Jesuit Missions UK

A wombles Eye View (1998 London Marathon)
by Jerry Hawthorne

At 7:15 am . on Sunday morning 26th April 1998, Alan Fernandes juggled with herding the half awake team of runners he had gathered for the Jesuit Mis­sions London Marathon entry into a Don-head School Minibus, while trying to pack in a huge Orinoco Womble suit for himself, and seeking a volunteer to run as Mac Womble in place of our Star runner, Joseph Biernat, who had fallen sick overnight.

Most of the team were former pupils of Jesuit Schools or their families. All credit to Tony Montfort and Alan that the slightly de­pleted Jesuit Missions Team plus auxiliary supporters and Womble outfits arrived safely at Waterloo Station for dispersal to our re­spective starting positions.

Doctor Anna Thursby-Pelham and I were the only two with start points in Greenwich Park . We were despatched by Alan to travel to Maze Hill Station. It was here that the enor­mity of the event became apparent. My heart sank at the sight of Canary Wharf shimmer­ing on the distant horizon. I knew this was only the half way mark.

More immediately, Maze Hill was so crowded with other competitors, that it took a full hour to shuffle the 50 yards from the train door to the station exit. From our starting point in Greenwich we could see thousands of competitors, in varying states of nervous­ness, displaying hundreds of charity tee-shirts, making their way to the start points. Nearby were the elite runners and wheelchair competi­tors. The mixing together of the elite with fourth class runners like me, women with men, people of so many different nationalities, im­parted a great spirit of community.

Anna having left for her slightly different entry point, I found myself next to another runner also living in Wimbledon , who was running his first marathon for a disabled chil­dren's charity called “Kids”. As the start klaxon sounded at 9.30 am , we shook hands and wished each other well, somewhat pre­maturely as it turned out, for in view of the sheer volume of competitors we did not ac­tually cross the start line for another 15 minutes.

At once the carnival atmosphere and sup­port from the crowds of onlookers took hold and spurred me on somewhat faster than the

pace of my usual leisurely jog over Wimble­don Common. Another impetus was pro­vided by passing the Catholic Church dedi­cated to Our Lady within minutes of the start. The goodwill of the crowds of onlook­ers and other runners alike was a constant and heartwarming theme of the event. Chil­dren sought to press refreshing sweets into one's hand and when a runner stumbled, oth­ers would not worry about losing time but to go to his or her aid. Many hostelries en-route were doing a roaring trade. There were some Capital Radio sites at various points and on one occasion a chorus of East End girls, took up the theme tune of the “Full Monty”, and called for some hot and by now slightly flagging male competitors “to get your kit off then”.

Thronged with thousands of people but free from

motor vehi­cles, the streets and architecture

of London are seen in a refreshing new light. Perhaps the f r e e d o m from traffic n o i Se fumes and dangers, encouraged the light­hearted and warm atmosphere. The Cutty Sark was another atmospheric place where the crowd support was magnificent. Running over an entirely traffic free Tower Bridge , even in a tired state, gave an opportunity of appre­ciating the dignity of the structure which is usually lost by motor car and truck intrusion. Prior to the Cuttv Sark a second Catholic Church inspired a sign of the cross. Angli­can Methodist and Baptist Churches likewise encouraged and celebrated marathon runners in their own particular ways. Some had choirs “Singing for Jesus” on the kerbside, others steel bands or bells. A squad of Essex Police drew cheers from the crowds to which they responded with good humoured waves of batons perfectly timed to coincide with catch­ing up two competitors dressed in prison uniforms marked “passed cell-by date”. Ca­nary Wharf and Docklands though free of traffic seemed to take an interminable time to wind through. Nonetheless, refreshed with generous rations of water and si~ecial drinks efficiently laid on by the organisers, the 14, 15 & 16 mile marks came and went in fair time. Then some heavy rain failed to dampen spirits. The older and narrower streets of East London seemed more human somehow than new Docklands and at certain places locals set up impromptu delicious smelling barbe­cues. As a lawyer I was amused to conclude that there are certain differences between men and women which the strictures of the Sex Discrimination Act can do nothing to tackle, illustrated by the queues for the Portaloo cab­ins being mainly ladies with men being able to take far quicker impromptu stops when ap­propriate undergrowth permited.

