First post of 2011

Hum, well it's been a while since I blogged. Apologies to my doubtless legions of readers. So what have I been up to I hear you ask? When I last posted I was still hobbling. I have subsequently had many massages (ITB release is very painful), done a lot of yoga and various exercises to support the knee and ITB. The upshot is I am more or less pain free, aside from the odd twinge in my right knee which still has a bit of inflammation after long runs.

The winter was good. Four weeks skiing (over three trips), cut short from five for various reasons but in the end a good decision due to the poor season in the Alps. On our last trip we spent four days touring with Hannah Burrows Smith. It was a great few days. Our first experience of staying in mountain huts and we both really enjoyed it. After a day on the Argentiere glacier we headed to Arolla in Switzerland, and from there up to the hut. There was an exciting ladder en route to the hut.

The next day we skinned up Mont Blanc de Cheilon. It was a fab day, and for the most part we had the mountain to ourselves. The following day we headed over the Pigne d'Arolla, which is on the Haute Route. There were one or two other people around.

It was a great trip, with the camper van coming into its own - you can't beat a fresh cup of tea and a nice sit down after a long day skiing. There a whole bunch of my pictures here.


As for running, so far this year I have done the Forest of Dean half, in a not very spectacular 1:33. Was happy enough though, as had a friend staying that weekend and the night before had been somewhat less than ideal preparation. Next event is the Edurancelife running festival. I qualified for the marathon, but am planning on doing the ultra instead (provided I can switch) as am feeling reasonably perky. Then it's the 75km Torq Rough Ride with some friends, and then in June the Marathon du Mont Blanc, which I am very much looking forward to.

Training has been going pretty well. The year started consistently, but at the end of Feb I got a heavy cold which mutated into a sinus infection and in the end needed antibiotics to clear it. That caused four weeks of patchy exercise, though I did manage to get out a bit. Since skiing I have managed to get some decent solid hilly miles in, making the most of the Easter weekend and the sunshine culminating in a tough 18 miles yesterday. I was delighted this morning when my run to work was brisk and felt good, though I feel pretty tired this evening. It's these last two weekends which convinced me to try the ultra in a couple of weeks. I reckon I'm good for thirty odd miles if I pace it properly!

Long time no post

No posting for a while largely as I have done nothing of note. We were supposed to be doing another Endurance Life CTS event last weekend. Mid week both knees were still tender, and I had decided to do the half anyway. By the weekend, with new ice age sweeping the country, and me still hobbling down hill, I came to the conclusion I really should pass on the race. So, somewhat reluctantly we bailed.

The knee problem appears to be a combination of itb and quad tightness. Stretching and the foam roller seem to be helping. Since they pain started I have done a few short runs, and up to about 45 mins to an hour is ok with no pain. A cold this week kiboshed even that, so I have a good period of minimal exercise which should hopefully have set me on course to heal properly. It's moot now from the running perspective as on Sunday (tomorrow! yay!) we are off for a week in Val D'isere. Very excited.  We're doing a Snoworks off piste course. Have spent the afternoon digging out the ski gear. Unusually we're flying (we got the course as part of a Mark Warner package), whereas we usually drive. This means I have to think about what I want to take rather than just throwing all the kit I own in the back of the car.

I'm not taking the board on this trip as I can't face carrying that and a pair of skis through an airport. But I do want to hire one, so taking my boots.  Once I had put my ski and board boots both in the case it was pretty much full. It really is so much easier with the car.

I got there in the end. All packed and ready now. An 0515 start tomorrow for the drive to Birmingham Airport.  Am fitter than I have been for a while on the approach to the ski season, and also have been putting in a lot of time on the Cool Board (I can get up on it now without holding on to anything, which is pretty much as good as the people in the promotional youtube videos). Between fitness and balance I am hoping I transformed into some sort of ultimate mountain man We'll see.

