Charlie The Ultra Running Collie (2002-2015) RIP

‘So you didn’t catch him then’ a neighbouring farmer, Phil, observed with a wry smile. ‘Didn’t catch who?’ I said. ‘Your collie, Charlie. I saw you both running across the field this morning…he was well in front, then I saw you both coming back across the field later on in the afternoon  and your dog was still well in the lead, looking as fresh as anything, and you struggling on behind.  Made me laugh’

And that was how it was

For 12 years I have been the luckiest lad to have had Charlie, my four legged bundle of joy, by my side . We taught each other things we wouldn’t have otherwise learnt and we helped each other see places we would never have otherwise seen. From the West Highland Way of Scotland to the many mountain passes of the Lake District, from the West coast to the East coast of England, from The Cloud to Gun Moor. There was no stopping us. Running in inspiring places, living in the moment. Both of us having the times of our lives

He was my pathfinder and my talisman. A bundle of energy,  an indomitable spirit. And when things got tricky, and they occasionally did high up in the clag, he was my sea of calm

And at home he never stopped, always obsessing on the yard or in the field with a stone, a stick or a ball. Always on the go, always wanting to play

But there was more, something that’s hard to describe…an unspoken knowingness, an understanding and friendship that didn’t need words, although I did prattle on to him loads. We just both ‘knew’ what was what

Today he lost his fight against cancer, but a fight he gave it. Despite it all, he never lost his joie de vivre, his wagging tail, or his desire to be outside with you. His spirit and unconditional love never once waned and he set an example for us all to try and follow

Now he’s gone there’s a numbing emptiness. Every place where he normally was he is no more. No longer will he excitedly pester me as I tie the laces of my running shoes every morning. No longer will he always be first out of the door. No longer will he bark with all the joy of a pooch doing what he loves best, telling me to get a move on

Life will never be the same again now he’s no longer here but, as hard as this is right now, the memories and the life we shared together will last forever

I already miss him so badly but, even though he might not be my side anymore, he will always be in my heart and with me in spirit

Thank you Charlie Boy, for everything. RIP. I will never ever stop loving you X

PS Thank you to everyone on here. Some we know, some we met, some we just exchanged stories right here. But every one of you have played huge parts in our story. Thank you from us both - it wouldn't have been the same without you

hello hello...is there anybody out there?
long time no posting by us
but just a quick word to say we're still here, still running, and still loving (virtually) every minute of it!
ultrarunningcollie himself is around 12+ yrs now and whilst not doing the really long stuff anymore, he's showing no signs of letting up..and still he manages to dupe strangers into thinking he's merely a 'boy'..shame i can't say the same about me!

reunited

i love running. i really do. i still do. but after an amazing few years of ultra running, that culminated in 2010, we started to drift apart. me and ultra running , that is. like the stuff that can happen in a relationship - boredom, complacency, repetition, going over the same ground time and time again - it gradually began to feel like a chore that i was no longer enjoying, but only the long stuff. the short faster stuff still thrilled me. 2011 came and went with little long stuff that excited me and 2012 saw zilch in the way of ultras or long runs. injury in 3 places played its role too in breaking us apart, but the rift went far deeper than damaged ligaments and fascia band

luckily a few trail marathons in 2012 took my fancy - glencoe and grizedale - the latter part of the ultra trail 26 series organised by that exceedingly nice chap marc laithwaite. another in the series - howgills - was held earlier this year..excellent events in their own right. (i also did high terrain's scafell pike marathon which to be honest i really did not enjoy so we'll confine that to the best forgotten bin)

with  those 4 medium distance outings in the bag i decided it was high time to try to make amends with ultra running. so we got together to see how we'd get on..it had been a while and maybe we just weren't cut out for each other anymore

our first date - the lakeland 50 (for a 3rd time) - was what can only be described as a disaster. we fell out very early on in the race and i followed through with my threat of pulling out just 20 miles in at mardale head. and for most of it we argued continually..it got quite heated

with two further dates planned, such a spectacular fallout wasn't quite in the script. but in some ways it wasnt surprising this happened. we were going over old ground that we'd become too familiar with and so the date lacked any spark whatsoever

that was it i thought. i'd failed to breath new life in it all.

but things were to change.

