Wet,wet,wet Wales...and a not so waterproof waterproof.

Claire House Excalibur Event @Moel Famau, North Wales - 21st May 2016.

I will start by saying that this was my second time at this great event, and last time I took loads of photo's on route as I tried to get any rest I could during the event and a proper glimpse of the beauty of my surroundings on the day.

This year I decided to try not to stop as often, as I already had the pictures and it would be nice to get a slightly quicker time if I could by not stopping as much. That and the fact it rained a lot, and quite frankly pictures of white rain clouds and mist are pointless.

For this reason I will put some of last years scenic shots in this years blog so you can see what I am talking about on the run and the route. I will try and keep this blog a bit shorter as well, due to the fact I wrote a very long and very detailed blog about it after last years event, which you can read here if you like:http://fitnesswithgru.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/5500ft-of-ascent-thats-up-welsh.html

So onto the 2016 event....

The night before...

The day and night before involved mainly trying to stay off my feet as much as I could to rest them ready for what lay ahead, and multiple visits to the pasta shop for my lunch and tea so I could attempt to 'carb up' a little to try and keep my energy stores stocked up.

I was getting anxious a little which is new to me and something I have started to suffer with a bit over the last year. It's not always something I can pin point normally, but this time I knew it was the thought of forgetting something on the day, or oversleeping and not getting there, or my lift falling through and being unable to get to the event location in North Wales.

I resolved this the best I could by taking the rare step of packing my required kit list into my run vest/back pack the night before, as opposed to the morning of the race. Due to being out on the hills and dangerous territory in the wrong conditions, you had to carry waterproof top and bottoms, hat and gloves, compass, map and emergency food and water. I also packed an emergency blanket, an extra clothing layer, a woolly hat, small first aid kit and loads of gels, energy bars and an emergency chocolate flapjack!

I felt better after it was packed and then started to pack my second back pack, as I needed one to carry food and drink for the journey/breakfast and a few other clothing options for the event as I wasn't 100% what the weather would bring and it's also worth bringing spare clothes for after the event as well so you can put some dry, clean and fresh layers on.

The morning...

4.30am and I was awake for probably the 4th or 5th time, as per usual I didn't sleep that well, but as I went to bed at 9.30pm I did at least get some sleep. I work late shifts normally to near on midnight and am normally awake til 3am so my body clock did suffer a bit.

I couldn't really eat as it was too early, which was a disappointment as I only managed one piece of toast and a coffee. I chose my running clothes for the day which would consist of compression shorts, secondary shorts, short sleeve compression top, a 'Run or Cake' tech t-shirt and my PSPA charity vest. I also took the last minute decision to wear toe socks to try and prevent blisters from one toe to another from running down steep hills and a secondary pair of socks which were SealSkinz waterproof socks! These are fully waterproof and as I could see from the forecast that it was going to be wet, and I knew my feet would get very wet/soaked through, I thought it would be worth the risk as wet feet cause blisters and often bad ones. I managed to get both pairs comfortably within my Hoka Challenger ATR's which were my trusted trail shoe, and the same pair I wore at the event last year, so I knew they would be the best choice.

5.52am and I was on the Southport train to Moorfields in Liverpool,I was totally amazed that there were trains at this time in the morning, but extremely thankful as I was originally faced with a £35 taxi fare.

7.00am and my lift for the day Sarah J arrived, and we were good to go on our journey into Wales.

I am extremely thankful to Sarah for the lift to the event and back, so THANK YOU again Sarah.

We got there nice an early at roughly 8am and the car park was already busy, but we got a spot OK and sat there for a while eating various snacks while it rained a lot and we waited for registration and kit check from 8.30am onward.

Registration was quick and efficient, and would of been quicker if my compass hadn't fallen to the very bottom of my carefully packed bag and I had to rummage for it and pull half my stuff out of my bag and then repack it all again.

The walkers who were walking the course today set of at 8.30am after a bright and cheery race brief and thank you's from Claire House Events Fundraiser Rebecca, and we clapped them of on their merry way while they got a 1 hour head start on us.

It was also time to say our hello's to our fellow friends and runners who were doing the half marathon or full ,and the odd one who was already here for the newly introduced 10k which would start an hour after we started.

I saw many running friends including Derek, Rachel, Liz, Ultan, Tom, Keith, Darren, Steven and a fair few other faces that looked familiar.

The race.....

It was now 9.30am and after another race brief, and alarming news that there had been some DofE type people out on the hills the day before and some signs had been tampered with. We were told that if in doubt use our map!! Slightly alarming if your not running following the map step by step, but it is a well marshaled course and they did say "It is extremely difficult to get lost on this course" famous last words, I know people who can lost on a straight road.

So off we went up the fire road from the start that appeared to of got steeper than last year, and then the heavens opened up with a power shower. People were rapidly starting to look like drowned rats, especially the ones who hadn't chosen to wear their waterproof top at the start. Not their best decision.

