We split into three groups, a walking group who spent the day along the canal, a middle group of walk/runners and a speedy group. I was in the middle group, and we set off at a slightly chilly 7:30am. It was a beautiful morning with a bit more cloud cover to drop the temperature a couple of degrees from the previous day. A brisk pace was set and Sharon kept us on track, heading south over Bal Mawr and Garn Wen, before following the Cambrian Way off the hills and dropping onto the lanes that would lead us to Llanbedr and our first pub. Our pace had been so brisk that we arrived before it had opened so we added in some extra mileage to get a bit closer to the 26.2, this took us to 16 miles. I will hold my hands up that I am a lightweight when it comes to alcohol and movement, so opted for a soft drink to go with my cheese and pickle butty. We sat in the car park / beer garden and just before we set off the speedy group arrived – a fantastic feat given they’d set off 1½ hrs after us.
We only had 10 miles to go, the equivalent of a Sunday run, then we’d be done. The next stop was at Llangenny which is just under 2 miles away but a slightly chaotic Sunday service at the bar meant no refreshment so we set off up the cheeky little hill out of Llangenny. Next stop was at Crickhowell at the Bridge Inn, where I stuck to the lime and soda again and marvelled at those who could drink beer and keep their legs upright. Next it was a quick hop over the river to Llangattock where more refreshment was taken before we hit the canal. This was the bit that I had been the most apprehensive about, hills I can do, undulating lanes I can do, but dead flat canal isn’t my favourite, and I had been concerned that towards the end of 26.2 miles I might be a bit fatigued and the chances of a sense of humour failure were quite high. But it had been such a chilled day that even a bit of flat canal towpath was OK. Whilst on the towpath, we’d passed some runners from Crickhowell Running club who were also doing the marathon, friendly chat was exchanged as we all headed to our finish line.
The Coach and Horses at Llangynidr was our final destination, and more refreshment was taken on as the three groups exchanged stories of the day. The pubs had provided the refreshment (and loos!) that helped to fuel us along the way, but there was fantastic support from Cath Kramer and Helen Blythe (who, with an event upcoming, had run with the speedies until Llanbedr) who met us at each of the pubs and were able to collect/deliver kit and food. Well done and thanks to Mick and Sharon for organising such a fantastic day out.
