Hi everyone,
So today was the day of the City2Sea. I was on my feet early, about 6am, as I was going to have to walk down to the Arts Centre where the starting point was (bugger all car parking and no public transport that early on a Sunday). As it happened, a cab was going by just as I turned onto Nicholson Street, so I didn't have to prelude a 14km run with a 7km walk!
It was clear but still bloody cold when I got down there - the only place to be, especially once you'd checked your bag and taken off your over-clothes and gotten down to your running gear, was in one of the patches of sunlight. Imagine a more sociable version of the "discovering light = life" scenes in Pitch Black and you've got the idea. I'm happy to say I showed my Who Dat pride and went with a T-shirt celebrating New Orleans' win in the 2009-10 Super Bowl!
As you might expect, they got the fastest runners away first - the ones who had records to set and medals to win. Then the common or garden runners and joggers like me. Behind us were the walkers and folks with strollers and infants who were going to have a leisurely stroll in the Spring sunlight.
All up there were something like 15,000 participants and, yes, it was my very first 'official' run. As you can see, I had lots of company just in my tranche of starters
The course itself was very well laid out. The service lanes in St Kilda Road had been closed to traffic, and a lot of the course itself was around Albert Park Lake. The organisers had really done it up well - every mile or so there'd be a band - the Navy Jazz band was playing "Eye of the Tiger" as we passed Victoria Barracks! - or a broadcast point for Nova-FM, and at one stage even a barbershop quartet! I skipped the first two drinks spots, but by the third (about 10km) I really needed that Gatorade to keep me going. Still, I wasn't one of the people who'd elected to run in fancy dress. Surely the bravest of those dedicated souls was the buy who was running dressed as the Kung Fu Panda -
The signs eventually told us "12km" and "13km", but by that stage I'm pretty sure I had gained a phenomenal amount of mass, as the space-time continuum seemed to be warping around me. Certainly that's my explanation for why the last two kilometres were the longest I've ever run. I crossed the finish line with a time of 1 hour, 33 minutes and 3 seconds. I collected my finisher's medal. Yeah, I know, it's like getting a ribbon for 'participation', but I've never had an athletic medal before and, gee I'm proud!
The finish line itself was in Catani Gardens, just beside the bay. It was all set up for a families day, so there was free gatorade and water for runners, lots of barbeques and the like set up by Rotary and other volunteer groups, and all the fixings to encourage people to stay and have fun
So that was how I kicked off my Sunday - a great run finishing in a welcoming part of the city!
So today was the day of the City2Sea. I was on my feet early, about 6am, as I was going to have to walk down to the Arts Centre where the starting point was (bugger all car parking and no public transport that early on a Sunday). As it happened, a cab was going by just as I turned onto Nicholson Street, so I didn't have to prelude a 14km run with a 7km walk!
It was clear but still bloody cold when I got down there - the only place to be, especially once you'd checked your bag and taken off your over-clothes and gotten down to your running gear, was in one of the patches of sunlight. Imagine a more sociable version of the "discovering light = life" scenes in Pitch Black and you've got the idea. I'm happy to say I showed my Who Dat pride and went with a T-shirt celebrating New Orleans' win in the 2009-10 Super Bowl!
Who dat!
As you might expect, they got the fastest runners away first - the ones who had records to set and medals to win. Then the common or garden runners and joggers like me. Behind us were the walkers and folks with strollers and infants who were going to have a leisurely stroll in the Spring sunlight.
The starting archway
All up there were something like 15,000 participants and, yes, it was my very first 'official' run. As you can see, I had lots of company just in my tranche of starters
The Blue group ready to start out
The course itself was very well laid out. The service lanes in St Kilda Road had been closed to traffic, and a lot of the course itself was around Albert Park Lake. The organisers had really done it up well - every mile or so there'd be a band - the Navy Jazz band was playing "Eye of the Tiger" as we passed Victoria Barracks! - or a broadcast point for Nova-FM, and at one stage even a barbershop quartet! I skipped the first two drinks spots, but by the third (about 10km) I really needed that Gatorade to keep me going. Still, I wasn't one of the people who'd elected to run in fancy dress. Surely the bravest of those dedicated souls was the buy who was running dressed as the Kung Fu Panda -
!
The signs eventually told us "12km" and "13km", but by that stage I'm pretty sure I had gained a phenomenal amount of mass, as the space-time continuum seemed to be warping around me. Certainly that's my explanation for why the last two kilometres were the longest I've ever run. I crossed the finish line with a time of 1 hour, 33 minutes and 3 seconds. I collected my finisher's medal. Yeah, I know, it's like getting a ribbon for 'participation', but I've never had an athletic medal before and, gee I'm proud!
The finish line itself was in Catani Gardens, just beside the bay. It was all set up for a families day, so there was free gatorade and water for runners, lots of barbeques and the like set up by Rotary and other volunteer groups, and all the fixings to encourage people to stay and have fun
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