Head for the Hills

All over....for the moment

2009-06-09T22:22:00.002+01:00

Now awaiting a bone scan, but the horrible fact of the matter is that UTMB is off for me. I still can't run a mile without swelling and pain in my left knee.

It goes without saying that I am completely gutted by the way this year has turned out, but I am trying to be philosphical. My life is blessed in so many ways. Although running is a big part of it, it is not all of it. And I will run again! Just got to have some serious time out while we get to the bottom of what could be wrong with the knee.

So this blog will continue to be very quiet for a while.

Thanks for stopping by and GOOD LUCK with your running.

Phil

Still Waiting

2009-05-12T17:29:00.002+01:00

Still waiting on the results of an initial x-ray, which I should get on Friday. Frustrating times, but I am keeping as positive as possible. Doing lots of cycling.

In the meantime, maybe you could vote for my primary school's blog in an online competition?! Vote Otley All Saints. Thanks!

Lying low

2009-04-26T21:15:00.004+01:00

I wanted to say a big thank you to those of you who have been in touch to ask me where I've been over the last few weeks. It's really nice to know people notice when you go AWOL!

It started when at the beginning of the Easter holidays when I put a new kitchen in my house. This was hard work (see the photos!) and took a couple of weeks all in. During this time I could only snatch the odd run here and the odd hike there.

When the jobs were done, I was despereate to get out and went out for two quick hill runs in succession. Now I'm paying for it big-time. My left knee has flared up and I'm not quite sure what's the matter with it. It isn't sore exactly, but it swells up when I try to run on it further than 4 miles or so.

I'm going to the doctor on Wednesday (that's how bad it is!)

So wish me luck. I can feel myself getting heavier and grumpier by the minute. August isn't that far away :(

Here's my kitchen anyway!

Nice 7m trail

2009-03-31T23:04:00.004+01:00

Lovely 7m trail run which provided a very welcom distraction from DIY, work and poorly children :)

Club Run

2009-03-26T21:26:00.001Z

Perhaps the last headtorch club session for a while (at least at the start of a run)as the clocks go forward next wseekend. Ran with Chris and Andrew a hilly trail route up the Chevin of about 6m. Felt good tonight.

7m

2009-03-24T21:41:00.003Z

Only managed one run last week as I was away with work for 3 days. Ran an urban 7miles in Nottingham. It was the first day of Spring and felt like it too. Warm sunny and very pleasant!

That's in stark contrast to tonight - ran a 7m trail run with the club. It felt really cold again, very windy and pretty wet and miserable. OK run though, and not too much knee pain thank goodness.

3 peaks

2009-03-15T19:50:00.008Z

Travelled over to Horton today to the Yorkshire 3 peaks with Nick and his friend Tim. Tim is a fairly prolific walker, but not a runner. His previous best time for the 3 peaks route was 7hrs 36mins. He was intent on beating that record today and Nick was trying to help him do it. I said I'd go along to help, but also to get a recce of the 3 peaks route in and just to get 7hrs or so time on my feet going up steep hills.

It was a cracking day from start to finish. Quite warm in the valleys and cool on the tops, no rain and only a light breeze.

Tim got barked at by Nick and I all the way round (sorry Tim!) but he did manage to smash his previous record and finished in 6hrs 53 minutes. A big improvement - well done!

I was impressed with Tim's determination to get round and for a non-runner, I thought he did a great job.

For me, this was quite a slow trot round, but very valuable nonetheless. 23 miles of hills, bogs and fell can't do anybody any harm. Add to that great scenery, crackng weather and good company and you've got a great day out. Cheers Nick and Tim!

Me waiting for the others at the top of Whernside

Nick and Tim descending Whernside

At the bottom of Whernside

Nick at the top of Ingleborough

Tim at the top of Ingleborough

Final Sprint!

Victorious!

Late run

2009-03-12T23:00:00.002Z

Parents evening tonight, so a late run up in the Chevin. A really good one too! Ran a 7mish loop listening to ridiculous electronic music.

The annoying news is (as predicted) my old headtorch turned up tonight. £60 down the drain :(

Club Run

2009-03-11T14:49:00.001Z

Nice 7m North of the river run with the club. Had to give up on finding my old head torch (how do you lose a headtorch?!) and buy a new one. Gutted. Nice to have light while running night-trails though - it isn't always a full moon!

8m

2009-03-09T19:46:00.001Z

Took a bit of a weekend off this weekend after tweaking my knee on Friday. I was only putting the bins out (isn't it always something like that?!) and had a bit of ligament pain in the left knee, so (rather sensibly I think you'll agree!) took the weekend off running.

Back into it tonight though with a good pacey 8m road run.

Club run

2009-03-05T21:10:00.000Z

Nice 7m trail run North of the river. Cold again.

Short hill session

2009-03-04T22:27:00.001Z

Ran a short but steep hill session. Couldn't find my pesky headtorch, but luckily the moon was shining. Chilly night.

Triangle!

2009-03-03T20:28:00.003Z

Ran a 6m road session with the club tonight on a pretty miserable evening. Cold, wet and windy conditions kept most runners indoors tonight, but a few prized themselves out the front door for a trot.

I ran an old club favourite tonight. The Triangle - a 6m road route which before a few of us started running with headtorches was the staple Winter run.

