London Marathon

It was the hottest London marathon on record, and although I'm not exactly sure of the official temperature they were predicting 23 degrees and it sure was hot. There was a record number of runners, about 37,000 registered and I think about 35,600 finished. There will still be some clowns out there for the next few days, including one idiot who is 'slow motion walking' the entire course and reckons it will take him 3 days.

I managed a personal best and almost got the time I was aiming for - 9 seconds out, my time was 2:48:09 so was pretty happy given the heat and the crowds. The website tells me I was 300th but in closer inspection I was the 300th male and 317th overall, nonetheless I'm pleased with that.

The heat / dehydration / exhaustion got to me at the end and my face, tongue and arms were all numb and my mouth felt like I couldn't fit a pea into it. I lost the ability to speak properly for a while but after enjoying a free massage feeling gradually came back and I made my way out of the finishing chute about an hour after I'd crossed the line!

Thank you very much to all those who came out to watch. I managed to pick out most of you somewhere along the way and the support really spurs you along. And big thanks to Steph who has supplied the photos below.







Also, check out this link, it appears there were cameras everywhere!

Hampton Court Palace

After a long, slow, leisurely cruise down the Thames, we finally arrived at Hampton Court palace for a bit of a look around. It was a brilliant day and the gardens and the hedge maze were the clear highlights. The Palace itself was huge, with massive empty rooms which I'm sure would have been interesting if we'd taken the time to read or listen. But it was such a nice day outside it seemed more appropriate to check out the tulips, beat the girls in the first to finish the maze challenge and play some French cricket.

Gabs and Steph.



Hamish and Steph



The tulips were a clear highlight

Brighton

Brighton is the closest 'beach' to London, if you call a bank of pebbles a beach. We decided to check it out one fine Sunday before the madness of summer hits, although as you will see from the photos, why anyone would go mad over this place is beyond me. In saying that, we had a good look around and an enjoyable day.

Its a strange world we live in - Bermuda had stunning beaches, weather, water and no people on the beach - Brighton had none of the above and yet there were still hundreds of people around.

Beach and pier.



Gus and Jamie at the end of the ghost train. Gus was petrified. Jamie was embarrassed that she goes out with such a wimp....



The Royal Pavillion