Can You Do It?

Apparently I Can

Boston, that’s Lincolnshire, England, not USA. Its a market town, I know this because on Saturday the sat nav wanted me to drive through the Saturday Market. It became upset when I didn’t, so had to be switched off. I was in Boston for my first marathon of the year. It was going to be tricky as I’d missed nearly 8 weeks of training because of that broken rib, but the flattest marathon in the country? It’d be fine. Boston is quite nice, and the parking is cheap. We lodged at No 20 Hotel and Bar. It was a four minute walk to the start of the race. They didn’t do breakfast which was fine as I was leaving at 7am anyway. There’s a lovely church down by the river.

Botolph's church, Boston

There is also a Mexican restaurant, if you’re a runner you’ll know how important carb loading is before a race, so I had no choice 😂

Los Burritos, Boston

Sunday morning I found myself in the Market Place (the market had gone) 90s House Music blared out from some speakers, a man on a michrophone was sayin stuff (I think they were words of encouragement) Was I the only one shivering under three layers? It was windy! Gillian had her route map for photos, I found some friends, had a photo with one, wished each other good luck and waited until 8am for the start.

Boston Marathon
Trust me the sky is decieving
Boston UK Marathon

The flattest marathon in the country sounds great, but then there is a reason… the terrain is flat with no shelter. 😂

Flat windy countryside

The first 10 miles were okay, averaging 5 min kilometers and looking at an overall time of 03:40:00, but it dawned on me, I had for the most time, a tail wind. By 11 miles the route had turned. 30mph head wind with gusts to 40mph, but I was still smiling when I saw Gillian and her trusty camera at a water station.

The author

Around 13 miles the sciatica started playing up and the hips began to grumble, pace had dropped to 6-7 mins per kilometer, everyone was swearing at the wind 😂 I decided it wasn’t worth it, and the next time I saw her, I’d go home. The problem was I didn’t see her until 18 miles. Now, when you’ve run 18 miles in that wind and only have 8 miles left… well, you may as well carry on?

Windy countryside

By 20 miles the rib decided it wanted to play too, I thought I’d broken it again😂 It was then I made some life changing decisions. I was going to sell all my races. Windemere Marathon, Hardwolds 47mile ultra, and 50k ultra, Jersey Marathon… yup, that’s me from now on, just your average fun runner. Spend the rest of my days, relaxing and not dragging Gillian round the country, carrying my gear and taking pictures.

The author, Charlie Robinson

I didn’t get the time I wanted it ended up at 04:17:00, I was in pain and a tad disappointed, but apparently there were 32 people who didn’t finish, I did finish at least.

Boston UK Marathon finish.
Boston UK Marathon finish.
Smile or grimace?

But now I’ve slept, I’m warm, and I’m thinking. If I improve the hip therapy, reintroduce the sciatica exercises, get some good quality trail runs in, with lots of hills, Windemere Marathon is eight weeks away. I could probably do it 😂

Happy Trails, Folks x

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Author: Charlie

They say I’m retired. Huh. I prefer to say I now work for myself. I published a debut novel a couple of years ago and have now published the sequel. For my sins I am a Yorkshireman, albeit well travelled, but back home in God’s own country now. I run, cycle, swim and drink Red Wine. If you want to know anything else just ask.

21 thoughts on “Can You Do It?”

  1. Way to go! Proud of your finish! That’s fantastic. I love the international negotiations that go on in our brains as we are going through these situations. I always say to myself when I’m doing a race – Why the hell did you sign up for this? As soon as I cross the finish line – I am booking my flights, hotel, and ordering my new sneakers for the next one!

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    1. Thank you, for your lovely comment Karen. Yes, it’s amazing the stuff that goes through our heads, and how quickly we dismiss the negatives once we’ve crossed that line. Although this time it was a full day before I got there 😂

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  2. This was really interesting reading, nice pics, too. I’ve been asked to work as a steward at the London Marathon on the 26th April. I’m looking forward to the whole experience, I hear it’s quite a spectacle.

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  6. This has really influenced me to start running again. I really liked your blog and the way you persevered to continue running and finishing. Well done

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  8. Congrats Charlie on finishing the Boston ;0) I have been through a similar experience like yours, but instead I’m done with running marathons. It’s an individual decision. And I respect yours. So keep running and having fun. Thanks for sharing.

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  9. Pingback: Can You Do It? – MallaBlog

  10. This is a really engaging race story, honest, funny, and very human. I like how you balance the struggle (wind, pain, injury setbacks) with humour and self-awareness, it makes the whole experience feel relatable rather than just “a race report.” The ending especially stands out, with that shift from frustration to “maybe I could do it anyway” energy.

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