ultra running collie

about an' interesting experiment' and the art of persuasion

2012-01-23T04:29:00.013Z

'hi marc [recce/race director] i really dont think i should do the recce given i haven't run more than nine miles in one go since september'

'are you sure? it could be an interesting experiment'

interesting? daft more like

fast forward three days and there i am sat in the dog and gun in keswick with simon moorehouse, enjoying the biggest bowl of goulash known to man, washed down with keswick ales of equal calibre, and having some top craic about running, mountains, mountain running, and running in the mountains

(simon and charlie heading over to wasdale)

so what of the 'interesting experiment'? well lets just say that the day contained every reason why we do what we do. never ending climbs. tricky descents. bogs galore. and a star filled sky shining down us to the finish. 27 miles/7000ft of sheer joy..and a reminder that for me there no better place in the world than the lakes

(looking back to wasdale as we ascend black sail pass)

post recce stiffness aside..this little outing might just have stirred me into thinking about a serious assault on the full 100 in 2013. now that would be a 'very interesting experiment' i reckon ;)

ready steady...

2012-01-13T13:43:00.002Z

so here it is, our provisional line up leading to the lakeland 50 in july..hope to see lots of familiar faces along the way

jan..coniston to buttermere recce 27m with charlie
jan..inskip derby arms half (pardon me?)
feb..a day out somewhere with raldiss and charlie
mar..cloud nine 9m (clues in the name) tbc
mar..wuthering hike 33m (derby tups fault)with charlie
mar..dalemain to ambleside recce 25m with charlie
apr..grasmere fells and tarns and gingerbread 21m with charlie
may..sandstone trail 33m with charlie
may goyts moss 7m tbc
june..wincle trout 6m tbc
june..baslow boot bash 26m tbc with charlie
june..whalley waltz (get in!!)
july..osmotherley phoenix 33m with charlie
july lakeland 50 (praise the lord!)..charlie tbc

im still on my diet of around 26 weekly miles of the 'faster stuff' and no long runs. i guess the plan for the year will be more about intensity and less about distance..it'll be interesting to see how it goes. im really quite giddy about it all

first experiment is the recce this sunday..27m/7000ft (the forecast is amazing)..and i haven't run more than 9miles in one go since september :-0

wish me luck (though i have a feeling his nibs will burn it up)

decisions decisions

2012-01-10T04:55:00.003Z

as the 2012 plan gathers shape what should it be in march....??

a. wuthering hike aka haworth hobble 33m (the longer one and the one on which to get lost a third time in a row)
b. edale skyline 21.5m (the faster medium one with a real threat of being timed out :-0 )
c. derwent dambuster 10m (the easy option but all in the name of charideee)
d. cheeky trip to the lakes and some proper mountain running

almost in with the new

2011-12-29T05:39:00.005Z

never wish time away, you cant get it back, but forward planning is ok / essential (delete depending on your level of OCD).

i took this pic yesterday on our trot out. its our nearest trig, the cloud,and probably my most frequent hill run

i wonder what was going through charlie's mind (as he looked west)?

mine is like a washing machine right now trying to plan 2012, mixing up old and new events. there are two definites right now... the lakeland 50..and OMG! the next 8 weeks of 'that' training plan, which now has 3!, yes 3!, fast weekly sessions in it (that surely warrants overuse of exclamation marks). the official plan still has no long runs in it but im afraid i just cant leave it until march to start those..it doesn't leave much time, so I'll be gradually sneaking a few in ;-)

time to pull my socks up once again methinks

2011-12-09T15:37:00.002Z

the last post, being kind of non-running in content, didn't seem to enthuse the world too much so I'll cut to the chase and give you my current xmas number one..that isn't a song as such

working in advertising there are from time to time ads that come out and for whatever reason you think to yourself 'i wish i'd done that'. right now there's one playing on the airwaves that is simply one of the most moving and inspired pieces of film ever. it's simplicity is boiled down to the naked human truth that 'giving is better than receiving' and delivers this truth in the most endearing and disarming way possible. hats off to john lewis and their agency adam and eve. it's a film that i simply want to watch time and time again.
so for those of you who haven't seen it (and those who have too), this is my present to you. i hope you enjoy it as much as i do

happy xmas guys from me and the ultra running collie x

collies christmas countdown

2011-12-04T19:45:00.004Z

seeing as the running plan is simply being worked through there isn't a great deal of running news to blog about..except that a number of regular bloggers seemed to have gone awol..running bear, emma, julie to name a few..come back your words and craic are missed

so with christmas just around a snowy corner i'll be posting my top 5 christmas hits over the next few weeks for all to enjoy a bit of a sing-a-long

and at number 5..a little number that takes me back to my teens at a time when i'd broken up with my then current girlfriend..i was no fan of this group or genre of music whatsoever but the timing of its release hit me between the..
and as an added bonus there a bit of a fellrunning feel to it (well at the start anyway)

collies round up

2011-11-24T08:28:00.004Z

1. the pooch has got his full winter coat on whilst there's been sightings of hair on the head of his follower. yes folks, after 5 years shaven, the locks are flowing once more. kind of.

2. earlier this month i legged it round lathkil, my first fell race since the waltz. this time there was no river dousing but a fine slurry yard was there to be negociated

3 whoever thinks running long distances is harder than short ones run hard is maybe not right. they're both hard but for totally different reasons. i get more anxious before a 5 x 4min solo track session these days than i do lining up for a 50 miler

4 training plans look easier on the paper than they actually are

5 my current plan has meant i've had to let go of the reins and my security blanket and trust in what has been laid out in front of me. it might be working. but its certainly shaking things up and that feels good

6 its the forth week of the plan and the prescribed eating regimen of no rice, bread, pasta etc. overall ive done ok apart from one reckless night and on a few occasions i've been seen sneaking in a few potatoes, beers and crisps when nobody's looking. mums the word ;-)

7 i am now officially asthmatic. i did wonder what might be holding me back from being a front of pack runner..well now i know why ;-)

8 next up is gravy pud fell race..because northern boys love gravy

9 and probably like you we're starting to get into the xmas spirit in the UC household..ding dong

on your marcs*

2011-10-28T05:56:00.007+01:00

after a fantastic year of running in 2010, it has to be said that 2011 has fallen well short of the mark. a six month injury didnt help the cause, but it's a sad day when i look back and see only two major highlights - the whaley waltz and the lakeland 50. but dont confuse highlights with great performances guys. highlights = enjoyment. and even the lakeland 50 wasn't 100% enjoyable.

amidst all this, something's been eating away at me..and not for the first time i have to say. and that thing is ..speed..or total lack of it. i've gotten into the habit of running in ever decreasing speeds and i've just let it happen. there's no excuses, i am where i am and, without throwing out my philosophy of running for fun, i know im capable of much better.

so, feeling like it was time to drink some truth serum and with the aim of getting my physical side knocked into better shape I thought i'd pay a visit to see marc laithwaite, the endurance coach, lakeland 50/100 organiser and alround top banana

i wasn't at all sure what the results migh be or indeed what marc might prescribe for me going forwards as in life there are: the things you know; the things you dont know; and the things you dont know you dont know. i can safely say that my visit; confirmed a thing or two i suspected; illuminated stuff i didn't know; and importantly revealed stuff i didn't even know existed! so..a visit well worth making

the biggest surprise came in the form of a 16 week plan of aerobic conditioning with lots of easy, steady, tempo and interval sessions..all designed to focus on getting me to move faster and improve my running economy. i am allowed one longish run a month but that's it for this period. and my diet needs to change (ouch).

but...i've loaded up my garmin with all the different heart rate zones for these sessions and im ready to go. i feel a new lease of running life coming on and im really quite excited by it. it feels a bit like a case of back to the future..im no stranger to this sort of training..its just been a long time since i did any!

so for now im trading long winter slogs for shorter sharper stuff and attempting to retrain my body's fuel choice

for me this feels like a personal running revolution..and with revolutions anything can happen!

and for charlie boy, he'd best watch out..i might start giving him a run for his dogbones in times to come..or maybe that's being a tad over-optimistic

*id make a great headline writer as a journo for the sun no??

sweating cobs

2011-10-02T11:28:00.005+01:00

by it's warm isn't it! unseasonably so. the other day i was running along, mouth wide open obviously, and in shot a fly! next minute i got one in the eye. not a good look, coughing and spluttering with a twitchy eye. but then neither is running along mouth and eyes shut tight. try it. you'll see what i mean!

anyway the reason im going on about our little heatwave is because it wasnt that long ago our little bloggtasticsphere was full of stories of snow, ice and running in 5 layers. 6 if you include base. it were a winter blogg wonderland (you know who you are). so its only right to bang on a bit about october heat. before you know it'll be humping down once again you watch. 'it needs it it does. ground needs it' everyone'll be saying. you cant win.

make most of it i say. im still in my (short) salomon shorts. the factor 15's seen a fair bit of sunlight too. though i have to say i haven't got round to getting the patio furniture back out.

whatever weather is it catches us all out. we're never ready for it. it snows and all schools close. it rains and that campsite at top of derwentwater floods. its get all hot and there's a shortage of ice cream cones. kid you not. it were on telly other day. about how the weather has thrown everyone. shops full of winter clothes in sales. asda back out with 3 for £5 on bbq range. restaurants cooking up hot pots no-one wants. and yes, the ice cream man panicking about his cone supply (there were no mention of sprinkles or monkeys blood mind..he must have bought a job lot of those at start of season)

not sure how long it'll last all this lovely weather but you can bet your house it won't be long before it'll all be back to normal. old folk forever banging on about how dark and freezing it is all the time. price war on tins of roses n quality street escalate as we head towards xmas. january sales starting in november. and cadburys easter eggs hitting shelves on boxing day. along with blanket coverage on telly of sofa ads.

and we'll all be banging on about snow and 5 layers. 6 if you count...

so do i still like to be beside the seaside?

2011-09-26T12:29:00.018+01:00

im a big fan of blustery beaches and rugged coastlines. i have my favourites, that provide something more uplifting beyond the ordinary. the secret sun-drenched coves of the algarve. the expansive , tranquil shoreline of inchydonney island. and the dramatic coastal cliffs that hug our very own shores, battling rock against wild seas, protecting our land as best they can from continual ocean erosion. one favourite stretch for me being the east yorkshire coast. a place frequently visited as a boy for days trip to whitby, scarborough, runswick and robin hood bays.

memories wrapped in 99's (with sprinkles and monkeys blood of course), proper fish and chips eaten out of newspaper on the pier, rockpooling, and the odd go on the rides and amusements. happy days. it never rained. did it.

so the hardmoors 60, from saltburn all the way to filey (a bit more if you fancied it, i didn't so it was hardmoors 55 for me in reality) would always be calling me on its inaugrual outing.

a 0530 coach pick to take us to the start meant a stayover in filey the night before, and a chance to catch up with simon moorehouse over a couple of pre-race local ales at fileys finest hostelry 'bonhommes'. a late finish after the event saw us do it all again, back in 'bonhommes', until the early hours of sunday morning in the company of some fellow racers and the very blunt and entertaining mark dalton, a good friend of drunken euphoria (a fellow blogger for those not acquainted with him, not a state of alcolohic intoxication)

enough of the social side, what of the event? well, there's a clue in the name. in fact two clues. it's not called 'easymoors' and it's 60 miles, take or leave 4-5 miles either side of that.

the weather was perfectly warm with a gentle breeze. the sea glistened and all felt good in this little bubble i found myself in (runner number 13). ticking off mile by mile, it all seemed too runnable and too easy for the first 20 miles or so.

then along came whitby, its throngs of tourists brining me to a walk, dodging through them all as the licked their ice creams or gorged on their take out chips n scraps..each and every one lookng at me as though i was some alien space ranger..it felt quite awkward but part of me felt great to be different and not just a day tripper filling my big greedy guts on a never-ending conveyer of junk food and retail tat. sometimes, most of the time, there's a better way to live.

maybe, retrospectively, part of my positive mojo was sucked out of me by the whitby massive, as once up the 199 steps to the abbey i never really got back into the 'swagger' that i'd so enjoyed during my first 20 miles (it probably didnt look like a swagger to the outside eye but it felt like it to me!). the going got tougher, mentally and physically. my food tolerence plummetted and i soon found myself mainly relying on liquid (coke, red bull and water..but never mix your drinks kids) for energy input. and my tolerence for a never ending series of steep steps or stones down to shore level and then back up the other side was becoming to be seriously tested.

a mile or two on and i caught up with simon..my first bit of company that day really. with my rantings about never doing an ultra ever again, i bet there were times when all he wanted to do was to put a bit of a shuffle on to lose my dulcit tones. a stop for pop (sprite) and crisps (seabrooks salted of course) at robin hoods bay quickly upped my mood (as well as losing us ten minutes queuing in the shop)

we did have a laugh too though.

we laughed when we got into the ravenscar checkpoint with just 30 seconds to go before the time-out cut off point.
we laughed at how much our feet hurt and how we struggled like a couple of old crocks down sharp steep stepped descents (try saying that quickly ten times).
and we laughed when as dusk fell, headtorches donned, and getting a bit lost in scarborough (well we got a bit lost, maybe we didnt laugh so much)

by the time we eventually found the elusive scarborough checkpoint at mile 44/45, we were well 'out of time' and i couldn't wait (i was actually excited at the thought) to be taxied back to filey for an 'early bath', some lovely fish and chips, and a few glasses of wollop! and that would be that. the end to my agony of running ultras..forever! and a fine, memorable way to end it all with a DNF!

cue the sliding doors moment as the lovely checkpoint girl says 'you've done really well, are you really sure you dont want to carry on to filey?'. maybe she just wanted to get off home and not having to bother to taxi us back? but without thought i said ' so how far is it?'. 'only about 8 miles came the reply, you'll be fine'. as fast as we'd talked ourselves out of the race a tad earlier, we talked ourselves back into it and avoided the 'taxi of shame' back to filey.

so off we went back into the dark, me charged up and high on another can of red bull (it gives you wings you know..reckon there's a good advertising line in that)

i really love running in the dark, though im sure residents of the two caravan parks we had to pass through must have viewed two headtorch-cladded blokes at 10pm with a slight degree of suspicion!

to pass time we debated whether the path mileage signs signed 'filey' were actually to filey itself or filey brigg. i was hoping for filey, simon 'filey brigg' moorehouse adamant they meant filey brigg. it could have ended in tears.

anyway, fast forward an hour or so. we're back in 'bonhommes' having a few sherberts and some great craic with a few others and mark dalton (already washed, changed and fed), exchanging war stories, how much harder it was than anticipated and how some might do the even harder and much longer hardmoors 110. its called the hardmoors 110 because....

what a strange day. highs. lows. mediums. more lows. then elation at finishing. is this the eternal emotional ultra pattern? a technical DNF by missing the silly loop at the end (running out the other side of filey for a bit then back) that's to be scrapped anyway in 2012. last (a lifetime ambition) into filey of those that made it there of the 52 starters..though i think a good number didnt make it that far.
and i'd gone another full circle yet again. from loving ultras to hating ultras to (maybe just maybe) loving ultras. or maybe not.

im just glad charlie wasn't there. i think he'd have disowned me!

but whatever, there's always a new day dawning

collie's round up (and inane ramblings)

2011-09-18T19:42:00.004+01:00

so..we pass from summer to autumn in the blink of a day. some might say 'what summer?'. to me it doesn't matter. there are things in life you can change , and other stuff you can't, so just go with the flow in some cases. besides i really love the seasons here and the differences we experience running through them
it wasn't that long ago that i felt the year just ticking slowly by. before we know it we're heading towards Halloween at brake neck speed.
hollie and will have both returned to school, both moving up a class and the stakes grow.
karen and the 'boys' just keep improving so it's great to see their rise as they head into the autumn eventing schedule, with the great elemski coming into his own at such a young age. go guys!
as for me and the pooch?
let's start with his nibs. he must be the best part of 10 years now or thereabouts, making him hitting on late 60's in dogs years. but you wouldn't know it. he is as he was two/three/four years ago..leading by example..at the front..me in tow. and i'd like it to stay that way for as long as i can. so, he's no longer going to be entered into real long distance stuff but will be my guide and pacemaker for all my training runs and any stuff under 30 miles. this way i'm sure we'll stil be running together for some time yet.
and as for me? well let's just say the jury's out for 2012. i still have the hardmoors 60 next week but what the future may bring is anyone's guess..any suggestions guys???

and JUMP!

