From Couch 25k To Where Ever

Apologies in advance for the length of the report , It's as much for me as for anyone that wishes to read it but we were instructed to take in the atmosphere as much as possible so I did.


Race Report

Saturday: I headed to the expo at 10 with one of my grandsons to collect my number, I though it was good, Watched a demo on Foam rolling and Plantar Faciatas prevention and treatment with a foot roller which was cool, I had to have one to add to my collection, I also got some Energy bars for the next. day . I had Spag Bol for dinner washed down with water and a zero tab, I intended to take a zero tab each day from Thursday to Sunday but forgot on Friday.

I got my kit ready on Saturday evening; My wife wrote my name on my number and put it on my shirt while I sorted my fuelling for the run. 7 isogels, 2 energy bars, and 4 packages of 3 fruit pastilles wrapped in tinfoil and 3 Zero tabs, a fella wouldn't want to be going hungry . I packed my gear into my bag leaving nothing to chance, hats, gloves , running jacket, gel belt , flip belt , compression top , Sunglasses, tracksuit for after , The bag was bursting at its seams and I was ready for all eventualities, If there was a blizzard , heat wave or monsoon in the morning I had the gear in the bag to cater for that eventuality, I know there was no mention of these conditions in the weather forecast in the days before but those guys have got it wrong in the past.

Happy that I was as prepared as I could be I headed to bed at 10.30 on Firedanxces instructions. I had a great nights sleep both Friday and Saturday night, no nerves, I knew I'd done everything I could training wise and I was confident that I would get around barring serious injury.

I woke Saturday morning at 5.30. 15 minutes before the alarm went, I had a shower and got into my gear and my sacrificial tracksuit bottoms and hoodie, the bottoms had been used as sacrificial bottoms in the Dublin Half but it was a nice morning and survived as I took them off at the bag drop.

I had my breakfast of Porridge and Brown bread and marmalade and mug of tea around 6 am, I usually have a banana with my porridge on race days but as it was still 3.5 hours to the off I decided to keep it to eat around an hour before the off .

I Went to the loo a few times, watched a bit of telly and chatted to the missus who got up early to see me off.

{TMI bit coming up but it might help someone in the future, My body clock was causing me a concern, I'm a regular guy , so regular that I could set my watch by it, 10.30 each morning I go to "my office" and catch up on the running forum while the magic happens but with the race starting at 9.30 that wasn’t really on today. I'd seen load of people mention Coffee as a solution and I'd seen UM1 of this parish advise that eating two or three Weetabix the night before would mean that things would be moving nicely first thing in the morning, I adopted Um1's Weetabix as Plan A and Coffee As Plan B, Plan A worked a treat, no need for plan B.}


I Left home at 6.35 to drive the 10 minutes to Malahide for the 7.05 Dart which was only going to Connelly due to some works on the line, Not sure if it was leaves on the track or what the problem was, it certainly wasn't the wrong type of snow as it was lovely moring. There were about 20 of us waiting , some travelling very light in just shorts and a top , ready to go, I felt a little odd with my Marathon Bag crammed full of what I deemed necessities for the task ahead. I got chatting to a fellow runner who had a fold up bicycle with him , I joked I wished I'd though of that, he was using it to go across town to his office to change etc.

The train journey in was good two ladies who were marshalling got on and sat beside me , they were all talk about their day, I learned they were going to be at the 2 mile marker and then the 20 mile mark, There were a few other guys chatting about the tracker , one of the guys obviously not very tech savvy was mesmerised about how it could track each runner.

All this kept me entertained on the journey in , we reached Connelly and the train driver wished us all luck which I though was a nice touch I said my good byes to the Stewards telling them I'd definite see them again at 2 miles but i couldn’t make any promises for the for the 20 Mile mark. We all laughed and went on our way.

I walked up from Connelly to Merrion Square, it was a nice warm up , taking in everything as I went along It was sometime after 8 when I got there and It was all ready pretty busy. I had a bottle of water from home and was taking regular sips.

