With just five days to go before the big event marmaREPORTER Carrie-Ann Skinner is triple-checking her preparations
So I’m on the home stretch now with just five days to go until the Playtex Moonwalk 2007. I can’t get over how quickly time has flown by. Back in October when I signed up, May felt almost a lifetime away. I had so much to accomplish and plenty of time to do it in but in truth it has come around a lot sooner than I expected. Nervous and scared mostly sums up how I am feeling at the moment, which is silly because in true Carrie-style I am fully prepared and have been for a while. My bra has been decorated for weeks, I’ve got my leggings and neon yellow visor folded up in a bag, which nestles by the side of my bed alongside my now pristine trainers after three hours of cleaning. I’ve even already packed a small bum bag with some money and some energy bars – all it needs is my ipod and my mobile phone. I’ve been allocated my number and this year it even has my name on it, so those watching us en route will know who to shout for.
I’ve done over and above the required training for the event. I walked 23 miles last week in five hours and 52 minutes and it wasn’t as hard as I expected it to be. I think I could have quite easily gone the extra three miles had it not been for my desperate need to pee – walking the local streets is all well and good but there always seems to be a distinct lack of toilets when I need them. Thankfully there are toilets every four miles on the route. My time means I am fully on track for the 15 minutes per mile, which defines someone at peak fitness – and after all my effort I would consider myself to be reasonably close to peak fitness.
I’ve given myself a fairly restful week – I’m doing a couple of short walks with friends and my usual dance class but that’s it. I don’t want to tire myself out too much before the event but I don’t want to loose my stamina either. I’ve also been doing some light stretching every night to ensure my muscles stay supple. I’ve sent out the last few emails to my friends who were dragging their feet on sponsoring me and I’ve managed to raise over £300, which is well above what I was expecting.
I think what I am most looking forward to is the atmosphere and camaraderie of the walk. Playtex creates a Moonwalk village in Hyde Park, which open a couple of hours before the walk starts. This is where you can store your belongings, grab a healthy meal full of complex carbs and get into the mood with some entertainment, which last year featured a live performance by Beverley Craven. It also gives you a chance to mingle with the participants and check out the other brilliant costumes.
So all that’s left for me now is to get some rest in preparation for Saturday night. Check back next week for a full update on exactly how well I did.
Find out more about the Moonwalk at www.walkthewalk.org and keep an eye out for Carrie-Ann’s final instalment.