2011-08-31T15:52:00.031+01:00

i've been intrigued to give ghyll scrambling a go for a long time. for those not in the know, you walk up a mountain alongside the ghyll (mountain stream / river) and then so far up you get in it and come down..sliding on your backside, jumping into the plunge pools below the waterfalls, diving in, 'superman' slides, headfirst backward slides and many more. its cold, its great, it gets the blood pumping. it even features at number 14 in the the uk's top 100 things to do before you die and its the ghyll we scrambled, stoneycroft ghyll, that's the one to do...like the picture below (that ive copied..its not mine)

it might not look that exhilirating but get in the thick of it and you know about it. i volunteered to be the first of the group to jump off into the infamous 'washing machine'. i bottled it. hollie then went over, no trouble. i came forward a little later. i bottled it again. once all the others had madly taken the challenge on, i found myself sat all alone, the last to go, on what now felt like the 'ledge of shame'...16 or so pairs of eyes staring up at me..'will he? wont he?' or maybe 'get on with it you big girls blouse'. i stepped forward, took a deep breath and off i went..SPLASH! not so bad after all..mind over matter. anyway if you're up that way and fancy something a little different, that's your fella!

by contrast the rest of the holiday was somewhat less hair raising but by no means less breath-taking for different reasons.

staying for the first time in grasmere, i was able to explore fells otherwise as yet untrood by me. and as we were directly under stone arthur, alcock tarn and the fairfield horseshoe that's where most of our walking / running took place..

mrs uc and his nibs ponder the meaning of life at alcock 'infinty' tarn

helm crag

helm herdies

stone(d) arthur

leaving the fairfield clag behind

coming off towards ambleside

colliewobbles for ultra collie

the best thing was that it was around a relentless 3000ft climb in 3 miles up to fairfield from our cottage. a lungbuster indeed. great views all the way until near the top when the clag came down and challenged my mapless/compassless navving..it was all in my head (luckily)

all in all great times

next up, the hardmoors 60 down the cleveland way from saltburn to filey :)

i can laugh about it now

2011-08-02T12:26:00.018+01:00

'how are you doing?' came the question from a marshall as i was leaving the first checkpoint at Howtown. 'i'm feeling great. and i'm a minute up on last years time!'. words i was shortly going to ponder and regret.

some short time later there i was, barely into double figures, and on the verge of quitting. not jut quitting the lakeland 50 but quitting ultrarunning altogether. in my head i was penning my ultra running obituary for this blog. i think it was going to say something along the lines of 'been there, completed that, can't be arsed anymore'.
the sun was beating down (uncannily for the lakes), the air was stagnant, my heart was racing higher than it should have been and at a rate too fast to see my through a full 50 miles. a constant drip of beads of sweat falling from the rim of my hat were an ongoing reminder of the effort i was seemingly putting in. and sat on my backside, not for the first time either, a steady stream of other weary competitors climbed on past me. but they were still moving on, i wasn't.
there were no post mortems going on in my head, no self-blaming or accusations of undertraining or not being in the right physical shape to complete the big task i'd embarked upon. none of that. i had an eerie sense of calm defeatism and resignation that my ultra running days were soon to be over. in fact were over. a 2500ft climb over a few short miles had finally got the better of me and that was that. i'd done it many times before with ease but now the only thought was if i could get back down to the Howtown checkpoint for a lift back to Coniston..'taxi for Donaghue' i would hear them say!

with nothing more to prove what was so wrong with giving up?

EVERYTHING. everything was wrong with giving up!

i had karen, hollie, and will monitoring my progress online at home via the event's brilliant progress board. they had been giving loads of support before i left and hidden away loads of tiny little good luck messages in my pack and kit. what message would i be sending my kids (and karen)..'sorry guys, dad couldn't be arsed'
then there were the post event celebrations that were planned in coniston with simon, will, col, nick and others, most of whom were doing the jaw-dropping 100 route (respect to anyone who lines up on the staring line for that one, completing it or otherwise). what was i going to tell them? how could i even consider sitting at the same table as them with my pityful effort and tale to tell!
and finally, 'well done donaghue you've rounded off a great year of non-running and a 3 year stint of ultrarunning with your greatest achievement yet! a DNF!'

with my spirit fighting back my body's call to quit, a guy, who i now know as Dave Coxon, struggles past me. He'd started the 100, got 38 miles into it but was timed out, so he decided to quickly switch his efforts to the 50 (amazing!). now i don't recall all the conversation we had but whatever was said about just getting to the next checkpoint or actually finishing was the ultimate tipping point for me. thank you dave! you were judge and jury.

what happened thereafter might not have been pretty, it might not have been quick, but once through the next checkpoint at mardale head, i was virtually euphoric the rest of the way.

coming off gatesgarth pass i was joined by a chap called adam who i was to complete the rest of the course with and once at troutbeck we were joined by paul (aka four winds). we ticked off each mile swapping tales, smalltalk, and bigtalk, and, as we entered the wee early hours of the morning, jokes that seemed hilarious at the time (you had to be there). paul got a right taste for coffee at each checkpoint to keep him going while i downed my secret weapon of redbull to keep my attentiveness for the route-finding ahead in the dark.

time quickly passed. i was having a ball.. interspersed with a few swear words from time to time when i hit a minor and short lived low.

though 2 hours off my 2010 time, i wouldn't have swapped this whole experience for anything. a tough, demanding but inspiring course. the magnificent checkpoints and people manning them (especially the log burner at chapel stile), the roars and cheers from the pub crowds as we trailed through ambleside. the highs, the lows,and the in-betweens. the friendships made and the passing acquaintances.
and three ordinary guys who started the race probably looking quite normal who after 50 miles grinned inanely at the finish line taking on what can only be described as alien-like appearances

and as the early hours morphed into day, we all met as planned to trade our war stories..celebrations, comiserations, each and every person a true winner.. til late into the night, starting with a pint of the stuff below in honour of absent friends. and as pints were downed the talk turned to coming back next year for seconds or thirds. and the more pints downed, the more the talk was of the 100 mile challenge. before anyone could talk me into such madness i sloped off and headed off to the sanctury of my bed.

(special thanks go out to mark, terry, lauren, and all the helpers who clearly go more than an extra mile to make this by far the uk's best ultrarunning event ever)

lakeland 50 rollercoaster...

2011-08-01T16:45:00.002+01:00

manning up

2011-07-13T03:12:00.005+01:00

it never ceases to amaze me how kind and supportive fellow runners / bloggers are when you need a bit of a lift or a boot up the proverbial. or to put it another way, as was gratefully suggested, to 'man up'. so thank you for all the lifts, boots, pearls of wisdom and phrases now embedding themselves in the daily vernacular.

so...yesterday was good. run to work at 0445. run back at 1730. 34.81 miles. 4550ft of gritstone trail. no ill effects. should have eaten more than a couple of gels both ways but glad to land back in the evening at the knot inn in my village for full fat coke and salty snacks.
the psychology of running back in the evening is always harder than the morning run..but then i guess that's where the 'manning up' really happens.

along the way hares were aplenty. a randy bull made me divert a field*. and the jump of a deer over a fenceline would have put most horses at hickstead to shame. sheer effortless elegance, unlike my shuffling. and all too quick to catch on camera bar the bull. so here's nice pic of macc forest instead. cheers guys.

* i didn't 'man up' quite enough at this particular point in the proceedings

no time for over analysis

2011-07-07T04:39:00.002+01:00

osmotherley? pass. next please.
sometimes when stuff doesn't work out or go as you planned and imagined, for whatever number of reasons, you've just got to regroup, dig deep and move on.
the naked truth can be ugly
i need to rediscover the beautiful truth
with the truth of being unprepared for the upcoming lakeland 50, that's all i have to say right now. either a great experience awaits or one of titanic proportions. i've three weeks to mend things

i run for fun

2011-07-01T10:22:00.001+01:00

so why the day before osmotherley phoenix (33m) and i am sat examining in detail my splits for my previous two attempts? will i be constantly checking my watch? will i enjoy it? will it all end in tears? i'll let you all know :)

felldancing

2011-06-26T06:47:00.014+01:00

so yesterday i left the house in one state of mind, at sorts with myself, and came back in a totally transformed state, buzzing and elated. so what happened in between?

i set off in my car, minus the pooch whose company i didn't fancy!, with the idea of maybe going to the gym, maybe going and having a run somewhere to help clear my head. lots of maybe's, none of which were filling me with any degree of excitement. it was just one of those days. we all get them, thankfully for me they're few and far between.

so i thought i'd text my mate, jonny macc, just on the off chance to see if he'd fancy a nice gentle trot out to chew the cud and help raise a little cheer. the text I got back was a little unexpected.. 'off to do the whaley waltz*. fancy it?'.

OMG i thought, i haven't done a short race for at least 2, if not 3, years (teggs nose). whatsmore, i haven't done any speed work of any substance for ages too.and i'm not what i'd describe as race fit for a short blast like this one. and to top it all i'd had a few the night before!

what if i come last i thought to myself. bugger it! the whole idea had taken me so by surprise there was nothing to it other than to say 'on my way'. it would be a blast even if i do shame myself. so throwing caution/anxiety/nerves/panic to the wind i headed round to maccas, quietly excited and part bricking it, to pick him up en route. with zilch eaten he kindly fed me toast and jam, a favourite pre race fuel, washed down with a nice mug of tea. a quick change into some kit and off we headed on the short drive to whaley bridge.

(macca and his mate matt at registration)

looking round at the other runners at the start there weren't many, what i would call,fun runners kicking about. it was a small field but most looked fairly handy. oh well. too late now i thought..let's just go and enjoy it. the hooter went and off we went along the main street heavily lined with people clapping and cheering, most there for the afternoon fete not just the race.

it's essentially a race of two halves. all uphill for the first half then down for the second. it was mostly muddy and slippy throughout and only equipped with my north face rucky chuckys (not the ideal shoe for this sort of thing) i took the downhill with a little bit of caution in a few places.

a mile in realising i wasn't going to be last i settled into the run and loved every minute of it. i made decent progress (for me anyway!) up to the 'turning point', windgather rocks for the second half descent, during which i fell back just two places (listen to me becoming all competitive and bothered about placings!).

then just before the finish came the real treat..the jump into the river, which was flowing at 4ft. another friend, phil from buxton,told me the best strategy was just to literally leap as far as you can into it..otherwise you have to swim across! whatsmore there was a huge crowd of spectators on the other side expecting entertainment and comedy from each and every leap into the river. i think they got their money's worth. my landing was akin to peter kays infamous bombing in the john smiths ad..somewhat ungraceful and making one hell of a splash. all races should finish this way!! you can see it below..im in all black around 3.07-3.17 into the video

i was buzzing having loved every minute of the whole thing. a sliding doors moment/text that just might see me now lining up to do a few more of these. i loved the intensity of it all, pushing myself and putting a bit of a shuffle on, something i haven't tried or done for a long time. and phew i didnt finish last

so cheers jonny macc for the off the cuff inspiration! it was truly a blast and a fantastic re-immersion (literally) back into fell running. i'll be coming back for more.

the white nancy ale afterwards back in the vale in bollington wasn't bad either!

*for those not in the uk, the whaley waltz is a 5.78m/792ft fell race in the peak district.

lakeland 50 recce

2011-06-19T06:12:00.004+01:00

now intent on making the start line i thought it wise to give us a little refresher of the bit we'll do in the dark..from ambleside to coniston. all that was very straightforward in retrospect, without needing to refer to the map once

to get a bit more climbing in i decided on a diversion at dungdeon ghyll, along the cumbrian way. hands up though i made a schoolboy navigation error and ended up, at angle tarn, a little way off from where i was planning on heading. PAY MORE ATTENTION NEXT TIME!

all the same it made for a good long climb and descent which served its purpose.

we got the most time on our feet we've had this year and so now i feel confident about osmotherley coming up in two weeks.

now then..the big debate.
his nibs flew yesterday and has shown no after effects..so will he make the team for the lakeland 50? i'm tempted even at his mature age..he's the canine equivalent of joss naylor i think! we'll perhaps check post osmotherley, but it would be fantastic to have him by my side for it..i mean somewhere up ahead. we'll see

john ketley was a weatherman

2011-06-12T08:24:00.018+01:00

john ketley. michael fish.jack scott. ian mccaskill. wincy willis. bill giles. barbara edwards. bert ford. you never got the weather forecast right and yesterday you totally omitted to make any mention of the weather going from glorious breezy tanning sunshine one minute to a brutal barrage of stinning, chilling hailstones the next. with the cycle repeating itself all over again!
yes indeed readers, such are the extremes of our unique climate as most of you will know
we started our edale skyline plus (24.5 miles/4000ft) outing at 0700 to get ahead of steam before the madding crowds appeared.it was a lovely morning..so much so i totally caught the sun throwing caution to the wind not using any suncream.

what i love about what we do is that each run, even in the same area is totally unique. today as we contoured round to Winhill the air was full of the fragrance of freshly logged pine from the forest above the reservoir

by the time we got to the trig at Winhill we still hadn't seen a single soul..other than the best part of a thousand hill sheep

as we made our way over to rushup edge and beyond the paths were becoming a little more populated so it was time to leave folk behind and head over the peat bogs to kinder
this is where, in a split second and out of nowhere, came the first assault of hailstones from the sky at a vicious rate too. dressed in a tee and shorts it wasn't pleasant. not only did each direct hit on me really hurt, the sheer volume of them combined with the gusty wind sent me from being beautifully warm to bloody freezing in a matter of seconds. we stopped at the trig where i donned the only protection i had..a very lightweight montane windproof jacket (see mr weatherman we weren't expecting anything like this at all)..it did a job to cover my arms but my poor legs had to take the battering without protection. eventually it subsided as we reached the pennine way junction at kinder.
only minutes passed and once again the sun vanished and it started all over again..this time harder and for longer. so hard i started to get a frozen head so my flimsy hood was called into action this time.

but we wouldn't want it any other way. give us predictable and well, it all becomes a bit predictable. and i guess that's why being a weatherman in britain has always probably been one of the toughest jobs going..bless everyone of them and their totally inaccurate forecasts

groundhog holidays

2011-06-04T07:09:00.015+01:00

so what's wrong with going to the same place year after year if you really love the place? well nothing to my mind, so it was off to portugal again with the UC clan, minus of course, the real URC. his nibs left at home gave me the chance yet again to do some er er road running. can you believe it! there's a cracking 5m lollipop, undulating route from the villa to the town (carverio) and back. that was done daily with a PB of around 3 mins faster than my slowest day. but it would not have been right to miss out this little trail route, the seven hanging valleys. its all up and down along a sheer cliff drop which gave me the fear with my lack of head for heights with sheer drops..the pics take you from the start to the finish..hope you like them!
'the start'

'extreme fishing'

'carvalho'

'smugglers sneaky exit'

'you can have a fishy..'

'don't look down'

and so back home i have about 8 weeks to get fit for the lakeland 50. i've got a weekend in the lakes for two training days soon then osmotherley 33 early july. i wouldn't say i'm papping it but i think i've got my work cut out in such a short space of time..head down then and go for it i say..what possibly could go wrong!

ps sorry i haven't commented on anyone's posts..i have a technical glitch that needs sorting. if anyone can help please shout! i can sign into my account but when i try to comment it asks me to sign in again but doesn't recognise me! urghhh!

maybe..

