Stockholm Marathon 2009

On the way to this years Stockholm Marathon we were caught in a traffic jam. A minor accident on the highway delayed us for about forty minutes - enough to cause the risk of missing the elite front runners. As I hurried towards a good position on the bridge Västerbron, the police motorcycles with their flashing lights, that clears the way for the leader arrived. Unfortunatly we were now in a short tunnel at the foot of the bridge. The leading runner, Paul Kipkemei Kogo from Kenya, passed close to me, and I snapped off a few frames in the relative darkness with the 18-105VR lens I had mounted on my D300. Probably useless, I thought.
The second runner passed as a siluette in backlight. When the third runner arrived we were out of the tunnel, but he was obscured by the slower runners still in the first lap. Not a good start I thought. But I had some luck. The leader Kogo had passed through a streak of light and a few shots actually came out OK. (Click on the photos to see them 1000 pixels wide.)

Nest runner was the best Swede, Said Regragui, which in the end finished third. Now I had the position I wanted, and the right lens, the Nikkor 70-200VR and could take the shots I had planned of the elite runners.
Said Regragui:

Jonas Buud, second best Swede, finished fourth:

Anders Szalkai, a well known swedish runner:

The fastest lady - Isabellah Andersson, Sweden:

I also took the opputunity to make some simple tests of the AF of the D300/MB10/70-200VR combo. Read more here.
It was a wonderful day, with sunshine and blue skies. Maybe a little to hot for the runners. We left the bridge to get some varity of the shots and crossed through the park Rålambshovsparken. Thousands of people were out to look at the race or just relax in the park, on boats or on cliffs, enjoying the weather.
In the background, the bridge with the runners:



Out on the street Norr Mälarstrand we focused on the slower runners, struggling on in the heat.

The spectators cheered everyone as winners, and in a sense they all were. There were a lot of smiling faces despite the tiredness.