Broken

Ok, that's a bit of an exaggeration. Limping is more accurate. I have a sore left knee which I am attributing to my over tight quads.  Last week was quite focussed on rest with beer featuring highly. I headed out on Saturday for a brisk hour to clear my head and the knee was fine.  Wandering round town on Saturday afternoon it got very sore, and I was limping around on Sunday.

I woke up this morning, knee much better and promptly ran to work. Not bright. I got a medevac home (I called Ali and asked for a lift). Is now pretty tender. I have had knee twinges before from the result of my quads getting too tight (generally when doing a lot of cycling). I suspect the hill running and squats have tightened them up considerably - I tried the traditional quad stretch.  My heel gets nowhere near my arse.  I need to remember to stretch all muscle groups a bit more - I had tight hamstrings and focussed on that, then calf muscles so did calf stretches. Ho hum. Lesson learned, at least until the next time.

Aside from unfocussed shopping and drinking, the main activity of the weekend was Cool Boarding. Getting quite handy now.  I can now do squats, peel and eat a tangerine and erm stand at one end on the ball with the board out in front of me.

Ok not youtube-able but a start. It is a great piece of kit.

Endurance Life CTS - Gower

I ran the second of the Endurance Life Coastal Trail Series marathons on Saturday, down on the Gower peninsula.  The drive down on the Friday night nearly ended in disaster when we couldn't find anywhere open to eat (note to self: stock van with noodles), but luckily a small hotel I went in to ask if they knew of anywhere still open turned out to have a bar that was still serving. Chips and frittata saved the evening.

The weather during the week was not great, and on Friday night in the campsite the wind howled round the van and the rain drummed on the roof.  Saturday dawned and, against the odds, it was bright, breezy and clear.

Like previous Endurance Life events the atmosphere was laid back and friendly.  There was a pre-race brief and then at 0900 we were off (there had been an earlier start for the Ultra, and slower marathoners, and a later start for the 10km and the Half).  We started in Rhosilli, ran across a couple of fields and were quickly on the coast.  It was pretty stunning. I felt good, and soon settled into into a comfortable rhythm.  The lead group spread out over the first few miles and I was left in what I thought was probably seventh or eight (mental arithmetic of any sort is not my forte when exercising).

The scenery and varied terrain (i.e. hilly) meant the time passed quickly enough.  We were soon turning inland to cross the peninsula, and at the second checkpoint which was ten miles in.  I was back on the coast again, at 16 miles, surprisingly quickly.  I ran with another guy for a while, discussing various races. He is on for the entire coastal series, which will be good going.  A burst of stamina saw me leave him behind. I was flying at this point, some sort of sugar buzz from the sixth gel. The scenery was good and I was confident of a sub four thirty hour time. And then... I was flat on my face. I tripped and landed heavily on my hip. It hurt but I picked myself up and quickly established I was ok.  I continued on but the pace had dropped off.

Shortly afterwards I got to another checkpoint.  How far to go? I asked. This is 22 miles, was the reply. Hmmm. Even my exercise murkified brain realised that wasn't answering the question, and having done (excellent) Endurance Life events before I knew they liked to sneak a few miles on the end.

I passed a guy with a Garmin Forerunner at 4:17, and he said we were at 42km at that point so I paced myself just right! However it didn't seem to be anywhere close to the end. I limped on. The pace in the last few kilometres dropped significantly, in line with my sense of humour, and I was passed by one runner (the first to pass me since we had separated out at the beginning, though you get individual times so someone starting further back could still do a faster time potentially).  Finally, finally we turned back onto the path leading away from the coast and up to Rhosilli.  I crossed the line, after close to 29 miles, in 4:47 and 10th place.

My legs have never hurt quite so much after a run. I limped round looking for Ali (who had had a fab time doing the half marathon). Eventually I found her, and the Bongo keys and was able to sit down and drink some tea. My mood rapidly improved!

It was a great event. A stunning location and well organised. Looking forward to Portland in less than three weeks. Chesil beach sounds like it might be a challenge.

