BARCELONA MARATHON 2011

CREW MEMBERS ‘TRUIMPH IN BARCELONA RUN

Harbourguides crew members Steve Mallinson and Dawn Wild have just returned home from Spain feeling somewhat ‘triumphant’ after completing the gruelling Barcelona Marathon. They may not exactly have a spring in their step at this stage – Steve says it takes him a while to get his legs going again after he’s been sitting down – but there is a detectable air of pride and self satisfaction. And rightly so.

The pair completed the coarse in 4 ½ hours, which is no mean feat for a first marathon. Not only that, they passed the first check point in around 1300th position but by the time they reach the finishing line they were around the 1000th mark. It’s not every day you get to overtake 3000 people in a race.

When asked if he’d do it again Steve said, “If you asked me that straight after the race it might well have been a no. But that was a couple of days ago. Now I feel confident that with more training we could possibly get under the 4hr marker... But right now I need to rest and get back to normal.”

Dawn has a similar outlook and said, “The aftermath is confusing. You feel overjoyed that you have done it, but at the same time really glad it is over. I’ve never felt exhaustion like it. By far the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but also one of the most rewarding.”

“Don’t listen to her too much,” said Steve. “Dawn is one hell of a fit girl. She was certainly the strongest out there. She kept me running at my lowest points... I guess it’s her natural talent for nagging that got me through it.”

“That’s only part of the story really,” said Dawn. “We made a pact before we entered into this thing that we would start and finish together and we stuck to it. We helped each other. Having said that I would probably have knocked a good ten minutes of my time if Steve hadn’t slowed me down so much. If only I’d known.”

“Joking aside,” added Steve. “In truth I think it would have been hard for either of us to achieve it on our own. Basically we didn’t stop running at all. We just stuck to the 4.30 pacemaker and took turns pulling each other out of bad patches. But what I found most impressive was the support you get from the crowd. They don’t care where you’re from or who you are they cheer you on regardless.”

“It’s almost like you are being driven by their emotion,” added Dawn. “Everyone’s very passionate. Including the organisers who really throw themselves into their roles to make sure you’re focused and encouraged to go for it. But I agree, the crowd was incredible.”

So are they going to do it again?

“Oh yes,” said Dawn.

“We’re going to do it better,” said Steve

Well done you two and good luck on your next endeavour... Watch this space.

If you want to check out Steve and Dawns progress go to www.barcelonamarato.es/eng. Click on ‘results’, enter Steve’s bib number 14761. When his position bar comes up and click on the ‘video’ camera at the end of the bar.

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