Great North Run

We arrived in Newcastle on Friday afternoon. We checked into our hotel and my husband got ready for his 5k. We watched the road races taking place beforehand in the sweltering sun and then it was his chance to run. As he is a speedy runner, he was down near the start line. We moved to try and get a photo of him starting the race, squeezed in to a space and realised we could see him. We weren’t aware that Mo Farah was moving his way along the barriers to start the race and the kids shouted to him “we’re runners!” We cheered on the runners and my husband finished in 18.36. He was initially a bit disappointed with his time (!) but realised that the heat and humidity was against him. We got some ice-creams at 7pm (in September) to cool us all down and walked the short journey back to the hotel. My daughter’s bubble-gum lolly turned her mouth, hand and arm blue and there was much hilarity until we realised she couldn’t get it off…  We ate at a nearby restaurant along the river at an outside table, feeling like we were on holiday abroad.

Super Saturday

My son was running in the 4k junior race on Saturday morning. My daughter and I found a place along the swing bridge to watch him run then hot footed it down to the finish line to cheer him home. He finished 24^th with a finish time of 16.24. Again, he was a bit disappointed with his time and place but we reminded him of the tough weather conditions and that he was running with boys who were potentially almost 13 and that he only turned 11 3 months ago. My daughter (thankfully no longer blue) was desperate to find the mascot, Tyney, so we went in search of him. Instead, we found Sir Mo again – my son shouted “Hi Mo!” as if they were best buds…! He was so good with the kids, took the time to speak to us, was interested in what they said and their training and gave his advice “listen to your mum and dad”. I liked Mo Farah before but I have an even higher opinion of him now after this encounter!

My daughter ran in the afternoon with her dad. As it was a 1.2k race, we decided to go straight to the finish line as I was worried we wouldn’t be able to battle through the crowds in time after she started. We were right to do this as she finished in 4.55 and was the 3^rd girl to finish. She was ushered to a separate area where we watched her climb onto her first podium and be awarded with her first trophy! Later that day, went to get an ice-cream and were lucky to eventually find Tyney. We freshened up at the hotel then the kids took me round where they were running as I explained I wouldn’t run on the Swing bridge or Millennium bridge like they had during the half marathon. It was back to eat outside at Gino’s and Amy got a free ice-cream with “congratulations” written on the plate (she had taken her trophy to dinner and was telling everyone she saw about her achievement!)

Superb Sunday that turned a bit soaking/soggy/s**t… but featuring superstars and saviours

I got race ready in the hotel after breakfast – number was pinned low to allow for my water vest which I wanted to take with me as it was predicted to be hot and humid. I thought I had allowed for plenty of time to get to the start line but the walk to the right area felt endless! I wanted to go to the toilet before I ran but the queues were insane so I had to give it a miss! I eventually got into the right colour but wrong letter zone but it was too busy to move. There was a girl asking me if I had spare safety pins with me making me thankful I had done that all the night before. I saw a woman crying and I checked she was ok – she told me she was just feeling emotional and had to get it all out before she ran. I passed folk with “running in memory of…” on their backs and decided to focus on my task in hand, proud to be wearing my Ectopic Pregnancy Trust vest. There was a warm up which I took part in and the large TV screens showed and talked about Mo Farah making me feel humbled to be part of his last ever competitive race. He was almost finished by the time I even started – it’s a long way to the start but I found someone to chat to and downed a bottle of water made available to us before crossing the line. The red arrows flew overhead which was an amazing sight. The camera was moving to the right and left lanes of the motorway where the thousands of runners were queued but it cut to the presenters when I was passing so I don’t think my parents saw me on TV!

I tried not to go out too quickly. I had heard that the toilets just after the start are usually quiet but I didn’t want to stop so soon so carried on, mindful of my pace in the heat. Soon after starting, I could hear people cheering me on by name. When I passed through the tunnel, I could head chants of “oggy oggy oggy, oi oi oi” and I joined in with the shared camaraderie. I then ran onto the iconic Tyne Bridge. Kids at the side were offering high 5s and I tried to give as many as possible. I could see some holding “touch here to power up” and other banners and posters to encourage us runners. It was really hot but I kept taking frequent sips of my water. I passed folk handing out ice poles but I kept running. As soon as I ran past them, I regretted my decision! That regret didn’t last too long as I lucked up with a strawberry split! It tasted so good and gave me a real boost and the water being sprayed from the side of the road also cooled me down.

Things get slightly less clear after that. There were some uphill’s but I didn’t find them as difficult as I expected. The pace slowed a bit as some runners walked but the crowds just seemed to buoy me along. I didn’t take any water from the water stations, preferring my water vest. The toilet queues after the start were all long and so I kept going, hoping to stop at halfway. I was jealous of the men stopping for a quick pee at the side of the road!