2011-05-15T06:58:00.002+01:00

thanks to all our virtual buddies who sent in healing, tips and support..you know what, im hoping, touch wood, fingers crossed that that barrage of positive vibes sent my knee firmly on its way to recovery. its seen 38 miles over the last few days without issue during or after and importantly no trouble at the very start of a run.
i must say people can be extremely kind and thoughtful and none moreso than in our running communities where despite competition people still really do look out for one another. so guys a big thank you to you all (and a big lick and tail wag from his nibs whose hoping to be getting out more for some proper stuff!) i hope by coming out and saying that im not jinxing myself.

temporary derailment

2011-05-07T05:08:00.002+01:00

the trains aren't running on time in the world of ultra collie. in fact im not sure they're running at all. i remember the old british rail slogan..'we're getting there'..i don't think i am sadly. my knee has taken a retrograde step backwards and i'm now starting to no longer see the funny side..what funny side!! i dont believe physio is on top of it so next port of call will probably be a scan to rule stuff out or in.
after a most brilliant 2010, 2011 has yet to get started really and there is a fear that it might not. there's only so much optimism one can have before realism gets the better of you.
i will try to crack on a bit but i do fear that any proper long stuff might just be ruled out for the time being.
drat drat and double drat. and bugger.

white rabbit white rabbit

2011-04-23T00:12:00.011+01:00

so there we were, minding our own business heading over to brown knoll,when suddenly out of nowhere a mountain hare that we'd clearly disturbed goes shooting off. i've heard about these guys (and gals) and seen the sign with them on but i suspected real sightings of them weren't that often..though im sure more regular visitors on here to edale/kinder will tell me differently. anyway it was a sight to behold but he was off like a shot before i could get my camera out. luckily charlie stayed with me resisting his natural urge to give chase. a real priveledge the whole thing.

anyway, i think i've found a new fairly local playground now around edale and kinder, i abolutely love it. unlike last weeks sorti in the clag, there wasn't a cloud in the sky as we set off at 0630 to largely follow the sklyine fell race route..what a belter it is too! the only downside of the day was raldiss having to retire, feeling unwell, little over 1/2mile into the adventure..better safe than sorry.

first up was the climb up to ringing roger (i so love this shot!)

then over the moors, staying high, before dropping onto the roman road and up to winhill

a sharpish decent (ouch) then a good climb up to lose hill/wards piece

passing curious onlookers keeping an eye on his nibs

a pit stop at lose hill looking over to hollins cross and mam tor

the bleak trig of brown knoll

from there we headed over to a very different kinder to the one we'd traversed only a week ago..this one had visible paths (everywhere!)..how much easier navving was. maybe i'm not as bad at it as i sometimes think. we kept largely to the escarpment edge with its amazing views before ascending grindslow knoll and descending steeply back (double ouch)into edale. just over 21 miles and 4000ft or so. ideal lakeland 50 training but more importantly, an amazing morning out.

kinder

2011-04-17T05:18:00.002+01:00

funnily enough we've never been over kinder so yesterday was the day. a 0630 start before the madding crowds arrived and also before the CLAG lifted. visibility up top was down to around 30ft so the treck up and across the kinder scout bog required that compass thingy. the aim to hit a nw line and arrive at kinder downfall. nearly hit it but not quite. to much amusement of my fellow runner 'raldiss' i apparently was heard saying 'that's the way!...well I think it's the way....actually i've got no idea'.
we did do one very small comedy lap round a fenced off enclosed area, arriving back where we started without realising, before getting our act together and heading back south on the pennine way into more familiar, and by then, sunny territory.
a great and inspiring way to spend a morning so i think we'll be back there lots more over easter hopefully when we can see a bit!
(ps is there an obvious path after grindsbook clough all the way to kinder downfall as indicated on the os map? if so, we missed it)

so

2011-04-10T06:01:00.018+01:00

what's been happening?
firstly, my knee has just about resolved itself. its a little bit sticky but not painful. that's good :)
secondly, charlie has just had his new look for the 2011 spring/summer season and looks as fit as..well..an ultra collie of course :)

so with a better knee and a new look for charlie, we set back out on our adventures starting with two 20 mile ldwa events, the 3 shires and spring into old hutton

last weekend it was the 3 shires, our most local event, about 2 miles away. we bimbled round with nick ham (thanks for the company!)over very familiar territory (so much so i never referred to the map) and saw will meridith and simon moorehouse (also on the mend) along the way. they really do put on a good event for which everyone is exceptionally grateful.

so to this weekend in its blaze of spring sunshine, glory and the lad's new streamlined look. we were entered for the ldwa spring into old hutton, near kendal, but were equally tempted to go off and do our own thing over higher fells. we went for the former and had a mixed experience i guess. the effort etc jim the organiser and his helpers put into putting an event like this on cant be faulted and again we're really appreciative of it all. like the 3 shires the food was excellent!
i guess i struggled with the route, being largely over undulating fields, farmland and lanes and hundreds of differently styled styals. fiddly i'd call it. and for me not very inspiring.

it had its moments..heading up to lambrigg wind farm and docker fell.

..and perhaps the best dressed trig point i've yet come across, up on the helm

..and ending with a good chat with my friend john king and his dog sally (she chatted with charlie) over soup and sandwiches

so where am i going with all this?
2010 was perhaps my best ever running year with two massive highlights of the c2c and the lakeland 50. so it was always going to be a tall order to match the enjoyment in 2011. injury and two events in and i must say i haven't been inspired as yet.
i guess im now on a journey to rebuild my fitness and i have to be patient for it to return. charlie's boundless energy provides great inspiration in that regard.
but more importantly, ive realised, or maybe i knew all along, that if we're to continue long distance stuff the most important aspect for me is to be inspired by the places we traverse and by and large they mostly come in the form of bloody great hills or mountains

i think...

2011-03-27T17:18:00.002+01:00

...we might be back (touch wood)

two weeks and zero running. just getting fat.

physio last friday. really hopeful to get thumbs up.

thumbs up. friday lunch run. ouch. 1st mile painful. discard orthotics. pain relieved.

sunday. ditch the asics trail shoes. revert back to my favorites. north face rucky chuckies. result. 10.5 miles and little, if any, discomfort. 6 hours since finished and no repercussions.

plan. next saturday's 3 shires. maybe do the 20 instead of the 30 (being sensible). our first event of the year (hopefully).

charlie is delighted. i am delighted. we're all delighted.

hope i haven't spoken too soon.

ps thanks to everyone's words of encouragement. they were much appreciated.

sliding doors

2011-03-19T05:15:00.003Z

TURN LEFTfriday..after a really demanding week at work we drive up to the horse and farrier in threlkeld. enjoy good food and jennings ale
saturday..run the ldwa 4 lakeland passes event with pooch. perfect spring day. hardly a cloud in the sky. love it! this is where i want to be. back to threlkeld for a repeat of friday night
sunday..drop down to south lakes for a cracking run with hayfella. a new route for me with a long time friend. babbling brooks and new born lambs abound

TURN RIGHT friday..no running
saturday..no running
sunday..no running

so you've guessed. im on the sidelines good and proper. not one yard run since last sunday. physio's orders..a conclusion i'd got to too. i've done the 'i'm not really injured' denial bit (this started early january). i've done the *&%$ angry part. i'm now hopefully moving into acceptance and looking forward to recovery with prescribed stretches, ice, physio and cross training.

while all this is going on i hope everyone is enjoying running in the beautifully brighter days we're getting and any events you're doing.

we'll be back. and one of the first things we're gonna do is pop up to the lakes and do the weekend we've missed out on

keep smiling folks!

OK so i could swear!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2011-03-12T07:20:00.007Z

having a glass half full, sunny side up kind of disposition i didn't like to mention in my last post the uncomfortable feeling i was getting from my right knee up into my quad as i was completing that first interval session for ages
the next day i didn't run, i hobbled and back to mike honey my physio i went
'too much too soon' he said. the problem lies with my knee tendon and its connection to my quad. my fast twitch muscles weren't firing properly apparently so all hell broke lose in my that region .
soooo..im back to weekly physio, a strengthening exercise (which does quite plainly show the difference between both legs) and no quick stuff for now, which is a bugger as i really quite like the variety and it was there to jettison me into some shorter fell races.
ok thats my new plan quickly derailed but hey much worse things and i'm already back running at my previous dreamy pace
but i'll be back soon i hope..steady..tempo..intervals..in that order...i'm too young to be a permanent hobbler,i really am.

reaquainted with speed

2011-03-09T14:12:00.005Z

im hoping my post title doesn't attract the wrong sort of blogger/follower/dealer. if you thought it was about popping some pills or shooting up i'm sorry to dissapoint

that said, there are some fine qualities to speed (street drug) that have relevance to speed (running pace)

- Speed makes people feel wide awake, excited and chatty.
- Clubbers take it because it gives them the energy to dance for hours without getting tired.
- Amphetamines was once the main ingredient in diet pills because it stops people feeling hungry

maybe i'll try some on the next 50 miler i do after all!

i digress

today was my first speed session for around 6 whole months. gasp. shock. horror. i know there will be running whippets reading this absolutely horrified by my lack of attention to any sort of pace sesion. the thing is, doing only ultras now i've kind of kidded myself that every run can be a lovely ambivalent plod, just floating along , in a daydream, without a care in the world. dont get me wrong, i love floating, its hypnotic. but in my mind i know i should be doing a couple of tough sessions a week like i did when marathon and half training.

so today folks i grasped that spikey nettle and headed to the xc track at macc harriers over lunch. its a perfect 1/2 mile circuit. a warm up, some dynamic stretches (hf taught me those), some strides, then 4 x 800's. i'll reveal my pace only so long as you dont laugh - a metronomic 7 min/mile each lap. for some fellow bloggers that's a LSR pace but not for this juggernaut. hey, it's a start. we've got to start somewhere yes? and having started i must keep going so i'll be poping up there weekly and building the number of reps up, maintaining the pace, as well as making sure i pop a weekly tempo run in for luck also. so, you whippets, you better watch out..this ultra collie's getting his skates on ;-)

and for the rest of the time i'll continue with my transcendental outings

here comes the sun :)

2011-02-28T08:45:00.009Z

finally, that great big ball of fire in the sky and clear blue skies decided to pay us all a visit this week (see proof below). to celebrate the occasion, and a couple of birthdays in the UC household, I decided to take a half day holiday and sneak a little run in, in shorts would you believe it!

maybe it was unofficially the first day of spring and the kick start required to get everything to start coming back to life again

the route was so good I decided to do it all again,and more, yesterday with raldiss. i'd guestimated off the top of my head it would be around 20 miles, in the end it was 24, which make it very pleasingly our longest outing this year so far. a row of 3 consecutive and rather brutal climbs towards the end ensured a tasty sting in the tail..all good training for the events coming our way soon. and charlie ate it up too without any difficulty which was reassuring to see

i can't wait now for light mornings and balmy evenings. it can only be all good.

ice road truckers

2011-02-20T16:10:00.009Z

well all i can say is i didn't expect that!
me, raldiss (of 2010 c2c fame and supplier of the finest 'running pies' known to man) and charlie had a day's indulgent running planned from edale. so off we set off from home at 8am, into leek for some juice and then onward bound on the buxton road. only not so onward as it turned out. out of nowhere we went from cold blusterly conditions to a -5c artic-like landscape, with driving sleet/snow making for a whiteout. clearly the gritters weren't expecting it either.

needless to say, chaos was all around. lorries jack-knifing, cars unable to negociate inclines and the odd one detouring off the road altogether.luckily we were in the landrover but even so had to drive with care. descending into buxton it was obvious that our edale rendevouz would have to wait for another day so we hung a left and headed up to the cat and fiddle.
from there, our 5.5hr run out was tough going, with snow ,slush and mud slowing our progress and ensuring that our feet stayed soaked and cold throughout. i chose full waterproof bodycover whereas raldiss run in shorts! manly or niaive? i'll let you choose.

anyway, we had a hoot and gave ourselves a double reward. recovery eggs and bacon at peak view cafe followed a little later with lashings of re-hydrating staropramen and fish n chips in my local with mrs uc too. a grand day out altogether, even though not as planned

happy days

see the light

2011-02-13T04:46:00.015Z

now that i've indulged myself in my previous post with a dusting of personal philosophy it's back to the nitty gritty

firstly, the magical mitts of mr michael honey @ trinity house in macc seem to have done the trick. he's an amazing physio and thanks to him any issues i encounter never become big ones. cheers mike!

so with near to full tendon recovery i thought it time to go longer. forecast sunny, we took off to the goyt valley with a 'make it up as you go route' in mind. it wasn't sunny but it was very wet, muddy, slippy and mysteriuosly beautiful as ever blessed with a heavy blanket of clag. and an early start means we get the place largely to ourselves bar any werewolves not yet in bed

as it went, our route, solely taking place around the goyt valley covered large parts of three local fell races - 'windgather', 'shining tor' and 'goyts moss' - though i dont think i quite ran this at anything near racepace!
the feeling of being back out without physical restrictions or niggling doubts was immense though i took it cautiously to avoid any repeats of unexpected and sudden inbalances ..there were plenty to be had without proper due care and attention

i could also tell that charlie knew we were back in the swing of it all again..my rucksac being a bit of a giveaway (more about that in a moment)

forecast sunny,i kept an eye out for it. 3 hours in at 11am it tried to show itself but our northern clag is a hardy type and not one for dispersing so easily. at around midday the sun finally won or maybe the clag just let it!

so that was our first 20 mile outing, with oddles of sqidgy ups and downs, for a good couple of months. i finished feeling strong, with plenty left in the tank, and no niggles around the knee area

right! and now on to a piece of kit first used by me yesterday..i cannot believe i haven't had one before..and so blindingly obvious

attached to the front of my sac this little number (though not as small as illustrated..im not a midget) meant i never had to take my pack off throught the run..simple yet genius..like most of the best gadgets that pepper our lives from time to time are!

if i could bottle 'now'..

2011-02-04T15:11:00.001Z

..i would

spin doctor

2011-01-23T05:41:00.010Z

def. 'In public relations, spin is a form of propaganda, achieved through providing an interpretation of an event or campaign to persuade public opinion in favor or against a certain organization or public figure. While traditional public relations may also rely on creative presentation of the facts, "spin" often, though not always, implies disingenuous, deceptive and/or highly manipulative tactics.[1]'

for me and fellow endurance runners i believe the ability to be highly skilled at the art of spin doctoring is a total necessity. now boys and girls, dont get me wrong, i'm not talking here about deceiving our fellow beings, or being in any way disingenuous about our achievements. what i am refering to here is how we spin things to ourselves that helps uphold all things positive and blocks out any negative thinking. in fact becoming a highly tuned practioner in the psychology of spin doctoring to oneself might be the difference between success and failure..a bit like my previous post of glass half empty or glass half full

feeling grumpy? keep smiling and soon you'll feel loads better. going through a bad patch on your run? think happy positive stuff and soon you'll be flying once again.

take my january for example. it should have been 50+ mileage weeks with long runs of 20+ as the start of my 2011 campaign build up. with a daft fall and a resulting injured tendon i've ended up with at best a 3m daily hobble. that might have sent my head spinning (in a dizzy way) a few years ago and seen me heading to make a sharp exit from whatever plans that lay ahead. but this time im only looking at what i've gained rather than what i've lost
- i've felt better and run (ok hobbled) better with every little 3 miler i've done and ive managed to run strongly the ups (it was the downs that were tricky)
- i've made a conscious effort, sometimes (not everytime) through gritted teeth to go swimming and go to the gym to get my upper body and core into a decent state so they can take on their fair share of the work rather than leaving it all to my legs
- i've totally stopped drinking this month and eaten better and so far have shed a full 1/2 stone (a bit more to go yet mind)
- and as of yesterday my training is on its way up..a whopping 7, yes 7!, miles. can you believe it!! and today i hit double figures with a lovely run around here..

so, a month lost or a month gained? i let you make your own minds up about that..though no gold fish this time on offer the correct answer

hopefully i'll be able to continue upwards from here, build up the strenth in my knee area and replan my next few months training and events..all will be revealed (not that there's anything that exciting to be anticipating mind!). a steady week ahead of gently undulating runs (mike honeys orders) and then hopefully back to full training.

the mountains are calling. i can't hold out much longer.

so fellow bloggers and ultra diehards..keep spin doctoring your heads!

ps i don't think dogs need to use any such dark arts ;-)

bugger

2011-01-15T07:09:00.010Z

i thought the panto season was over

'we're back!'
'oh no you're not!'
'oh yes we are!'
'oh no you're not!'
'oh yes we..well..maybe not'

one thing i appear to have ommitted from my last post was the small matter of a little stumble i took out on my run. coming off shining tor, heading across the still icy moor, and probably not paying enough attention to what i was doing, my left leg suddenly gave way and over to my left i was plummeting. instead of doing the sensible thing (hindsight's great after any event isn't it!) and completing a total fall into the bracken i got 3/4 down and spontaneously tried to correct it. to cut a long story short my right leg probably contorted in a way its not meant to. feeling only mild discomfort in it (which is natural) i brushed myself down, took an intake of breath (looking around to see if any other soul had witnessed my john cleese act) and slowly took up the pace once more

the next day my planned run was aborted 10 paces from home..my right leg/knee didn't want to know

a trip for a sports massage diagnosed the problem as a likely micro tear to the quad just above the knee

two days on and still no better a trip to mike honey, physio god, diagnosed damage to the tendon above and surrounding the knee. treatment has started and this nice pink strapping applied (he didn't have any other colourways available)..if i'm honest i quite like the fluro pink ;-)

so..bit of a bummer

this weekends trip to the lakes for a UTLD recce aborted. i can hobble for very short outings in a bit of pain that eventually subsides but nothing long for now so my training is kind of not where i thought it might be or where i wanted it to be

im hoping for a quick recovery but in the meantime im doing lots of gym (with gritted teeth), some swimming and generally improving a whole load of stuff for the better

id rather not have had to apply the brake right now but some things you can't change and if you can't change them you've gotta make the best of whatever situation you find yourself in

hopefully give it another week and it'll be business as usual, in the meantime i'll crack on with what i can do...

we're back!

2011-01-08T18:08:00.007Z

so christmas and the new year has come and gone (thanks santa aka mrs uc for making my present wishes come true..the results will be amazing??)
the technical line faults are solved
and so its back to the business of blogging

those with a canny eye may have noticed a minor amend to my page. in the true spirit of 'where's wally' i'll let you work that one out yourselves

today me and the boy had a rather blowy and chilly run round the macc harriers fell handicap route..a short 14 miler but a great and challenging route, with lovely bits of remote and desolate moorlands to travers

for me it's all inspiring stuff and worth getting a battering for by both the elements and the terrain

my running buddy is now 60 (in dog years) to the best of my knowledge but today showed he's still up to it all, banging over the stiles and dry stone walls as though they weren't there! i'll watch him closely over the next year but maybe limit his outings to 30 milers..which will mean me going solo on the bigger stuff...and that'll be a first!

interesting times ahead

we'll be back...

