Totally cross country

A great run out from Keston to Tatsfield with Duncan today to have a look at the monument marking the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty just outside Tatsfield, Kent. More interesting was the route we took along the Roman Road I first run in January 2010 as part of a much longer run.

As per usual the run was full of great surprises from a Roe Deer jumping out from the undergrowth some 30 metres from where we were running giving us a jump to pheasants a plenty. What was noticeable today were the vivid colours in the fields, we saw landscapes tinted blue by the miriad of flowers in them, to suddenly finding I was surrounded by poppies (see main picture) and then later on a field completely white that looked like it was covered in snow but when we got closer found it was large headed daisies.

A very pleasing run and to show how deep we were off road (and path) we only saw three people for the whole 13 miles and that was in the last 10 minutes of the run!

New plans afoot

After Thursday's little jaunt out to the park for a few laps I feel pretty well OK apart from a few grumbles in the foot which I reckon will settle down during Saturday and so am ready for a little trail running on Sunday.

I reckon a steady 20km out and back will do the trick with a little hill work before I hit the Surrey Hills and an AONB The picture shows the turn around point which is the Surrey Hills AONB Marker near Tatsfield, Kent

Going Naked

I was back to work for the first time since the Grand Union Canal Run and walked to the station, a distance of about 1.5 miles and was pleased that my aches and pains have lessened but not quite gone. The same from the station to home but with a little grumble below the ankle still.

Thursday night Speed training started again last week and as it is in the safety of the local recreation ground I decided I would attend to have a few gentle laps and to stop as and when I needed to. The session was going well but I noted I still had that grumbly tendon which seemed to be exacerbated by my running shoes, there was only one thing to do, take them off!

So whilst wearing my socks still ( I was protecting my old blisters) I went for 3 laps of the park and was pleasantly surprised to find the pain in my ankle evaporate. I am unsure if it was the barefoot running or the fact my soles were slapping on dry grass and mud that made the pain go but I will certainly try it again but not sure if it will be permanent.

The love affair is over

Whilst expecting to get a few blisters and rubs along the way from my shoes on the Grand Union Canal I have finally realised that my current shoes (and socks) are not the way forward if I want to carry on with long distance running.  

The blistering on my inner heels were horrendous at the weekend and so it is goodbye to Mizuno Waveriders, I am now in the market for new brand....watch this space

GUCR - Race Report

As you will know by now I did not complete the full distance of 145 miles but I want to tell you my journey to 91 miles.Some would say this is a failed attempt and they would be right, I don't, I see this as a successful attempt without the finish line!

The Start

With the stark warning of the dangers of pain killers we were sent on our way, I don't think we had moved 5 metres before we started walking as we negotiated low canal bridges and paths about 1 metre wide which was not easy as 93 runners negotiated the route.

Birmingham, now revitalised is a mixture of old and new buildings, the former still showing in the central and surburban areas. It took a little while to get out of town and I think I should get a prize for the first blood injury after I stuck my arm up to prevent me knocking into a bench and scraped my hand against the canal wall causing a deep graze that bled prefusely. The morale was high at this point which is always very dangerous and George and I made a conscious effort to knock off the speed to a comfortable 5 miles per hour shooing other runners away if we felt they were drawing us in. The general conversation with other competitors was about "strategy", usual stuff about 25/5 techniques, knocking out a fast first half ready for a slower second but I just brushed the subject with a "never more than 20 minutes ahead" comment.

George and were very happy to find that as we ran along we were to hit the first checkpoint (10.7 miles) at almost 8.00am on the dot showing we were pacing well and feeling very strong.

Checkpoint 1 (10.7 miles) and onwards

Looking good

At checkpoint 1 (Catherine de Barnes) I attended to my cut hand with antiseptic wipes and a plaster then went about scoffing a handful of biscuits and a few cups of cold drink, filled my bottles with water and nuun bugging out quite quickly.

We were now in rural parts and the path moved into rough path and hard mud. It came apparent that the flatness of the course and any incline felt like a mountain when the leg muscles moved to different sets and at about 20 miles I felt a little "wobble" as my blood sugars felt low and by luck there was a shop on the path where I bought a packet of crisps and a few bars of chocolate as reserves for a later stage. At Hatton Green we were to find checkpoint 2 and the start of 22 downward locks and at this point we happily entered for hot drinks and a pile of peanuts, biscuits and sweets.

