I think I'm enjoying running too much at the moment. Pretty sure this stuff is meant to be hard work, yet I keep finding ways to have fun whilst doing so! This week included my first club run & a visit down to Dorset for more White Star Running insanity.
Cross Training
Perhaps spurred into action by the knowledge that Team Um Bongo Teamaster General Paul had been struck down by a back issue, Monday morning I decided to get in a DDP Yoga session in front of tv before work. I'm still yet to grasp fully the concept of core work, like broccoli I know it's good for me, I just haven't been able to fully embrace it.
I could feel the benefit straight away, lots of clicks as my back freed itself up. A slight cause for concern was my left shoulder, still playing up a bit after my Evil Knievel stunt show at parkrun.
The day had started well, before the yoga I'd hopped onto the scales and I've now lost half a stone since the start of the marathon cycle. In truth, I've simply clawed back to where I was before the break up binge. I'm happy for the progress though, heading in the right direction. I'm not trying to lose weight in a rapid, unsustainable way, more so just get a bit healthier, the marathon training is certainly having a positive effect.
After work I'd decided a gym visit was necessary, double PE after a long run! The Stansted gym is a bit smaller than Dunmow so I had to settle for a conventional bike over a recumbent. I had a very clear purpose, turn the legs over to aid recovery. 30 minutes of sloth like minimal effort cycling. I kept myself amused by trying to work out Coronation Street with subtitles, podcasts and a blog update. It was only in the final few minutes that I pushed myself, even then just a little bit. The whole point was to ease my legs into a bit of activity. The long run had left me with tight hamstrings, I was hopeful the cycling would cheer them up. I covered all of 6km in 30 minutes, I could have technically run faster!
I got home and constructed an almighty salad, once more being a bit off when it comes to portion control.
Satisfied with my efforts, Tuesday was a full day of rest. I'm managing to just keep myself on the right side of the line in terms of injuries. I have aches and pains, calves that are over worked certainly, but nothing pressing.
The Debut that nearly wasn't
Wednesday night is now club night, the main night of the week for Bishop's Stortford Running Club. I had left work early with a view to getting some errands done & leaving plenty of time to get down to the clubhouse. As I arrived at Tottenham Hale it became apparent that my plans were going to fail. Every train north was cancelled, no trains for at least an hour. Even then it would be onto replacement buses.
I had a brainwave, but it would require an almighty favour. Back southbound to Liverpool St I went & made a call to my Mum. A lift from Braintree was arranged & I was soon on another train out of town. I'd be due to arrive at 1828, giving us 62 minutes to navigate the A120 & for me to get to the club, ready to run.
Traffic was calm and I was home just before seven, with a promise of lunch at a future date the thank you to Mum & Steve for their help. My housemate had also kindly put some running kit together so after a very quick turnaround I was out the door and heading south. Some short cuts through an old estate I used to live on & I was soon parked up. I even had time for a quick kit change as my yellow Stort 10 (only thing I owned with a BSRC club badge) shirt was attracting every thunder bug in Hertfordshire.
The advantage of knowing so many people through parkrun was immediately clear, I was completely at ease, no newbie nerves. There was a huge turnout and the format of the runs was simple, find a group running a similar pace and distance to what you fancied. I was chatting away with guys I'd consider faster than me (Karl beat me in our showdown, Bekah was of a similar pace over parkrun distance, Denise & I had run together at the Stort 10, Simon got within touching distance of a 3:30 marathon, Mark was a regular 21 minute parkrunner, Matt was of a similar standard to Simon, Adam had won our fundraiser back in January, Lee & Pete were often varying degrees of distance ahead of me). The talk was of nine minute miles, 5:35/km in my language. This is the beauty of the club runs, everyone has different goals, some of the guys were coming back from injury, some were there for the social and the food that followed. I could hang at that pace with relative ease so joined them.
The plan was to head to the forest, reach The Shell House & then head back. This worked perfectly for me as I'd had fun getting lost finding my way back in Sunday.