on holiday in a very sunny cornwall i sat out in the garden most days reading an amazing book..the chimp paradox. WOW! talk about getting to understand whats going on in your mind. reading it gave me a real spring clean...about control, inspiration and self belief and a whole load of other stuff (it should be on the national curriculum for kids!)

with a mind afresh, i decided to give it all a second go. this time at the very inaugural running of the 'grand tour of skiddaw', organised by yet another wonderful and chipper type, gaynor prior. this really was make or break...47 miles across the northern fells with the small matter half way round of getting to the top o'skiddaw, ringing a bell, then descending off back down and round across the fells once more back to the finish. WHAT A DAY I HAD :-). me and ultra running might just have spiced it up a bit, certainly enough to go on another date

so our next outing would take every little ounce of physical and mental strength i had...a 66-70mile, 10,000-14,000ft (depending on whose stats you read) round trip - the first ever ultimate trails event directed superbly by gaynor prior -  from windermere over to bampton, patterdale, watlendath, langdale and back to the start. i wont bore you with the details except to say it was as tough as i imagined it to be, but with a load of mental guile i did it. and with this and skiddaw in the bag i'm back in love with ultras (well for the foreseeable future anyway!)

so, full of renewed self belief, vigor, and inspiration i have a goal, a big one, for 2014

but these are the things that will help me get there

1 keep it fresh, dont keep doing the same events time and time again. go to new places, new races
2 run for the reason you love it so much..the connection to the earth, the feeling, the simple joy of putting on foot in front of the other in amazingly inspiring place. and the camaraderie
3 when youre going through hell keep going..after the dark comes the light (always)
4 always believe. manage your chimp
5 forget time/pbs etc..just enjoy it
6 and finally, train better, train harder, train longer..and keep on smiling

(and in case you're wondering, his nibs, charlietheultrarunningcollie, is in fine fettle. he belies his 11-11.5 years of age. always on the go. running everything apart from long ones with me. forever placing stones and sticks at your feet to throw and fetch. but he's broadened his past times and is now also a real whizz at football..theres more life in the old boy than ever :-)

what is it with running?

im not posting much these days for two reasons...i dont want this blog to become boring (though it probably already is) and secondly, i dont think people have time for lengthy droning on in this day and age. we're into short and sweet not war and peace

so i'll cut a long story short. after around 10 years of running it still amazes me that you can go out one day and think you're sailing like the wind and blowing like the wind, then you look at your watch and feel utter disappointment at your actual pace :-(  Then the next day you're bimbling along feeling like you're not breaking any land speed records, running really comfortably within yourself, and then bingo! the watch moment of truth that tells you otherwise :-)

that's all i've got to say about that

upended

'Slip sliding away, slip sliding away 
You know the nearer your destination, the more you slip sliding away'

so a lovely little trip up to kentmere horseshoe with my mate steve (zodiac ) daniels and the ultra running collie himself

quite an innocuous-looking round that day from the valley floor 

but the higher up the garburn pass we went the greater the snow and yes, the ice

no bother, i'll pop my spikes on..that should do the trick

well kind of...steve was comically upended on 3 occasions by sheet ice hidden by a thin veneer of snow. his first fall, he was taken down in full flight and slid a good 12 feet or more on his back..thankfully cushioned by his backpack

you know you shouldn't laugh but you do..and you laugh too soon. it was long before i got my comeuppance on two different but equally bruising falls. and both times lay there wincing at the fleetingly temporary pain whilst uncontrollably giggling away at myself

so much for spikes eh! in a scientific study of n=3 , one without spikes fell 3 times, one with twice and my four pawed buddy fell nil, zero, zilch times. paws>spikes

the weather claggy, cold and with white dreamy vistas

its a bad do when you've got to hold onto my pooch to stay upright eh steve ?;-)

a top fun round finished off in true style with a full english back at wilfs cafe in staverley..adventures dont come much better :-)

running on empty

week one of 2013 training done and this time i'm doing it differently, as prescribed by mr marc laithwaite, the endurance coach and altogether bloody nice chap

this means running on empty..no pre-fuelling, no in-flight fuelling (other than electrolyte drink) and no post-flight carb reloading . all with the aim of teaching your body to work off fat (the big fuel tank) rather than carbs (the little fuel tank)

