The Magic Forest

One down, one to go

2012-01-30T23:48:00.000Z

So that is January 2012 in the bag and it has been a very successful month in running terms with me travelling just short of 200 miles putting me in a perfect position for the start of my GUCR training plan and the final stages of preparation for the Thames Path 100 mile run (TP100) in March.

I now have 1 week to go for the Moonlight Challenge and 5 weeks to the TP100 which is approximately 200 miles (~320 km) of running before then.

I went out for a 10km set piece run this evening, very slowly, just to get some blood flowing through my legs before my two day forced rest whilst I teach in the evenings. Not the greatest of runs but good after my longer (and faster) than usual long run yesterday.

#######STOP PRESS#######

I have identified the final target event for this year,

more details to follow once I have been accepted

One for All

2012-01-29T18:31:00.000Z

...and All for One.

This morning was a real strain to get up and my duvet kept calling me to return and keep it warm but I kept true to my word as I now say that something wonderful is waiting to be seen on my run. I had set myself the task of running 24 miles on the road by myself, a training run that can be very boring when I have done it before but I was determined to get through it in one piece.

Starting about 30 minutes later than normal I was surprised to see so many runners, some obviously the usual bunch of New Year marathoners getting prepared for the London or Brighton marathons but could see in the distance a running gait I recognised, Jason Cherriman, who was no doubt running his 20 mile long run at my 5km pace! With cheery waves we shouted our greetings and carried on our ways. This continued on for a few miles with runners and cyclists waving or greeting each other and it kept me motivated until turning a corner I saw two people who used to be from my club who left under a dark cloud, I shouted my greeting, even calling them by name, they didn't even flinch, didn't even look up, ignoring me. I know they had seen and heard me but couldn't help but shout out to them to grow up...that got the reaction I was expecting :-)

My run went on and I again was pleased to see my average pace of 6 mph (~10kph) was almost spot on as I ascended a hill that just seem to go on for about 5 miles and just seem to sap the energy from my legs but I was soon at the top with the chance to get off the main roads and into the fog which was getting thicker and thicker the closer I got to the North Downs.

I was about 18 miles into my run and I had decided to get off the road and go along a well trodden woodland path and trail when suddenly from around the corner a snake of runners closed in and I heard them shout "Hey it's Jerry, high five" and stepping to the side I saw Brian C, Clive, David, Kevin and a swathe of people slap my extended hand, as quick as it started, it was over and I am racking my brain to remember all the faces and names but it spurred me on and after the rudeness of the previous two runners cheered me up no end to have such a lovely bunch of people as friends.

On my arrival at home and reflecting on the run I am really pleased that I ran it in 4 hours exactly, perfect pacing.

Someone once asked me

2012-01-29T00:32:00.000Z

"Why do you always insist on taking the hard road Jerry?"
and I replied
"Why do you assume I see two roads?"

All packed

2012-01-28T23:11:00.003Z

and ready for my 24 mile self-sufficient Sunday run tomorrow.

As is the norm these days George and I have had varying personal commitments to deal with and so have missed yet another week of training together on Sunday he had to do his today. My training mileage has to increase and I will have to start doing some on my own to get the mental toughness going so tomorrow I will be out and about on a course yet undecided so have packed my bag with:

3 x 500 mls of water
1 x Satsuma
2 x Gingernut biscuits (cookies)
1 x Marmite sandwich

As an experiment I have a tin of Red Bull which I will try nearer the end to see if my stomach can take it.

Worn in not out

2012-01-28T22:36:00.003Z

This is an old adage that I learnt from a fantastic gentleman called Mike Inster the organiser of the Moonlight Challenge and the subject of the book Unstoppable.

Through the past few years I have gathered pieces of kit from running shirts for finishing an event, waterproof jackets, shorts and much more but the amount of running I do the kit does take a beating as well as my poor old body. Take this last week for example,

I return from my night run last Saturday having worn my OMM Kamleika smock for both runs totalling 17 miles and pull my shirt off to find a red welt just behind my right armpit. This was caused by a seam weld coming unstuck and the sharp take scratching me...imagine what it would be like after 100 miles?
My run last night whilst being a standard run on my return pulled my sock off and my toenail finally decided to lift off. I am down to 7.5 nails now which is down to just general wear and tear from the mileage.
I often find that I have a series of sores around the kidney area where my backpack rubs against my shorts

Imagine my annoyance ( and amusement) that I noted in the past week or so when I started to feel an odd sensation in my right buttock cheek which initially felt like muscle pulling. I would get home, bathe and then be rested to realise that the sensation had gone only returning when I ran....but then only when I wore my Skins A200 tights. Then imagine my embarrassment when I now the know the reason, discovering it is not my muscle but the ENORMOUS cleaning instructions label in them which will soon be cut off.

As for the smock, I have snipped off the various pieces of seam welding that were scratching me and hope they hold out as it is a great piece of kit.

Trace the Pace

2012-01-28T00:23:00.000Z

After yesterday's successful training run on the track where I planned to do some pace training where the object was to settle into a comfortable pace and keep it going, continuously. I had planned 11kilometres per hour tonight and I was near as damn it spot on. Tonight was to see if I could do the same on the road so I set out on an 13km set piece I have devised.

It was noticeable tonight that my quads were a tad tight so I chose to use the first kilometre as a very gentle warm up as it was up hill all the way and then found them nicely warmed up for the next 2km gentle ascent which I chose to dig in and accept the discomfort and then down hill all the way.....wwweeeeeeeee arms out like an aeroplane on a busy A road and I didn't care. One gentle, but long, ascent later and again down hill all the way to home coasting into my home.

I am feeling a little more positive in myself today and it possibly showed through my run and general demeanour but....well time will tell.

Good quality short run tonight, kit drying on the radiator, let me see how I feel tomorrow to see if there is a back to back this weekend.

Back to the Track

2012-01-26T22:54:00.003Z

Having lectured on both Tuesday and Wednesday evening I was looking forward to getting out into the fresh air for a good run. As you know, Thursdays for me are a real strain to get out to train but I am pleased to note that the marathon wannabees at my club are all very keen and getting out to train at my local track every Thursday now.

Due to my depressive mood and my miserable outlook on life at the moment I need every bit of motivation to get me out and the fact that there was the chance of some company tonight I pushed myself out of the door. My intention was not to be part of their 3 x 1600 metres reps but just wanted to plod out 28 laps at a fixed pace, 14 one way and 14 the other way. I am quite pleased with my pacing which varied by no more than 2 seconds per lap, the plan was to do it in 1 hour and I managed to do it in 59:16 which was an almost perfect 8:30 min/mile.....I was pleased with that but did have the caretaker switching the lights off whilst I was pulling by backpack on so did cut it fine tonight.

The run back felt almost like a commute and was just a method to get home and get a cup of tea. Training is going fine at the moment although my legs do feel a little stiff at the moment but considering the quality of my training I am happy with the way things were going with only 8 days to go before the Moonlight Challenge 32.75 mile off-road run.

Humdrum

2012-01-24T23:47:00.000Z

Monday night's run was found wanting; after my disastrous attempt of a run on Sunday I was worried about this one. I stepped from the door and took the first 100 metres slowly finding that my aches and pains were much reduced and just needed a gentle warm up and after about 1 km was feeling reasonably OK.

Then the humdrum part started, this run held no joy for me, it just seemed a monotonous push forward, I was disinterested in things going on around me until I decided to step into the local parkland. I had donned my headtorch and when I came to the clearing looked up into the sky to see the night's stars were outstanding for the trees had hidden the streetlights sufficient for me to see Orion's Nebula making me stop in my tracks and gaze up for a while.....well it felt like a while, in fact it was 5 minutes and I hadn't even noticed the dark!

So off I went on a joyless run and as I approached my usual turn I found myself continue on, and on, and on such that when I looked down at my Garmin, what was supposed to be a quick 10km now found me 13.5 kms in and 2.5 km from home. Here comes the strange thing about the dualism of running my body now wanted me to carry on, my mind just didn't....I was just fed up and miserable......I went home, run to forget.

A question of numbers

2012-01-22T20:48:00.002Z

Let me get this into context and this ever need to "keep to the training plan", the danger to see the numbers but not listen to the body.

I wrote my training plan way before Christmas, a mixture of previous plans and ones drawn of the internet from various sites and resources. They have been really useful and have got me to where I am today. This week has been really strange what with not running until Thursday and I had it in my mind that I would run Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday....I must have been deluded and whilst recognising I wasn't to run early on Sunday I was to go out in the evening.

See the mental image of me rushing about the house, climbing ladders earlier in the day, clearing various things up and doing the general chores so that I could run this evening. See me get my kit on, headtorch in my pocket and I step onto the road to run, I get 100 yards up the road.......stop and came home and sit here writing my blog. "Why?" I hear you exclaim Dear Reader, why indeed.

Now let's get it into context, looking at my running diary for the previous 7 days I have calculated that I have run 64.7 miles (104 km) 34 of those in the previous 3 days and of them 47.5 miles on trail and hills....my legs are beaten up and I am tired....that Dear Reader is why I turned around, the mind said yes, the body said no as I felt my right outer knee grumble and my problem toe gripe.

I am a little perturbed by not doing the run tonight but that is probably more the fact that my routine has been altered and I will have to adapt afterall, the Moonlight Challenge is soon to be upon me and I want to rock that little world.

So let's call this a rest day and then I can go out tomorrow for a sensible run and get to grips with this training.

12 Night Runners and a Badger

2012-01-22T13:33:00.000Z

Race Report

Having picked up Liz at her house (amazingly on time at 7.15pm as planned) we hot footed it to the car park at Shoreham village, Kent arriving a tad early but to find one car in the car park, the usual joke was we hoped it was another night runner and not a dogger; we were pleased to discover it was the former. Over the next 10 minutes the car park slowly filled up and I was really chuffed to find that we the run was going to have 12 runners including myself and a yet to be discovered 13th member of the pack!

Whilst we awaited for any late comers there were jokes and nervous conversation about the water feature. After a short "safety" talk we were off on the dot of 8.00pm and into the night and having discovered that a few runners were not lovers of cows (a.k.a Badgers) so we made a slight detour to run parallel to the offending creatures. Whilst running this section we had a small regroup and we were introduced to Andrew's running partner "Bodger the Badger" who appears to have secreted himself into his backpack much to the hoots of laughter to the pack. Bodger was later to come out at the pub (see picture below)

The run went on and we were really pleased as it had been threatening to rain all evening and we must have started during the lull and were soon blessed with a beautiful moonless night sky with Orion the hunter and Ursa the bear guiding us along the paths. Each section of this run had different hazards and things to look out for so I may have appeared a little fussy as I gave a briefing where necessary and it great to hear the pack calling out hazards and trips as they appeared and cries of realisation as we popped out onto well known landmarks.

The Water Feature

The route was to take us to Chipstead Lakes which is serviced by a series of small stream and rivers, the stream we were to traverse was very shallow but was made difficult to access as it cross the path of a disued railway line. Some kind locals had placed some stones across it and whilst easy during the day was tricky during the night with headtorches, something the pack did with skill and dexterity. Soon through it we ran along the path of railway line over numerous roots and branches with hoots and screams jumoing under and around the obstacles

The Pub

As if from nowhere the pub arrived in our sights a lovely pub called The Bricklayers Arms, Chipstead and we soon to crowd the bar correcting the bar lady who had the audacity of calling us "Night Walkers" was gobsmacked to hear we were running.

Pints in hands we had a good catch up of the run so far and as it was a reasonably large pub were lost to own company not to be bothered by other clientele.

Soon, dragging ourselves from the lovely warm pub we ran off as the air was cool around the lake to return to the water feature but take on a new part of the route to continue out of Dunton Green joining the Darenth Valley Path again to croos beneath the M26 motorway and over the railway lines to the North Downs Way and through some paths surrounded by barbed wire and thorns it was still time to concentrate until we regrouped and ran the last road section together as a pack to the car park where we said our farewells and a few of us returned to the local pub for a proper debriefing and to discuss the run.

Recce over

2012-01-21T17:02:00.000Z

After driving various family members to their ventures I was cut loose to do my own, the clues were there for all to see as I bounced down the stairs in my running kit.

Arriving at Shoreham public car park I was off and out by 12 noon to hit the trails and immediately became aware that the path I had chosen for the outward journey was through a field full of cows, often called badgers on these night runs as a euphemism as a few of the runners are scared of them so I have found an alternative and parallel path that takes us around this field without too much of a diversion.

The recent rain has turned the usually hard downs paths into a sticky mess that made it hard going in places but will certainly make it a good workout for the runners.

I enjoyed today's run as I wanted to prevent a complete out and back so wanted to join to paths together so took my map with me and have found a fantastic path that joins up two major sections of my normal running routes and extends it out .

I am happy with the route which, whilst having a few tricky areas, promises to be a challenge for all of us with the promise of a lovely pub stop halfway around...I just have to do the run again this time with some great people.

Recce time

2012-01-20T23:03:00.002Z

In a moment of madness panic I remember that the route for the night run had to be changed when we discovered that field we were planning to run over was deeply ploughed and not the comfiest thing to run over. With that in mind I have decided to run the route during Saturday daytime just to check it is all the same and no surprise changes have been made.

One thing I know that will not have changed is the "water feature" which I am looking forward to showing the pack. From what I can see from my Facebook Event Page there are about 13 people confirmed with a few promised offline so it could potentially be a big pack hence why I want to get it right. So with military precision the plans are set for family duties and in between their exploits I will be able to escape for a quick 8 mile reconnaissance cross country and may even pop in for a quick half of cider at the turn around point :o)

Tomorrow promises to be a fun day of running and I can't wait.

Show me your war-face

2012-01-19T23:42:00.001Z

I have had a very stressful week both physically and mentally and having missed my run at the club on Tuesday was desperate to have one tonight just to say my training plans were back on track.

Great aspiration but after I had fallen asleep on the sofa and it took a great amount of will to get up and put some kit on and having done so remembered that some of my club were meeting at the track for their marathon training. I thought I would run up there and have a look at them go through their paces and maybe join in for a few laps but I had to get my skates on.

On my arrival there they were, all warmed up and ready to do 4 x 1km reps, I scuttled across the track and had just got to the start line when someone shouted "GO" and they shot off, I didn't follow....

I happily watched the runners go by at their different paces, I would join in on the shoulder of one of them, do a lap and then stop doing it for various people which I found quite therapeutic getting me out of my self-imposed depression. I stopped everso often and you could see that the runners were getting tired as the lactic acid started to build up ....they were getting war-faces very much like mine froma previous post.

I enjoyed tonight both from my comfortable 11 mile run and the opportunity to watch the others go through their paces

With looks like this...

2012-01-19T01:07:00.001Z

I had to laugh at this still taken from a video from Rob a.k.a ultrabobban during the recent Winter Tanners. People sometimes say I look hard/angry/grumpy but I was actually really enjoying myself....thousands would disagree if they looked at this picture though!

Change of plans

2012-01-19T00:10:00.001Z

It is now Wednesday and I haven't run since Sunday's 30 miler in Leatherhead, sounds bad but that on the surface equates to just one run of 12 miles at the club. However it means that if I am to keep this training regime up I will have to make it up somewhere in the week. The frustrating thing is on Monday I felt absolutely great apart from a little twinge in the calf, Tuesday I was recovered and now Wednesday I am full of beans if not a little tired from two evenings worth of teaching.

