The Robin Hood Marathon

Lesley came on the Friday ready for the half marathon on Sunday, September 16th.
We drove round the course on Saturday to get a feel for the hills and general layout. We had a walk to the National Sports Centre to get some light exercise but she had a blister on our return! I felt really bad about this but no damage, it was away from points of contact with her running shoes. Dinner (good) and theatre (rubbish - Romantic Comedy with Tom Conti) that evening, then the big day loomed. 13,000 gathering on the field near my house for a start about 10am. Lesley was running for a Diabetes charity and completed the course in about 2h 50m, a little slower than she hoped but cramp forced her to stop and get a massage from a handsome member of the medical team. I was glad to see her back and felt really proud that she could do such a run. I was out of breath running around the finish arrangements to meet her!
She looked fit and healthy on Monday and we walked around the University grounds before I put her on the train back to Newcastle.
Although the organisation of the run was without criticism, Lesley was surprised that so few people were around the course to cheer on the runners, in contrast to the Great North Run.