TCS NEW YORK CITY MARATHON 2014KM 2nd NOVEMBER

Andy had set off the NYC 2 weeks before Marathon day, he was making the most of an opportunity to see specialist practice out in the USA before finishing his residency next year. As I drove him to the airport we were somewhat stunned that this time had finally arrived, after having had it planned for so long the build up had been huge, and now the time was almost here it felt surreal. It was tough spending 2 weeks apart, the longest time we have spent apart in 10 years! More importantly though our last 2 weeks of training was to be alone having run together at every stage this year. We had undertaken our longest runs thankfully, but we misjudged just how much we relied on getting each other through the tough, and boring training runs! Running with someone definitely keeps you going in those longer distances!  

Andy’s arrival in NYC wasn’t straight forward after finding out that the apartment he had booked via a reputable company didn’t exist and being stranded in New York with his cases wasn’t ideal after the hideously long journey and dramatic time difference. After several phone calls to me at what was 3 am, and many to the company he was soon in a nice apartment and could finally get settled. The following day, neither of us having had much sleep we both ran 13 miles. I found it incredibly tough doing the same boring route on my own, but Andy had a new route that included central park!

We continued to taper down until the last Sunday when we intended to run 8-10 miles. Andy managed his with ease, I however got to the 10K point and felt an excruciating pain in my knee. I stopped to walk hoping it would wear off only to find it continued to get worse. The knee swelled and in vet terms I was incredibly lame... a tearful phone call to mum ensued who drove to collect me. Whilst waiting for her to arrive I also made a tearful phone call to a Physio to get me in the following day around work for treatment. However after arriving home, despite ice, elevation and rest the swelling continued to get worse and so we made the visit to an NHS walk-in clinic. The doctor and nurse were brilliant, I made it clear I would be running this marathon no matter what despite disapproving faces they then advised me against imaging if that were the case – as it may just diagnose something that would prevent me from running, and initially with 5 days to go the treatment wouldn’t change. They prescribed me strong anti-inflammatories, rest, ice, elevation and to just try on the promise that if it hurt during the marathon I stop.

The swelling reduced over the week but it was still causing a limp. Mum and I joined Andy in NYC on Friday 31^st October the flight had stiffened up my knee, and the swelling was still present. Andy was somewhat disappointed that I wasn’t actually exaggerating the injury and now he became worried about me taking part especially as I also hadn’t run for a week!

 

The day arrived and my knee for the first time didn’t hurt! Adrenalin is the best analgesia! I took some pre run pain killers as we got ready at 5.20am and then it became all about the race and the marathon. We boarded our bus with feelings all over the place, one minute we were terrified the next just super excited. We ate our packets of porridge on the way trying to time our eating before our start time and desperate to get there and meet Helen Gemmell, one of my best friends, who had travelled with her parents to complete this final event with us. Helen has run 2 marathons before and knew was to expect, her advice in the lead up to and on the day was invaluable and we both felt so lucky she was by our side. However a marathon is a huge distance, whether you have been daft enough to do it before or not, each time the enormity of the challenge cannot be underestimated and waiting in our start pens we all faced this reality.

 

The weather was horrendous! The windy conditions were the worst for many years, it meant the wheelchair race had to be rerouted from crossing the 2 mile long bridge at the start. We stood and huddled trying to shelter but after 3 hours of waiting our toes were totally numb. The only saving grace was that it wasn’t raining or else I think I would have needed medical attention before even starting! Finally we trundled to the start too cold to even consider taking off the clothes we were supposed to be dumping and instead elected to start the race in jumpers, hats and gloves! Thank goodness we did because running over that first bridge was an experience! We could barely run straight the wind was so strong and looking for that all important 1^st mile marker that never came – we found out later it had blown into the waters below!

Below are 2 professional photos from TCS marathon facebook page...

 

Thankfully once off the bridge, although still windy, the sun came out and after 3 miles we could feel our toes again. We could now get settled into a rhythm and start to enjoy the run a little more. The crowds were truly overwhelming. We were cheered by name nearly all of the way around, we laughed at the funny signs, were touched by the supportive signs and entertained by the endless music and cheering. As we ran through Brooklyn the multicultural heart of the city it was truly uplifting. Everyone coming together for the same cause and supporting each other whatever their reasons. At 17 miles we met our own cheerleaders my mum, Carol, and Helen’s parents Pat & Ian Gemmell. We stopped briefly to hug and have a photo and then continued on. We were feeling (and looking apparently) very good! However after 18 miles we started to feel the pain... New York is a punishing course with hills and steep bridges and we started to grit our teeth a little more... As we made our 3 mile hilly approach to central park and the known finish area, each mile seemed to be getting longer and longer! We were greeted again by our parents in the crowd who found us looking a whole lot worse than when they had last seen us! We were now in the last 2 miles and everything was absolutely hurting... we weren’t sure whether our legs would hold but we knew we could keep going now and that we would finish come what may. Before the race we had thought that if it gets really tough we could just walk for a few paces... however this wasn’t realistic after 20 miles because every time you stopped everything seized up and it was a whole lot harder to get started again. So it was better to just keep trundling on!

