Once upon a time, there was a woman who’d never shown the slightest interest in anything sporty (except knitting – that’s a sport, right?) And that would have been the end of this story, except that she married a runner. On one of their very first dates, the two of them went for a run in a nature reserve in dense fog and got hopelessly lost. There was probably a metaphor for something in that escapade, but the woman was too tired after her run to bother thinking about it.
Fast forward several years and they were running regularly, although the woman was more interested in pausing to watch wildlife than in clocking up the pain miles. Unlike the Stoic-Spouse-to-be, she never seemed to get much fitter.
A wedding came and went, and then twin children appeared and stayed. Frankly, it was impossible to find any child-free time/energy for a few years. The woman became extremely unfit and started feeling her age.
Then one autumn day, the twinnage started school. The woman was only working part-time, and she realized that life was going never going to offer her a better opportunity for sorting out her fitness than this one. So she began to run four times per week. It hurt. It made her healthier and more energetic than she could have imagined, but it hurt. Improvement was slow.
But now, something weird has happened. Running has become, in a messed-up, masochistic, sort of way, fun. Mostly. And – let’s ditch the third-person pronouns – I started getting a bit better at it, both in speed and distance. I’ll never be much of an athlete, but I can run non-stop for over two hours without even pausing to drop dead, so that’s something.
So.
On Sunday, the Stoic Spouse and I ran the Virgin Oxford Half Marathon, along with 8300 other people.
I didn’t win.
In fact, I came 5625th.
(It was my second time of running this race. The first one was here. I didn’t win then, either. Are you noticing a pattern emerging?)
But you know what? It was fun, in a teeth-gritted, lung-hurty, way. The atmosphere was joyful. So many thousands of folk wanting to get out there and experience some physical suffering together.
Due to the lack of foresight shown by Oxford’s 12th-century town planners, it took a wee while to filter through the narrow side-streets to the start. But there was plenty of entertainment along the way. Foot-guy took our cheering at him in good spirit:-
And then, we were off. The Stoic Spouse runs this kind of distance regularly, just for fun, so he was fine. But I knew I was going to have to stamp pretty hard on the accelerator if I was to achieve my secret goal of a sub-two-hour finish. Fuelled by jelly babies and over-optimism, I got on with the job.
Some of you know that I was running this race for Cancer Research UK, and as I ran, I thought about you and the stories you kindly shared as you donated. Thank you, fine people. (There is still a very little time to sponsor me here. We’re up to £535 so far!)
Gradually, the Stoic Spouse and I began to put miles behind us. I love the centre of Oxford. Every street, almost every building, has some kind of memory from all the years I spent studying and/or living there. The race was crowded, so it was sometimes tricky to keep a consistent pace. And it turns out that 13.1 miles is actually rather a long way. Who knew?! But there was a party atmosphere, with bands beside the road playing every kind of music, hordes of spectators cheering us on, and children offering trays of jelly babies so we could top up our blood-sugar. Yum. Sorry I can’t offer you photos of the experience (because I was too busy running), but imagine 8300 people out for a run together on a bright autumn morning, all trying to decide whether this was the best or the worst idea they’d ever had…
Eventually – and I really, really, do mean eventually – the race came to an end. We finished in two hours and seven minutes, which wasn’t too shabby.
As for my goal of a sub-two-hour half? I’ll just have to come back and try again next year.
Meanwhile, back to the knitting and the crochet.
Thank you, Virgin Sport, for so generously giving me a free spot in the Oxford Half in exchange for blogging about it here. Also, thank you for your most excellent post-run snacks:-
Bravo! What an achievement. As for the two hours, well, obviously you’d have done it in half the time if it wasn’t for all the Oxford traffic… 😉
Ha, good point. Yup, the traffic was DEFINITELY the only reason. (That’s… the traffic that wasn’t there because all the roads had been closed.)
Congratulations. A really good time and a brilliant cause. X
Thank you. Seriously.