So what is going to happen to the training? This is a difficult one as I am going to have to do 4 runs this week on the remaining days adding up to about 50 miles, I hate making training plan claims but I better do it now so as to get some motivation.

Lone Wolf

2012-01-16T23:39:00.000Z

Time to grow up and start bringing in some coin of the realm for the Delicate Mrs S to spend on my behalf. Tuesday evenings have always been my running club evening, fixed in the calendar, set in stone but not for the next 4 weeks as I have been awarded two teaching contracts at the university one on Tuesday and the other on Wednesday evening.

I love my running and equally love my teaching (my second job) but something has to pay for the running shoes, races and equipment. Now it will be a matter of reviewing training plans as Tuesday is a very important easy/recovery run day...will Monday evening be its replacement? I will have to think about it for a bit, this is an example of a trial and tribulations of a long distance runner.

Winter Tanners 2012 - Race Report

2012-01-15T20:35:00.000Z

It was at 6.45 am when we arrived in the municipal car park at Leatherhead, Surrey completely deserted apart from about five cars and some human activity of people setting up tables and maps...we were way too early and it was -3 centigrade. George and I cracked open our flasks and quietly drank a warm drink sitting in the car watching the walkers beginning to arrive, they had the benefit of having about 3 layers of clothes whilst we were in lycra!

At 7.15 am we jumped from the warmth of the car, donned our last bits of kit and then negotiated with the organisers that we wanted to start and as we were going to gently plod it would probably beat the first checkpoint times, begrudgingly they allowed us.

The run

Firstly, we were not going to push this run, we were not there to win or get personal bests; although we had run in these parts a good few times we didn't know the route and know there is always a little sting arranged by the organisers.....we were going to plod out at an average 5 miles per hour afterall, this was a training run to prepare for the big events coming up in the next few months and that is what we did.

We were running really strongly for the first part finding that there was a theme, National Cycle Path 22, which seemed to be the route of choice. "So what?" I hear you say Dear Reader but that is the point, where there are cycles there are smooth paths which made it easier for us between 7 and 10 miles, this allowed us to hit out and keep our pace consistent even over some of the tougher hills.

What made this run so nice was that the organisers had made a brilliant route description with accurate distances marked and descriptions that really assisted us, there is an in joke with the walkers who say "Less haste, more speed" when they see a runner dawdling and ironically this was our saying today but this time we were doing well.

The first big hill

At 12 miles it came apparent that the hills were coming and as the instructions don't always tell you where you are we recognised the sandy, wide path, the sharp ascent....it was St Martha's Hill, a mount that both of us had run on numerous occasions and we knew it was a matter of digging in and climbing it for the journey on the otherside would be a breeze and after that we realised that the sun was on our right shoulder, we were on the way back.

The Return leg

The time was beginning to slip and our pace slightly dropping off but we were happy as ever but it was getting tougher with a nasty ascent to come which carried on for 5 miles and 500 feet which also undulated so it was a leg sapping journey taking us to Newlands Corner, the last time I was here was last September in the Surrey Tops 50, it was wet, it was dark and it was windy a total different day today's cold, light and cold day. We lost a bit of time here as we were getting a little confused with the instructions (caused by us having a little wobble) but battled through to the final check point where we agreed to have a hot drink and a chat with some other runners who were quickly overtaking us. George mentioned David and Rob wonderng where they were and as soon as mentioning them we heard "Oi George, Jezza, wey hey" there they were but we were off down the trail so called to them to catch up. These guys are getting fast today, one because of their training regime and two because they are about 10 years younger than us and we just cannot compete. They soon caught up and we had a 5 minute chat with them to see them blister off into the distance

The last 5 mile leg was down hill on average so we dug in and took what we had to get to the end via the same route we had done at the start, I looked at my watch and realised that we were nearing 6:30 hours and wanted to end before then and by magic we caught up a runner who was struggling and he joined us for the last mile returning to the car park in 6:26 hours which I am totally happy with beating our last run by 33 minutes...cool

Stand by your beds...

2012-01-14T20:24:00.003Z

kit inspection.

All ready for tomorrow, food, drinks, money (for snacks), instructions...aaahhhhh instructions, I better get them printed off!

The plan is to get up at 5.20am, collect George at his house by 6.00am and be at the start at 7.00am ready to run at 7.30am. We reckon we will be plodding out pretty well so will probably miss the first checkpoint as we will be too early..well that is the plan more on it tomorrow.

I just hope I don't meet an electric fence again

The problem with carb-loading

2012-01-14T00:24:00.002Z

Well it was not really carb-loading but we all went out for a lovely meal to celebrate the Delicious Mrs S's success at getting a new job contract. She decided that she wanted to go for a Thai meal about a mile from our house and we all were keen to try it out, I was looking forward to a good plate as I was feeling hungry all day and quite enjoy this type of food although I am not an expert.

Drinks ordered we went through the menu and I asked the waitress about a dish I had tried "They are noodles that are flat and made of rice but I cannot remember their name" I explained...excitedly she open the menu at the back and said "Pad Thai, you need Pad Thai" so being a trusting fellow I agreed "Yes, get me Pad Thai"

After a long wait our food arrived and the Pad Thai was placed next to my plate...I was starving so piled my plate up high with it and a big slosh of red curry and tucked in...........WWWWOOOOHHH what started as a warm glow went on to be a fire then furnace.....the cook must have put in too much chilli oil for soon my nose was running, my face all blotchy and my eyes streaming much to the hilarity of Mrs S. The waitresses were even looking worried as I battled through the fire that was inside my body.

I am totally OK now but I am really worried that I am going to have stomach problems on Sunday's 50km run

Ouch! Send in the Clown.

2012-01-12T12:53:00.000Z

The saga of the toe continues with it now becoming infected such that it looks like a clown's nose! Last night I was aware that it was a little tender, not throbbing, but uncomfortable and so decided to soak it in some warm, salty water. At first it was uncomfortable but overnight it seems to have dried up the nail bed and less swollen.

I have been running around like a headless chicken today preparing for the afternoon and realised that I was required to wear a "light coloured top without branding" to the Test Event and so had to go out to the shops to buy a shirt. The Delightful Mrs S was at work and taken the car so I decided, like a clown, to jog to the shops in the centre of town, get the shirt and then jog back which I have done and my toe now hurts....when will I ever learn?

Olympics Game Maker

2012-01-12T00:10:00.000Z

I’m starting my journey as an Olympics Games Maker today (Thursday 12/01/2012) at the North Greenwich Arena as an Anti-Doping Chaperone at the gymnastics test event. To say I am excited is an understatement with the best part of this evening going over my training notes and reading up on the sport....today's question dear reader is "What is the difference between an Mixed Grip and an Overgrip?"....nothing to do with running but still fun :-)

The organisation for this event has been brilliant and my hats off to the London 2012 team.

If you want any further information Games Making and how you can help the success towards this great event contact London 2012

Secret Squirrel

2012-01-11T19:10:00.002Z

Sunday's run was a full of mystery with George mentioning that he had not entered any races for sure this year but was quickly deciding what to do as the possibilities were being concidered by his goodself. He was even heard to "grumble" that he was my pack horse and able training partner and I was ever so often interrogated on what my arrangements for the Thames Path 100 in March. No mention was made of any of his plans apart from one of his favourite "must do" marathons, The Steyning Stinger (technically an ultra at 43 km) on 4th March.

Imagine my surprise this afternoon whilst scrolling through Facebook at lunchtime when I saw on Centurion's FB page:

"TP100 waitlist invites going out today: Patrick B, Michael F, John P, Ian H, George F."

I have abbreviated the surnames for privacy reason but on calling George tonight I was assured that he had not in fact entered the race but had enquired last October of the possibility of entering a waiting list. I was amazed to hear that even back then the waiting list was closed due to the number of applicants but even more amazed to hear that so many people have dropped out. I wonder if it is people putting in a speculative entry in hope of doing it then dropping out as well as injured runners.

Back to my "pack horse" training buddy who assures me his innocence but I still think he put in a Secret Squirrel entry. I shall await the outcome of his conversation between himself and the Determined Mrs F. Good luck George :-)

Winter Tanners 2012

2012-01-11T00:03:00.003Z

I was chatting with George on Sunday's run when we remembered that the Winter Tanners 50km trail run is this coming weekend which promises to be a fantastic run as ever. It is one hell of a tough run with evil ascents and I still remember the 100m climb in 2km which saw me bent double over at the 25 mile mark gasping for air. I remember reporting:

Miles came and went but at 25 miles we were directed through a small town and then up the side of Box Hill, we soon began to realise the last check point was at the top of the hill! This hill was outrageously hard and in a matter of 1/4 mile we had to climb 436 feet, the steepest section was an incredible 20%...no way could we run this section but frog marched up and when I reached the stile at the top, turned around, leaned on the fence and just about stopped myself from vomiting!

I have been out for a run this evening and was amazed that in January it can be so mild and it almost seems wrong to run an event with the word "Winter" when it is so warm but rumour has it is going to turn quite cool on Sunday so warm kit is going to be packed plus the fact I am looking forward to seeing David and Rob to catch up on the news

GUCR 2012 Entry

2012-01-09T18:51:00.002Z

After the long entry process and successful ballot entry I finally received the GUCR 2012 Fee Payment email. Dick Kearn and his team have got the entry process and associated admin off pat now and it has been a breeze as a race applicant.

The Delightful Mrs S (whom I am very proud of at the moment for getting a new job after an interview today) has gone off to work which allows me the chance to rush around quickly now and get the cheques and envelopes written. Although it 24 weeks away I feel the road to training has started officially now and the events I am doing in the next few months are part of the build up...watch this space.

Do cowpats explode

2012-01-08T18:08:00.002Z

...and other trail questions?

Today's run was a worry for me as toe is still a little sore so I chose to wear my new road shoes knowing that they would get a little muddy but that hasn't stopped me before. The general consensus was to run about 20 miles and to start at Green Street Green, Orpington and then head south.

The problem with a 6.30am start in the middle of the winter is there is no light until about 7.30am which didn't stop us in the slightest but I had got it set in my head that I wanted to retrace an old route we had tried and failed to navigate. So we were soon seen running into an open field trying desperately to see the other side in the direction of the fingerpoint sign when we realised that we were in a field inhabited by cows, scanning the murky field I was happy that none were there but then stepped in a cowpat and was quite amazed that with such a gentle step there would be such a response with a shower of exploding poo that glooped up my leg :-) With the path lost we soon jumped the gate and decided to run the road as a safer option to get on the North Downs via Knockholt.

With a mixture of road and trail we dropped down onto the Downs and it still amuses me that George and I tend to stop ever so often at the entrance of a footpath and ask each other if we have run down it before and today was no exception when we clambered down an embankment and joined a path that took us out into a village, we had been searching for the footpath from this village on many occasion and have realised that the reason we couldn't find it was because it looked like the driveway to a house.

Stopping for some breakfast from our backpacks and suitably refreshed I asked if we could just recce a certain section we were at that formed part of the new Night Run and was pleased we had as the route was now blocked by a deeply ploughed field (common land, ploughed?) which made us change route with an unexpected discovery that the Night Runners will have a river crossing to contend with :-)

The rest of the run was a great piece of effort with us discovering the location of about 20 brand new Bentley GT V8 Continentals and Aston Martin V8 Virages in a business park that left our jaws dropped, not because of the price but more in th location of a chalk pit.

Last bit was a 300 foot climb in 1/3rd of a mile which saw us cursing the run at 15 miles leaving us breathless and once recovered belted the last 5 miles out to get back to the car feeling tired but pleased with such a good run

Plastered again

2012-01-06T22:16:00.001Z

My lovely foot

Two weeks on and the toe saga continues, last night I was getting ready to run and I could see the nail was beginning to come away and I knew by the end of the night it will have gone, I was not wrong.

After getting home from my run I went up for my bath and lo and behold it had lifted so it was just a matter of getting in the bath and letting the warm water do its job of softening up the skin and it could be yanked off without trouble. The interesting thing is that once the nail was removed the underlying bruise spread along the bed and I have a fresh "old" bruise, weird and a new one on me.

I have been walking around happily on it all day but I chose to tape it up and then use strapping to lift the toe up and away from the insole of my running shoe which seems to have done the trick. I have run a nice easy 8 miles tonight and it seems to have held up well to the pounding from the road. I am now down to 8 toenails.

Rest day tomorrow ready for a nice long run on Sunday

Big Brother is Watching You

2012-01-05T22:20:00.002Z

I was determined not to end up with my feet up on the sofa tonight but to see myself out on a nice steady run afterall I have some big challenges in the coming weeks and I have to get my finger out. The problem was I was late from work and therefore there was no chance at getting to the running track in time so I chose instead to run on road and find some hills.

The weather is still blustery with a clear star-filled sky so I donned a lond sleeved top, windproof jacket, gloves and for the first time in months my running cap. I started off gently and soon realised that as usual I was over dressed for the occasion so stopped running to walk a few yards whilst I stuffed my Buff, keys and cap into my various pockets. I had just started off again when I heard a shout from behind

"OI JERRY, why are you not down at the track?"

Was Big Brother watching me? I jumped out of my skin but recognised the voice of Martin from my running club who was bedecked in cycling kit riding a rather splendid bicycle. He told me that there were about 20-30 people who had turned up for training at the track. Personally I think I made the right choice by not going especially after a grumble last week about me running in one of the outer lanes in the opposite direction to the runners in the inside lane as that amount of runners will certainly spill over two lanes.

Martin asked me how far I was running and I said "I planned 12, it will be probably be 10 but I suppose it will be 8" but before Martin zoomed off to his house he said "Seems like you are counting it down" and he was right so I kicked myself up the arse and made a point of running the full distance..and I did with a little extra on the end making 13 miles

Thing One and Thing Two

2012-01-05T00:06:00.000Z

Storms have hit Great Britain with a vengeance in the past few days and yesterday saw some very powerful winds and rain causing local flooding and fallen trees. Luckily my area was not hit that badly but I was not willing to go through the woods as my foot was still grumbling and so chose to stick to my new shoes and therefore to the pavements.

The ambient temperature was quite warm but the winds really cooled the night air such that we were seen shivering and jumping up and down to keep warm at club time. I chose to go with a group doing a steady pace but with the promise of a nasty little hill halfway around.

The pace was quite easy for the first part and soon the hill arrived which saw me take the lead on the ascent until I pulled off the pace as my toe grumbled to be overtaken which annoyed me so I went on to get to the top about 3 metres behind the lead who was now bent over and gasping.

Then the fun really began when the group leader set us all free to allow us to run at our own pace and I pranced off into a fast tempo pace soon to be joined with a gent I haven't run with before and who wanted to ask me about distance running so being so loquacious I was happy to tell him a few highs and lows equally he was telling me a few interesting facts such that we forgot about our surroundings, the other runners long behind us and the two of us bouncing off each other well. It was only until we crossed a roundabout that we "came to" to realise we were running at 7:30 min/miles and the group were now far behind us, we were on fire and chose to drive on.

