Been looking forward to today for ages. Day 64 of 100 Days of Running means it's time for.....The Midnight Marathon!
Very excited! Have only run one race in The Dark before, that was the Spooky Halloween Challenge in 2013. This is different, it starts later for one thing, at 8 pm.
Found eating and sleeping right a bit tricky. Know exactly what to do for a 9 or 10 am marathon start, but 8 pm? Breakfast is lunch, and lunch is tea, and bed time is time to start running.... Stuck with porridge for breakfast, pasta for lunch, and a peanut butter and banana bagel for tea, and lots of water as it's hot. Felt very full by 6 pm, but know in a couple of hours I'll be glad I ate and drank well.
So packed bags and set off for Dartford. Stayed at a Premier Inn, which was nice and close to the race. The race was 8 and a bit laps around The Bridge. The Bridge is right by the River Thames, and near to QEII Bridge and Dartford Tunnel. It is a regeneration project in the Thames Gateway, transforming a 264-acre brownfield site into a dynamic new community for the information age. I'll be honest, I wasn't that taken with it on first impressions. The hotel was half built. The view was through some scaffolding to lots more building sites and lorries, and a sewage works finishing off the picture in the distance.
But, often the most unlikely situations turn out to be the best! So we set off in excitement from the hotel in plenty of time for the start, but set off in the wrong direction and walked about a mile and a half to get to the start, which turned out to be about a 5 minute walk away from the hotel, in the other direction. Nicely warmed up, we collected our race numbers, listened to the race brief, and walked with the other runners to the start line.
8pm.
Go!
I love lap races. I find it easier to break the distance down into small chunks, and after each lap, you get a big feeling of achievement that another one is done. I especially liked these laps, because they weren't round. Part of it was an out and back, so you got to pass runners in front and behind you running in the opposite direction, which was really great for camaraderie. By the end felt like had got to know people, and would recognise the people going past, and was really nice shouting out encouragement to each other. Saw another Team Macmillan runner, so it was great boost to know there was someone else running for the same team out there! GO TEAM MACMILLAN (AND CLATTERBRIDGE AND JOSPICE)!!!!!!!!
Here is the course, although it's not very clear on this map with all the loops:
The first couple of laps were spent settling in to a rhythm and learning the route. Then there was a couple of laps where the sun was setting and the sky was all sorts of shades of pink and purple. Then it went dusky, and then finally dark for the last few laps. I think if you ran this route in the morning, it wouldn't be nearly so exciting, but the changing light really made it interesting. Can I do another lap before it gets dark? Can I finish before midnight, and get a special t-shirt???
It turned out - yes! Andrew did a mint job, his first marathon in 2 years since injury! Finished together in 03:51:17. And 8 minutes to relax before midnight and to have a cup of tea.
Loved this race. Especially the other people there, runners and people supporting. And the marshals who were funny and encouraging and put smiles on everyone's faces - they had so much energy, to be stood in the same place for hours on end directing us, and always cheering us on - really made a big difference.
This is the view after we got back from our hotel room, of some of the course - the lit up line through the middle. It was interesting, as though it was late at night, it was pretty busy around The Bridge, with all the delivery trucks going to and from the warehouses.
Brilliant night - thank you Midnight Marathon!
Stats
Total days: 64 days
Total miles: 691 miles
