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Event	London Marathon
Distance	42.195km
Date	02.10.2022
Location	London
Condition	13→19°C
Club	Bracknell Forest Runners
Entry fees	£49.99

Goal	Target	Result
Primary	Sub 3h	3:03:39 – just outside
Experience the wall	km 30-35	Hit it at km 30, survived
Spot family on course	At least once	Twice, km 21 & 37
GFA Qualification	Unplanned	London & Boston both

Finish Time	Age Group	Gender	Overall
3:03:39	341	2053	2205

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Getting to the start line at London is half the battle. Fortunately, being part of Bracknell Forest Runners made that side of things almost effortless. For the price of a large coffee and a croissant, you could hop on the club bus to Greenwich — no tube stress, no navigation, no faff. Yes, it meant an earlier alarm than you’d ideally choose, but arriving calm and relaxed is worth it.

The start area itself is something else. Thousands upon thousands of runners across three separate start zones, a buzz that’s impossible to replicate, and a parade of increasingly creative costumes — charity runners, Guinness World Record attempts, and what I can only describe as a camembert cheese racing a pint of Guinness. If that doesn’t loosen you up before 42 kilometres, nothing will.

My wave went off at 9:45 am. Cool, partly cloudy, a light westerly. On paper, decent marathon conditions. What I hadn’t fully factored in was how quickly the temperature would climb once the sun got going.

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The first kilometre is always a bit of a lottery at big city marathons — you’re threading through the crowd, trying not to go out too hard, and then suddenly I needed a wee. One tactical detour at km 2 sorted that out. The split data shows it (4:58 for km 2 — not a fade, just a pit stop).

From there, the legs felt good, and I settled into a rhythm that was, with hindsight, slightly faster than was wise. Through Woolwich, down into Bermondsey, the crowd was building all the way. London Marathon crowds are not a polite ripple of applause — they are wall-to-wall noise, music, dancing, cowbells, kids holding out sweets, strangers cheering your name off your race bib. It is a 42-kilometre festival, and it carries you along whether you like it or not.

Then Tower Bridge. Turning right onto that iconic stretch is the kind of moment people try to describe and can’t quite manage. The bridge is packed on both sides, the noise is extraordinary, and there’s a surreal quality to running across it with thousands of others. I’m not ashamed to say it brought a tear or two. Shortly after, I spotted my wife and daughter cheering at km 3 — the boost you get is hard to quantify.

The first half went through in 1:26:23. Looking back, that was the problem. To go sub-3, you need roughly 1:29:30 per half. I was banking time I didn’t have.

Through the Isle of Dogs and back along the Embankment, things started to change. The temperature had climbed to around 19°C — not extreme, but enough when you’re pushing at threshold pace. By km 30, the wall arrived exactly on schedule. Legs heavy, thoughts darker: why are you doing this? Just stop, just walk. It was both physical and mental, hitting simultaneously, and the heat was absolutely a factor.

Then my stomach went. A sharp, strange pain — I thought I’d pulled an abdominal muscle. I walked. I took a gel. I jogged. Slowly, the legs came back. The dark thoughts receded. I ran again. Hitting the wall, it turned out, wasn’t as catastrophic as the horror stories suggest — it was rough, it was real, but it was survivable.

Around km 37, I saw my wife and daughter again. My wife told me afterwards that I looked like a zombie at that point. Accurate. But seeing them gave me something to hold onto for the final stretch. Then, going through a tunnel around km 38, I spotted medics performing resuscitation on a runner at the side of the road. That stopped the pushing. I eased off and ran the remainder with a bit more gratitude than adrenaline.

The final stretch onto The Mall is everything you’ve been told it is. The crowd, the trees, the palace in the distance. After 42 kilometres it felt both enormous and over too quickly. Crossed the line, collected the medal, took a moment to absorb it all.

Then — in true London fashion — I got on the tube. And people clapped. In the tube. With the medal around my neck. It felt, genuinely, like a bike achievement.

Later that afternoon, messages started arriving on WhatsApp. “Oli, that’s a Boston qualifier.” I had no idea what they meant. Turned out 3:03:39 was not only a Good for Age time for London 2023, but also qualified for the Boston Marathon. I had accidentally qualified for two of the world’s most iconic marathons without knowing either qualification standard existed.

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Strava chip time: 3:03:03 · Gun time: 3:03:39 · Note: km 2 includes a comfort stop

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Medal collected, vibe absorbed, and then — pragmatically — the tube. With a medal around your neck in London on marathon day, the tube is a strange and wonderful place. People clap. Strangers congratulate you. It felt entirely disproportionate and completely deserved at the same time.

Lunch with the family. A vegan burger and a very well-earned cider. Sometimes the simplest things.

That evening, the WhatsApp messages started. Turns out 3:03:39 is a Good for Age time for both London and Boston. I had absolutely no idea either standard existed going in. The sub-3 target meant I’d accidentally over-qualified. I didn’t use the London GFA for 2023 — life, triathlon season and other priorities got in the way — and Boston remains on the list for another day.

• Executed a genuine sub-3 attempt with the legs to back it up — 1:26:23 at halfway is real speed
• Survived the wall at km 30 — walked, took a gel, came back, kept running
• Spotted wife and daughter twice, including at km 37 when it mattered most
• The Bracknell Forest bus — stress-free start, priceless
• Accidentally qualified for Boston and London GFA without knowing either standard existed
• HR stayed consistent throughout (153–158 bpm) — aerobic engine held up

• Pacing strategy — starting at 3:53 /km at km 5 was too fast for a warm day; a negative split approach needs work
• Heat preparation — 19°C in October wasn’t forecast to be a problem; it was
• Nutrition timing — the stomach issue at km 30 needs unpicking; earlier and more consistent fuelling may help
• Negative split mentality — the fear of starting slow and getting slower is worth confronting in training

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Organisation	10/10
Course	10/10
Atmosphere / Crowd	20/10
My Performace	9/10
Value for Money	10/10
Overall	10/10

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3:03:39. Three minutes and thirty-nine seconds outside the target. On a warm day, after going out too fast, after hitting the wall, after a mystery stomach muscle, after slowing for medics in a tunnel. And still a personal best, a Good for Age for London, a Good for Age for Boston, and one of the most extraordinary experiences I’ve had in sport.

London is not just a marathon. It is a full sensory event — from the Bracknell Forest bus to The Mall, from Tower Bridge in tears to the tube with a medal. The crowd never stops. The noise never stops. And when it does stop, you’re at the finish line.

I’ll be back. With a negative split plan, better heat prep, and possibly a slightly earlier gel.

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