I was had to laugh as we were within 1 kilometre of the club house and was thinking of pulling off the pace a bit when he turned to me and said "Sorry to have held you back, you can go on if you want" He took the words right out of my mouth....I was about to bust a gut and he thought I was being held back, how wrong he was :-)

Foot feeling better but kept to the plan so did not run Wednesday evening ready to run Thursday....that is unless Thursdayitis gets me

This Run May Contain Nuts

2012-01-03T12:18:00.000Z

The January Night Run has been mapped, the land lady of the halfway checkpoint has been contacted and welcomes us all to her humble pub which promises to be an idyllic one.

I have sent out invites to the usual crowd on Facebook and anybody is welcome to attend.

We will be meeting at the Public Car Park, Filston Lane, Shoreham, Kent at 7.50pm ready for an 8.00pm (sharp) start on 21^st January 2012

As you will know if you run these events then you do so entirely at your own risk as we will be running on woodland trails, rutted paths in the countryside away from roads and street lights IN THE DARK. You will need some sort of torch, preferably a headtorch, a mobile phone and a requirement of a person we can contact if you are hurt.

The full route will be approximately 8-10 miles long with a "checkpoint" at the halfway point where you will be able to partake in some Kentish Ale or non-alcoholic beverage of your choice at your own cost

This is a new route but I can't guarantee any badgers this time but I can promise a lovely pub...with chairs!

Only 60 days to go!

2012-01-02T21:52:00.001Z

Sixty days sounds a long time but it is only now that I have looked on the Centurion Running website to see their time ticker counting the hours and days down do I realise that it is not long at all.

So far I have tried desperately to stay to the training plan I set myself back in November which has been very challenging to complete what with work, my teaching commitments and family life. I will be reviewing the mileage aspect and dropping it by about 10-15% on some weeks of the plan as quality is more important at the moment especially with injuries creeping into the mix but I have been very happy with my consistency over the Christmas and New Year period but will need to step up in the next few weeks. I have two 50km events in the next month (See my events diary) which will toughen me up as one of them is my favourite run at night which will serve me well for the Thames Trot

Some early starts are in order but first have to nurse this toe of mine so will probably stick to the roads for a little while so that my new shoes can provide some much needed support

When do we stop playing?

2012-01-01T02:27:00.000Z

Whilst running with my dear friend Duncan this evening I retold a story to him of something I witnessed a few weeks ago and it is he who inspired me to write about it...thanks Duncan.

The inspiration

About two weeks ago I was winding my way towards the railway station when I came across a young harassed mother rushing along the road with her two daughters dressed in school clothes. The youngest daughter must have been about 6 years old, the elder was about 8 years old, the former was being pulled along by her Mum and the elder was being shouted at to hurry up as she was dawdling behind.

What happened next was just wonderful to see as the dawdler suddenly stopped spun around twice then ran to a low wall holding up a cornered embankment ran up the wall, arms outstretched to create wings and she ran down the other side shouting "WWWEEEEEEEEEEE" stopped, span around again laughing her little heart out, came too from what imaginary game she was in and ran off to catch her now purpled Mother who was still telling her to catch up.

What happened to us?

This was the question I asked myself and to Duncan today, "Was there a day that we can remember when we last ran along a wall, like a child, with pure innocence of play and internal imagery?" When do we lose the ability to just play and see things in an adult way? When do we start thinking about consequences of our actions? There is a time when your children no longer go into ELC...you get my point

Duncan and I went quiet.........

What happened earlier in the run (and the year)?

Earlier in the run, Duncan and I were seen clambering up an embankment... "To see what was at the top"
Yesterday, I was seen running down a hill flapping my arms like a bird..."Because it made me lighter on foot"
A few times this year I ran cross country...at night...to pubs....in the middle of nowhere
Earlier this month I laughed tears when I fell over for the umpteenth time whilst in mud and water in Wales
I have chased fog...to see if I could beat it to the bottom of the hill
I have been chased by a cow...a horse and an albino badger

So many wonderful times, so many fantastic moments...all whilst running.........whilst playing....as an ADULT

Let me finish this story with something that happened on the Sunday run the week before Christmas.

The week before Christmas

I was running a 12 mile run by myself last week and had just taken a very long up hill ascent to find myself at a road I had run many a time to see a stile I had seen on many occasion and I thought "I am going to go that way" and I saw an animal track, I followed it.....and came to a bench....and stopped and there...below me...in the early dew drenched valley 200 feet below me I saw the trees...casting short shadows in the early morning light....I was the master of all I surveyed...Cudham Valley my Magic Forest and I mastered all I surveyed and for a moment,

I was a child again

and I laughed out loud, like the child I saw at the beginning of this story and now I realise I can play

Promise me, all of you, remember you can play...even as an adult

Happy New Year....My Dear Readers

A year in numbers

2011-12-31T19:57:00.004Z

It appears that the tradition is now that runners post their annual mileage either on their blogs or Facebook, who am I to disappoint :-)

Here are my numbers at at glance which average out at 6.2 miles, 10km a day:

Highest Month	269 miles
Lowest Month	100 miles
Highest Week	94.5 miles	May (Week of GUCR)

Mileage Total	2,263.3 miles

In the year I have missed just one week of running caused by a chest infection. I have done my mathematics and got it slightly screwy as the mileage above shows I have done 6.2 miles a day on average which is 10km in my books.

What's more I have only run 2 marathons..."What?" I hear you shout, yes because the other 14 events were ultra ranging from 50km to 91 miles

Close to the line

2011-12-31T13:52:00.003Z

Wow, it is getting close to the line for me!

A small goal I had for 2012 that I set myself in November was to see if I could run 3650 km (2263 miles) which calculates to about 10km (6.2 miles) per day on average. So getting an Excel sheet out and using Goal Seek it works out I have to run just 19 km (11.8 miles) today...talk about close.

Hearing that Bhundu is back in town a quick phone call was made and it appears he is up for a run between 6 and 15 miles...good old Bhundu, I just love his layed back look on life

Not the Parkrun

2011-12-30T14:21:00.001Z

I have heard so many people talk about this craze called Parkrun and have yet to venture out on one. It is not really my cup of tea to be frank mainly because Saturday in my only lie in for the week and it just seems to be (in my limited) opinion people chasing personal bests.

I saw the local Parkrun park in a different light last night when I used it as a shortcut to get to the track for some pace training. As I stumbled and bounced over the puddles that were a gravel path I assumed that I was now on the well trodden path of hundreds of Parkrunners....but oh boy, at night it is feral!

Running home along the outer edge I could smell a really potent scent of cannabis and then a bunch of about 8 youths, with dogs sitting, in the dark puffing away. Each to their own as I say, just leave me alone but as I approached one of the idiots stood up and got in my way "Easy Bro' what's your problem?" his voice deeply clouded by the effects of cannabis, I replied "What is your problem?" he then responded "What do you mean I ain't got a problem Bro'!" and so I said back "Good, we don't have a problem then, see ya" side stepped him and trundled off leaving the idiot in a befuddled and confused state such that I was about 50 yards before I heard a shout and the rest of his mates laughing.

Even before I left the park I counted 2 cars cruising around the car park and another couple of young lads walking their growling dog both heavy with the scent of cannabis.

So whilst Saturday morning is sweetness and light, the night time definitely is NOT the Parkrun

Like a Metronome (part deux)

2011-12-29T22:21:00.002Z

I reported back in August 2011 of my joy of running consistant laps down at the running track. Tonight I had similar plans to get out on the lanes and get some proper pacing and control back into my running. Members of my running club were attending to do some speed work around the track which I was not too interested in doing preferring my well rehearsed routine but to enjoy their company.

The general plan was to run the 5km to and from the track as a warm up/down process and once their he plan was to do 6,400 metres comprising 8 laps anti-clockwise and then turn around to do 8 laps in the opposite directionand do it in 34 minutes

Distance	Duration
400 m	02:10
400 m	02:09
400 m	02:08
400 m	02:07
400 m	02:06
400 m	02:06
400 m	02:06
400 m	02:08
400 m	02:07
400 m	02:07
400 m	02:07
400 m	02:08
400 m	02:07
400 m	02:08
400 m	02:07
400 m	02:06
Total	33:57

The lovely thing about this is I was not looking at my watch at any time during the run and apart from the first 2 laps my time varies ± 2 seconds and I managed to pace to 3 seconds under my chosen time for the run.

BTW I was barracked and "informed" that I was going the wrong way around the track on the last 8 laps...indeed I was but I was in the outer lane and so was not breaking etiquette. As to why....I am not training to run on a track so was evening up the load on my IT Bands....simples :-)

Welcome to the World

2011-12-28T16:00:00.001Z

Hello babies.....welcome to the world!

What's that? You want to go for a run?...then let me oblige.

My new Mizuno Waverider 14 shoes arrived safe and well today at 15:45 weighing in at 10.5 ounces (each), gender unknown. Dad and babies doing well....will be out getting to know each other for about an hour.

Don't Panic

2011-12-27T18:54:00.003Z

Don't Panic Mr Mainwaring

I have been waiting by the front door all day like a love struck teenager waiting for her latest billet doux to arrive but for me it was not a love letter but my new running shoes which are apparently in transit. My current shoes are just knackered and not supporting my poor toe and ball of the foot at all well.

There I sat suddenly remembering that I had to send off my application form for the Winter Tanners on 15th January 2012, looking it up on the interweb it soon dawned on me my application had to be in by 2nd January 2012..AAAAHHHH. So all peace was shattered as I zoomed around the house looking for an envelope, pen, stamp and then to have a tense 10 minutes as the old printer sparked into life and spurted out the application form. All looked good until I realised I needed the cheque book....CHEQUE BOOK? Panic setting in I ran around, the Delicate Mrs S very suspicious her Running RADAR now pinging wildly, cheque written I decamped from my house to post the letter getting there in sufficient time before the collection.

Let's hope it gets there in time....oh the trials of a long distance runner.

Budgie smugglers

2011-12-26T22:06:00.001Z

The biggest non-secret in my house was that I was getting a pair of Skins A200 compression tights for my Christmas present, however you will be surprised to know the benefactor was in fact the Delightful Mrs S! I have been itching to have a go but I was in no state on Sunday evening but I desperate to get out this evening for a short (and very slow) recovery run to test them out.

On returning from yet another hearty meal with the Sprightly Mrs & Mrs S (Senior) and fighting the post-prandial somnolence I was seen to busy myself collecting my running kit and the little box containing my new Skins, unpacking them I was seen with dropped jaw at the size of them! They were minute and look as if they were built for one of Santa's Elves...then it occurred to me, they were compression tights so had to be small. The next bit of fun was to get the damn things on and had I been a woman who are experienced in pulling on tights or stockings it would have been a doddle. So after a load of fuss and bother I had them squeezed, yanked and decreased until I stood resplendent in my tights ready to run, that is until I looked at the front "Little Jerry" area and I am sure I had a little budgie smuggled down the front of them such that a pair of shorts were needed to prevent small children and old ladies being upset.

The run

Nothing exciting to report about a 10km run but I have to say that the running with compression tights is the strangest experience as they support you in the areas you least expect them. They supported me around the hamstrings and my IT Bands were supported but by far the most unexpected thing was the amount of heat they produced...time will tell but I am so far very impressed.

New Running Watch

2011-12-25T20:34:00.000Z

The requirement as per my Christmas List:

A running watch that has:

A stop watch
Has an alarm
Has NO GPS functionality
Batteries that last longer than 24 hours
AND CHEAP

Other Running apparel that will be discussed later

Imagine my thorough delight when I was handed a little box this morning that once unwrappedshowed to contain a wonderfully cheap digital running watch, without GPS functionality and batteries that are "guaranteed" to last more than a year. I have since discovered my new Constant Men's Black Digital Multi Function Watch cost £4.99, perfect for those long runs over 12 hours :-)

The strange story of a drugs cheat

2011-12-24T14:57:00.000Z

As some of my regular readers know I will be working at the Olympic Games as a chaperone for the Anti-Drugs Team and will be soon doing a Test Event which I am very much looking forward to.

The UK Anti-Doping Team have started to publish Facts on Twitter about particular performance enhancing drugs or ingredients that are found in medicines or information about past athletes, their most recent addition was the strange story of Thomas Hicks in the 1904 Olympic Marathon.

Who was Thomas Hicks?

Thomas John Hicks was born on 7th January 1875 in England having migrated to North America to become a brass worker in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Thomas was an accomplished runner and in 1904 won the Boston Marathon and later that year the Summer Olympics in St Louis, Missouri.

Who won the 1904 Olympic Marathon

Well this is where the fun begins as the races in those days were not the sterile conditions we have now with tarmacced roads and rubberised track surfaces. In fact the cousre was a dirt track which produced clouds of dust and dirt created by the entourage of official race vehicles. The race continued at a very slower pace pace than normal and a runner called Fred Lorz, a bricklayer from New York crossed the line to win the race in a reasonable time of 2 hours 38 minutes and 25 seconds followed by Thomas Hicks 85 seconds later in 2 hours 39 minutes and 50 seconds.

Later a claim was made that Fred Lorz had cheated having jumped into a car at 9 miles rejoining the race at mile 21 to only run 14 miles. It just shows how confusing the race had been if no one had actually seen him leave and rejoin even with Thomas Hicks so close behind.

So was there only one cheat in the race?

Technically no, but had the race been run with the today's strict anti-doping rules, Thomas Hicks would have been disqualified also as it transpires that during the race he had been given a dose of 1/60 of a grain (1 mg) of strychnine and some brandy by his assistants as he was slowing down and looking tired. What makes it more amazing that he was not given just one dose of this well known rat poison but two!

Strychnine causes muscular convulsions, causes asphyxia and the imbiber normally dies from shear exhaustion, it also transpires Thomas Hicks collapsed after crossing the finish line and had he taken another dose he would have most certainly died.

What is so interesting about this story is how the people of the Victorian era treated what we now think of drugs or poisons as they would be seen to openly take arsenic or mercury based medication in the belief they were a tonic...but strychnine that just takes the biscuit

Don't tell the Delightful Mrs S

2011-12-23T11:55:00.000Z

The problem with going to work on the Friday before a Christmas weekend and an eleven day break is that the mind does wander away from business decisions. This is the time that the wife/husband/partner of a long distance runner should be most vigilant, this is the time all long distance runner's credit and debit cards should be confiscated.

The Delicious Mrs S is well aware of the tell tale signs of my late night clandestine movements when it comes to purchases of all things running from entering races or purchasing new shoes and is normally at my side moaning and groaning about my actions. However I have been limping around in the past two weeks with a sore toe and a bruised ball of the foot from my latest road shoes that have travelled 720 miles and desperate for new ones as I embark on the next part of my mileage increase as I approach the Thames Path 100 miler in March 2012.

Imagine my delight when I happened upon my favourite running emporium's website and discovered that my normal pair of shoes had been reduced by £31.00 and imagine my excitement when I found I still had my credit card in my wallet. They state that there is a 2 day delivery which I find hard to believe what with the extended holiday but I know they will be on my doorstep next week...now I have to work out how to get them in the house without her seeing them.

