Finished... just about!

My word that was hard - for now just the brief version.

For 24 miles I ran and felt good (split time circa 3:33). The heat was getting to me to but I was coasting along. Then, suddenly, my back went, I ran for I don't know how long, 300m maybe, bent double and collapsed. I lay with half my muscles convulsing by the side of the road for 45 minutes while wonderful St John's Ambulance people treated me. After 4o mins I tried to get up - collapse - then after 50 mins I tried again. I just about got to my feet with the help of three people, signed a disclaimer, asked for a push and step by step walked/hobbled the remaining two miles in agony. You should not be able to see your thigh bulging in a pulse. I even tried to run at the death but all but collapsed again.

In short, some advice. If you have chronic stomach problems before the race, just don't run! No that I regret it - oh no it was largely a fantastic experience and I am so happy I finished and raised money for Parikrma (details of amounts to follow), but if you lose those vital sugars, salts and other minerals at some point your body is going to give in. Without record temperatures (23 degrees C) it probably would not have got me before the finish, but my God when it hits it HITS.

Within site - touch wood!

Yup, but only 7 days and few hours I will be setting off from Greenwich on the 42kn that will eventually (and I am positively gripping wood right now) end up with the final few punishing yards to the finishing line on the Mall.

The slightly worrying news is that the knee that has been bugging me for nearly 4 weeks does not seem to be getting better and if anything just slightly worse. One of those dull pains that while not impeding running puts that slight doubt in your mind that it may go any minute (still not letting go of that piece of wood).

The better news is that it survived another 5km run today. Just 3 more small runs and come what may I will be there at the start.

The EXCELLENT NEWS is that thanks to the wonderful generosity of many friends and family the funds for Parikrma ( www.parikrmafoundation.org/ ) are now just shy of $1500 and creeping up!!!

Bring it on - dodgy knee and all!

Circa:

475km

US$1450

Home on the Heath - 10 Days to go!!!!!!

What a georgous weekend. The knee is feeling on the edge of doing something nasty so the training on the extended weekend was restircted to mainly running around squidgy Petersfield heath by my Mum's house. Lovely to just run around and around the lake, up past the quaint cricket ground, into the copse, past the old barrows and round the big dog leg corner to start another lap.

All in all probably 11 2km laps, a bit on a running machine and a couple of scrappy rounds of golf was not a bad return - AND THE KNEE HELD!!

Back to the grindstone that is work and tonight I managed a 10km. It is really weird. With so little time to the big day, a stark reduction in socialising to avoid the drink and the lass I spend my life with away, life seems to be on hold. Having to work this weekend, so all there is ahead is work and then the BIG DAY - it is clear what is the shining light in that scenario - I can not wait!!

The mall is within sight - metaphorically speaking!

From there 2 sets of progress. Firstly, presuming the knee holds, a target time of 3:45 (so to try and go under 4:00). Secondly, and far more importantly, major progress on the fundraising front. Thanks to some great friends the rough totals are as follows:

Circa:

460km

$1000

JUST 3 WEEKS TO GO!!!

Yup, only 3 weeks before the 26.2 miles!


The last 2 weeks a slight overload of work has knocked down the in-week training but two 20 mile runs have kept me in a place I am not all together unhappy with. Both last and this Sunday I set-off with Christina from Waterloo to Farringdon (dropped off Chis), ran up to Kings-cross, along to Euston, through Mornington Crescent, Camden, past the Church in Kentish Town, into Hampstead Heath, to the top of Parliament Hill and then onwards to the top end of the park and the Kenwood House, back-atop Parliament Hill (my word the views are astounding from the top - all of London spread out infront of you), to Primrose Hill, through Regents Park, accross to Paddington, down to Notting Hill, all the way back through Kensington Gardens, Hyde Park, Green Park, St James' Park (waived to the queen) and back past Westminster and to a fry up back round Waterloo - pheew!


It is nice to know you can get to the 20 mile point but it is the next 6 that will be interesting. When you run for over three hours you inevitably go through ups, downs, adrenaline highs and lows but overall it is just a great feeling. The only downer is that people start to assume you have been doing rather odd things when you walk into work on a Monday with a sincerely dodgy shuffle and limp.


From now on it is concentration on raising some more funds, staving off injury, getting ready for the big day!


The 2 big goals are within sight:


1. Delivering a cheque to the fantastic Parikrma organization - if I can get over the $1,500 mark then that will mean covering the entire education of a child from 5 to university!


2. Running down Pall Mall to the finish line.... and quite possibly collapsing!


























Circa:
$650
420km