Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
Well I did it! No, I should definitely change that to 'WE did it'. We did the Bahrain Relay Marathon!
I want to say a big thank-you to all the guys and girls from the British Club who did everyone proud with their running last week, in support of 'Think Pink for Breast Cancer'.
I'd not really got in any decent training before I attempted my three kilometres leg. Which is silly, I know, because 'preparation is everything'. But I like to do things 'by the seat of my trousers' as they say.
The morning of the race arrived and I had a 'lie-in' till around 7.30am. Adrian Hunt-Seviour, our captain / fitness guru, said he would telephone me when our team was getting nearer the end of the race and then I was to make my way down for the 16th and final leg.
What happens at the relay marathon is that everyone in the team does a 'leg' or stage of about three kilometres. There were 150 teams and it started off at 10am. As the legs are run the runners begin to spread out; with the elite athletes and professional runners making their way to the front, and the rest trailing valiantly behind.
The first runner was an Olympic silver medalist and running for us was ... Maggot (aka Paul Tanner). Why on earth he's called Maggot I don't want to know.
Whatever the reason, he did us proud by starting us off with a respectable time of 15 minutes. During the race a baton is passed from one team member to another. So while Maggot, was making his tremendous effort, I was at home eating three Weetabix and burning toast, having decided that a good breakfast would ensure that I ran like the wind!
So time passed and I patiently waited for the call. I got a text at 12pm; we are onto the 8th stage. So I began stretching...beginning with a bicep stretch this comprised of extending my arm, to reach for a cup of coffee, and then flexing my arm, to move it to my lips.
Next I started warming up with some 'dips'. This is quite complicated as you need to extricate the lid off the tin and then reach in to select the required object. You then slowly and carefully 'dip' into your steaming cup of coffee whilst ensuring that the object (a biscuit) doesn't fall apart before it enters your mouth. (When doing this exercise watch out for chocolate digestives as they can make it a very messy operation).
So time passed and soon it was 1.15pm, when I'm usually starting to think about nap time. Then the call I had been waiting for came - I was informed that we are onto Stage 14 and it was time for me to get moving.
Well, "I'd better get my skates on" I thought, musing that skates would have been just great.
I put on my finest athletes clothing; a striking pair of bright pink baggy shorts (that my loving wife Wendy had made on her brand spanking new sewing machine), the Think Pink team T-shirt with the Krazy Gang emblazoned on the back, my odd pink socks and to cap it all; my now nearly famous Pink Wig.
Off I drove and I was immediately confronted by a tail-back of traffic. "Oh no!" I thought. Who would believe it, a car accident in Bahrain! I eventually crawled around the three-car smash (thankfully no one was hurt) and was on the way to the Bahrain International Circuit for my leg of the marathon relay.
I stopped at the stage which I thought was mine only to be told: "No, this is 15!" So I got back in the car and overtook one of our runners Chopper (John Laws) who was steaming along.
I arrived at the BIC and saw all of our guys getting out of a mini-bus. We went to the place where I was going to get the baton and finally the nerves kicked in. Curse that third cup of coffee. There is never a bathroom around when you really need one!
I stood on the line waiting for Chopper (who was running like a gazelle) to hand over the baton. Then I was off like a greyhound, or rather a greying hound. Either way, after 100 metres I turned into a tortoise. At the start I had all my team members running behind me. When we went down under the tunnel and back up onto BIC race track a thought struck me; that the last time I was on this track I was travelling at speeds up to 230kmph and now I was doing probably 5km an hour.
The track was completely airless and very humid. Luckily, Adrian ran round with me holding our collecting bucket which was pretty dumb actually 'cos there was no one in the stands - they were all round the back at the finishing line.
Well, I made it round the bend and the rest of the team were waiting. We had a rousing finish as I sprinted to the line ... and then collapsed in a heap.
Afterwards we collected our medals and I met up with Stefan who asked if I would fancy a massage from one of the Saad Medical specialists who was in attendance.
Would I ever! So I was introduced to Dr Amy Bowzaylo who is a chiropractor (bone cracker). Well, she performed a quick 'biomechanical' assessment, assessing my joint motion and muscle tone, or lack thereof. She then proceeded to pull, prod, manoeuvre, stretch, click, manipulate and adjust my spine and body into all sorts of positions and stretched my many tight muscles.
It was kind of like having a "wheel alignment!" Afterwards it felt that I'd been well and truly mangled, but all to good effect as I had hardly any muscle pain in the days that followed.Later we went down to the British Club for a meal and to celebrate. We got the Pink Bucket out again and raised even more money.
Well done to the great group 'Sid and the Tonics' who entertained everybody and who generously donated their fee for the day to 'Think Pink'. How amazing is that? Just think, if everyone donated just one day's earnings ...
To cap it all, I got a phone call from Alan who said he would double the amount that I had raised. So thanks so much for the BD350!
Once again, well done to the organisers for a very well run event.
Keep Happy!
Krazy Kevin