I had to run with my hood up for a while as the rain was too much for a run and bear it approach, and the water was going down my neck and under my waterproofs, and my running cap was rapidly getting soaked through. This wasn't the most comfortable way to run but if it keep me dry it was worth it.

I did find this section of the run easier than the previous year, but I suspect I may of paced myself  better by holding back at times and running an even pace up and down the fire road as it crawled around Moel Famau itself by the longest possible route.

The first check point was a splitting point where the half marathon runners and the full runners split up for a while, and it was onward on to the full route for me as the field thinned out due to there being less runners.

The second check point and aid stop came and went a bit later after a long section of fire road, and I didn't need to stop for water. It was at this point that I discovered that my waterproof seemed to of lost it's waterproofness, especially as I could feel water building up inside my sleeves, and I was pretty sure it wasn't sweat or condensation at this early point in the race. I undid my cuffs and straightened my arms and out came a steady stream of water! New waterproof clearly required, but it's done me well over the years.

It wasn't too long before I approached the turn off point towards the top of Moel Famau. Unfortunately the route teases you into thinking after your long run around and up Moel Famau that you may get to the top soon, but you turn off to the right before you get there. They save the pleasure of topping Moel Famau until the 24/25th mile of your marathon!

Down we went down some very wet, muddy and now very slippy trail and path, and multiple slips and falls from fellow runners, but thankfully not me. This section was nice as it was downhill and not too steep further on and you could make up a little time and let the legs run free, but it was very slippy and you ran fast at your own risk of losing your dignity by falling on your a**!

Check point 3 came and went and I took my first gel as it was now roughly 1 hour in and it was still raining fairly hard, so my hood was still up. I did feel better than the previous year again at this point which gave me confidence, but it was quite warm last year so that made you quite tired as well.

Onward and upward and it was the start of the up section again as we started up towards the ridge line of the Clywdian range. This was a fairly narrow path of sorts and you spent most of it behind the person in front, but you could pass if you wished with a friendly excuse me etc.

On this section the ever friendly official photographers for the day SportSunday.co.uk were there waiting for us at 1 of 2 points. The first point was next to a little plank across a stream and I could see David from SportSunday sat there with his umbrella and I slowed to let the runners ahead spread out a little to get a good chance of an approach shot as well as a crossing shot. Sadly a group of walkers who were not part of the event thought it was funny to hold us all up while they tried to get their picture taken crossing the plank. The approach shot was lost because we were all backed up and David was dealing with the walkers.

I did eventually mutter 'Come on guys!' and the last one finally moved on, this allowed for the girl in front to get her picture, and then for me to get mine. A little bit further up the hillside and we met Laura from SportSunday who took a second shot, and if your lucky you are still smiling at this point...

Trying my best not to slip in while looking at the camera, although to be honest I'd be no wetter if I fell in!

Happy to see I'm still smiling, despite my very wet waterproof.

Onward and upward we continued up to check point 4 at the ridge line, and then rapidly down the side of the hillside which strangely enough had rain clouds below us as well as above which gave us a perspective as to how high we were.

The scenery is nice here and you could capture a glimpses of the surrounding valleys etc, and there was the odd bit you could see basking in sunshine!

We continued along the hillside still going down and quite steep and rapidly as well. We went across what they usually refer to as 'Teletubby land'  but as always it was more home to Poo than to Po as there was a large amount of sheep and cattle grazing here and quite frankly offloading a fair few slip hazards as they went.

After the downhill came some pleasant bits but I knew full well what was coming up next, as what goes down must go up, and in our case a long long long way up as we suddenly hit a right turn and were directed straight back up the hillside back to the ridge line but this time no zig zagging or angled path but straight up! it started nice and then within 30 ft it was calf burn time, as the lactic acid build up in your calves due to the step angle your feet are at as you walk up puts a lot of load on them and they get pumped full pretty quick.

I remember it being hard last year on this stretch and it went on and on and on, and I don't remember it being that long last time, but it was exactly the same route. To me that is the hardest bit as it goes on for so long and the lactic acid burn comes and goes as you try and take little pit stops for a rest.

Finally at the top and it was the T junction and check point 5 were yet again the half and the full runners split up, and the halfers had the glory of 'Mount Doom' to look forward to as they turned right and back towards home and the finish..

Mount Doom/Moel Famau in the distance on the far left.

The full runners turned down this route, looks innocent enough....

The full runners as we were aptly called on our race numbers now had the glory of the ridge line to run along for a while to flush out the lactic acid/lactate out of our poor lower leg muscles. I did however forget what awaited a little further along as we started to enjoy the scenery again and the rain seemed to of stopped for a bit.

One thing you learn at this event and this route is there are a lot of ups and downs and a lot of steady and often enjoyable bits in between, a bit like life and to be honest  when you run for charities or to raise money for charities you often have to remember that We/I chose to be here today and to have legs full of pain, but at least I had that luxury, at least I had that choice. I have friends and acquaintances who don't have this luxury and I run these events to raise money for them and their respective charities. I was blessed by God with a general fitness and overall health that allows me to do this stuff and as long as my legs will carry me and I can raise some money and awareness for the charities I run for, then I will continue to do so.

