Home > News > 2000 > May 2000 > An actuarys marathon day at the races
An actuarys marathon day at the races
Well I did it. On the Sunday before Easter 2000 I ran the London Marathon. It took 4 hrs and 11 minutes and the time went in a flash.
The day had started lazily. Blue sky, warm sun and no reaction when the starting gun went off. Getting 30,000 runners underway took time and 14 minutes elapsed before I made it to the start and the adventure began.
The first 10 miles were quite easy, especially as I was forced to go more slowly than I wanted. The road was crowded the whole way - a bit like the M25 on a Friday night but everyone was much more friendly. Going down a slight hill some 3 miles into the race I could see a sea of heads in front of me. I ran at the road's edge making "high fives" with sticky hands of excited kids. Canary Wharf, the largest building in East London, dominated the early miles. We could see it from everywhere. Everyone knew that the course went underneath it but we never seemed to get closer to it. The Cutty Sark came and went. Tower Bridge arrived with little warning and there was the family to give me encouragement. The crowds were fantastic and every bit of the 26 miles was lined on both sides with people enjoying themselves and shouting good wishes. The blokes outside the pubs teased us with offers of beer. Every pub had a band or a disco. And then relief, we were under Canary Wharf and I don't remember it after that.
Things started to get serious around 20 miles and the banter amongst the runners fell away but the crowd got louder. After 23 miles and despite more family encouragement, I started to hurt but there was no stopping me now. In the end, I ran the whole way apart from taking on drinks. I have never mastered drinking and running. I passed most of the Wombles, the Essex police force team and the caterpillar but was humbled by a runner with a false leg who beat me to the 17-mile mark. He was amazing and the realisation of what he was achieving made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
My memory of the day is the crowds. Their enthusiasm and generous encouragement was truly inspiring. They must have been at least as exhausted as the runners.
Looking back, the training was the hardest part. I'm not really sure why I started. Twenty years of inactivity had taken its toll. The original idea was to lose a bit of weight and survive a day's off-piste skiing with my sons without feeling completely inadequate. But then, somehow, it became a challenge that I could not avoid. Fitting the training around home and work was difficult. (I hope the clients didn't notice!) Home suffered most. My wife was a real star. I would happily do the day again but I'm not sure I could or should redo the preparation.
Besides being a challenge for the likes of me, the London Marathon is about raising money for charity. In my case I was supporting those who care for sufferers of Parkinson's and Motor Neurone disease and those who look after the children at the Martin House hospice in Leeds. My thanks go to all my sponsors. The total raised is standing at £4,221 and each charity will get at least £1,300.
My thanks to everyone. Your support did make a difference.
Tony Leandro, May 2000.