Ow me legs (are sore today)

Fellrun yesterday. I joined the Ugly Cowboy himself on a trip over leg two of the BGR. Stu had already ran leg one before I met up with him. This made it much easier for me to manage to keep up with the tremendous pace he always sets.

Not a bad day weatherwise - although we did have a brief spell in clag around Helvellyn Lower Man, along with a spattering of hail. (I noted this morning that a fresh blanket of snow had laid overnight on the high peaks.) I dont think either of us realised this at the time but the prevailing wind yesterday was from the North so we were very fortunate to spend the day running South. The leg was completed in 3hrs 20mins - much too quick really for anyone hoping to complete the full round in 22-23 hours. Stu will need to reign himself in on his day. Despite running nearly twice the distance I had, Stu ran away from me on the final descent (Seat Sandal) down to the waiting car. He's not especially good at downhills but I descended like a girl yesterday. The braking effect is certainly the cause of my very sore legs today.

My regime for Loch Ness will see me running 6 days per week (from 5 currently) so tonight I turned up at the local leisure centre where Millys dad has a group of 'less pacey' athletes. Milly was also in attendance so we pretty much ran off on our own from the start. We had a good crack and covered 5 or 6 or 7 miles - I've really no idea how far we ran, it was a very pleasant, cool evening, perfect for a steady jog.





And here is the man himself.
Obviously this photo can't explain why he is known as a cowboy.

Two weeks on

Well, with a fast lap of Gelt this morning thats my two week 'training holiday' over. Just myself and Darren running - after a very short warm up we ran at a fairly brisk pace to record 32:05. Not bad at all - would certainly be under 31 given a better warmup and once I'm back into regular training.

I probably ran 5 or 6 times in the two weeks I had off. Next week will be nearly back to normal with one session and a couple of other decent pace (or length) runs in the week. I don't have any plan or schedule for the next couple of months training. I intend to race often - mainly midweek when possible to free up the weekends for endurance training such as long road runs or hopefully fell running. Then, once theres only 13 weeks to go until Loch Ness Marathon I will resume a strict training schedule devised mainly by myself to bring home a decent result from Scotland.

The inaugural Virgin London Marathon

My weekend in London for the Marathon was immensely enjoyable. I met up with some old friends, enjoyed some sightseeing in the warm sunshine and had an absolute ball running the race itself (well, most of it)



Late Friday afternoon I visited the expo to collect my number and timing chip. I didn't spend very long there as there was nothing I particularly wanted to buy or look at. I was considering buying some more sunglasses as the ones I use to run in are very comfortable indeed. I didn't get any but really wish I had because somewhere on Sunday afternoon I lost mine so now I have none!







In the evening I met up with an old pal Gary and his (taller)mate Ben who, being real ale connoisseurs, were holed up at an ancient pub in the city.












Saturday morning I slept late and then went straight out for a short run in the park at Russell Square. I was back in my hotel eating breakfast less than 30 minutes after leaving - my shortest run of the year - including 6 short efforts/sprints. The rest of Saturday I spent mainly sitting on an open topped bus doing the tourist option.
By about 6pm I called into my favourite Japanese restaurant (It's actually the only Japanese restaurantI know and I always go to it for my pre-London marathon meal as I know the curry is a) delicious b) enormous, and c)not going to upset my system.) My hotel was only a short walk from the restaurant but on the way I called into a supermarket for some more supplies - a small trifle for pudding, some chocolate covered Brazil nuts, a couple of smoothies and two bananas for breakfast in case the hotel didn't supply fruit. I also bought (and ate) a bag of crisps. As a rule I don't eat crisps unless I am on holiday and I was sort of on holiday.



Being so warm on the Friday and Saturday, and with the same predicted for Sunday I was struggling not to think of the race in negative terms, as I never run well in hot sunny conditions. Early Sunday morning arrived cool and overcast - a good start. As I walked to the train in Charing Cross station I spotted Wes just ahead of me. I hadn't seen him for a while and we spent the cramped journey chatting about marathons, Ultras and ice baths. Arriving at Blackheath where the race starts, we soon located Milly, his dad Keith and the other Carlisle contingent who had travelled down to run/watch. The weather remained cool but with some tiny spots of rain also falling intermittently. Then about 45 mins before we were due to run the heavens opened and it rained very hard indeed. This also reduced the temp some more and it became pretty damn cold for anyone wearing shorts and a vest (about 30,000 + people on this particular morning). Entering the starting pen with Milly, he was actually shaking with the cold. Luckily it soon faired up and being so tightly packed into a small space with hundreds of other runners we were soon warm enough again.






