My Marathon Experience by Matt Crompton

After 6 months of waiting, endless training and painful sessions of physio my marathon adventure finally was upon me. It started on the Saturday morning and after a pleasant train ride to London, Jayne and me met up with my A&T training buddy Jon Hyde and his better half Karen to make the trip across London to the Expo. Once we had registered is was time for a mooch around the stalls, check in with my charity and soak up the atmosphere at the pasta party. We also met up with Pete Chan who gave me yet another lesson in bargain hunting, with Asics giving away cereal bars on their stand. I think Pete ended up with about a dozen of them!

Once the Expo was out of the way it was time to check in to the hotel and then to Leicester Sq to meet Pete again for plate fulls of pasta, ice cream and get some last minute tips. Conversation was dominated by marathons, both past and present and by the end of the evening i had the final motivational top up i needed ready for the big day....cheers Pete.

After a reasonable sleep i was up and about early for breakfast and then off to meet Jon to travel down to the start together. I was on the red start at Greenwich with about 20,000 others but i was surprised by how organised and easy it was to check in, use the loos etc. After ditching my bag on one of the lorries early i made my way over to my starting point, poncho on, as it was starting to rain and managed to be the 2nd person in my pen at just gone 09:05. I started in pen 4 and by the time they had cut the tapes to let all the runners merge together i found myself in the envious position of being on the starting straight actually able to see the start line! Not getting beaten by an 8 foot Rhino suddenly seemed a bit less daunting prospect as he was at least 300 feet behind me.

I crossed the line only 1 1/2 minutes after the official start time and was soon into my stride, feeling comfy with no sign of the troublesome cold i'd had for most of the week before. Cutty Sark soon came along as did the warmer weather with the rain a distant memory from 6 miles earlier. It was around this point i bumped into a runner who was next to me at the start. Scott, who ran for a local club in Watford, was looking for 3:20 and we proceeded to drag each other round for the next 10 miles. Tower Bridge was as fantastic as described with the crowds 6 deep and soon after we saw the elite men flying by on the other side of the road, which gave me a much needed boost.

Canary Wharf was the next milestone i was aiming for and it was good to see one of my friends cheering me on. This was where the going started to get really tough, and although the wheels didnt come off, they certainly did start to feel a bit wonky. All i could think about was getting to 20 and then it was only a 10K and i was done! I can just about recall crossing 20 miles but after that it's all a bit of a mystery and i was only focused on trying to not let my pace drop off too much to the finish. I do remember the noise and atmosphere on Embankment and the Mall. I felt like a gladiator running to the finish and all the hard work was worth it for the feeling when i crossed the line.

After picking up my medal and goody bag it was time to meet Mrs C and celebrate. After a much needed shower we met up with Jon again and went to Covent Garden where i enjoyed my first beer since NYE and a free meal....get in!! After sinking more than a few cold ones it was off to bed, and was followed by a few nice days in the city. The sight seeing was great although steps were an absolute nightmare to go down as i felt like i'd been shot in both thighs.

I have to say that the London Marathon has got to be the most well organised event i have ever experienced. If you can cope with the logistics of masses of people, public transport and fear of being beaten by a man dressed as a rhino its definitely for you. I'll certainly be doing my best to get a place next year.

Finally can i thank everyone who has supported me during the training and build up to the race. Pete Chan for all his advice and mentoring to the endless questions i've asked, Mrs C for putting up with me for the last 5 months and a special mention to all the marathon warriors (you know who you are). The training sessions have been great and the support everyone has shown each other has been remarkable. Provisionally its looking like i've raised in excess of £2600 for Children with Leukeamia so cheers to everyone who was able to sponsor me.

Cheers
Matt