Mark Completes the Virgin London Marathon

I am now known officially, as a London Marathon ‘finisher’

Yes, I did it – was it glamorous or quick? – No, but it was completed, the finish line crossed after over a year of hard work, lots of updates on Facebook, days of bag packing in supermarkets, car boot sales.

The Start

The start line was nerve racking (and electric) as everyone was trying to shed their old clothes (they are to keep warm before the race). When we were finally started, everyone set off quickly. There must have been around 10,000 people that overtook me in the first 100m – that was a little soul destroying. I stuck to my plan at 8.5km steady pace. I found my pacer and stuck with him.

People were still overtaking me well into the 5km point. Every race guru’s that I’ve taken advice from told me, ‘to stick to your plan’ so I did. I carried on my slow old pace and noticed something change around the 10km point and that was I was keeping pace with a few, I was ahead of my pace group and less people were overtaking me.

I kept pace with a chap for a couple of kms, he’d done a few marathons before and kept on talking to me while we paced. I did excuse myself from speaking and just listened to him telling about his pacing for other marathons. He said as we ran we’d start overtaking people as they always set off too fast and run out of steam eventually.

That started to happen around the 15km point, more and more people seem to fall behind me and continued my plan – steady at 8.5kms. It was working and I was having fun. I overtook the rhino, the Angel of the North (tallest outfit) and a helicopter. I ran along with a squad of Marines doing the race in full kit, including back packs. They looked tough but they were going too slow for my pace so I had to wish them luck and say goodbye to them.

Halfway Stage

By this point my pacing group were quite a way behind me and I wasn’t being overtaken anymore, this was the serious part of the race as my training finished a few weeks ago with a half marathon, but I was now entering the unknown. When I hit the wall, will I be able to get through it? Would my body run on empty, I had planned for this and had two lucozade carbo gel bars pinned to my shorts. Even those were starting to get heavy.

My pace group caught me up and dragged me for a couple of kms. I was at the back of the group feeling pain and a chap said to me – ‘you need carbs’ – I took one bar from my shorts and ate it with some sugar drink – I’m not kidding, it was like having a pint of Red Bull –

What was the problem I thought. I ran to the front of my pace group with a spring in my step. We were starting to overtake other racers now at the 30km point, this felt amazing as I saw other people feeling like I did. I tried to help, but whether they took it in or not is anybody’s guess. Your mind plays funny tricks at 30kms plus.

My cheering group were at a pub at 37kms, my nearest marker was 35kms so I knew that I had to look good from then until I saw them. Couldn’t let the side down. I ran past my cheering group who look like they were having fun and enjoying the day – by this time I was at total exhaustion but I smiled and ran past, trying my hardest not to let on.

I think I said something like, ‘This is harder than it looks’

Only 5kms to go and I saw a sign, it said, ‘5kms to history, do not stop’ this is the hardest part of any marathon because your mind says you are nearly there and your body is telling you to stop. Problem is that is more painful to walk than it is to run, so I kept on running. I have no idea where my pacing group were at this point and I have no idea of my time but I didn’t care now. As long as I crossed that line – my work here would be done.

My mind was playing tricks on me at this point, I lost my breathing rhythm. I usually breathe out every second left foot but I couldn’t seem to count properly. 37-40kms was becoming the hardest part of my race. Maybe it was all in the mind, I’m not sure, but I felt like stopping.

I dropped my water bottle going up a slight incline, when I bent down to pick it up, I couldn’t get up, I felt dizzy and my eyes were watering up. My legs had turned to jelly – this was the ‘wall’ – I could hear the crowd telling me to get up but my legs wouldn’t do what I told them. A kind chap jumped over the crowd barrier and helped me to my feet, and said keep on going, you’re nearly there. I started to slowly hobble off in the right direction. If it wasn’t for that chap, my race would have been over.

The finish

As I approached the final few hundred metres, everything ached. Ache is the wrong word here, it should read, utter pain. But rounding the final corner I saw the finish tunnel and the line. What an amazing sight. I was here, I got jelly legs seeing the line and felt quite feint but I ran as fast as my legs would carry me to cross the line.

I crossed the line at 5.45hrs with an official time of 5hrs 25mins. As an ex soldier with a dodgy knee, running with trapped nerve in the other leg and a bizarre crick neck, I was a tiny bit emotional to have finished. The total raised to date is £1,750 for my two charities The Loddon School and The Children’s Society.

You can support my causes at http://www.justgiving.com/mark-ianson or http://www.justgiving.com/mark-i-anson Go on, give a little..!

I am now known officially, as a London Marathon, ‘finisher’ You can see me crossing the line on Youtube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrSO72L4viM

On the tick box of life – Run the London Marathon – DONE..!

Although it was me that was running, it wasn’t a solo effort. There are quite a few people that helped me along the way, and they are:

• All of the people that sponsored me during the past year
• Tesco (Towcester) Bag Pack Team
• Co-op (Towcester)
• Milton Keynes Car Boot
• The staff at Liaise Loddon/Loddon School/SCIP
• The New York Camp
• Facebook (Marathon Campaign Group, Mark’s Cheering Group)
• Mark I’Anson Property Clients
• Ex Army Buddies
• Old School pals
• Herald & Post Newspaper (Northampton)
• The London Marathon crowd/spectators
• The chap that picked me up at mile 24
• All of the support texts/messages from friends & family Towcester Centre for Leisure
• My darling wife Deborah xx

For those above, my heartfelt thanks and gratitude, without, I would not have finished. Kind regards Mark

Bramley265 would like to add our congratulations to Mark for not only completing the marathon, but for supporting The Loddon School.

Now no sooner than his trainers had begun to cool down, Mark announced he is going to run the New York marathon in November. If you want to follow his progress, pop over to his Facebook page.

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