SILVERSTONE was what set me off on this ridiculous half marathon challenge. It was the first of the 12 that I signed up to, the chance to race around a bona fide Grand Prix circuit, one I’d visited as a spectator and seen countless times on the television.
But then when I started to think about it, and talk about it with friends, I began to question my sanity. Once you’d got past the fact that it was Silverstone – home of the British Grand Prix – just how exciting would 13.1 miles of Tarmac in flat Northamptonshire actually prove to be?
The answer. Well in truth, not very. But it proved a huge challenge. A highly competitive field – The Adidas Silverstone Half Marathon is the official warm-up for the London Marathon – and a demanding road surface, tough on the legs, all made for what was my biggest test to date.
Race founded John Disley CBE and Emmerdale actor Chris Chittell dropped the famous chequered flag, with 6,433 runners tackling one of the most famous race tracks in the world.
The race started at Copse Corner, and after that the famous corner names just kept on coming; Maggotts, Becketts, Chapel, down Hanger Straight, Stowe, Vale, Club. Abbey, down Farm Straight, Priory, Brooklands, the list just went on.
But other than names, corners you’d mastered on F1 Grand Prix as a teenager, you could have been on any airfield in the UK. The glamour of Silverstone was not apparent, empty grandstands and vacant advertising hoardings. Three miles in, and the Pit Lane was the first real sight.
There was, of course, the infamous Silverstone traffic problems to contend with leaving the course, but that was still hours away.
Half way round the course, I found myself having a surreal conversation with a fellow runner, who was pondering how much quicker he’d finish the course if he took the racing line...
My verdict? You’d probably take a few hundred metres of the course, but you’d probably upset quite a few people as you veered about.
We’d spent the night enjoying the hospitality of the Buckingham Hotel – just a few miles from the race track – who very generously threw in dinner, bed and breakfast for nothing in order to help give Macmillan and my challenge a boost.
And having spent Saturday afternoon in the pool and sauna, I was suitably relaxed. In truth, I think I was to later regret the sauna decision, as lack of fluids mid race became a serious issue.
I tried to take on drinks mid race, but it’s not easy – running and drinking – unless you want to resemble a toddler, still mastering the art of putting drink to mouth without spillage.
And with two miles still to go, I could feel the onset of the dreaded cramp, my calves starting to feel like they were already seizing up.
My tiring limbs were not helped by a serious of bridges – and Hanger Straight, which I’d last seen fresh-legged during the first mile of the race, suddenly seemed to stretch to the horizon.
Feeling worse than I’d done in any of my previous runs, and in absolute auto-pilot, I somehow crawled over the line. 2.11.20 – six seconds slower than Sleaford two weeks ago, proving that I’m nothing if not consistent, but for me in the circumstances a time that I was strangely pleased with.
A few interesting footnotes to the Adidas Silverstone Half Marathon; the women’s race was won by TV presenter Kirsty Gallagher in 1.23.20, while Katie Price – in training for the London Marathon – crossed the line in 2.59.54. Kaizer Chiefs frontman Ricky Wilson finished in 1 hour 35.
Next up on my attempt to run 12 half marathons in 10 months for Macmillan Cancer Support, is the Liverpool Half Marathon on March 27.
A massive thank you to anyone who has supported me so far, I really do appreciate it. Sponsor me online at www.justgiving.com/marklingard