 

 

As we approached the finish I was ready to drop but the atmosphere was amazing and having stepped over that famous finish line we were in tears! We had finished our contribution to Madness 4 Mike in the most incredible way possible and were still alive to tell the tale! People around us who had run several marathons were all exclaiming it was the hardest race they had done and knowing this escalated our pride even further. The medals were astonishingly beautiful and we couldn’t have been prouder of ourselves. With all the adversity we had all faced this year with injuries and training around work, and for the reasons we were doing the challenge, we had overcome it all and finished our first marathon in a time of 4:37. When taking into account the need to stop and remove clothes, have a toilet stop on the way, and running 20 miles of the course into headwinds, this would have brought us closer to our target of 4hr 30. This was a loose target time we set when we were totally fit too, so considering my knee injury and the weather conditions we weren’t really expecting to get close to it when the day arrived so we were absolutely thrilled.

The above 2 are professional shots shared by TCS Marathon facebook page.

I couldn’t have been more overwhelmed with the online support we received, the donations were pouring in and messages of support and lots of people following us via the app too! It was an incredible yet overwhelming feeling, and I had to come away from social media for a few hours that night as it was making me too emotional!

I know what got me through this day was the support from friends and family at home, 2 incredible people by my side and one amazing dad in my heart. More thanks will be given at the end of the year and the close of the challenge but for now, for this event, thank you all so so much!

 

These photos were shared by fellow runners on the TCS Marathon facebook page...

 

We celebrated the following day and the recovery was painful but nothing could bring us down from the high we were on! It was worth every sore, pain, ache and effort in memory of an amazing man, and for 2 worthy charities St Ann’s Hospice & Hospice UK (prev Help The Hospices).

 

SUNDAY 5th OCTOBER : CHESTER MARATHON

Sophie Anderson, having completed several events for Madness 4 Mike this year, took to the roads of Chester to complete her first ever marathon for the cause. St Ann's Hospice holds a special place in her heart too, as they also cared for her mum Jean before she died.

Here is her account of why she wanted to challenge herself with a MARATHON and be part of our team this year!

Sophie Anderson

When I heard about Sammy’s idea to raise money for St Ann’s Hospice and Help the Hospices in memory of her Dad, I knew I wanted to be part of it.  My mum also spent time at St Ann’s before she lost her battle with cancer 15 years ago, so sadly I know just how Sammy feels.  I pledged 100k towards the Madness 4 Mike: 2014 in 2014 challenge, but hoped I could do a lot more.  I’ve done a fair bit of running over the past few years, but I stepped it up a gear last September when I joined Lymm Runners running club.  My first proper race of 2014 was the Blackpool Half Marathon, a lovely flat route, but my goodness it was windy!   Through the spring and early summer I continued with running club and local races - so far, so easy.  However, come May/June time there was a lot of talk at Lymm Runners of doing the Chester Marathon in October.  A number of the team had manned a water station at the Manchester marathon in April and loved the atmosphere so much they wanted to run one for themselves.  As I didn’t want to miss out I agreed to sign up too!  Lots of talk of training plans ensued and I settled on mine, printed it out and stuck it on my fridge so there was no hiding from it!  Over the next 16 weeks I ran about 4 times a week including a long run at the weekend.  I built up my distance to 22 miles three weekends before the race.  Over the next three weeks I tapered my runs down so that come race day I was feeling rested. 

The day before “M-day” we were all beset with nerves, and couldn’t wait to get running!  After a restless night, my alarm went off at 6.15am and I got read to catch the minibus to Chester with my fellow runners.  It was a bright but chilly morning, great running weather!  We got ready, dropped our bags off, had several “nervous wee’s” and then we were lining up on the Chester racecourse ready to start.  Before we knew it, we were off!  I soon found my rhythm and started clocking up the miles.  A lot of the course is a bit of a blur as I was concentrating so much on pacing myself and keeping hydrated & energised.  We wound our way out of Chester and into the countryside and at some point we entered Wales.  All the way round the course the support was fantastic – the marshals on the course, the water station attendants and the spectators were all absolutely brilliant.  They cheered everyone on, and I got lots of people cheering my name (as it was on my race number).  It made so much difference especially near the end…..which brings me to near the end….  up until mile 18 I felt great, my pace was steady and I was really enjoying it.  At mile 18 I stopped and had a little stretch and a drink, and then carried on.  I still felt ok, but I was getting tired and starting to ache.  By mile 22 I was starting to really hurt, my pace slowed and there were a few more walking rests as I got nearer the end.  Somewhere in the last couple of miles was a very unwelcome hill, but I kept plodding on.  Seeing my boyfriend at about 25.5 miles lovely and gave me the boost needed to keep going.  Finally I was back on the racecourse and heading for the finish, at last!  I received my medal, T shirt and goody bag and then staggered to find my fellow runners and boyfriend.  I’d done it!  After 16 weeks of training, I’d completed by first marathon in 4.12:17.  Tired but happy probably summed up my feelings!  The sponsorship kept coming for a couple of weeks post race, and I was very pleased to add over £600 to the Madness for Mike fund.   All in all it was a brilliant experience and I’m seriously tempted to run Manchester Marathon in April 2015……

 

 

OCTOBER 18TH - RUN OR DYE SOUTHAMPTON!