This applies especially to this years charity cause for me, which is the PSP Association, PSP/CBD is a degenerative disorder often mistaken for Parkinsons and it is not nice to see loved ones go from living active lifestyles to non active in a short space of years. I run for them and hope the research that donations fund will go some way to help find a cure for this condition......

Onward...

Onward with the run and check point 6 was rapidly approaching, only problem is it's down a very steep hill to a car park, and guess what? there is a bl**dy big hill behind it, and guess where we go next?

Check point 6 is down there at the car park, and the next port of call after it is straight up that hill behind it to the top!

So through check point 6 with no stopping and onward and upward up Moel Arthur which is the big hill in the above picture. I remember this point from last year and I tried to run a little up it but only got about 20 yards and the burn in my calves was too much so I walked. I did the same this time, I could see half a dozen people in front of me trying to run and then walking so I knew walking was key. At the bottom of this climb I noticed I felt quite good as opposed to last year at this point where I felt destroyed and had no idea how my legs would get me through the rest, but last year a friendly marshal up this hill told me it gets easier from here! He was right the longest climbs were over almost.

By the time I'd got to the top of Moel Arthur and by walking it my legs had reverted back to feeling destroyed again so any thoughts about it being easier went out the window, but I knew I could finish the event from here as I knew what the rest of the course entailed.

So after the top of Moel Arthur it was a bit of small up and down and if your lucky flattish running and then a steep downhill and onto another car park and check point 7 and along the Offa's Dyke Path up to Penycloddau Fort. Then onward to check point 8 at roughly 15 miles or so.

We would visit this aid station twice, once now and then we would run out on a loop and back to it again later. I tried a few Tortillas as a snack there as I didn't feel like anything else they were offering as I had taken a gel every hour so far and was supping a HI5 Source energy drink which I usually use on events and in training as opposed to just water.

I went out on the loop and shortly realised despite having a light snack that I was in fact hungry, it was probably kicked of by the snack as I now got hunger pangs. This is a bad sign for me on long runs as for me that means if I don't eat I will run out of energy and feel dizzy weak and lightheaded if I don't take something on board. Gels alone don't usually stop my hunger pangs so I usually carry small snack size Mars bars to keep my stomach happy. On events this long though I carry full size Flapjacks and in this case I had a Chocolate flapjack with me as my emergency stash.

The next next section out on this loop was a long slow gradual up, followed by another and another so I used this time to consume the entire flapjack followed by a gel and what was left of my energy drink as I knew this stretch was better to walk and eat as shortly after it was another long downhill.

Flapjack consumed, energy saved and I continued on down the downhill and through some nice little nooks and cranny's along this loop and some nice flat bits that I could finally get back to a normal running pace, although not far on I realised this wasn't a good idea as it goes up again and I now had no uphill running legs whatsoever.

After the flats and walking the small uphills again I was slowly catching the guy who I had cat and moused for the last hour at least, as we were going a similar pace overall. This section was very quiet and I didn't see people for a while which gives you an idea how far apart some of us were.

I reappeared at check point 8 again and topped up my water and took a few paracetamol as the downhill bits had slammed my lower back and my back muscles were seizing up. This check point was quite a busy one, within no time several people arrived behind me and several going the other way also. While I had a rest a drink and took the tablets and had a chat with a marshal I let several people go ahead which meant that my competitiveness would make me want to catch them up again.

It was now of towards what was check point 6 last time, but I would be soon hitting the 20 mile mark which is where the nasty little thing called the 'Wall' normally stands. Last year I had delayed my gel for that hour until I found the next check point, which was further away than I thought and I royally hit the wall without even seeing it coming as suddenly I went hot, dizzy, faint and extremely hungry within 30 seconds. I at this point last year ate a full on flapjack and walked for 1.5 miles while pretty much a dozen people overtook me.

This year I felt OK as I had ensured I took a gel every hour with no delays and the earlier flapjack at mile 15 or so had clearly kicked in. I took another gel now anyway as it was time and I ran on, but soon realised this section was a long gradual uphill around the hill range to check point 6 again, so I decided to walk for a bit on this section to conserve energy for later. No one passed me this time as they were all clearly doing the same, and I caught sight of the guy ahead again who was walking bits as well.

Eventually I came up to check point 6 for the second time and I could see half a dozen who had passed me at the previous check point while I had rested. They were currently trying to walk back straight back up the steepest hill section that takes you back towards Moel Famau from the car park at Moel Arthur. They didn't look they were even moving from a distance as it's that hard.

At check point 6 they were all bright and cheery and they offered me a vast selection of goodies and cakes, but sadly I couldn't stomach anything as I was full of gels and energy drink and fit to burst. So sadly I had to say thank you but no. I had a brief chat while I looked up at the others struggling up the hill and then said my thank you's and proceeded up that dreaded hill!

