Love

I think the above photo sums up 'love' for me. My husband is removing my sweaty, smelly compression socks for me at the end of the Morpeth to Newcastle marathon. My feet felt like they were on fire and my husband didn't hesitate to remove my socks for me. My parents and children were at the end of the race and, in fact, it is my Mum who captured the above shot on her phone. I love that the Quayside and bridges can be seen in the background .
It's the first time I've raced in an Elswick vest for 19 years and I'm pleased to report that I actually won the race which was a pleasant surprise for all of my family, including me!
The race started in Morpeth and the first 4 - 5 miles were on closed roads and then after that we had to run on pavements, disused rail tracks and dodge all the pedestrians, dogs, pushchairs, children on bikes and so on. It was hard work but the ridiculously steep hill at mile 17 was a killer. Unbelievable, in fact! I had been in second place since mile two but I was running very sensibly and felt strong so when I saw the first placed female ahead of me at approx. mile 18 to 19 I just focused on reeling her in and at mile 20 I caught her. I encouraged her to run with me but she was struggling so I dug in and ploughed on on my own. The last few miles were painful, especially my feet as they felt like they were burning, but I kept thinking of my family at the end pulling me towards them. As I rounded the final bend the first person I saw was my Dad which was a pretty special moment for us. My Dad and husband had driven to various points in the course to cheer me on but they hadn't seen me since mile 15 and didn't know that I was in the lead. My Dad has always been one of my biggest running fans so it was a great moment for us to share. My husband, Mum and children were closer to the finish line (my brother had been at the half way point to hand me my extra marathon nutrition, which I'm grateful for). I tried to high five the kids but couldn't really get close enough to them so just focussed on the finish line as I knew I'd won.
Wow. What a journey to get here. What an amazing memory for us all. What a bloody relief that it's over and I can now eat some cake!
So, yes it was a pb, but not as fast as I'd hoped. That'll teach me for racing the day before and for not selecting an 'easy' course. I can't wait for the next one!