The Seville Marathon, 19.02.2023

It was my first time to run this race, and indeed my first time in Seville, and I absolutely loved the place, and the run!

I hadn't realised how short the flight was to get there, only two and a quarter hours. Yet it feels so different to London - the buildings, the plants, the bright colours and patterns, the warm breeze, and the smell of oranges wafting in the air. 

Andrew, Sarah and I hopped over on the early morning flight from Gatwick on Saturday. Once we arrived, we caught the EA bus into town, and found our hotel, the Hotel Don Paco, and checked in. I loved this hotel. I think, in the 60s it would have been state of the art, from the 70s to 80s maybe not quite so, from the 90s to 00s definitely not cool, but now, again, it is bang on the money!  Plus, it had a roof top pool! Thank you Vanessa for the recommendation.

After topping up our energy levels with ice creams from Cafe Square, we headed over to the Expo to collect our numbers, and soak up the pre-race atmosphere, and bumped into Bushy, Caroline and Paul. 

After getting our numbers, we headed back to the hotel, changed, and went on a short recce run to the start of the marathon, by the Parque de la Maria Luisa, to suss it out. The whole run was absolutely beautiful. The gardens and parks were like the very best botanical gardens here in the UK, but in Seville they were all just free to wander around! Seeing oranges growing on trees was magic!

 

 

We had an early dinner at La Mala Brunch underneath the Seta de Sevilla, followed by ice cream #2 and an early night. 

My early night was disturbed by 1) the football, 2) everyone in the rooms around having showers at very strange times of night, 3) a generator, 4) being about 20oC hotter than the UK has been for at least 5 months, 5) feeling nervous!  

Up before the crack of dawn to get ready, and head to the start. There were around 12,000 people running the marathon so, after London, I think it is the biggest marathon I have ever taken part in. I like marathons, and enjoy doing them regularly, but I was so nervous this time, and felt like I had never done one before!

The start and finish were in the same place, so it was straightforward to drop off our bags, and queue for the very scary port-a-loos. If anything can persuade anyone to run a marathon, I would have thought that just one look at a start line port-a-loo would encourage anyone to run as far away from it, and as quickly as possible, as they were able to. That experience thankfully out of the way, we all headed to the start line, which was a bit chaotic, and being on the short side, I found it a bit stressful getting stuck between all the tall blokes shouting and pushing forwards, but soon enough we were off. 

Sarah and I ran around together, and had the best time, "Vamos!"-ing and "Chicas!"-ing! It was such a good atmosphere with great support. There were DJs around the whole route, playing classic tunes, and the crowds were really amazing. We high fived a giant cockerel. The route went up the river, over it to do a loop (by the Isla Magica and Agua Magica, which reminded me of Blackpool, and then past the Centro Comercial) and back to cross the river near the start at around 12.5 km in. Then the second loop went up the river again, but this time headed east, and did some loopy bits around more residential areas. The last part was all around the old town, and absolutely stunning! I loved running around the Plaza de Espana - wow!

Sarah and I finished in 3:56 which I am super happy about, although who cares about time, when it was the best of days! 

Andrew, after saying he was dropping out as soon as the pubs opened (due to his injury hampering training) smashed out a 4:35, and crossed the finish line like a rocket on steroids. 

100 Club shouts outs - loved seeing Peter, Bushy, Sam, Gina, Paul and Caroline, and meeting Dave from Wolverhampton. 

Watching the finish line was magical. 

Afterwards, refuelling and sightseeing was in order, and we stayed an extra day to see some more of Seville, seeing the Seta de Sevilla, cathedral, Plaza de Espana, and having a good walk around the parks. I really loved the city, and would love to go back. 