Nice to run a route and notice how much I've improved as a runner since I used to struggle round this course a few years ago.

Kit test/long run

2009-03-01T17:49:00.003Z

Loaded up my backpack today with the kit I'll be using to recce the TMB in July. I have thought really hard about weight and how I can keep it to an absolute minimum. My fully loaded pack was 3.8kg today. Think I may have another 4-500g on top of that.

I thought it would feel heavy and uncomfortable, but although definitely not ideal, I managed a good long hilly trail run of 20m without any problems. Used my trail poles on the uphills and on the technical downhills today too and I have to say that I love them. They make such a difference (despite the odd looks!)

Mr pack race weight for August will hopefully be much nearer the minimum allowable pack weight of 2kg, but I'm going to train with the heavier bag for my long runs.

Nice run tonight

2009-02-28T11:57:00.000Z

Ran a nice 7m trail tonight and felt fit and strong.

One of those runs...

2009-02-26T23:21:00.002Z

After a really busy day today, I didn't much feel like going out running at 10:30. I did go however for a trail run up on the hill. Felt awful throughout (just no energy) but pushed on and completed 5m. Doesn't sound much, but had to really push to get that far.

7m

2009-02-24T21:26:00.001Z

Nice 7m off-road run with the headtorch. It has been really mild the last week or so and the ice and snow have long since departed. Felt cooler again tonight though - could there be one final sting in the tail to the Winter of 08-09?!

Hope so!

17m

2009-02-22T21:51:00.002Z

Ran 17 miles on-road tonight as I just wanted to switch off and follow my feet without thinking about rocks, branches, puddles etc!

Forgot how tiring road-running is! Had planned to run 23m, but stupidly forgot vaseline on the thighs... ouch! 17m was more than enough!

Ok loop from Otley to Guisely, Rawdon, Horsforth, West Park, Adel, Bramhope and Otley.

Mountains

2009-02-22T11:54:00.003Z

Had a nice time doing some mountain stuff, but unfortunately most of the snow had gone and it was rainy and windy. Still nice to be up in the hills though!

Weekend running

2009-02-15T11:48:00.000Z

Ran some nice trails this weekend before my trip up North to spend some time in the hills with Iain.

3m

2009-02-12T18:00:00.000Z

Rubbish run, no energy, to icy to stand up on the trails, so came home after 3m! Noth bothered as have run well this week. Off for an early night.

8m

2009-02-11T21:59:00.002Z

Ran a nice 8m road loop tonight, up to Bramhope, through the village and back down to Otley. The first half of the run was directly towards a near-full moon, just rising over the horizon. Beautiful.

Club run

2009-02-10T20:32:00.001Z

Nice off-road night run with two guys from the club tonight. Bit treacherous as most of the snow has turned to ice. Good pacey run though under a cool full moon.

Short run

2009-02-08T23:29:00.003Z

Intended to do a longer run today but other things had to take priority. Got out for a short run tonight however, running a hilly 4 mile circuit in more fresh snow. Going to be so sad when the snow does finally disappear. Up on the hill at night in the moonlight and snow, it's like I've got my own Winter Wonderland Training Ground! There's only me up there and I've got heactares of snowy forest to run in. I feel so lucky. Think the snow's here for the week judging by the weather forecast too :)

Hill Loops

2009-02-07T23:53:00.002Z

Ran 5 loops of a hilly circuit on beautiful moonlit snowy trails. Overall, 15 miles and 1000m of ascent/descent. Great run!

Yet more snow!

2009-02-05T23:07:00.003Z

Ran another good snow run tonight with the club. The snow's a bit more compacted tonight, but still great for running. Ran a nice hilly 6m trail.

More snow

2009-02-03T21:09:00.004Z

Just back from a totally amazing run. Would probably rank it in my top ten, possibly top 5 of any run!

Ran a headlight run with a few club members up the Chevin. The icy, frozen snow in the valley gave way to awesome powder snow up top, nicely compact on the trails, but still deep enough to cushion legs while running. The trees hung heavy with deep snow and they looked stunning by torchlight.

A beautiful experience.

Hillwork

2009-02-02T21:12:00.002Z

Did a couple of hill loops tonight. In the absence of any bigger hills, I have worked out quite a good loop which maximises local available elevation change and allows me to get a 3 mile loop in too. One loop = 3m and 200m ascent. Ran three last night and 2 tonight. Although the mileage isn't high, I am finding it a strain on the lungs so I figure it must be doing me some good.

I might use this loop (possible X 5) on a Saturday as a training session, followed by a flatter endurance run on a Sunday. Also I'll throw these loops in as walks whenever I get the chance as I suppose lots of the uphills on the UTMB wil be walks.

I'm rambling! A nice run in cool wintry conditions.

West Highland Way Race

2009-02-02T17:29:00.002Z

I have made the decision today to pull out of the West Highland Way Race 2009. Having completed this fantastic event in 2008, I thought that i could manage two 100 mile races in one season. The way my season is going, I have to concentrate on one race only and I have decided to give my full committment to the UTMB.

I have offered my services as a marshall, and I hope that I have not caused Dario too many problems.

Hope to see you WHWers on the trail in June.

I am still planning to run the half WHWR (The Highland Fling) in April.