Once into the forest we stitched together some of the various parkrun routes, pausing for some water at the fountain before turning for home. The second half was quicker as we embraced the tarmac and a group of us (Bekah, Denise, Mark & I) forced the pace a bit more. It was good to still chat to the guys as we ran, firstly it was an indication that we weren't pushing too hard, secondly I was familiar with all of them through parkrun but hadn't chatted at length. Mark being the fastest of us continued to drive us, soon Bedlams Lane was upon us and he kicked for home. Not knowing the route as well I waited a bit longer before I followed suit, embracing the chance to really stretch the legs out, finishing with at a 4:20 pace.
After a stretch it was into the clubhouse for refreshments. The setup is simple: run, eat, drink, club announcements, chat, home. Karl has stated the food is good enough that he'll sometimes pop down just for the after run social. For a fiver you get a hot meal and a cupcake, an idea that makes perfect sense as there's no need to go home and rustle up something later, or worse, find a cheeky takeaway. Chilli & rice were an excellent refuel, especially having run a bit further than expected.
After the announcements Karl, Paul & I ran through some parkrun stuff as others had headed off. Paul has been working on me since he joined the parkrun team, extolling the virtues of how the club could accelerate my improvement. So he was a happy man to see me walking away from the evening with new BSRC kit in hand.
I couldn't have enjoyed my first evening with Stortford more, or have been made to feel more at home. Phil, the club chairman extended a warm welcome during the notices, it dawned on me that being the local parkrun Event Director means there is no where to hide! I went home happy, very pleased with my decision to join.
I had a brainwave, but it would require an almighty favour. Back southbound to Liverpool St I went & made a call to my Mum. A lift from Braintree was arranged & I was soon on another train out of town. I'd be due to arrive at 1828, giving us 62 minutes to navigate the A120 & for me to get to the club, ready to run.
Traffic was calm and I was home just before seven, with a promise of lunch at a future date the thank you to Mum & Steve for their help. My housemate had also kindly put some running kit together so after a very quick turnaround I was out the door and heading south. Some short cuts through an old estate I used to live on & I was soon parked up. I even had time for a quick kit change as my yellow Stort 10 (only thing I owned with a BSRC club badge) shirt was attracting every thunder bug in Hertfordshire.
The advantage of knowing so many people through parkrun was immediately clear, I was completely at ease, no newbie nerves. There was a huge turnout and the format of the runs was simple, find a group running a similar pace and distance to what you fancied. I was chatting away with guys I'd consider faster than me (Karl beat me in our showdown, Bekah was of a similar pace over parkrun distance, Denise & I had run together at the Stort 10, Simon got within touching distance of a 3:30 marathon, Mark was a regular 21 minute parkrunner, Matt was of a similar standard to Simon, Adam had won our fundraiser back in January, Lee & Pete were often varying degrees of distance ahead of me). The talk was of nine minute miles, 5:35/km in my language. This is the beauty of the club runs, everyone has different goals, some of the guys were coming back from injury, some were there for the social and the food that followed. I could hang at that pace with relative ease so joined them.
The plan was to head to the forest, reach The Shell House & then head back. This worked perfectly for me as I'd had fun getting lost finding my way back in Sunday.
Once into the forest we stitched together some of the various parkrun routes, pausing for some water at the fountain before turning for home. The second half was quicker as we embraced the tarmac and a group of us (Bekah, Denise, Mark & I) forced the pace a bit more. It was good to still chat to the guys as we ran, firstly it was an indication that we weren't pushing too hard, secondly I was familiar with all of them through parkrun but hadn't chatted at length. Mark being the fastest of us continued to drive us, soon Bedlams Lane was upon us and he kicked for home. Not knowing the route as well I waited a bit longer before I followed suit, embracing the chance to really stretch the legs out, finishing with at a 4:20 pace.