Checkpoint 2 (22.4 miles) and onwards

This was an interesting section, both George and I were still in good spirits, both feeling happy that the last 2 checkpoints were under our belt and we were making good headway. Another thing that was mentioned was we were also pleased that the field had spread out by now which took away further pressure to run with people and at a pace you did not want to do.

At about 30 miles George shouted "That's the Allens ahead" and looking up I saw two people running towards us waving, indeed it was Brian and his son. Brian is from our running club and had said he would meet us at some stage. This was a fantastic morale boosting thing as we said hello to his family and had the chance to stop and chat for a little while but checkpoint 3 was a stones throw away and we were feeling hungry so we bid our farewells  for the moment as we trundled off laughing and pleased we had met up. The photograph on the right was taken from Brian's Facebook page and was entitled "We are treating it like we are on holiday"  That was an interesting comment I remember saying this to him as we were enjoying ourselves here and taking the pressure off. Looking at the clouds behind the weather was soon to change.

Check point 3 (36 miles) and onwards

To get to checkpoint 3 we had to climb up 10 locks, no mean feat a ~34 miles and by now we were getting hungry and the thought of hot food spurred us on and just as we were about to reach it we were met by the Allens again and we stumbled through feeling a  little guilty that we were not giving them our full attention with our minds focussed on a large bowl of soup comprising spaghetti, pulses and baked beans with a pile of bread rolls and biscuits.

The weather was turning bad no as a large rain cloud came over and dumped its contents but luckily we were safely ensconced under a gazebo. In the picture on the left I am to be seen stuffing food and probably eyeing up a hot drink. I promise you I only had two rolls and only a handful of biscuits but it was a meal fit for a King (or Queen).

A few sweets and savoury snacks later we pushed on finding the Allen family tucking into their picnic further up the path and bidding our farewells we marched off. We couldn't have planned it better as now the clouds had blown over and the sun was out. At 39 miles we came to a fork in the river and there was a little confusion on the map reading side  as we knew we had a turning soon but 4 miles ahead of ourselves looking at the next map in the series! I decided to cross over as a recce to read a sign and nearly jumped out of my skin squealing like a baby when a 2 foot Adder slid off ahead of me. We soon worked out our bearings and were off again

 

This was tough old section, the sun was out as we crossed into the midday sun reaching some beautiful scenery and bridge crossings. We chose this time to speak our wives and have a chat to say we were safe and all was going well as I know they were worried which in turn cheered us up. Around us we were aware of other runners as the checkpoints tended to bunch us together for a little while and ever so often you would see the glimpse of another runner as you rounded a bend. Passerbys would stop us to chat and we would explain what we were doing leaving them with opened mouths!

Our pace was still looking good averaging about 4 miles per hour but we were soon to focus on the checkpoint 4 where there were cold drinks and snacks awaiting. Due to the heat of the day we were pleased we had hired a British Waterways key that allowed us access to the locked water cabinets and taps so we could fill up. Before we could get there we first had to navigate over the Braunston Tunnel with the path taking us up a steep hill. This was probably the first time I felt a shift in our moods as we became more introspective. Looking back on this it was probably because we realised we had 100 miles to go at that time!

Braunston Tunnel behind us we battled on to Checkpoint 4 where hot drinks and snacks awaited

Checkpoint 4 (53 miles) and onwards

The little game of numbers is a great motivator, like here, we had just completed 2 marathons and we were focussed getting food on board, getting torches in our bags as it would be dark before we got to the next checkpoint and we had a long hill climb ahead traversing a tunnel under Blisworth hill, a horrible climb in the dark on a country road. I was cheered up to get a couple of texts and a phone call around this time from well wishers but when we finally returned to the canal side our pace was reduced to a fast walk and we were feeling stressed about times as we were trying to hit the midpoint checkpoint 5 well within the cut off time of 1.00am, both of us doing mental arithmetics about pace and time. I don't know why we were worrying about but one of the organisers was playing a good mind game at Checkpoint 3 about us having to hurry up a little)

Checkpoint 5 (70.5 miles) and onwards

We had been warned that a lot of people drop out at this checkpoint due to various reasons like:

1. It was half way
2. The night part was a downer
3. People were cold or unwell

We chose to take this onboard, ignore what was going on around us and just eat, drink and get into our night gear. I grabbed a hot meal of baked beans, quiche and bread, ate sweets, chocolate and drank a hot coffee. My concerns here were my feet which were now blistered and sore, the roadside repairs were holding up but my left heel was bothersome.

