A belated write up on my 2018 London marathon adventure...
First though a huge thanks to all those who supported me - via donations to charity, keeping me company on tough training runs, putting me up for the weekend, coming to support on the day, and to Emma for making the awesome Adventure Time T-shirt with my name on
I got to the start with plenty of time to spare. I chatted to whoever was next to me in the various queues - I think everyone was nervous and talking is a good distraction. I was in the Green start -the smallest one with 4000 people, lots of Good-for-Age folks. Wave 2 of 8 put me within 50 metres of the start line and I crossed it within 1 minute of the race starting.
I was hoping the heat wouldn't affect me too much and set off intending to do about 7:00/mile pace and seeing how that felt. First 3 miles felt fine, although my heart rate was higher than it should have been. By 6 miles my legs felt heavy which is not good. By 8 miles I knew my target time was definitely not going to happen and stopped caring about maintaining goal pace and eased off a little to keep my heart rate sensible. I got to half way in 1:34 which is a respectable time, but despite still working quite hard I was just slowing bit by bit all the time.
I enjoyed running round the Cutty Sark and over Tower Bridge. And all the way around there were people encouraging us on. Having my name on my shirt in big letters meant people were shouting "Come on Russell" a lot, with one kid adding "Ooo! Adventure Time!" when he recognised the pictures which really made me smile.
I saw the race leaders and Mo Farah when I had reached 22.4km and they had reached 34.7km - man, do they make it look easy.
There were water or Lucozade stations every mile. It felt like a reward to make it to each one. I drank a bit, squirted water on wrists, over my head, down my back, drank some more. It was so hot. Managed not to squirt Lucozade over myself - winning. I had 9 energy gels in total (and a Biscuit Boost). No problems eating, always hoping they'd give me more energy. They must have, but no magic cure for tiredness.
The underpasses were great - quite windy and out of the sun. Oddly quiet too, as the supporters stayed up top in the sunshine.
It was good to finally reach mile 21 where all that remained was a westerly run in to a headwind which I normally hate but today it was having a small cooling effect. Still working hard but now barely managing 8:00/mile pace.
But then I got a cramp develop in my abdominal muscles. I tried just pushing on to start with but it got so bad I had to walk while prodding and poking to help relieve it. Then I resumed a slower run which worked for a bit but it came back. 3 or 4 times I went through this before, at nearly 25 miles, I realised it had gone and I could pick up the effort and pace again.
I saw my family at the end of Embankment just before the right turn at Westminster which was really great - in Brighton I hadn't seen my family at the end despite their screams so I was really pleased to do so today.
For the last part I could run a bit quicker, with a knackered 'sprint' finish at the end, the final mile taking me 7:30. Compared to lots of my peers I had a fast finish so I'm pleased with that. Crossing the line was a relief, it was a long time coming given I'd over-cooked it from so early on.
There were people holding a few dozen medals apiece, which in the wind were making a lovely jangling sound. A nice little suprise. I picked up my finishers goody bag (drinks, lentils crips, cereal bar, technical T-shirt) and drop-bag and headed to Trafalgar Sq to meet family.
Having been initially somewhat disappointed with the time - 15-20 mins slower than I was targeting and was most likely capable of - I've now seen lots of similar ability runners who fared worse than I did. Plus this is still my 2nd fastest ever. In Sept 2015 I dipped under 3:30 for the first time (3:27) and would have been absolutely delighted with 3:21, so 2.5 years older and in 20-24C heat I think I did OK. I finished 3104 of 40255 (7.7%) I definitely learned a hard lesson about running fast marathons in the heat too 
https://www.strava.com/activities/1524609454
https://www.strava.com/activities/1524609454The fund-raising smashed my expectations. I'd lowered the suggested target from £750 to £500 because I wasn't confident. We've ended up at £1416.08 (inc. £215 gift aid). 48 separate donations, covering: family, friends of family, A-level friends, running friends, ex-IBM friends, current local colleagues, current US colleagues, neighbours, 2*Anonymous. I'm really quite moved. https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/russell-finn
No running yet this week - battered legs and maximising recovery because I have the deferred pre-London Fleet half marathon this Sunday. Not 24C please.
In summary, a super-tough but massively enjoyable day running in arguably the best marathon in the world.
