← AJ Bell Great North Run
5th time doing GNR. Did it this time for charity and with my wife, it was her 1st GNR.
Actually used the baggage buses this year, but a bit of a nightmare! Buses are miles away up the road from where you go down to get in your pens.
After finally finding a bus and getting rid of our bags we slowly walked back down and then back up the motorway to our pen.
It was a relief to get in the pen in time and it was nice to be able to relax before the start.
4 of us ran together the whole way, yes the route was busy but we stayed together.
Water stations were an nightmare again, everyone going for the first few bottles when there are 20 more further up the road. Then instead of throwing empties to the side of the road, throwing them on the floor for people to slip/trip on! I took my hydration vest so I could stay out of the way.
Support on the course from spectators and charity points was brilliant. Plenty of ice pops and I even had a cheeky little beer on route!
The finish area was very busy with friends and family trying to find runners. I was happy I could go to my charity’s tent to get away from the crowds.
Getting our bags back was much easier and afterwards we walked further away from the event village and enjoy some food and drink next to the seaside away from everyone.
Yes it’s a busy race, yes it’s over priced and very commercial but it’s definitely a bucket list race. Yes I’ve done it 5 times now but all were different and done for different reasons, I won’t be rushing back to do it again but might in the future.