Snow

2009-02-02T17:15:00.002Z

Looking forward to running in this later on :)

Poles etc

2009-02-01T21:48:00.002Z

Have been busy deconstructing my kitchen today ready for a new one to go in in a few weeks, so didn't get out for a long run today.

Instead, tonight I took the poles for a test drive. Having got the wrong size ones to begin with (110cm) I took the new ones (123cm) for a spin.

Did 3 climbs of the Chevin> Thought they were great, really boosting the legs on the climbs and light enough to carry on the returns downhill.

Knee heald up ok too :)

6m

2009-01-31T23:59:00.000Z

Ran a late 6m Pool loop.

Training again

2009-01-29T20:54:00.002Z

Bliss! Ran 7m with the club. Was really nervous about it as I had said I would rest until the weekend. Knee felt good though and the cold I have had since the weekend also seemed to respond well to running.

The great thing about it was that I don't seem to have lost too much fitness.

Ran a nice trail up in the Chevin at a steady pace. No running tomorrow and then we'll see what the weekend brings.

Tentative run

2009-01-27T23:25:00.002Z

Ran a very cautious 3 miles tonight just to see what the knee felt like.

Please as there was no sign of any obvious problems. Rest tomorrow then run again on Thursday.

Think the cycling and quad exercises help.

Stressful not running for 9 days when there's SO much training to do. Glad to have run a bit tonight though. Just makes you feel so much better. It's a definite addiction!

Injured

2009-01-25T22:29:00.002Z

Left knee again. Feels a bit different. Think it might be ligament damage, but could be the old trouble.

Whatever it is I'm treating it with the respect it deserves and laying off running for a few days. It's making me grouchy and uber-stresed but it's the only approach.

In the meantime I'm doing leg strengthening exercises (carefully!) and some cycling which seems ok.

Fingers crossed!

Cycle

2009-01-20T00:12:00.003Z

Late night 15m cycle to Ilkley and back via Denton etc. Cold, windy and sleety. Nice.

A bit of a longer run

2009-01-18T16:52:00.002Z

Starting to increase the lengths of my weekend runs now. Ran 15 miles today with as many hills as I could find and coped fine. Then went for a nice hilly 3m walk with my children, so all in all a nice day of hills!

Ran two circuits of yesterday's run + a bit more. On the second circuit, I overcame my vanity and used the my new poles which were given to me for my birthday (tomorrow by the way!).

Initial reactions to running with poles:
At first it felt really alien, like I would have to re-learn how to run.
It got easier really quickly, especially once I got a bit of rhythm going.
Going up and down hills, I could feel the benefit. Very stable and definitely takes some of the strain of the quads and knees.
I'm going to need to do some upper body strength training between now and then as I could feel the added strain on that part of my body (and my poles are only 240g!), but I had expected that anyway and have already begun.

Thoughts on my poles (Raidlight trail poles)
They are VERY light.
They are collapsible (they use a kind of tent pole design with a string running through the middle)
They are slightly flexible
They are quite short

I am 5'10" and they are about right for me, but I don't think they'd suit someone much taller (they are 110cm). Also I am about 70kg and I can feel them flex under my weight...don't think I'd want to be much heavier and use them.

All in all, I'm not sure I've made the right choice. They felt quite good and I'll have to do a lot more practice with them before I know if they suit me or not. I was quite please with how they felt in my hands and with the added stability and 'pull' on the ups and downs. The jury's still out but an interesting first attempt.

7m

2009-01-17T17:16:00.002Z

Ran a nice hilly 7m trail route this evening up in the Chevin.

Did some weights last night. Will see what effect they have after a few sessions.

7m

2009-01-15T21:29:00.003Z

Nice 7m off-road circuit with the club. Got heaps of stick for running with my pack tonight! Not bothered. Makes no sense to train all year without one then suddenly gain 2kg on race day. Wait til they see the poles!!

Itchy Feet

2009-01-14T23:26:00.006Z

Ordered myself some lightweight trail poles this week (when in Rome...) so I can get practising with them.

Had some bad experiences with online shopping recently but I have to say that Itchy Feet were superb. Good, friendly advice, reasonable prices, quick delivery.

Thanks!

It's official!

2009-01-14T23:15:00.002Z

Got email confirmation today that I have a place in this year's UTMB. Thank goodness as I've booked my flights! The rest of the plan is also starting to come together slowly...

As for tonight, took an evening off as my legs have been feeling niggly all day. Think it's the cycling on Monday night...so left it tonight and will run with the club tomorrow.

7m

2009-01-13T22:34:00.002Z

Well I did get up this morning to hike up the hill and to be perfectly honest it hurt! Hurt dragging myself out of bed and hurt my tight glute muscles!

Tonight I had intended to run with the club, but Briony late home so ran later. 7m average pace. Feel better for it.

Cycle

2009-01-12T21:12:00.002Z

Started my week with a cycle tonight. Did a 17 mile hilly route at a good intensity. Fun.

Initial thoughts on the UTMB

2009-01-12T20:50:00.003Z

The enormity of the task ahead hit home today. I have nearly finished thinking about all the 'glossy bits' like booking flights, equipment, campsites, my recce runs etc and have actually begun to think a bit about how I'm going to get in good shape for this and stay injury free. Good question.

