While much of the membership (apart from Tom) was settling in for an early Saturday night before a busy Sunday events programme, Mike Bryant was still travelling to Venice in an attempt to make the start line for this year's marathon. This unusual race, now in its 26th year, had been picked for its falling on the 'right' weekend (Abingdon being full!) ignoring practicalities like Italian registration requirements, lack of road transport and distance over water to be negotiated before the gun!  Well it is in Venice!

With the build-up a little less than ideal, Mike was looking to settle early on with some consistent miles in good conditions on a cool,clear autumn morning.  The point-to-point course starts some 30k away from Venice by road and offers shade early on and good views of the surrounding countryside on the slow advance towards the city.  Mike crossed the half-way mark in the town of Marghera in 1.38 and the next 10k was well-paced through Venice's near neighbour city of Mestre and the sunny Sunday crowds in the waterside Parco San Giuliano.

The lead-in to the finish takes runners across the long Liberta bridge across the lagoon that separates Venice from the mainland, and by 35k Mike was tiring with the sea breeze and, more to the point, lack of mileage in training starting to take their toll.  The marathon closes with a spectacular crossing of the old town involving 14 uphills over bridges, including a temporary bridge over the Grand Canal built on floats and specially trained dogs to rescue any runner who is disorientated enough to fall in the water! A tired and somewhat emotional Mike held on for a 3.29 overall time and, hopefully, a slightly easier journey back home!