Well hello there,
Here we are again… I never quite thought I’d be here! (and for anyone not yet in the know, here is just weeks away from the start line of my first marathon)!
You might be wondering how that happened; I know I am!! Lets rewind; all the way back to the Great North Run! Along with team Rikabel and a group of amazing parkrun pals; we completed that challenge! We had an amazing, fun, emotional weekend that I can never forget, and an incredible journey getting there! It was tough though, the training, the injuries, the self-doubt, and I had no plans to do anything like it again; my parkruns and the odd 10K would do!
But just weeks later, on my 40th birthday, the amazing Nik and the parkrun family organised a beautiful surprise birthday party for me (my first surprise party as it goes!). Among the beautiful and deeply personal gifts they gave me was a Notch bracelet already marked up to reflect all my runs so far! As I wore it, loving the tactile nature of the notches on it, the fact there wasn’t a marathon on there began to eat away at me! Would I ever have one? Could I do it? Would I be brave enough to try?
Over the year that followed, my studies ramped up, and I had to focus more on work and less on the fun stuff, but I watched friends take on new challenges (Nik succeed at her very first Marathon in Manchester with an incredible time!), and the challenge continued to call to me!
Later that year, I did what anyone with Marathon ambitions does and stuck my name in the London ballot (I didn’t get in of course!). Soon after that, my cousin asked me if I’d consider doing the Brighton Marathon with him. He lives there and fancied a bit of a challenge himself! I agreed but he quickly did the sensible thing and decided it was a bit too much/not the right time etc. I could have done that, however, I mentioned it to the parkrun family, and was quickly met by willing volunteers from all sides! To my delight, among those volunteers was Peter Williams! Peter ran my first ever parkrun with me, and given his wealth of pro running experience and a multitude of marathons to his name, not to mention his extensive guide running experience, I felt completing a marathon with him would be a dream! His wife gave us the green light (partners of runners put up with al lot!), and the rest, as they say; is a work in progress!
Right now, we are 7 weeks away from the big day and I’m terrified! But I have a great guide beside me and the wider parkrun family supporting our every step! Team Rikabel remains at centre stage, with Isobel taking me to spin classes for cross training, and Nik updating the social media channels for us! So, over the next few weeks, we’ll keep you updated on our triumphs, PBs (there have been a few at parkrun lately!), blisters, chafing, cakes; the full marathon experience!
Finally, as with our GNR challenge, it remains very important to me to try to give back to the blind community I’m part of so for this challenge, I’m getting behind Blind Veterans UK, who do incredible work supporting service men and women rebuild their lives after sight loss, whether in active service or beyond it. These are difficult times for all of us, and so there is absolutely no pressure to donate, but if you can help, anything you can spare will make a massive difference to this amazing cause: do give what you can, and share the link as wide as you can too!
https://2024brightonmarathonweekend.enthuse.com/pf/ruth-forrest
Most of all, keep us in your thoughts, prayers, and surround us with good vibes, this is the toughest challenge I’ve ever taken on, but its definitely exciting; especially seeing how strength and endurance really start to build. I’ll share more about that over the next few weeks; but for now, many thanks; and wish us luck!