My 2 daughters and 2 of my Grandsons texted me to say they were coming in to see me off, We had previously arranged to meet at the 14 mile marker so this was a lovely surprise. I really wanted to see them but they wouldn't be in town until 9, I hung around for a bit but then realising I couldn’t wait till then I went through the security check into the bag drop zone and text them to tell them they would not be able to come in where I was and I’d see them later as prearranged.

I walked down past all the bag drops to the information tent and saw they had pace bands, I got a 4.40 one and put it on my arm upside down which didn't really matter as I couldn't read it without my reading glasses anyway and I wasn’t wearing them on the run but at least it conveyed the impression that I knew what I was doing.

I asked where I was to line up I had a blue number for wave 3 having entered for 4.30 pace but I had re evaluated after The DCM half to a 4.40 strategy using my 2.12 half multiplied by 2 and adding 20 minutes , I know that's a 4.45 and perhaps I should have gone for the 4.50 pace, in fact I saw afterward on Strava that boards own Pacing Mule author of one of my must read training logs from my Couch 2 5 k days was pacing the 4.50 and I definitely would have selected that group if I'd known , not that I think it would have made much difference to my race if I'd known that but even though I’ve never met the man it would have been an honour to run with him.

I went to the loo and then headed back to the bag drop to get ready.
It was a beautiful morning so I took off the sacrificial tracksuit bottom and squeezed them into the bulging bag, they survived again I think I'll have to keep them now. I put on my flip belt and put my phone in it and clipped in my car key , Dont ask me why I took the car key with me it was going to be feck all use without the car .




I clipped on my gel belt and loaded it up the loops with 6 orange iso gels bending them back over between the belt and my body so they wouldn’t fall out . I had one more gel the 2 energy bars and the tinfoil wrapped fruit pastilles in the pouch of the gel belt, I tightened it up as there was a bit of weight in it and I was good to go .

I ate my banana and handed in my bag, the lady there wished me luck and off I set for the holding area. I asked a steward where the 4.40 pacer were lining up, he looked at me in bewilderment, obviously not a runner, I asked him for wave 4 and this he knew and directed me on my way. On the walk down I asked a few people what pacer group they were in just to make sure I was in the right place the first few I asked were running just to finish , no pacer needed but then one person told me the 4.40 pacer had white balloons and one of them was just beside me, I introduced myself as a boards novice to the pacer and thanked him , I asked if he was a member here he wasn't . As we made our way to line up with the other pacers he asked me about my training etc wished me luck and we parted company.

I was now in position about 50 meters back from the 4.40 pacers in the coral and I took out my phone and posted that here on boards. I then got a message from my daughters that they were in past the start line and to run on the right side of the road as they wanted to see me and that they were all very proud of me and that I was to listen to my body, that was the nurse in her coming out.

You know the way you never see your own parents getting old , well I think my Children 2 boys 2 girls aged age 22 to 28 are like that with my health, They see I've shrunk in stature but dont really realise how fit I feel and worry about me pushing myself too much, which |I don’t but there’s no telling them that.


We hang around for a few minutes waiting to be moved forward to the starting line, I feel I want to go to the loo again but am afraid I will miss the off if I do so I hang on, why I don't know its not like it was going to go away on its own. That's probably a mistake tbh , I had plenty of time and it would have eliminated one of 3 pit stops I made during the race.

I take my first gel of the day here the one I had in the pouch and a last sip of water and discard the bottle in a bin. We then move forward to the start line, I start my Garmin Live tracking app on my phone which is linked to my facebook page and shows where I am in real time. Cool tech.

All my family, (I found out since many of my friends) were following this for the duration of the race. The MC cracks his usual jokes , we do the Mexican Wave and then the pacers are off only to be called back , False start , funny. Next time they go it's the real thing, I cross the line, I'm actually running a marathon.

