Working plumber Buster Martin ran Sunday's Roding Valley half
marathon in Essex in five hours 13 minutes, and is now focusing
on London's 26-mile event. On finishing the run, the first words
of the ex-member of rock band The Zimmers were: "Where's my
beer?"
Mr. Martin, who has 17 children, started work at Pimlico
Plumbers in London three years ago because he was bored. He
drank a tankard of ale before signing autographs and chatting to
fans near the finish line of the Essex race.
Charlie Mullins, managing director of Pimlico Plumbers, said
he was "amazed" when Mr. Martin appeared at work on
Monday morning after his exertions. He said: "I was amazed
and delighted, he turned up on time and set to work polishing
the vans. He's a revelation." Mr. Martin's trainer is
marathon enthusiast Harmander Singh, who helped Fauja Singh, 96,
break the London marathon record for the over-90s.
Buster, who lives in London, made headlines last year when he
signed up as an agony uncle for men's magazine FHM, offering
guidance to a younger generation. He also found fame when The
Zimmers, who had a combined age of more than 3,000 years, scored
a hit single last year with a cover of The Who's "My
Generation".
As for the marathon? "If I finish I’ll do what I
always do, have a pint and a fag (cigarette)," he said.
"People ask what is my secret, but I haven’t go one. They
say fags and booze are bad for you, but I’m still here, aren’t
I"?