I got up it fairly well compared to last time, I did have two little breathers to help the legs cope and I took in the beautiful scenery as I rested, it is truly breathtaking up there and worth all the pain of getting there.

I carried on now for the long stretch back towards the impending 'Mount Doom' in the distance which was roughly 3-4 miles away across the ridge line which consisted of many ups and downs and was in no way flat. Along this route you also go back through the original check point 5 where the halfers had turned right to head back towards the finish while we had turned left to do the full route.

Mount Doom/Moel Famau way of in the distance.

Moel Famau slowly getting nearer as we hit the original check point 5 where the halfers had turned to return towards the finish.

Along the range I went and back towards the original check point 4 which we pass through again. It was along this bit that I caught sight of a selection of people ahead of me, mainly the half dozen I'd seen earlier. They were spaced out over a long distance and I tried to slowly catch them up and ensuring I ran as much of this stretch as I possibly could.

Final miles and the last big climb!

As the impending Moel Famau approached I managed to pass 2-3 of the people in front by maintaining my running a little more than they did. By now we were clearly all knackered or at least had tired legs, but mine were not too bad although obviously very painful on long climbs up.

The last section up Moel Famau was a leg burner and tough as nails, but we all got it done. I saw a few more ahead and caught up with them at the top and I proceeded straight through the check point and aid stop while others stopped for sweets,snacks and a rest etc.

I was at this point past the half a dozen people I had seen earlier and was now hoping to find a few more on the brutal downhill section down Mount Famau, all 1.4 miles or so of it. This is a good section of the route for me as I wear Hoka's and they are well cushioned especially in the heels so I can pound down hills in them. This downhill was long and I did slowly pick a few more people of on this section at least 3-4 I think, there was a lot of knackered people coming down that hill and I think they were clearly saving their legs to get to the end as pain free as possible. I said 'Well done' to anyone I passed on the way down as I ran like a loon down the hill to the finish.

Finished!

I was surprised to find I had finished on 5:34:30 which was 12 minutes faster than last year, some of this was probably from not taking pictures this time around, but then again I walked more tactical uphills than last year to conserve energy so gained there I guess.

I felt great at the finish, my legs were in good condition and I was still pumped full of endorphins from the downhill. I was greeted at the finish with a cracking medal which is also a bottle opener and a goodie bag that contained a cracking t-shirt, along with soap and shampoo which would be well needed to get all the mud off, and of course a food and drink voucher for the great caterers who were there with Welsh beef chilli and a Vegetarian garlic and pesto pasta!

I was also greeted at the finish surprisingly by my lift Sarah who I thought for a minute had blitzed the marathon and beat me by a mile, but she had decided to change down to the half marathon during the run due to an injury problem and also tired legs from a fantastic 65 miles during a 24 hour event a week earlier!

Fellow runner Keith R had blitzed the run with a run of under 4 and 3/4 hours! great time for a tough course and good practice for his upcoming Montane Lakeland 50 attempt.

We waited on for a fair while to greet in other runners we both knew and it was good to see Tom and Ultan come in before we left as I knew they would be out longer than me but I wanted to be sure they had finished safely and to congratulate them.

It was now the journey home to Liverpool and for me a train back to Southport after a walk through Liverpool in all my muddy running gear and shorts and some funny looks, but it was a proud walk.At least I could still walk, normally my legs would be mashed a couple of hours after a marathon, let alone a hilly one. So I am very happy my fitness and hopefully endurance has improved slightly since last year. Especially as I am running the Hoad Hill Marathon at Ulverston in August and the Snowdon Marathon in October, all for the PSP Association charity.

THANKS TO...

Can I just say a massive THANK YOU to all the Claire House Events team who put this fantastic event on, I will return in force next year with lots of enthusiastic 'Run or Cake' members who are already keen to sign up, many of them after attempting the 10k this year.

Big THANK YOU to all the marshals, the volunteers and the Mountain Rescue service who attended on the day and spend many hours out in all weathers.

Big THANK YOU to Sarah Jackson for getting me there and back in one piece.

Big THANK YOU to SportsSunday for cracking pictures of the day as always.

Big THANK YOU to everyone who has donated to my charity cause so far this year' 3 for PSP' especially the generous donators who have got me over my original target within days of announcing it. I will do my best to do you proud through out the year and spread awareness where I can.

If you can donate and support my cause then please do so at the link provided in the paragraph above, or on the link on this blog in the right hand side column at the JustGiving link.

If you want to know more about the PSPA charity and PSP itself please follow this link and spread awareness if you can as it is often wrongly diagnosed by professionals and Doctors.

God Bless you all.

I now have a 100% organic cotton clothing online store via TeeMill. All profits from designs on my store go to charities. Some of those charities are mountain rescue teams in Wales itself. Please take a look and share around if possible, and hopefully consider a purchase.

https://shoutoutwear.co.uk/

Wet,wet,wet and that was before the two river crossings...

