Edinburgh Marathon 27th May 2012

Guide Dogs for the Blind The whole team at Central Vision Opticians decided earlier this year to run the Edinburgh Marathon for charity. We didn’t think back then how challenging it was going to be but thought combining getting fit and being able to help people at the same time was a great goal to try and achieve.
The training that ensued (mostly after work, on occasion before work) helped to get us into shape for what would be the biggest challenge of our lives to date. However, now having completed the marathon on Sunday 27th May 2012 in Edinburgh, we now realise what a mammoth task we undertook!
It definitely is up there as one of the most amazing and toughest experiences any of us had faced. The dayt itself turned out to be one of the hottest days of the year. Sunny, the CVO’s dispenser (and marathon addict, this being her 14th marathon) and marathon novices Nicola, CVO receptionist and myself, CVO Principal Optometrist & Director, prepared to begin our epic run. As we approached the throngs of runners finding their ways to their colour coded starting pens, the realisation of the immense effort ahead made us think many thoughts. I myself began wondering “Had I trained enough? Would my injured knee survive? Would I become dehydrated? What should I do if I needed to visit the bathroom?”
Sunny and I found our pen just a minute before the start of the race was announced. I began to think about my family. My wife was worried I wasn’t fit enough to complete the race, my four year old daughter asked me if I was going to “win” and my six year old told me “I have every confidence in you Daddy”. I didn’t have much time to gather my thoughts. Sunny and I were soon running past the starting line and the race had begun. Nicola’s starting pen was a few minutes behind ours.
The thrill of attempting such a huge, demanding undertaking felt exciting yet I had to forget about it and just run in the moment. I kept going at a steady pace and before long we had passed the 3 mile barrier. The friendly residents of Edinburgh were lining the route to cheer the runners, give us glasses of water and jelly babies for some instant sugar energy bursts. Some had brought out their garden hoses to spray runners with water to cool us from the heat. The course took us past the beautiful coast line and a refreshing sea breeze.
It wasn’t long before we’d passed several water stations and passed the halfway point at 13 miles. The impact on my knees and ankles was beginning to take its toll, so we paced ourselves and alternated between power walking, jogging and running. The next few mile markers appeared to get further and further apart; the course led into a park and the miles seemed to become harder. Out of the park and back along the road we kept ploughing on; I was treading the tarmac with as much energy as I could muster. Some energy gels and water quickly started to make the miles seem less daunting and from the 18 mile point, the time went by faster and the distance appeared to shrink. Before I knew it there was only half a mile till the end. A sudden burst of energy drove us faster still to complete the last part of the run and we made a final sprint to the finish line! sucessfull finish of edinburgh marathon I felt absolutely amazing! I was excited and energised for the rest of the day and even though walking a couple of miles to get to the bus to take us back into down and going down stairs was total agony, nothing could erase the awesome sensation of success and the pride I felt free online project management. See us at the finish line: Sunny (left) Myself (centre) and Nicola (right)
I am so glad that the run has allowed me, through your support, to raise over £1200 for Guide Dogs for the Blind. Thank you.