Miles 1-4 10:34, 10:29, 10:40,10:37
I take up my position at the very right hand side of the road as I run looking for my 2 6 year old grandsons and Daughters, after about 500 meters I see them with their "I Luf Grand he is d best" banner which
one of them wrote himself, and a lump appears in my throat, I stop to hug them all as the girls push me back into the road and tell me to keep running, I gather myself and continue. I have that banner at home and will cherish it.

The pace is easy , no problem, before I know it I arrive at the first water station at the end of Aughrim street. It surprise me that we were here all ready, the person in from of me stopped dead to get a bottle and I tried to take evasive action but ran into her. I take my water and move on, we're 3 miles in now time for my second gel of the day as per my training runs. This gel is not received very well by the tummy, It didn’t sicken me or cramp me but it made me rethink my fuelling strategy. As we were heading into the park a lady taps me on the shoulder and asks if I’m a boards novice and introduces herself as Safron girl, I tell her I'm Tom AKA The Muppet , (I really should have changed that before starting to post on the running forum). It was really nice to meet her, an inspiring person for sure, read her introduction and posts on the Novices thread if you're not familiar with her back story, amazing commitment.

We talked of Training, real life and 20 mile runs on treadmills, nearly as mad as trying to do them on the deck of a ship at sea, , ah the madness of the marathon runner. Before I knew it we were on Chesterfield avenue, I were just off the pacers , the pace was lovely and I was loving life.


Miles 5-8 10:28, (half mile lap 10.30) 10:08. 10:02, 10:03
Somewhere along Chestefield Avenue I came across row of toilets and I decided to take the pit stop I should have taken before the start, I said my goodbyes to Safrongirl and wished her luck.

Live tracking is cool but when you stop it stops, I later learned that my son saw this stop and though I had pulled up , I have a text message from him at this time which I only saw after I’d finished " keep going your're doing great", I'm still laughing at that now , I was only 5 miles in running well within myself but I also realise its not funny for him. When I came out of the loos the pacer balloons were a good bit in the distance, In My DCM Half I let them away from me and never caught up, That wasn't happening so early today so I set off in pursuit. I have a half mile lap @10.30 on my garmin stats here, I dont know how that happened , I have no recollection of pressing the lap button but I must have done. Looking at the splits above I think I ran too fast up chesterfield, I felt fine I didn't feel I was running too fast but the splits don't lie.

As we exited the park I'd closed the gap considerably on the pacers and decided to sit off them a bit. What can I say about the support in Castleknock really it's indescribable , The hairs stood up on the back of my neck going through there, The screams of encouragement , unbelievable, I felt like one of the Beatles in their hey day, Honestly if I ever run DCM again, to experience that once more will be high up on my reasons for doing so. I could understand it for the Elites but no they were there the same for everyone even us 5 hour runners. I was and as I write still am totally amazed by the reception there. I was High fiving kids and thanking everyone who shouted my name , perhaps I should have conserved that energy but I don't regret it those people deserve a medal for the support they gave.
Coming out of Castleknock was the next water station , I still had my bottle from the last station as I was just sipping so I discarded it and took a fresh one. A little further along the road I saw a runner being treated beside an ambulance It looked serious enough to me but there’s no mention of serious injury along there so hopefully my perception was wrong , It did remind me of previous incidents and how things can so easily go wrong when running. Seeing really fit looking people in trouble always strikes me hard.

We were now running down hill past Mount Sackville and into the park and I used the hill to my benefit to close right up on the pacers I should say here that even though I'm and born and bred Dub I am not really familiar with the route from here on until the Stillorgan road. I'm a north county Dub, I might as well be from Tralee to a city center Dub, there would be no difference. We are only allowed across the Southside for sporting occasions and the odd concert unless we are just passing through. and with the support lining the streets it all looked different anyway.