Milly and Wes on Blackheath










The final few minutes were spent wishing each other a good run and also confirming the plan that we would each forget the other was also racing and just to run our own race. Then we were off. Despite starting where I thought was pretty near the front, I had to duck and dive to make my way past hundreds of people in the first mile. This wasn't due to me starting out too fast (as usual), my time at mile 1 was a pedestrian 6:37. Mile 2 came by a little quicker, about 6:20 ish and by mile 3 I was settled into a good pace, still overtaking people by the dozen but not struggling to find a way past now. Theres a fast (downhill) mile at 4 and I was sub 6 for it but then immediately settled back to the steady pace of 6:15s-6:20s.


I knew Keith was going to be at Cutty Sark but I didn't spot him in the crowd until I had just passed when I heard him yell my name. I turned and spotted him but was too late to wave. The miles clicked by and by about 8 I had a vague feeling of getting a stitch. By mile 10 I could tell I wasn't going to run anywhere near 2:40. At this stage of a marathon I would expect to be feeling still very fresh and ready to strike out after halfway. This wasn't how I was feeling this time though and I thought I had better up the input effort before I began to naturally slow down. I knew this might result in paying for my efforts sooner than normal but I had to give it a try. My splits show I ran very evenly from 11 miles until 19 miles and was heading for a finish of 2:43. By mile 20 though I was spent and knew I would no longer keep up that pace. The question was - how much would I slow down? I didn't really want it but at 21 I ate a gel because I thought I should. This brought on the stitch properly and I really struggled to maintain any decent form or pace to the end. I was never in any doubt that I would finish, and I was still passing people, but a few were passing me too.






With less than half a mile to go I looked out for team Millican who always stand at the same spot. I saw them in plenty of time to wave and they took plenty of photos.















Milly also played the crowd at the same point.













I crossed the finish line 2 hours 47 minutes 13 seconds after I crossed the start line. Not a great result really, 11 minutes slower than my PB and several minutes slower than I expected to run. But on the positive - I was 366th which is more or less the top 1% of finishers of a major international event. (That is what I tell people who ask how I did).

After I crossed the line, been given a finishers medal and had my chip removed I took off my shoes to enjoy the cold wet tarmac while I waited for Milly to come in. It was a tense time. Not to beat 3 hours would be enormously disappointing for him and not to finish at all (as last year) would have taken a lot to come back from. I had wondered if, during my appalling last few miles if he might catch and pass me. After what seemed like much more than 10 minutes I saw him climb up onto the platform to have his chip removed. It wasn't yet 12:45pm so I knew he had beaten 3hrs. I rushed over to congratulate him, ignoring the officials who were trying to keep people moving toward the baggage lorries. We had photographs taken (cant put it up here yet as I will need to buy it from VLM) and slowly walked out to collect our bags and get changed. Briefly we discussed why we had both been so slow compared to training runs and all predictions. Milly hadn't had a particularly bad day - he just hadn't felt great and found the whole race a bit of a struggle.

My hotel was nearby and as I walked through Trafalgar Square I remembered what Wes had said about ice baths. I climbed onto the ledge at the side of the fountain and put my feet and legs in up to the knees. The water was unbearable cold but I persisted as long as I could then went again after a spell in the sun. Back at my hotel I got in the shower and put it from hot to cold many times (although only up as far as my thighs). The next hour or so commuting to Euston I deliberately climbed stairs rather than stand on escalators and walked quickly in a bid to keep muscles from seizing up. I think this worked for me because although I was a bit sore on Monday, by Tuesday I felt completely normal.

By Monday evening I was looking for the next marathon. To complete the 5 World Marathon Majors I still need to complete Berlin and Chicago. Both are full! They weren't full when I last checked and I am really annoyed not to have entered Berlin a few weeks ago. I have entered Loch Ness Marathon on 3rd October. The course is reported to be reasonably fast I believe, with a 700ft drop overall but a decent hill to climb at 22miles.

By Wednesday I felt like going running. Keen to avoid doing too much I took the dogs for a jog down the river. I probably covered 4 miles but with lots of stops and at a very easy pace. On Saturday I went to Gelt where I ran a very easy lap. On Sunday I ran with the dogs again and today I ran 'properly' for the first time, completing my 7mile circuit at a very easy pace.
I shall spend next week still taking it very easy with nothing specifically planned, just see what each day brings.

365 days until London marathon

Brief post to give my result from London.

2:47

not the result I was hoping for but it's my best time in 3 years.
I realised at 8-10 miles that I wasn't gonna do anywhere near 2:40, and I then ran very hard from 12miles, hoping to make some time gains, which I did, but at the expense of then blowing to bits at 21miles. I then struggled to hold onto my form and lost a lot of time in the final 3 miles.

Fuller report to come

Taking it easy

Less than a day to go until London marathon

I arrived in the capital yesterday and visited the expo and a couple of other places for some shopping.
This morning I slept late and then completed the shortest run of the year. I was back at my hotel approx 20 minutes after leaving it, having done five or six 'efforts' of just 30-40 metres in a nearby park.