2011-01-03T09:27:00.000Z

..soon i hope
slight technical issues at home with bt/tiscali
see yal soon and happy new year!

happy christmas everyone!

2010-12-23T16:52:00.003Z

hope you've enjoyed reading my little blog as much as i have yours
happy christmas
and keep on running!
charlie and dd x

forbidden fruits and a little indulgence

2010-12-13T04:20:00.003Z

driving up to the north east to see my family i went by the lakes. it was a sadastic form of torture as there were the mountains but no time to run in them, but i did find just enough time time to divert into here..

one of the finest running shops ever..

..and have a bit of pre-xmas running retail indulgence

now that's what i call quite good

temporarily sidelined

2010-12-06T11:53:00.004Z

whilst we've got all this lovely freezing weather, a bout of man flu has curtailed any outings for the past four days. and in just these four little days its amazing how quickly doubts can form in your mind...suddenly i'm questioning my chances of running a race that's 8 months away! madness.

anyway, im hoping i'll pass my fitness test tomorrow morning and get back out in it.

as you can see his nibs is still in chipper spirits, oblivious to any of the mind wobbles i may be having

(photo and outing courtesy of mrs uc..thanks)

all i want for christmas...

2010-11-28T05:04:00.010Z

fantastic freezing cold weather here, especially the higher up you go.the wind chill factor really kicked in yesterday so it was full on full body cover on our 21.5m outing

up to 'the cloud' first

the river dane is full flow

ferrel goats keeping a watchful eye on his nibs

peek-a-boo!

hen cloud in all its glory

so to answer my question..all i want for christmas is a little compact camera..i wonder if santa reads this blog? or even mrs uc ;-)

what does everyone else want?

winter wonderland

2010-11-24T08:54:00.002Z

its official and its great! the cold snap is well and truly here
our run out this morning at 0530 was done under chilly clear skies, on a crisp moonlit landscape. absolutely perfect and invigorating. but no pics unfortunately. well it was dark!

roaches rush hour

2010-11-14T19:36:00.007Z

today started as a nice local, gentle 17+ miler to get my weekly total up into the 50's

there was a temp inversion and generally all was quiet, except for the odd uncontrollable dog we came across..people of britain,please pop 'em on leads if they take no notice of your 'commands'. thank you. rant over.
anyway it was a nice little trot out from home along rudyard lake to leek, round tittersworth and over to the ....uh oh its the roaches race today! not for the first time have i ventured over here on race day (remember hayfella?)

anyway i scootered through meerbrook just ahead of the start and by the time i got up the field i could see the leaders coming up..i suddenly felt like a fox being chased by the much-speedier hounds..and i'd already done 10 or so miles and besides in a race like that i'd be a back of pack runner anyway
it was all about how long i could go before the inevitable of the front end whippets would come flying past

the leader popped by us just before the trig...then within minutes a gradual trickle continued on by

it was really quite strange to be amidst a race without actually being a real competitor

anyway here's the really crazy thing...17.5 miles here, largely run in mostly slimy muddy fields, took more out of us both than last weekends 28 mile run over stoney mountain trails..how daft is that!

brilliant days

2010-11-08T04:05:00.009Z

this was my first wholy self-indulgent UTLD100 training weekend up in the lakes. looking at what i packed you could have been forgiven for thinking i was actually heading up there for two weeks not two days..a minimalist i am not when it comes to that side of things
a 7am start and two hours later i was in retail therapy heaven at pete bland sports in kendal. i could have stayed there longer, spent more, but with a few new treats (ahem ..i mean essentials) it was a quick drive down to kentmere to meet my good friend meesy aka hayfella for a trip round the kentmere horseshoe, a lovely 13m rollercoaster route climbing around 3600ft
the skies were clear,the sun out,the shades on and we had a great time..it was brilliant to catch up with steve..lots to chat about and after his op and recuperation i hope this was run proved to be a good rehab strategy. either that or he'll be cursing me today

(hayfella and his nibs)

(kentmere horseshoe looking pretty damn lovely)

we said farewell and i then headed off to my next 'appointment' down at wilfs cafe in staverley to discuss all things UTLD100
after a very inspiring chat and a few pots of tea it was off to the kings head in thirlmere..our chosen provider of sanctuary, fine ales and the best cumberland sausage and mash..it was absolutely brilliant
rising before breakfast for 'day two' they'd kindly put out a bit of continental fayre but forgotten a cereal bowl.improvisation was the order of the moment so there i was eating muselli out of a very large red wine glass..very posh if not a bit eccentric

our meet up point for the UTLD100 recce was right in front of this glorious autumnal view of windermere. a very familiar face and friend, simon aka safety pin, was there too plus a fellow forumite, denzel aka hot tub alci, and his dog meg

(windermere early morning)

today's little outing was to be a 28m, 6500ft recce from pooley bridge back over to ambleside. another sunny morning and the lakes looking its very best

the five of us, pooches included, ran together up to gatesgarth path, when hot tub alci got his secret weapons out (his poles) and powered on ahead, leaving me simon and charlie to continue alone

(safety pin..on our way up to high kop)

anyway, we had an absolute belter of a day (thanks to mark, terry, and the checkpoint folk..they do know how to organise stuff but moreso are just really nice guys too) and finished feeling very fresh, with thoughts of planning our next trip up.i was especially chuffed that id remembered the route and only had to reference the routebook a couple of times.

a pork pie and a pasty for charlie seemed good reward for a cracking day out..the boy's a star.

now where's that diary??

collie's roundup

2010-11-01T04:52:00.005Z

pleased to say that week 1 of my utld100 training has passed without event and im still on track. with 39 more weeks of training to go and some big mileage ahead there are no heroics just yet, no fetes of massive human endeavour...just 53.5 miles in a variety of climatic conditions ranging from -5 to +15 degrees. all done in the glorious surroundings of autumnal technicolours, though most mornings in the pitch black.
this time im trying to be a good pupil this time round so i've even started putting tempo runs and hill reps back on the menu.
and i can't wait for the weekend (bouncing like tigger with giddiness)..a two day pass out to the lakes with his nibs..saturday with the my good friend hayfella around the kentmere horseshoe followed by a 26 mile recce on sunday of the 100 course from dalemain to ambleside..boing boing!

dont let the demons in

2010-10-20T14:28:00.015+01:00

as you can probably guess due to my lack of blogging i've been away. well either that or i've had nothing worthwhile or remotely interesting to say. or maybe both!
after 7 wonderful warm days in portugal with karen and the kids - just messing about, doing 'bombs' into the pool, laughing, lazing around, banging down huge water slides at breakneck speeds, just stuff you do as a close-knit family, all without distraction or interuption - i landed back home with a huge unexpected bump

maybe not straight away..there was our annual trip to alton towers' 'scarefest'

then a trip up to see the wonderful amy macdonald (if she's playing your neck of the woods pop along and see her..she's absolutely brilliant live)

and then, BANG, back to work
now normally after a holiday im full of get up and go and general positive vibes
in portugal i ran 5 miles religiously everyday..that's all, but enough to ensure my legs remembered what they were created for. then on the plane home i (finally) finished reading 'feet in the clouds' (i started it three holidays ago).
so why yesterday, my first day back at work, could i not muster up any enthusiasm to run or , in fact, do anything that remotely involved physical exertion? why did i completely avoid updating my running log or reassess my training plan?
deep down i know the answer..i know what was trying to drag me down, trying to sap my positivity. coming back to wet, cold, dark britain doesn't help but its more fundamental than that. but i won't bore you with the details..though i suspect hayfella and part time runner know what im talking about
this morning my alarm went off at 0515. time to run. a moment of truth..can i be arsed? can i be arsed to drag my butt out of my lovely warm bed and into the cold dark morning that lay waiting outside? reluctantly i did
it wasn't until 0600 that i finally made it out into what then seemed a very univiting big outdoors. if anything it felt like a chore to start..give charlie his run out (bless him, without a run for 8 days, he was bouncing around like tigger!) and make sure i keep going as i've the small matter of 100 miles to run in 9+ months. '100 miles!!!' i thought..'no way!..i can't do this every morning in the cold and dark for the next 4 months! and work's utterly pants! what if the axe falls on my head next??'.
as you can see, by 0615 every excuse and every piece of early morning negativity was knocking on my door, and pretty loudly too. demons determined to up-end me, my belief, my joie-de-vie, and my plans.
well, for whatever reason they failed again to get in!
maybe charlie's flightiness and general giddiness, chasing wildlife (i couldn't make out what)from hedge to hedge inspired me. maybe thoughts of karen and hollie and will. maybe it was memories of conquering past ultras. maybe i was inspired by my singing (in my head!)amy macdonalds lyrics 'but i will run until my feet no longer run no more'. or maybe it was the thought of facing you the jury, and others like you, and telling you i'm no longer doing it.
anyway, by 0700 and with my home in sight, i was back on form, brimming with positive vibes, planning my lunchtime run, and eager to re-edit my 'next 9+ months' plan
as my journey continues i simply have to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference.
so come on people. lets bloody well run. and lets run with a smile on our faces. because we can!

keep off the moors...

2010-09-30T07:08:00.005+01:00

..stick to the roads

0530. its pitch black outside. and a pea souper. so it's on with the headtorch and charlie's flashing collar

out we head. into the thick of it. i can bearly see a thing. i see things only once I'm on top of them. my light illuminating only the nearest vapour drops flying through the air at me.

we leave the road. charlie goes off lead, into the darkness

the occasional moth divebombs my face
im garrotted time and time again by low lying cobweb lines
as i pass the lake a kerfuffle starts..is someone in there trying to bag wild ducks?? i can't see, only hear. whatever it is im not hanging round to find out so i put my foot down
every so often i call out for charlie, just to check he's still around and we're agreed on the route
a light in the distance comes closer. a cyclist. i bid good morning as we pass. no reply. not even a mad ha ha ha laugh, grim reaper style. i pick up the pace again to make good our getaway.
gradually the dark fades, the fog starts to lift
we enter a field. charlie sends rabbits scattering in every direction.
the bullocks stir, their eyes lit up by my torch, their minds lit up by charlie. time to get the lad to heel
soon we're home. no sign of life yet apart from sid sat by the back door awaiting his breakfast munchies

so here we are again, another 5 months plus of this until spring, and its light mornings, comes and visits us once again

if you can't change something, embace it

taper time

2010-09-17T13:53:00.003+01:00

its taper time in our household. but not for me and charlie. for these two little chaps (or chappesses).

born around 10-12 weeks ago in our barn, i get the feeling they're preparing to leave soon with their mum and dad.

they'll be travelling over 5000miles to spend their winter in South Africa. 5000miles! they travel through western France, across the Pyrenees, down eastern Spain into Morocco, and across the Sahara.

they migrate by day at low altitudes and find food on the way. despite accumulating some fat reserves before crossing large areas such as the Sahara Desert, they are vulnerable to starvation during these crossings. migration is a hazardous time and many birds die from starvation, exhaustion and in storms.

migrating swallows cover 200 miles a day, mainly during daylight, at speeds of 17-22 miles per hour. the maximum flight speed is 35 mph.

i'm in absolute awe of these little fellas and the task that lies ahead of them. hats of to them. the swallows have been coming to our house ever since we moved in 15years ago. nesting in the same barn amazes me..how do they pinpoint it with such accuracy? their arrival and departure signal change.

it kinda puts doing 100 miles into perspective don't you think?

one step beyond (OMG)

2010-09-13T14:07:00.003+01:00

the entry is in
the date is set
now we (me and raldiss) have just over 10 months to get ourselves into the kinda shape needed to get round the UTLD100

WHAT HAVE WE LET OURSELVES IN FOR???

(and in case you're wondering, my 4 legged sidekick will be doing all the training/recceing and then nearer the time we'll take a call on how much of the 100 he'll do, subject to logistics of drop off / pick up pooch points)

The Four Trigs Traipse

2010-09-05T06:45:00.008+01:00

well my friends i can forgive you for asking ''what is this 'the four trigs traipse'?''

let me tell you.

its a TOTALLY NEW anytime challenge that involves traipsing around, yes you guessed, four trigs!

having spent more time in the pub than out on the moors since the Lakeland 50, this weekend was earmarked to signal my return to a longer distance outing. i was down to run the ldwa's 'where eagles fly' yesterday but a number of reasons culminated in a decision to stay local. so sitting outside my local, the Knot Inn in Rushton Spencer, on a glorious Friday evening, quaffing a couple of alcoholic beverages, i pondered a route i hadn't done before in its entirety to try to avoid any issues of repitition and boredom. and this my friends was the result of said ponder.

you heard it here first. i'm sure its bound one day to be registered as a 'classic'!

right then the traipse.

its a 27mile round robin (with anywhere between 4000-4500ft ascent, though i really dont have a clue) that starts from the Knot Inn and traipses up to The Cloud, Shutlingsloe, The Roaches, The Gun and back to the Knot. About 3 miles tops of tarmac the rest off road.

And here it is in glorious technicolour.

Trig 1, The Cloud.
an early start meant we were rewarded with the back end of sunrise. in the distance you can see our next trig, shutlingsloe, waiting our arrival.

from the cloud, its down the gritstone trail leaving it eventuality to head into wincle, up to the wild boar, hammerton knowl, higher nabbs, dropping down to the cragg inn and then up to..

Trig 2, Shutlingsloe
again in the distance, our next trig, the roaches

descending shutlingsloe we head over, via tagsclough hill, to gradbach yh (the cafe was closed and our supplies were getting low) and up through forest wood to roach end
(here we were met with what i thought was a mirage which turned out to be real and a saviour too, supplying cold coke and crisps to revive dropping energy levels)

and then, coke and crisps in hand, we arrived at

Trig 3, The Roaches
i dont need to say it but if you look carefully you can see...in the distance

from the trig we head along the roaches to rockhall, windygates and cross country to meerbrook. here we head on to lower wetwood and up to oldhay top before our final ascent over the gun moor to

Trig 4, The Gun

off the gun, and head down back into rushton village and whatever takes your fancy at the knot

for any racing / event anoraks out there this route covers in bits the following events

cloud nine, kipling kaper, shutlingsloe, the roaches, passing clouds, xmas cracker, leek half, meerbrook 15, gun run

so there you have it, the birth of a new anytime challenge, The Four Trig Traipse. simply four trigs to traipse around.

i hope you get the chance to enjoy it too

taken by hollie

2010-08-23T09:05:00.002+01:00

dont do it!

2010-08-13T16:12:00.002+01:00

wansfell pike

2010-08-09T19:54:00.008+01:00

great things come in small parcels
or so the saying, or a derative of it, goes
for me, this short run ranks way above any other i know of

start at the low wood hotel on windermere
run uphill for around 2.5 miles and 1400ft up to wansfell pike
do not disturb fell ponies as you pass

get to cairn, in the clag, out of breath for photoshoot opportunities

pause for more breath, taking close in shot of upper cairn

start descent of 1400ft over 2.5 miles
run for your life on bottom fields
way faster than feels safe
legs can hardly keep the pace gravity demands
so fast its totally liberating

brake before kissing gate
compose oneself
walk through gate, back to 'civilisation', wearing a massive grin

love it

nice one charlie

stick or twist?