Miles 9-12 10:08, 10:24, 10:31, 10:30,
We are back in the Pheonix Park now, down the Glen Road to the Chapelozid gate I've ran here a few times including the 14 mile novice meet up during training. Tipping along nicely still just off the pacers when I remember my last gel was at mile 3 and I should really take something now , I decided to try another gel with water , It went down fine no adverse reaction, cool.

Just after we exited the Chapelizod gate was the first Lucozade stop, I was sorry now I had just taken the gel , Lucozade Sport had worked well for me in the DCM Half , I took a bottle anyway and took a sip or two but it was just too much too soon after the gel, I knew I couldn’t stomach it so I chucked it away.

I was still on target here and actually moved right up beside the pacers to say Hello, The one I'd met at the start was far left of me so I shouted over asking if he remembered me from the start, he did, we had a few words and then I moved right in behind them, Just after here was the hill, dont know the name but to me it is the most challenging hill on the route suppose it coming earlier in the race makes it easier than Roebuck hill. I was watching the pacers feet going up the hill the rhythm was just so cool their feet hardly seemed to be moving at all. I was glad to get to the top of the hill , that was the first place I felt I had had to up my effort. I recovered really quickly from the extra effort and was felling grand. We hit the 10 mile marker along here and I though of the 10 10 10 rule Nop had told us about, only the same to go again and then a 10k run in to the finish. Shortly after that I felt a pain on the outside of my left knee, again I'd had the same pain in the half around the same time and ran through it so I just acknowledged the pain was there and never though any more of it It didn't cause me any difficulty. I start tinkling of meeting my daughters at the 14 mile marker hoping I don't miss them. I also think of a good friend and his two young daughters, he was taken by the darkness on Friday Morning. (R.I.P Mick)


Miles 13-16 10:40, 10:34, 10:41,11:22
Mile 13 and we hit the halfway mark I look at the time and take of 30 minutes and know I'm still on target, I did have my watch but I wasn't really using it, the pacers were doing all that for me. Starva tells me I ran the first half in 2:17:16 with the loo break in that and I'm more than happy with that it's less than 5 mins off my pb. The second Lucozade station was here but I didn't chance it I took water and moved on. I'm still feeling good and looking forward to the 14 mile marker and seeing my girls , I'm running on the very right of the road as agreed with them and before long I see them , They took pictures of me as I approach and I'm beaming in them , I look so happy and I am, I stopped to give them another hug and they told me how proud they were and pushed me out to go again.

There was another girl with them I didn’t know then who she was but found out later she is a work colleague of my youngest daughter also a nurse and she had heard so much about me and my back story she decided she just had to come out to see and support me , How nice was that?

I stumbled a little as I started back and felt a little dizzy but got going again and felt fine but I was needing a loo break, the pacers had moved a little away from me but I wasn't bothered I felt I could stick with them . It was here I saw Mr Eiffle Tower, I looked at him as I went past and he looked to be in a world of pain then, Delighted to see he finished.


15 miles in and I am going grand. On mile 16 I see a bank of toilets and have to stop for my second loo break of the race, When I come out I can still see the pacers in the distance and I think here goes again I'll close them down, so I start to inject pace but as soon as I did I felt both hamstrings starting to cramp. I start to wonder what up and realise its a while since I fueled , I wasn’t keen on another gel so I decide to have an energy bar, I can't run and eat those so I walked and ate and drank, when finshed I set off again but as soon as I tried to up the pace both hamstrings complained again
It really was that sudden, I felt grand going into the loo when I came out a minute or two later I couldn’t run at the pace I had been up to now .

Having read all of the reports posted at the time I’m writing this quite a few have mentioned cramping from 16 miles on. I dont know why but it's appears significant.

Miles 17-20 11:17, 11:58. 12,37, 14,46
I try to close the gap on the pacers for the final time but its just not going to happen, The top of my right calf just under my knee has now joined my hamstrings in their complaints. I now have a class action on my hands, I’m really surprised by this as aerobically I’m feeling as good as I was starting out but the leg muscles are not at all ok.