Despite it's rather daunting name, it didn't put off Andy's cousin Tessa Lamb and her son signing up to run their first 5K event as part of team Madness 4 Mike! I should add at this point that Tessa's son Christopher is just 7 years old - running 5K at any age is a challenge to a non runner but at just 7 years old this is probably two or three times the distance of those dreaded school cross country routes!

Christopher is in year 3 at Halterworth Primary School in Romsey. I'm sure the school, hopefully after reading this blog, will no doubt be impressed by his achievement on 18th October. He ran so fast that he barely got covered in any paint completing the course in an incredible 33mins! There were comments on the course from other adults stating disbelief at being overtaken by a child! His mum, Tessa, struggling to keep up also made this impressive time for their first ever 5K, had to ask the last paint station to target Christopher with his pristine white shirt - 6 of them tried and he still ran out the other side almost unscathed!

Whilst others celebrated and recovered from their achievement, Tessa had barely made it back to the car before Christopher was asking to do it again!

I think we have an athlete in the making!

A huge congratulations and thank you to both Tessa & Christopher from team Madness 4 Mike, we are super proud of you!

SAM SPEAKS AT ST ANN'S HOSPICE CORPORATE FUNDRAISER

Sam was asked to speak at the St Ann's Hospice Ladies Fashion Lunch fundraiser on Friday 3rd October.

She spoke in front of nearly 300 people about what St Ann's Hospice meant to her and her family, and how they helped Mike. She then went on to talk about our challenge this year and all the many ways it has created something so positive out of something so traumatic. She will reveal more of that speech when the challenge comes to an end but it was an emotive speech that touched the entire room, most of all her family and friends who were in attendance.

We were very proud of her standing up there talking about such a difficult subject and she hopes it has helped to raise much needed funds for St Ann's Hospice, raised awareness of Hospice care, and inspired others to support such a worthwhile charity too.

CAMILLA EDWARDS SWIMMING UPDATE!

Camilla has continued to swim throughout the summer for Madness 4 Mike taking part in a swim series of events. She has continued to improve as the season progressed getting placed in many events and swimming incredible distances showing her sheer grit and determination as well as her talent for open water swimming. Swimming the distances we are running is incomprehensible to the rest of the team and we are so proud of her achievements this season and grateful to her for joining the team and her contribution towards our KM count!

1st June swim in the Thames - the course was shortened to 2.7km as the current was so strong. Camilla swam this in 40mins 29sec, and was placed 16th out of 184 men and women (5th of 50 women). 

 

21st June she swam at the Great East Swim in Alton Water just outside Ipswich (5km) which she swam in 1hr17min56sec, she was 5th out off 57 women and less than 2 minutes behind first place and was really amazed by this result as there was a professional ironman triathlete in amongst those 4 ahead of her!

 

29th June she swam at a small event in a lake by the QEII bridge in Kent, 3.8km, 1hr4min20sec. Camilla was disappointed slightly with her time but was 3rd placed woman!

 

6th July was a Womens only race at Eton Dorney Lake (Olympic rowing venue), 3km which she did in 49mins 29sec.

 

26th July - Mass Start swim series swim 5km swim did in 1hr 20mins21sec. Came 4th woman! 

 

August 17th - Cotswolds 5km - 1hr 22min44sec - 1st placed woman out of about 20 and 3rd place out of 40 overall. INCREDIBLE!!!

 

August 23rd - Mass start swim series in Bedford - 10km 2hrs 54mins 44sec 1st woman out of only 3 finishers, and 2nd place out of only 9 finishers overall (they had massive drop out before the race and during the race because water temperatures had plummeted to 14C from 20 about a week ago!). That meant that Camilla won the Mass start swim series with her placings (5th, 4th and 1st places) and won free entry to all their events next year!

 

Needless to say she has earnt a well deserved rest after this season before having to do it all again, all be it for free, next year!!!

 

Well done Camilla, team Madness 4 Mike are very proud of you and thank you for being part of the challenge and raising money for such great causes!

28TH SEPTEMBER: DIRTY DASH 6K OBSTACLE COURSE KENT!

This yielded the biggest team yet from Cromwell Vet Group! Sam & Andy were gutted they had to pull out for medical reasons to ensure they remained fit and injury free for the marathon looming but the CVG did them so incredibly proud! Most members had never done anything like this before and the whole course was a huge muddy test of physical strength and fitness, mentally overcoming fears and thoughts of being unable to do it and all of them finished and completed the course - somewhat battered and bruised at the end!

The team consisted of Ben Wright and his housemate Nick Adcock who have both also raised money for our challenge by cycling from London to Cambridge - despite the KM not being part of the challenge we were hugely touched that they elected to raise money for our cause and can't thank them enough for putting themselves through such a long and gruelling cycle!  The rest of the team were Lauren Macpherson, Rebecca Falconer, Kim Sacker, Amanda Jakins, Chris Jakins, Jen Bradley & boyfriend Zak Single, Kelly Lander.

A report from one of the team members will follow soon, until then be amazed at these photos!