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Having run London in 2018 and 6 other more rural marathons in addition , I am inclined to agree. London is pretty cool and I'm glad I did it but it all was a bit much towards the end and it's not the sort of course you can easily get a pb on imo.
In contrast my marathon in Stratford upon Avon yesterday couldn't have been more different. Pockets of support, water stations where needed, and Marshalls dotted about, but for long periods of time it's just you, a few other runners, and beautiful countryside.
princeperch
rhb
London Marathon yesterday went pretty much exactly to plan, official time of 3:29:14 which I'm pretty pleased with given my previous PB of just under 4 hours. Got a hand shake from Richard Branson at the finish line.
Someone posted in this thread several years ago (I think) about how London wasn't for them and they didn't enjoy running in the crowded streets and the noise from the supporters was too much. Well I'm inclined to agree. For the first 10 miles or so I found the crowd great but then I just tried to zone out a bit and relax into the section through the Isle of Dogs (for me not the most enjoyable or interesting section) but there's only so many times you can have a whistle blown what feels like right in your ear before it grates a little. I found from about mile 18 just wanted the space and peace to run my own race but got neither.
I think I've just gotten used to going out on my own and enjoying the scenery in some peace and quiet!
That said the crowd are awesome. So many people turn out to cheer on random strangers, handing out sweets, high fives and general encouracement. The atmosphere is great. Particular highlights for me were all the live bands around the course but especially the drummers in the underpass, the MASSIVE run dem supporter section (very impressive to see so many from one club), and anyone with an original sign - "You're running better than the government"and "Naked cheerleaders next mile" are two that stick in the mind.