sunday was just a 2.5 hr jaunt around macc forest, shutts and teggs nose area

it felt fine at first, even with a long long steady climb to the trigpoint. then probably after an hour and a half or so i could start to feel that funny feeling. your body asking for rocket fuel..that never arrives. and so for the next hour you could kind of feel a different physiology happening, not always pleasant or easy. but i guess im very early into this whole adaptation phase and sure there'll be worse to come before it starts to feel ok

his nibs never seems to look too troubled mind..too busy following his nose to notice i guess

let's hear it

lets hear it.. lets hear it for the ultra-runner, the fell runner, the never say neverer
the burning lungs, the red faces, the killer races
the whippets, mid-packers and the see you at the backers

raise your glass to the agony and the ecstasy
the mountain to behold
the tales to be told

stand proud on that hill
you made it yours
through the wind, the rain, thinking never again

we swore, we stumbled, we gritted teeth
up high, down low
but we never said no

so lets hear it..
lets hear it for the trier, the first timer
and the never say dier

we line up as one
an enduring human race
a very special place

so let's hear it
lets hear it for each and every one, and our four legged friends
where did it all go right?

just chillin'

what's not to like about winter? cold crisp runs followed by warm glowing fires. perfect.

grizedale

27.5+ miles (and around 3500ft) around grizedale MUT forest then down to windermere and back...technically then thats an ultra though perhaps not in the true spirit of things

suffice to say we had a great day. best described as a trail of two halves. the first loop (12m) round the forest was relatively easy and quick running on forest trails. the second by contrast totally different..more technical rock strewn trails (some very slippy and muddy), muddy fields and a bit of road t'boot..and so decidedly harder (and slower)

a great event organised and run by a truly great bunch of smiley people. and to top it all the best chicken and peanut soup in the world at the end

his nibs on uncontrollable form..i think he needs an equally lengthy warm up to knock the edge of him! and he had his admirers...'that's a proper dog that is'..i think charlie could lipread the guy ;-)

take a look...

..what's there not to like!

collies round up

so after hobbling through the first half of 2012 with multiple injuries to my left foot and ankle, the second half has seen us get back into some sort of groove, during which I / we've done a number of races, albeit shorter stuff, that we've not tried before

first up was the inaugural 12.12 trail race at the bigrunningweekend in the peaks. i can only think that ,although numbers for this and the accompanying ultra were very low, this event will grow and grow. excellent routes, organisation and a great bunch of folk

and you cant knock some of the great little fell races in our area too. for lantern pike we had excellent weather from the Hayfield showground. basically an up and down with a whole load of country fayre entertainment when you've finshed

then it was over to haworth for my first running of the yorkshireman. still building up from injury i wisely chose the half marathon and strangely found it really hard going. ok it was warm but really was i that unfit??! once finished, with a rather sluggish time, i started to feel a little queer..soon that crept into nausea and alternating hot and cold sweats. driving back was a nightmare with necessary stops every few minutes. at one point i considered heading for the nearest a & e. then once into hebden bridge i abruptly pulled over and the inevitable multiple projectile chunder happened. an hour later and i was right as rain

next up the one i'd be building up to. the very first running of the glencoe marathon. an excellent event. only 150 runners with support , organisation and checkpoints befitting of the best races around

 the route was boggy in parts, tough in places, but always with a stunning vista

being the first time out at this distance since january it was no walk in the park, but a final (downhill) two miles at 8 min/ml made sure i finished feeling confident with a big scottish grin on my face

so next up this coming sunday is the first running of the grizedale marathon, organised by mark laithwaite and co from the lakeland 50/100 event. it's sure to be as tough as the scenery is beautiful

finally on the running front we'll be completing a cracking series of races with gravy pud fell race in december. another simple 5 mile up down no-nonsense event

and to round up the round up charlie has acquired six new little friends..the spice girls..6,6 month old gimmer hoggs who we hope will start to multiply in 2014..aren't they just gorgeous :)

life

just read ian charter's moving tribute to darren h. i didnt know darren but that doesnt stop you from feeling sadness or taking time to think about stuff, life.

ian wrote something at the end, which is nothing but inspired

'don't be sad that its over, be glad that it happened'

