I ran this marathon for Emily:
Tracey and I arrived in Malaga on the Saturday morning after a very early flight from Edinburgh and heading straight for the expo. After some confusion with public transport, we found the stadium and headed in along with a lot of other people. It was chaos inside and no real queuing system – it took me about an hour to register but Tracey had no queue as she was in a different wave!
We then spent the day sight-seeing and eating before hitting the sack fairly early. It was still dark when we headed down to the start the next morning and a little bit chilly but there was already a great atmosphere.
We found the bag drop and took some more pics before heading to the loos for a final trip but the queue was so big we missed the start! I was grateful for chip timing at this point!
When we finally started we were pretty much last but it was fun overtaking people. There were loads of British runners and we got lots of shout outs as I was wearing my Stonehaven top. It was very busy as there is a half marathon as well and we were all mixed together for the first half. I ran with Tracey and the miles ticked by comfortably as we chatted to those around us. Most impressive was a man kicking a football for the entire race!
At the halfway mark we ran past the finish of the half marathon and then it got a lot quieter! It was also getting quite warm and sunny so I tried to stick to the shade where I could. Tracey wanted to slow down a bit and I was feeling good so we parted ways and on I went.
At around 18 miles the route heads out of the city to the stadium where we had registered. It was really exposed and windy here and I was surprised when we were directed in to do a lap of the running track. I was feeling a bit low here and a few out and backs did nothing to improve my mood. I was delighted when I reached the 37KM mark as then it’s ‘just a parkrun to go’!
A few more twists and turns and we were back in the city which is mostly pedestrianised. There were big crowds here and I began to really enjoy the race again. The absolute high point was running down an amazing street with loads of Christmas lights and then there was the finish! The finish straight was a bit like the Tour de France when so many spectators crowd the route that it is hard to find a path through, it was great fun though! I crossed the line in 4.14.09 which I was pleased with since I had taken it fairly easy.
I joined a queue for a massage as my quads were quite sore but then I realised I was actually in a queue for a TENS machine session. Still, it was quite nice lying in the sun strapped to this machine and I think it helped my aching muscles! Tracey finished in around 4.36 and came to find me and we then went off to rehydrate at a roof top terrace bar (tough life!).
Later we went back to the street with all the Christmas lights and enjoyed the lights and music!
I would definitely recommend Malaga marathon – it’s lovely to get some December sun and Malaga puts on a great show for Christmas! It’s a big marathon so lots of British runners and lots of on course support and spectators. Malaga is a lovely city to visit too!
Robertson Family Fundraising 