Standing at the start line of a race when you have absolutely no idea what’s going on or what anyone is saying (except that they’re clearly very excited) is somewhat disorientating. Add in that it’s 8pm, pitch dark and somewhere on the shores of a huge lake in Japan and you can see why I vaguely wondered if I was dreaming. After about a mile of the race, we made a right turn and looking back, at a winding stream of headlights blinking across a narrow path between fields, to the sound of the loudest insects I’ve ever heard, and I was almost sure I was.
This was the Japan leg of the Wings for Life World Run, a race I somehow managed to win in the UK last year. Given the incredible distances reached by the Japanese winners – and others across the world – before they were “caught” by the catcher car, I wouldn’t have stood a chance this year, so I decided to get to about 15 miles, easy pace, then jog. In fact, it turns out that 10 miles of walking around stunning Kyoto earlier in the day makes even easy pace seem hard very early on, and with the humidity, I was struggling by 10 miles. I got to 15 and stopped, waiting for the car and enjoying the sight of those bob of headlights streaming towards me. You might see more by day, but night-time running like this is an incredible experience.
Apologies for the late blog, but I didn’t get to bed until 2.30am and had to catch the 8.30 train to Tokyo; before I’ve even got on a plane home, I’m already feeling jet lagged. So, over to you – how was your weekend? It’s clearly been hot in the UK, too, so some tough conditions for those racing. As always, share your joys and woes below the line.
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