My tentative plan is to as follows:

I will start each day with a hike up the hill near me. A tiny blip of a thing compared to the Alps, but a hill none-the-less and beggars can't be choosers! I also plan to end each training run with the same climb, just when the legs are tired.

Mondays: Hilly high intensity cycling routes to allow the quads to build strength but reuce impact after high-mileage weekends.
Tuesdays: Club run.
Wednesdays: Specific hill reps.
Thursdays: Club run.
Fridays: Weights.
Saturdays: Medium runs of 10 - 15 miles with hills.
Sundays: Long runs of 20 - 30 miles with hills (incl. 3 peaks runs)

I aim to increase the intensity of each week over a 4 week period, with week 4 being a biggy and then reducing a little. Each block of 4 will also increase in mileage and intensity until the recce runs at the end of July and beginning of August at which point I'll cut it right back.

I plan to use sticks as often as possible on longer hilly runs to get used to them.

Initial thoughts only and highly flexible. Good to have a starting point though. I'll see just how serious I am about all of this tomorrow morning when my alarm goes off at 5.40 am. I HATE getting up early.

13m

2009-01-10T20:11:00.001Z

Ran a good 13m road session home from Leeds this afternoon. No problems with the distance, in fact feeling very fresh at the end.

It's really cold still at the moment. lovely running weather!

Not so good for spiders though :(

A little about the UTMB

2009-01-10T20:02:00.007Z

Most people who are into running distances know something about the UTMB. Most long-distance walkers know the route simply as the TMB, or Tour de Mont Blanc.

For those who don't know, here is a map and some information:

And the profile:

Basically the Tour de Mont Blanc is a long distance trail which circumnavigates the Mont Blanc massif, passing through France, Italy and Switzerland en route. It is ca. 103 miles in distance and has an elevation gain in the region of 9000m.

The UTMB is a single stage, semi-self sufficient event and as you might be able to tell I am immensely excited about the prospect of preparing for and running this amazing trail!!

UTMB is go!

2009-01-09T16:36:00.003Z

Heard news this morning that I have managed to get a place in the Ultra Tour de Mont Blanc - this year's 'big race'!

Here is the word from the official website:

2009 Registrations - 08/01/2009 ; 11:54
Between 17th December 2008 and January 7th 2009, more than 5000 runners were pre-registered to take part in one of the 4 events in the 2009 edition of The North Face® Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc®.

For each course, everyone has to justify the qualifying events, according to a new rule noticeably more exacting than for preceding years with the objective of opening the registrations to more experienced competitors and increasing the security of everybody. That way, the pre-registrations happened without a rush and the number of available places for each event was not exceeded.

The organizing committee therefore has the great pleasure of announcing that as of today all the runners pre-registered may confirm their registration (*).Everybody will receive, at the beginning of the next week, an e-mail explaining the procedure that they must follow to confirm their final registration.

I'm really excited about this race but more than a little nervous too! Delighted to have a place.

What a difference a day makes

2009-01-08T21:01:00.001Z

Clear skies, good company, clear mind, strong lungs, tree-lined trails, bright moon, 7 miles of pure bliss.

Bad run :(

2009-01-07T21:25:00.002Z

Went out for a 7m run tonight, but only managed 4m in total as bonked badly! Horrid run, no energy, sore knees and feeling generally rubbish. These runs do happen from time to time.

Will run again tomorrow!

Club run

2009-01-06T21:53:00.001Z

Ran a pleasant and in parts pacey run with the club tonight. All on road and about 6m in length. Beautiful still, icy, crisp evening. I love this weather :)

Harrogate Ringway

2009-01-04T13:20:00.002Z

Just back from the relay race around the Harrogate Ringway. What fun!

It's been quite some time since I ran a fast short trail race and I enjoyed it immensely. I must put more smaller races into my training as they are so good for the cardiovascular system and also really motivational.

Managed to claw back 6 places for my team - not sure where we finished, but we all seemed to enjoy it anyway!

Well done team!

Trails at dusk

2009-01-03T21:18:00.002Z

Ran a nice 6m hilly trail run this eveing as the light was fading in preparation for tomorrow'a Harrogate Ringway relay race.

December and the start of January have been the coldest months for a long time in the UK and it has been lovely to be out running in the dry, icy conditions.

Looking forward to tomorrow's event - hope I dob't get lost!

Still ticking over!

2009-01-03T11:28:00.002Z

Came to the conclusion that a sustained and coordinated approach to training over the holiday period was pointless, so I adopted a more adhoc approach this year and it felt quite good.

I have been snatching the opportunity to run whenever possible and did a few short sharp walks in the Lakes too. Ran a hilly 7m course last night and it felt pretty good.

Tomnorrow I will run for Otley AC in the Harrogate Ringway relay race.

Ticking over

2008-12-21T22:16:00.002Z

Taking things very easy at the moment just to make sure my body has fully recovered from the various illnesses that have plagued me since the summer. Although I felt heavy and a little sore, I ran a reasonably pacey 6m this evening to Pool and back.

Off to stay in a Mongolian Yurt in Ambleside tomorrow for Christmas week, so hopefully will get some running in while I'm away.

Have a great Christmas!