After a stretch it was into the clubhouse for refreshments. The setup is simple: run, eat, drink, club announcements, chat, home. Karl has stated the food is good enough that he'll sometimes pop down just for the after run social. For a fiver you get a hot meal and a cupcake, an idea that makes perfect sense as there's no need to go home and rustle up something later, or worse, find a cheeky takeaway. Chilli & rice were an excellent refuel, especially having run a bit further than expected.
After the announcements Karl, Paul & I ran through some parkrun stuff as others had headed off. Paul has been working on me since he joined the parkrun team, extolling the virtues of how the club could accelerate my improvement. So he was a happy man to see me walking away from the evening with new BSRC kit in hand.
I couldn't have enjoyed my first evening with Stortford more, or have been made to feel more at home. Phil, the club chairman extended a warm welcome during the notices, it dawned on me that being the local parkrun Event Director means there is no where to hide! I went home happy, very pleased with my decision to join.
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| The green & gold |
Dorset Invader Half
We were originally signed up to the Bad Cow Half later in the year. Yet for a White Star Running event it appeared to be a bit *whispers* dull. Seven laps and pretty flat for WSR. After Larmer Tree was a lot of fun Emily suggested we transferred to the Dorset Invader, a new addition to the calendar. It appeared to follow the WSR script: Trails, a shittonne of hills, fun, fancy dress, awesome medal. I was easily persuaded and the team at WSR were obliging with the transfers.
Despite the long distance runs, this had potential to be the toughest of the marathon cycle. Even more so when you factor in fancy dress. Paul had mentioned he wanted us to have inflatable armour and weapons, then nixed the idea as the heat might lead them to be discarded. I decided to take up the mantle, my aim was to run for fun, no time targets here. An eBay search for men's toga yielded some interesting results before I settled on this.....
Despite the long distance runs, this had potential to be the toughest of the marathon cycle. Even more so when you factor in fancy dress. Paul had mentioned he wanted us to have inflatable armour and weapons, then nixed the idea as the heat might lead them to be discarded. I decided to take up the mantle, my aim was to run for fun, no time targets here. An eBay search for men's toga yielded some interesting results before I settled on this.....
Sure there would be soldiers and standard Romans a plenty, they needed a God to worship though! Conventional wisdom is to not introduce any new kit into a race scenario. What this doesn't account for is picking up a fancy dress kit from the post office en route down to Dorset! I'd be unsighted to the state of my kit until we got to the hotel, so had packed (or so I thought) a full set of running gear just in case. The journey south west was decent enough, the usual gruel around the M40-M3 was to be expected.
Bad Fuel
It was just after seven when we made it to the Travelodge in Amesbury & headed straight out for food. Rather than drive into Salisbury we chose a nearby retail park and with Harvester or Pizza Hut on offer, opted for Pizza. Deciding I needed the carbs, I ordered a large deep pan. About halfway through the second slice I realised how dumb the decision had been. Too much of a good thing, or in my case a little bit of a good thing and I suffer. The heavy carbs were bloating me. The problem is one of my own making, I like pizza, but my body doesn't. Had I opted for a thin crust I might have got away with it. Instead I'd naively gone for the carb loading option to my own detriment.
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| Paul smiling away, might be due to the drugs attempting to calm down his back |
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| The fear in the eyes, realising this was a bad idea |
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| Better race prep |
An appalling night of sleep followed, stomach cramps, toilet visits, feelings of self loathing. This was all my own fault & when I woke in the morning feeling empty in the stomach I knew the worst thing I could now do was try and eat too much for breakfast.
There was one benefit to bring awake between 2-3am. Over dinner I'd discussion my flirtation with a September half marathon to try and PB before Berlin. Emily & Paul had sensibly suggested this was foolish & that the goal was first & foremost Berlin. As I was feeling confident, I was starting to book in races after the marathon. Their solution, look for something in October or November instead. Having a website that lists all running events globally and is searchable bookmarked is both useful and dangerous. It means when constructing plans I can usually find a couple of races that fit my goals. It didn't take long for me to find the River Thames Half in Walton. Fast, flat and three weeks removed from Berlin, it offers me the chance to cash in on my marathon training. At least the hour awake wasn't completely wasted.
