I joined a charity half-marathon through the streets of London at the weekend to raise funds for Cancer Research UK in support of their  Shine 2011 fundraiser. I walked alongside scientists Julie Barnes and Wendy Alderton from Abcodia and their friends.

I believe 10,000 walkers joined in the London walk, many carrying messages pinned to their back in memory of loved ones lost to cancer. For me, it was the memory of my father and mother-in-law who died from this terrible disease who spurred me on.

As a regular walker, I felt the half-marathon would not be too difficult; the main challenge was walking this distance on pavement and keeping awake as we didn’t leave the O2 arena starting point until midnight. Amazingly, I felt quite bright-eyed and we finished the walk in 4 1/2 hours. However, it was another mile to my car and back at both ends of the trip – no wonder my poor feet ached so much after 15 miles of pavement plodding.

The main disappointment for us was the route of the walk – the best part being a short break at Greenwich Martime Museum and a loo break within sight of the Tower of London. There were no other interesting points en route and we would have enjoyed it more if it had taken in more of London’s well known scenic sites.

However, the London nightlife we saw did make us smile; lots of merry young ladies in skimpy outfits teetering precariously on skyscraper heels, and, amazingly, the site of double decker busses full to the brim with weekend revellers at 3am and later; I had no idea that London buses ran all night.

I am still a little footsore, but did manage to hobble in my high heels yesterday for Sunday lunch out. I’m hoping my feet recover in time for the coming weekend when I join my rambling group on a trip to the South Downs.

Most importantly – THANK YOU to all our supporters – we have raised almost £2,500.

Here is the route we took, though it only looks one-way as we came back the same way.

Shine 2011 London

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