UTMB

2008-12-17T20:08:00.001Z

Completed my online entry for the UTMB tonight. Fingers crossed!

Pesky Chest Infection

2008-12-15T21:00:00.003Z

Having plodded on (stupidly and stubbornly) through the obvious onset of a nasty chest infection for nearly two weeks, I finally decided to stop running during the first week of December as I felt I wasn't allowing my body time to recover. The doctor confirmed a chest infection and some antibiotics helped to kickstart the recovery.

It felt weird not to run for nearly two weeks. Lots of little muscle twinges and a feeling of being heavy and bloated, but once I got used to it, I could feel the benefit to my body. To anyone else wondering about whether to run with a chesty cough or not, my advice (and I'm not a qualified (or even an unqualaified!) doctor) is to give it some time to clear up. I have run with head colds before and actually felt better, but once it's on your chest it's time to get healthy before running again. Respect your bodies people!! (unlike me, but I'm an idiot).

ANYWAY, back into it again tonight. I was dreading it as the first run after some time off is always mighty depressing. But actually it was ok. I felt healthy and although a bit sluggish, reasonably fit. A little heavy and my hips ache a little tonight, but otherwise not as bad as feared.

No RRR 50 :(

2008-12-10T21:13:00.000Z

Pulled out of RRR 50 with a bad chest infection. Can't walk to the shops without stopping to cough for 5 minutes, so a wet and cold 50 miles would, I think, just about be the end of me and I'm not quite ready for that yet!!

Snowy 7m

2008-12-02T20:52:00.003Z

I was supposed to give blood tonight. I had it in my head that I could give blood, have a cup of tea, go for a light run and be fine in the morning. After a bit of internet research, it appears that would have been a rather foolish plan! It is recommended to leave exercise for at least 24 hours. I have also read that it may take up to a month for peak performance levels to be reached again. As I am racing in 2 weeks, I decided I would have to call off donating tonight and leave it until mid December instead.

So I was able to train at full intensity and ended up running an awesome 7m with the club in a few centimetres of fresh snow. 4 of us ran a hilly trail route in beautiful conditions...Would have gladly ran it again but decided that was probably enough time out running tonight!

5m

2008-12-01T19:11:00.001Z

Ran a cold 5m up in the Chevin. Intended to run further, but still coughing a lot so kept it short.

Quiet Weekend

2008-11-30T21:32:00.003Z

I had intended to keep the mileage up this week but I have decided to listen to my body for once and take things a little easy. Didn't run Friday or Saturday and only ran 6m or so this evening. Legs have been giving me a few signs here and there of being under some stress and it was this time of year I injured my knee last year by not listening to my body. Also after last weekend's 45m run and a chest infection, I figured a rest might be advisable!

A nice (albeit freezing) run up to Clifton on trail and road. Glad I've been sensble. Will run 10m tomorrow, 6m on Tuesday, 6 on Wednesday and 7 on Thursday. Then a reasonable weekend with some running (maybe 18 on Saturday) and some cycling on Sunday with Iain.

Happy Days.

♫Listening to: Chinese Democracy byGuns n Roses

Club run

2008-11-27T20:33:00.001Z

Nice run with the club North of the River, 6m road an trail. Beautiful clear evening, but a little under-dressed (freezing!)

Legs felt a bit tired tonight, so will rest tomorrow.

First run after the long mynd

2008-11-25T21:22:00.002Z

Ran a pacey 7m with the club tonight despite promising myself I would take it easy. 3.5 miles reasonable incline and 3.5 miles nicely back down again!

Really pleased with my recovery after Saturday's long run. Bit shakey in the middle, but that sorted itself quickly.

Nice run and a lovely clear evening :)

The Long(ish) Mynd

2008-11-23T09:51:00.005Z

Yesterday I had the pleasure of ruuning the majority of The Long Mynd Hike route with Paul Tranter.

This is a race that I had wanted to run in October, but I was unwell so had to pull out. Since then this route has felt a bit like unfinished business, so I planned to do an unsupported attempt. Thankfully Paul agreed to come with me. Without his company, there wwas no way I would have finished what turned out to be an extremely difficult route.

We stayed the night in the nice little town of Chruch Stretton and were up at 4.30 a.m and out by 5. This was so that we could try to finish in the light when we were tired and do some night navigation while we were still fresh. So the first summit of Caer Caradoc was navigated in the dark which was lots of fun! Gale force winds on the far side of the hill added to the difficulties, but it was a good start to the run. It was 2 more hours before we would see the sun rising in the East - beautiful orange and yellow colours over Caer Caradoc. It's an amazing feeling to be high up on a hill knowing that that most other people are still tucked up in bed (or not even there yet!)

The run was going really well despite some long drags which were unrunable gradients. On arrival at Bridges, we checked the progress and time and were devastaed that this first section had taken 3 hours! We thought we had been going really well, but realised that if we had kept this pace up we would be looking at 15 hours out - a much longer day than anticipated. We continued up to Stiperstones somewhat dejected and already thinking of whether to cut the route short. On arrival at Stiperstones, we were buoyed by the possibility of being able to run along the ridge, but this also proved impossible for a while at least due to the angular stones protruding along the ridge. These do eventually subside though and we started making good progress down to Habberly.

