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The day began like most other race days
- horribly early, 6.30 am to be precise, when my husband and
I took the train from our home in Brussels, to Paris for the
annual 20k race. As I was eighteen weeks pregnant, with an
ever-increasing belly and a consequent slowing pace, this
was to be my last race for a few months, and my long-suffering
husband decided that in the interests of safety, he should
run with me, despite not being the keenest runner in the world!
We arrived to a cold but clear Paris morning, and made our
way to the starting area next to the Eiffel Tower, where we
collected our numbers and our championship chips, together
with the warning 'lose chip,15 euros'! This is the only race
that I have ever taken part in where all runners were required
to provide a medical certificate, which my doctor had given
me on the basis that I didn't get too hot and drank lots of
fluids. As it was still only 10.30, and with a start time
of 1pm, we decided to take a trip up to the third floor of
the Tower, saving our legs for the race by taking the lift
rather than walking. When we reached the top however, it had
begun to drizzle so we warded off the cold with a particularly
un-nourishing pre-race meal of hot chocolate and donuts.
The location of the start was fantastic - on the Point de
d'Iena right in front of the Eiffel Tower, and by this time
the rain had stopped and there was no wind, making for almost-perfect
running conditions. The usual collection of fancy-dressers
and fun runners were conspicuously absent from the 12,000
participants perhaps because of the race's 2km uphill start,
but both the atmosphere amongst the runners and the crowd
who had come out to support us was good. After about 2 km,
we arrived in the Bois de Boulogne, where we stayed for the
first half of the race, and with only slight drizzle, all
proceeded smoothly. From there we headed back down towards
the River Seine for a very pleasant stretch alongside its
banks, but the second drinks stop at 12km was a complete shambles,
as not only had the water run out, but isotonic drinks were
provided in a 'help-yourself' bucket and plastic cup scenario,
which resulted in a huge backlog of runners. We left the banks
of the Seine and began a 2km stretch along the main road with
its inevitable underpasses, and although this made a break
from the increasingly heavy rain and dropping temperatures,
it would have been much more enjoyable had the other side
of the road also been closed to traffic, so we didn't have
to breathe in lungfuls of carbon monoxide.
Heading back over the Seine to its left bank, we reached
the 17km marker. By this point, I was beginning to feel the
effects of running for two people, and my back was getting
quite sore. As with the previous drinks stop, the third was
a complete scrum, so we decided to give it a miss and continue
on to the finish, and running through the barrage of photographers
we crossed the line back at the Eiffel Tower in 1.52 - almost
half an hour slower than my usual time, but not bad given
my current situation. The post-race refreshments were organised
well, with drinks, slices of oranges and cakes, and no more
than five minutes to wait for our bags to be found. My most
lasting memory of the day will be changing into dry clothes
next to a man who had run the entire race with his tiny little
poodle - that's the continent for you!
Time-to-Run thanks Rachel
Haggar for her contribution.
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