London to a Brick

It took a marathon effort in icy weather but JOHN BROWN got to see every nook and cranny of London and its scantily-clad citizens

Would you like to get a close-up view of London's Big Ben, Westminster and Buckingham Palace?

How about a quick trip across the Tower Bridge. I mean, on foot with not a vehicle of any description in sight?

What about a rapid run around the Isle of Dogs, Canary Wharf, then through the centre of London and down Victoria Embankment?

Easy. Just take part in next year's London Marathon.

This is not just your average fun run. It is an event where the onlookers participate (almost) as much as the runners.

It is a real occasion, where one of the most historic, beautiful and busy cities in the world is shut down for hours to allow a bunch of ordinary people to run through its streets. Admittedly there are about 35,000 of them each year, depending on the weather.

It is one of the world's most prestigious marathons and one that any keen runner would have at the top of their `must do' list.

I achieve my wish in April this year with a group organised by Travelling Fit, one of Australia's leading tour operators for sporting events.

Elvis on Tower BridgeThe competitors came in all shapes and sizes, nationalities, personalities, elite, elite to amateur, hardened veterans to first-timers.

And the weather this year was freezing: it rained, there was sleet and some ice while the wind was so cold that I lost the feeling in my lips and nose.

But gee I had a good time. Really!

I met Superwoman and Wonderwoman, many others dressed in all sorts of weird clothing, with wigs and men in tutus, gorillas, and cartoon characters. And even some people were undressed, well, except for their underwear. And, believe me, Elvis is alive and well, he went past me looking very very fit.

Then there was the crowd. Great. People of all ages cheering you on, offering all sorts of food, from chocolate to orange slices - and calling your name to urge you on. For me, it was ``go Aussie'' about a hundred times and once I copped ``go Skippy''.

Big Ben and Big smile!Besides those who did it for fun and those who did it seriously, there were hundreds of others who did it for charity. Cancer research, heart foundation and others were also real winners on the day. But the run itself was the reason I was there.

What a way to see London. On foot with a cheering crowd.

And this year was a special occasion. It was the centenary celebration of the official marathon distance.

Marathons were run over varying distances between 24 and 25 miles up until the London 1908 Olympics where it was set at 26 miles and 385 yards (42.1 kilometres). That was because the Royal Family wanted it to finish in front of their box. That distance was officially adopted by the international athletics federation in 1921.

Our Travelling Fit group for the 2008 Marathon included runners from South Australia, Tasmania and NSW. All had different expectations and hopes. One of our group was also preparing for her 100th marathon.

We rose about 5.30am on race day and prepared for the bus journey to the start line. Start, for us serious fun runners, was not until 9.45am but we needed to be there early to beat the rush. Don't get caught in the chaos, we were told.

The Travelling Fit runners at the Marathon StartThe sun was shining as we arrived but that's not to say it was warm. I had been warned that the slight breeze would not go around you - it goes straight through and that proved to be the case.

Entertainment was provided on the big screen with lots of music and jokes as the crowd began to swell.

The elite women runners were sent on their way at 9am and the elite men runners were followed by the wheelchair entrants soon afterwards.

Because of the huge number of runners, there were three separate starting points, blue, red and green. I was in the blue category and because I had filled in my entry form with a predicted race time of 3 � hours I was sent off to gate four.

The idea is for runners to run with people of similar ability. But it never works. There are those who fudge their times to get a better start place and they just generally get in the way.

While at the start gate and still warming up, the runners in front of us began to applaud. After asking why, I was informed the gun had gone off and the race had started.

It took me about another seven minutes to reach the start line. But that doesn't mean we started to run. That took about another three or four minutes.

The number of runners, the narrow street, meant we remained shoulder to shoulder. That togetherness was to last for most of the run. At some points, like turning a corner, we actually came to a standstill.

The only danger at this point was the flying elbows and the occasional misdirected spit. Pushing and shoving was purely in self-defence and the occasional foot on your heel was generally met with a `sorry'.

The Masai WarriorsJust as we seemed to be getting a little clear space, we met with the runners from the green starting point. They were greeted with jeering as the road became congested again. This was also the case at the red injunction, but it was all in good humour.

My first serious problem came from the group of Masai warriors, in traditional garb and complete with shields and spears. They were being escorted by several British army officers on either side and this kept the road clogged for several kilometres as runners tried to slide past without getting speared.

Next obstacle was the couple in their underwear. They drew an extraordinary amount of attention from other runners and it was difficult to fight your way past.

But about 30 kilometres into the run, the field started to spread and there was a clear run to the end.

Tower Bridge - about half-wayThe starting point was at Blackheath and the run wound its way through picturesque London, through Woolwich, Charlton and Greenwich, Rotherhithe, Bermondsey, across the Tower Bridge, through the city, out to Limehouse, Canary Wharf, around the Isle of Dogs, back to Limehouse and the city centre, through Blackfriars and along the Victoria Embankment, turn right at Westminister and down Birdcage Walk to Buckingham Palace to finish in St James Park.

Then it was time to take off the foot timing chip, grab my medal and bag of free goodies, reclaim my possessions and head for the Underground to get out of that damn rain.

And where did I finish?

According to internet results I finished 6587th from the almost 35,000 runners and 100th in my age group. The time was 3.45.19, well outside my goal but at least I did it in more comfort than the couple in their underwear.

Story courtesy Newcastle Herald.

Reproduced with permission from the Author