And that, as they say, was that.

Wow. Where do I begin? What a weekend! Two days of glorious sunshine, beautiful views, sore feet and aching muscles but wow! So where do I begin? At the beginning of course.

Friday afternoon I left home to catch the train to London.

Retford is a cute little old fashioned station and as I stood on the platform waiting for the train I felt a bit like I was willingly going for a weekend of torture and I had to question my sanity. An hour and a half later I was at Kings Cross. I'm very familiar with Kings Cross now and I love it, and I was excited about meeting Phoebe for a carb fest.

We found a lovely Italian restaurant called Casa Tua, just a six minute walk from Kings Cross Station. Really excellent pasta and lovely service. I must admit, I tend not to eat a lot of pasta these days so all the pasta of the previous couple of days and on Friday was an absolute joy, I was loving it!  It was so fabulous to have a good excuse to catch up with Phoebe too. 

From there it was back to the station and the last leg of my Friday night journey. I was heading to Bushey to stay with my friends Dawn and Jack who were very kindly putting me up for the night, and then Dawn was coming with me in the morning to the start. I got to Watford HIgh Street station and walked up the hill to their place, all the time pondering how I was going to cope with hills over the weekend. 

I don't do hills. Hills are my nemesis. I hate hills. I hope you're getting the gist. It's not a fear, it's just an ability thing! And now that I live in a fairly flat area and not only that, I live in a bungalow, so my opportunities to train for hills have been very few and far between. It was a worry as I trudged up the hill with my luggage.

I got there during Masterchef and sorted my stuff out and then managed to get to bed around 10.30pm. Poor Gordy, (brAMYac member extraordinaire) was still travelling to his hotel, having left his car in Brighton. I really felt for him as I climbed into bed, but it turns out, with his late arrival at the hotel at gone midnight, my lack of ability to get to sleep before 1.30am, and Linda waking up at 2am, none of us had a good night the night before the walk, and I think it's safe to say, that was a concern, especially with such an early alarm call.

For those of you who don't know, Linda is my very dear friend who, for the last 10 years has been my walking/running buddy. I lost a very close friend in December 2012 and for some bizarre reason I promised her just before she died that I would raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support by running 10 miles. She hadn't exactly taken me seriously but she knew me better than I knew myself, and she knew that if I said it, it would happen. After she died, I called Linda and asked if she was up for a 10 mile run. She thought I was mad. I was to be honest. I was pretty unfit, had never really run properly and had no idea what I was taking on. We went for a trial 'run' one day and after no more than 100m I was panting, feeling nauseous and my legs were trembling. It wasn't a good start!

I met with my friend Veronica, who was experienced in long distance running and she basically taught me how to run. I am forever grateful.

However, Linda agreed to do the run, so we trained. We trained very hard from March to October 2013 and we did the run, despite the (aforementioned in another post) hurricane. 10 miles done, Linda and I went on to do more runs, Moonwalks and trail walk/runs and though initially she signed up just for Day 2 of this walk, she eventually decided to do the whole thing and I'm very glad she did. For one thing, she loved it. But also, it definitely wouldn't have felt right without her!

So, Linda arrived at Dawn and Jack's by 4.45am, and Nigel came at 4.55am to take us to Richmond and the start of the walk. It was, unsurprisingly an easy run, though we were surprised to see so many cars on the road at stupid o'clock in the morning.

When we got to the car park, Helen, the CEO of the charity, Cavernoma Alliance UK-CAUK, arrived and it was so lovely to meet her. She spent time with us and told us how much of a difference our money will make to the Charity, we were beyond thrilled to hear it :). After all, what is this all about if not to raise money for a charity that does such wonderful work for Cavernoma sufferers and their families? 

We headed over to the starting area and I picked up the tracker which meant that everyone who had the link could see how we were doing as we went along. It turned out to be very worthwhile and a great success with lots of people following our progress. 

After the statutory bacon roll (not compulsory at all but I was hungry!) we had a loo stop and then headed to the start. It was nerve rackingly exciting and none of us had a clue what was in store for us, whether we would make the distance or what injuries we might suffer, especially those pesky debilitating blisters but I for one was feeling very positive and not completing wasn't an option. To be honest, (don't tell the others, they don't know this because I've never ever ever mentioned it, honest 😂) but I had intended to do the full 100km Continuous but there were reasons that we opted for the 2 day event and so I obviously have unfinished business with Ultras.

It was lovely to have Nigel, Dawn, Simon (Ruth's husband) and Helen from the charity cheering us off as we walked through the start line at 7am. Here's a Facebook post from Helen, showing us heading off :)

https://fb.watch/kRCWIikO2e/

We got a good 10 meters in and Ruth had a little boot problem so we ended up at the back of the group which reminded Linda and I of one of our 10 mile runs when we spent so long in the loo queue we were the last to get going. Boot problem solved we headed off in the early morning sunshine.

