So ....... 45 minutes later Sparke dragged his finely-tuned frame across the finishing line ......

The standby medics were sent home disappointed - and there were over 800 people BEHIND me .......

There were also several thousand in front of me ......

Admittedly, the group I set off with were largely beset with "body issues" of one sort or another - but I quickly left those behind - only to be overtaken at  2 1/2 miles by a bloke with one leg (honestly) - this gave me added incentive to get a move on.

I DO wish I had realised that there were hills in Central Park ......but the knowledge would probably not have helped enormously....