2010-07-25T20:25:00.008+01:00

right guys..prior to doing the lakeland 50 yesterday (though finishing today) i started banging on about doing the fully monty ie the utld100 next year. having just done the 50 im now not so sure. put it this way..if , as i entered the finish area somebody said 'right off you go..do it all again' would i have been willing? no. able? no. so why should i think that with another 12 months training things could change so dramatically? and i'd be running it only partly with my sidekick which wont be the same. the jury's out. watch this space.

so to this years 50.

firstly, to folk i know..great to see britnick, claire, danny (from a distance), will, kate (hope the ankle is on the mend), and my good mate part time runner (purveyor of fine tentside teas and ale). and to all the new friends we met alomg the way. and to jk..you'll be back i know it.

secondly, to the organisers marc, terry and all the plethora of support crew..thanks a million. what a top event. really. it must require a masters in logistics. that said, i think the initial four mile loop could be better spent on the fells round high raise/street area than round the estate..for what its worth.

thirdly, to all the randomly located supporters and all the people of ambleside..top support and a great reception for which we're mega grateful

fourthly, i had a decent outing..finishing in the top half..would you believe it! but more importantly had a good back end over the last 17 or so miles largely in the dark from ambleside to consiston..leading a pack of runners that didnt know the route..i have my uses i guess

and finally, but most importantly..to the first dog* home...what an absolute superstar, inspiration and utter joy to run with. terry, the race director, gave the lad his moment of glory announcing his finish (and win) to all! as always, he made friends with lots of folk during the run..a true 4-legged legend if ever there was one

*(what he ate along the way..1.5 cornish pasties, 10 sticks of flapjack, 2 slices buttered soreen, 2.5 bowls beef stew, a dog treat from kate and gerraint, and x litres of water fresh from the fells)

running high interrupted

2010-07-18T08:42:00.012+01:00

yesterday we had a great run, our first outing of any real distance since the coast to coast. i was on a high, a bloody massive high. but today is a different story.

ahead of next weeks lakeland 50 i thought it would be good to recce the last 17 miles, some of which im guessing we'll be running in the dark on the day.

having been in a bit of a post c2c 'what next? if anything' dip, it was great to feel the thrill and excitement of being out there amongst it all again. just me, the pooch and a little adventure to be immersed in once again.
i was a little worried beforehand that it might feel like a chore. it turned out to be totally the opposite.

it lashed it down, i got drenched. the trails were flooded, my feet soaked very early on but it was brilliant! i took a very quick and very unexpected tumble onto my backside and laughed..i think charlie laughed too.

the whole place, shrouded in low menacing dark cloud and moody vistas of falling rain, provided an atmosphere so unique to the lake district

i feel i've finally got the real adventure bug..i finally feel i have the fitness and the confidence to go out there and have a proper blast. it feels so liberating and energising.

once in coniston, having started in ambleside, we bussed back and eat raldiss's infamous lamb and mint pies to refuel. the bus driver deserves an OBE..how he managed to get that huge beast round the tight lanes whilst negociating with less than cooperative tourist cars is beyond me

i bought charlie a little thank you present too..though i reckon the ham sandwich he had once back in ambleside was more welcome!
homewardbound we popped by for a cup of tea at hayfella's and mrs hayfella. it was lovely to see them in their new lovely abode..hopefully he'll be back in his innov8's in the not too distant future

and so to today.
at 1am last night we were knocked up with banging at the door. it was our neighbours, yelling frantically. one of our barns was ablaze. fortunately they heard / seen it in time before it spread to the other barn with the horses in.
the fire engines pitched up and battled with the inferno for a couple of hours. no lives lost thank god, but my 46 year old tractor and loyal servant, little blue, perished along with 150 bales of hay and 12 large bales of haylage. karen's horse trailer was rescued having partially melted in places. the firemen were superb. but thanks goes out to our neighbours, the shribmans, who in effect saved the lives of our two lovely irish boys. its a sorry sight down there today. the clearup will probably start tomorrow. but to borrow a cliche..we count our lucky stars

day 7 - this is it

2010-07-04T05:07:00.056+01:00

day 7 - glaisdale to robin hoods bay, 20 miles 1600ft

after the previous nights shennanigans, the final day was upon us accompanied with great anticipation and rising spirits. the 20 miles would come and go with the great dark and menancing north sea getting ever closer

no trains to robin hoods bay

the route was no less dramatic, no less beautiful than any of the previous six days but im not sure we paid as much attention to it. we were waiting to see the sea and moreso, the cobbled tight streets of the stuning robin hoods bay.

midge hall

richard ditches the salad cream sandwich for..

very relaxed we ran some and we walked some. some of us still hoping for lots of stick throwing capers

nearly there

there it is!

having been brought up further up the coast from here, i felt quietly emotional for the north sea to be our final destination point, like coming home in a strange kind of way

the 3 mile cliff top route from moor wyke hole seemed to go on and on, but each turn brought yet another stunning and different view of the coastline and the huge vertigo-inducing cliffs

then round from ness point there it was..our finish line!

striding down through the steep, narrow street that leads to the beach there was no welcoming reception, no cheers or handclaps. we were just two guys and a dog quietly ,and with our own probably very different thoughts, about to complete an adventure of a lifetime

we ran past the bay hotel and the finish plaque and went for a last minute sprint finish to the shoreline...though i guess it looked nothing like a sprint to any other eyes

some woops of delight, some high fives, we'd done it! 194 miles done and dusted!

id love to know what went through charlie's mind though i'm pretty sure he was too preoccupied messing around in the sea to really notice or care

after lots of photos, texts and calls loved ones and friends, celebratory beers were in order and the signing of 'the book' in the bay

once the euphoria had died down a little, and the realisation that all that fun and the huge challenge was over, an eerie silence began to descend upon me. its funny now to think that such an immense high can without notice start to dip so incredibly
quickly. there was a real 'what now?' in the air.

there was nothing blase about it. richard had achieved what was previously in his mind the unachievable..a completely loony idea i had suggested just six months previously that he never thought possible.
i always felt, or should i say made myself believe it was doable. but i was just so bloody relieved that i got us across and that my navving duties were finally over!..for now anyway.

our final watering hole

and charlie? i think he had the week of his life too. always leading the line, always wagging his tail full of fun, abounding energy and spirit..he was a great inspiration to us both. without him, i wouldn't have ever thought of tackling this.
and along the way, i gradually learned to become more patient with him. our bond has strengthened and im really grateful that this trip could have such an unexpected positive effect

sweet dreaming

this was our adventure. our adventure of a lifetime. 7 days of pure exhilorating fun where time seemed to stand still. a moment away from the maddening world. a time never to be repeated, never to be compared with. it was what it was. and it was bloody bloody brilliant!

day 6 - we can see the sea

2010-07-02T13:40:00.022+01:00

day 6 - osmotherley to glaisdale, 28 miles 4000ft

another long day ahead of us with a lot of ups and downs and a fair bit that would be runnable. navigation would be straightforward too, especially having covered the first 12 miles or so running the osmotherley phoenix ultra previously.

an earlier breakfast meant we were away in better time today, 0900.

i love the cleveland way. it presents its challenges but then rewards you, once up high, with spectacular views and a lot of runnable sections.

carlton bank trig

having made an earlier start, we took our first pit stop at the cafe below carlton bank. a bit of an odd place with all sorts of birds imported in and making one hell of a racket. but the break was welcome all the same

another climb, up to cringle moor, and we got our first spotting of the north sea. still a long way away it lifted spirits even higher..i could start to feel the 'homecoming'

the sea! (from cringle moor)

it was another hot day and we made the best progress we could. as with previous days, time seemed to fly chatting about everything under the sun.

our pacing was pretty smooth and everything felt good. then with about 3-4miles before the lion at blakely, i felt pretty tired for the first time on the trip. we were only some 16-17 miles into todays run so it was a bit puzzling as to why now.

then it kinda dawned on us. whilst the previous nights pot noodle was pretty awesome (at the time) it was hardly enough to replenish what we'd used up over the 35 miles. maybe six of them would have done the trick but not one on its own, charged with refuelling depleted bodies. lets call it a rudimentary nutritional oversight cock up.
we have around a 2hr window of opportunity to replenish lost energy and protein after high and extended periods of exertion, so in effect we were simply running on very low tanks.

hotdog!

that's better

arriving at the lion at blakely there was no hesitation in our order..lashings of ice cold coke (again!) and a huge bowl of salty chips..just the job!
we lazed around for an hour or so, chatting to some more coast to coasters.

at around 1500 we bid our farewells and with some 10 miles to go headed off on our final bit of the day towards glaisdale.

on route, quite soon after leaving the lion, came the groundhog moment supplied everyday by richard. sometime between 2-3pm without fail he would pipe up...'where is everyone?!'. quite who he was expecting to see i'm still not sure. on day one i'd offered up what i thought was the answer, and on day two, three, four...
i can see why he asked it once..but everyday! maybe it was his afternoon joke.
for the first 1-3 hours of each day we'd meet and pass quite a few fellow coast to coasters. come the afternoon..none, zilch..just the three of us on our solitary way. the answer was simple..covering twice, sometimes three times the distance than the walkers each day meant come the early afternoon most of them had finished, like the girls at the lion, whereas we still had a bit to do. i quite liked the idea of our extended daily crusades.

heading towards glaisdale

we got going for a bit after the lion, probably desperate to reach our destination, the arncliffe arms, as quickly as possible. and bouyed by coke and salty chips we were making time quite nicely round rosedale and across the very empty (of people) glaisdale moor.

but with just 4 miles or so to go, we hit a long and arduous stoney track and our progress slowed dramatically. silenced ensued, barring the occasional tourettes-like outpouring, as we both felt the aches and pains with every uneven footfall,a culmination of 170 miles of daily battering. i popped some more ibuprofen. this section was just dragging on and on. the 'just ten miles to go' ended up taking the best part of 3 hours!

nearing the bottom of the track richard came up with what seemed a cracking idea..getting a couple of beers in straight away upon our arrival at the pub..an idea that seemed to perk me up a bit!
pulling out of the low, i started singing as we jogged through glaisdale. one of amy macdonalds numbers, 'run' (she didnt record one called 'jog', otherwise i'd have sung that instead). i thought i was on key too!
then a text came in. i guessed it would be from will with another world cup update.
wrong! it was from richard, 25 metres behind me..it simply said..'shut the f#@k up!'

upon arrival at the rather bedraggled looking arncliffe arms, we sat outside with our beers. the intention to have one, shower, then down for supper and a few more. it was a belting night and the beer was having a good effect, so we continued with a couple more, chatting again to other c2c'ers (who'd finished hours ago ;-) ), before cleaning ourselves up.

being creatures of habit we sat on the same outside bench for supper and what a belter it was (the supper not the bench). the food , proper gastropub stuff , totally defied the look of the place. my third consecutive plate of fish and chips and by far the best. dont judge a book by its cover as the saying goes. we washed it down with a couple more sherberts then time for bed (my bedroom a rather spacious affair, richards the size of a shoebox at best)

what happened thereafter that night/next early morning will remain a mystery to you. the reason why i was standing with charlie in the pub car park, locked out of my room, at 3am in the morning, lobbing stones at richards window to let us in, will as they say ' stay on tour'.

day 5 - faffing around's a serious business

2010-06-29T17:04:00.023+01:00

day 5 - reeth to osmotherley - 35miles 1500ft

after another broken nights sleep i had a longer wait for breakfast. they didnt serve it until 0830! my only real criticism of lots of the places we stayed in was their breakfast times. a 0700 start and we could be away by 0800, which would have been perfect. as it was we didn't make tracks until 1000, have chatted lots at breakfast with 3 coast to coast ladies.
we also discussed route options. i was very aware of the 35m ahead, lots of it flat and runnable. it was also going to be a hot day and we'd done lots of climbing so far. valley road or hill trail to richmond? the latter, correct route, won hands down.

behind on my imaginary schedule we set off at ten.

3 miles into the day and we bumped into our breakfast friends once again towards marrick..it just went to show the slickness of their post breakfast organisation to get so far just walking and the degree of our faffing around. we exchanged a few words and sped on our way.

this part of the route was different again. very lush fields and pasture, with cool dense woodland higher up..providing a welcome bit of shade. surprisingly again, everything felt to be in good working order. if anything, i felt a little sleep deprived but that was overshadowed by the fun we were having.

it wasn't long before richmond came into view and a little way off in the distance, the cleveland hills. we stopped to look. i turned to richard and said..'see those hills right over there in the distance..that's where we're staying tonight'. the look on his face was priceless! a mere marathon in distance away. i tried to reassure him that they'd come closer to us quite quickly but im not sure how convincing i was.

richmond was the largest place we travelled through. people were slightly more curious about us than in previous places..maybe we just stuck out more with there being more 'ordinary' people and relatively fewer coast to coasters.

we found a good butty shop for a whopping ham salad sandwich with the now obligatory salad cream. i played safe with charlie giving him with a chicken one, no dressing.
we loiterd outside a shop window, selling trendy gifts, eating our tucker. i dont think the woman inside was best pleased...we weren't the image she probably wanted to portray..two sweaty blokes devouring butties, but we got lots of attention from passers-by fussing charlie.

ahead of us was a long flat slog that i was determined to enjoy despite everyone banging on about how flat and boring it was. mentally i turned that into an opportunity to run which had great appeal.
danby wiske, a further 13 miles on, was our target for an afternoon break.

arriving around 4ish, the local was open, with a smattering of men already enjoying pints of their fine local ales which looked very tempting, but with another 12 or so miles still to go, lashings of ice cold coke washed down some lovely salty snacks and a mars bar.

it felt like it was getting hotter too. whatever physical discomfort anyone may have felt spirits were still high. we had a job in hand..another 12..and as the sign said, only 60 miles to the finish..we could almost smell the salty sea air!

after around an hour of lazing around we thought it best to set off.

the next 12 miles were a bit stop start. i dont know why they just were.
doing the maths in my head we had 4 hours to tick off the mileage, book into our digs, sort charlie out, and sort ourselves out before last food orders at 9.

im not one for cutting it fine..its the pressure of 'will we? wont we?' im not good at, so when we reached the A19 and a garage i suggested we got rations in just in case.
never before have i taken such delight in buying a pot noodle and all the way from there to osmotherley, i was so excited at the prospect of tucking into it. i must have been bloody hungry.

we faffed more. calls and texts to family and friends. we could have made the pub for food but with sustenance already bought, faffing about was ok. the sky, as we dropped out of the forest down into osmotherley was spectacular, it was some kind of deliverance, and we could see the vast flat plain we'd just traversed..it gave us a great sense of achievement once again.

arriving at our b n b (no pubs in osmotherley allow dogs) the owner took a long hard look at charlie, then me, then charlie again. she was probably realising why the pubs didnt take dogs..he'd take every opportunity to immerse himself in every beck, every pool of stagnant water/mud and looked a little, shall we say, 'untidy'..but not that bad. i tried to block her view of him as much as possible. after what seemed like an eon and endless tail wagging by the boy, he got her approval and we were through and into our rooms.
ive never wolfed down a pot noodle quite like i did this one. the sauce sachet, the lot. perfect!

a quick shower and then a crawl around osmotherley's fine three ale emporiums ensued. making it through to last orders, some 5 pints later, we called time on ourselves and trundled back to our guest house.

with just two more days and about 50 miles left, it was in the bag (barring any acts of god as mentioned earlier) and it felt like we were on the final lap

day 4 - from marshes to the moon

2010-06-23T16:57:00.027+01:00

day 4 - kirby stephen to reeth, 23 miles 3000ft

unfortunately i was unable to repeat the previous nights epic sleep and found myself lying in bed wide awake at 0330am..it wasn't even light yet!

fast forward a few hours, another fine breakfast and we started to make our way out of town. i passed this place (below), which was quite apt. my thoughts went back home for a moment. we'd all spoken and/or texted each day and it was great to get a clockwork call from will each day from his new, and his first ever, phone at 4.15pm when he returned from school

its a sign!

i was really looking forward to todays trip across an area i was totally unfamiliar with.. another navigational test
and it was going to be a hot one too..already it was warm and rising

the route started with a long 4m slog up to nine standards rigg
to pass the time of day richard sprang the a-z of pop stars/groups challenge on me, which we completed (well almost) several times, occasionally enlisting the help of fellow coast to coasters, that we passed heading up the hill, when needed..especially on the letters v,x, and z

nine standards rigg

keld was only some 8 miles beyond nine standards and id had it in my mind to tick it off quite quickly. silly idea..i hadn't factored in the bogs that lay in the way. even though it was drier and more passable than usual, they still stuttered progress and occasionally created much hilarity trying to cross the wider ones..one slip, one little mistake, one footfall short and you were toast..or muddy marsh monster more like. luckily with the springlike prejectory of a gazelle (not) we were able to avoid any dunking of shame but it was a close call now and again.

the bogs

by the time we reached keld, the sun was high and hot, and it was time for lunch. we found the farm cafe where i started with hot soup (hot soup in that blazing heat, hot soup!) and finished with an ice lolly..i haven't had an ice lolly in years..an orange maid one in fact..brilliant it was too :). it felt like being at the pictures all over again

over lunch i glanced at the route ahead. unknowningly, we would see few others this afternoon. most people opt for the road that hugs the valley floor..its way way easier..but even with hindsight we would still do the proper route everytime..it was challenging, rewarding and totally different to another other part of the crossing

half way there!

moor above swinnergill

this section saw us walking in parts and running other bits. map reading was very tricky and my judgement was questioned, quite rightly given the previous day, more than once. but this time i got it spot on..i was kinda chuffed with that ;-)

overlooking swinnergill

men made of steel must have worked and lived here. a desolate, bleak and industrious landscape that we imagined would be unforgiving in harshness of the dark winter months. how they did it was beyond me..did they live here alone? with their wives? their children? as my parents used to say..we dont know we're born

blakethwaite smelt mills

eventually we made it to the moon-like scape of the spoil heaps..a track and look that went on a few miles and made for good running, before heading back onto the moor to descend into reeth

spoil heaps

like the bull the night before, the buck took on the appearance of a place that had seen better days. it had a new and very friendly landlady and whilst the decor would do with freshening up, the beer and food were excellent again

the buck at reeth

another platter of fish and chips washed down by a few blonde witches
we were past the halfway mark and feeling good, and charlie was on superb form

a few of these were had

tomorrow was to be our longest distance, around 35m, so the 'we're past the halfway point' party was curtailed prematurely before any serious damage was done

day 3 - we're making time (are we?)