I was hoping my husband was tracking my progress on the app as it gives updates every mile and at 5, 10, 15 and 20km. Soon after 10k, I took my gel. I began to see some people receiving medical attention at the side of the road and continued to take frequent sips of water and make peace with the fact that I wouldn’t be getting a PB. Aptly I saw a runner with “it’s not about pace, it’s about the smile upon my face” and it reinforced my earlier inner, sensible voice to pace myself for the heat and that could get a PB on another course but this atmosphere and experience couldn’t be replicated. I then saw some shorts that I recognised – a runner from my running group in Aberdeen! 60,000 runners and we bumped into each other at mile 9 (she reliably informed me)! She told me to crack on and I did.

I passed a parrot, 2 where’s wallies and a dinosaur. A runner shouted to the dinosaur “I thought you were extinct!”. The reply: “I will be in another mile!” I still hadn’t been to the toilet and as the time went on, I wondered if it was worth stopping at all. Countless jelly babies and other sweets were on offer but I didn’t take anything else. I pushed on, desperate to see the red arrows in South Shields. The streets were becoming littered with discarded water bottles and orange segments but I cheered on the single runner I saw get his empty bottle into the bin.  A man shouted “only a mile to go” but it was over 2k still to go by my reckoning! Just as I headed downhill into South Shields, the red arrows passed overhead. I watched the display as I ran along the final straight then also searched the crowds for my family. I saw the photographers and smiled and waved. The placards helped count down to the finish – 800m to go, 400m to go. Still no sign of my husband and kids. But as soon as I passed the finish line, there they were, behind the barriers on the left. I shouted and waved, exhilarated and amazed I hadn’t been to the toilet!

I collected my finisher’s bag, t-shirt and was presented with my medal. I queued to ring the bell and get my photo in front of the “GNR finisher” wall. As I did, I read the writing underneath “every story has a start and finish – it’s the journey in the middle that makes it great”.

In any other year, that would probably have been the end of the story – but not this year…

After leaving the finishers area, I looked for the “M” meeting point. When we met, I said we had to find a toilet as I hadn’t been for ages! We queued for the portaloos and saw the sky become very dark – almost like nightfall. We realised it was going to rain and thunder and lightning had been forecast so we started heading towards the transport to go back to our hotel. The heavens then opened and we took shelter under a canopy as the thunder and lightning started. Heavy, prolonged rain fell (we later learned this was almost a month’s rainfall in 90 mins) and flash flooding ensued. We were told the ferries weren’t running so we headed to the closest metro station, unavoidably walking through what turned out to be raw sewage, aware it was going to be very busy. What we weren’t expecting was to find that the metro station had flooded and was closed, the fire brigade were in attendance but they were unsure when it would reopen. By this point, we were soaking, cold, hungry, tired and the kids started crying. Some runners offered the kids their popcorn and crisps from their finisher bag to try to console them. We asked the metro staff what we were expected to do – get a taxi was the reply…! We were then told that some buses were leaving so we joined the massive queue for this. It became clear however that the buses were barely moving due to flooding of the roads and gridlocked traffic. The rain had subsided by this point and we made the decision to start walking towards the next metro station that was rumoured to be open. The internet connection was very poor so it was difficult to be certain.

We walked for some time alongside so many others in the same situation. The locals directed us to avoid sewage flooded areas, tried to give us updates and wished us good luck. The next metro station was also closed but we walked on (I believe over 4.5 miles) until we reached an open metro station. We just missed a train but realised another was coming in 5 minutes time. Others standing at the station told us they couldn’t board the train as it was packed. We decided to take a child each and battle on to the next train. People standing on the train tried to accommodate as many folk as possible which we were so grateful for. Approximately 30 minutes of standing later, we arrived at central station and walked the 10 minutes back to our hotel with the rain, thunder and lightning restarting. We arrived at 7pm, about 5 hours after I finished the run. We had planned to drive up to Aberdeen after the run but we decided to try to stay another night to allow us to shower, eat and rest. The receptionist reassured us there were still rooms available, advised us to book online as it was cheaper and got the kids some very welcome hot chocolates.

When we got up to the room, we bagged up our saturated clothes and trainers, showered and headed down to eat. It was the first time I had sat down since finishing the run (unless you count sitting on the portaloo)! It was after 10pm by the time we eventually got to bed.

Post-race blue Monday

The following day, we had breakfast and took a last walk around Newcastle. I was desperate to get a photo with the 4 of us with our medals as we hadn’t had the chance on Sunday. We headed up the road, exhausted, sad to leave after a brilliant – but challenging – weekend with our medals round our necks. Part of me feels the run was the easy part, getting back to the hotel was certainly harder and that we all should have got a medal for that!

So that was the Great North Run 2023. And now I realise what the slogan from the organisers means, what sets this half marathon apart from the thousands of others on offer. It’s the scale of the event, the shared camaraderie with other runners, the chance to raise money for a charity close to your heart, it’s the locals who hose you down when you feel so hot, it’s the supporters who cheer you on by name, give you high 5s when you need a boost, offer you an ice lolly or even a beer (I decided to pass on that one!) to refresh you and keep you going to the finish line. Was it enjoyable? Yes! Was it tough? Also yes! Would I recommend it? Absolutely. Would I do it all again? You bet.

THANK YOU SO MUCH TO THE ECTOPIC PREGNANCY TRUST for giving me and my family this amazing opportunity and to give back following the help and support you gave me when I needed it.