Lights, Camera and Action

2011-12-21T20:32:00.003Z

When running the Gatliff 50km (call it 56km) our good ultra buddy Rob kept pulling out a little camera and took several action shots of us running along.

He is the first to admit whether it was recording or not as it only had one button but the results were this.Remember what I said in my Gatliff Race report:

"...The merry band of four continued on in good humour, Bazza probably taken aback by the amount of noise that Rob and I were making as we teased each other remorselessly ..."

and this footage bares witness to the level of noise, swearing and mickey that occurs on these runs this time caused by our reaction to an obnoxious walker who had irritated us with his comments but it kept us stoked up for a few miles.

Please visit Rob's excellent blog which contains his musings and take on his running life and from which I remorselessly pinched this video :-)

Crash and Burn

2011-12-20T23:25:00.000Z

A day of mixed emotions, one where I told my health check was all clear and one where I had one of those runs that just needs to be forgotten, if it was not one thing, it was another thing.

I was feeling pretty good this evening before I set off for the club, I had plans to pop into the pub after our run for a quick pint and have a little Christmas cheer having placed a few coins of the realm into my running jacket. As I arrived in to woods I got halfway along the path when I had a terrible stomach cramp but I was only about 1 kilometre from the clubhouse so preferred to get to a proper toilet and on arriving found the door locked....that is until I hunted down the keyholder Richard who knows that when I need to go I need to go so he was good enough to get the door open without a problem.

So surfacing from my "distraction" I decided to go with a medium paced group as the route was going near my house and I would be able to duck out if my stomach upset resurfaced and so we ran out for a nice steady run, that is until we reached a steady downward hill and as I plodded down I felt my hamstring and buttock muscle sieze causing my leg to stiffen. As we continued I then became aware that my toe was hurting, I actually think it was the fact my toe hurt that I changed my gait and that caused the muscle problem. So on reaching the next summit I bid my farewells and grumbled off down the road but now I was at my own pace was able to adjust gait to allow me to comfortably run on finding verges and paths to soften my landing.

An extended run timewise but still finding me with a stomach upset when I got home, a sore foot and toe (as well as a bruise the nail is coming off), a sore buttock and hamstring...I am not a happy runner

I have a heart...

2011-12-20T10:28:00.000Z

...kidneys, liver and a pancreas!

Some of my regular readers may have been aware that I had a little bit of a health scare the other day when I grumbled about a sharp pain in my chest after exertion sometimes, nothing painful just a sensation that I thought would get checked out "just in case" (See Zombie Runner). So with a series of blood tests, a chest X-Ray and an ECG later I returned to the Doctor's this morning armed with my ECG printout.

After taking a seat in his surgery he looked over the readout and informed me that my kidneys and liver were functioning correctly, I wasn't diabetic, thyroid was fine and blood count excellent which is great news such that I now feel a bit of a sham but happy that I have a clean bill of health.

However, he has organised a Treadmill Test for the New Year that will record how my heart reacts under strain and that I should carry on my healthy lifestyle.

Postscript

I had to laugh to myself after I left as I recalled him saying "You have a healthy diet and outlook carry on what you are doing" So that sounds like a diet that includes cider and an occasional Gin & Tonic is what the Doctor ordered ;-)

Ouch

2011-12-19T01:04:00.000Z

It often amazes me when running that I don't get many injuries in the form of stresses and strains but I do get a few lumps, bumps and scratches from the trails today being no exception. Whilst out on the Mince Pie Run I was running along a reasonably level path with the remains of a few fallen branches from the recent high winds scattered here and there. Also remember that I have other runners around me obscuring my view of the trail surface when.........THWACK OOWWWWW.

An extended howl from my goodself when I have stubbed my toe on a stick just above the toe guard of my shoe, no problems I thought, my feet were cold and I could feel a little discomfort nothing I haven't handled before. However it did get worse as the run went on.

So tonight I have found myself limping about the house with a tender toe and a bruised nail bed which has slowly become a little more swollen than I would want....hence why it is iced and raised :-(

Mince Pie Run 2011

2011-12-18T19:26:00.000Z

The morning started at 6.45am with my alarm beeping me awake and as my previous post (dimidium facti qui coepit habet) suggested, I needed to step out of bed immediately or the morning's run would have been in jeopardy. So with those words ringing in my ears I stepped forth into a very cold morning (-2 C) and drove to High Elms Visitor Centre where I was later to meet a bunch of friends to run the annual Mince Pie Run.

The first run

It turned out that the exquisite route plan in my head evaporated like the condensation in my breath as soon as I hit the first trail as my feet took me towards some old paths I knew and I ran for running sake, all I had to do is get back to the car park before 10.00am so I ran...walked a little, ran on, stopped at the top of a hill I had never climbed and just watched the icy morning below me and the shadows shorten. Lost in my thoughts for those early hours was soon back to reality when I realised I only had 30 minutes to get back to the car park so with my head down I pegged off through the woods, up the hill and over the stile then drop down into the, now full, car park where I saw familiar figures milling about laughing and chatting. It was an amazing turn out of about 50 people all bedecked in Santa hats, elfin and Bat Woman outfits, we even had a white rabbit

Total so far : 12 miles

The Mince Pie Run

Tradition dictates that there are two routes, one 5 miles the other about 8 miles but this year there was a group doing a 4 mile walk. So setting off together we were immediately sent in the wrong direction as we decided to follow Brian who was told off by the old guard and pointed in the right direction in howls of laughter. The wonderful thing about these runs is the continual laughing and joking from everyone, there is no racing, frequent stops and clambers as we all wait patiently to climb a stile or cross a muddy path. I was rather taken aback when I found myself being asked about my running this year and my various antics but was happy to tell a few stories and my plans for the next few months.

The run continued and the laughter reached a peak when we ran the final mile where the number of walkers increased, some with young children, and their looks as they were to see us being chased by a 6 foot white rabbit!

So on our return we found that the walkers had filled up a picnic table with mince pies, chocolate goodies and party food and 50 runners and walkers tucked in with gusty sipping mulled wine to await the Christmas carols.

Total for the day: 20 miles

dimidium facti qui coepit habet

2011-12-17T23:58:00.000Z

...He who has begun has the work half done,

Sunday morning sees me with the challenge of getting up early for a solitary run of about 15 miles as George is unable to attend due to family commitments. This makes it all the more difficult for me as I am renowned for sleeping in when there is no peer pressure but I have promised myself a good run to explore a new path I have found on the map that links up two routes I know.

Later I plan to meet up with my friends from my sister club for a festive run of about 7 miles in fancy dress with carol singing, a charity donation and some food after. So hopefully tomorrow I will get in about 20 miles with the chance to some early solitude I so greatly need at the moment

Funny Nativity

2011-12-16T23:04:00.000Z

Probably the funniest nativity video clips I have seen (sorry nothing to do with running but too good to be true)

First of Winter?

2011-12-16T00:12:00.001Z

I am very aware that my current running shoes have just passed the 700 miles (~1125km) mark and whilst in reasonably good condition they are as flat as a pancake such that I am running like a barefoot runner! Aware that the season of good will is soon to be upon us I just cannot afford (or seen to do so) buying a new pair running shoes so I have a cunning plan to run as many miles as possible tonight, and other nights, on woodland trail with a headtorch until they can be renewed.

The evening was cool so I chose to wear two skins and shorts but had gloves just so I was comfortable soon to choose a convoluted route via local golf course, woods and unlit paths. It is along the unlit paths I became aware of the occassional flurry of vapourous rain drops and then a darting of particles in my headtorch......sleet?

I was overjoyed for a moment with the thought of snow such that my pace picked up and I bounced along the paths in my favourite woods. Tonight I was in an ecstatic mood as I enjoyed my solitary meanderings through the all enveloping darkness. My legs grumbled, my ankles twanged as I clunked and slipped in unseen muddy patches. I shooed foxes who dared to stop and glance at me, their eyes shining in my light.

Tonight I was thankful that I had a chance to escape...

Wollowing Hippo

2011-12-14T01:01:00.000Z

All I needed to do tonight was run, just run about 12 miles and feel comfortable to carry on my training after my week off. The weather in the South-East of England had been high winds and rain for the past 24 hours with a nice break during daylight hours being a city dweller by day I had not seen the trails after such a storm. So came the time for me to get ready and I donned a long-sleeved shirt, my windproof smock, a pair of shorts and then at the last moment my fluoro jacket as I didn't want to get told off yet again for wearing all black on a club run!

I hit the road with the intention of testing my newly acquired Silva Siju Compact LED headtorch (Brecon Beacons goody bag) along the woodland footpath having quickly pocketed my trusty Petzl. On hitting the woodland path I decided that I would never, ever wear the Silva Siju again unless as a last resort, it was not designed for night running, more for car maintenance or walking and map reading.

So now I was on the path and it occurred to me that only a few months ago I was reporting dragonflies along this section but tonight it was quite hazardous in my road shoes, mud, puddles, roots and fallen branches were just some of the obstacles to contend with.....perfect Jerry conditions.

After a run of the mill club run I returned the same way but realised that it seemed to be a little tougher on the way back causing me to step on the edge of most puddles, I cared not jot.

The Delicious Mrs S welcomed me into the house with her usual air of disinterest and disdain after such a run ordering me to go to the shop for urgent supplies (read as milk) and not get mud on the carpet.....again so attempting to keep the peace grabbed a dry t-shirt and car keys went to the shop immediately being aware that I was being stared at from the waist down.

UUURRGGHH what a sight I must have been for when entering the bright lights of the shop I could see I was covered from my toes to the base of my shorts in splatterings of mud and by the looks of the security guard I was not very welcome...I cared not a jot for I had a lovely run.

TP100 Training Starts

2011-12-12T22:23:00.000Z

After a lovely seven days rest I will have to start the training for real for the Thames Path 100 which commences in 81 days from the day of this post which is 3rd March 2012 from Richmond Town Hall, Richmond London at 10.00am.

The first official announcement is I am cutting back on the cider to see if I can shed some of my weight and to get a healthier sleep pattern. The second is I am looking for anyone from my local running clubs who would like to be my pacer from 51 miles, preferably an experienced night runner and willing to run/walk with me during the hours of darkness from Henley to ensure that I keep the pace up and focus on getting to the end unscathed.

So the training plan has been readjusted, the support and drop bag plans have been set just the logistics remain, I love this bit of the preparation :-)

Week off

2011-12-11T23:47:00.000Z

After my mammoth runs of the previous two weekends I had to take stock of what my body had gone through and take a break.

The run in the Brecons whilst fantastic had actually caused some bruising to my feet which was unexpected having discovered that a large amount of mud had compacted on the insoles and pressed into my instep. This had bruised the plantar fascia in the arch of both feet, with this my feet and ankles were mildly swollen, time to rest but first I ran 10km with the club which did wonders to loosen my legs. My impending hospital visit put pay to any runs on Thursday evening and a late night on Friday also stopped me from going out.

On speaking to George on Saturday evening it was agreed that we were not to run today and to be frank it wasn't a very hard decision. So the best thing to do was just put the last week on the shelf and come back next week stronger and rested

Grains of Sand

2011-12-10T00:55:00.001Z

Be master of your petty annoyances and conserve your energies for the big, worthwhile things. It isn't the mountain ahead that wears you out - it's the grain of sand in your shoe.

Robert Service

Awesome

2011-12-10T00:39:00.000Z

One of my favourite running moments of 2011.

On the Taff Trail with Bryn melyn behind and

Talybont resevoir to my left (click to enlarge)

Zombie Runner

2011-12-09T20:02:00.000Z

As my Dear Readers will know, in recent weeks I have undertaken on a big challenge of two ultras in seven days and whilst an individual attempt is hard enough doing two is a tough call. The overall effort was not excessive as I took them at a sensible pace as I had nothing more to prove than just to be able to complete them.

In recent weeks I have felt an "uncomfortable" sensation in my chest after a bigger exertion and these last two weeks have had some of those. On Monday last I attended my Doctor to talk about this but felt an absolute chump when he said "What, when you get up to go to the fridge or similar?" to which I replied "No, when I have run up a 2,000 foot mountain at the weekend". I chose never to play cards with this Doctor as he has the best poker face I have ever seen but he did stop to think over the next set of questions!

There was nothing obvious to discuss but as I am over 40 years old he chose to get a full preventative screening check of blood test, chest X-ray and an ECG as he theorised that my heart will have been enlarged from the large mileage I do. On this subject his poker face dropped a bit when I mentioned I did ~50 miles a week but had been doing in excess of that in the previous months.

The Hospital

So this morning I attended the hospital at 7.45 am to get my blood tests and have learnt that if there were to be a new Olympic sport called "Blood Test Queuing", the gold medal going the person who gets to the front first, I have come to realise that anybody over the age of 65 years old will win as I am sure the majority of the people in front of me camped outside overnight!

Blood tests and X-ray complete I went for my ECG and went through the "wiring up" procedure and relaxed back for the readings to be taken. All complete, the Healthcare Assistant passed the envelope to me and commented that I had a very low heart rate and on looking at it later found that at the time of the test it was 43 beats per minute!!! Now I know it is low but considering I was in a strange environment and not totally relaxed I am gobsmacked.... the question is, am I a zombie?

There they sat

2011-12-07T01:05:00.000Z

...stinking the utility room out, the normally Delightful Mrs S grumbling about said smell I was forced to do something I have never done before, I stuck my trail shoes in the washing machine!

The Mighty George always mentions that he washes his training shoes ( I have a sneaky feeling it is the Determined Mrs F that does it however) after a muddy trail run to no ill effect so who am I to disagree with such findings. So on Monday evening I threw my trusty shoes into the washing machine and put on a rinse cycle all I can say is....

THE MESS

The resulting mud and mess was such that I had to run a rinse cycle again after their removal to get rid of the horrific Brecon mud and to save Mrs S shoving me in said washing machine if she discovered what I had done. I then hung the shoes outside where they didn't dry so tonight I brought them into the house to dry by a radiator.

My shoes are now shiny clean but BOY..... do they stink still

Brecon Beacons Ultra - Race Report

2011-12-05T15:27:00.001Z

We arrived at Talybont-on-Usk in the Brecon Beacons,Wales late on Friday afternoon after an uneventful drive which consisted of a few stops for food and hot drinks, our accommodation for the weekend was an outdoor recreation centre on the outskirts of the village and comprised 1,2 and 4 bed dorms. We were directed by a passer-by to go inside and allocate our beds by placing our bags on it and relax. We chose a 4 man room.

As it was Brian's 40th birthday on the day of the race we had arranged that his race number was #40 and was informed by the caterers that a birthday cake had been made in his honour. So after registration we went for a meal and a few drinks with our new found friends Emiko and Erika returning later to the centre for a restless nights sleep ready for the off the next morning.

The day of the race.

Getting up at 5.30am George and I watched Brian excitedly open the various cards he had been given by friends and family, then have a relaxed breakfast near the kitchens. We kitted up and went to the main area to be told the start was delayed by a few minutes to allow for late comers from the sounds of the others we were quite happy with this as it allowed us a few more minutes to go over the maps.

At 7.40 we were sent on our way after a comprehensive health and safety briefing including what we should do if we fell into the canal, I was more interested on what to do if I fell off the mountain! So there we had it, 150 intrepid gentle men and lady folk trotted up the road towards Llangynidr finding us to run the next 3 miles along the canalside.

