The finishing line

It is a truth universally acknowledged that the Stroud half-marathon is always won by a Kenyan runner from outside the district. Today proved no exception, with Luka Rodidch (sp?) coming in first at 1.03.47, in cold, foggy conditions.

In second place, however, came a local runner in the green vest of Stroud athletics club. Anders Russell was his name, and I have no good shots of him because the men with the twelve-inch lenses and massive bags got in the way, so I only have pictures of their rear ends. C'est la vie.

Runner 3 came from a UK club, and 4 and 6 overall were women runners ( both Kenyan, I think). I was heartened to hear that there were many runners from over-50s or over-55s clubs. Never too late.. .After no. 6, I decided to go and get a coffee on the field, from what was apparently a Women's Institute stall selling tea, coffee, and home made cakes. None of that C*sta coffee: just a thermos and 50p, please! That's what I like about my town, it's so utterly homely!

Never having much interest in Stroud's sporting events before, I was amazed that I managed to haul myself out of bed and down to the finish on a not-very-lovely Sunday morning. Another example of the power of blipping to transform one's life! I chatted to a man from Swindon whose wife was running, and then bumped into a former colleague, whose husband was taking part for the first time. It was very much a family occasion, and I felt all it needed was a silver band, which seems to be the local variation on a brass band. Perhaps all the players were needed elsewhere: in church, perhaps?

After walking home along the canal as far as I could (our local stretch is still closed for redevelopment) I cooked up some soup and bacon sandwiches. So far, the plan was going well.The plan being to get my blip sorted, pack at leisure and leave for the station in plenty of time. I am off to Wessex for a couple of days, to stay with my friend Tess (so named after Tess of the D'urbervilles) and tomorrow is my 100th blip, so nothing must go wrong.

This is presumably why my camera has refused to link up with iPhoto in the 'normal' way, and I am writing this on the train, unsure as to whether Tess will have wifi when I arrive! Also, because I was using the 'drive' mode on my camera to get the tape-busting shot, I took 1, 411 shots today! Ah well, we're at Chippenham station now, and I've only a few more hundred to delete...

If I don't manage to comment as much as I'd like, it's because I am on three trains without wifi, and I will have about eight years' worth of catching up with Tess when I arrive at my final destination in Deepest Dorset.