Race Day
It was soon time to head to the race itself, I wasn't changed into fancy dress yet, just had the base of normal running kit. I didn't pack a shirt so picked up the one I ordered from the WSR shop & Emily put it into her running pack. Toilets dealt with and back to the car we went to make final preparations. For the first time in my running career I was lubing my knees in case the toga rubbed & also my ears as the elastic for the beard looked like it could rub. Some extra safety pins held my sash in place and I was now ready to run, resplendent in purple!
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| Fear not humble Romans, your God is here |
The weather was turning out to be perfect for a summer's day, not ideal for runners, especially those in wigs & beards!!!
After being called forward for an all fancy dress photo & a short run briefing we were on our way. Gary was joining Emily & I for a slow but purposeful run. From our Larmer & Dark Ox experiences we had established a walk run strategy to tackle the hills, accepting that there was little to achieve in running the climbs.
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| Team Um Bongo, ready to go |
We had no real concerns over time, a desire to beat our Larmer Tree time and set a new WSR best would be nice, but not a priority. What was apparent the moment we started is that comedy beards are not advisable when running. Within the first kilometre I found myself struggling to breath and the whole beard was an unwelcome distraction. In the heat and sunshine I was dripping with sweat already!
We had started to get some space on the course only to be bunched as we caught the back of a group waiting to cross a road, little did we know this was all of the tarmac we would see until crossing back. After a first venture through some woods it was time to climb over a stile. It would be fair to say I'm clumsy at the best of times, add a wig and knee length toga to the mix and the chance of injury increases.
Note there was no mention of the beard. I think it lasted all of 3km. I'd looped it with my sunglasses to try and secure it better (perhaps lubing the ears was a bad thing). As we had entered the shaded woods I didn't need the sunnies & in taking them off the beard came off as a result. I couldn't be done with faffing so tucked it into my flip belt and enjoyed the respite. Now I just resembled Brian May at a toga party!!!
Once through the stile we enjoyed a downhill, wider trail and got into a nice rhythm. We were running well as a group, alongside where the path allowed and in formation when not. At one point we enjoyed a downhill so much that our pace dropped into the low 5:00/km territory and it took some effort to rein this back in before we got too silly.
At about 4 miles we stopped at the first check point, taking on some water, jelly beans & I had the opportunity to take the wig off momentarily to through some water over myself. Progress was good and spirits were high. Running through wooded areas was a test of both concentration & technique. It felt like we were the only three in the race for a while as we were blinkered by woods. We gave ourselves more space in order to both see the roots & avoid any whiplash from overhanging branches.
Once out of the woods we knew the worst of the course was to follow, but confidence was high. At one point Gary scaled a 4 foot gate. Me, feeling clever, unlooped the rope and walked through, only to be surpassed by another runner taking a route around a hedge to avoid all gate. My smugness lasted all of a second!
We had started to get some space on the course only to be bunched as we caught the back of a group waiting to cross a road, little did we know this was all of the tarmac we would see until crossing back. After a first venture through some woods it was time to climb over a stile. It would be fair to say I'm clumsy at the best of times, add a wig and knee length toga to the mix and the chance of injury increases.
Note there was no mention of the beard. I think it lasted all of 3km. I'd looped it with my sunglasses to try and secure it better (perhaps lubing the ears was a bad thing). As we had entered the shaded woods I didn't need the sunnies & in taking them off the beard came off as a result. I couldn't be done with faffing so tucked it into my flip belt and enjoyed the respite. Now I just resembled Brian May at a toga party!!!
Once through the stile we enjoyed a downhill, wider trail and got into a nice rhythm. We were running well as a group, alongside where the path allowed and in formation when not. At one point we enjoyed a downhill so much that our pace dropped into the low 5:00/km territory and it took some effort to rein this back in before we got too silly.
