WATER OF LEITH HALF
By Rhea
It was the 25th anniversary of the Water of Leith half, so to mark the occasion around 15 people ran the full marathon for the first time and around 200 of us ran the half. You start off in Balerno, run all the way down the Water of Leith and then finish in Leith. The event was organised by Blast Running. You need to be fast when the places go on sale as it sells out very quickly. This was my first time doing this race and I had heard positive reviews from people saying it was a good route to get a PB. However, Storm Bert had other ideas - the PB went straight out of the window!!🌨️❄️
It started off as a rainy cold morning in Leith and I opted to get the coach to take me to the start line in Balerno. Soon after we left Leith the snow started pelting down. We were advised that the bus before us got stuck as we approached Balerno, so we had to trek through some snow to the start line. All runners were dressed for the freezing weather in waterproofs, buffs, jackets, gloves and hats. Some clever people also wore trail shoes for this race and I instantly regretted wearing my road trainers! It is a handicapped race, so it was a staggered start and everyone was trying their best to stay warm by running up and down the path beside the start line.
The first 5-7k felt surprisingly good and I was going at a decent pace. I took some time to look around and absorb the beautiful scenery and white snow. The further on we got the more challenging the conditions became. The underfoot became slippy, slushy, icy and my feet were soaked from running through puddles causing them to go completely numb.
It was a pleasant relief running through the Colinton tunnel to get some shelter from the snow and to give my legs a bit of a rest from sliding about. The photographer even managed to capture the moment!
It was lovely to see so many friendly faces at the Water of Leith Visitors Centre just before the half way point including Alison from WERC and my Manager and her partner who were there giving out sweets and water. Thank you again for standing out in the cold and for being such fabulous supporters!
As I approached Saughton and Murrayfield the conditions got even worse, but seeing some fellow WERCer’s such as Jenni and Alan gave me a little boost. Alan of course whizzed past me!
Coming into Dean village, I had to concentrate very hard on not falling over as it got even icier. Some people had to physically help each other get up a small hill/steps and hold onto the railings as it was extremely slippy! I then saw Claire from WERC who was brave enough to marshal this race and stand out in the freezing cold.
Shortly before I approached Leith I tried to pick up the pace slightly, but that backfired massively as I slipped on the ice twice and fell over. On the second fall, I ran over some wooden crates to avoid running through a flooded part of the path and as I landed on the ground I slide on the ice and went over my ankle. It was touch and go whether I was going to be able to carry on. I managed to hobble on to the end and felt such a great sense of achievement to cross the finishing line after such an awful fall.
I chatted to some fellow WERCer’s at the end such as Jan, Michael, Jenni and Alan, before heading home to get warmed up. It was a very friendly event and the runners received a medal, pen and some hot soup at the finish line. At that point, we did not realise that our Club Chair, Alan Jeffrey won the race 🥇well done again Alan!!
Despite running in such treacherous conditions, I would highly recommend the race and look forward to signing up next year (hopefully in much drier conditions!! 😂)