24-Hour Race Photos

I don't think it would be a misrepresentation to say that it's a common occurrence for people to smile and/or wave at the official photographer's camera during a race. What I like about my Thunder Run photos is that, whilst I couldn't help but notice the photographer well in advance of reaching him, at no point did I acknowledge his presence. What I thus have is a set of photos that show me exactly as I was at that point in the race (which, in most cases, turned out to be walking; my splits confirm that there was running involved, even though it's not captured here!). Here are the snaps, supplemented by a few taken by Mick:

1156 - Posing with Michelle (a stranger until 2 hours prior) in the start pen, positioned at the back of the field

1156 - Not posing, and burning off the nerves by gesticulating wildly

1200 - And they're off...

1220 - Lap 1 - Mick's attempt to catch me as I approached but instead got a good action snap of Solo Female 164 who, by coincidence, I met and ran with  many hours later (see the 1916 photo below) 

1435 - Lap 2 - On my least favourite part of the course, a little 'loop' between Campsite A and the finish area. Around 100m (maybe less) of track, but steep and the surface loose enough to slip backwards.
 

1540 - Lap 3 - Love this set! Most photos came in bursts of 4, but this set, taken during my second 'picnic' chat with Spencer, was made up of 7 (even though I've only included 4 of them). If you didn't know they were taken over the course of a couple of seconds, it looks like I'm chewing the ear off Spencer and he'd like me to shut up. 

1743 - Lap 4 at 9km marker - The least natural of all the official photographer shots, as I studiously avoid looking at the camera  

 

1916 - Lap 5 - With Claire at 8.5km. Pity it's once again me who's in mid-flow. I swear, these conversations were two way. I could tell you quite a bit about all of the people I chatted with!

 

0803 (a big jump forward in time as no photos were taken at night) - Nearing the end of Lap 11 - looking focused and feeling happier than I looked

 0931 - Two-thirds of the way through Lap 12 - Feeling good. Incidentally, I used the poles overnight to save me a fall if I tripped over a route or stump. I intended to ditch them again come daylight, but Mick convinced me to keep hold of them. Probably the right decision as they didn't hamper the running bits and were useful on the uphills.

1040 - twenty minutes through Lap 13 - my second favourite set - I wonder what it was I was looking at over there? Looking surprisingly good considering how horrific I felt at this point.  

 

1213 - In spite of the lack of a smile, very happy to have finished with 13 laps under my belt.