MY MINI-MARATHON:My time is no record, but it's not so long since I couldn't run the length of myself, writes Mary Minihan.
WHEN I started training around 12 weeks ago, I was the sort of person who couldn't really see the point of running unless someone very large and scary happened to be chasing me.
But after following the sensible programme on the womensminimarathon.ie website something clicked after a few weeks.
I was lucky enough to train for the event in Italy, where I've been living this last while. Sprightly old signoras used to shout Berlusconi's old "Forza!" slogan when they looked in danger of overtaking me on their morning strolls.
Family and friends at home also encouraged me with their generous online donations to the charities I ran in support of: Irish Cancer Society and Northern Ireland Hospice Care.
Not having run the race before, my friend and I were placed in the "joggers" section. So many women had chosen to walk the course route it felt like a long time before we could break into a run.
And I probably wasted a lot of time at the beginning apologising to every woman I overtook.
Although it was hard to find the space to run, I knew my fitness was much improved. But still I was a little nervous.
Thats probably why I got a cramp in my stomach on Merrion Road, which seemed like a disaster as we were just around three kilometres into the 10-kilometre race.
"Don't surrender to it," my friend said. No surrender then, I thought, plodding on.
But when she stopped for a toilet break I stopped too until the painful feeling had passed.
I took off again when I saw a girl ahead wearing a T-shirt explaining she was running in loving memory of her aunt.
When I felt myself flagging again, a woman watching from the footpath encouraged me by saying quietly but firmly, "keep going". She was a wheelchair user.
As we passed UCD at around the six-kilometre mark, a live rock band belting out Runaround Suehelped us pick up the pace again.
The drink station on the Stillorgan Road was a great relief, although getting sprayed by the fireman's hose in Donnybrook seemed like too much of a Sex and the Citymoment to be true.
We crossed the finish line after an hour and 15 minutes. It's no record but it's not so long since I couldn't run the length of myself. A mini step for woman, a marathon leap for me.