CANCER RESEARCH UK LONDON WINTER RUN (10K)

When I’m not judging movie stars and rating their work, or working myself in to an early grave thanks to the marvellous world of retail I work in, I can often be found pounding the streets, doing a bit of running.  This year I turn 40 and I’ve persuaded myself to make sure I earn my 40th running medal in my 40th year.  A challenge I’ve, rather amazingly, entitled #40for40.  I know…genius.

Sunday 03rd Feb saw me running the Cancer Research UK’s London Winter Run, a 10K race in the centre of the capital.  It was bloody cold and the day started early, like so early it was that kind of hour when some younger members of society come stumbling out of clubs in search of kebabs.  Alarm went off at 04:30, Uber collected me at 05:00, coach left for London at 05:45, was running by 10:00.  The course began in Trafalgar Square, carried out around the central City Of London and the Financial District and Theatreland and was flat and fairly speedy, which is hardly a surprise seeing as central London isn’t exactly known for its uphill and downhill segments.  At various points we had crowds to look at us, some even cheered (note to crowds at races: please cheer, don’t just stand there and stare!).  I was in danger of tripping over people for the first few kilometres but finally you got some open space, well enough so that you didn’t have to keep staring down at the heels of the person in front of you for fear of tripping them up.  We went past many a theatre, the Bank of England (no freebies handed out though…bastards) and even though I have explored many parts of London over the years, I still felt that this run showed me parts I’d never seen before.  The only mistake I made was that, towards the end, upon approaching Trafalgar Square, I thought it was the finish so I threw away the little bottle of water I’d picked up en route and started to up my pace…only to find that it wasn’t, in fact, the finish; that was down Whitehall!  So now I was pegging it and needed to try and maintain it.  Foolish boy.  Feeling my breathing becoming rapidly more and more desperate I managed to get myself over the line but by God did my lungs not like me.  Sorry lungs.

Medals were given, hugs from ‘polar bears’ were given and the usual post-run refreshments and nibbles were distributed to us willing recipients.  There was even a bloke who’d run it in a mankini.  Total nut-job.  I mean, if nothing else…the chaffing.
I headed back to collect my bag (something that was almost spilling over given that it was a tiny bag and it was the only one we were allowed to hand in and that it had to contain my change of clothes and some nibbles/entertainment for the journey’s down and back) and was told to go towards the back to collect it as it wasn’t in the front area of my lane.  So be it.  Then I found it and asked an attendant to get it for me but he couldn’t properly reach it so he asked me to help him.  Cue some over-zealous Supervisor who came along and told me NOT to lean across, told me I should’ve gone to the back to get it and not just waited where I was.  When I pointed out I’d only stopped there because some other people were there getting their bags I was told “That’s because he’d lost his”.  Her manner was appalling and she can’t have been someone who regularly dealt with people in a customer-facing role because she was, quite frankly, a complete bitch.  Certainly a fly in the ointment of the day.

But ne’er the less, my first medal of 2019 had been earned and was around my neck, glinting in the cool winter sunshine that was now evident as I walked back down The Mall, towards Buckingham Palace.  My newly acquired, extremely cute and funky hat was on my head and my digits were being kept equally cosy by the new gloves (there was also a buff in this little triple pack of winter woolies that they were selling at the post-run Village but that hadn’t been put on).  My new Garmin Fenix5 watch that I’d used for the first time to record this race was feeding me all sorts of information and I was off to Subway for a well-earned dose of carbs.

Oh and my time? 49:11