Well done to Kerrie, Lucy Mc and Nita who took part in the Simplyhealth Great North Run today. Well done guys. ?
Lucy’s report:
“What a weekend. My third time taking part in this iconic race. But for me it’s not a race, it’s all about the charities and soaking up the atmosphere. Myself, Kerrie and Alan camped at Souter lighthouse on the Saturday night,which was freezing. The beautiful sunrise on Sunday morning more than made up for our chilly night. We got on the shuttle bus at 7.30 and were dropped near the start where we had about a mile walk through some fields of cows to get down onto the motorway. Time went very quickly here even though we had a while until our 10.40 start. After bag drops, celebrity spotting and checking out the great costumes people were attempting to run in 10.15 came and we headed to the pens for our warm up. It took nearly 30 mins to cross the start line but there were massive TV screens to watch everyone on which made time go quick. I’d made sure we were on the left side of the motorway for us to head into the tunnels to experience the ,’oggy oggy oggy’. I’ve always started on this side missing out on seeing the red arrows flying over in previous years but it’s good fun.
I was expecting it to be cooler than previous years but it was very warm. We started well and got into a really comfortable pace, but by mile 8 the heat was taking its toll and the steady long inclines mixed with dodging other runners was tiring us. We eased back and just kept our legs steadily ticking over. The last straight is a welcome sight, and coming to the top of the last hill and seeing the sea is the best feeling. The last mile is always emotional for me. The amount of support all the way round is amazing, there are literally people every step of the way offering food and drink,but the last stretch is very special. People just watching the race, people from other charity support groups are just all shouting your name. When the
Race clock came into sight and I could see it said 2 hours 58 mins I grabbed Kerrie’s hand and we ran over the line together. A great feeling and even better with my running buddy. We had hoped for about 2hours 30 and we came in at 2hours 30 and 56 seconds. A great experience and one I recommend for anyone. Yes it’s not a pb course although many do get one it is a race that is just so special and worth doing even just once.”
Official Times:
Kerrie – 2:30:57
Lucy Mc – 2:30:57
Nita – 2:37:40
