Running on the wild side: At the finish line
A final update from Chris and Sarah Webb who boldly ran the London Marathon on April 21st and fundraised £2,100 for Action for Conservation along the way. We'd like say a huge thank you to Chris and Sarah for choosing to run the marathon on behalf of AFC and doing such a fantastic job fundraising for our charity. The timing of the marathon coinciding with the selection process for our 2018 summer camps, which will be supported by the funds that Chris and Sarah raised. You can still donate to Chris and Sarah's journey via the link at the bottom of the page.
Chris and Sarah at the start of the 2018 London Marathon finish line.
We did it! Although only just!
In what turned out to be the warmest London Marathon ever, we were delighted to run across the finish line almost 6 hours after we started. It was an eventful day that started well, with blue skies and a cool breeze as we gathered at Blackheath at 9 am along with around 42,000 others who had trained over a bitterly cold and miserable UK winter.
The first 4-5 miles were fantastic. The legs felt good, the support along the route was unbelievable and our extra-large helping of porridge that morning was keeping us going.
However, it wasn’t long after this that, like many around us, we started to overheat as the temperature rose. We doused ourselves with water and made sure we drank plenty and notched down our pace a bit as well. Running past the Cutty Shark and then over Tower Bridge gave us a real boost, by now we had made it halfway. Celebrating our achievement with a quick toilet break seemed to start our problems. The heat was getting much worse now and one of us was suffering from asthma, all triggered by the unusual heat (we hadn't experienced these problems once throughout 6 months of training!). By mile 18 we were in the St. John Ambulance tent getting our oxygen levels and lungs tested. The doctor assured us that no permanent damage was being done and encouraged us to keep going but only as far and fast as felt comfortable (or at least as comfortable as any marathon can be).
By this point, we knew that it wasn’t about how quick we finished so we started again to relax and enjoy the ride. We stopped to chat with our family at a couple of points along the way, hi-five children who were lining the route and take some of the kindly offered sweets and ice-pops from other spectators.
Sarah and Chris at the finish line of the marathon.
A combination of walking and running for the last 6 or so miles meant that we could jog together over the iconic finish line on the Mall. We were elated but exhausted.
Looking back, despite the asthma-inducing heat and exhaustion along the way, it was one of the most incredible days of our lives. The atmosphere and encouragement were unbelievable at every single mile - it was like running through a 26.2 mile party in London!
However, what really kept us going was knowing how many people had supported us and Action for Conservation with their generosity. We weren’t just running this for ourselves but for all of them, and we weren’t going to let them down. So, a HUGE thanks to all of you, as we couldn’t have done it without you.
Don’t worry if you haven’t got around to it yet, you can still support us by visiting our fundraising page here. All proceeds support Action for Conservation's conservation camps for 12-16 year olds in Pembrokeshire, Wales this summer.