 Mad Bull Events - Yarrow Park Bluebell Trail 10k - 1st May 2016.

The ideal and then the honest event description...

Well I was looking forward to my visit to Yarrow Park near Chorley and it's tranquil bluebell woods. A picturesque country park set alongside the lovely looking Yarrow River...

Sounds lovely doesn't it?  Well it is on a sunny Bank Holiday weekend in May, but sadly this is the UK and we don't do all the above, not at the same time anyway.

What I did get was rain all morning, cold temperatures and woodland paths that resembled something from a farmers well used cow field but without the smell of ****.

But that was what this event is all about, it's known to be tough, wet, muddy, slippy, fast, slow and extra wet when you visit the Yarrow River twice up close and personal.


Pre race.....

For me it was a 7am wake up call after only going to bed at 2am, as I work late shifts and didn't get home til near on midnight after a hard Bank Holiday Saturday night shift in a busy hotel.

I'm used to not sleeping much the night before a run event though so just some sleep was a bonus. I managed to awake feeling fairly refreshed and my legs felt OK which was the important bit as I'd only ran a 20 miler through the Sefton Dunes range 3 days before.

A got a lift of the ever friendly and helpful fellow 'caker' Catherine, who offered me a lift there and back, and today we were accompanied by Sophia.

Arrival was prompt and a parking space was found, and we were off to the registration/collection point in the 'Flaming Grill Pub'.

Number collection was quick as we were nice and early, so early the pub was barely open and the toilets weren't open at all. Much to the disgust of what was going to be hordes of runners who as per common sense and training teaches you had 'hydrated adequately'.

I took a seat inside to stay warm before the run, and Catherine and Sophia went in hunt of toilets and then back to the car.

I managed to catch a lot of fellow 'cakers' as they one by one filed in to collect their numbers. I managed to spot Sal & Darren, Derek, Cathy, Emma, Rita, Anne, Jane, Nicola, Mandy, Ian, Keith and a few other non cakers Mandy B, Stu H and it was good to see fellow Thunder Runner Paul G.


The race...

After a brief 5 min walk down the road from the pub and into the Yarrow Park itself we were almost at the race start. Well we would of been if it hadn't moved what seemed like half a mile further away than last year. We could see the finish line tents for drinks and t-shirts etc in pretty much the same area, but no start line. Eventually we were there and good to go, but the race had to be delayed as allegedly several women were still/had been waiting for the loo's  and were delayed so we had a 10 minute delay.

So at 10.10am we were off and down the narrow at parts very muddy woodland path, it was actually a mudfest at points but I was expecting this after last year so had my shoes well and truly tightly laced up, as I didn't want to lose one in 6 inch mud!

It was now a game of start/stop, run/slip etc etc as you tried to get around runners whenever you could, but whilst trying to be very careful where you placed your feet and exactly what route you took from A to B which was often just 10 feet at a time as the conditions constantly changed, as did the terrain.

At times the route was alongside the river and often the best bit of the path to run on was right at the tip of the embankment for the same said river. This meant a dance with danger as you tried the less trodden but very slippy bits to gain speed and places, but also risked slipping straight down the embankment and into the river if you took one bad step, which in mud is pretty much going to happen.

Thankfully I stayed upright and as me and Paul G played cat and mouse we slowly passed  fellow cakers who were nearer the start when the race started so were ahead of us for a fair while. It was a brief hello as I passed Catherine and Sophia, and I tried to sneak past the others unnoticed which I think I managed as I couldn't attempt to try and concentrate on chatting and running when the terrain was so muddy.

I was amazed at how slow the first mile passed, as Paul mentioned after loads of difficult bits and we were starting to puff a bit he said "It's not even a mile yet!" I hadn't even thought about it until he said it.

The run progressed and the runners spread out a little more as we went on, apart from when we came across stiles and bridges etc. This slowed everyone down as you could have a dozen people slowly progressing through the gate or over a stile or bridge.

This could be annoying if you are running for a time, but experience tells you to use it as a chance for a breather and a little recovery, you can take full advantage after the breather and sprint off a little to take some places back and a little time. This was especially helpful on hilly bits when a lot of people would walk up to recover, whereas I will run up if it's not too far and take a dozen places. This only really works if you know you are going to get a flat or downhill after so you can still maintain your pace even though you are now puffed from running up the bit of hill.

After about 3 miles or so I finally caught sight of a fellow caker Darren who again the same as last year was running well at this point as I had only just got him in sight, and I'd been pushing the pace a fair bit so far, so he had clearly run well.

I finally passed him with a friendly 'Hello' and he mentioned that Ian was only just ahead, this was interesting as Ian is a faster runner than me and a good adversary/nemesis at some events as I can try and catch him up as a target to keep my pace up and push.

I couldn't see him for the next mile at least and I doubted I ever would, just at that point I finally saw him and noticed he wasn't wearing the luminous yellow top I thought he was wearing. This may of been why I hadn't spotted him. We were now on another difficult stretch of the course as it was narrow, muddy, congested at times and had multiple narrow bridges and stiles, all of which I knew would slow him down and give me chance to catch up.