2010-06-23T05:48:00.016+01:00

day 3 - bampton to kirby stephen - 25miles, 3000ft

standing on the fell at 4am i could see the weather was going to be much better than yesterday. moreso than that a huge wave of optimism was engulfing me. day two, the day i had considerd the weeks hardest route, was gone and i had arrived at day 3 unscathed and with legs that felt fresh and without any stiffness. all things being equal and barring any acts of god i felt we had the week in the bag..a premature idea maybe but with long distance stuff its all in the mind and i try to only ever entertain positive images and thoughts. it did make me wonder how richard was..this was no solo crossing!

his night, minus my usual mid morning rumblings, hadn't been as good as he'd expected. he too had been a little unrestful tossing and turning as he mulled over the previous day and thinking about what was to come. maybe i was closer to the finish in my mind than he was? physically he may have felt it a little more with a bit of a niggle here and there too.

the full english breakfast, which was plentiful enough to give a load to charlie, lived up to the standard of the inn.
each morning a pill ritual at breakfast was adhered to..cod liver oil, glucosamine etc..and today i suggested we add another to it as a prophylactic..that ultra runners saviour..ibuprofen

at breakfast we chatted with a canadian couple doing the trail. they asked if we were getting a taxi back to the trail...:-/...1 mile down the lanes!

we paid the bill, shook hands with the innkeeper, now our best mate, who had tried to insist he knew what was best for us roomwise, and headed outside to take some shots like a couple of withnail and i tourists

we want cake and fine wine

we, or should i say, faffed around for quite a while in the village. richard who hasn't seen withnail and i was probably at a loss as to why i was so giddy about a red telephone box and probably more perplexed at the never ending trail of famous lines from the film that i kept spurting out like someone with withnail and i tourettes. we cetainly weren't making time.

todays trip across to kirby should be a shorter day..less mileage, undulating terain, not big climbs. i'd also booked us all (including charlie) a sports massage at 6pm that night in kirby, in case things needed loosening up, so we did have a date to keep

it was close on 10am by the time we left bampton and headed over towards shap. what happened next can only be archived in the file of famous howlers, gaffs, own goals, call it what you will.

doing quite nicely..we were only 20 minutes into the day!..we headed over a field and came to a stile with the path continuing on the other side. i looked at the path, i looked at the map, i looked at the path, i looked at the map...then i declared with the greatest of confidence that the path ahead wasn't the one we needed. how i ever came to that conclusion is still beyond me..maybe my lack of sleep played a role but putting any possible get out of jail cards to one side it was the most simple schoolboy navigational error known to mankind!
there was no other path to take ! derr!

what followed was farcical..i was in my worst strop mood..effing and blinding..as we wondered round the massive field we were in, trying to find my imaginary path and route towards shap abbey (me leading, richard and charlie following in ever increasing dismay). we, thanks to christopher columbus here, went round and round and round. i was hearing nothing of the suggestions to take the rejected path to see where it would take us. (sorry once again to both of you, more for my strop than anything else)
eventually, actually 50 mins later!, i selected another route to shap crossing a whole series of fields diagnally, which i navigated with utter fluency ;-)

we met the canadians again in shap who were having a picnic stop..was that the time?! or were they just eating their way across england?

anyway, i took the strategic decision to switch to my footprint maps. fine aids they were to be too, with the route plotted and accompanying bitsize notes re any navigational hazards. small, concise, quick to follow and easy to hold on the run. my os maps would act as backup from hereonin (and to fast forward the rest of the trip, navving blunders were to be a thing of the past)

m6

the route beyond shap was mostly runnable as we left the monolithic mountains of the lakes trailing in the distance. for all i love the lakes it was refreshing to be in completely different terrain..and each day that followed was totally different..that was one of the aspects that make the c2c so bloody fantastic

robin hoods grave

coming down the meadows into orton we bumped into two lads we had met a couple of times already. they were hiking with full backpacks, hoping to do it in just 5 days..they must have considered us to be a couple of utterly lightweights to be running it in seven. their faces told their story though. here we were all smiley faces, full of bounce as a result of our shorter less taxing days. they, however, looked so hacked off, knackered, and sweating like troopers. they hadn't stopped until 11pm the previous night and had been on the go since 5am this morning, not expecting to pitch down again for another 17 hours.
they were intending to land in robin hoods bay a day before us and staying there a few days. we never saw them again..i wonder if they made it or whether their courageous attempt came to an end before then?

descending into orton for lunch

a randy bull on the way in

the contrast between their attempt and our strategy was evident at our lunch break in orton. i was told that being served by a young girl called tanya on the green was VIP service never known before. i dont know what we did to deserve that but it was welcome all the same. thank you..we felt very posh in a penrith tea room sort of way.

lunch at the chocolate factory in orton

an hour or so later (you can tell we were really pushing it!) we bid our farewells and thanks

its all downhill richard

the rest of the day's route was across lots of isolated fairly bleak but no less spectacular moorland.

smardale bridge

arriving in kirby in the nick of time there was no time for a shower so we presented ourselves at the physio's place stinking like three sewer rats..they should have charged us extra danger money. we were all suitably pummelled and charlie got one too, though it did look a little brutal at times if you ask me

another bull (not a randy one this time)

a great night was spent at the bull watching the footy, downing a few pints, and tackling my first night of fish and chips (the first of four). the bull doesnt look up to much but the food was tops.
once again we chatted with people we'd met somewhere along the trail previously. this time the lads whose route had totally baffled me..i didn't ask. kirby was as far as they were going.
we, however, weren't even half way there yet.

day 2 - when its gone its gone

2010-06-21T20:28:00.045+01:00

day 2 - rosthwaite to bampton 31 miles 7800ft

rain had fallen throughout the night and the area was now shrouded in cloud. with the day ahead being spent largely up high i was secretly concerned about this , given the 31 miles we had to cover. spending time wandering around claggy tops wasn't what i wanted.

we got down to breakfast ahead of the masses given the previous nights 'when its gone its gone' food availability. as assumed, we were in no danger of leaving the breakfast room stuffed to the eyeballs so the 'carry out' of leftovers for charlie was slightly modest to say the least.

once charlie had devoured his bit of toast and sausage, we were good to go. rainjackets on we headed off along stonethwaite beck then greenup gill. the legs felt remarkably good and jogging was indespered with walking up the stoney path.

i'd banged on to richard endlessly about how fantastic (and hard too) this day was going to be with its awesome scenery from high up..he wasn't dissapointed. not knowing the lakes really and also having trained largely on road for this, he appeared to be in awe of the majestic breathtaking landscape he was traversing. even myself, a frequent visitor, was giddy about the whole thing.

as we made further headway, the path steepened, with charlie leading the way in his customary style.

ascending from rosthwaite to grasmere common

warming for a while we took off our jackets and continued up to lining crag.
i was relieved to see the way ahead, up to greenup up and grasmere common, looked relatively cloud free meaning navigation would be straightforward

lining crag overlooking greenup gill

bouyed by this we pushed on and i had it in my head to take the new alternative route presented to me the night before (what is that saying about sticking to your plan?!)
once on top however, the weather, as it can so quickly do, changed. the rain came again and from nowhere we were shrouded in swirling cloud. bugger!
this would test my navigation skills no end. there was diddly squat to navigate by and my micro-navigation skills aren't the best by any means. we slowed our pace and eventually came across the faint path we were looking for..or was it?
carrying on regardless we were certainly heading in the right direction (i took a bearing, get me!). the sense of adventure heightened, though with both of us feeling the chill i didn't want to be wondering around the place endlessly.

30 or so minutes passed and with good progress we came across a youngish girl out 'navving' with her mate. i stopped to verify our position with her...the good news..we were heading the right direction..the bad news...we weren't on the ridge i thought we were on. bugger. damn. and sh+$*. it was by no means a disaster..we must have missed the right left turn by a matter of 1-2 minutes jogging but as all you more experienced and hardened mountaineers know too well, a minor error can become a major issue.
i cursed myself..i cursed everything..i cursed charlie (sorry, you had nothing to do with my mistake)..i felt like a failure and my confidence ebbed quickly away. and i had my first strop! sensing this going on, richard had the sense to put it in perspective and look on the positive. i was just worried that we had at least another 23 miles or so to go..how many more errors was i to make!? tere wasn't time for me to be faffing about the wrong way was there! we'd miss tea at the pub if we weren't careful..but hopefully not last orders!

we had actually ended up on the route i'd originally planned to take, but that wasn't the point! there's irony for you.
i eventually calmed myself down, gave my head a much needed shake and got on with the job in hand, descending round helm cragg down to mill bridge.

from here, the craic, the laughter and the banter started again,as we started another long and slow ascent towards grisedale tarn, an atmospheric spectacle worth every calorie burned and every foot climbed to get there. we once again felt on top of the world, metaphorically if not geographically.

grisedale tarn

there followed a lovely long descent through grisedale to patterdale that allowed us to open our legs and RUN. it felt good. no, it felt great! as we commenced our descent 5 lads from the hotel the night before were coming the opposite direction to climb striding edge so we had a bit of craic with them. they threw me with their route. they were doing part of the c2c but not all the way...why they were doing it in such a bizarre order and coming back on themselves baffled me..that little puzzle occupied my empty little head all the way down the valley.

by patterdale, the hunger had set in and we were in need of fuel. unfortunately the pasty strategy , ie eating pasties from coast to coast, had already lost its appeal with richard baulking at the very thought of another one passing his lips. so charlie was to become the benefactor of the mountain of pasties we had emmassed, though this was to backfire on him too..literally!

the people at patterdale post office couldn't have been more helpful or welcoming..mind you it helps when you have a pooch as friendly and adorable as charlie. moreso, they couldn't have made a better sandwich if they'd tried. a humongous ham salad one...the best ever. and one for charlie too (minus the salad action).
we were also given an invaluable tip to watch out carefully for our path turn ahead of high street..many miss it apparently and carry on into oblivion without realising.

the totally fantastic patterdale post office

the climb up high was a nice respite from running and the views with new mountains and lakes continued to be awe-inspiring

patterdale and ullswater

once up top, we set off running once more making our way past angle tarn and then , with the postmasters note of caution constantly ringing in my head, we took the right path almost doubling back on ourselves up to kidsty pike. it was clear to see why many people might miss it totally

angle tarn

i'd read that kidsty pike was our highest point on the trip. i love running up high on the tops, its the best, but the one thing i cant do is get too close to the edge. that does give me the bloody fear. richard found this a constant amusing theme standing as he would right by the edge taking shots and laughing at my fear. charlie too wasn't bothered by it all and in some stupid niavety nearly went past the point of what might have been no return

kidsty pike

there followed a nice descent, though steep at times, towards haweswater. after pausing to feed the lad (charlie not richard), i was pottering down the fell when suddenly a pungent smell hits my nostrils like a bat out of hell. i guessed it! his nibs had found a nice parcel of fox/badger pooh and caked himself in it. he absolutely stunk!
starting to feel tired, my attentions turned to how to smarten the boy up and rid him of the stench so our hostelry would be ok for him to frequent the place without causing billious eruptions from the rest of the guests

feeding time

once lower down the trail undulates but never takes you right to the lake shore. luckily, a few miles on we came to a deepish beck into which we could entice him in with a number of sticks and stones.

suitably blathered and cleansed we continued on towards the comfort of our inn.

haweswater

we were glad to see the inn sign and the outside whitewashed walls
the place inside was my type of pub..big stone flagged flooring, wooden tables and benches, a great feel to the place..i couldn't wait to get started at the bar!
but first we had to checkin and herein, lay the next bit of farce. we'd booked two rooms originally to share between four of us including charlie. but of course there was only three of us..me, richard and charlie. the girl seeing to us (a bit of a jobsworth who quite clearly didn't want the hassle of cleaning two rooms if she could get away with one) was adamant that 'it would be better for you [us] if we all shared one room'
'why would that be better for us?' i enquired
'it just would'
'no, look. it would be better for us to be in seperate rooms as booked' i retorted
umming and arring she went and sought the opinion of one of her colleagues. he was on her side!
to cut what seemed like a long debarcle short, we were tired, dirty, smelly (not just charlie) and in need of a shower, some beer and some food. i was in no mood to have the pre-booked arrangements that would suit us best dicked about with. i gave it one more final go politely (verbally) with a degree of sterness (facially). if that failed then the gloves would have to come off. luckily it didn't and after some 10-15 minutes of totally unecessary negociation we were through enemy lines, me and charlie getting the luck of the draw..i had a lovely big double with crisp duvet and pillows..a bit of a contrast to the previous night's offering

a pair of pints and a pair of quadruple wiskies please!

all the farce aside, the mardale inn was brill. we had a good laugh with the bar staff, the beer was good, the food was excellent (though why i ever let richard sway my decision to have potted shrimps followed by the biggest venison burger known to man i do not know) and the ambience perfect. i recommend it to anyone. just dont let them tell you whats best for you..you know what is!

i probably bagged four hours, maybe 5!, in my comfy bed before waking with great alertness to get my stuff ready for the days adventure ahead (i must get checked out for OCD).
at least richard would have been pleased not to have been disturbed for a third night in a row with my middle of the night rumblings through all my gear and tripping over stuff in the dark ('why dont you put the light on' he'd say,'i didn't want to wake you' i'd say in all innocence having just done an unknown impression of a herd of elephants stumbling around the place)
charlie too was pleased i was up. he needed to desperately go to the toilet (a recurring theme from hereonin) following my lavish supply of pasties, sandwiches and flapjack..all the right things to keep him going that unfortunately can cause unwanted uncontrollable commotions as i was about to witness at 4am standing on the side of the fell in a t shirt and boxers behind the inn

day 1 - on your marks

2010-06-21T05:56:00.031+01:00

day 1 - st bees to rosthwaite 28 miles 3000 ft

after a night in st bees, interupted with jangly nerves and general giddiness, we downed a hearty breakfast (a recurring theme for the next seven days) before wandering down to the beach for starters orders

all manner of emotions were flying through me, but namely i was secretly bricking it. map in one hand, pooch on lead in the other with richard reliant on me getting us all safely across 190+ miles. a backpack full of day-stuff for every eventuality and far far heavier than anything i carried on any training run.
was i up to it? was richard up it? was my ultra collie up to it? what if one of us isn't! that would be nothing short of a disaster.

once down on the beach we headed to the shoreline for the customary dipping of toes and to choose a pebble to transport over to robin hoods bay.
a quick photo, a handshake, a yelp of 'come on!' (at this point i needed all the bravado we could muster), and we were off up the cliff path

never having been to st bees before, we were both quite taken with how beautiful the coastline looked. the newness, the beauty and the fairly easy undulating path made for quick going

not too long had passed and we were heading away from the ocean inland to pick up tracks, trails and grassy paths. and it wasn't long before we'd gotten into a steady rhythm with all the anxieties floating away into the bright blue skies above us

the warm sunny weather made the going good with few if any muddy bits and it wasn't long before we could see the mountains of the lakes in the distance, that would play host to us for the next 1.5 days

i kept constant vigilance on the map something which richard found amusing given how well signed it was in this area

the miles ticked by quite nicely and after some 15 or so miles in we reached the bridgehead of the western lakes, ennerdale water. a good place for a lunch break and for charlie to cool himself down.
it seemed somehow fitting that we were there at the same time as the ennerdale fell race (a casualty of which passed us soon after with blood stream doing his face. upon asking how if he was ok he replied 'not too bad' with a wry smile. true felling spirit at play!)

having recced this bit, which in all honesty probably didnt require a recce, i had a rush of confidence that for the next 6 or so miles i knew where we should be heading

the rocky lakeshore path slowed our progress but soon we were at the other end and heading on the gently ascending track towards blacksail. here we both hit a bit of a lull for no real apparent reason. was it the warmth of the sun?
i'd started to run out of drinks but fortunately had a coke still left to resort to. richard ,the generous chap he is, pulled out one of his famous lamb and mint pies to share with us all and everything seemed good again.

the track to blacksail, the most remote youth hostel in england, seemed to go on and on. arriving at the hostel, we could have been forgiven for thinking we'd just entered a set from the fast show. we were pounced upon by a strange welsh chap who was already there for the night at 2.30pm or so and really wanted us to be his friend! we made a cup of sugary tea, showing him how to use the cooker in the process to boil the water!, to give us a much needed further energy boost. we chatted for a while with the mad welshman before bidding him farewell, leaving him to await his next victims to be completely bonkers with. even with extensive explanation i still believe to this day that he thought robin hoods bay was only 26 miles away from where we were!

i'd been warned during my planning to make sure we took the correct path to ascend out of blacksail. with this warning firmly implanted in my mind i looked carefully at the map, the surrounding features, the map again, the features again, and so this seemed to go on for several minutes but was worth it before deciding to embark on what was to be the correct route. we made good progress up loft beck and then onto grey knotts. i felt really relieved my navigation was correct. the climb, up loft beck, was our first real proper ascent but boyed with pie, sugary tea and that great feeling of running up high we gave it our best shot. with great visibilty the views were stunning, absolutely stunning.