Immediately what I learned in the frank Duffy 10 miler and what was drilled into us here about being prepared to alter goals kicks in, I decide to revert to plan c. In truth I was never attached to a time, I had followed this tread the last few years and knew just finishing was going to be tough enough for me.

So I am 8 miles from the finish line and in a bit of bother, I walked took out my phone and text my son “slowed a bit be in late, all good". I forgot about the live tracking on my face book which they were following, I had given all the family the supporter times from the novice mileage tracker telling them where I should be at any given time and knowing I was going to be late I didn’t want them worrying about me.
I was feeling great in myself despite my non cooperating legs, I visualised an 8 mile route I used in training and felt confident I could run the remaining miles but just not at the pace I hoped.

Up to now I've taken everything in , high fived dozens of kids , thanked tens of people who called my name and just ran with a smile on my face but now it was time to put myself into autopilot focus on the miles ahead and make it to the finish line. The shift in focus means that I’m not as clear what happened where from here on in.

It was somewhere in this section that I saw a guy with a boards novices sign on the right of the road , I was just past him when the sign registered so I turned back to give him the thumbs up and he gave me the most almighty roar of encouragement “Go On Tom” as if he'd known me all my life, I later found out that that was Smashiner, those words were really welcome .


Miles 20-24 12.35, 13.05, 13:07, 12:45
I remember coming to the 20 mile marker and thinking that’s the second of the 10 10 10 and the third 10 is just 10 k only 6 miles to go. I start to think of my wonderful supportive wife and then wonder if my son has relayed the message I sent him earlier , I know him so well, he hadn't despite the fact he was standing beside her. I took out the phone again and sent this message " I'm at 20 miles , feeling good but legs are sore so I'm taking it home easy "

I took another bottle of water along here and there was another hill, I took out one of my packs of Fruit Pastilles and chewed them and drank some water as I walked up the hill . At the top of the hill I set off running again.

I knew NOP and Firedance etc were along here somewhere too I was looking out for them but I didn't see them I was so focused on just moving forward . There were a group of 4 people sitting in armchairs on the right had side of the road roaring encouragement. The last guy on the right saw me and focused in on me , " Look at Tom, Go on Tom, You can tell Tom Is an old pro at this" and so on, perhaps I'm wrong but I though he was taking the piss rather that being supportive, I smiled and gave him a thumbs up while thinking ,f %$* you you dickhead I am a marathon runner, are you? I took my third loo break just after that.

I came up to a young guy who looked really fit but was walking and limping badly along here, I stopped to walk and asked if he was ok, he said both his calf’s were shot, he was from the north and this was his second marathon , I offered him a zero tab but strangely enough never though of taking one myself, he declined and we parted company. He went by me soon after and I didn’t see him any more , he must have made to the line,

I then focus my attention on getting to Roebuck hill, The DJ there Phil is a very good friend of mine and a former moderator of the radio forum here, I had been talking to him Friday night and given him usernames and numbers of all the novices and asked him to give them a big shout out to help them up the hill if he saw any of them, a tough ask I know picking out individually runners on the day but the
Intention was good. I came to the dj box and stopped and gave him 2 big thumbs up, he saw me and gave me a great send off as I ran up the hill smiling.

I saw some people along here with a banner with Maximus Alexanders first name on it, I'd seen his name on his gear pic and its not a common Christian name so I assumed they were his family and I gave them a big thumbs up as I went by, I considered stopping to say hello but thought that would be too strange.

I got a great keep at it Tom from a female Garda along here too. Hadn't a clue really where I was but I remembered the mentors say that once we get over Roebuck its down hill to the finish or at least that’s what I wanted to remember.

I took a slice of orange from someone along her too and a slice of banana from someone else, fresh fruit so nice after gels sweets and lucozade.. I think the 4.50 pacers went by me in this section, I tried to up the pace to stick with them but it wasn't to be.