As we sat there we heard that runners were dropping out, by that time 22, nearly a quarter of the whole field and saw 2 of those people do it at this checkpoint. We chose to move on and get onto the canal again. Then the race really started for us, we were 70 miles in, it was dark, windy with a fine rain and dark clouds on the horizon. Our moods were down, George not talking and grunting ever so often, I was having dark thoughts and whimpering when my foot was placed wrongly on a rut, my foot blister filling with fluid and my ankle grumbling a little. I was pushing the pace to about 4 miles per hour, a speed walk and I think at this point I was in a better place mentally than George but at around 2.00am I began to hallucinate badly as my mind wandered away and I saw a black crow attack me, it was so real that I even put my arms up and ducked, I saw a black cat walk across the water and a green cowled witch sitting on her canal boat!

As the weather front pulled in George and I stopped for a rest and had a can of caffeineated energy drink which perked us up no end and we continued on. By now by blistered foot was causing me real problems and I asked if I could stop up and check it, it was now enormous and I chose to burst it and was taken aback by the shear quantity of fluid that came out, I know now that this was a deep blister. I now found that my plasters were not in my bag but as luck would have it another runner passed by and he told me his sister was at the next bridge and so I walked on to find that she was a nurse and patched me up with some great foam padding! George for some reason had decided to go on ahead of me but with my injury covered I found myself running to catch him a new energy inside me as the sun came up at about 5.00am. Converstaion returned and George thanked me for pulling him along.

Checkpoint 6 (84.5 miles) and the end

This checkpoint never seemed to arrive, we were now tired and glucose depleted, heads a little fuzzy and I had it in my head we were going to have hot food but I was wrong. We were a bit grumbly and it was difficult to read the finer print of the map and judge distance. On arriving at the Checkpoint we were disappointed to be met with damp crisps, damp peanuts and just a few sweet offerings. After a good chance to rest we had 15 miles to get hot food. We traipsed on, my mood was now rock bottom and George asked if I could go on as he wanted to repair his feet and woul dcatch me up. I carried on walking and was then surprised to see him run up behind me all well and chatting  an amazing turn around!!! We carried on for another 3 miles and George said to me "I just want to have a little jog to get my legs going I won't leave you" I knew that was going to be the last time I saw George for the race and so I hopefully carried on, my speed reducing, I was unable to quench my thirst even though I was drinking lots and I knew that if I did make it to the next checkpoint there was no guarantee I would be able to keep the pace on for another 18 hours so after much heartache I chose to make the call at 91 miles, my GUCR over.

GUCR - Pre-race Report

Wow, this is going to be a long report and don't know where I can start

The night before the big race - Friday 27th May 2011

After an uneventful journey we arrived at Birmingham New Street station and made our way to our hotel with the help of a very friendly local who walked us most of the way!

After settling into our rooms at the Travelodge Central George and I couldn't wait to get out to look at the start and so we went a for a walk down to Gas Street to the canal where we decided to walk the first mile an interesting recce showing Birmingham's old and new face

Registration

Registration was back at our hotel in the foyer but before we got there we popped into O'Neills pub next door to see if other runners had arrived and were pleased to see a few faces that I recognised from the Facebook page that was set up after a brief chat we went to registration where I got my number and my GUCR 2011 t-shirt and sweat shirt. Registration was brilliant, I was to be runner #51 and there was much excitement amongst the competitors as we laughed and joked nervously about our plans and as planned a few of us decided to meet in the pub afterwards.

