The event
This is a 10k road race through central London, on closed roads. In brief, I thought it was a great event and well organised with adequate toilets in the holding areas, start and during the race itself (something often overlooked by organisers, and something which isn't a problem until it's a problem!).
I was in the 'yellow' wave which started at 10:00. We were told to get to green park (just next to Buckingham palace) for 8:45 where we could drop off bags. This was again a painless process with a well organised system for dropping off see through bags which were sent through in the post a couple of weeks beforehand (along with numbers and safety pins). Note however that this area was not covered by anything so if it had been raining (as it was earlier in the day), then the bags themselves might have got wet!
We were meant to get in to the holding pen for 9:19 which, being 40minutes or so before race time felt a bit early for me and I was mainly concerned there wouldn't then be an area to warm up properly or go for a last minute toilet stop. Fortunately this was actually much better than I expected with there being sufficient portaloos and room to do a reasonable warm up jog and strides.
I got to my final starting position at around 9:45 which is what I would expect for most big races.
The Race and Course:
The race itself started bang on time and there’s a useful funnel just before crossing the start line. This helps reduce the amount of people running over the line at any given point, the theory being that this makes the crossing over the start line less congested. I thought this worked well and certainly meant the first 400m felt less risky.
The course itself winds through Trafalgar Square before climbing a little bit eastwards. It’s quite a wiggly route with a fair number of sharp corners, although the roads are wide enough such that you can pretty easily get round the corners without slowing down too much. There was one hairpin, but again not too problematic.
There were toilets at 3k, 5k and 7k from memory which I thought was good for an event like this. It’s pretty horrible to be caught short in the middle of London during a 10k, so it was reassuring to know there were plenty of options.
After heading east the course then comes back along the Thames to Parliament and Big Ben. Although this is the last 1km it was nice to take a moment to appreciate the views! The race then finishes down the famous mall just next door to Buckingham palace. You could pick up t shirts and get a finishers photo.
Summary
Overall I thought this event was well organised, efficient and great fun. The course is a brilliant way to take in views of London and was sufficiently flat for you to get a PB if that’s what you’re aiming for. Similarly if it’s your first 10k, it’s a good option with lots of groups at a range of abilities you can stick with.
Hopefully this gives a useful review of the event. Sign up to my site if you want a well structured plans for your next (or first!) 10k.
Who am I?
I'm Ollie, a keen distance runner and emergency doctor in the NHS. I have previously run in the world cross country championships and European championships. I've created this website because lots of people aren't sure where to start with their training and I thought it would be fun to help out. Sign up and utilise the tools I've made to help you in the right direction! Enjoy reading some posts which give general advice.