Colin Sheridan: How I found the real magic of running on the streets of Vienna

Last month, a world record 55,000 people took part in the London city marathon. And this coming weekend, the Cork City Marathon will be upon us. Around the world, road running has never been more popular. In April, Colin Sheridan travelled to Austria to hit his very own wall and try to find an elusive runner's high along the way

In April, a record 55,000 took part in the London Marathon. Picture: Yui Mok/PA Wire

Tue, 27 May, 2025 - 01:00

Colin Sheridan

Colin Sheridan is a writer and columnist. A former officer in the Irish Defence Forces he has extensive deployment experience as a peacekeeper with the United Nations, having lived and worked in the former Yugoslavia, West Africa, Afghanistan, Lebanon and Palestine.

About 10km from the end of the Vienna marathon I reached a sort of athletic Elysium. I’d fallen into step with a man I assumed to be a Spaniard. For over an hour, the two of us ran in symbiotic silence, our feet hitting the road in perfect unison. He was much shorter than I, but judging by his gait and weather-beaten face, I was confident he would carry me home.

I don’t fully understand what running cadence is, but I guessed my new hermano had mucho of it. We were running around four minutes 23 seconds per kilometre (about seven minutes per mile) and had over three-quarters of the race run. If you took me back to January 1, when I was significantly less healthy and found five miles a struggle. I would never have believed this moment possible.