George commented that I was unusually quiet for a start of the race but I was in an introspective mood as I was aware that this was going to be a tough day and wanted to settle into it as I was aware that there were going to be some serious hills, how serious I was soon to find out.

To Checkpoint 1

Passing through Llangynidr and through a network of alleys and roads to got to our first ascent a mild 800 foot climb in just one mile through fields and tracks. It was now becoming apparent that we were going to see some lovely views but first we had to climb. The route continued down then up until we dodged around a corner to find Checkpoint 1 which comprised a trailer full bottles of water and a man with a clipboard taking our numbers.

The wind in this section had really picked up and I was amazed to note that it was not gust of wind but a continuous, constant blow that left your ears roaring and by stopping felt my body temperature dropping because of the wind chill so we agreed to move on quickly so we could find some shelter to allow us to get some food onboard. Pulling my Buff off my neck to create a beany we climbed higher to our highest point yet at 1463 feet, this was by far the highest we would get but we found ourselves in an exposed area where one minute we were in a calmed area until we got into an area where the wind seemed to be forced down a funnel to make our clothes flap and our ears roar.

Is there a Doctor in the house?

Ascent to CP2 (I am bottom right)

Here we were take a treacherous 800 foot drop in 1 mile into T Neuadd, a small farm, down a stoney and very rutted path which was more like a wet stream bed and halfway down I saw a lady runner, Sue, sitting on the floor and shouting to her we found she was injured after taking quite a nasty fall. Sue was looking a bit shocked and had two quite nasty split cuts on her knee and upper shin which were oozing blood. I got down to administer first aid and if I do say myself did quite a good job patching her up with the basic kits we had using some of Brian's toilet paper to act as wadding, zinc oxide tape from my kit and a field dressing from Sue's to bandage the assemblage together. I was pleased to hear that another runner had some Steri-strips that she was able to stick the wound together. Sue was adamant that she continue so we left her to get herself together and we continued on our way. My confidence was a little knocked after the incident so took it extra careful on the remaining section of descent.

To Checkpoint 2 and beyond

The weather now was clearing now to present a beautiful sunny day and the ascent to Checkpoint 2 was yet another 800 foot climb in just under a mile, for a good section of it we were in the shelter of the valley but as we got higher and higher the ground became more sodden with streamlets of mountain water flowing in sections creating mud pools and ankle deep crossings. My heart was pounding from the excersion but the humour amongst us was still good as we laughed about the ridiculous conditions, the roar of the wind and the knee high mud in places which yanked and pulled every leg tendon and ligament. As we approached CP2 we opened a 5 bar gate and had to physically lean against it to prevent it swinging wide open and as we turned we were met by an incredible vista overlooking the Talybont Resevoir looking towards Pen y Fan

Talybont Resevoir

Here we stopped to just take in the view and I was amazed that I could lean into the wind and stay hanging as again our ears roared unable to hear each other talk. We turned away and then ran towards the CP to get top ups of water and take some more food onboard. I informed them that Sue was injured and may need to be picked up when someone pointed back for us to see her running towards us, wow, one tough lady.

To checkpoint 3

We continued on to pass through Bryniau Gleision an open and exposed area that left the wind to blow but there were other hazards to be aware of here in the form of Shake Holes which are deep hollows caused by collapsing limestone caves below the surface, the issues here being that there would be pooling water which created marshy conditions. It is here we saw the last of George who took it upon himself

to run off ahead alone leaving Brian and I the safer option to travel together. This section was still hilarious seeing Brian and I fall and stumble into hidden pools of water up to our waists but we soon pleased to enter the quieter section of woodland to drop Pentwyn Resevoir where we were met by yet another friendly and reassuring race team

To Checkpoint 4

We were still in the realns of long sharp ascents but we couldn't fault the landscape, it is around here I noticed that Brian was beginning start wearing warmer clothes with his hat now taking an outing with gloves later and a windproof(?) jacket also showing its colours. I had taken the precaution of wearing my waterproof equipment, leggings and gloves from the start finding my Buff great as a neckscarf or hat at a moments notice.

This was probably the most frustrating part of the course when we were put on to an exposed, marshland that was just too treacherous for running as there were hidden drops, pools of water and yet more swallow holes, the wind was high over this area but we knuckled down supporting each other with various conversations and jokes which allowed us to see the brighter side of the adventure. By now our feet were freezing cold and we were both desperate to so we put our heads down and battled to the woodland ahead, we were later to hear that others had a similar feel about this section but this is where strength of character and determination pay off as there are always low points in morale and this was one of them.

After what felt like an eternity we were out into the relative warmth and shelter of woodland then the surprise that we had the next checkpoint which was situated by a vistor's centre.....and a shop, a veritable oasis. Here we decided to take some time out and fishing out some money I had stashed for such occasions bought two bottles of Coke and a packet of crisps. Here Brian mentioned he wanted the toilet so whilst he went off I got some geographical knowledge from some locals who pointed hazards and points of interest out on the map. Little did I know that in fact Brian was cleaning his running shoes in the disabled toilet! This sounds like madness but in fact very sensible as he got the mud out from inside his shoes.

To Checkpoint 5

This was an interesting section that was mainly up but now the cloud was pulling in and we were now sufficiently below the hillsides to be out of the wind and allow us to get some running in which was a continual up hill 600 feet through various woodland and water features. Throughout this section I sides on Corn Du and was getting a tad worried for I knew at some stage we were to climb it. On reaching the Checkpoint we were to hear that George was not too far ahead but we were not going to rush it....

Up Corn Du to get to Checkpoint 6

WOW the next section took my breath away...literally. We took a gentle jog up a roadside to meet about 8 Military Policemen who were doing their Brecon training and I think there was a little bit of admiration from them when they realised we had just passed the marathon mark and were about to ascend the next cliff...or 500 foot ascent with a horizontal gain of 800 yards to the highest point on the course. Here is where the fun and games started when I was excited in the idea that we had the opportunity to run a massive descent which I took with relish but I have a feeling Brian regretted the idea that road shoes were sensible as apparently he fell or slipped over numerous times on the grass and mud, it must have been hell for him as my grippy Kanadias were having trouble on the wet grass as I was seen skidding and swearing through the latter section of the hill. When Brian and I met at the bottom he looked decidedly shocked but he appeared uninjured but in his normal good humour so we continued onwards to Checkpoint 6 where there was a sole marshall happily listening to the rugby and keen to help out with biscuits and gels if needed. It is here I realised I had only eaten just under 2 flapjacks and 2 carb gels all day.

To Checkpoint 7 and the end

Darkness was now descending and we were happy to be off the hills and were going to coast the contours from now on but first we had to traverse a river which didn't sound too bad considering we had had wet feet all day so we went off happy to be on roads for a little while to make up some time when we eventually reached the this water feature. I was surprised to see that we had to descend a deep gully to the river and doing so in the pitch dark, with headtorches was slightly insane and as to prove it I took a tumble twisting my knee slightly which got me to the river a bit quicker than I planned. At the river we found a large rope had been knotted across and we had to use it to pull ourselves throughthe knee high rushing water. Clambering out we continued the last 8 miles by the light of glo-sticks and reflective ribbon, the sights of the mountains and surrounding countryside lost in the dark with just ourselves and the reflection of hundreds of sheeps eyes for company. This was a gutty section, Brian now suffering from the cold as he had fallen a number of times now and his sodden gloves not helping his morale. So at checkpoint 7 he changed into leggings and I lent him my dry, spare gloves from my pack. Staying a little longer than I wanted (my body temperature had dropped significantly during the extended stop) we eventually moved on to take on the last stage.

Tiredness stepped in as we stumbled and slipped our way through the countryside both of us still laughing at each others mishaps and even howled with laughter when we took a wrong direction and I found myself groin high in cold flood water.

We carried on meeting the canal near Talybont very quickly then take a side turn along a track to see the Finish in the near distance. Clambering up an embankment and guided by a marshall we were cheered in with a cow bell and whoops to the welcome finish line....the end to an awesomly, tough, beautiful, fun-filled day across the mountains. Brian was then heralded with a chorus of Happy Birthday and a birthday cake provided by the organisers....brilliant

Things to do...

2011-12-04T20:39:00.000Z

when 1440 feet above sea level.

Looking North West from Talybont Resevoir with Pen-y-Fan in the far distance

Click to Enlarge

Bags packed for Brecon

2011-12-01T23:57:00.000Z

We were laughing last weekend that I have a habit of taking a photograph of my kit the night before a race or event however this time I just have too much to fit on the photo as there is a compulsory list:

Compulsory Kit List

Backpack or suitable means of carrying required kit
Food (including all nutrition supplements, energy bars etc)
Ability to carry water ( absolute min 500ml)
Full body coverage of some thermal value.
Waterproof Jacket
Waterproof Bottoms
Head coverage
Gloves
Whistle
Headtorch
Compass
Space Blanket or preferably emergency bivy.
First Aid Kit
Footwear with adequate grip for slippery off-road conditions.
Map (supplied)

Advisory Kit

Additional thermal layers to the bare minimum listed above.
Spare batteries for headtorch
Mobile phone
Money
Hydration Tablets
Energy Gels

Looking at the lists above it is common sense for mountain running but it just adds that little extra weight for such a climb. I am hoping that we will be allowed to drop the waterproofs but looking at the weather forecasts there is little hope of this. The picture attached to this post was taken at 4.07 pm 1^st December 2011 and at least there is no snow which would make it very interesting indeed.

Stress

2011-12-01T20:04:00.000Z

I can safely say that this week has been a stressful one with a major deadline at work that required me to work longer hours than normal. This capped off with a strike at work yesterday requiring me to cross not just one picket line but a second one when I had to teach at college last night. The latter one was absolutely disgusting with over 100 people blocking my path and name calling, it was only the presence of a Police Officer that prevented me laying into a picketer who shoved me causing me to stumble then call me a scab...this is an apolitical blog so don't want to go into the ins and outs of the reasons for the strike but it was absolutely disgusting that one of my wheelchair bound students was treated with similar contempt.

After college I returned home to then complete the deadline of my project completing the upgrade and configuration at 1.30 am. Today was equally busy tying up the loose ends before being told at 5.00pm that the Director wanted a full report....a request too far.

No running this evening due to relaxing (as best I can) before Brecon Beacons Ultra on Saturday, I am ssoooo tired but I wish I could have run tonight just to destress.

Sore feet

2011-11-30T14:54:00.000Z

After feeling so strong after the Gatliff event at the weekend I took a well earned rest on Monday but by Tuesday I was feeling a little sore in the leg area which I felt was just a matter of ironing out with a short recovery run.

Taking the unusual decision to take the car to the running club I chucked on my running kit and my now fast wearing out road shoes to take the longer journey (by road) to the club house. I felt quite free as I had no GPS watch, no backpack or associated kit with me as I was happy to run around with one of the groups who run at a nice medium pace and for about 5 miles.

I soon realised that in fact I could have gone for a faster group as my legs were feeling fine but I looked to the weekend and reminded myself that I will be running 80 very hilly miles in the space of 7 days. However, when I reached the 4 mile mark I began to realise that my feet were feeling a tad sore, not skin sore but mild bruising sore so was happy that I had made the right decision. When I got home and pulled off my shoes they were indeed partially reddened so had a hot bath and gave them a nice massage to get them malleable again.

Today I am taking the weight of them but teaching tonight which means I will be on them for 3 hours so will have to take care and watch how it goes over the next two days

Gatliff Marathon - Race Report (2011)

2011-11-28T22:21:00.001Z

This run was on George and my "Runs to do list" for the year and this year was our third outing to Edenbridge to take part in it. Ever since we were entered the Brecon Beacons 40 mile ultra next week I was unsure if I should do it but after a lot of discussion we both agreed to do it as a double ultra but take it carefully so as not to tire ourselves out too much.

Arriving at the Edenbridge sports social club at 7.00am I was amused to hear George say "Good lord, look at that, the same old faces" and as we entered we were greeted with waves and hellos....oh dear we are "the same old faces!"

So at 7.45 am we left the club house with Rob and our newly found ultra buddy Barry who was soon coined Bazza for the remainder of the race. We were soon directed off road and I was pleased to find that we had joined our old friend "The Vanguard Way" a route George and I have been on many a time but it was really pleasing to see that it was the route of the now infamous London to Brighton that we first ran along 3 years ago with our good friend Michael. The run was soon to stop after about 15 of us were seen wandering around aimlessly scratching our heads at the first of many a vague direction from the instructions. Back on track we continued on to the first checkpoint for orange cordial and biscuits. The others had chosen to wear waterproofs but I had gone for just a long and short sleeved shirts which was more than suitable as there was only light rain for about an hour which soon cleared to a bright and clear day.

The merry band of four continued on in good humour, Bazza probably taken aback by the amount of noise that Rob and I were making as we teased each other remorselessly about our drunken exploits, Rob and his [alleged] use of trekking poles recently.

It was obvious from recent years that this course was very different from the last two and was definitely a hillier route and what with the late autumnal leaf drop covering tree roots and the fresh rain fall made the course very tough going in places especially over ploughed fields that made our shoes weigh about 10 pounds.

The course gets tougher

Passing the 10 mile mark we were met by our next ambiguous direction which had us going backwards and forwards trying to find the right route wasting a good 15 minutes adding an extra mile. After a good bit of team work we started off again and what I found so brilliant was that nobody cared a jot as we took on the next part of the course and to stop off for drinks at the next check point.

Now entering the middle section of the race we also entered the hilliest part and I was soon recognising the route and was astounded when we started to ascend the North Downs Way and then cover the very same route, Brian George and I ran last week this time in the opposite direction but providing us with new found confidence as we knew this section well, ascending the North Downs scarp at Titsey Hill was one tough thing to do 21 miles into a run but to do the descent was hair raising stuff as 8 of us pegged down it, tripping and stumbling over the roots and arriving at the next check point for more cold drinks and biscuits.

The last section

Now entering the last part of the run we were soon beginning to curse the route designer for not just their tardy route description but now making us run up and down Chartwell and Crockham Hills not once but twice! It was obvious at this point Rob was on fire and wanted to pace off which we happy for him to do so Bazza and he took the lead with George and I pulling off the pace to a steady ticking over to get us through the next few miles unscathed

Back at the club house

Back at the start we were met with a pile of food fit for Kings and Queens, hot sausages in buns, cake, soup and enough coffee & tea to sink a battle ship. So after getting some dry clothes on we were soon seen stuffing our faces and joining in the banter with the other runners

In all 34.8 miles with 3,825 feet of climb (Checked against OS data) in tough underfoot conditions....brilliant day with some fantastic people

Gatliff report coming soon

2011-11-27T23:29:00.000Z

An apology to my Dear Readers about the lateness of my race report for the Gatliff 50km that I ran this morning but it will come very soon as I am a tad tired.

I can tell you that in fact we ran 34.8 miles and took approximately 8 hours, it sounds a long time for the distance but we did take it easy due to Brecon Beacons Ultra next Saturday and we had an accumulative rise of 3825 feet, numerous foot bridges, stiles & gates to climb and hills to ascend.

