Kay K The Okay Runner: Work hard, get results: my great experience at the Great North Run

My great experience at the Great North Run

I’m not sure why, but I’ve never particularly hankered after doing the Great North Run. I enjoy watching it on telly – ever since my first Robin Hood Half, it’s been part of my schedule to do my last long run the morning of Great North before settling down to watch it, full of nerves and excitement for my own race in a couple of weeks.

And despite everyone telling me how brilliant it is and how it should be on every runner’s bucket list, it's just never been a race I’m desperate to do. Perhaps the massive hype is what put me off a bit, I’ll decide what race to do for myself, thank you very much! I absolutely couldn’t believe that people even paid quite a bit for an expensive membership package to guarantee them entry (which they then pay quite a bit more for) for the next three years. Madness!

But back in January 2020, curiosity (and being spurred on by Des) got the better of me so I agreed to sign up for a charity place with Prostate Cancer UK for the September 2020 event.

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Preparing

I don’t need to explain what happened next to cause a delay, but 18 months later with the event finally around the corner, I must admit I started to get quite excited. Part of that was down to the thought of doing my first big city race in what feels like forever and the rest of the excitement came from being better prepared for a half marathon than I’ve ever been.

Since January I’ve been taking part in a training programme designed by Des which involves a couple of training sessions each week along with setting targets each month around food and drink etc. Starting in the cold dark depths of the winter seems like an age ago now, but over the months the work we’ve done has built an excellent foundation for the mass events now they're finally back and ultimately the Manchester Marathon in a few week's time.

So when September rolled around and the race number package dropped on my doormat, I couldn’t wait to make the runners’ pilgrimage up North for weekend and earn myself a medal!

parkrun

Naturally, a DOrunning weekend away wouldn’t be complete without a bit of parkrun tourism, so bright and early on the Saturday morning, trying to ignore the effects of quite a few ciders on the Friday evening, our little gang headed off in search of Leazes Park which falls in the shadow of St James’ Park in Newcastle.

The beautiful September sunshine made the park look really lovely. The course was three laps starting on a gentle downhill then around a small lake before heading back up the slight hill back to the start. I took it deliberately steady to keep my legs ticking over nicely before the main event, but as always, it was a lovely start to the day!

The Great North Run

The on-the-day preparation for this race was different to what I’m used to. To spread out the runners and allow more room for social distancing across the course, the wave times we’d been allocated stretched across several hours. This made for an interesting dynamic in the house we’d rented for the weekend – nine of us all doing the run had different timetables for the morning, rather than getting up early to shovel down porridge and head to the start on mass.

It actually made for a really pleasant and relaxed morning. I was in one of the later waves and due to start at around 12.30, so I had plenty of time to eat breakfast and even watch a bit of the coverage on TV once I’d waved Des off for his earlier start.

Myself and some of the others eventually left just before 11am, a little earlier than we needed to, but we were hoping to catch a glimpse of the Red Arrows on their flypast – which we did a couple of minutes into our walk towards the start! It wasn’t the same as being out on the course, but it’s always a special sound and sight.

As we got to the race village, it was quite tricky to imagine just what it might be like with all 55,000 runners congregating at the same time! Despite the swarms of people still around to drop off bags and go for one last wee in the portaloo, the set up allowed for a seamless experience and in no time at all I found myself stood in front of a bit of rope waiting to be shown to the starting line by a jolly Geordie marshal. The chap gave us an excellent briefing about what to expect, before pulling the rope away and letting us start our march to the start.

To be honest, it felt like a bit of an anti-climax crossing the line! The crowds we’re so used to seeing on TV had been replaced with a socially-distanced smattering of runners – but this actually had the great benefit of allowing me to find my own space and get into a good rhythm.

I’d told myself, and everyone else, that I wasn’t putting too much pressure on myself for this run. It’s the biggest and one of the most famous half marathons in the world and the on-course entertainment and crowd support is supposed to be second to none. I planned on taking it all in and enjoying it – unless something went drastically wrong I was all but guaranteed a PB so I set about the route with my phone in hand ready to snap away and document my run.

