Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
JOIN US for the Real London Marathon (20 Dec)
Calling all runners / wanna-be runners!
Anyone here up for running a marathon? 10 weeks' time, Saturday 20 December. You don’t have to have run one before, you don’t even have had to have done much running before – 10 weeks is long enough to sort that out. It is not a macho thing, definitely not competitive, and everyone is welcome.
The route we will run is absolutely brilliant, linking together most of the major green and blue spaces of North and Central London. Ready? Here we go:
Starts Finsbury Park, heads up the Parkland Walk to Highgate, through to Hampstead Heath, past Kenwood House (in a movie moment), over to the top of Parliament Hill, great view of the city, down and over the railway track, through Chalk Farm, over Primrose Hill, another great view of the city, through Regent’s Park, past the boating lake, down Baker Street, through Bayswater, posh, posh, posh, through Hyde Park along the Serpentine (dip in the Lido anyone?), Hyde Park Corner, Green Park, Buckingham Palace, St James’ Park, Big Ben, Westminster Bridge, South Bank past London Eye, RFH, Oxo Tower, Tate Modern, Golden Hind, HMS Whatever, all the way to Tower Bridge, back north, Wapping to Limehouse, up The Cut, River Lea, through the Olympic Park, round the stadium, keep going north, Springfield Park, through Hackney, Clissold Park, the New River, Finsbury Park, we did it!
It is such an incredible route, it is worth joining us just to see London in this way on a cold and crisp December morning (forecast is for no rain). We will meet no one but a couple of dog walkers for the first half, then a few hardy tourists as we pass the Xmas markets on the river.
To be clear, this is no organised event. It will just be us. No crowds, no sponsors, no motorcade, no water points, and definitely, definitely no fancy dress. You’ll need a small rucksack with the route map, water, a banana or two and an Oyster card. Think Dunwich Dynamo before it got big.
How you run it is up to you – it could be with friends all the way, or leave as a group but go at your own pace. It might be nice to time it all so that we arrive pretty much the same time, and I’m sure we could sort out a massive plate of mince pies at the finish line. All to be sorted out nearer the time.
Some people have already signed up to running the first third, or first half, so if that's your bag then jump in too.
It really is possible to get ready for this in 10 weeks, even if you have never considered doing it before now. And it would be an amazing way to go into the Xmas holidays. So if you like the sound of doing a real London marathon, with some really nice people, then definitely go for it.
You can be part of this by emailing me: sammyraph@gmail.com
Also, please pass onto anyone you know who you think might want to give it a go. The more the merrier.
A link to a map of the route is below (it is slightly different from that which we will run, because it starts/stops in N15 rather than Finsbury Park – but you get the idea).
Let me know!
Sam.
https://www.google.co.uk/maps?saddr=Woodlands+Park+Rd&daddr=51....
Tags for Forum Posts: finsbury park, marathon, running
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by ant on
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That does look like a nice route. Do you really think 10 weeks is enough for a not very good runner to get ready for it? I could send this out on the Hurtle mailing list if you like, there might be the odd Harringay runner on that who is interested.
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Permalink Reply by Sam Raphael on
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Yes, please, send out to as many people as poss.
I don't really know if 10 weeks is long enough - and it's a good query to raise. It's about the time period I spent running properly before doing that route last year (it was my first marathon, and I'm no expert). I did 10km 2-3 times per week, then 1/2 marathon a couple of times, and one 18ml run. It worked for me, although I'm sure others will have better ideas for training and there are lots of training regimes online. If 10km feels like a challenge to work towards in and of itself, then 10wks probably won't be long enough to prepare for a full marathon, but that's why I was also saying we could have shorter routes spinning off the main route for those interested.
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Permalink Reply by Justin Guest on
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Sounds like a great idea. Not up for the full marathon but would happily do a half.
Ant. Is the Hurttle happening again?
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Permalink Reply by John D on
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First aiders ? Ambulances on standby ?
Exhausted runners in streets full of traffic ?
Sweepers ?
Crazy idea
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no, no, not really, no, maybe
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Permalink Reply by Adam B on
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Love it - if I wasn't at a wedding would be there. Going to try and do the route on a different day though. What time are you planning on leaving?
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Cool! I'm thinking of doing this a couple of times a year. Wondering whether timing it so we all finish around noon would be good, as it is a busy time of year so good to be free for the afternoon. So full marathon starting 8am-ish? Obv dependent on your expected time....
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What are you going to be able to do in your free afternoon after running a marathon ?
Do you have any experience of distance running ?
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Good idea - but I don't think I'll be able to commit to begin marathon fit by then. Half Marathon distance would be better. Assume we could inject a bit of Christmas fun into it?
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Permalink Reply by Phil M on
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I can't pretend I'm not tempted to do the first third or half. What time are you setting off?
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Permalink Reply by JoeW on
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Apart from the fact you have no insurance, no local authority permission, no road safety controls, no first aiders and no water points, I think it is pretty irresponsible to encourage inexperienced runners to think they can train for a marathon in 10 weeks.
If you want to organise this sort of event you need to prioritise the safety of all the participants.
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I'm not really organising an event, Joe. I'm a grown up going for a run, and just checking to see if any other grown ups want to join me.
Do you fancy it?
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