Run #22 – Jubilee Line – Stanmore -> Stratford

Posted on September 1, 2015 by Sébastien Hine

Jubilee line. Stanmore to Stratford. 23 August 2015. There was a sense of occasion as we convened on Stanmore at 9.30am. This was our last big run, the forth of our four ‘ultras’ and the 22nd of our 23 runs … Continue reading →

Run#20 – Piccadilly Line – Cockfosters to Heathrow Terminal 5

Posted on August 20, 2015 by joncooper87

Sunday 26th July Torrential rain has hit London and we have decided to run the length of the Piccadilly Line. There was a sense of trepidation as we set off as this is our longest run of the entire challenge … Continue reading →

Run #17 – District Line – Upminster -> Kensington Olympia

Posted on August 25, 2015 by Sébastien Hine

Every challenge has an unexpected nemesis lurking in the corner. For us it was the long District Line run from Upminster to Kensington Olympia, the first attempt at which set off a cascade of injuries, most of which had nothing to do with running.

Our first attempt at the fairly innocuous-looking 43km run was at the end of August 2014. The four us, plus two of Jon’s friends, set off on what should have been our first RunTheTube marathon in high spirits. Never ones to turn down a potential shortcut we tried to improvise a cross-country route through some fields to save ourselves a probably no more than a few hundred metres between Elm Park and Dagenham East. Before we knew it we were bounding through fields and forest when disaster struck. While joyously skipping through nettles Adam went over his ankle on some hidden concrete. He didn’t run again for a month. With the motto All for one and one for all in mind we decided to call it a day at that point and restart from Upminster another day.

Adam’s ankle injury was the first in a succession of injuries to the four of us that led us to abandon the notion of All for one and one for all. Jon’s toes and Simon’s ankles succumbed to football knocks and Seb’s back went while he tried to rekindle his glory days as a hockey player. The chances of finishing within the originally planned 12 months were dimming, so come January Adam, Seb and Simon re-attempted the District Line marathon. Running without Jon, who frequently scouts ahead to check for dead ends or shortcuts, was an odd experience, but given the state of his big toe there was no telling when he’d be back running, so the three of us pressed on.

The run passed without incident, probably due to our over-cautious approach and distinct avoidance of any cross-country shortcuts. In just over five hours we completed our first marathon and knocked off over 7% of the challenge in one go. Jon caught up later, although nemesis that this stretch was, he mistakenly finished one stop short of Kensington Olympia at Earls Court. If Jon’s our scout then Adam is definitely our navigator. Enough said.