If you want to run a marathon in London, but don’t like crowds or you don’t get into the big one, Richmond it a good alternative. There are only about 1,000 marathon runners and a bigger bunch of Half runners, who start delayed and only share parts of the route. I like that the marathon start was inside Kew Gardens and the first miles went through it. The route then led us along the beautiful trail paths following the Thames to Kingston.…
This is the third one of my “it’s summer, I don’t want to run” marathons. And under these premises it was a very good experience. Running trail is always a bit different to road and the organisers claim it to be “one of the toughest, prettiest trail marathons in UK”. It was tough and very, very pretty, especially on a great summer day like this, nice but not too hot. But toughest in UK? Prettiest in UK? Not sure. But…
The Dunstable Down Challenge is completed and I have to think of my favourite quote from Mark Twain: “I’ve lived through some terrible things in my life, some of which actually happened.” The thing of getting utterly lost during this self-navigating trail marathon did not happen. Thanks God for Tracy and Hakeem. Both played a major part in turning the potential for running horror into something rather great and awesome. Well, and the organisers, who despite saying there won’t be any…
I am here in Dunstable 30 minutes before race start. I am looking out for marathon runners who look like they know what they are doing. Because I am not. The Dubstable Downs Marathon come with a twist: you get a map, 4 pages of route description and there you go, find your way. The chance to get lost had never been bigger, therefore my desperate need to buddy up with runners who know the course. Will I find one?…