I know that in Spain, Seville and oranges aren't really a thing, but I loved the oranges so much! Just seeing them growing on the trees all along the roads, and in the parks, just casually (like you do if you are an orange tree), was such an unusual thing for me to see, and so magical. Each time I saw a rouge orange laying in the road, even squashed by a car (orange juice?), it felt like a little discovery. Not only had I said "I would really like to see an orange fall from a tree" whilst wandering along with Sarah and Andrew, than we turned a corner, and they were actually harvesting the oranges! An army of men in hi-viz, with special ladders, aprons and buckets, working methodically along the orange trees lining the road, shaking them so the oranges fell to the ground, and collecting them up. 

 

 

 

 

I like very much travelling to do marathons. You get a nice run in, which in itself is a very nice way to see a lot of a place, and then having a couple of days extra to explore is really nice. Plus, being surrounded by your friends, makes it a very lucky thing to be able to do indeed. 

Now to think about what next.....

Saturn Running Chasing Numbers 50 km (10.02.23) & The LDWA Punchbowl 30 miles (12.02.23)

Saturn Running Chasing Numbers 50 km (10.02.23) - 04:53:47

50km Friday! I was not feeling at all like I could run this morning. I got to Egham on the train, then had a wobble, and decided I couldn't do the run, so put it off for a bit by walking around Waitrose, under the pretence that I needed to get water and sweets, neither of which I needed to get in the slightest, as Saturn Running has an excellent aid station. After this procrastination, I still felt like I couldn't do it, so went on another detour to get coffee. After this, I seemed to have exhausted all the distractions Egham had to offer at 08:00 on a Friday morning, plus the coffee started to kick in and I felt a bit more like seizing the day, so I eventually made it to the start of the run, at Wraysbury Skiff and Punting Club in Runnymead. Once I got started, I felt much better, and enjoyed the run when I'd got going. It was a wonderful sunny day, so I made the most of being out in the sunshine, and stayed out to do a 50 km. Lovely to see lots of friends out and have some catch ups. Thanks Andy for some miles! And thank you Team Saturn for a great day!

Afterwards, it was nice to stretch the legs with a wander around the Kew Orchids after Hours event, and to stay at the Barnett Hill Hotel in Wonersh for a treat.

  

The LDWA Punchbowl 30 miles (12.02.23) - 06:51

Today was my fourth time at the Punchbowl, and it's one of my all time favourite events. The LDWA put on such good events; good value, friendly, great aid stations, and always the best routes that an area has to offer, and the Punchbowl is definitely one of my favourite ones. It was great to be back  for the first time in four years. Lots of familiar faces there, and it was a very sociable time indeed. 

Run/walked around with Andrew, and it was the best adventure! With GPS and a route description, we found our way around the new route with no problems. The route started and finished in Tilford Village Hall, and went south past Frensham Ponds, around the Devil's Punchbowl, north to Elstead and Puttenham, and then back over to Tilford. 

I love the legend (or, legends, as there are a few) behind the name, The Devil's Punchbowl. The best, in my opinion, is that the Devil (in the Middle Ages) was becoming very irritated by the number of churches being built in Sussex. So annoyed, in fact, that he started to dig a channel from the English Channel, and all through the South Downs, in order to flood the area and destroy everything. How dastardly. Digging commenced, but the Devil reached only as far as the village of Poynings, when he heard a cockerel crow (Dimitiri? Ken?) The Devil upon hearing the cockerel, assumed that dawn was about to break, and (for reasons that are beknown to only the Devil), he jumped into the neighbouring county of Surrey, and landed with what seems by all accounts to have been quite a thump, and created the Devil's Punchbowl. 

Although it was overcast and drizzly, the scenery was still beautiful. The combination of sandy trails, pine trees, and hazy blue horizons is so splendid! Spring is definitely on the way, as the snowdrops were in full bloom.

It was great to see my Auntie Nicky and share some miles just before CP1, and later on, catch up with Kasia and Ellen. Great to see as well Rob and Jan, Victoria, Dimi, Dr Rob, Costas, Tracey, Matt, Jeff and Andrew. 

Thank you Surrey LDWA for a top class event!