I finally caught up somewhere between mile 4-5 and then had the same problem that he had as in every bridge or stile I had to slow and hence he would catch up again. This meant at ever flattish section I really had to push the pace to try and get away a little.

I never looked back as I knew seeing him right behind me would be a bad idea and I'd probably slip on my **** as I looked back.

I was now concentrating on a sparse field of runners in front of me who were running pretty much my speed so it was hard to gain on them. The Yarrow River crossing was rapidly approaching and I knew that could create a back log/queue of runners so decided not to push on until at least the other side of the river.

As per usual the official photographer Mark Lysycia Photography was there ready to catch our distressed and contorted faces as we entered the River to get to the other side. It was up to my knees and I'm 6ft 3 so I'd hate to think what it was like for shorter people who were clearly going to be coming out the other side with 'wet pants!'.

Into the final mile now and my feet now had the wet wellies feeling as my shoes had filled with water and I was running in very soggy cold socks, not a nice feeling. After a couple of hundred yards or so the feeling goes as the water disperses out of your shoes if you are lucky.

Just when you think your shoes have lost the water you were carrying you come across Yarrow River crossing No.2! This one caught me out last year as I only thought there was one crossing, but thankfully this one was shin deep and runnable of sorts.

Now it was hang on time as you try and hold off those behind you, and try and take over those in front. I just about managed to get past a few more and was looking at my Garmin thinking I've got half a mile left so can push the pace a little and get past some more, but the finish practically came out of nowhere as it was actually at the 5.8 mile point and not 6.2 miles! slightly annoying, but I guess at least it was over sooner.

Finished...time to wait for friends.

Finish line crossed and onto the finishing tents to collect your medal and then t-shirt and a refreshing drink. My finishing time on my Garmin was 55min 35secs which was pretty much the same time as last year, and I'm glad to say Ian didn't overtake me again near the end, as I was expecting it.

Fellow caker Keith had finished way before me and the rest were behind me so I stayed on at the finish to say hello again to as many as I could. Ian was right behind me at the finish, and shortly after was Paul G and Darren. We had a good chat while we waited for others.

Derek was there soon after, and shortly after the ladies came in one by one or two by two at least, as the ladies do like to stick together on these runs, and talk of course, whilst most of us blokes get a tad competitive and chase our adversaries and nemesis's .

It was evident by now that it was cold, because as soon we stopped running we were getting cold quick and the rain had also decided to make a comeback. People were now making there way back to the pub to get changed and into a warmer environment i.e. the bar.

Once Catherine and Sal finished we set off back to the car to get changed as by now I was pretty cold and had realised I couldn't of gone back to pub after I finished to wait for the others as planned because my clean shoes were in the boot of the car and I wasn't going in the pub with muddy shoes. It was good to hang around though and see the others finish, but roll on Summer please so I can get a tan while I'm doing it.


Cakers reunited....

It was finally pub time after a quick change, but sadly not a very warm welcome from the pub who were doing their best not to be accommodating to the runners, who by now were already peed of with the poor welcome at registration because allegedly last year people in the pub had complained about all of us runners being around them while they were enjoying their 'quiet' breakfasts!

Needless to say most runners went home not willing to spend money over the bar, as we are the same as everyone else and 'talk with our feet' when we don't like poor service or even worse in some cases poor race provision. Not in this case though as Mad Bull Events do good events and they are not to blame for the pubs actions.

But the pub was officially a cakers meet up after this event and a chance to catch up on what every one is doing next run wise or what they are considering, or indeed talking about recent race experiences like London marathon etc..etc..

The main point of the meet ups is to welcome new members we haven't actually met before and to introduce ourselves casually whilst we have well earned drinks or food. It was good to finally meet new and newish members Anne, Cathy and Emma again who had been to the last do but at the time was new to the group so didn't really know everyone.

Final thoughts and thanks...

Well it was a great run, I thoroughly enjoyed it as expected, I felt great and injury free and felt like I could of gone around for another lap. It was good to catch up with lots of the cakers again as always. I am immensely proud of our group and all they have achieved fundraising wise , and indeed proud of their running efforts in general as the purpose of the group was to benefit them as well as the charities we run and raise money for.

Big thanks to Catherine for the lift there and back, helpful as always. Big thanks to those that ran and supported each other as fellow cakers, as they say 'no man left behind' and women as well obviously.

Big thanks to all the volunteer marshals as well for coming out in bad weather for several hours getting cold and wet.

Weirdest moment of the day? Getting in the shower when I got home to warm up and practically taking my muddy running shoes in with me so I could wash them at the same time!!


Next event..

My next event is the Claire House Excalibur marathon on the 21st May at Moel Famau in North Wales. A tough event with 5500ft of climb! I will be running it for the PSPA charity who are raising awareness of PSP - Progressive Supranuclear Palsy and helping fund important research into a currently incurable condition.

