Sunderland Half Marathon, 8 May
Report by Paul Ackerley
I think the headline for this run was how well organised it was. We turned up at the start line with about 15 minutes to spare, as had been the plan, and as we got there and saw the usual bank of 20ish toilets lined up in a very orderly manner, there was nobody queuing for them, and most appeared empty. And when I did look inside one, there were rolls and rolls of paper. That was the point at which I wondered whether I had the wrong date, or it had been called off … there is always a queue 10 minutes before the start.
But no, it was the right date, and I duly lined up with the other 800ish runners – for the start at 10.25. Slightly strange start time – did this help on the toilet availability front? I’m keen to work out the secret of their success and pass it on to other providers of fine runs.
And the organisation remained of the same high quality throughout the race. Well stocked water stations (and additional ones set up by local cafes and restaurants), welcoming marshals, (in fact when I thanked one marshal, she replied, “You’re welcome – thank you for coming”) a clearly marked route, and free photos (hence why there is one here).
But I do have an apology. Large parts of the course were very interesting and scenic too; nicely maintained Georgian houses, intricate routes around pretty parks, through the marina and along the sea front, and lots of enthusiastic support along the way.
So, I have to apologise to Sunderland and all its Mackems for all the negative views I had about it.
Sorry Sunderland.
And I’ll even forgive you for calling it a flat course where there was in fact 495 feet of ascent. It got its own back though by giving me a bit of sunburn.
Even my time of 2.02.12 was a nice surprise – not great, but better than expected, and my fastest as a 62 year old; a milestone I had achieved the previous day.