At about 4 miles we stopped at the first check point, taking on some water, jelly beans & I had the opportunity to take the wig off momentarily to through some water over myself. Progress was good and spirits were high. Running through wooded areas was a test of both concentration & technique. It felt like we were the only three in the race for a while as we were blinkered by woods. We gave ourselves more space in order to both see the roots & avoid any whiplash from overhanging branches.
Once out of the woods we knew the worst of the course was to follow, but confidence was high. At one point Gary scaled a 4 foot gate. Me, feeling clever, unlooped the rope and walked through, only to be surpassed by another runner taking a route around a hedge to avoid all gate. My smugness lasted all of a second!
Once through this gate & after a short descend we were due to hit what would become two miles of climb. Progress was decent & soon the signs you most look forward to at a WSR event were coming into view.
LOVESTATION AHEAD
The normal WSR aid stations are excellent. The Lovestation though, that is the cherry on top. Stop. One water to top up the bottle & spray over my head, one to drink, one cider, some jelly beans & babies, amazing watermelon, some photos, readjust wig, Lovestation completed proceed onwards to complete your run. We were afforded a fast kilometre before the climb resumed. At least I hadn't repeated my mini Scotch Egg faux pas from Larmer Tree so wasn't feeling the need to throw up!
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| Feeling good after Lovestation ciders |
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| Lovestation offerings - decided against Schnapps |
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| More Lovestation |
Soon we were walking again & then the moment the course appeared to flatten we were joined by about 4 foot of foliage on either side. We tried running, soon realising it made little sense & conserved our energy. Aid stations excluded this would be the slowest part of the run for us.
From 15km onwards our pace whenever we ran was good & presented no problems for us. Emily was really driving her arms as she ran & we all seemed to be running with purpose where the course allowed us to.
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| Brian May filming the new series of Springwatch |
There were times in run where my wide stride meant I had to seek alternative routes, some of the farm tracks were too narrow for me & the slight angle I run at on my left side due to hip rotation. From about halfway my hips had been aching from the awkwardness of the terrain & the constant uneven landings. After short stop at the final aid station in the 18th kilometre it was time to carry on & get the race finished. We repeated our post aid station custom of low fives & got focused once more. Some more farm track that we'd run out on had provided us with a nice surface to push on, allowing for another relatively quick kilometre.
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| This God Can |
Unfortunately we weren't following the track back & were soon diverted off course & uphill. It was only now, in the dying moments of the race that Emily mentioned our walking stride wasn't offering her much respite. Being a bit shorter than us, my aggressive walking pace was forcing her back into running more often than not. Once Gary & I knew this we reined it in & asked Emily to set the pace, we didn't want to be leaving anyone behind at this stage of the race. Another run through a wooded area brought us into the final kilometre.
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| Approaching the finish line |
Soon we were emerging into daylight & one almighty hill came into view. This time though it was a massive downhill, easily the steepest we'd seen all day. A thirty metre drop was hard work, a struggle to not lose all semblance of form & stay vertical. I had to take a wider line in order to make the gate at the bottom & file in behind Gary, a more direct route would have seen me either collect him or the gate. Emily filed in behind & we kicked for home with the finish line in sight. Gary & I had kicked too much, so we slowed our pace to ensure Emily was with us as we crossed the line together.
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| Finishing with a smile |
Once the almighty medal & goody bag had been acquired we had time to cool off. I was keen to get changed out of my outfit, the base layers had done their job, but were now really quite disgusting!
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| Awesome run bling |
The Eat
A post race cider seemed like a good idea, whether Emily & Paul agreed quite so much as I snored my way home in the back of their car I'm not so sure! It was the finest west country cider you could find, chewy, you could barely see through it, it made for perfect refreshment (and counted as one of my five a day). A farm shop on site also provided some clotted cream fudge & some local sausages that would be perfect for dinner (I wasn't going to make it to my friend's BBQ, I'd be poor company sleeping away in the corner & smelling like a field). A small pot of rum & raisin ice cream was well received, as was the excellent muffin provided with the goody bag.