With that George and I took our kit to our rooms and then went out for our belly buster meal, purchase some last minute items from the supermarket and then met up with other runners in the pub for a couple of pints before retiring to our rooms ready for the big challenge the next day.

The Race start -Saturday 28th May 2011

Up bright and early after a disturbed night's sleep (after all we were in the middle of Birmingham's party district) I ate a large bowl of cereal and a banana before dressing, meeting George and checking out and making our way to the start. All around us were the remains of stag night revellers, early workers and lycra clad runners wandering slowly towards Gas Street. 

The sky was thankfully overcast but the wind was up and we were soon to shivering slightly, I am still unsure if this was nerves or the early morning cold!

Then at 5.55 am we were called to go down to the canalside where we were briefed about the race and a stark warning made about Ibuprofen

"Painkiller It may take the pain away but it won't take the killer"

and with that stark warning we started on a fantastic journey

GUCR Race Report is coming

Dearest Reader,

My Grand Union Canal Run is coming and it promises to be an interesting one, as some of will know by now I did not finish (DNF) the event only covering 91 of the 145 miles.

Please check regularly as I will posting my report very soon

All packed and ready

Paramilitary Rabbit?

Wow, what a whirlwind of an evening, the weather has been absolutely mad and after having such a dry period we had torrential rain with a shower of hail stones and muggins here didn't have a coat!

Packing got underway after I dried off, all the piles of kit were sifted, sorted and then piled into relevant "to pack" piles, checklists ...uummm.. checked, stuff sacks...uummm... stuffed and eventually everything was placed in two holdalls, one for the back of the van, the other for easy reach to allow me to get to my kit. I am telling you, it is a work of art with all my odds and sods in plastic lunch boxes and a biscuit tin for easy access.

Then came the issue of my socks, many a person has mocked me for my use of cheap socks but they work for me :-) The only problem was that I grabbed old and new in the sifting/sorting stage and founs a pair that must have been used by a paramilitary rabbit (possibly the one I conjured up on the Ridgeway last year) so I think it maybe time to get rid of that pair.

A week of thousands

I am absolutely astounded by the generosity of so many wonderful people after my target for sponsorship for The Prostate Cancer Charity was hit into orbit passing the £1,000 mark, I am so pleased and gives me yet another reason to get through the Grand Union Canal Run but I have heard that there are some late pledges which need to be added, thanks everyone who has donated so far.

One for the trail

This is one for when alone on the trail and energy is low and morale is flagging......play it loud, I love it.

She knew how to sing it

Warm feeling

So it is Tuesday and physically I am feeling OK but last night did myself a mischief whilst playing on the Wii pulling my leg muscle a little, I am not too worried about it but it is an annoyance. 

I have been rushing about a bit getting the last few items of kit together today, you know the small stuff, wet wipes, packets of plasters and the like but just had one more thing to get. I had gone onto my running club forum and asked if anyone was willing to lend me their Garmin GPS watch and was really pleased when two offers were made. As this was my last chance to get it before Friday I drove down to my club house to arrive just before the first group of runners returned and was really pleased to see them all come trundling up the path with tired smiles on their faces.

I was then amazed by the warm reception I got and calls of "Good Luck Jerry" and then others coming over to chat about the weekend ahead, my plans and my training. A lot of these people I had never spoken too before but it obvious that they had been talking about me! 

I left about 20 minutes later feeling really excited about the weekend ahead, the fact that I had so many people looking out for me and willing to help in so many ways from lending a Garmin to apologising that they hadn't come to the track last weekend. Wow, thanks guys...this is when clubs really make the difference.

1000 for 2011

It feels as though it took a long time coming but at a very much reduced pace this evening (almost speed walking) I hit the psychological barrier of 1,000 miles so far for 2011.

That is the equivalent of me running from my house and reaching Naples in Italy as the crow flies and assuming I can walk across the English Channel.

So from now on it will be nothing apart from walks to and from the station, being very careful to get the job done this weekend.

It is almost coincidental as my collection for the Prostate Cancer Charity has almost reached £1000 after some really generous donations of late...fantastic.

