The London Marathon was my 58th marathon and fifth marathon major. I did not get a spot through the lottery but did obtain one through a UK charity early on. I flew into London with my sister, arriving the Thursday before the race. I wanted to hit the expo early on rather than put it off until things got crazy there.

Thursday proved a good plan! Picking up my number was fast and simple. There was still a lot of merchandise available in all sizes so I had my pick of items (though I ordered the jacket online weeks earlier). There were lots of vendors and promotions going on and the overall vibe was fun and exciting. I can’t speak to how things were later in the week, especially Saturday, but I assume things got busier and more crowded.

Race day was the hottest London Marathon to date though the morning leading up to the start was comfortable (before the exertion!). I was in red start and staying right next to Hyde Park Corner station; getting to Greenwich on the tube was simple and travel on the line from London Bridge was free with a bib. There were also volunteers assisting runners and making sure everyone made it to the right place from London Bridge (and other stations). I arrived at Greenwich around 8am and made my charity team’s photo before proceeding to the red start area. There were tons of portajohns without a line (if you knew to keep walking and not stop at the first long lines you came across). There were also large screens up with footage and audio from the elite start and the Queen pressing the button in Windsor to start the race. They used waves within each start area to help keep the crowding down a bit. I was in wave 3 which was very near the front and within sight of the screens. We took off about 10:12am and you could instantly feel the heat!

We ran for about three miles before merging with the other starts. This was surprisingly seamless though I’ll say that you never get any room. There are tons of people of all paces around you which can be a real negative but then again, it’s a Major and that’s how they all are to a certain extent so you deal with it. It was entertaining to see some of the funny costumes though!

The crowds at this event were FANTASTIC. I’ve never seen so many people in a marathon crowd; three, four, ten deep, along the entire course. More than Chicago, NYC, Boston, and Tokyo. The good spectator weather may have contributed but it was crazy. I had headphones but never used them; I wouldn’t have been able to hear music anyway as the crowds were cheering so loud. Just amazing support the whole way and it was even better because of the multiple charity team spots along the course that cheered even more loudly when they saw one of their runners approaching.

Volunteer support along the course was great too. There was (in my experience) plenty of water and sports drink (Lucozade) along the route, nearly every mile. I did read the next day that some stations around miles 8-10, ran out of water for an hour. I was not affected by that shortage thankfully but it would have been tough in that heat and unrelenting sunshine. The race did take precautions and added extra shower stations to the course to help cool off runners.

Speaking of water, I thought it was strange when I read that London hands out bottles of water as opposed to cups. At first I thought that would be annoying and dangerous (trip hazard!) but I changed my mind after the first aid station. It was SO NICE to have a little sports top bottle of water to carry, drink from, and squirt over my head, face, neck, and arms. Most people were good about tossing empties off to the side too, so no real problem there. I made the most of those water bottles and carried the larger sports drink bottles for a long time making sure I stayed hydrated.

The London course itself was probably my favorite of the majors. You really get to see a ton of the city and surrounding areas, including Tower Bridge and the mall leading to Buckingham Palace. Just a beautiful and historic place to run and it was great soaking up the sights and support from the crowd. There were only a few little hills and otherwise a fairly flat course.

The finish was unreal. Tons of people and an amazing place to finish the event on a sunny day. The finish was a lot nicer than Tokyo, which was a bit anticlimactic. Here you received your medal right away, there were photographers ready to take finisher pics, and goodie bags with finisher T-shirts in them. Meet-up areas for family and friends were a short walk away. I didn’t check a gear bag so not sure how long it took to retrieve them but I didn’t see any lines of waiting people.

I was able to take a quick tube ride back to my hotel to clean up and then get out for some pub fare and a beer with my sis.

On another note, while I had a decent race and finished around 3:54, that was not the case for everyone. Medical teams were busy treating heat injuries and dehydration all day. The effects were evident as more and more people slowed to a walk. I understand and sympathize with this but runner etiquette of moving to the side and being aware of those around you was not common.

Swag was great all around. The runner bag at the end had a good finisher shirt, lentil chips, dried fruit, water, an apple, heat sheet (not needed that day!) and Lucozade in it. The medal is large and suitably stately.

Overall, London has moved up to my top spot as far as the majors go. The biggest negative to me is definitely the crowded field but hard to alleviate that with a major. Otherwise I really enjoyed the event and thought that the organization and support were top notch. Five stars!