(thanks ian)

on track

so..so far it's all going to plan. injuries overcome and about 6 weeks of good training completed. this time im building up slowly and it seems to be working. im now at about 40 miles pw.
a week in the lakes was a tonic..lots of walking (with mrs uc and his nibs) and running (with his nibs). sadly my i phone passed away up on park fell head..torrential rain got the better of it..so no pics from me..thankfully mrs uc took some

yesterday i did the inagural 12.12 trail race over burbage moor and the surrounding area. organised by the bigrunningweekend im sure the event will take off like the lakeland 50/100 eventually did. i used it as a good training run finishing strongly and feeling fresh enough the day after ie today to face another hard week of training.
another thing im doing differently this time is a lot of running specific gym work. ive never been a great fan of gyms but this time im trying to rebuild properly (a bit like the six million dollar man... 'david donaghue a man barely able to run...gentlemen we can rebuild him') and im actually enjoying it as i can see and feel the benefits, unlike before when i just fannied around on machines doing anything i fancied but doing nothing of any real benefit
in two weeks im doing the yorkshireman half thats not a half, and hoping to get to that in better shape still.
then its the inaugural glencoe marathon which im really looking forward to.
all this with an eye to my big 2013 goal
slowly slowly catch the monkey as they say

where have all the bloggers gone

does blogging have a natural life cycle..especially for something quite narrowband like running? is there only so much you can say before you start to feel like a doddery old dear, with rotten fruit in a bowl, constantly banging on about roughly the same things. this blog goes back to 2008 and for me at least it records some of the great stuff my and the ultrarunningcollie have been up to as well as the occasional random post on something non-running. but i feel less enthusiatic about blogging these days and so it appears are a lot of other fellow bloggers whose posts i really enjoyed but who also appear to have dried up..its not the same

heres a roll call of some of the blogged out bloggers (where are you?)

will meridith
loneliness of a part time runner
kate/cake
running bear
donning studs in may
run like a girl
julies running blog
calva or bust
andrew and jasper
desert running

then theres a few who like me seem to be just hanging in there, blogging much less frequently and with less umph than before

run forest run
4 winds
ultra stu
then stop
smiley runner

theres others too

its a shame. a moment , albeit a long one, where we shared stories. the triumphs. the disasters. the in-betweenees. the highs. the lows. the injuries. the funny side. but most of all the craic, the commaraderie and the support...it was a pleasure, a joy and we met some of you too..i wish we'd met more. maybe we will. one day

there's a little bit more left in our blogging days..if only charlie could type you'd probably get a daily post!

the whaley waltz

the whaley waltz fell race..run from whaley bridge up to windgather rocks, turn around and run all the way back down. then jump into the river goyt to amuse the baying  masses, hungry for entertainment. so i did my best peter kay bombing entry impersonation. its that simple. its bloody marvellous. and one of my favourite races ever
i bomb at 1 minute into the film.. marks out of ten??

as giddy as a giddy thing

the recovery's coming on well (touchwood) so i was trying to decide where to go next this year..to have that little goal we all like to have

casually reading the events listings in trail running whilst on the loo (is that level of detail really necessary? - ed) i spotted the inaugural glencoe marathon. ten minutes later i'm in. i can't wait. it looks awesome

im a huge fan of running in scotland. there's something a little distant and spiritual about the place. and the people i've met (ali, debs, murdo etc etc) are so welcoming
16 weeks to go from this coming monday..perfect
only downside..no dogs..so no ultrarunningcollie on this one..he's taking it quite well though
will i see any faniliar faces there?

mixing it up

as you might know for the past few months i have struggled with my left foot, to the extent of enforced walking for 8 miles during the L50 recce at the beginning of april
i had hope that the trouble would pass and that i could crack on with the L50 training plan. no such luck. 8 weeks ago i hobbled round the edale skyline and called time at 12 miles. since then i lay off running totally for 5 weeks and was scanned in 3 places on my foot/ankle. no break (phew) , PF and degeneration at 80%, and tendon inflammation over my 5th metertarsal and ankle....so all manageable (fingers crossed). and over the whole process i've learned a lot about what works for me and my body and what doesn't
anyway, there's always an up side. with the prospect of less, if any, running, i started a contingency plan consisting of swimming, cycling, spinning and gyming...basically anything active that ends in 'ing'