Before I continue, I have to tell you that this was the best run, most organised and efficient walk/run we have ever done. The signage for those taking part is incredible, all put up by volunteers along the route, there are Trek Masters who help people along the way, either by just walking with them for a bit to keep them company, or helping them when they're in trouble. At the stops the food is amazing, and obviously I took full advantage! There are medical tents at all the stops and massages offered at the half way point and at the end. The toilets at the stops are amazing, in that they are kept clean, always have loo paper and plenty of hand sanitiser to hand. We were very impressed. 

So, we saw our first arrows and followed them. They were everywhere on the route, there's really no excuse for getting lost!

Before long we were heading alongside the Thames, chatting to people who had done a fair few Ultras and getting advice from them about pacing ourselves which we duly ignored. Ruth was setting the pace, despite having told us she was a lot slower than the rest of us, what a fraud 😁.  Ruth is not the tallest, but her speed is amazing. She kept us going throughout!

The views down the Thames were beautiful and what do you know, we passed a boat called 'Amy'. That was one of those 'it's meant to be' moments.

After 12km we reached the first rest stop at Green Lane recreation ground in Kingston. It was there I realised I wasn't going to go hungry! What a spread. Danish pastries, fruit, biscuits, energy bars, hot drinks, cold drinks and water top ups as well as electrolyte drinks, and the much needed loos.

It was then it dawned on me that any thoughts of burning off the calories consumed was a pipe dream. Hey ho!

We stayed longer than we had planned, but eventually got going, walking though South London, pounding pavements. Not everyone likes walking on roads and pavements but I love it, actually prefer it to walking over fields and uneven ground so I was in my element.

We went through many areas we'd never heard of, Royal Malden which we figured couldn't be too far from New Malden which we had heard of, down to Stoneleigh, into Nonsuch Park, great name! It was a beautiful park by the way. We then carried on south via Sutton and into Belmont. (If you live in Harrow you can be forgiven for being confused about that one, there's a Belmont in Harrow too) and then we went past the Royal Marsden Hospital and there was a collective 'ooooohhh',  as none of us had known where that was. We also passed the occasional good luck message in front gardens and at a couple of points along the route, children offering us sweeties. It was so lovely!

After another 12km we arrived at Oaks Park, the first proper stop on day 1 and the completion of the first quarter, where those with orange bibs would leave us. They have a colour bib system. Orange was 25km, I have to admit I don't know what doing the first day only colour was, but we were yellow, 2 days, blue was continuous (darn it!) and red was day 2 only). This was the lunch stop and it was yummy. Rolls and sandwiches available, pot noodles, all the biscuits, fruit, bars and crisps as well as sausage rolls (veggie options also available), cookies, cakes, peanuts, both salted and dry roasted...(are you getting that I made an intense mental note of the food?) as well as fizzy drinks and teas and coffees. We stopped for an hour, again, longer than we probably should have, but it was good to sit for a while and get the rucksacks off and have a change of socks. They recommend changing socks every 25k but Ruth was changing at every stop and I was changing at most of them (being short of socks) and Linda was changing, and then changing back and then changing her socks ;). 

And then we were off again. The first two distances between stops had been 12km, we were now on to two blocks of 16km and the difference in the distance is very noticeable. We kept going through more unknown places, Woodcote and Coulsdon, and then onto Farthing Downs where the scenery started to become gorgeous as we got out of the 'burbs' and into the countryside.

We even went through a place called Happy Valley, and we managed to get through safely ;). 

We kept going, taking in the gorgeous views chatting at times or just taking in the scenery.

Eventually we arrived at the third stop, New Henshaw Farm in South Nutfield. This was the one we'd heard all about because of the amazing pick n mix! We weren't disappointed. Not just pick n mix but popcorn as well. I was in heaven, especially as there was proper liquorice allsorts on display! Not just that though, but also the melon, pineapple, all the now familiar bars, fruit, cookies and crisps, as well as the hot and cold drinks.

After a slightly shorter break we were off again and were excited to see the 30km marker, it had been a pretty ok walk to this point and we were feeling very positive.

And then, for the most part, we were entirely in countryside and it was lovely. We did go through Outwood, (where? you say? Who knows!) and saw another good luck sign, not for us, but pretty exciting anyway.