There’s carnage all around me , people stretching, walking limping, sitting on the pavement and I'm still running all be it at a slow pace, I can still feel the hamstrings but I'm not in any great pain and I’m just over two miles from the finish .

I walk to text my wife again, "2.5 miles out seizing up be in within half an hour or so" and immediately I got the reply "keep going babes , you can do this, we are all here , take your time"

I'm happy now I know my family know the score ., I'm back on familiar ground on the Merion road, I start running again with the intention of running right to the line which I did.



Miles 25-26.2 13.37, 15:25 forgot to stop watch

The 5.00 Hour pacers went by me on the run in, again I tried to stick with them , Same result , no go from the legs, coming in by the RDS I saw the EXPO sign and smiled , Support was thin on the ground here , people were passing me but I was also passing people too. As I got nearer to finish the crowds just got bigger I started to scan each side of the road for my family but I didn’t see them, the roars from the crowd was magnificent, I'm happy to see the finish line and the blue carpet feels like velvet under my feet . I didn't even look at the clock going over the line I knew i was somewhere over the 5 hour mark as I'd been passed by the 5 .00 pacers but that didn’t matter today, it might the next time but for now I’ve ran my first Marathon, taken it all and really enjoyed every step and stride, and while not that long ago I was a couch potato I am now a Marathon Runner.






Post-Race
I'm actually feeling surprisingly good when I stop, legs are sore obviously but I'm far from shot, I collect my medal and bag and start looking for my family through the fence I spot my eldest son and he tells me the rest are up further. As I walk up to towards them I’m met by 2 of my grandsons running towards me on my side of the fence I give them a big hug and a kiss and meet up with the rest of the family. We Walk around to the bag drop to collect my bag and sit on the steps opposite to get out of the gear and into my post race gear, I have a banana and and the water from the goodie bag. My "Kids" tell me how proud they are of me which means a lot. My eldest 2 head off with the children while my wife and youngest 2 head for Mc Grattans, I had a cup of coffee and another loo break on the way and remembered to turn off my watch.

Got there and went looking for the pool table, it was jammed, I met the BlackOil and chatted, I know Annapr and Murph D to see and spotted them in a crowd so knew i was in the right area , said my hellos and introduced my family to them and had a chat, My daughter made me drink full sugar Coke as she though I needed it she may have been right , I forgot how good that stuff tastes or perhaps the fact I’d just run a marathon was a factor there but I met PaddyDriver who was also enjoying a Coke,

I enquired how the other novices had done . I met KennyG71 sorry G you name just wouldn't come to me, I enquired about Singer and he told me he was out front and very kindly took me out to where he had been, Singer wasn't around but Nop, Clearlier, Dubgal and Denis B were there along with a load of my fellow GRADUATES . Had a great chat with everyone , TFGR arrived with flapjacks which were lovely and very much appreciated.,

I thanked Nop for his help , I enquired about Firdance as I wanted to thank her personally , I admired the firm but humorous way she handled us novices right up to Saturday evening when she appeared on thread to send us all to bed . Conscious that I had family with me I said my goodbyes after a while and headed for home with my Marathon Shirt and big shiny medal proudly on display.

That’s my Marathon Memories, Sorry its so long but I'm sure I've left stuff out that will come to me in the days ahead.

I will answer Nops questions fully in another post later , I really enjoyed the training. It is tough but so worth it, I wouldn't change anything, even my horrific day at the Frank Duffy, I seriously considered pulling out after that but I’m not a quitter and the lessons I learned that day stood to me Sunday, as soon as I knew I had a problem I took the steps which allowed me to get to the finish line.

I assume texting fanily during races is not the norm and I had no intention to do so setting out but I needed to do that when I did to allow me run as I wanted/needed to.