so far so good..i'm actually enjoying it all..am starting to get fitter all round and, wait for it, have just re-introduced my running....15..22...25 mins...a little way off any ultra goals
anyway im going to build it back up, but slowly, and try to build a better, fitter me..a bit like the bionic man without the luxury of the six million dollars
it does mean no L50 this year and a host of other events, but im quietly excited with having to replan and rethink everything...so hoping for a few short fell races then maybe something slightly longer in sept/oct time
and charlie is relieved that im slowly back running so he doesnt have to constantly peg it when im out on my bike

discombobulated

i smile to myself. discombobulated?!  karen uses that word a lot. and i used to think it was one of her made up ones (we all have them) until i heard someone on the telly use it. a quick apology for all my mickey taking was offered up.

and so here i am and that mad word currently describes quite nicely my running state.

with just 13 weeks to go before the lakeland 50 i have arrived at a crossroads, quite unexpectedly, and ground to a halt, not quite knowing which sign to take, which route to follow.

i arrived at this same junction twice in succession, at the end of a couple of long-ish runs. normally there'd be no stopping, in fact no other choices to ponder but quite clearly something is changing for me. it might be a passing phase, it may be something a little more permanent (for the time being anyway).

one way points to 'run long* and race', another 'run long for fun'. but two new signs have been put up..'short** and race' and 'short for fun'.

this i think is my 5th year of ultras and i've truly loved the whole journey..sitting here thinking about and you wonder 'whats the bloody problem then..just get on and enjoy it some more!'..the lakeland 50's, the Highland Flings, the C2C and so many others..all great memories and times.

but..and there's always a but..or several buts
- i've got those t - shirts
- i've enjoyed running faster in training since november (and not enjoyed the walking bits of long stuff)
- shorter means more time for other stuff in life
- i also have a foot injury (that ive kept quiet about until now) that hurts at times
- i think i just feel ready for a change

 all that said though, theres a lot to leave behind if i walk away from ultras.

hence why im rooted to the spot at this crossroads, feeling a little..well..discombobulated i suppose.

*ultra distances
** non-ultra distances

skool report

Quietly i've been plugging away at my 'faster' schedule, mostly locally and so no big reason to blog. there's only so many blogs you could take about a lakeside tempo session.
 So with a good number of weeks of the new regime done it was back to the 'lab' yesterday to see what improvements, if any, it was having. Would I get a 'See me'?, a 'Poor work'?. It felt like the time when your parents saw your school report before you did and the look on their faces said it all :0.

 But this time things were slightly better and my anxiety that not much had changed was soon relieved. in fact i was rather chuffed to see the difference it had made with all the values (techy science stuff that marc has to explain really slowly to me) jumping significantly in the right direction. importantly for ultras it appears that i've retrained my body to use much more fat as fuel than previously.*

 So today i should receive my next 16 week 'mission' and the theme will be very much the same..lots of high intensity but this time with some slightly longer runs thrown in too. I really love this approach to training. you run a lot (as opposed to walking a lot) . its time efficient (so i have lots of time to do the other things in life). and the rebel in me loves the fact that training this way for longer stuff flies in the face of the must-do mega mileage traditional camp. doing big miles i simply got slower but doing less im getting quicker with no detriment to endurance. that's not to say this is some miracle solution to ultras as there's so many other things to factor in.

 (Charlie, you'd better watch out. well maybe that's pushing it a bit.)

 All this though is giving my wee pea brain a bit of a dilemma. do i aim to do the lakeland 100 in 2013, my ultimate ultra goal and dream, or do i change direction to shorter fell/trail races? decisions decisions. i know where my heart lies. And on that note next up is the lakeland 50 recce this sunday :) from pooley bridge to ambleside, with a few obstacles in the way!


*the small print. it wasn't all A*'s. my ongoing love for salty snacks, sausages and lakeland ales meant little movement in weight despite all that running :0. must try harder :-/

oh deer

talking of dogs...

spike envy

looks like everyone's (kate ;)) going on about them so here's my humble set..they're doing a grand job keeping me upright



so grip taken care of..pity i didn't remember to sort myself out in other areas

painful schoolboy error :0