By the 20 mile mark all the body's freely accessible carbohydrate resources are con­sumed and exhaustion sets in, known in the jargon as “hitting the wall”. Shortly before the race an experienced runner friend telephoned to request a prayer at the hitting the wall stage for his wife, who had just been admitted to Hospital with a suspected heart attack (later diagnosed to not be the case). I remembered her but immediately realised that I did not want to report that I had then had to with­draw, so I staggered on to Mile 21. At Limehouse another Catholic Church dedi­cated to Our Lady encouraged us with bells, appropriately by then tolling rather than peal­ing, so another sign of the Cross. Onwards to St Katherine's Dock. The mile markers now passed very slowly. The crowds still cheered us all on hut I was being overtaken by runners I had passed hours ago. Then the indignity of being overtaken at mile 23 by a competitor running for “Save the Rhino”, weighed down with an armour plated rhinoc­

eros costume, including a huge tusk. An eternity later came the Blackfriars Un­derpass at mile 24, and then Victoria Embank­ment at mile 25 and the Houses of Parliament. Throughout this time so far, although there had been much enthusiastic support from people in the crowds generally I had not spot­ted any family or friends. It was heartwarm­ing to see other mothers and fathers being spotted by their offspring, who were thus per­sonally encouraged on their way. As the course turned through Birdcage Walk and mile 26 at Buckingham Palace, just as I felt that the last 300 yards would be unbearable, there was shout of “Jerry” I turned and there was a familiar hat standing out from the crowd being worn by a familiar, much loved, particu­larly at that moment, Chaplain of Wimble­don College, John Moffatt SJ, who it later tran­spired, had spent hours there waiting to give the Jesuit Missions team runners support at that final crucial moment. Then the finish, and all credit to the Flora men and women who gave me at about 20,000 th place the same warm enthusiastic reception as might have been given to the winner. So presentation of the Medal, Green Flag space blanket, goodie bag and after 4 hours 50 minutes the most enjoyable cheese and tomato sandwich ever.

A Final thought: Despite the media em­phasis on bad news, there is much love and community spirit in the world.

Results

Simon Crellin 3 hrs 24mins
James Conway SJ 3 hrs 37mins
Raymond Burnip 3 hrs 49mins
Anna Thursby-Pelham 4 hrs 4lmins
Jerry Hawthorne 4 hrs 52mins
Simon Uttley 5 hrs 3 mins
Joanne Cleary 5 hrs 54mins
Julie Pope 5 hrs 54mins
Alan Fernandes 6 hrs l7mins
Angelo Fernandes 6 hrs l7mins
Brian Thursby-Pelham 6 hrs l7mins
Nick Rose 7 hrs 1 min
Jane Banks 7 hrs 3Omins

Marathon Update

once again the Jesuit Missions Marathon Team has produced the results for the children in Guyana , with a much publicised run in this year's Flora London Marathon.

After losing a few of our runners to inju­ries, a team of thirteen started the race. The team included our Wombles, who successfully captured the interest of the media, managing several live interviews on television and ap­pearances in the following day's newspapers. Dr Brian Thursby-Pelham ran as Mac Womble and was the first fun runner to appear on tel­evision and he gave some excellent interviews. He also received our title of Hero of the day, because he only tried his costume on the night before. The plan was for all the Wombles to run together, but due to the volume of run­ners we got separated. Brian reached the 26 mile point almost an hour before Angelo Fernandes as Great Uncle Bulgaria and my­self as Orinoco , but in typical team spirit Brian refused to go through and claim his fame until Angelo and I caught up. With four women on the team we also had our Heroine of the day, Jane Banks from the Charities Aid Foundation. Jane who was running her first marathon, suffered stomach problems throughout the day and injured her hip six miles into the race, but still managed to fin­ish. Simon Crellin an old boy from Stony-hurst College was the fastest on our team managing a very respectable 3 hrs 24 mm.

To date, our fund-raising has been very successful. We have raised almost €33,000 towards our target of €40,000. As usual our donors were very generous. Our Wombles also did their bit by making public appear­ances at shopping centres across the countr¾ supported by volunteers from Jesuit Colleges.

Our first project, overseen by Fr Paul Mar­tin who is working with professional water engineers in Guyana , is to produce a reliable source of drinking water in the remote Guy­anese interior. After funding this project we will distribute funds to charitable causes that benefit the poor children of Guyana .

On behalf of the Jesuit Missionaries in Guyana , I would like to say a sincere “Thank you” to all who have sponsored our runners and are making our appeal such a success.