WOW… years ago my daughter (a teenager then – a Mom herself of 2 teenagers) and I ran the Peachtree Road Race on the Fourth of July, it was just a 10k run, so less than half the distance you ran… I don’t run these days, don’t walk so good anymore… Congratulations on raising money for such a good cause… training for next year starts soon I’m guessing 🙂
That must have been a wonderful experience – running with your daughter.
(And you say that you don’t walk so well, but my goodness you can draw/paint.)
Love it ? Well done! Those are some great snacks! I’ve been going to the wrong races!
Thank you! (Though I’m nowhere near in your league, speed/distance-wise!) And an enormous THANK YOU for the sponsorship. 🙂
You may not have been first across the line, but you are most definitely a winner! Xxxx
Aww, thank you, m’dear. Hope you’re feeling better very, very, soon. NEXT WEEK WE WILL DEFINITELY BOTH BE IN THE PUB, OK?!
Well done! Oh you’ve made me miss running all over again, I can’t wait til my knee is all fixed and I can get out there
I hope that that day comes sooner rather than later…
Well done!!! You would have done it in under two hours if it hadn’t been so crowded. Congratulations on a great achievement.
Liz B.x
Thank you. And thanks again for your generous sponsorship. (Also, am I blindly walking past you in the village or are you not around much at the moment? Apologies if I’m walking right past you, lost in my own yarny world.)
Fantastic, love your story! You’d have to hold a gun to my head to get me to go running but I do understand that some (weird) people can get totally into it. Not to mention the health side of things….:)
Thank you. And likewise, I completely understand how some people think it’s a ridiculous thing to be doing… because I was one of those people until a few years ago.
I am so in love with you (I’m probably old enough to be your grandmother) that I would be cheering you on whatever you did and however long it took you! Your writing always cheers me up – so witty and clever. I’m a total anglophile as was my mother who, when it was time to leave the hotel after a visit to London, wept pathetically because she didn’t want to leave. I’ve never been to England and never shall be (too old and feeble in mind and body) but your blogs supply me with a touch… and I cannot ever thank you enough. BTW I am also enthralled by your knitting endeavors – I wish I could see your TV appearance with the chair!
Ann, thank you for the extraordinary generosity of your comment. I don’t deserve such kind words, but if it’s true that I bring an extra smile to your life, then I’m happy (and honoured). Are you SURE that you couldn’t visit this slightly bonkers country of ours?
Congratulations! You have run for a good cause and did yourself some good in the bargain. I wish I had done more exercise when I was younger for I am now having to work to keep my muscles in good enough shape to just walk and climb stairs. Stay with it – under 2 hours or not, you did great!
Thank you, Ms Sue! I can’t believe I’m saying this as a long-time exercise-avoider, but it’s never too late to push how much you can do.
Well done. An amazing achievement, no matter how long it takes to complete the race. And congratulations on raising money for a very worthy cause.
Thank you, on both counts. You’re very kind.
Good job! I run and knit too and I’m sorry to say this, but knitting will always top running for me:)
Fair enough, I understand! (And agree with you, by the way.)
Oh fantastic! Huge congratulations and thank you so much for making me laugh out loud at the photo of the feet in the window. I’m sure that if you noticed them on the way you laughed too and upset your rhythm for seven minutes.
I can’t run at all – knee problem – so I admire and envy you in equal measure.
nice one! well done! that’s a time anyone would be proud of! ?
Congratulations. My daughter and I did a 5km run a couple of years ago for the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne (Aus) and, while a fraction of the distance you did, I imagine the atmosphere was very similar. So many families, including ours, running for those kids who didn’t make it to adulthood…a beautiful, emotion-charged day.
Congratulations to you and your husband on a successful race. And thank you for helping such a worthy cause.
Your story is so beautiful and encouraging for anyone looking for a run. Very nice!
Thank you.