Please donate and support if you can, and please share my fundraising link to family and friends, at least to raise awareness.

The next cakers meet up is at the Crazy Cow 10k near Preston on the 22nd May. I will be supporting on this one as I can't possibly run after the Excalibur the day before, so I'll be taking pics if I can.

Thank you everyone and thank you for all your support. Please continue to read and share my blogs, I don't usually write blogs for 10k's and certainly not ones I've just done for fun, but this was a first as I had time after the run.


                                                            *****************


Garmin route: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1149343543

Charity details: http://www.pspassociation.org.uk/

My fundraising page: https://www.justgiving.com/3ForPSP

Crazy Cow 10k entry: http://www.crazycow10k.co.uk/

2016 and another worthy cause to run for.....

2016 the story so far....



So we are 4 months into 2016 and I'm trying my best to run 'just for fun' and take a step back from personally running loads of charity runs throughout the year.

I have managed to avoid entering some challenges and I've managed to avoid a lot of the events that turn into 'Lemming fests' where we all blindly follow others by signing up for something because everyone else we know is doing it and we don't want to miss out.

I've done some decent run events already this year which you may of seen my posts about. Mainly the Helsby Four Villages half marathon, the Grizedale Trail half marathon and most recently the Trimpell 20 Miler. All of which were me running 'just for fun' with friends from my charity fundraising group Run or Cake.

I have been content so far to raise money through the Run or Cake group for our 5 charities, and to raise more with the Seaside24 event in September this year which I organise with the help of volunteer runners and good friends prepared to take on the tough challenge and to help raise money as well.

So what has changed?....

I was recently approached by a regular and popular guest at my workplace who had heard that I do a fair bit of charity running. I did point out that I was stepping back from running personally for charities and was concentrating on using my other fundraising methods, i.e. my Run or Cake group and the Seaside24 event.

After the guest in question explained to me why she was interested, and asking me if I would be interested in using my contacts or fundraising activities to help raise funds and awareness for a charity group PSPA, my interest was peaked.

The lady went onto to explain that her husband suffered from a condition called PSP- Progressive Supranuclear Palsy. She explained to me that it was currently incurable, and a little known condition that needed vital funds to fund research and indeed to raise awareness.

I knew the couple well from regular visits to my workplace and I indeed had seen for myself the difference in the Gentleman's condition over time. I was incredibly honored to be offered an insight into the condition, and indeed to be asked to help if I could.

Needless to say after reading up a little on the condition and the charity involved and the research they are helping fund, I decided to commit myself to raising some funds if I can and a little awareness to encourage others to do so.

My other charity activities are full charity wise so I cannot add PSPA to it, hence why my own personally running of events for charity again in 2016 is necessary.


The announcement....

I am hereby declaring the launch of my '3 for PSP' charity running campaign and I am committing to running 3 hill/mountain marathons in 2016 for this cause.

The 3 events are as follows:

1) Excalibur marathon in May - 26.2 miles across the Clywdian Range in North Wales, with I may add has 5500ft of ascent!

2) Hoad Hill marathon in August - 26.2 miles around Ulverston in the Lakes.

3) Snowdon marathon in October - 26.2 miles around Snowdon in Wales.

They are all tough events and are especially hilly and with some mountainous terrain in their course profiles/elevations etc so not flat to you and me. So they will be a lot more challenging than your typical flat road marathon like London etc.


The cause....

Please have a read about the cause and the charity and what it's all about here if you can, and please share it on social media to spread awareness:

 http://www.pspassociation.org.uk/


Also please have a read of my fundraising page and please support me if you can with donations large or small to help fund vital research into this condition which I stress is currently incurable, or merely share my fundraising link on your social media to spread awareness.

 https://www.justgiving.com/3ForPSP


Many thanks as always for all your support and donations over the years.

Gru xx

Gru goes to prison, and gets given a number......thankfully it's a race number!

Running with Gru @Lancaster Race Series Trimpell 20.

Pre race day...

I had signed up for this run several months ago because I had done it before and I knew a lot of people I knew well would be there. For some reason I considered this a good idea as I was after all starting to up my training for a year of big events again and this course was  well known and highly regarded as a pre Manchester or London Marathon 20 mile test run and for most their last long run.

But hang on, my marathon isn't until the end of May and over 10 weeks away! adding to that I had done a 20 mile long run 2 weeks back in order to keep a running friend Vicky company during her first of two 20 mile long runs pre Manchester marathon in April. Also to be able to do that I had to step up my training to a 16 miler and an 18 miler in subsequent weeks just to be fit enough to do that without letting her down.

I was basically 2 months early in my own marathon training to be able to treat this as a marathon test or indeed a race, so I reminded myself why I had signed up. It was to run socially with great running friends and fellow members of my charity running group 'Run or Cake' and to have a grand day out with friends, albeit a painful one.

Race morning...

Well the day was here, and I had been offered a couple of lifts from fellow running friends, and I took up fellow 'Caker' and  'Natters' runner Roberts offer as he was nearest.