We had decided that we would assess the situation again at Tankerville as there is a way of cutting out some of the route there. To be honest at Tankerville if Paul had agreed, I would have gladly turned back, but he was feeling much stonger than me here and suggested we press on. We soon came down to Corndon Hill (and Wales!) where we lost quite a bit of time getting lost! Eventually though, we found our route and pressed on around Black Rhadley (it's private land here so we avoided the hill itself). Now I had a second wind and Paul was finding the going tough. I had it in my head that if we could make it back up to Stipertones car park, we could make it home again. So we pressed on and sooner than expected we had made it to the car park. A quick munch on some food and we made the long descent back to Bridges. A look at the map showed that there was a direct road to Church Stretton, but we both decided we would like to finsih the proper route via Minton, so pressed on up to Pole Cottage.

From here, we both seemed to have fresh legs and we soon found that we were on the descent into Minton, with Little Stretton and Chruch Stretton in view. A great feeling as it had been a very challening day. My legs had a little wobble in Little Stretton (!) but a Mars Bar and some drink soon gave me the energy to run along to Church Stretton at a good pace.

We finally reached Church Stretton just as it had gone dark (something we had earlier given up on!) and ran into the car park at about 5pm, just short of 12 hours after starting.

We missed the summits of The Lawley, Earl Hill and Ragleth Hill as neither of us felt inclined to run up a hill merely for the sake of it, but I think we ran around 45 miles. We probably lost about an hour plus due to navigation difficulties. Overall, I estimate that on a race, sub 12 hours would be a possibility which although isn't a great time for a 50m course, would be a good time for this course with the elevation changes and diffcult terrain.

Thanks to Paul for coming down with me and the good company. A really excellent day out in the hills.

I've never been to Shropshire before and it is definitely somewhere I'd like to go back and visit.

Sorry for the lack of photos, but it was just too cold and I was too tired.

Last run before Long Mynd (unsupported run)

2008-11-20T22:15:00.004Z

Ran my last run of 6m before Saturday's unsupported attempt of The Long Mynd. Not a great run, but felt really tired when I set off so I'm not surprised. Had to stop at a 24hr garage to get a mars bar as my legs were very shaky - not had that for a while! Will make sure I load up on good food tomorrow before the long drive down to Shropshire.

Tapering a bit

2008-11-19T23:09:00.002Z

Resting most of this week apart from tomorrow when I'll run a light 5m or so. This is in prep for the unsupoorted Long Mynd Hike attempt (50m) with Paul Tranter on Saturday.

Theatre Run

2008-11-17T23:52:00.002Z

Watched a friend in Romeo and Juliet tonight and then ran the 7m home. It's great to do things you don't normally do and I really enjoyed the performance.

♫Listening to: Caught in the Trees by Damien Jurado

Draycote

2008-11-16T16:06:00.003Z

Ran a nice run from my brother-in-law's house to Draycote water and a lap around the reservoir. Planned to do at least two laps, but my head wasn't in the right place unfortunately. Nonetheless an enjoyable run of 15m.

Club run

2008-11-13T20:58:00.001Z

Wet and muddy 6m run North of the river. Fun :)

late, windy run

2008-11-11T23:38:00.003Z

Ran a quick 6m loop to Pool and back.

♫Listening to: Pronounced Leh-nerd Skin-nerd by Lynyrd Skynyrd

late, windy run

2008-11-11T23:38:00.000Z

Ran a quick 6m loop to Pool and back.

Stressbuster

2008-11-10T20:44:00.005Z

Whilst I have been known to listen to loud aggressive rock music in my spare time, I don't often listen to it while running as my feet get carried away with the b.p.m and I end up a broken man by the middle of the run.

Occasionally however, a good loud Ipod run is just what you need to brush the cobwebs of the day away. Today was just such a day. A difficult day at the office was soon forgotten after 7 blistering miles along headtorch-lit trails with thumping music in both ears. Can't beat it.

A GREAT run of almost spiritual proportions.

♫Listening to: Death Magnetic by Metallica

1 Peak :(

2008-11-09T11:43:00.003Z

Disappointingly I cut the run short to just one peak (Pen-y-ghent) today as the weather was pretty horrific. Gale force winds on the top and driving snow made me think that a solo round was a bit daft really.

So I took the safe option and cut things short. Will run another 10m later this evening to make up some mileage.

Despite the freezing conditions, I enjoyed the plod up pen-y-ghent and the controlled fall back down again!

Kit list for tomorrow

2008-11-08T22:11:00.004Z

Just about to write a kitlist for tomorrow so I thought I might aswell write it here:

Here is the forecast for tomorrow, and looking out of my window (even though I'm 2 hours away) it looks about right.

Montrail Hardrock shoes
Shorts and running tights
2 pairs socks
map, case, compass, GPS (sorry orienteers - I hate being lost!), whislte
Macpac backpack
gloves
hat, buff
2 X helly
lightweight and thicker waterproof, waterproof trousers
emergency blanket
water (platypus) and food
ipod (sorry running purists!)
wallet, phone.

dry change of clothes, towell, flask.

Plan is to be out by 5am and hopefully running by 7, round by 12 and home by 2ish.