we were beginning to feel we were having the adventure of our lives!

next followed a descent to honnister and another freaky moment. leaving the mine a vw thing drove up to us with no other than mike astbury, a guy from work, griinning at us like a cheshire cat at the wheel. he was on his way back to buttermere for the evening having just been where we were now heading. we had a bit of a chat, a few laughs and then headed on down to rosthwaite.

once there i had to pick up a pre-order of pasties from yew tree farm before checking in to the royal oak , rosthwaites very own answer to fawlty towers without the comedy element. a throwback to the 70's and an experience never to be repeated. however, there was food (altogether in one sitting at 7pm, miss it and you'll be flogged and 'when its gone its gone'), cool beer and my first ever freezing cold bath. richard was a big advocate of this post run torture and it took me until the next morning, when my legs seemed really fresh and loose, to understand why. god knows what the people in the room next door thought i was up to with all the screaming coming from the bathroom.
with a big day ahead of us the following morning we went for an early-ish night..but would i sleep well, dreaming of the great day we'd just had or of the tough one that was lying before us? some rather inclement weather was due the next day too.

my night characterised every other night that was to come. in bed by around 11 but waking at around 3-3.30am, buzzing from the day we'd had but moreso having a desperate need to prepare for the forthcoming day, packing for me and charlie and looking over the maps (at 10pm the owner of the hotel had shown me an alternative bit of the route that would enable us to maintain our height compared to the one planned..it threw me a late night unwanted dilemna). once all sorted i just lay in bed listening to the stillness of the night
i was on such a high and alert for the full week that sleep deprevation didnt really affect me. i told myself that so long as i was resting i was recovering well.
some, however, took everything in their stride and for whom sleeping was not an issue!

our completely amazing and utterly brilliant coast to coast adventure

2010-06-20T06:00:00.010+01:00

it had been six months in the making, the planning, the training, the angsting and it was all so so worth it

our completely amazing and utterly brilliant coast to coast adventure has to be without doubt the best and most inspiring week of my life*
7 days and 194 miles of sheer challenge, fun and jubilation

my company in the form of charlie and richard could not have been better

charlie led each daily assault with purpose, gusto, and acting as pathfinder when paths were faint. he melted the hearts of each and every person that met him. his indomiable spirit was an inspiration, which kept going even when he was suffering from a little bit of a gastrointestinal issue caused by the need to feed him on non-dog stuff during the day..still, at least he can still look a pasty in the eye..which is more than can be said for myself or richard

and so to my two legged accomplice, richard.

it was a gamble to spend 7 days with someone you dont know that well, especially in tackling a challenge like this. but i have to say i couldn't have been with a better person. our fitness levels and running abilities were a great match but more than that we had such a laugh each and every day, more than i ever imagined we would. no awkward moments (except two strops with myself resulting from minor, yes only minor, navigational errors) and by the end of it all he'd taken to charlie too..quite an achievement given he's not a dog person. so cheers richard. im so pleased we did it together!!!

the route itself was just awesome. covering it in seven days meant the terrain was very different each day. alfred wainwright sure knew how to chart a belter.
we met some great people along the way and stayed in some great places, eating well (i had fish n chips four nights in a row :-/ ) and sampling the local ales to rehydrate..we drank more the more progress we'd made!

for the statos amongst you..we did 194 miles exactly..the two extra being into and out of bampton (more of that later). our time ie from leaving each morning to arriving each night was 64:53:39.

however, we aimed to enjoy it too so took extensive lunch and tea/coke breaks, chatting to folk, picture taking and general messing around. so we think our actual total time on the move was closer to 50 hours, giving us an average speed on the hoof of 4mph with an a total ascent of around 24000 feet.
our average daily mileage was 27.714286 miles or put another way 2 back to back ultras, two days of 23/24 miles, another two back to back ultras, and a little 20 miler to finish things off
my average nights sleep was around 4 hours (i was buzzing each night and planning the next day's assault!..i need to chill more!)
i have two minor blisters and two black toe nails. other than that i can walk in a straight line and up and down stairs without it looking to comedy-like
i had, for the very first time in my life, 3 freezing cold baths..OMG!!!

before we set off i did wonder if we'd be up to it, having never done a multi day challenge previously and wondering how many times i could get us lost. when i woke on the morning of day 3 feeling really quite chipper i knew we could do it, barring any unforeseen acts of god

im now sat here writing this totally ecstatic and completely overwhelmed..its hard to describe the impact its made on me..i think it needs time to sink in. its strange to think its all over. for seven whole days i was totally immersed in and absorbed by nothing else

this was the challenge i had wanted to do with charlie before he's too old. but im also so glad ive made a good friend in richard too..with whom i hope to do a few more little things like this in the future

and whilst we were away, karen, hollie and will were getting on with life..and planning a little homecoming..

this week i'll post a brief day by day account and hope it will inspire others out there to give it a go..i cant think of a better way to spend seven fantastic days

*(barring my wedding and births of hollie and will)

good luck, everyone

2010-06-09T20:24:00.004+01:00

around 9am saturday 12th june we start our adventure. 192ish miles in 7 days, over hill and down dale. wish us luck. i hope to come back and tell tales of fun, great japes and courage

General Melchett: Are you looking forward to the big push?

Private Baldrick: No sir, I'm absolutely terrified.

General Melchett: The healthy humour of the honest, Tommy. Don't worry my boy, if you should falter, remember that Captain Darling and I are behind you.

Edmund Blackadder: About thirty-five miles behind you.

am i getting the FEAR?!

2010-06-05T06:32:00.005+01:00

the FEAR, a famed word from Withnail and I, shot in and around Bampton where we shall be having cake and the finest wines known to humanity at the end of day 2 of our coast to coast adventure

hopefully

with any amount of trepidation life has to go on and with half term upon us we took ourselves to one of our treasured boltholes in southern ireland, inchydonney island, for a few days. fittingly so to holiday right by the sea. lots of time to relax, some beach running, some gyming (is that a word?!) whilst the kids donned wetsuits and spent hours of simple fun in amongst the waves

no matter what, whatever was lurking in the depths of my mind accompanied me all the way over there, only to show itself in my dreams as i slept.

weird goings on of long distance adventures of success (judged by time) followed by the same journey and a less positive outcome. of mountain rescue teams driving around the tiny lanes of the lakes in red double decker buses!

now back home the final preparations are underway..packing, organising, oh and a bit of compass work. the running, the multi-day distances dont worry me at all. my FEAR is purely driven by the fact that I'M IT when it comes to guiding us across the land.
im sure i'll be fine. and i think charlie will be a big help too using his natural instinct to follow a trail

overall im cool about it all but im waiting to see what other FEAR inducing stuff will come floating into my tiny mind in the next few days

the last big push

2010-05-24T12:16:00.007+01:00

after my commute into work (previous post) i was foolish enough to come back the same
i find running home at night after a day at work mentally harder as i just want to get back and have it over and done with
add to that the heat and the sight of mrs uc and a few beers at our local couldn't come soon enough
anyway 33 miles on a workday merits reward right?

next morning it was out again early doors for a run with my c2c human running accomplice richard (shown below stuffing his chops post said run)
4 hours of hard slog as the heat kept rising
by the end of it i felt a bit giddy
i hadn't eaten or drunk enough so the full monty breakfast roll from the posh nosh van in macc forest was eagerly devoured..charlie opting for a more purist organic sausage sandwich

the next morning, after a bbq and too much alcohol the night before, it was time to get out to complete my mission
a little 5 miler (topless would you believe it) and my goal of a 100 miles for the week had been achieved, sorry smashed!! with 102 miles bagged and tagged
in fact my first ever training week of three figures..how anyone can constantly hit those mileage levels beggars belief!
so nearly 6 months of training covering 1013 miles, with 5 weeks covering greater than 75 miles and my biggest back to back weeks totalling 141.5 miles.
never having trained for anything like this i just hope its enough, too late now if it isn't!
before hitting the bbq again i started plotting the route, getting as far as kirby stephen, 86 miles in..didn't feel too hard either!

and if you look carefully you can see one hot dog basking in the heat..leaving me to do all the hard work..you can't get the staff these days!

this mornings commute (5am)

2010-05-21T10:01:00.007+01:00

18+miles from home to work over the gritstone trail..absolutely magnificient
and for good measure, reunited a weak new born lamb with its mum. it somehow got itself on the wrong side of a cattle grid and had been there a while i think. ewe and lamb both doing well again.
here's some pics
sunrise..getting hot already

roaches and hen cloud

the cloud rising above

sheep and shutlingslow

teggs nose..nice little climb

there's more to life..

2010-05-13T06:38:00.013+01:00

i am really grateful for the life i have. its full and its rounded and i can't ask for more than that. running fits in where the gaps, at home and at work, allow.
i'm never one to take anything or anyone for granted.
this is a sight i see every morning, though not always sunny it is inspiring in any weather.

there's been birthdays recently too. hollie going into her teens (help!) and will hitting the big 11. i wouldn't swap them for the world..though they do have their moments!

the yard is now a happier place. two new irish boys, elmo and mcguire, fill two of the stables. there's a new sense of hope and excitement that karen might just have the boys she needs to really start enjoying it all once more and to start to think competitively again. fingers crossed. so long as it doesn't intrude too much on our running ;-)

the swifts are back residing in the stable next door. every year we wait for them to arrive and settle to bring up their chicks. this year they were a little late i think arriving about two weeks ago. how they get back to the exact same spot every year all the way from africa is nothing short of a miracle. no volcano ash clouds will put them off their stride. no gps to guide them. the ultimate ultras surely!

which brings me back neatly to running. an easy week after hitting 84ish last week. we have only about 4 weeks to go before we set out on the coast to coast. next week im aiming to hit 100+ then it'll be a gradual taper down. we need to get the maps out, plot the route and absorb it. a bit like the swifts, if i really apply my mind to it i control a good sense of direction and position.
but this weekend for us belongs to chelsea again, playing for the double..come on you blues!

one ultra collie, there's only one ultra collie! (highland fling 2010)

2010-04-26T20:22:00.008+01:00

my own personal story doesn't matter. i want charlie to have the limelight he desrerves.

he was the first ever dog 'flinger' (a 53 mile race along the West Highland Way for those who dont know it) and this year makes it three in a row..a triple crown for the boy. an amazing achievement by any standards. no other dog measures up to that.

as right as rain at the end as he was at the start. walk for a minute and a stick was placed at your feet by yours sincerely. thanks to lots of the competitors that joined in with his game.

his indomitable spirit is to be beholden and the reason why he enters so many hearts so quickly (even after he'd rolled in some badger 'stuff' and was smelling slightly ripe as a result!)

a four-legged inspiration. more importantly, the best running companion i could wish for.

he runs with a smile, a joie de vivre that i can only aspire towards

it made me so happy and so emotional to hear the piper pipe us both in and to cross the finish line with a true champ of champions.

he's a fling legend and god willing there just might be another fling left in us both

ps a huge thanks to murdo, ellen and everyone involved in the fling..the helpers who are so kind, all the cheery supporters at the checkpoints and the finish, all the friendly participants that you get chatting to along the way and the faster ones that pass with encouraging words. its brutal yes but without doubt for me and the boy its the best event in the world. thank you so much for making us feel so welcome and elated at the finish line every time we come. we really appreciate it. we'll hopefully be back for a final fling next year.
thank you!

just look what you could've won!

2010-04-20T21:57:00.003+01:00

3-2-1 was famous for its cheap and tacky prizes and for couples taking home only a brand new metal dustbin if the final clue revealed was Dusty Bin. However 3-2-1 has also become notorious for prizes that would be unacceptable today. On at least two occasions a pet dog was the prize (Show 1 featured 'a St. Bernard and a year's supply of whisky'). Other less extravagant prizes have included: a sofa that turns into a pool table, gold nuggets, a family set of folding bicycles and matching 'his and hers' sheepskin coats.

well you might have guessed ladies and gents..my 'fling' number is no other than 3-2-1! who knows, we might just be travelling back with a matching set of sheepskins. but more than likely the words..'just look what you could've won' will ring true.

one of those runs (6am)..

2010-04-17T19:03:00.003+01:00

..where it feels just immeasurable

we started from the ship in wincle (where id parten of a couple of scoops the previous night) and headed through the forest up onto the moor and over to the roaches. a glorious morning and not a soul in sight..except the wild deer, new born lambs and a few birds. a perfect run that will contribute to my highest weekly mileage ever in my life.

and just to keep up the madness, i've decided we'll 'wing the fling' next weekend after all.i tried to pull out but got one of those e mails back from the organisers that immediately changed my mind..'but charlie is infamous for his fling finishes' it read..you cant argue with that. so with my longest run this year having been all of 25miles i now have the task of doubling it plus a little bit more next saturday.

time to taper?

first light

2010-04-13T09:58:00.005+01:00

hoping for a lovely sunrise i donned my bandit hat and headtorch and headed up early doors to gun hill. we weren't let down.

goodbye evil top !!!!!!!!!!!

2010-04-09T05:19:00.006+01:00

a great back end of the week planned..17m back from work last night, 17m back in this morning early doors and a 25-30m bimble round the peaks on saturday.
change the plan.
did last nights 17..beautiful warmish night..running really well..feeling good. felt a bit of irritation on and around my underarms..just thought it was a bit of passing stinging from sweat maybe and not worried as i was using a bumbag not a backpack. but oh no..the 'horror' had returned and was revealed when i got home (i'll save you the jury the evidence). the cause? one chuffing alpine lowe base layer. i wore it the other week when it happened last. never had any problems before with any other top in my life. so its now confined to history, languishing in the dark recesses of the bin, too evil to be given away to charity.
that means that todays run, which i should have already started (0530am) and probably tomorrows is postponed and replaced with biking to minimise any upper body movement and friction. and so i'll need to revise my plan yet again..though i do like to tinker with it.
hopefully i wont be encountering this issue again. better to find out now than half way across the country i guess.
must say it does hurt though. or am i just being a bit of a soft lad?

morpheus

2010-04-08T05:34:00.002+01:00

so a ten week countdown has began
with a little recce or two last week, ive now started the planning and prep properly..pouring over maps and trying to get the route into my head. a bit of tweaking to my training too.
oh and it appears to be on my mind enough that im now dreaming about it at night

good garmin!

2010-04-03T04:11:00.006+01:00

my slightly more talented fellrunning friends / neighbours simon, kate and kirsten bailey had better watch out. today i did a local roaches / gradbach route averaging around 8min/mls which might put the fear of god into them all. well maybe not quite. i havent a clue what happened to my gizmo but it definitely got carried away with the distance. i think a more conservative 10miles was about right..ah well..i enjoyed my moment of glory and a PB while it lasted

my other gizmo wasnt on top form either as both these pictures will testify..i know it was a bit of a pea souper on the very top but not this bad! the trig and charlie are only 4 feet from my phone!

all in all a great day for running a bad day for technology

the lakes

2010-04-01T05:41:00.012+01:00

a short trip to borrowdale started with fairly ok spring like sunny weather then, over the course of 5 days, descended into sub zero snow and hail storms. thats the lakes for you i guess

not wanting to hog the holiday i decided i would rise early (as usual) and get my running done early before the clan were up and ready for whatever each day's entertainments might bring. so each day i had a 3 hour running window starting from the break of daylight

day 1 - one of my favourite runs in the area, as its 100% runnable from latrig to blease fell, taking the cumbrian way round the back of skiddaw and back via lonscale fell..a lollipop route (as hayfella would refer to it) in the classic sense. not only do you get a great run but for quite little climbing effort you get some cracking views too back over to borrowdale

day 2 - a bit more of a climb today taking in catbells, maiden moor, high spy and back down into borrowdale. catbells on a busy day is to be avoided but first thing in the morning this is another favourite routing of mine, done this time from memory without a map. the weather was blustery high up to say the least and the clag constantly threatened to envelope the tops. the two shots were taken at the same time and show the stark difference between one side of the mountain and the other

day 3 - a chance to recce what will be the start of day 2 of the coast to coast...out of rosthwaite, with a continous and largely runnable climb up the valley towards grasmere common...