In other news, it turns out the three of us in a notional team in the Mudrunner, were the 3rd fastest, and got 15 quid in vouchers and a trophy. So a fiver each. I've peaked - it's all down hill from here.

OMM

A misleading title, as we didn't do it. We were both unwell, and decided on the Thursday before the race (we would have been setting off on the Friday) that a night on Dartmoor was not on the cards. A shame as we were both looking forward to it (plus, Ali bought kit specially). Next year.

Am now fully recovered, but with a marathon next weekend have been taking it easy.  A few runs in the week, a brisk hour on Cleeve Hill yesterday, and for the first time in a long time, a couple of hours on the road bike today (making it probably a whole, oh, 150 miles on that bike this year).  It was great though. I had forgotten how light it was, and fast and how much I enjoy descending on road (so much less lumpy and rocky than on a mountain bike).

At this time of year I suddenly find it hard to motivate myself to get outside.  I think its the cold and dampness. I like summer, obviously, and September and October as the seasons change are nice. And I love winter, and spring is fun as you know the warm weather is coming. But November. Cold, damp, the evenings are suddenly dark and I'm not skiing yet.  The TV and the pub call strongly.

Rest & the ski show

Post the Mud Runner I actually felt quite sprightly last week.  Having decided to do more speed work to get a bit quicker I headed out on Wednesday lunchtime for a flat, fast run. 6 miles in 40 mins, with a bit of time lost stopping to read the route map was a pleasant enough way to spend a lunchtime, with plenty of room to get a bit quicker.

The rest of the week was just running to and from work (a total of seven miles each way). Thursday night a trail run with a head torch was ditched in favour of the pub. Saturday I did one of our regular hill routes along the Cotswold Way, and then we headed back to London for the rest of the weekend. A party on a boat on Saturday night ensured Sunday would be a lazy one.

And indeed it was. We went to the Ski show.  The ski show always makes it seem like the ski season is nearly here, and this year was no exception. All the new kit, and the resorts advertising on their stands (the Chamonix Pavilion was a favourite) make the fresh snow that will soon be coating the Alps almost tangible.  I resisted an expensive jacket this year, but did get a Cool Board. It is fun, and a lot tougher to master than the wobble ball I had.  I look forward to mastering it, though the suggested squats while balancing are a way off yet!  The other highlight of the ski show was the *cough* fashion show.  It was better than it sounds! A very professional, exceptionally well choreographed, dance show.  It was very entertaining.  They didn't get on Cool Boards though.

Mudrunner

The Mud Runner was fun, if a bit.. damp. 100m in and we were in a river.  It was cold, dank and frankly, very smelly.  Coming out of it it took some effort to level the heart rate off - the combination of the sprint from the start to the water, followed by the shock of the cold, and the effort to stay upright in the water left me nearly breathless.

The rest of the course was hard.  A mix of very hilly terrain and, as the name suggests, mud. It was biased enough towards proper running to be good, with the occasional wading and sliding a break from the hills.  I could feel Saturdays run in my legs on the hills, though I noticed towards the end I was still running up hills thats lots of people were walking on.  I suppose the thing about ultra running is that you might not start fast, but don't slow down much.  It was actually quite a challenge to override the desire to pace myself.  This year I have been carefully building distance, and focussing on making sure I start a run at a pace I know means I'll get to the end.  I found myself wanting to do the same today, despite the fact that for the distance I could have cheerfully gone full (or close to) throttle.  I have always quite enjoyed short, hard races.  The sensation of finding a level that is only just bearable, and than holding that pace for the duration and being utterly spent when you cross the line is, in a masochistic kind of a way, a good one.

Today took me 1 hour 7 minutes, which shows it was a hard 10km.  Ali reckoned I was about 40th across the line, from a 1000, though the race was started in waves (based on your estimated time).  There were lots of photographers out on the course too, so I am sure there will be plenty of photographs of filthy wet people.

The day was rounded off with a trip to Cotswold Outdoor. Mmmmm new season ski gear...