Fancy dress run

2008-11-08T21:02:00.002Z

It's OK - I didn't do a 5k dressed as a tomato (although that reminds me of running in the local Chevin Chase run held on Dec 26th eacher year. I nearly always get beaten by fairies, Christmass puddings etc - bad for the ego). I was merely shopping for a Batman outfit for my Nephew's Batman birthday party next weekend. So I combined this with a nice run home (in normal clothes) of about 8m.

Noticed an ever so slight tweak in the hamstring, but feels OK tonight. Hope so as I have a long run ahead of me tomorrow. I'm planning on running the Yorshire 3 peaks tomorrow (Pen-Y-Ghent, Whernside and Ingleborough). I need a change of scenery for the long run and some good climbs in my legs.

Weather forecast looks a bit nasty (7C, heavy rain and 40mph wind) but I'll drive out and see what I think.

Early start tomorrow so nice early night tonight :)

♫ (Still) Listening to: 23 by Blonde Redhead

Music

2008-11-08T20:08:00.002Z

I have had a really nice week this week, being lucky enough to see lots of live music. I love watching people play instruments that they're really into.

I saw Lizzie Vince, Holly Taymar, Alun Tan Lan, Kate Aumonier and Ben Parker

Today I was totally amazed to watch Izzy's piano teacher (Mr Ian McTeer) perform a classical piano recital at The Courthose in Otley.

All totally inspiring.

Pool Loop

2008-11-05T23:45:00.003Z

Late nighter due to work...Ran a pacey 6m loop with a good push up Pool Bank right to the top. Nice flow to the run tonight - enjoyed it.

:)

♫ Listening to: 23 by Blonde Redhead

Club run

2008-11-04T20:46:00.001Z

Ran with thte faster froups tonight a 7m road route round Otley, taking in a couple of short but steep climbs. Good sub 7 minute mile pace for a lot of the way.

Run to work

2008-11-03T23:44:00.002Z

As I live a minute from my work, I don't get the opportunity to run to work, unless I am on a course or something. Today, however, we had our training day in Yeadon, a few miles away and this gave me the chance to run there this morning. Nice way to start the day!

In the evening I also did some running, but slow and ploddy.

♫ Listening to: Magic Potion by The Black Keys

Back into Running

2008-11-01T23:00:00.001Z

Ran a pacey 10k this evening with a good hill in the middle. Legs felt strong after the recent mountain adventures!

♫ Listening to: Words are Dead by Horse Feathers

Cairngorms

2008-10-30T22:50:00.001Z

Last week I had the great pleasure in having a week off running and spending some time with my good freind Iain in the Cairngorm Mountains of Scotland. An Arctic blast made for some interesting weather and the legs got a good workout during the three day stay. Here are a few photos of the trip:

Windy run

2008-10-24T07:35:00.002+01:00

Ran with the club tonight. Chris and I were the only moonlighters tonight, so we headed North of the river and up to Farnley and Clifton, before coming back through the woods. A good run, but very windy. Some good pacey sections!

6m

2008-10-22T21:03:00.001+01:00

Couple of days off spending some time with my mum who is down visiting from Inverness but back into it tonight. Ran a steady 6m Pool loop.

Medium Run

2008-10-19T22:03:00.001+01:00

Ran 13m home from Leeds. Mainly road-running with a little trail at the end.

Felt strong throughout.

Well done Beth!

2008-10-18T13:10:00.002+01:00

Ran a quick 5m loop this morning, but more importantly I watched Beth swim 40 lengths, struggling against utter exhaustion to achieve her 1000m badge! I am a very proud dad - well done Beth!!

6m

2008-10-15T23:44:00.002+01:00

Late run tonight. 6m.

Better hills

2008-10-14T21:19:00.002+01:00

Thanks once again to Hugh for a good hill-rep session. This time I managed to run some good hills.

We ran 3 sets of 4 X (minute up, minute down). The idea is to always try and be consistent, reaching the same spot each time on the hill. For the first time tonight I managed this for each of the 12 uphills. Really pleased with how I ran this evening.

Followed these sets with a brisk 2m warm down.

Night time recovery run

2008-10-13T21:37:00.002+01:00

The new theoretical training plan is to run every day except Friday when I'll do some kind of cross training. Mondays will usually be some kind of light recovery run after Sunday's longer runs.

So tonight I ran a 5m half road/half trail run at a sluggish pace. Felt ok mostly, but did hit a tired patch in the middle. I'm still calorie deficient I think as I have to watch what I eat a bit more than usual, but that will start to improve soon I hope.

Long run

2008-10-12T15:21:00.006+01:00

Having managed a 13m run on Thursday and a 10m yesterday, I decided on having a go at a longer run today. After helping Otley AC set up their cross-country course this morning, I set off to Ilkley on road and then back home across the moor. It was a lovely day and a good run. Pretty tired on the last 4m or so, but that's the longest run I've done since Coventry and this week's mileage is back up to approaching where it should be for this time of the year (45m). No stomach problems and no injuries. I'm enjoying it while it lasts.

A good hilly 18m run!

10m

2008-10-11T19:04:00.001+01:00

Ran a nice 10m road route up to Guiseley and back. Felt fit and strong.

running again

2008-10-09T21:10:00.002+01:00

Docs tonight re stomach. Seems I have an ulcer. Seems deeply unfair - I don't drink, don't smoke and lead a very healthy lifestyle. Still, it's getting treated now and the best news is that running doesn't seem to exacerbate it and the doc seemed to be of the opinion that if it helped take my mind of the discomofrt then run, run, run.