I am now having a leisurley lunch near Charing Cross, having worked up a healthy appetite sitting on an open topped bus being a tourist.

After checking in to another hotel at Covent Garden (much better placed for train to start and a quick shower after the race) I will take another bus tour to fill the rest of the afternoon.

Apologies for any spelling errorrs and lack of photos, but am on the iPhone posting this. Hopefully someone will get a decent shot of me in the race which I can then include inmy race-report post once I am back home.

(Crash Bang) Wallop

Sometimes when out running, something noteworthy happens. For instance I might see a Heron take to flight from it's riverbank perch. Sometimes something noteworthy and rare happens, such as coming across two young deer in the middle of the road on the Talkin circuit. then sometimes something noteworthy, rare and really quite worrying happens. Such a thing happened earlier this evening.

I was running steadily along the pavement, facing the oncoming traffic. on the opposite side of the road was a filling station. A car coming towards me slowed right up and stopped in the road to turn right, into the filling station. Another car also came to a stop behind the first one as there was insufficient room to pass. I took no real interest in the situation until approx 2 seconds after I had passed by when

Wallop

The car turning right had began to turn right and had been hit by an oncoming vehicle. Immediately prior to the crash I had heard tyre noise but I'm not sure if it was the oncoming car braking frantically or the right-turning car wheelspinning to try to get across quickly.

The drivers were out of the cars and appeared uninjured. Now I'm not a doctor but I'd say both cars are now scrapyard fodder. I couldnt say whether the oncoming car was going too fast, and thats why the right turner failed to make the gap, or if the right turner didnt see the oncomer, or possibly even faltered/stalled as he tried to make the gap.

As I jogged on I did think to myself that such an incident could easily happen to any of us at any time and might not necessarily be any fault of our own.

The remaining few miles of my run wer rather less eventful with just a Flock of Pink Flamingos roosting on a bend of the River Eden and a herd of Wilderbeast roaming across Rickerby Park

Oh, by the way - 4 Days until London Marathon

Lets go back in time

5 Days until London Marathon

Last Wednesday, with still over a week to go until London, I had a go at the Round the Houses race in Keswick. I didn't find time to blog about it until now but didn't want to miss reporting on it and the day in general as it was a really great day in terms of weather, racing, fun with dogs, views of the hills and photos I took.

I was working in the Lake district. The race was in Keswick at 7 oclock which meant I had a lot of time to fill after finishing work at 4 oclock. I took the dogs to the lake edge just down from a layby on the A66. They had a whale of a time retrieving sticks from the Districts only Lake and I took the opportunity to practice my photography skills with these images being my best results of the day.





Scamp and his sister having a whale of a time in the water

This is my favourite of the 'view' photographs I took

This was the view from the Lakeshore. Centre frame is Keswick, with it's white painted houses. Behind Keswick, with remnants of snow in the gullies is the bulk of BG leg 2 clockwise. With Clough Head hidden by Dodd (forested pimply mound on the far lakeshore) From L to R theres Great Dodd, Watsons Dodd and Stybarrow Dodd, then the dip down to the high point of Sticks Pass, then Raise, Whiteside and

finally Helvellyn. To the right of Helvellyn but much nearer are Bleaberry Fell and High Seat.

Heres a closer one to show the far fells more clearly

Scotty (left), George (right) and Scottys mate Chris

The race went OK. I started a bit too fast and then really struggled during the final 10 minutes. I can attribute this to a lack of racing such short distance.
My good pal Mike Scott made a return to racing after 18 months and proved (as I suspected) that he is still a force to be reckoned with. Also racing was George Thompson who wont mind me saying he is well over 50 (years of age) now. Ten years ago George was significantly slower than me - he is all the inspiration anybody from 20 to 50 needs to buckle down, train hard and get the most they can out of themselves - its never too late.
Milly raced too but was taking it easy, aiming for 6:15 pace. It's a good sign that he found it impossible to run that slow. Although I know he wasn't racing properly, the results show finishing times not excuses and a two minute gap between us allows me to say ' c'mon youngster'

I was 13th from over 150 entrants, so despite being almost two minutes slower than my course PB, I am clearly in half decent shape and have in fact decided I like racing and intend to run a lot more events than last year. I reckon I can go sub 35 mins for a 10k by the end of the summer.

I had hoped to get some photos of the race itself. This would have required somebody taking them with my camera. Millys family were at the race en mass but turned up so late that I had to take the camera back to my van for safekeeping else I wouldn't have had time for a warm up.
I am hopeful that one of them will be able to take it and get some photos of London Marathon while I am running.

(also apologies for the terrible formatting of this post - I am still new fangled with the options and after messing up I cant be bothered to begin again)