The first mile marker rolled around really quickly – not surprising when I looked at my watch to find I’d done it in around nine minutes! I took a super quick selfie which I sent to my family chat group and carried on along the way, feeding off the fabulous atmosphere around me at I headed towards one of the highlights of the route, the Tyne Bridge.

The miles continued to melt away, each time I took my mile marker selfie and posted it to my family and received some really mood-boosting photos of my nephew counting along with me. Not that I needed extra mood boosting – everyone was in the best spirits!

In the lead up to the event, a lot of people really complained about this year’s route – the iconic point-to-point starting in Newcastle and ending in South Shields abandoned in favour of a more covid-friendly out and back course. But I really liked it! The next drumming band or disco bus was never far away, and the opportunity to look for Des and my friends coming back the other way gave excellent motivation too.

Before too long, it was time to make my way around the hair pin bend and back towards home. On the way out, I’d watched the runners on the other side somewhat enviously as their part of the course looked like it was all downhill. That was definitely an optical illusion. As I ticked the miles off, fairly small undulations started to feel a bit relentless – absolutely not all downhill!

Feeling myself tiring around eight miles in, I decided to use one of the gels I’d stashed in my trusty flip-belt to give myself a bit of a boost. My head was still absolutely loving it, but my legs were starting to get a bit upset so it felt like a good time. Now I’d got through way past half way in an excellent time, I was keen to do as well as I possibly could!

By the time I reached the 10 mile mark, I was so glad I’d had the gel. The hills didn’t stop and we had some really mean slip roads to run up and take us back over the iconic Tyne Bridge and into the city centre.

Running back towards the centre, there was a marked increase in the number of people lining the streets – and the noise level coming from them! I’d forgotten how amazing it is running through a tunnel of people shouting, cheering and making all sorts of noise to spur you on. It really was the encouragement needed, especially as it has started to rain now and the finish felt like a million miles away when really it was just over one.

The standard Great North Run route is famed for its costal path finish and running along the dual carriageway probably couldn’t be more different – but the way I was feeling at that point, I could have been anywhere in the world, in fact I felt on top of it! I was bolting toward the finish line of a half marathon that I’d genuinely loved every step of. No mental battles, no horrible tears and tantrums, just 13.1 miles of fun and enjoyment!

Stepping over the line and stopping my watch, I couldn’t have been more delighted with the numbers on the screen. 02:04:33! Much better than the 2:15 I’d gone out aiming for and a massive event PB for me. I was so so pleased and proud of myself.

All in all, it was an absolutely fantastic experience and I’d consider myself a complete Great North Convert. Desperate to go back and have a crack at the famous traditional route, I’m even considering that membership option I’d thought was ludicrous previously!

Work hard, get results

I’m going to be a bit controversial now.

In running circles, people have mantras, which is absolutely fine. I’ve got some of my own I use to will myself on at times when I need a to.

Lots of these mantras are about relaxing, enjoying a run and not worrying about paces and times and just believing in yourself. Which again, is absolutely fine. If that’s what you want from running.

But what if you want to push yourself? Belief alone isn’t going to get you a PB – and it certainly isn’t going to allow you to enjoy the runs where you're attempting to. I know, because for a good few years I bashed around half marathons trying to run on belief alone. It's not nice and causes a lot more tears and nerves than I'd have liked!

There’s nothing wrong with wanting to push yourself and get better at doing something you love and get so much from! My success in this event was in absolutely no small part due to the pushing I’ve done myself and the pushing I’ve opened myself up to in Des’s coaching sessions throughout the year, which I couldn’t be more thankful for.

So that’s going to by my new mantra. It’s simple really: work hard, get results!

If you made it to the end, I hope you enjoyed it! Before you check out the photos below (and look at my very novice attempt at doing a TikTok!) please consider popping over to my fundraising page and leaving a donation. Thank you!