No injuries to report, feeling incredibly fresh but my feet do feel a little sore from the pounding.

More tomorrow

Gatliff 50km kit ready

2011-11-26T21:27:00.000Z

Planning to run light tomorrow and depending on the weather I may not take my waterproof but will decide at the start

Carbloading?

2011-11-26T18:33:00.000Z

No, I think I should call it overeating.

The Delicious Mrs S had her heart set upon going out for a meal this lunchtime with the three of us as she had some 2 for £10 vouchers, as there were four of us I was commissioned to hunt the interweb for another one. After great difficulty and the threat of defenestrating the elderly printer we were off to a large restaurant and its overloaded carvery.

As I am running the Gatliff 50km tomorrow I saw the carvery and began to fill my plate with every vegetable option available:

Roast potatoes
Cauliflower in white sauce
Sage and onion stuffing!
Yorkshire puddings x2
Peas
Carrots
Red cabbage
Bread sauce
Gravy

My plate was overloaded and I was a tad embarrassed when I went past other diners whose plates seemed to be a little less filled than my mound. Head down I got to our table tucking in and as I dabbed the last smear of gravy from my plate leaving it perfectly clean Mrs S shoved the pudding menu towards me and there was only one thing that had my name on it a Chocolate Brownie Ice Cream Sensation.....an enormous calorie packed ordeal which left my stomach near bursting point and the guilty pleasure of me meeting one of the Deadly Sins....Gluttony.

The Smallwood family were last seen rolling out of the carvery restaurant having lost the ability to walk but I am happy as I am now fully loaded for tomorrow's run

Just doing it

2011-11-25T23:37:00.000Z

I am really looking forward to Sunday's run at Edenbridge, in fact I am probably approaching it in a very matter of fact way. However I am a little concerned as recently my big toe has developed a corn where the newly grown toenail is pushing through the upper skin and it hurts....this has now split!

So tonight the magic foot cream has come out to try and soften it so I can tape it up comfortably ready for Sunday. The whole thing with the toe has irritated me a little as I have been really careful to look after my feet in recent months but have a feeling this is my feet just preparing themselves for the Winter season of wet and cold....stop bitching Jerry.....Just Do It

Double Trouble

2011-11-24T00:11:00.000Z

I have kept this off line until now as it was not officially confirmed with the Delightful Mrs S who has been monitoring my running activities with a suspicious eye for some weeks. Any late night activity deemed to be clandestine and running related has been questioned...until now.

George and I have become creatures of habit and always enjoy the Gatliff Marathon 50 km run having taken part in it a number of times and promises to be eventful, this was a planned run in our diaries but the promise of the Breacon Beacons 40 miler came with much surprise and great excitement....the problem? Well the problem was logistics, can George and I run two ultradistance events in six days?

In true spirit of adventure, there is only one way to find out....do it!

Race details:

Gatliff Marathon 31 mile (50km) : Sunday 27^th November 2011

Breacon Beacons 40 mile (65km) : Saturday 3^rd December 2011

I don't think I want to talk about accumulated ascent quite yet.

Why I love low-key events

2011-11-22T22:48:00.000Z

No Bells, no whistles, no brass bands and no nonsense.

I received this no nonsense email from Dick Kearn, the organiser of the Grand Union Canal Race this evening

"For the benefit of first time entrants I wish to point out that this is a very low-key affair. Please do not expect lots of flags, media coverage and sponsorship. The event is entirely staffed by unpaid enthusiasts and is staged on a not for profit basis. Everything is done as cheaply as possible to keep the entry fee low and make the race available to all. If you are expecting "Goody-Bags" you will be disappointed!"

I think Dick Kearn is brilliant

Two weeks to go

2011-11-20T23:36:00.000Z

This was the Likeys 40 mile ultra yesterday in almost exactly the same route as we are doing on 3^rd December....to say I am a little excited is an understatement.

Into the fog

2011-11-20T20:26:00.000Z

Today was an unusual run as we had a "guest" runner with us in the form of Brian, so at last the Brecon Beacons Ultra team was together for fun and frolics on the North Downs. So at 6.45 am the three of us trudged out onto the North Downs Way ready to take on about 20 miles

The sun was not yet up but we were able to run comfortably in the pre-dawn light and when we were just 3 miles in we stopped at a particularly beautiful scene of the fog settled in the valleys and downs below when Brian exclaimed "Here it is" and we looked up to see the sun rise above the fog, a glorious orange ball spreading its warmth to the cold , dank ground below.

We continued on and the mischevious side of me decided to dip off the North Downs Way through a downhill path to the Pilgrims Way and then spotted a new path that was screaming to investigated. When ever I see a public path with a gate across it, it is like a red rag to a bull (more of that later) but we had now descended into the fog layer and the visibility was down to about 60 yards making it difficult to see across fields....this is to say we were now lost takinga loop of a field until we all seemed to notice the hidden stile at the same time to find us back on track to appear on a road. We were unsure of the direction so the only way was to take a compass bearing to find that we had found a great short cut to Westerham. We remained in the fog for approximately 5 miles and made the decision to ascend the scarp again to the warmth of the day as all three of us were looking a little damp.

Later up the hill I asked if we could investigate a couple of paths we had passed on numerous occassions and after a disappointing one we were soon running down the second into a field of cows and as we ran across Brian and George shouted "Behind you" and I looked to see a cow bearing down on us to which I shouted a series of explatives and luckily it seemed to be put off by us but still very interested. I still think it was Brian's red shirt :-) The Cow Attack knocked our nerve a little so we took the easiest (and longer) route out of the field but then lost sight of the egress point so wandered around the field until we spotted it and we were back out onto the North Downs Way and the warmth of the day.

After a short break of soggy ginger nut biscuits and a sausage roll we climbed back up the scarp and then ran the upper section of the Downs in and around Tatsfield and the southern part of Biggin Hill to return to the car having completed about 4 hours 35 minutes of running and speed walking. I was happy with the days activity, George and Brian as usual were brilliant company and I know we are now ready for the Brecon Beacons 40 miler

Spanner in the works

2011-11-19T18:25:00.000Z

Having written a series of entries in my blog recently waxing lyrical about the Kent countryside, how I felt great and the excitement of running some long distance challenges it all went terribly wrong this week.

After Sunday's run and then a cracking Tuesday run I have felt this overwhelming sense of physical tiredness culminating with me not running for the remainder of the week. My evenings either working at college or flopped on the sofa. This morning I was even planning to go on a Park Run and was looking for the smallest excuse not to go which was soon found when I lost the bar code thing they require you to run and instead of printing one off layed the basis of Saturday's glorious lie in which found me asleep for 10 hours waking naturally.

The four day break has left my legs feeling comfortable, my niggly ankle feeling loose and free but I do still have some residual tiredness. Although the distances don't look too long the actual height gain and effort we have put into them is much more than normal and it has shown through.

Tomorrow will be another Downs run with Brian and George, distance and route unknown but I am sure it will be a good one as the weather promises to be dry, can't wait.

Welcome to the Machine

2011-11-16T23:53:00.000Z

On Tuesday evening I arrived home and collapsed on the sofa ready for a 30 minute power nap knowing that I wanted to run a good, solid 12 miles after. Beside my kit I had my trusty back pack weighing in at 7 pounds, it comprised my skinny kit, a litre of water and sundry bits all items I will be carrying on the Brecon Beacons Ultra. My legs felt tired after Sunday's glorious run and my bruised shin ached!

Leaving the house I soon realised that I was actually feeling good, I was feeling as though this was going to be a methodical, comfortable run. The weather was cool and I was wearing shorts, a long sleeved top and a windproof jacket but on my arrival at the club everyone seemed to be bedecked in leggings, hats, double skins and gloves. I however was not perturbed as I was warmed up nicely having negotiated the woods.

Run with the group went well, Richard had decided to take us on a nice run route that comprised a lot of long, shallow hills where I found myself running in the road along cycle lanes "In the Zone" This particular road is unusual as it has a 2.5 km stretch that has an almost linear elevation rise. I felt particularly comfortable and decided to pace out at a constant pace, tick, tock, tick, tock.

The run went on, usual chat and training talk, grumbles and groans when I was released from the pack to lead the runners who wanted to pick up the pace in the last mile so I stepped into a 30 second per mile faster pace again consistently...I was asked "What is your tempo pace?" to which I answered " When I can just about whistle a tune"

On my way back home, after running through the night time woods, I rejoined the road and negotiated the last hill of the day when I was aware of a car travelling beside me. I do not who the driver was but he shouted through the opened passenger window "You are like a machine man, you are like a machine!"

Whoever this man was, he was right, I did feel like a machine that evening...the training is beginning to yield dividends, I am happy.

A run in a thousand

2011-11-13T20:42:00.000Z

I awoke at 5.52 am this morning with the real need to roll over and have another 4 hours in bed. With great effort I pulled myself from under the duvet with the promise that in an hour I would be rewarded by the North Downs in its full autumnal glory, I was soon to realise that this was the right choice.

This week we had planned to run about 20 miles and had no route in mind but after some umming and arring we had parked the car in Knockholt and got kitted up in the pre-dawn light. I was feeling a little nervous having to run in my new Adidas Kanadia TR4 shoes as they were offering support in places I was not used to but really pleased they were low cut around the ankle and heel, I was not to be disappointed with them.

We jogged off slowly with me wolfing down a banana and carrying a full backpack of kit comprising the required equipment I needed for the Brecon Beacons Ultra weighing in at about 7 lbs.

There was a general plan that we would climb the scarp twice but I was keen to investigate some untrodden paths if we came across them but first we had to navigate some old friends too and as we descended the 400 feet towards Chevening my jaw dropped to the floor to see the sun rising over Kent and showing its head above the fog which was hugging the valley floor below. We were even seen chasing the fog as it dropped from higher ground as the tops of the clouds warmed up.

This joy was to continue for the next 19 miles as every turn, every ascent or descent opened its doors to yet another amazing view, such that we "wanted" to run and ascend the sides of the scarp to show us what it had to show us. Even run within the fog in the valley started to present fantastic sights almost ghostly as the hazy sunshine cast long shadows and created silhouettes of the trees. Cows stared at the ghostly sight of two fluorescent clad runners appearing from the mist, horses bolted and dog walkers said the gleeful good mornings as they too were enjoying the glory of Kent on an autumnal day.

This was not to say we were not taking our training seriously and were still running the hills, hauling our sorry arses through ploughed fields, my yellow shoes now looking a little more like trail shoes as the mud clung to their agressive tread.

As the morning went on the fog slowly started to burn off leaving a fine mist which again gave an ethereal feel to the world around us as farm animals appeared through the mist and ate the dew drenched grass, accentuated by the cobwebs.

Our journey was interrupted when we met a fellow traveller, well actually it was a local getting his morning newspaper, who I asked directions to a road where my great aunt used to live and the last time I was there was 40 years ago. It was here that George recognised hsi accent being from "The Old Country" and they reminisced about various towns in Ireland, we asked directions and we were pointed to the wrong road which found us running in a complete loop, laughing we got back on track and I was able to find the house and was just amazed how little it had changed and being fed carrots cooked for 12 hours and eating packets of Smash potato.

We continued and were soon back on the trail and running through yet more muddy fields and trails but soon had to turn around and try to get back to our starting point planning our route from where we were at that time.

In all this run was a run in a thousand, full of the beauties of Kent and as George mentioned on a number of occasions is what makes the weekend that little better as we can carry the memories of the run to our dull business desks in the week.

Sometimes running is not stupid

Say hello to YELLOW

2011-11-12T19:36:00.001Z

After much deliberation by myself and patience from the salesman at the local running equipment emporium I have purchased my latest pair of trail shoes.

Say hello to the very YELLOW Adidas Kanadia TR4 trail shoe which are described as follows:

"...The adidas Men's Kanadia TR 4 are aggressive, agile trail running shoes with a fast and sleek look...."

The problem is that these shoes come up small and the salesperson was pretty good in coming out with various sizes and I think I got the right size, in fact I didn't even look at the sizes until I found a shoe that felt comfortable on me...let's hope so as I have a ~20 mile trail run to settle them in tomorrow

A challenge worthy of some respect

2011-11-11T20:51:00.001Z

My next challenge is soon to be upon us, in fact only a month away and the organisers have now loaded the route, required kit lists and helpful tips. The Brecon Beacons 40 mile Ultra will prove to be a worthy opponent and I have taken some time to look over the map of the course and then map it out on a mapping website. Ordnance Survey maps do not show all the paths and so I am assuming we will be taken well worn ascents and descents along the courses of streams and contouring where necessary. The stats make some interesting reading:

Total Ascent:	5889	ft (1795 m)
Total Descent:	6126	ft (1867 m)
Start Elevation:	381	ft (116 m)
End Elevation:	380	ft (116 m)
Min Elevation:	369	ft (113 m)
Max Elevation:	1949	ft (594 m)

The total distance is approximately 40 miles (64 km) and proves to be a tough number and as you can see from the image above some vicious ascents and descents

One for the trail

2011-11-11T19:54:00.000Z

A beautiful track by Dire Straits even more poignant on this day

As ever, play it loud

By Jove

2011-11-10T23:44:00.000Z

Click to enlarge

It has been quite an eventful week this week what with being accepted on the GUCR event next June on Monday, reaching 2,000 miles for the year on Tuesday.

This evening my plan was to knock out 10 miles sticking to the pavements where possible and to investigate whether I was able to cross a local bridge on foot that had been closed for repairs. It is a strange feeling running down the middle of a closed road that is normally busy with cars to find it so, so quiet. As I trudged down the road I looked up to a clear black sky and through the trees saw the full moon shining down on me keeping me company with its new companion just to its side, Jupiter (Jove).

I had a strange feeling, almost comforting, to have Jove the Roman god of the sky and thunder on my shoulder as I went on my lonely and weary way. A strange thing really but it kept my mind distracted to get through the run comfortably.

On you marks, get set....

2011-11-07T19:41:00.000Z

GUCR...GO

On 10th September I sent an email notifying the organisers of the Grand Union Canal Run of my interest in running the event in 2012 and was duly put in the ballot for selection. It appears this year the event was very overbooked and therefore the chances of being pulled out of the hat were slim. To tell you the truth my general feeling was just to enter it and if I was not selected then at least I tried which is a better feeling than not trying at all.

The draw for the event was held last night in the Swan, East Ilsley, Berkhire and we were informed that we would not know of the results until tonight but this morning the Facebook GUCR pages and emails were flashing around and I was really pleased to see that I am in....the training continues.

Tough little number

2011-11-07T01:09:00.000Z

The general opinion of the day was that we had to raise our game with only 4 weeks to go before the Brecon Beacons 40 mile ultra. George wanted to take on a 20 mile trail run and I happily spent the latter part of Saturday evening having a look over my map to work out a route...I felt that we had to visit an old friend, part of the London to Brighton route reaching the M25 motorway and then join the Vanguard Way , then North Downs Way and up north to the car.

I found it really hard to wake up this morning and wasn't until about 20 minutes into the run that I felt human again and able to chat properly with George but found from the start I seemed to be ready to run, to take on the hills and not to let up. The first 8 miles of the planned route was an old friend with some nice little testers, hills we have respected too much and it was time for us to take them on and not be frightened of them, with a change of pace we were soon seen taking them in our stride.

