Story
Dear All,
Well that’s it. All over. I finished and I’ve got some proof. Here’s a photo of me trying to look impressed with my finisher’s medal and t-shirt (courtesy of my brother – blame him for the quality of the photography). I think I’m actually struggling to stand up straight.
I ran the course in 3 hours and 26 minutes and enjoyed every minute of it. Although for most of the last three miles I did find myself running in a pain-induced trance. Memorable moments included:
· Jogging an extra mile up Greenwich Hill before the marathon after setting off too late and jumping on a train to the wrong station.
· The first complete stranger shouting my name at the 2 mile mark.
· Running past 3 Fred Flintstones, an Elvis, a man in a morning suit and a 30 foot dragon stuffed with 10 runners tied together.
· Seeing the leading men storming past at mile 21 whilst I was heading through mile 14. I might’ve missed the leading lady.
· Running over a tower bridge packed with cameras and spectators (I’m sure the Houses of Parliament and the mall should have been memorable as well but I was beyond caring about the view).
· Turning the last corner and finding myself with enough energy for a sprint finish.
And of course most importantly, seeing family and friends around the course (although admittedly the last few miles I jogged past lots of people I knew unaware of pretty much everything except the approaching finish line, sorry if I missed you).
Thank you to all of you who sponsored me. We’ve managed to raise £2100 and hopefully there’s still a little more to come. There are lots of kids and earthquake victims in Pakistan who’ll be very thankful for your donations.
If you pledged me money and I haven’t extorted the cash from you yet there are a few ways you can pay. You could visit my website www.justgiving.co.uk/Omarsrun and donate directly to my charity FTCF there. Or you could give me cash, a cheque or money via a bank transfer (details/address on request) and I’ll pass it on to FTCF. If you’re posting or transferring money send me an email to let me know its on its way. I'll be round to collect if I haven't heard from you.
If you’ve forgotten e-mail me and I’ll remind you how generous you were (I might even be honest). For those of you who sponsored me on my time you can find the race results at www.london-marathon.co.uk.
A big Thank You again!
Omar