..with charlie boy sporting his new spring fashion wear

day 4 - the slow twisty drive in a pea souper over to ennerdale lake left little time for actual running when we arrived there. i'd originally planned on running through to black sail youth hostel and back but ended up simply running round the lake. still it was good to see this bit of the c2c in what represents the opening part of the lakeland section

day 5 - just like the weatherman had said it was blowing a freezing gale and the mountains were starting to whiteout

for our final run before heading home common sense got the better of me as i opted to simply run round derwentwater and avoid any high areas. im glad i did as it was blowing an icy cold gale even in the valley and it was easy to imagine the difficulty you could quite quickly get into high up

so what did i learn from these outings?
firstly, i need to put in much more hill work than i have been doing
secondly, i must ensure more longer back to backs as planned and will probably jettison the two 50+ mile races in scotland ive entered in favour of doing back to backs in the lakes
thirdly, my map reading aint too bad but i need some compass work in case the clag comes down on us heavily
fourthly, charlie was on top form with no problems at all
and finally, i like to make it up as i go along and not to have everything planned

oh and by the way, if you havent already done so..go and see Alice in Wonderland..absolutely fantastic...a great way to spend some post run recovery time

the lakes (not the one with the big fat beardy person though , coming soon)

2010-04-01T00:17:00.002+01:00

moody britain, happiness, and the unexpected horror

2010-03-21T06:19:00.010Z

moody britain

after a lovely warm week the weather up top yesterday reverted back to what i refer to as a 'lake district day' .. low cloud, poor visibility, rain, heavy at times. it was like this for most of our outing..a 6.5hr trip using the gritstone trail from rushton over to teggs nose, round the top of macc forest and back (a great and at times strenuous route).

(moles were having a field day too..pun intended)

not sure if its something odd about me but i actually enjoy the atmosphere and moodiness of days like these. they make the routes seem even more desolate and remote somehow.

happiness

i felt good most of the way round but at one point started to feel physically and emotionally low..why was i putting myself through this i would say. cue what britnick calls 'the elixir of the long distance runner'

a bottle of this and then !!!!!!!!!!!! twenty minutes later the low dissapeared and i felt sheer happiness mentally and physically (im a sucker for subliminal advertising messages)

the boy wonder had a happy run too, fuelled by flapjack, half of my pasty and crumble slice. he had no problems whatsoever, full of fire and probably covering twice my distance at twice my pace (not hard to achieve)

(look, not a bead of sweat on him afterwards)

the unexpected horror

before setting out i lubed up my feet as usual (they came back in on piece despite being wet from nearly the outset) and a little 'elsewhere'. without giving too much detail i started to feel a little uncomfortable in places about half way round but it wasn't until i got home and undressed that i discoverd the full extent of the damage from my underpants and my backpack :-0
i'll spare you the photographic eveidence. as you can imagine it wasn't pretty. and it stung , and still does like buggery (though im merely borrowing that phrase not having had first hand experience of what that might actually feel like).
if i had to run today it would be sore but i definitely couldn't use a backpack.
i think im going to need pots and pots of vaseline if im going to get across britain with a pack on my back..a bumbag wont be big enough for each unsupported leg.

maybe i could get charlie to carry my stuff...now there's a thought

that's more like it!

2010-03-16T13:44:00.002Z

clipped and ready for the off

running round rome

2010-03-13T12:17:00.010Z

a busy week at work this week with two days in london followed by three in rome. i took my kit with me (but not the pooch) so i didnt totally miss out on a few runs.

in london, i popped round regents park early doors. i felt like an outsider..no i pod! and having smiled at the first few runners i passed without a response back i decided my friendly northern ways weren't for these city types. crikey the very thought of actually saying 'hi' was totally out of bounds. they'd have called the police!

and so to rome. a magnificient city, steeped in magnificance, emotion and spirit. i felt very chilled there. a world apart from london in every sense. not only is the city beautiful but so too are the people..i felt quite underdressed and lacking any style credentials by comparison.
i took the chance to run and see the city on foot, as much as my non-work time would allow..heres a few of the shots from the phone..some famous landmarks some not so famous..i hope you like them

C2C team outing

2010-03-07T19:28:00.003Z

today saw the first official outing of our c2c team...me, richard, guy and his nibs

i guess we've all got different experiences behind us so today was hopefully there as a good taster for each of us regardless of what we'd done previously

in the end it was a belting day..crisp blue skies, warm (relatively) in the sun, chilly in the shade, running on everything from ice to snow drifts to rocks to mud.the lot really

we did a 5.5 hr trip from macc forest up to shuttlingsloe, over to the cat n fiddle, round goyt valley, down to lambaload reservoir and back to base. a cracking, if challenging, outing and one to set the context for certainly the first few days of the c2c.

to cut to the quip..all returned well having enjoyed a top time though i'm struggling to see charlie make the big week

and with that piece of news, though not new i guess, i'm questioning my running going forwards. he's been my inspiration and it might just be that i take the lad on runs of say 3 hrs max..and with that i may end my ultras and just run as the free spirit im becoming..doing what i like when i like..but with his nibs

in the meantime, i cant really let the two-legged side down as i was the one who suggested it in the first place!

should have kept my big gob shut!!

a double header

2010-02-27T06:06:00.005Z

happy times in our household this weekend with two birthdays. mine comes first, chronologically, but overshadowed, as usual, by hollies the next day. this is a special year i guess as hollie enters the teen years (fasten your seat belts). its amazing where the time goes, i can vividly remember the day she was born. and for me? a bit like my training, i just keep notching the numbers upwards.
festivities, treats and celebrations started yesterday with a trip to Hollister and Selfridges for a little bit of fashion indulgence as well as a wee purchase of these little beauties from CampFour.

another treat in store today on my run when i came across our lovely local herd of wild deer. its such a priviledge to gain the occasional glimpse of these magnificient animals (though my BBerry doesnt do them justice)

a full weekend of fun, sausages, steak and Pure Ubu ahead and into next week too (Hollie's festivities last a full 6 days..mine a mere one if i'm lucky!)

suspended reality

2010-02-24T10:58:00.002Z

i had quite a surreal run this morning

at 0530, equipped with head torch, we headed out for a tempo run along the lakeside, in the valley so to speak. the underfoot conditions were a mix of ice, water, mud, snow, a right ever changing hotch potch. and the fog was thick.

after a little while, everything around felt a little strange. we were immersed in a white blanket with the head torches light bouncing back off the fog. visiblity was zero, only seeing anything once you were on top of it, making each footfall quite interesting.

the running felt good, flowing even..though something didnt seem quite right..the effort level didnt feel the comfortable hard it should have but the legs were turning nicely and the pace seemed good

it felt like i was running in some shrouded bubble..with no reference points to judge anything by

it was all an illusion. what it felt like wasn't the reality. the watch told a different story (backing up my low effort level). but it had felt like i was flying along. reality had been suspended.

the GREAT winter spring debate

2010-02-19T07:18:00.002Z

hayfella at smileyrunner wrote 'The world is on the cusp. Poised between winter and spring. You get the feeling it could go either way; slip back into winter's sleety grey, like yesterday, or continue inexorably forward into spring's warmer embrace'

so come on ladies, gents and all our canine friends JOIN THE DEBATE NOW!

For 'its nearly spring'
birds are tweeting earlier in the mornings
its getting lighter earlier and darker later
the easter eggs are out in the shops
the dfs winter sale ads have stopped
the fields are filling with gambling lambs
theres already talk of the summer transfer window
the salads at work are getting better

For 'it's still winter'
just pop outside and see
we still light the fire every night
the headtorch is the must have piece of kit still
my shorts haven't seen the light of day yet
charlie still has a full coat and hasn't had his customary lean mean shave yet
everyone keeps banging on about the snow and how cold it is
we're still drinking red wine and not much white
the hills are pretty empty :)
we still haven't booked a summer holiday

there's a few starters for ten but we want to hear what you think! is it nearly spring??? or is it still winter??? or do you not care?

vote and have your say now!

pure ubu

2010-02-15T16:17:00.004Z

this is my latest find for post long outing rehydration
why was i drawn to it in the first place? the dog of course and the brilliant piece of wordsmithing on the bottle (see opposite)
it tastes pretty good too!
cheers

the white stuff..

2010-02-15T11:46:00.003Z

..its still here! on our run we encountered these vast stubborn scapes of snow and drifts, mostly iced over and passable on foot...thanks to Charlie who acted as an excellent pathfinder!

talking of the lad..he's fine..no signs of any stiffness and mad as a...:)

charlie update

2010-02-14T06:29:00.002Z

8 hours on and the lad is considerably better..in fact you'd be hard pushed to notice he'd been out running in the hills for over 6 hours yesterday
we're off to the lakes for a week soon where we'll run everyday..it'll be a good yardstick to see how he does
the trouble is, like most collies, you cant hold him back. he'd rather be out there than not. think i'll step up his supplements..and mine too ;)

no blue skies

2010-02-13T21:17:00.004Z

im afraid this is a bit of a sad post
i've had his nibs for a few years now and now the long stuff seems to be to taking it toll after each outing
i give charlie every aid possible but even so his stiffness post run is clear to see. during our outings he's fine, more than fine, he's in his element
but when we get back he lays down a while and then the stiffness shows when he gets up
but hey if i rest afterwards im the same
if im mobile i walk it all off..maybe i should keep him mobile to walk it out
i think what im saying is that i think we can continue together to do our ultras this year, he's ok for those...BUT...im not sure i can see how the coast to coast can become a reality for us together
seven days of 26+ miles per day
i know in his mind he can do it, but im worried about the impact on his limbs
i'll see how he is in the morning but im not that optimistic right now
the whole coast to coast idea was inspired by our running together..without him im not so sure i'll have quite the same appetite to do it

WOW! A PE!

2010-02-12T06:37:00.002Z

the latest ive ever finished an event was on the 56mile 2008 bullock smithy where we finished at 02.56am. and the earliest i've ever started a run i reckon will be around 0430, but in summertime daylight hours.

today ive set a new record. i woke at 0230am and, unable to go back to sleep,headed out of the door at 0400am with the pooch for a two hour trot.

not a sole around. it was earily still and so quiet. no birdsong. all the sheep and cows were huddled lying down. a plane at 30000ft or so disturbed the peace at one point. it was cold and frosty and to be honest it felt more like sleep running to me. i'm like running early doors but 4am is perhaps just an hour too early even for me.

a 30miler tomorrow and thats me done for the week, totalling 65miles.

time for bed i think.

i haven't done it in ages!

2010-02-10T12:51:00.005Z

im talking about running harder / tempo efforts (not the 'other thing').

i've been happily getting the miles up and running steady so i thought it was about time to mix it up and sharpen myself up a bit too.

every run i'm feeling great at the moment and today's was no exception. just 1m warm up/down with 2x2m at tempo effort...the equivalent of lsr pace for a lot of you i suspect!

it got kind of 'out there' for a while running fast-ish in the pitch black with a headtorch into a light snow flurry..a weird strobe lighting effect firing at me.

is it me or does snow always 'fire' at you as opposed to away from you?!

anyway enough about running...here's a pic of my leader

commute

2010-02-06T05:54:00.002Z

this week i have been mostly running to and from work
well not every day
its the start of my back to backs to toughen me up a bit

3hrs run home in the pitch black x-c, canal path and road
shower
bit of tucker
5hrs sleep
up at 4am
bit of tucker
3hrs reverse route run starting 5am
shower
bit of tucker

only downside was not being able to take charlie..i'm in the doghouse

but...spring is here. its official, as i ran through my first lamb filled fields of the year

60miles easily done and dusted this week.

still on track...amazing :-0

white nancies and marine boys

2010-02-01T10:28:00.006Z

this weekend had a bit of everything

...a bit of dissapointment in failing to make it to the that's lyth event in the lakes due to my terrible choice of totally inappropriate car for the snowy conditions. setting off from home at 5am me and the pooch (my front seat co-pilot) got as far as just south of preston before abandonning all positivity that it was a good idea to continue. real shame as beyond preston it was ok apparently and the event was held in belting cold sunny clear sky conditions

... a bit of running around and on the white nancy instead, which was lovely.

...a bit of weights in the gym afterwards (no dogs allowed). this, and swimming, are really paying dividends for me this year..and the change keeps things fresh too

...a bit of teaching will to a. swim under water and b. sit on the bottom of the pool

...a bit of one of those moments when kids say the funniest things when will came out with 'i'm a big fan of pins and needles'..he's just discovered them and how to make them happen!

...a bit of a ten miler this morning to set me up for the next mileage build over the coming 3 weeks (60, 65, 70)

all in all a bit of a good, if at times improvised, weekend :)

dog blog

2010-01-26T03:50:00.008Z

this week we managed to get the mileage up to 58..just 2 short of our goal..we must either try harder or learn to count properly ;)

sundays 4.5hr outing saw weather ranging from springlike with all the bird sound effects

right through to snow blizzards on top of the roaches

the great thing is that im really enjoying it all and secondly sustaining the effort (50m, 51m, 58m) hasnt been an issue..probably due to my enjoyment

now the worst of the weather has just about gone we'll be going higher once again and adding in some faster stuff and hill reps midweek as time goes on

charlie too is coping well with the extra mileage and im desperately hoping he'll be in good enough fettle for our ultras but most importantly the coast to coast. big thanks to our friends kate and gerraint for their massive help with the lad.

so..an easy week ahead..some swimming, gym, bit of biking and a long run at the weekend..and some lounging around

one happy collie!

spot the difference

2010-01-17T05:32:00.004Z

last staurday

this saturday

51+ miles done this week. 1 more than last, though 4 short of the weeks target.

now the snow is abatting, ice has become a problem, so much so that sundays run was a run of two halves..the first off road that had to be curtailed in favour of road shoes and a slightly less slippy surface in the form of tarmac. made for quite a nice change and dont road shoes feel like slippers!

loving the whiteout

2010-01-10T07:22:00.016Z

well, we seem to be back on track guys. this week we've bagged just over 50 miles, which for early January and the tasty conditions out there i feel is a good effort. charlie is hyper on every outing, his energy is boundless.
for me though the snow and ice is forcing me to run at a very steady pace, which i like! but with greater effort. i wonder how much more effort exactly is used running in snow than normal..it feels like a lot!

to keep it safe we've been running locally where we know every inch of the land. but even yesterday the variabilty of snow depth was incredible down one field alone! you're running on a more compact less deep surface one minute and the next you're missing the bottom half of your legs!

here's a few snaps from saturdays outing. the weather kept changing. one minute a sun strewn winter wonderland followed quickly by dark skies and light snow flurries. and so it kept alternating. the wind chill was also very noticeable for the first time.

fresh snow...nose lickin' good

up on gun hill

the roaches looking moody

hen cloud looking less moody (5 mins after taking the roaches pic)

round tittersworth reservoir (with a brief stop to refuel on mrs uc's spiced apple cake)

over to a frozen rudyard lake

and finally, back home via our local church (called the church in the wilderness) where me and mrs uc got hitched and our kids christened

a good week to snowboard us into the next with a slight mileage hike..here we go again!

slip slidin' away

2010-01-04T13:06:00.011Z

on saturday we set out to clear skies and a crisp white coating underfoot

hidden ice and slippery rutted steep sided banks drew our running into walking at times

then in came the snow storm for the next two and a half hours

it was a whole load of fun

and just the sort of outing that im after this year

charlie adores the snow..maybe i should take him sledging too!

looking back going forwards

2009-12-31T07:46:00.003Z

not exactly a wise move when youre out running, what with all the trees, boulders and big drops around, but just a few minutes now at my computer to take stock before we all leap into another year, another decade in fact.

i started this blog after runners world had done a feature on charlie last january. it kind of seemed to be a good idea as there appeared to be some apetite out there for people to read about other peoples adventures. in some ways i find blogging a little sanitised..you put stuff out that people will read or may want to read..in this case about running. but life is a lot more than running and sometimes my blog has strayed into these areas..but always with a kind of restrained emotion.

all that said, im pleased i started as ive subsequently met (virtually in some cases) some really great people that write interesting and inspiring stuff.

looking back to 2009....a learning year. 2008 was such a good running year i automatically assumed 2009 would simply follow suit but it didn't. im able however to learn from the numerous mistakes i made and kept making. the book of 2009 is coming to its end with a new one about to begin.

as we go into 2010 im loving my running once again, i think largely having stripped out the unwanted and unecessary pressures of running for times..i now run as i feel, and if that means i come last then so be it. the main thing is that i run with joy and my trusty sidekick does the same. a watch cant make me a better fitter runner but a good diet, enough rest and some excellent training can.

in june we set off on the coast to coast which will be an epic adventure. im so excited. but theres lots of miles to cover to take us to the start so i'd better end here and get out there and bag some miles, but before i do id just like to say 'happy new year, i hope you achieve your goals in 2010 but more importantly that you have lots of fun along the way'

always take the positives

2009-12-26T09:06:00.002Z

its been two weeks since i last ran and really i'm still not 100% but im not going to dwell on that.
as every long distance runner will appreciate, we always look to take something positive out of times of adversity. and this is one of those times because this lay off has enabled me to start sleeping properly. yes! i'm getting around 9 hrs of solid sleep without my usual break in the middle of the night and ending up with at best 6 maybe at a push 7hrs of interupted sleep.
all through 2008 ive not slept well which im sure has resulted in me being tired and eating more (the crap stuff) which will have had a knock on effect to my training and performance.
whatsmore, i've hardly touched a drop of alcohol or my usual mountain of salty snacks.
so folks, the morale of the story is this. if you want to get the balance right for great running you can do a lot worse than a good old dose of swine flu and all its glorious after effects!

Happy Xmas folks ! Have a fantastic time.

2009-12-21T15:31:00.002Z