We reached the M25 motorway easily and we jumped onto the Vanguard Way to take us up a very steep and rutted route to the top of Titsey Hill through freshly planted fields and herds of cows bemused but beginning to show interest in two fluorescent clad runners pounding past their morning rituals and with that interest two fluorescent clad runners were soon seen ramping up the pace. The next ascent saw us speed walking and chatting about Brecon and the opportunity of having a short break at 10 miles for a bite to eat, today's breakfast menu a satsuma and a gingernut biscuit, we were soon on our way discussing the distant rain dropping in the distant valley then taking on yet another ascent to take us off the Downs and into the flatter, more welcoming paths.

The wind picking up, the temperature dropping on the top of the scarp I put my Buff on and we began to slug out the remaining 10 miles which comprised approximately 0.5 miles of road, the rest trail and field mostly filled with herds of cows getting in the last of the prime grass before winter sets in for sure.

The remaining miles flew by and we were soon on the final ascent to the car park, legs tired, both with twisted and stumped ankles from various trips and clumps. Heart rates up, lungs bursting from the numerous ascents and descents, both really happy with the run and a new found confidence.

Sunday's run , 20 miles with 2,900 feet ascent, numerous scratches from brambles and 1 blister.... aweseome

My old workhorses

2011-11-05T22:57:00.000Z

I have been grumbling of late about a slight soreness in my calves the day after a run and this is indicative of my running shoes beginning to wear out ( The magical 500 mile inbuilt self-destruction?). I am actively looking for a new pair anyway as the Autumn has arrived and Winter weather is promised so I may get a pair of waffle soled shoes which will be great for off and on road training over the next few months.

Mindful of my sore calves (peroneus longus?) I have decided to pull out my old favourites, my Nike Pegasus, which I bought about two years ago and generally use during the winter months, however they too are getting old but will be perfect for the woods, a little tricky on wet chalk, but which shoe isn't.

This week's Long run promises to be a sticky wet one due to the recent rains so it may be best to keep to the main paths over and down the North Downs scarp this Sunday but I have been informed by George that we will have to do at least 20 miles this week with the promise of a longer one next week...who am I to argue

Moonlight Challenge 2012

2011-11-04T23:59:00.000Z

As my regular readers will know The Moonlight Challenge is a "must" do event and I have to admit that I completely forgot I had entered a few weeks ago. I got this email this morning from Mike Inkster, the organiser:

Jerry,

Hope this finds you well? I’ve attached all the relevant details for the Moonlight Challenge which takes place on Saturday 4^th February 2012. Your number will be 11 which you collect when you register. If you have any queries or problems relating to the Challenge then feel free to contact me by email or you can always give me a ring..

See you in February.

Mike

This is great as it fits perfectly into my training plans and taper for the Thames Path 100 in March ;-)

I am also really pleased because I have a prime as my running number!

Wakey wakey

2011-11-03T19:17:00.000Z

I have come to realise I have probably been overdoing it recently!

I worked out that between Saturday and Tuesday I had run 42.2 miles taking a rest of Wednesday as I was teaching at the college that evening. On my way home tonight I got on the train and the next thing I know I was at the end of the line having fallen asleep. The amazing thing is I must have dropped off before the doors closed as I remember nothing of the journey absolutely nothing, ziltch.

Frustrating thing was I then had to get a return train home but luckily it was to the station closest to my house and I was only a few minutes later than normal

Running Numbers

2011-11-01T00:06:00.001Z

It is around about this time of year I announce landmark stats about my running, one which will be coming in the next week or so, injury permitting. Firstly during the month of October I was planning to step up the mileage a little but my ankle injury didn't help things when I took 8 days off whilst it recovered but I am still pleased that I covered ~166 miles ready to ramp up as we approach the Brecon Ultra in December.

However one that did go under the RADAR was the fact that since I started running again in 2007 I have run 8,300 miles which equates to running one third of the distance around the Earth (via the Equator); so if I was to start on the West Coast of Gabon in Africa I would currently approaching Papua New Guinea to the north of Australia

Night Run - A Saucerful of Secrets Report

2011-10-30T22:22:00.000Z

What a fun filled evening with great company, good humour throughout with good running to boot. Whilst organising a night run I try to keep the route as secret as possible so that the runners will have no idea as to the outcome of the run until the start. In fact last night I don't think a good number actually knew where they were at the halfway mark such that we were so far off the beaten track.

I often leave a few clues for the attendees, the first being a Kamikaze pilot putting on his hachimaki , numerous references to planets and suns. I know they were all a little subtle but I had fun adding them to Facebook event pages and my blog and I have a feeling that one of the runners had actually worked out what was happening last night apart from the pub.

It just so happens in the Otford area of Kent there are two pubs about 5 miles apart called Rising Sun and The Rising Sun, between the two of them is the Otford land based Solar System that I am depicting in the image on the left, the "planets" are posts with the names on them and are positioned in such a way that they are the exact same locations as they would have been at 00:01 on 1st January 2000...which midnight on that date we do not know but we assume England. This was the purpose of the run that night, to run to The Rising Sun about 500 yards off the North Downs Way by Kemsing.

The group of 8 started from the car park at just gone 8.00pm with view of meeting another runner who wished to run the 5 mile option so met him equidistant between our start and the pub. It soon came apparent that the group was only really interested in getting to pub for beer so my planned visit to the centre of the solar system was postponed to concentrate on beer drinking.

We soon picked up the North Downs Way and found we had a massive, back breaking climb that just seemed to be that little harder in the dark and I soon found the group strung out as few preferred to walk whilst I along with Brian attempted to run half way up until the steps got us and we decided power walking was the preferred method.

Limousin Bull

It is here that things took a different turn when we arrived at the field that was marked up to inform us a bull was in the field. So picture the scene, 9 runners, with headtorches decide to traverse a field, in the dark where somewhere in it was a bull and about 10 cows. It was so dark that you couldn't see the outline of the trees, I stated in a mad moment "Stay here and I will go ahead to see if there is a bull" and then scuttled off into the dark and when two thirds of the way through it could see 20 yellow dots staring back at me, I had found the herd and just 50 yards away two solitary yellow/green eyes watching me....the bull. I shouted "All clear, you can come across safely now" to watch 8 sets of torches bounce towards me and the gate I was fast running to.

Carrying on we eventually arrived at the pub, an oasis in the middle of nowhere, on the outside it is a beautiful, idyllic flint faced inn house, with high hedges, a beer garden and the St George flag aloft from the pole in the front....on entering it was a completely different matter!

The Rising Sun

I had read reviews of this pub and had got a very different mental picture, the first thing I was met with was this rather unsavoury smell, the bar area was dark, dank with cats scampering to various corners and tables, dogs yelping and scratching from behind an unknown door and a parrot whistling from a cage in the fireplace (unlit). I called out to see if anyone was there and to check if they were open for business. Then a wizened old lady appeared from a doorway and went to behind the bar which comprised two bar taps and a few dusty old spirits bottles. I had a distinct feeling that the others were both bemused and amused as was I at what we had discovered. I was later to find that Liz had ventured off to find the toilets and had to use a headtorch to find her way around, even having to walk past a strange old man sitting in a crusty sofa watching a black and white television...we had found the pub that time forgot.

Guzzling our pints we soon left as we wanted to get back to Shoreham before last orders laughing and joking about the pub we had just left. Was it a figment of our collective imaginations, will we find it in the morning? Was it the witches house from the famous Hansel and Gretel story for we had indeed climbed a path to find it.

The journey back

The journey back went quicker than the way up, I have a feeling the pint of Kentish Ale helped to subdue the fatigue but also I felt a distinct rise in speed through the bull field after I told the guys that the bull actually was in there. A small detour off the planned route to take us a slightly shorter one to ensure the earliest arrival at the destination hampered by a small mishap when someone took a low speed tumble in which their pride was hurt more but he was soon up and we were sprinting to the pub for a well deserved cold drink or warm ale. Another successful Night Run which are always such fun with fantastic people to share such a great experience and enjoy running for runnings sake.

Anti-Doping Chaperone Training

2011-10-30T13:10:00.000Z

What a fantastic morning of training to be an Anti-Doping Chaperone for the Olympic Games test events. I made my way up to Hackney Community College in Islington, London on Saturday morning and was pleased to arrive at 8.35 am to find a similar bunch of Chaperone wannabes sitting around chatting animatedly to each other each with a name label with their event designation, I was soon to sit with a few people who were going to be at the North Greenwich Arena and guzzled coffee to wake myself up.

At 9.00am on the dot we were herded to the highest classroom in the world to have introductions from the AD staff and trainers then have a few powerpoint slides, a video. We were informed that there were no tea breaks and if we wanted drinks we had to grab a glass of water from a drinks dipenser and go to the toilet as we ran through the day...this is what the job is all about and therefore training will be too!

We were then taken down to our classrooms and were put through a series of role plays one as an "athlete" and the next as a chaperone each with a scenario, such as:

A disappointed athlete
A jubilant, medal winning, athlete
An unwell athlete

By far the most embarrassing one for me was when I was told that I was to be an athlete who had didn't speak English and was told to just walk away when the AD Chaperone introduced themselves and didn't show ID. The poor AD approached and I looked at him irritably and announced loudly, in the worst stereotypically contrived acting (even with A bizarre pseudo-Greek accent) "I SPEAKY THE NO ENGLISHY" The poor guy just didn't know what to say as he was battling with the role lay and having to use a radio for the first time in his life.

I am normally quite cynical about these training sessions but this one was actually very useful giving us a good understanding of the workings of the events. I now have some homework to learn my introduction lines and to remember the rights of the athlete once informed of their test. It appears I passed my assessment with flying colours so will just await confirmation of my status to attend the Test event in January 2012, can't wait.

The weekend and other things

2011-10-28T23:13:00.000+01:00

I am really looking forward to this weekend as I have so many things to do and see; firstly I have to be up early on Saturday morning to rush up to London for my training as a Anti-Doping Chaperone for an Olympic test event in January. The session doesn't seem to be too heavy as it is only 4 hours long but I imagine there will be a lot of induction, then practical sessions, either way it sounds good fun.

I then have to rush back, do some chores and then be out to collect Duncan, Liz and Kevin to get to Shoreham for the Night Run - A Saucerful of Secrets which I will talk about much more over the weekend but it promises to be a fulfilling 10 mile run, I hope to see another 6 runners there.

That done, I plan to run on Sunday too and as of yet have no distance or route but would like to force out about 20 miles if my legs are up to it, we'll see.

Close Encounter of the...

2011-10-25T23:58:00.001+01:00

...Forth Kind?

As is the norm these days I ran to the club through the woods which was a little bit tricky this evening as the ground was wet and muddy, there were newly layed leaves on the path and the roots were hidden and slippery, time to be careful. Getting to the club we mustered at the agreed point catching up with the week's news awaiting the group leaders to tell us what the plans were "...blah, blah, blah, turn left blah..." when, as usual, my mind wandered and I looked up at the starry sky to see a very bright star moving across my vision, too high for an aeroplane and too bright for a normal satellite, I turned to our resident star and planet expert, Mark, and asked if he thought it may be the International Space Station, he agreed and I was satisfied until it suddenly disappeared and was excited that I was seeing a UFO until he reminded me that it was cloudy....yes, he indeed is an expert.

Good run this evening, ~7 miles with my old (faster) group and I was in the groove, really pumping out the tempo enjoying the feeling of rubbing shoulders with the faster of the group who I think were being very kind to let me think I was doing well. I was happy to cruise as I wanted to duck out and run through the full width of the woods to home with my headtorch as I didn't fancy an end of run race to the finish line.

Once I was into the woods and my headtorch was on I kept a consistent, if not careful, pace along the paths and was halfway in when I heard a loud "WHOOOP" from the main woods to my right and behind me, I continued on and then an "RAAH HAA HA" really strange voices in the darkness and in the woods. Then about 800 yards away I saw a halo of light coruscating through the branches in the distance, I continued taking the zig zag path of the river slightly perturbed by the lights getting brighter and the strange calls getting closer.

I reached the end of the path and turned in the direction of the lights and noise to be amazed that around the corner came 30 high specification halogen lights attached to 10 cyclists and their bikes, the lead shouting to me "Turn your light off mate it's blinding me!" I am not sure if he was being serious or jesting but I ran off strangely disappointed that ET wasn't around the corner wanting to borrow my mobile phone but highly amused that 10 cyclists were now arguing how to get their bikes through the chicane barrier that is supposed to prevent cyclists from entering and leaving the woods...oh the joy :-D

Ultrarunning Word of the Day

2011-10-25T13:41:00.000+01:00

I am often asked what I think of when I run long distances...this sums it up in one word

anoesis \an-oh-EE-sis\, noun:

A state of mind consisting of pure sensation or emotion without cognitive content.

Normally, on my long-distance walks, anoesis descends within a few miles: the mental tape loop of infuriating resentments, or inane pop lyrics, or nonce phrases gives way to the greeny-beige noise of the outdoors.
-- Will Self, Psychogeography

Thank you to Dictionary.com Word of the day

Sunday - A run of two halfs

2011-10-23T23:58:00.001+01:00

I was up at 6.00 am this morning with a plan to be out of the house by 6.40 to meet Duncan at his house and then to move on the club house to then join up with our chum Liz. As a lot of people know I am certainly not my best in the morning and don't really "wake up" until about 8.00 am however Liz was full of beans and ready for action

After the decision for a run in the country I was desperately pouring over my map to find a suitable run of about 10 miles and so it agreed that we would run from Shoreham to near Otford Manor.Liz and Duncan were full of beans this morning whilst I still felt a little jaded as we headed off from the car park with the warning from Liz ringing in our ears that we were not allowed to run too fast something I was not intending to do but we soon found ourselves running at a ridiculous pace that we all pulled off a little.

Joining the North Downs Way we soon found ourselves being distracted by various sites along the way including the Otford Solar System (picture right) and then later before a long and high ascent, the Otford Chalk Pit where they used to dig and burn the chalk to create lime.

The big ascent took us up to a field with a sign stating "Please keep dogs on a lead BULL IN FIELD" but we were pleased to note that there was nothing to see although I did have a distinct feeling the pace did pick up on this section. By now I was wide awake and my usual gabby self chatting about this and making my usual noise and on our arrival at a viewpoint said "Isn't it wonderful to stand here with the peace and quiet, you can hear the traffic....." then realised that we couldn't hear the peace and quiet as I was talking too much...so I shut up!

We arrived at Otford Manor and ran to the wooden cross that overlooks the Kemsing valley below to see a fine mist hanging over the fields as the sun rose and enjoyed the moment and break taking in and savouring the view. I was rather pleased to note that we were exactly 5 miles into the run at the turn around point and all looking good after a tough climb ready for the climb down but choosing to take a slightly different route back.

On our way back I can across a lone runner and stopped to chat with him telling him that I thought I recognised him, it turned out he was an ultra runner too and we were both doing the Brecon 40 in December, what were the odds of that, 150 runners and we bump into one of them on a lonely road in Kent? The next shock was on our return to the field we walked through the gate to find that the bull was on the otherside with his herd of cows and calves, the pace definitely picked up now as we traversed the field.