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| A very happy Chris post race |
Saffron Trail Volunteering
After an early night & a bath to soothe my weary legs I was up at regular weekday time on Sunday. One of our local running event companies were looking for checkpoint volunteers & on scanning the route I'd realised one was only a few miles from home. After negotiating down a 0200 start time to 0630 I found myself sat in the Alfa, in the rain on a Sunday morning. The gazebo didn't look that appealing, despite all of the goodies laid out.
Lindley the Race Director explained the first runner was probably an hour away & to just relax. Luckily I'd prepared for such an occasion, writing a lot of this blog & churning halfway through Ed Smith's book, Luck over the course of the morning.
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| Reclining in the Alfa |
Intervals between the runners were long, this was the final check point, 65 miles into a 70 mile race & with a field of under 20 hardy souls taking on the route. I was in awe of the competitors, taking mileage to levels that I personally can't fathom. My stint on the aid station was due to end at 1100, I decided to stay on though until Nicki, one of Great Notley parkrun's core team made it through. Shortly before midday she emerged, smiling as always, slaying the demons from the same race last year & indulging in some custard before taking on the final 4.9 miles into Saffron Walden.
I made my way into Saffron Walden myself & ended up parking right next to the finish line. Seeing Rich from GNPR, his family & Nicki's sister there, I quickly did a lap of the town as planned & joined them to see Nicki finish. I gave a lift to a station to a chap who'd travelled over from Australia for a week & just happened to fancy an ultra whilst here!
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| Add station full of good stuff for ultra runners |
With my first marathon approaching I've learnt throughout my time running to never say never. That said, I simply can't comprehend the step up into ultra running. Yet I find myself hurting more from speed than from distance & enjoying the mental challenge of more miles. I don't see an ultra in my future, but then again 5 years ago I didn't see a marathon either.
The Conclusion
Another very enjoyable week on the road to Berlin. I only ran twice, recognising that some rest was required. At this stage I'm very satisfied with my progress & want to make sure that every run has purpose, no junk miles is the goal.
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| Post race hobbit feet, appears my trail shoes allowed a lot of dust & dirt in |
A time of 2:19:50 for the Dorset Invader would worry me without any context. 21 kilometres of non stop trail made it the toughest terrain I've run across. Sure Larmer tree was a bit slower, but the mud was a massive factor back in March. I couldn't care for the time though, we were actually 10 seconds under our nominal target. This half was my most enjoyable. I fully embraced the WSR ethos & dressed up for the occasion, loving every second of it. I ran with two good friends & the worked as a team throughout. There is no point in running this kind of race on your own, you miss out on the fun. Emily had suggested I could run ahead if I wanted to based on our current training levels, to me though, spending time with my friends was more important. We started together, we crossed the line together.
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| Definitely a hilly one |
A year ago I was buying my first pair of trail shoes, now I find myself looking forward to insane trail races. Maybe it helps that WSR are a bit insane themselves, adding humour & camaraderie to what would otherwise be some pretty tough races. I don't associate trail races like this with time chasing, I think that allows me to enjoy them more. Running a road race the same way would feel a bit pointless.
This was also my first half since the marathon training has kicked in. This made for a noticeable difference, probably mentally rather than physically. Having run 20 miles the weekend prior for the first time, I knew this race couldn't defeat me. This was also Emily's first half since her marathon in May & well Gary, he'd probably just finished another fifty miler the day before or something! So all three of us combined were pretty strong.
If you're looking for an almighty challenge with a bit of fun thrown in for good measure, I can't recommend White Star Running enough. I'm already looking at their 2016 calendar (Bad Cow doesn't quite fit for my training), a family wedding clashes with the Dark Ox, I'm told it would be poor form to miss the evening reception for a night of getting muddy in Dorset! I can see a return to Larmer Tree in my future though, perhaps it is time to take on the 20 miler as well.
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| Please keep doing this guys, you're flipping awesome |
