The London Moonwalk
This was the sight we were met with as we walked through Hyde Park, not quite sure what to expect from a marathon walk in the dark. As you can see from the photo the tent (if you can call it a tent – it was the length of 3 football pitches!) was H.U.G.E – We couldn’t believe our eyes! It was then that the enormity of what we had signed up for really hit us…..we were about to stay up all night, walking 26.2 miles through the streets of London with thousands of other people all raising money for breast cancer. Wow.
The tent became illuminated as the light began to fade and we eagerly and nervously anticipated the start. We had our showtime costumes on: waistcoat, tales and decorated bra. We were all set to go – the photo below was taken just before we crossed the start line in Hyde Park. We were the second of 4 groups let out, crossing the start about 23:30, the last group to go would cross the start at midnight.
To be honest, most of the walk is a blur to me now – it was fantastic in lots of different ways but oh so very tough. It is hands down the hardest thing I have ever done. I don’t think I had actually thought about how far 26.2 miles actually was. I had, along with my walking buddies, trained hard for the event – We had upped the milage each week and made some fantastic costumes. The big difference was the amount of people – so many people meant waiting to cross the road, (the course was mainly along pavements – the roads were open as normal) sometimes for 15/20 mins at a time and the same for queuing for the toilets. This meant our previous goal of completing in 8 hours just wasn’t realistic. There were marshals at every crossing and they did wonders for moral, cheering as every one continued on. There were points when I thought ‘I’m not going to make it,’ I was so tired, so exhausted and at 22 miles my right knee packed in. BUT I had promised myself I would do it, complete it, raise money for a great cause and finish with the rest of my group. So with the help of my friends I hobbled across the finish line…..I have never wanted to see a sign so much in my life!
We crossed the line at 10:15 the following day. It took us 10 hours 45 mins, we made up 2 hours after the walkers thinned out and we were able to get into our normal pace. It was an amazing experience and the weather held until the last 300 meters! After we finished we ended up getting a taxi back to the hotel where our bags were because none of us fancied the 1.5 mile walk there!
Since getting back home I have been very busy at work, with my cat painting and catching up with how my stand at Shottle Hall went at the Summer Fete. I am traveling to Scotland tomorrow for a weeks holiday so won’t be able to post due to a non-existent internet connection – or phone signal for that matter! I had hoped to schedule a couple more posts to go live whilst I was away but I just haven’t had the time. I will have the posts in my head now and all the exciting sights from Scotland posted when I’m back. Until then have a great week!
