Jon Hull & Gary Buckle, the intrepid travellers managed to resist the nightlife of Cologne on the Friday night – well almost… The local brew 'Kolsch' is a well known hydration tool for long distance runners in Germany. In addition, we discovered that the European ban on smoking doesn't quite extend to bars in Cologne (another story).

On Sunday we lined up in Koln Messe for a 'flat and fast marathon' clearly something they did not mention to me and Gary. On the 20th anniversary of German reunification, we all joined in with the German National anthem and choruses of Viva Colonia to set us on our way.

At first, all was good. Yours truly (Jon) was doing easy paced 8 minute miles on target for a PB until the wheels fell off at Mile 9 – and the punctures were only slightly repaired by mile 20, by which time this was proving a mental and physical challenge unseen in 7 marathons. Whilst passing the beautiful Cologne Cathedral, which was the only part of Cologne the Brits forgot to bomb during the war, Hull found a second wind, sadly with only 2 Km to go….. Too late to save anything, even pride.

On the other hand Mr Buckle the ' brave' set his stall out early and reached the 30km mark in 2hrs 15m – like a thoroughbred racehorse, he was moving comfortably and gracefully ( so he tells me, I was over an hour behind), however the inevitable 'runner's shuffle' hit. For non marathon runners – this is the pretence we all make at running, under the illusion that we are running whilst actually moving slower than a tortoise carrying weights… Gary came finished in a respectable 3hrs 46m – a great achievement give that this is his 30^th marathon… Excellent for a man of 35.

Despite the disappointment of our times, this is a great, friendly city marathon. A short hop from London, well organised and for those of you with talent, determination and decent shoes(!) it is a PB course and a fantastic city.

Auf wiedersehn, and see you next year. Jon