Madrid marathon. Second part.

[Antonio247]

José Pedro had to stop to have some “Reflex” in his knee, so I continued after wishing each other good luck. I went on alone to meet later two Italian men from Bergamo, Mario and Giuliano, who told me they had taken part in 80 and 100 marathons respectively. They had been to Milan, Rome, Paris, London, New York and they thought that Madrid was the hardest one. We went along Moncloa, where the Prime Minister´s residence is. Then, we went along “Ciudad Universitaria” where many faculties and halls of residences are. Then, the Italians went on and I continued alone towards the biggest park in Madrid, Casa de Campo, km 29 to 34. I started to feel some discomfort in my legs although my heart went all right. I met a pretty black young woman from Netherland but living in Egypt. She told me this was her first marathon. I told her that my goal was to do it in under 4 hours and a half but I´d be glad if I could do it under 5 hours. She said that if I could keep that pace, I could do it. Then, she said that she had to wait for her fiance who was behind and wished me good luck.I said “you too”. After leaving Casa de Campo, we went up avenida Virgen del Puerto with a beautiful view of the Royal palace. My brother was waiting for me there and I asked him for a bar of cereal and I offered other runners who were going along at that moment. From there on, I had to run and walk a lot since my legs felt stiff. I saw Atlético de Madrid stadium. I noticed a lot of people walking too because we were doing the last kilometres and they were uphill except the last two that were flat. I met a man from Jersey who was walking and I told him that we were arriving, that it was just a mile and a half to get to the finish. I remember jogging and walking with a girl who was always jogging but I always reached her. We got to Atocha station, where one of the terrorist attacks happened. I felt sad for all that. There were a lot of people cheering there, telling us that we were really near. There were also runners who had finished who encouraged a lot. My brother came running with me the last kilometre and taking photos of me and a runner from Carreraspopulares.com who I had met before, Storbhas. He offered me some “Isostar” . He picked up his five-or-six-year old daughter, who didn´t feel like, to get to the finish together. He burst out crying with emotion for having finished his first marathon. I felt glad because I had finished a marathon after many years but a little disappointed because I hadn´t done it under 4 hours and a half as I had expected. I finished in five hours, ten minutes although the real time was three minutes less. The advantage of having done such a poor time is that I have a large scope to lower that time on another occasion. I thought that perhaps it is not worth taking part in such a race since it means so much effort but a few hours later I was thinking of doing another marathon in October or November. I don´t know what this race has that makes it so special. Anyway, after running a marathon, doing a half marathon should be a piece of cake. When I finished, I picked up a bag with drinks and food. I was thirsty so I drank a bottle of water. I picked up my bag at the cloakroom tent and looked for Brian who was in another tent. He was very glad I had finished all right and he took a picture of mine and we asked another volunteer to take a picture of both of us. We wished each other good luck and we hope to meet again. It´s been a pleasure meeting you, Brian.

My brother and I met at the Post Office building and took the tube back to the hotel. There was a beggar lying on the floor. Some runners had left food or drinks next to him. I left a milkshake and a yoghurt. It was hard to bend my legs to leave that. We got to the hotel at around 3.30. I had a quick shower, paid the bill and asked for a taxi. We went to Chamartín railway station in a taxi. There, we bought two sandwiches, a salad and a lemon Fanta at Pans and Company which we ate later on the train at 4.45 pm.

It was wonderful not to have to drive back home. I could enjoy looking at the landscape and resting. We went through La Mancha with its windmills, the land of Don Quixote. We also went through the province of Jaén, filled with olive trees. We finally arrived at Almería station at 11.40pm after spending 48 hours away, five of them in the running crowd.

As a conclusion, I can say that it´s been a very interesting experience although quite hard but worth living. I remember thinking when I had to walk in the last kilometres that the distance is too long, that it can make you get injured, that perhaps I should go on with half marathons or shorter distances but once you finish, you forget all the pain and are thinking about the following one.

Thank you very much for all your encouragement and support, amigos y amigas.