So I did - home from Leeds. A nice 13m run with a good weight in the pack. Bliss.

Better run

2008-10-06T22:57:00.003+01:00

Although my stomach is still not right, today was a much better day. Ran a pleasant 6m run with one decent hill round the Pool loop. Not quite as tired as I've managed to eat a bit more today.

Seeing Doc on Thurs so hopefully can get back on track as soon as possible. Paul Tranter and I are planning on having a go at the Long Mynd together on 22nd November. Need to be on top form again by then (RR50 3 weeks after too!)

Good decision

2008-10-05T15:02:00.002+01:00

Well, although painful, yesterday's decision not to run was a wise one. I rested all day Saturday and felt somewhat better by Saturday evening. I have felt ok today so tried a run this afternoon. Intended to run through to Ilkley and back as it's such a beautiful day, but I could not even have managed that. I plodded round a hilly 7m course and felt pretty tired the whole way. Also my stomach felt uncomfortable as it has for the last three weeks on and off. The tiredness I think is due to the fact that I am definitely calorie deficient at the moment, being wary of eating too much or things that might upset my stomach. I am losing weight pretty fast which was not my intention (down to 71.8 kg this morning - that's a loss of 4 kg in 3 weeks)

Will head back to the doctors tomorrow as the last visit was a complete waste of time (was seen by one of those doctors that had the prescription pad in hand before you've even sat down!)

No Long Mynd

2008-10-03T10:53:00.002+01:00

It's with great disappointment that I have withdrawn from the Long Mynd Hike. The stomach upset I have been having has intensified so much that I can't even work today. Can't really expect my body to go through 50 hilly miles over the weekend.

So I thought it was better to let the race organisers know today that my place can be reallocated.

I am desperately upset to miss this event, but health comes first I suppose.

Perhaps I will try a solo run of the route later in the year.

I am going to stop running for the next week and work hard on getting my stomach sorted.

Phil

Poor hill rep session

2008-09-30T21:02:00.002+01:00

Thanks to Hugh for another good hill rep session, although I really struggled with it this time. Have been struggling with a stomach complaint for a couple of weeks now and hill reps weren't really the best idea tonight. Ran 3 X 4 1 min uphills (poorly) followed by a pacey 3 mile return to the club.

Short Sunday Run

2008-09-28T18:33:00.003+01:00

I had wanted to run a longish run today, but I have been feeling tired after last night's marshalling duties (home at 4a.m).

So I ran a protracted version of a nice long run that I do sometimes. It was a nice day and I was plodding, so decided to take some photos.

Ran 6m, slow pace, but enjoyed it.

Hardmoors 110

2008-09-28T18:23:00.003+01:00

Last night I had the pleasure of marshalling at the last check point (98 m of 110) on the inaugural running of the Hardmoors 110. There were some familiar faces there; Jon Steel (race organiser), Shirley Colqhoun (who looked positively chirpy!) and Murdo McEwan (although I had missed Murdo by an hour!)

This was an interesting experience for me as I haven't marshalled for a long race before. I always try to have a smile for marshalls - they give up their freetime to help keep runners safe for no persoanl reward but I was amazed to experience just how many runners could not say a simple 'thank you' and also how many support teams were actually rude and even aggressive. (There were many friendly runners too!!)

It was also interesting to see what kind of state people were in by this stage and reassuring to know that it's not just me that cries and hallucinates!!

The race itself seemed to be a success and the weather certainly added to its scenic charm.

Well done Jon - I may even give this a go myself next year!

Club run - moonlighters

2008-09-25T21:32:00.002+01:00

With the nights drawing in, the 'moonlighting' group(trail running by torch light) is back up and running at the club.

Ran a great hilly 6.5 with a few club members. Good pace and challenging terrain. What a beautiful night - warm, clear and still.

Club run

2008-09-23T20:59:00.003+01:00

Ran a steady 6.5 mile route with the club tonight. All on road, with a few hills. Nice to see a few new faces at the club too.

More night time trails

2008-09-23T07:23:00.002+01:00

You could be forgiven for thinking that I am always ill or injured if you were to read selectively (and in particular from the last two weeks!) from this blog. I'm not - honest! But I have had a run of bad luck. Last thing to go wrong was that I found out I am allergic to anti-allergy pills! How ridiculous is that?! They made me quite sick. I have vowed never to take pills again unless I absolutely need them.

Anyway, running. Finally felt well again to run yesterday after as very sedentry day on a course. Ran a 6m hilly trail run in the Chevin with headtorch. Found it quite difficult at first after a few days off, but got into a rhythm eventually.

Nice clear evening, but getting cooler at night now.

Late run

2008-09-17T23:22:00.000+01:00

I seem to be running a lot of 'recovery runs' these days! Recovering from races, recovering from injuroes and now recovering from colds! Had a bad cold the last few days (although I'm told it wasn't bad, I'm just a weak man) so didn't run Mon or Tues. Ran tonight though and seemed to be ok running.

Ran a 6m hilly trail route with the headtorch. Good fun.