I don’t know why I couldn’t pick up the pace after mile 16, I had zero tabs with me and never thought to stick one in a bottle of water , Guess I was too caught up in the atmosphere around me to think of doing that . While I didn’t stick to my fuelling plan I think I did take on enough, I had 4 gels , an energy bar and 3 fruit pastiles, a few swigs of lucozade sport a piece of banana and orange. Whether I let myself run low and it was too little to late, I don’t think so but perhaps. Was chsing the pacers after my first pitstop a factor?.

Training wise It all went well, I missed a handful of easy runs but did all the sessions at 10.18 or quicker and covered the prescribed milage. I don’t believe I bonked in that I could keep running even at the end, it wasn’t like the Frank Duffy where I was totally shot during the run. I felt great after the run, legs were sore but I wasn’t tired out.

My feeling is that I just didn’t have the strength and stamina I needed and the cramping was caused by that but I’m not sure of that either, its something I tend to address over the winter.. I am a diabetic so perhaps that’s a factor again I don’t know and all that stuff is for another day anyway.

My goal was to run the marathon, enjoy the experience soak it all in and want to continue with my running after it. That last bit comes for a friend who did it a few years ago and hasn’t ran since, because he sufferd so much,

Well I certainly did run it , I really enjoyed it and I think you’ll agree I took a fair chunk of it in and I cant wait to run again . On Sunday Night when I arrived home I went onto the Great North Run Website and put my name on the list to be notified when they are taking entries, I have always watched that on TV and would love to run it, so as I write that’s the plan for now.

I owe a huge debt of gratitude to the Mentors and background crew here, Nop, Firedance, FBOT01, Aquinn, Murph_D, Bungy Girl and their supporting cast and those thst came befores them as It's all a learning process and I assume lesson are learned and the plan improved every year.

I dont know how you guys know the things you know but I'm sure glad you do , a 100% success rate in geting a bunch of runners of varying levels of fitness and abilityy around a marathon course in one piece is no mean feat, Thank You.

My 6 year old Grandson Dean saw all the people leaving with their medals while waiting for me to finish , He turned to his Mam and said “AH MAM GRANDAD LOST”

I have since explained to him that Grandad didn’t lose , that there are no losers when it comes to running a marathon , everyone that puts in the work and toes the line at the start of a Marathon are out and out Winners.

denis b wrote: »

T....a great read, I really enjoyed that. That has to be the bones of a script for a short film. You might have to do another Marathon for the action shots . Well done on both counts: marathon + account.

Thanks Denis ,it is a bit of a saga all right , the report was longer than the marathon , don't know how that happened.

Murph_D wrote: »

Well done Tom, you left nothing to chance and got your due reward! Really enjoyed your report. Thanks.

Thanks D and sorry we didn't get to chat in Mc Gs, Might see you Saturday if you're in St Annes.

diego_b wrote: »

Excellent stuff, well done! Another couch to 5K grad here btw. Keeping up the good work!!

Thanks Diego b , I didn't know you are a c25k grad, I remember you from last years novice thread which I folloed with great interest at the time, It was lovely meeting you In Mc G, I think I said something to you abour being from the sticks, Classy what? Sorry aboout that my head was not in the game at that time.

tailgunner wrote: »

Well done Tom, delighted for you. Your positive attitude is incredible - there aren't many runners out there who could get into trouble that far out and manage not only to finish, but to enjoy the experience as well. Brilliant stuff, can't wait to see what you do next.

Thanks TG I appreciate that. You know I never looked on it as being in trouble , I was in real trouble in Frank Duffy, I really dont know how I finished that day but Sunday was different. I never doubted I'd finish, never though I had to stop running, the only stops I remember making were for the text messages to family and to eat a bar.

Of course now that you say it I realise I was indeed in trouble and it could have turned into a very difficult day, I was just too focused on getting to the line to realise that.

You another graduate TG didn't know that or perhaps I did and forgot .

That program has changed so many people's life for the better it's unreal.