As a youngster, I would get home from School, get changed and go out to play with my pals.
Now I'm older, I get home from work, get changed and go out to play with my pals, but now I call it training.

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Huh, I'd like to meet his tailor

With such a great run under my belt for Monday I was keen to try again to run 10 miles fast. Poor weather saw me cry off the fellrun on Wednesday, instead joining Plucky for 10 hilly miles. We battled each other for 9 miles of the 10. A really hard but enjoyable run. (I imagine I enjoyed it mainly because I was never struggling and Plucky was never ahead forcing me to run a smidge harder than I would have liked - which is exactly what was happening to him all night. His marks for enjoyment I suspect will be a percentile or two less than my own). When I though we had just a couple of minutes still to run to complete the circuit I glanced to see 58:30 on the watch. Indeed it did take almost two more minutes but 1hr and 25 seconds is a good time for 10 hilly miles and worth sub 60 on a flatter course.


Next day, for the first time in about a month I ran reps of 5 by 3 minutes around the 3 mile loop. I took 90 seconds recovery between efforts (was previously taking 60 seconds) and was therefore a little disappointed NOT to beat 16 minutes (5:20 pace). But 16:04 is not too shabby and this time will surely reduce if I repeat the session throughout August (as is my plan)


Friday was the day Howard Seal ran the Hadrians Wall path. Something I had given a little thought to completing myself at one point. I met Howard just outside Carlisle and ran about 20 miles or so to the end point at Bowness on Solway. As we neared Carlisle we were actually running along my one mile measured section. Here's Howard in the middle of the slowest ever recorded completion of this flat mile.

In the final 10 miles or so Howard was really hurting with cramp and sickness but he remained in good spirits nevertheless. The final mile saw him pick up the pace, and his spirits to a new level as several extra family/friends joined in the finale. Afterwards he had a lie down and a pint.


2 comments:

  1. Thank's Steve without your's and everyone else's support I would have walked much more at the end than I did - The heat and inability to eat enough did me in!

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