Helen Lamb
Having not run prior to race day for 2 months due to what I thought was a ligament problem, I knew my timing wasn't going to be record breaking.
This also was my first ever Marathon so I guess I didn't really not what to expect either. It also turns out that my leg injury wasn't a ligament problem. I was in a fair bit of pain as you can imagine having run that distance when I got home, but after about 10 days of it not going away I went to get it checked. Apparently I have been training and running for the last 6 months on a stress fracture in the ankle joint and lower inside shin bone without even knowing; hence why I have been in a cast upto my knee for the last 3 weeks and will be until early January 2007. A real nuisance but an answer to all the pain during training. Next time perhaps I won't ignore it!!
The whole experience was definitely worth it though. And it's not going to stop me from doing another one either. But perhaps it will be a while before I am up and training long distances again.
New York was amazing though, as it always is. As were the Macmillan support team of Nikki and Kirsty who came out with us all. They made our stay that much more easier. They were always there and contactable if we needed them. Truly they were fab.