The run took a new route at this point as we went off road again following the River Darenth arriving back at the car with good humour with a job well done, it is here I bid my farewells to Liz and Duncan when I continued my run on my own

The second half

This is always the hard part when I continued my run by myself, after such wonderful company I realised I had two hours on my own and to try and plan a route that would take in about 11 miles. I had one satsuma and one litre of water, time to go off road again.

I soon got back on the paths and found myself gravitating to a horrific ascent of 200 feet in 0.2 miles which had me sweating buckets and gasping. In the back of my mind I was regretting the fact I had said goodbye to Duncan and Liz but was determined to complete my run and buckled down to a slower more consistent pace through the local golf course and along a secluded country road to discover a new footpath that I decided to investigate but soon turned around as I had no map with me and was foolhardy by myself, we will leave that for another day..

At mile 15 I chose to have a breather by the river, eat my satsuma, watch the ducks, wash my hands and then continue on but the sun was well and truelly up by now and it was getting warm so chose to do a longer loop around the main paths we had run (boy that was hard as I was with 100 yards of the car at one point) to take in 21 miles (34 km)

Great run today, thanks liz and Duncan

Next short term challenge!

2011-10-22T23:55:00.000+01:00

I have had the go ahead for my next challenge on 3rd December. Here is the email from my friend Brian:

Hi guys

Its my 40th birthday on Saturday 3rd December and I was thinking about what to do to mark the day and ...

...on that day there is a 40 mile run in Wales in the Brecon Beacons so I thought wow why not run 40 on my 40th?! I would need someone of your 'ultra' standings to get me round and I thought it would be a laugh as we'd need to spend Friday/Saturday night there. I know its a long shot at this short notice but if either of you could make it then great. Let me know, cheers

After the obligatory growling from the ever patient Mrs S I was given the go ahead as long as all layout comes out of my slush fund...I think I can do that. I just can't wait to climb this

[Click to enlarge]

Clueless

2011-10-22T16:38:00.000+01:00

This evening I decided to have a break from running as my ankle was a little sore promising a run on Saturday and Sunday if all was OK. I was then volunteered by Mrs S to drive my youngest and her to a very large shopping mall about 15 miles away and so jumped at the opportunity as I wanted to go to the running shop to see if they had some Mizuno Waverider Harrier shoes a nice low profile shoe allowing me to stick to the trails. The visit was more to have a look at them, try them on and see what else was on offer as I have wrecked my usual shoes with all the off road stuff I have done recently.

Leaving the family to go to the various fashion shops I sneaked off the running shop with a spare pair of socks in my pocket in case I wanted to try some shoes on.On entering there were the usual suspects: Inov-8 Mudclaw, Adidas Kanadia and some Asic. Whilst perusing the racks I was approached by this young assistant who asked if I needed some help and I said:

"Have you any Waverider Harrier in stock?"

"Waveriders? Yes" finding and handing me a pair of Waverider road shoes

"No, I was looking for the Harrier, the off-road version of these"

"No such thing sir"

"Yes, the Harrier is the off road, low profile shoe"

This comment was met with a look of disbelief and I was deftly handed the Adidas Kanadia which I have owned before, cut me to shreds and made me lose 3 toenails I told her that they were not an option but thought I would try them on to see if the new model was any different....no, too tight across the ball of the foot but great room in the toe box, laces now slimmer and longer (still a nice show, just not for me) I handed them back mentioning my findings, the next tirade of fiction resulted:

"You'll be OK, we can give you a size up, the extra grip will be good and when you run on trails you don't need support as the mud will cushion your foot" I was beginning to get rather perturbed by the information she was providing me letting it play out to see how far it went asking to see the Mudclaws, this was a new experience as I have heard a lot about the shoe but never tried them on. The Mudclaw is renowned for being a great as a mountain/fell shoe, great grip on wet rock whilst being brilliant in mud. I tried them on, pulled the laces out wide and really wanted them to fit but alas my wide feet let me down yet again and was worried about the lack of cushioning. "You will be fine sir, when you run on trail you don't need as much cushioning as the mud and leaves will do it for you." I pointed out that was not strictly true as it was shoe that supported the foot not the terrain and was unwilling to try on long distances

I was now beginning to get really worried who was feeding her this $h1t? She continued...."The studs will be great in the mud and won't allow you ankle to roll about" I mentioned then that I did long distance running mainly on trail and what she said was not strictly true and whilst assisting in lateral support didn't stop it and then she said the most ludicrous thing

"If you are doing long distance trail runs I suggest that you think about wearing spikes!"

I had had enough, the young assistant was being really attentive, got the shoes at a bound when requested but I was really concerned as the information she was providing was just misleading.....no misguided but not dishonest. I am a reasonably experienced runner and was able to sift through this diatribe and able to identify therefore ignore the wrong information. My concern is that people new to running will listen and believe what is being said and in doing so open themselves to unwarranted injury.

I know the assistant was not knowingly being deceitful but chasing the sale but some of those comments (in red) were just outrageous

White Van Man strikes again

2011-10-21T00:19:00.001+01:00

Thursday evening again and regular readers will know that this is the day that I am often very tired and demotivated. I was in the kitchen cooking my tea when my youngest daughter strolled in wearing a t-shirt, track bottoms and trainers announcing that she was going for a run with her mate...now I definitely had to go for that run and had plotted out a loop that would take me along to the Blackwall Tunnel approach and then around the South Circular to return home, locals reading this blog will know what I mean when I say A20, A205 and A2212, basically busy roads all 9 miles (~15km) of them.

As I plodded around my mind wandered off to various things but was coming more and more aware that the traffic seem to comprise mostly white Transit vans, hundreds of white vans scuttling like ants along sugar coated trails to their nests or where ever they go of an evening. Fine I thought, that is what happens on main roads until through my musings some idiot in a....wait for it....in a white van can hurtling up from a side nearly knocking me for six was it not for my dainty footwork. I said nothing as I have learnt that you never win with White Van(gry) Man so moving on I got another mile when yet again some idiot in his white van hurtled past mounting the pavement to a halt just yards from me...madness

It was tough to run tonight but glad I did it but have a feeling I may be going down with something but averaging 8 miles (13 km) a day at the moment

Mind on another planet

2011-10-19T00:32:00.000+01:00

Yes, running as a hobby is self-indulgent, self-absorbing and all about yourself....come on be truthful. Look at me, why did I start running? It was because I was an ex-smoking, over-drinking, over-indulgent fellow that needed to shift some pounds. Ask a new person to running and the reasons are similar and we often retract into our worlds for as many hours or miles as we can...call them the ME hours/miles.

This evening was about churning out 12 miles as easily as possible and get home to a warm bath but I have to admit that I was in a particularly mischievous mood with a lot of mickey taking and noise. There was Matt winding down ready for his Beachy Head Marathon on Saturday, Mark "tip toeing through the tulips" and another lady who had music playing from her pocket which seemed to get louder the faster she run! All stuff that keeps me amused and my mind off my aching thighs and ankle.

So getting home, full of endorphins I rushed around to get a drink and smile to myself for a job well done when passing my youngest daughter's bedroom was met by said child who stated:

"A cylinder of radius 4x is filled with water to height h into which a ball of radius 3x is dropped. Calculate the increase in height of the water in terms of x"

All memories of running now evaporated from my mind as I was called to task and had to "prove" my ability to solve and explain this insane educational request...not easy at 10.00pm.

My point? I don't know really, is it guilt? No, I don't think so but me being mindful that other things are happening around me when out running having "me" time

Oh what to do?

2011-10-17T22:39:00.000+01:00

I am feeling pretty good today after yesterday's jaunt out to Westerham although my legs do feel a little tired which is testimony to how tough the course was.

Monday is traditionally my rest day and the evening normally involves some light chores, correspondence with my students who may want some help and then a little surfing on the interweb. I was looking in on my ultrarunning Twitter feed and was interested to find out from a gent who has the handle Johnnnny_M that there was a television programme on the Coast to Coast path depicting some of the Hardmoors 110 to be held on 2^nd June 2012....I was tempted after a flurry of egging on by the usual suspects.

That is until I read my emails and a "test" email had been sent by the organiser of the Grand Union Canal Run to see if the people who had entered the ballot were still interested in entering....what is the date of the event, yep, you've guessed it 2^nd June 2012.

To make things worse I get a message via Twitter from the organisers of the Hardmoor 55 telling me that I can still enter for the race on 12^th August 2012, brilliant I thought but then I looked at the date again...aaaahhh it was the last day of the Olympics and I can't commit gggrrrr

Never mind, time will tell

We cried Wolfe

2011-10-16T16:55:00.001+01:00

I read the email from George "It is so beautiful today with tomorrow promised the same that I am sure that I will be able to manage a twenty in one go. So let’s just go for An (sic) approximate 20"

I had the route in my head (apart from the bit where we had to jump over two locked gates barricading a public footpath and run up a hill) and so at 6.30am I pulled up outside George's house who was waiting in his porch. Having read his email I don't think the two of us had taken into consideration that it was zero degrees centigrade in parts and were thankful that we had brought our running jackets. A short drive later we were up and out of the car shivering on the roadside donning our kit within a mile I had my hands rolled up inside my sleeves and George running with his hands in his pocket as we left the bright lights of town to enter the surrounding countryside.

The pre-dawn light was sufficient to run on the trails but we had to run for about 40 minutes before the sun poked its head above the horizon and shone down on a beautiful frosted and misted North Downs. George and I were soon heard waxing lyrical about the views which were stunning as the orange golden light extended the shadows and began to warm our goose bumped legs.

Stopping briefly in Knockholt to watch the valley below filled to the brim with fog likening it to a white lake I was a little bit morbid in my description as I saw it as the river Styx, the boundary between Earth and the Underworld, imagining that Phlegyas would float through the mists to take our souls. Shaking this thought from my mind we descended the ridge into the fog to be hit by a wall of cold and find the fields covered in hoar frost, luckily no Phlegyas, but we did find one of the elusive "secret" exits to the M25 that are not shown on road maps and were able to view the traffic thundering past us with no barrier between us and them!

At this time of year the harvests have been done and the fields freshly ploughed hiding public footpaths so reclaiming our right to cross we were soon seen clomping across a field racking our brains to remember whether it was a public or permissive path as we approached the other side towards the farmer in his enormous tractor, indeed it was public but our feet were now covered in dried mud making the going a little tougher.

We finally reached our target, General James Wolfe's statue, well I did, realising I had lost George who had stopped off in the churchyard to read a few headstones and get some history. So after a short break we were back off on the trail again retracing our steps, this time with no fog which was fast burning off and we were a little warmer as we got back to car having run a cracking 19 miles completing a 50 mile week (minus 0.8 miles) but still pleasing

Don't cry Wolfe

2011-10-15T21:05:00.000+01:00

Here is our target for Sunday morning the statue of General James Wolfe was born in Westerham, Kent, where this statue is located.

The route we have planned is approximately 18 miles but is a toughy due to the greensand ridge but as George is doing the Beachy Head Marathon and I am just getting back on my feet we will take it nice and easy.

What did you say?

2011-10-14T23:59:00.002+01:00

The plan this evening was to go out for a 12 mile (~20km) and had got an idea of a route in my head...a pretty cool route that involved a little night cross country, that is, until the delightful Mrs S inadvertently changed the plan.

Mrs S had been labouring over a birthday cake my daughter had baked and created a work of art, all white icing, pink letters and feathers for a friend's daughter who was 18 today. It was our duty to deliver it in one piece and who was I to argue? So a change of plans was on the books.

On arriving at our friend's house I bid my farewells and scarpered up the street, Garmin on, a vague route in my head the problem being that it was along a bunch of main roads made all the busier by the flurry of Friday night traffic; the noise was horrendous and not at all pleasant. It still amazes me that this section of road is a popular route for wannabe marathon runners as they approach the final stages of their 12 week programme and possibly the most unpleasant road to run.

Sticking to the roads until later on in the run I slogged out the miles to get home very pleased that I had completed a nicely paced run but still pining for the tranquility of a woodland path away from all the traffic.

What a load of balls

2011-10-13T23:37:00.000+01:00

No running on Wednesday evenings for the time being as I am now back teaching at the university. It was a 12 hour day and considering that it was a busy one both at work and at college I was pleased that appeared to be no ill effects from my 12 mile run after an 8 day break.

However, this morning, as I walked to the station I came very aware of this hideously sharp pain in the back of my leg that would come and go on a regular basis. It was the type of pain that makes you take in a sharp inhale of breath. So on my arrival there was only one thing to do, get my trusty tennis ball from my bookshelf and place it on the chair under my thigh and sit down carrying on my work regardless. It was pretty impressive as after about 10 minutes the pain went away, it must have been some type of knot which was ironed out nicely.

As for tonight, I went for a nice bouncy 10km run cutting across the local woodland park requiring a headtorch needless to say I had no problems with my thigh although my foot did grumble a little so will watch that area carefully over the coming days.

They see only what they want to see.

2011-10-12T00:07:00.000+01:00

This is a famous quote from The Sixth Sense when the young character Cole Sear tells Malcolm Crowe that the spirits he sees are in denial about being a ghost and "They see only what they want to see."

I too had been in denial about my foot stubbing incident at the beginning of the month and although I knew it was quite painful for a few days it is only now that I have realised how bruised it was. I remember getting back to the car after the run and saying to George that my "shoes were rubbish" as the heel support was digging into my ankle and it "must be the insoles". I then went out for a walk with the delicious Mrs S and grumbled that my post-run sandals were digging into the grazes caused by my "rubbish" running shoes.

Tonight, I went out for my first run in 8 days, a life time these days, so placing my shoes on my feet I was amazed how well they fitted even around the ankle! I was aware that my quads were achy which I knew I would be able to run out on the way to the club. So off I bounced running through the woods to the club joining in with the 5 mile group for a steady run to run home via the longer path in the woods to home making a lovely 12 miles.

After cooling down I went off to have a bath and it was only then that looking down at my ankles I realised they had veins, a dimple and see the outline of a tendon. In fact this was to say that my ankle was not swollen which had probably been like that for quite a few weeks if not months and I had become accustomed to it.

I really enjoyed my run tonight my ankle felt OK although my foot had a tiny niggle and my head was clear(ing) of the thick cataarh that has been plaguing me...things are looking up at last.

Eat your elephant

2011-10-10T23:56:00.001+01:00

Whilst working in a Technical IT team many moons ago we were often under pressure to create the impossible from nothing and often delivered on time and in budget. We soon learnt that panicking was a waste of energy so we often disappeared to the pub to plan. When hit with a massive problem we often heard our team leader say:

"How do you eat an elephant?"

and we used to reply back in a well rehearsed and drunken slur:

"One bite at a time"

So this evening I reviewed my training plan having realised that I had totally overlooked the big challenge I set myself for March 2012 a 100 mile run so took about an hour tweaking my current plan to take into account the elevated distance, I still get scared that in the next 20 weeks I will have to run 1205 miles, knowing my track record it will probably be 1000 but it is something to work to.

Oh, by the way, did I tell you that I am planning to do the 100 miles in under 24 hours? How am I going to do it?......You've got it, one bite at a time.