Race: Wilmslow half marathon
Distance: 13.1 miles
Date: 18th March 2018
Supporting Runners: N/a
Fundraising to date: £1,710
Finishing Time: 01:59:56

It’s been 6 weeks since race number 10 and lots of anticipation and prep for the 2nd half marathon of the 30for30 challenge.

I’ve never ran Wilmslow half marathon before, and I was quick to sign up for this one having heard good things about it. I’d also planned to run 2 half marathons in March, in a bid to make things a little more impressive for the fund raising side of things…

But with all big goals come bigger obstacles and once again, the beast from the east/pest from the west(?!) came back to drag this Winter out longer than anyone wants it to be.

I woke up at 7am to a cancellation message from the organisers. And quite rightly so….they know best when it comes to the safety of others.

But I lay there, full of carbs from the evening before, thinking about my well planned out excel spreadsheet of 30 races and how wrong it has gone over the past few weeks… A 7 week break was not on the agenda and it was messing with my organisational skills 😱. At this rate I’d be trying to cram in the missing races in the height of Summer, so I needed a plan B…

I already knew of www.virtualrunneruk.com, so I searched their website for an alternative to go out and do the run myself and still claim a medal for the memory box.

I wanted to still get out there and do the challenge for a couple of reasons..(sorry in advance for the clichés):

1. Because things in life don’t always go to plan
2. To encourage people to challenge themselves mentally, even when it seems impossible

I informed the fam of the plan and began to map the route over my Nutella and banana on toast… (I have no idea what proper runners eat for breakfast, but it is probably not that).

My old friend, Carl Brady, was also well prepped(ish) for the Wilmslow half marathon and was going to run with me. I told him I was still going to go out and asked if he fancied it but he declined, stating that it “looked like lapland” outside.

Lapland

I started to question whether it was the right thing to do having mixed responses from my friends, and the Stepdad telling me: “if you slip and fall into the River Mersey, you will die”. OH OK thanks.

I shared my location on my phone and told Mum & Andy to meet me at the pub near Dunham Massey and off I went.

What a surprise….It was absolutely fine and really enjoyable. I saw so many runners and walkers on my journey who probably didn’t even think twice when leaving the house. And then there was me with 3 layers on and a bobble hat 😂

My good friend Darren was at mile 7 supplying the jelly babies and the fam at mile 9 who then drove on to the pub at the end….(which was closed!!) Having a race style audience with fuel stops was a great added touch ❤️

I’m so pleased I still chose to do this. It was mentally challenging at times as it is the furthest I have ran on my own, but completing the run has so far raised another £85… Which is excellent for just going out on a run, not a race. So thank you to everyone!!

I always try and talk about the benefits that exercise and running can have on mental health and I know that for many people, even getting out of the house to face it is tough enough, without it looking like lapland outside. I hope that the story of me forcing myself out, despite the race cancellation in what I thought were the most horrendous conditions, gives people the confidence to get out there and give it a go, even if you think it is unachievable.

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The Wilmslow half marathon has been rescheduled for June which I think may still fit in the excel spreadsheet… 🙄

I am still doing the double and will be running the Darwen Heritage half marathon next week to form March Madness part 2! There are a few runners battling it out to get the best time, including Brady who has signed up for that one instead! I will report back on the blog next week…

If you would like to donate you can visit the sponsor page here: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/EmmaBramwell2

PS. Don’t forget you can still sign up to the 5k and 10k 30for30 Fun Run here >>