Phoenix Running Hawker Challenge Charity Run (marathon) 29.01.23 + Old Skool Fridays (32.8 miles) 03.02.23

 

Hawker Challenge Charity Run (marathon) 29.01.23

A bit of a grey day in terms of weather down by the River, but big celebrations for Annabel's 200th Half-Marathon! Congratulations to you, lovely Annabel!

Sarah and I somehow managed to get each other around 8 laps, probably mostly by chatting enough so that our legs didn't get a word in, and employing the shrimp/ pretzel/ Freddo strategy. Thank you Sarah for making a tough run still feel fun! 

The Phoenix runs last weekend were all in aid of raising money for the Rays Of Sunshine charity , which works to make wishes come true for seriously ill children 💛💛💛  

Old Skool Fridays (32.8 miles) 03.02.23

Train strikes mean getting around is a bit of a hassle. Ended up staying over in Walton-on-Thames on Thursday night, and it was strange coming down in the commuting rush on Thursday evening, instead of the usual empty early morning train. I think the change in routine upset my delicate balance. I had an M+S picnic when I got there, which was of course very nice. I have this strange thing (which I think is my Dad's fault, as he sneezes a lot), where whenever I eat, I straight after feel really very sick, and then I sneeze, and I feel fine again. It's weird, I know. This time, the feeling of needing to sneeze was so intense, much worse than normal, but I couldn't sneeze. Then I started coughing, and I got into such a state with it all, that I was sick! I'm never sick, hardly ever. It was all very awful, for about 10 minutes, and then all of a sudden, it passed as soon as it came, and I was fine again. 

So, although I was sorry to miss a pub session with Craig, it was lucky I was in bed, where I recovered and watched the Hairy Bikers (who were in Elmbridge, doing Meals on Wheels!) and read a book, and went to sleep to forget the whole episode. 

In the morning, I seemed to have no ill effects, and met Craig for the walk to the start. When when Sarah arrived, we were treated to a Lovelock Lap, when after charming us and doing some bucket list progression work, Lovelock ran off in to the distance. 

It was the most beautiful sunny day on the Thames, and it felt like spring was coming. We were in much better spirits than last week, and the laps went by quickly. We did 10 laps, which is 32.8 miles, for Sarah's 99th ultra-marathon. Congratulations Sarah! 

We talked about reconstructive surgery and having parts of you replaced, the oldest embryos to be adopted and born (30 years after being made), the world's oldest dog (also 30), strange exhibitions on in London, bruises, shrimps and coconuts, the obligatory lap to talk about work, Brazil/Seville, inspected Sarah's 300th medal at one point (beautiful!) and discussed the outfit co-ordination and nails that will be required for the big day, what to eat the day after 100 miles, and canal boats and rescuing cows from canals. We also shared some miles with Dr Rob. 

The journey home was "interesting". After quick power walk to make the 14:10 train which said it was running, we did a final sprint to the station, only for the train to pull out as we approached (you try sprinting after 33 miles and with one of Rik's giant Remembrance medals in your backpack). All the next trains were cancelled! We put into action Plan B - "The Buses". We hopped on the 458, which had the biggest bus tickets I've ever seen, and after initially going in the wrong direction, eventually took us to Kingston. Here, Sarah went on a shopping expedition, and I got on the number 57 bus to Wimbledon. It was all going well, spare for a few traffic jams, until it turned out it was school time, and 100 school kids all piled on. Reaching Wimbledon, a little frazzled by the experience, I found some coffee to regain some energy/ enthusiasm, and jumped on the District Line. At Earls Court, I realised at the last moment I was on the wrong branch of the District Line, and did another jump off that tube and onto the right one. From here it was all plain sailing, to Whitechapel, to catch the Overground to Hoxton. 

Thank you Rik and Phoenix Team for a fun couple of days on the towpath! Well done to everyone, and especially to everyone reaching milestones!