It was early and cold when I hopped on the bus into the city. Don't forget, early August is still winter here, and I was only wearing shorts! Luckily, every other bugger on the bus was on their way to City2Surf too,so we all felt equally stupid. There was also a sense of excitement and togetherness too, which was unusual for a Sunday morning bus ride.
Now this is no ordinary fun run. It's the biggest fun run in the world, so I was one of 75,000 people convening on Sydney for the route towards the beach. This meant that, as I wasn't 'seeded', by the time I actually got to cross the starting line, the winner had already crossed the finish line, 14k and 41 minutes before me. Undeterred, I ploughed on, dodging the thousands of people in front of me, attempting to keep a steady jogging pace. The atmosphere was simply wonderful. The sense of excitement, camaraderie, enthusiasm and mutual support was amazing, and certainly motivated me. After running towards the famous Coca Cola sign in Kings Cross, I ran through the tunnel towards Rose Bay. 'I can do this' I thought, and pressed on.
The route is beautiful, snaking through bays, past the harbour water, towards the ocean. A stunning sunny winter's day made for a perfect setting. However, this was no ordinary 14k run. Sydney is one of the hilliest cities in the world, and I was running towards the famous 'heartbreak hill', which was at the half way point. The main problem with this hill was that every time you thought you'd scaled it, you'd turn a corner and there would be another uphill stretch! It was agonising.
The thing that kept me running was the desire to achieve my personal goal, and the realisation that if I stopped to walk, I'd probably never pick up speed to jog again! But the spur of the crowd cannot be denied. If I saw a tottering old man in front of me, I was spurred on ('I can't let an old man beat me!') And people who live on the route all hang out on their balconies and in their gardens, watching the thousands of mad people run past, and cheering us all on. Rock bands played on pub roofs, a brass band played in a bus shelter, bogan teenagers sprayed thankful runners with garden hoses, it all helped to keep us pressing on.
At the 7k mark I had blisters on my feet and didn't think I could finish it. But then every kilometre after that there was a marker, which I kept my eye out for. Also there were volunteers handing out water and gatorade. I had read lots of advice on keeping sodium levels up so I made sure I drank lots of gatorade. By 11k my shins hurt, but I was nearly there! Just a short way to go!
As I headed down from North Bondi towards the finish line, there were hundreds of people lining Campbell Parade cheering us on, some of whom had already finished themselves. By this stage I was running near some guys promoting their stretcher-bearing service. They had run the whole way holding aloft a girl on a stretcher! I sped up so I wasn't behind them!
So I ran the whole way, but cautiously, as I wasn't sure of my physical abilities, having never run anything before. I did it in 106 minutes, which is pretty cool (I was in the top half of runners!) and I felt like I had energy to spare.
At the end I got my medal, glowing with pride, and then met up with a friend who'd run it in 72 mins (overachiever!) and went for a big lunch. Of course I was hideously stiff for about two days and could barely walk, but it was worth it, I felt great. Next year I'm determined to finish in less than 90 minutes, so watch this space!
So my next challenge is called Sydney to the Gong. This is a 90k bike ride, from Sydney through the Royal National Park towards Woollongong. It's to raise money for MS Australia, and as both of my grandfathers died of MS it's a cause close to my heart. Don't just wish me luck, sponsor me! It's on 1 November, so I'll have 3 weeks after I return to Sydney from my Europe trip to get in some training.
And, in other news, it's less than a week before I board my plane to London! Woo hoo!
cx
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