Reykjavik Marathon - August 2007

I always wanted to go to Iceland, and I can't go on holiday without fitting a race in, so I planed a holiday around the Reykjavik Marathon which was in August 2007.  It is one of few summer marathons where temperates are not to hot averaging around 17c in August.

The race takes in some good scenery following the coast around Reykjavik, but Reykjavik is quite small so there is a bit in the suburbs and a bazaar bit running through the docks with containers on either side. Its the biggest race in Iceland, but with a population of only 250,000 that means about a 1000 people over half of which are running a half marathon.

For more details on the marathon see link:
http://www.marathon.is/pages/english4/?iw_language=en

To get there you have little choice but to fly, you can get a boat from the Shetland Isles, or from Newcastle to Norway to Shetland to Iceland.  Iceland Express is Iceland's budget airline, £80 each way it cost from Stanstead and it took about two and a half hours.

http://www.icelandexpress.com/

It's not as expensive as you think my wife and son came with me for a week, we stayed outside Reykjavik in a hut for £300, hired a car for £250 and the flights were about £400 for the 3 of us.

I don't like to repeat marathons, so I won't be doing it again, but there are other races in Iceland I may do one day, such as a midnight 10k in June.

Start of race

Almost done

Cathedral at Reykjavik

The City

View from Cathedral

They finished just before me