Then more countryside, some flat, some a little hilly but we were coping really well and at this point, apart from the occasional niggle, we were doing great, as were our bodies and most importantly, our feet. It struck me, not that I didn't know already, but I started thinking about what a beautiful country we live in. We are very blessed with the rural areas of Britain, stunning up and down the whole of England and through Wales and Scotland, and the bits of Ireland I've seen. How lucky are we to be so surrounded by such beauty. We really should make the most of what we have. It's especially easy to appreciate it when the sun is out and the skies are blue. These would definitely not have been the same thoughts if it had been raining.

We headed on, through Crawley Downs and to the 50km marker! Great excitement was had by all, the real halfway point and we were still feeling good. Beyond the 50km was the longest any of us had been, as Ruth had done a 50km and the rest of us had done no more than 26.3 miles. (42ish km). We took photos and knew that with just 6km to go until the rest stop, we were going to at least get to 56km with no problems. It was here that I was beginning to think that we should have just kept going through the night, as I was feeling very positive and the thought of resting overnight, having to get up at 4.45am again, and get myself going was a little too much for me, and I knew at 50km that next time, I'd rather go straight through. But that's a story for another time. After all, I was only half way so it was far too soon to be thinking about 'next time'!

As we passed through Rowfant, (where??) the sun started setting and we knew we were close to the half way stop.at Tulley's Farm, in Turners Hill. 

There's a theory amongst us the the kilometre markers are placed slightly inaccurately, and this was nowhere more evident than the last few to Tulleys, the last one took us 20 minutes, which would usually be a mile time, so that was obviously a bit of a stretch!  On arrival we were greeted with a big beamy smile by Simon, who waited for us to eat and get sorted before chauffeuring us to the overnight stop at a local Holiday Inn. Poor Gordy was going to be camping but he's hardy and didn't seem to mind.

At Tulley's Farm we had the opportunity for the works. The loo stops, the dinner, the massage, snacks, drinks and for those camping (Gordy - brAMYac extraordinaire), a shower.  I had an absolutely delish chicken curry, as did Linda, who having spent a month in Italy, topped hers with parmesan cheese, by habit, not desire, that was actually meant for the spaghetti Bolognese which was also on offer. Still, I'm sure it was equally scrummy. 

Stuffed to the brim, and after queueing unsuccessfully for a massage because only Linda and I wanted one (and Gordy but he wasn't leaving the camp), we were conscious of Simon waiting in the car so skipped it, knowing a hot bath was waiting. Leaving Gordy to sort out his tent (which was apparently fine, except for the cold and the wet 😨, we headed off for the warmth of the hotel. We were very shivery but the time we left Tulleys but the hotel bath soon warmed us up.

Gordy had a bit of a blister which he'd discovered 16km before and managed to get a compeed on, but he headed to medical to get it sorted and then had his massage which sounded divine. 

Linda and I had a hot bath and fell into bed and were fast asleep by just gone 11pm. Alarms were set for 4.45am and when they went off, the two of us jumped out of bed like we'd been shot. My fear was realised when I started moving and realised how much I ached. My shoulders had suffered from the rucksack and my back was spasming and it was all I could do not to think how much better it would have been if we'd done it continuously instead of having a rest, which at this point seemed to do me no favours at all, though the others seemed far more rested. I found it tough to get going, and felt very below par at the beginning of the day. I popped a few pills and hoped at least the headache I seemed to have acquired would disappear.  We left the hotel and met up with Gordy, hearing the gory Gordy details of his soon to be terrible blister, and we breakfasted.  For breakfast there was sausages and bacon with long rolls, cereal and porridge. Plus all the now familiar 'usuals'.  As soon as we were done, we headed to Brighton.

After seeing our ideal home with a lake at the bottom of the garden, we kept going, up a fairly steep hill which was mainly road, and going through Worth Forest, which was beautiful. Then across fields with yet more breath-taking scenery, which we thought meant we were probably in the South Downs. There's no way of knowing where you are on footpaths, but we assumed.

We knew the first stop on Day 2 was 11km away, and it made us laugh to think that 11km didn't sound very far at all. The next stint was 14km and that seemed far more! Still, on the 11km trail we kept going, chatting away, talking to other walkers, who by now were really spacing out and at times we could only see us for miles so had no idea if anyone else was around, except that we had the trackers so we could see who was ahead, and who was behind. That was a little more reassuring.

And then, we saw a sign to Brighton. Imagine our excitement, except that the little pink arrows were pointing us in the other direction! Ah well. At least we were getting there...ish!

We got to the next rest stop at Ardingly College, which is set in stunning grounds in a beautiful area. Here, more loo stops and more of the same food, which sounds like I was bored of it but trust me, I wasn't. I discovered there were jaffa cakes and wondered how I'd missed that before. I had aimed to just have a banana, but that went out the window as soon as the jaffa cakes appeared on the horizon.  If i remember rightly, this is where we first saw 'orange tee shirt man'. A man, not surprisingly wearing an orange tee shirt, who was hobbling. He looked in pain, and we didn't pay much attention to him, thinking this might be the last time we see him. We thought he'd be going home there. 67km done, no shame there. But he, like Gordy, with his painful blisters, had other ideas. 

