London Marathon 2012
The London Marathon 2012 was a massive success for Leukaemia CARE. We would like to thank all our runners for their commitment and congratulate them on their achievement! Take a look at some of the stories and photos that we have from the day.
Our mascot, Bertie Bloodcell, was at the marathon meeting runners and families alike.
Our fundraising team was frantically placing banners around London on the day. Here are two members of our team; Helen Whatmore (L) and Clare Brooks (R).
One of our amazing runners, Ella Tuersley, after completing the 26.2 mile race, alongside friends and family.
The run was amazing & I saw a lot of fellow Leukaemia Care Runners on the way round. I did the distance in 4H 38mins. Last 6 miles just eat you up of all energy, a part from the last 800 metres when you find that little bit extra left :)
Two of our volunteer cheerers with our clapper banners!
Vanessa Hall, after achieving the 26.2 mile race in 4 hours 15 mins, alongside Bertie!
Four of our staff members, from left to right, Stephen Maturi, Nickey Bate, Stephanie Hill and Greg Martin, in our post-race venue.
Stephanie and Nickey with another one of our fantastic runners, Stephen Holt, who had a running time of 3 hours and 38 mins!
Bertie Bloodcell alongside the Help for Heroes mascot.
Tony Gavin (centre), our campaigning and advocacy director, alongside some of our volunteers.
Christopher Wilkie, who ran in 3 hours and 35 mins.
Three of our staff members, tying balloons around London, (from left) Greg Martin, Stephanie Hill and Clare Brooks.
Our runners had a great experience at the marathon; here are some words they would like to share:
The London Marathon is behind me and I would like to thank those who supported and donated to my charity Leukaemia Care. It means a lot to me.
I will leave the website open for another 2 weeks in the case you would like to donate.
www.justgiving.com/ingo-steinhaeuser1
For those of you who are tempted to ever run 42,195 kilometers, the London Marathon is the real deal.
I don't think any other Marathon compares to, what is essentially the largest fund raising event in the world. Roughly 80% of runners are running for a charity, raising over 50 million GBP.
So what you have are mainly runners who are doing this for a good cause and a large number of spectators who are cheering for their family members or their charity runners. Seeing the fundraising crowd erupt (I think the British heart foundation had the largest group of supporters on the course) when one of their runners approaches is one of memorable scenes at the London Marathon, and it happens at almost every corner of the course.
Superbly organized, the field started on three parallel tracks, merging after 3 miles into a large and happy stream of runners. It was an enjoyable run for the first 90 minutes with the sun on our faces, but also an emotional one for me as I had to think what a great dad I had and in whose memory I was running.
The half mark was reached with the crossing of Tower Bridge, and went East from there. While I had a pretty good start and was on good pace with 1:55 after the half turn, I started to slow down around mile 15.
After a couple of miles the course took another right turn South into "Hooligan land" (Millwall).
A couple of BBG employees were watching out for their colleagues at the "the Ship" the only pub at mile 16th. From there the course went North into the dark banking corners of Canary Wharf and back West towards Tower Bridge. Although I was slowing down I could catch up with one of my favourite runners, a little lady bug, which I lost before Tower Bridge but whose wings I could see again from far away.
The remaining miles after the Tower went through more familiar territory, down through the Blackfriars tunnel (many people were either walking or doing something else), then parallel to the Thames river towards Waterloo bridge. I could hear somebody yelling my name at mile 25 mile and when I looked right I saw my wife Astrid taking a picture of me and my kids waving ecstatically :)
The last mile of the course was painful but the enormous support of the crowds made up for it.
A truly exhausted Ingo crossed the finish line after 3:56:29, six minutes over target but under the desired 4 hours!
It was an unforgettable race and if I will ever run a Marathon again, it will be London.
THANK YOU All SO MUCH FOR DONATING TO MY CHARITY LEUKAEMIA CARE.
I AM THANKFUL FOR YOUR SUPPORT!
Ingo
The experience at the marathon was amazing; the support you get from total strangers in the crowd is really moving, not to mention the sheer numbers of people who take the trouble to turn out. - Joe Thackway
Many thanks for giving me the chance to do the London Marathon.
This last week, I have been walking on air after the run. 10 days ago, I was wondering what on earth I had taken on and doubted whether I would be able to achieve it, certainly before the roads re-opened. As an older runner who only started to train last December, it was indeed a real challenge. However, it all worked out in the end. After a totally sleepless night on Saturday, my doubts were increased but at least the sun was shining in the morning and soon we were caught up in the amazing event. The organisation was so good and before I knew it, there I was standing in the pen, waiting for the off. Surprisingly, we actually started to move on time and were trotting soon after going over the start line. I found myself standing next to a lady of similar age who was also doing her first marathon and hadn't slept a wink, so I didn't feel quite so stupid and that helped me to relax. However after a while, she went ahead as her pace was a bit faster than mine - and that was the last I saw of her.
The run - race is certainly an inappropriate word for me - went really quickly. The first few miles passed steadily and then the next few seemed to take longer. Then we were at 17 miles and it was countdown. I managed to keep trotting at a steady pace and never needed to walk, which was great as I had expected that that would be necessary. The crowds are so encouraging, especially if you have your name on your vest (although I kept wondering who around me was also called Alison), but I didn't really see any faces - just a blur. Staying focused on keeping going was enough. I never had the experience of "hitting the wall", probably because I never went outside my comfortable pace - I know that I am not good at pushing myself to the point of discomfort. Then we were on the Embankment - and I realised that I was going to make it and that I could keep going. And how fortunate I was - the rain held off until I was just over the finish line and retrieving my bag - not only did I stay dry but the oncoming rain meant that the loyal crowds were suddenly peeling away en masse - hard for those following behind to loose that encouragement.
Getting across to the meet and greet area was the only chaotic bit of the day. At last I met up with my daughter, who had finished over an hour before me - but I was in better shape!! Then off to the feast - it was a wonderful buffet, thank you, and much appreciated. We just managed to have a quick massage too, for which we were also grateful. Then off to the station, feeling absolutely elated!
My reflections on what helped me most;
Find a training programme that works for you and stick with it. Mine went by time, not miles, so it was easy to follow. I never knew how far I had gone and it was difficult to measure as a lot of my running was off road. I think my longest run was under 17 miles - 3 1/2 hours - so I knew I had to find quite a lot of extra miles on the day. Follow the advice that the older you are, the more prone to injury you are if you over train - so that also took some pressure off.
Go at your own pace - it is irrelevant how others are doing - but then I can only go at one pace - slow. For me, to be able to keep chugging along and not to have to walk was a real triumph and probably meant that I got to the end more quickly than I would have done had I gone more quickly at the start.
I heeded the message about hydration and feeding and ran most of the way carrying a bottle in each hand - one of water, one of Lucozade. I only practised carrying a bottle 2 weeks before, but I'm glad I did. It meant that I could drink when I wanted, not just when the drinks stations appeared. I also carried Shotblocs, which tasted awful after a while. I found the gels which were handed out totally unpalatable.
When I thought I might need a toilet, I decided not to waste time queuing for a dubious portaloo. Instead I just asked a supporter, popped into his house, gatecrashed his party - and then on again!
It was great to be with so many people running for charity and was a time to remember those, especially family and friends, who didn't have the good fortune to be fit and well at my age.
So overall, my advice would be, if you want to give it a try - do it!
With thanks to you all for the good information and encouragement.
Any more places for the Great North Run - I need a new focus now! - Alison Jones
