Myself and Abbie had our first run together today. Well, not really our first run ever. I did the Stockton River Rat Race with Abbie a good few years ago. We jumped in swamps, scaled bridges and was very bad at canoeing round a river. She won't dispute this
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This would be our first blind training run. I wasn't sure how far we'd manage, as Abbie has just recovered from a torn ligament and I was totally and utterly out of my comfort zone. Within an hour of arriving into Middlesbrough from London, she picked me up and we headed over to Stewart Park. Haven't been to this park for about 15 years. So I have little memory of it. This meant I was unable to use my memory of the park as a security blanket. I had to completely trust Abbie instantly to guide me safely. As soon as I put the mask over my eyes I felt very scared. I was scared I would fall over, scared of potential people walking passed me. I just had to block all my worries out and just try and concentrate on Abbie's voice. We must have walked for only a few short minutes before I had to take the plunge and start running. We were met with a few obstacles. Very uneven surfaces at times, lots of leaves and sticks on the floor and a few little inclines.
One silly thing I have to admit, is that I was so worried about other people staring at me, even though I couldn't see them staring. I know that may sound ridiculous. Well, of f course people are going to be bloody staring at us! The park isn't exactly full of people running around it blindfolded!! We ran passed a family, and as they were behind us, I heard a little girl in a strong Boro accent say "Dad, why is that girl running like that with that thing on her face?" It was as clear as if she had been standing right next to me and said it, but in fact they were quite a distance away from us by the time she had said that. It still amazes me how sharp my hearing becomes when I am blindfolded.
We had very quickly completed a lap of the park. We had gotten so comfortable with each other that we talked for England. So it just made more SENSE to do another lap. So we did, much faster and would you believe it...we did a 5k completley blindfolded the whole way. I am so happy I chose Abbie. She's a marvellous guide and i trust she'll keep me alive and in one piece. I still believe running 26.2 miles blindfolded will be the hardest thing I have ever done but I am more confident than ever that we will do this.
One thing I got Abbie to do before we finished, was to walk back to the car blindfolded herself, so can can get a better understanding of what I am going through. This will help her more with guiding me. It also gave me an understanding on her role too. Thank you Abbie for keeping me alive.
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