Training Log Archive: blairtrewin

In 1974-75 (when I was three, turning four), we lived for a year in London while my father was doing a postgrad course at LSE. I have some fragmented memories of that time and had the bright idea, given that I didn't really want to be doing a long run in central London (even on a Sunday morning), of making our old house a long-run target.

This proved to be a bit more challenging than I'd thought. We lived in Sunbury-upon-Thames, about 30km from the centre (just as well I checked this - although I remembered the address I'd misremembered the suburb), so it was going to need making use of public transport to get to the region. The nearest railway line didn't start up early enough on a Sunday morning (and, as it turned out, was in any case shut down for trackwork), so I went looking for somewhere within a radius of 10km or so which had a train by 7.30 on a Sunday morning - not so much a case of Last Train to London as First Train out of London. (The 7.30 start was governed by meeting a friend back in the city at 11, although that was hotel check-out time anyway).

Those of you who know me know that I enjoy this sort of logistical challenge, and I eventually found Surbiton - on a main line to the southwest from Waterloo with a 7.34 arrival, and about 10km from Sunbury (on the wrong side of the Thames, but there was a bridge more or less where needed) - the last piece in the puzzle was getting to Waterloo (the Underground doesn't start early enough) but there was a bus. The plan eventually became Surbiton-Sunbury, then back to either Twickenham or Richmond depending on time (Richmond's about 2km further but has more transport options).

I got exposure to one of the less attractive bits of suburban British weekend culture by almost stepping in a pavement pizza within 50 metres of exiting Surbiton station, but settled nicely after that, through pleasant suburbs for about 4km, then crossing the river to Hampton and going along it - taking in various signs of poshness like the stables and the royal parks (inevitably reading Hogarths Way leading into the latter as 'Hogwarts'), as well as a not-too-smelly sewage treatment plant. Reached the old house at the far end, the street and house looking more or less as I'd remembered; couldn't find the pre-school where I apparently created various forms of havoc. (I think it can safely assumed that one other feature of the next street, the Thames Coffee Company, was not there in 1975).

I'd been a bit apprehensive about the trip back; the aforementioned sewage works and a racecourse occupy the land to the east of Sunbury and without doubling back, the only way around it seemed to be a major road which fed directly off the M3. It turned out it was mostly elevated and there was a bike path underneath it which wasn't too bad, and I found other ways after a couple of kilometres - mostly on what was supposed to be a main road into Twickenham but was quiet on a Sunday morning (and didn't have many cross-streets). The run itself had been OK-but-not-brilliant for much of the way but I picked up the pace in the last 20 minutes (don't know exactly how much as I'd left the Garmin behind), thinking I was running behind the timetable I wanted. Ended up making the place I wanted to be at 11 at 11.00.30.

A bit tired in the afternoon in remaining London sightseeing, but not too bad. Returned to Geneva in the evening.