gonna have to stop the run 24 miles in just because of fooking cramp, it just went!

A quick look at my watch told me that  my target of less than 4 hours was in serious jeopardy! I gathered every bit of strength I had and got my head down, digging in and I was now seriously running through the pain barrier. At this stage of the race, the support is mental. The crowds are 10 deep and everyone is yelling your name, you can’t go 15 yards without hearing some cry out for you.

When I managed to get my head up, the people were really willing you on, the looks on their faces meant they could see what you were going through and the noise they were making really does get you through it, the screams, the cheers and whistles were brilliant and getting louder all the time.

You may be running alone, but there are thousands along the route helping you every step of the way.

The 25 mile mark came and went. My legs were on fire.
The cramp was back and I was biting hard, determined not to stop again. I was just over a mile away and I somehow managed to quicken my pace.

After a while, I looked up and the sign was there “800 metres to go”. It were like all of a sudden you were at the start again, as fresh as you were 4 hours ago and not a care in the world.
The smile was back now, bigger than ever. A grin from ear to ear that everyone could see.

I bounced along, my head was back up, held high, knowing I was gonna finally finish this. 600 meters, 400 metres, the 26 mile mark was there and I was loving it. I ran an 8.17 for the 26th mile. People were sprinting along. I looked at my watch and I had 4 and a half minutes to get over the line. I was gonna enjoy this. I was looking round at the crowds, the other runners, the sun, the palace, looking up the mall to the finish line. I was lapping it up big-time. I crossed the line in a time of 3:58:00 and I was spent. I had nothing left in me.

I hugged a couple of other finishes as they crossed the line and I was welling up. I was tingling all over and I was feelin the love.
We all were.
I got ushered along to get my medal, have my picture taken and collect my things.

I could hardly walk but I didn’t care.

I had done it.

I struggled up the road to the hotel where my family and friends were waiting. Big hugs and high 5’s all round as they took plenty of pictures of me looking my very worst before I got a well earned massage and some food from the Alzheimer’s Society.

I saw some runners that had helped me along on the course and thanked them, we were all out for that common goal and the camaraderie is amazing with the fellow runners. Not letting you stop, driving you along and giving you that word in your ear just when you need it most.

I really can’t praise the whole day enough.
Everything about it was superb and I will certainly be there again to experience it all. The crowd, the runners, the organisers and volunteers (who deserve so so so much praise), the whole thing, but best of all, you can not beat that feeling as you cross the line.

It will live with me forever as one of the best days in my life and for those of you that supported me and sponsored me I cannot thank you enough and I know how much those at the Alzheimer’s Society appreciate it too. 

TO DONATE TO LEE AND THE ALZHEIMER'S SOCIETY CLICK HERE

Thanks

Lee (Norfolk Owl)