I have to tell you, Gordy is incredible. He had a really bad blister that got worse through the day, yet he kept his speed up, not putting his heel down as the blister was under his foot, walking like Amy does sometimes, on his toes, and not complaining at all. Others would not have been able to do what Gordy did, he is a complete hero.

Anyway, we kept going, the next stop was 14km away. We finally reached Wivelsfield Primary School in Wivelsfield Green. (I've actually heard of that!) where we had lunch. More rolls, wraps, sandwiches, and all the usual gubbins and of course, the loos (not edible!).  That was going to be the longest stretch today so we knew now there were just 19km to go. That was exciting to be under 20kms and the beauty of kilometres is that they go far faster than miles!

So we headed off again, with just 8km to the next stop and after a while we eventually we saw the sign we'd sort of been dreading. Plumpton is where 'the hill' is.

We tried not to be phased by it and carried on, and somewhere around here I think it was we saw Orange Tee Shirt man again, still limping his way to Brighton. Hats off to him! And then we came across a far more encouraging sign:

And then we hit a little bovine snag. A herd of cows blocking our path. There were girls ahead of us who didn't know what to do and asked us. "what do we do now" they said. "well" says I, firstly you take a picture, and then you carry on to the gate, they'll move" And they did, bless them.

Our next stop was at Plumpton, where we would gather up enough energy to face Plumpton Hill. We'd heard a lot about Plumpton Hill, and we were fearful. Especially 'I don't do hills' me. But like lambs to the slaughter, we carried on, Gordy on his toes, me with my headache which was easing since lunchtime finally!

You're not wrong, it doesn't look like much, more like a slope in this picture, and in truth, it was much shorter than any of expected but it was steep. So steep that a lady just ahead of me was taking 3 steps at a time and the pausing before the next three. But for the four of us (yes, me included) it wasn't as bad as we'd imagined, though I wouldn't want to do too many of them between you and me.

And before we knew it we were at the top and the views were incredible.

Now we were getting close, the last stretch from Plumpton is just 11km to Brighton Racecourse and we were getting excited. Poor Gordy was hobbling a bit by now but like the trooper he is, he kept going, his determination is so admirable. Linda started counting down each time we passed a KM marker, from 90 to 99, the end was not in sight but we knew it was very close and hoped they didn't elongate the last kilometre like they had the day before.

The sun, which had been so strong all day (thank goodness for the breeze) was starting to get lower as we neared the racecourse and that made everything look utterly gorgeous. I don't think my camera does it justice. It started getting a bit chilly and we wanted to finish in our Cavernoma tee shirts so we stopped to put them on at 98km, and were grateful for the extra layer.

And then, then we could see the racecourse. We were beyond excited. We knew our friends and family were going to be there and I'd rung Amy to make sure they were all there which got me all emotional, even before we were there! And before we knew it, we were walking up the racetrack, hand in hand, listening to the cheers and the applause and it was such a thrill!

Amy and Issy had brought us flowers and prosecco and presented it to us when we got there! And we picked up our finishers tee shirts (or 'finshers' as it says!) which we proudly wore afterwards and collected our medals.

We hugged everyone and we hugged each other and we felt incredible and all the aches and pains and blisters were worth it to raise now over £20,000 for Cavernoma Alliance UK-CAUK.

And then we were done. Apart, of course, from dinner, the most disappointing meal of the weekend. Billed as a barbeque it was a burger and chips but to be honest, it was like we needed food. What we needed was a good shower! After eating, who should we see but Orange tee shirt Man! So pleased for him that he managed to finish, goodness knows how. He seemed to be in real pain but he was still smiling!  

We had the offered massage, grabbed another banana and a jaffa cake for old times sake and then went our separate ways. Gordy got his blisters cleaned up and drove to his hotel for the night, Ruth and Simon went to stay in a hotel, and I stayed in Hotel Linda and Ronny. The team are now home and reflecting on what was an incredible couple of days.

The following morning, Ronny and Linda very kindly took me out for breakfast to the Aquadrome in Rickmansworth. Linda and I always went there, every Friday morning for walks and breakfast. It was like we'd come home (though the prices have rocketed!). Then we went to our stretching tree to have our picture taken :). And then I headed home, via a visit to my mum.

So there we have it.

No more sock changes at rest stops, food galore, steps to be done, rucksacks to carry, sun cream to apply, laces to tighten, compeeds to place on blisters, portaloos to manage. It's all done...til next time!