Not pretty, but rather muddy…

Yesterday I ran Pretty Muddy, which is the slightly more varied version of ‘Race for life’. In simple terms, it was an enjoyable 5km with some playful obstacles thrown in.

I stood at the start line with a great group of women, some I knew, some I didn’t but we were all joined by the fact we were running for a good cause. Before the warm up, the speaker began her pitch about Cancer Research UK and why ‘Race for life’ was so important. Hot salty tears ran down my face, I felt overwhelmed, uncomfortable and if I’m honest, I just wanted her to stop talking.

Cancer is cruel, I guess sometimes it’s completely misunderstood and whilst I understand that whilst many people do survive, others leave this world faster than I’ll ever be able to comprehend. Part of me felt running the race was pointless. I was never going to change the sudden fate of our loved one, running around a park and jumping over pink inflatables, it wasn’t going to bring him back to life.

But what it did do was give me a little lease of life and lots of laughter with some wonderful people that I’m grateful to have in my life. Plus a chance to remember the fond memories of when he watched G and I run around the same park, whilst being covered in powder paint in the process.

So, let me tell you about the race…

We ran a mixed terrain course around a local park, the sun was shining, supporters were at every corner and conversation was flowing. Social running is quite frankly my new favourite kind of running.

There were rather dubious looking pink inflatables to climb over, absolutely hilarious space hoppers which brought nothing but a delight to an 80’s child like myself. When it came to the ‘piggybacks’ I chose to be the one who carried others, mixing in weight lifting and all that jazz! Alongside Inflatable muddy pits which were emblazoned with the term ‘Get your leg over’ ideal for my juvenile sense of humour!

I’d recommend the race to any women who wanted a change from the normal ‘5km around a park’ or to try some fun obstacles without too much expense or pressure. It’d also be a fun morning out for parents who wanted to take children on an obstacle course without any real pressure and limited risk of injury.

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I’m dedicating every race I complete this year to the loving memory of my father in law who passed away from pancreatic cancer on the 19th May this year. My aim is to support the work of The Lewis Foundation who provide weekly gift bags to people receiving Cancer treatment at Northampton General Hospital. My ‘Just Giving’ page is here.

Katie

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