Happily Ever After

Life in The Rural Retreat with a beautiful wife, three cats, garden wildlife, a camera, a computer – and increasing amounts about running

Earlier posts can be found on Adventures of a Lone Bass Player, where this blog began life. Recent entries can be found here.

A Change In The Weather

by Russell Turner - 12:03 on 21 May 2025

After weeks of sunshine, warmth, gentle wind and no rain, which was a great aid to my post-London Marathon recovery, only four days remain until the Edinburgh Marathon. And only two days until the weather turns. Typical.

Friday, my final training day (a restrained 20mins) is forecast to be the last day of good weather. On Saturday, if the Met Office is correct, I’ll be driving into light rain and moderate wind. On Sunday, the day of The Big Race, light showers are expected all day, which wouldn’t be too bad, but accompanied by stronger wind, gusting up to 41mph in the afternoon, when I’ll be completing the marathon.

The silver lining is that the wind should be mostly behind me for the first 19 miles. Less good is that it will be in my face for the final seven, when I’ll be struggling most. Such is life. There’s still time for the forecast to change; I won’t hold my breath.

Despite all that, I’m still vaguely optimistic about my prospects for what will be my 17th marathon/ultra distance. The race plan is a 9:1 run/walk, keeping 10secs either side of 11min/mile pace, with an option to use 4:1 to get me through any sticky patches. That would bring me to the finish line in under five hours. The theory is great; practice might be different.

Unusually, I’ll have a running partner – to begin with, at least. Although he’s a faster runner, Squirrel James intends to set off with me to protect what might still be a dodgy knee (tweaked in a non-running domestic incident). I suspect he’ll get bored quickly and push on ahead after a couple of miles, leaving me alone with a rock-filled iPod, which I plan to use when needed rather than for the entire time. Unsurprisingly, the playlist leans heavily on 70s-90s tunes.

Eight years of real and virtual London Marathons – will I make it to ten?

What might be a good omen is that my virtual London medal arrived yesterday, so I’ll be able to wear the 2025 T-shirt in Edinburgh and show what a running god I am. If only…

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