Take it easy

The initial plan today was to go for a nice gentle run on the running track but having gone out with the family for a  meal on Saturday night I awoke feeling sluggish and a little drained and the weather looked as unsettled as my stomac! The plan soon blew up in a puff of smoke and I returned to bed for an extra hour in bed...and I felt great for it.

When I did get up I mentioned to the delectable Mrs S if she wanted to go for a walk to which she readily agreed. She wanted to investigate a series of paths just outside Knockholt, Kent which I have run on numerous occasions with people and was happy to go along with her choice and so off we traipsed gently taking the hills , stopping to stroke a horse, feed it a handful of grass and enjoy the views across the valleys.

It then occurred to me that I have run those bridle ways, paths and roads but never actually noticed that they are really beautiful and as we thunder past we miss so many things. Sometimes it does pay to slow down.

400 miles by 4 people!

This is a video taken by a club mate Jason Cherriman, at the Orpington Marafun last week. It shows Richard Griffin (144) and David King (198) both running the Comrades at the end of the week then George and myself coming through just behind both doing the Grand Union Canal Run. To think that weekend the four of us will be running a total ditance of 400 miles between us!

Thanks to Jason Cherriman, a very accomplished runner who came 85th in the Virgin London marathon this year taking this....and for allowing me to borrow the video (whom I haven't asked yet ;-))

Up, up and away

I am just having a nice afternoon rest (read as snooze) on the sofa and have been researching some possible challenges for the coming months and am drawn to a particular run that I may undertake. I don't want to say too much quite yet as I want to get the Grand Union Canal Run out of my system but look at the elevation...up hill all the way :-)

It must have been fun...

I was smiling at the end!

I promise you George and I had crossed the finishing line together, this is the picture proof we were racing to get to the tea and cake stand a moment after and I was just that little quicker :-).

Nervous as a kitten

It is ridiculous to think that with all this training on all surfaces from trail to road and to track that when I went out for my run this evening all I could think about was tripping over or twisting an ankle.

The paths in the nearby wood are as hard as iron at the moment due to the lack of rain and with it they are eroding quite quickly to expose old Silver Birch roots and ancient copsed trees so it was a matter of going very carefully. My run tonight was all about ticking over, easy, with a low heart rate and no stress so it was not a problem to duck and dive the hazards.

It is almost strange that I have run on mountain peaks, on trails awash with mud, forged rivers bursting their banks and also run these woods in hail, thunder and lightning but today I was like a nervous kitten. I was further dreading the next set of public roads, the scene of my mate George's twisted ankle and me having a nasty trip and scuffing my hip, knee and elbows on the terribly paved surface last year. Today was about getting there....carefully.

I have one more run to go, possibly Saturday, when I want to run 10 very easy miles on the safest, softest surface I can find...this kitten is very nervous of getting injured before next week

GUCR Planning

Tonight was all about planning for the GUCR, yes, George and I have been discussing it at length on our long runs but never sat down and made decisions.

I still wanted to get a run in of about 6 miles tonight and it is almost coincidental that he and his family live exactly 5 km from my house if I cut through the woods. On arrival we got all our maps out, letters from Dick, the organiser, and sat down for about an hour just to get some ideas on board, plan some timings, food and drink requirements.

A very useful exercise that has left me as nervous as a kitten but happy that we had the opportunity to go through the smaller details. Only 9 days to go!

Moonlight Challenge video

I just came across this on You Tube this evening, the start of the Moonlight Challenge 2011 with accompanying music from a lone bagpiper...enough to get anyone running away!

If you play the video and pause at 29 seconds you will see the flash of a runner in Union Flag shorts just behind the guy in the yellow jacket.

I saw you!

I drove to my running club tonight in view of just doing 10km in the slower group so as not to put too much pressure on my tapering legs.

As I stood about chatting and milling around before the groups were called I was approached by two people who said that they saw me running the marathon on Saturday and how was I feeling. I mentioned my surprise that they had seen me and I was feeling great.

I then went into my chosen group and I was approached again about being spotted and then again after the run I was told I was spotted and what was I doing running today! In all, I was spotted by five people from the club and was wondering how they knew me from a distance....and then it occurred to me why......It was my Union Flag shorts, trademark which I had completely forgotten I was wearing :-)