This was a birthday marathon to celebrate Anna turning 42. Rather than following a random route around London we set off to run the historic 1908 London Olympic Marathon. The weather was grim, as is often the case for London in autumn, with heavy clouds and on/off drizzle. We fortunately managed to finish the run right before some heavy rain, continuing the birthday celebration with a hot tea and coffee inside a Starbucks after crossing the finishing line.
We ended doing an extra km given roadworks and a couple of missed turns, but it was good fun and felt great thinking we were re-create history. As far as we know, Anna is the first ever woman running the route, given the 1908 Olympics was man-only and the only records of people running the entire route in recent years was of men.
The route itself isn't as scenic as the modern London Marathon which goes by many landmarks, or even the 2012 London Olympics one which was held in the city centre. Somehow the 1908 route is harder than the modern London one given it has more (small) hills and some elevation. We ran the route unsupported, carrying gels and water in our hydration vests.