I got picked up at 8.30am which was a reasonable time and I'd had a fairly decent sleep, and had eaten a small breakfast and had a coffee so was good to go.

We got there fairly quick, or it seemed that way anyway, about an hour after we set of I think. We got parked up in a car park I had managed to pin point via the web the night before by researching suitable car parks and relevant parking charges. It appeared it was going to cost roughly £8 for a longish stay in the lovely City of Lancaster.

It became apparent on the drive up and indeed upon arrival that the weather was going to be better than expected. It was forecast 6-7C and thick cloud, so a chilly start was expected. But it was blue skies and sunny when we got there, so first job was stripping off multiple layers so I could remove my base/compression layer and then just go with a tech Run or Cake t-shirt and Run or Cake vest, along with shorts,a pair of thin gloves and my trusty running cap I was indeed good to go again.


Run HQ, and a castle that was not all it seemed...

We walked up to Lancaster Castle and I was indeed looking forward  to seeing this historic castle I had only seen in passing from a distance and had often wondered of it's hidden splendour. I was not expecting what greeted me when I got to the front of the castle.

This is what I had seen in all the literature and indeed what I saw on the approach...

But this is what I got when I got to the front entrance.....

Oh **** was my first thought! did I even sign up for the right event? have I signed up for some sadistic reality TV game show/run event? ...No, it was purely an ex prison and obviously castle originally.

The grounds inside and courtyard where actually quite stunning even though a lot of it was being renovated and was covered in plastic sheeting etc.

Number pick up was our first port of call, and we duly followed the signs for 'Race registration' which appeared to be a maze of a route through various passages and small courtyards until we ended up in a very suspicious looking room!

Yep, you guessed it, we were in fact in a block of cells! I know a lot of people think us runners need locking up for going out and doing crazy mileage on a Sunday morning, but this took the biscuit, and a brewless biscuit at that.

Pre run meet up with friends...

Next was the best bit of the day, catching up with friends from various running clubs and online running forums etc, and people you may of spoken to daily on these same said forums and Facebook pages, but yet not seen for months.

I could see lots of people dotted around from LRC Liverpool Running Club in their customary blue/white striped running vests etc, but first port of call was fellow 'Cakers' who were now getting known for wearing their own customary running tops for 'Run or Cake' and first to be seen were Sal and Darren so we made a beeline for them.

Shortly after we had found Chemane, Barry and Marina, Sharon, Catherine, Vicky, Kelly and also Sarah and her boyfriend Marc. (See pictures below)

We also found Eamonn B, Rachel R, Keith R, Bhavna M and Rachel S who are also 'Cakers'  but they are not in the above pics. Also other running friends I spotted were Lisa L, Paul G, Davie T and I'm sure many others who at this moment I can't recall.

We hung around in the courtyard until about 15 minutes to go til race start and then made our way towards the starting area which was a 5 minute walk away.


Race start...

The race start area was down a fairly steep hill from the castle, and it wouldn't be the last time we saw that little ******. Then onto a walk/cycle path and adjacent areas of grassland that we would all assemble on whilst the race organiser and director gave us all an informed lesson on the intricacies of two rather important yellow lines sprayed on the floor in front of us all somewhere, which was actually the start line.

Off we went down a narrow cycle path where Robert promptly dropped something out of the bottom of his shorts! thankfully it was only a energy bar he had tucked into his waistband and had completely forgotten about. He decided not to cause a 700 person pile up by stopping to pick it up mid run.

Down towards and on to the Millenium bridge and a sharp left off it instead of actually crossing it, and down the quayside we went for a fair while down some fairly tight and narrow bits. It took a while to find your pace as you tried not to bump or run into others on the narrow bits and as always at the start mile people are running completely different speeds.

It was an out and back so after the first mile we had started on our way back towards the bridge again. I had set my pacer function on my watch for 8min 30sec miles as that was near my previous time on the older version of this course, I did this mainly as a guideline to see how I was doing compared to the previous attempt. I clocked near on 9mins 40secs for the first mile due to all the narrow spots and being stuck behind slower runners and also chatting to people I know on the way along.

On this return journey to the bridge the route opened up of runners so you could run in space, and I spotted Barry ahead so sped up to catch him up. The second mile clocked 7 min 40 secs which was a minute faster than target, but it meant the minute lost in the first mile was now regained and a comfy pace around 8min 30secs was now becoming possible as we again got to the Millenium bridge.

After crossing the bridge I then ran with Barry and a guy called Bill who it turned out was from Formby which is quite near my hometown of Southport. As we chatted about running as you do when your running, he asked if we were on the Running Discussion Group on Facebook. "Yes" replied Barry "and Les is too", pointing at me. "Are you Hoka Les?" he asked, I laughed and said "I guess so" I know I'm always recommending and wearing Hoka's lol.

The three of us ran the section out past Salt Ayre and back again and back towards the bridge again, we had hit the 10k mark by now and I was on 48 mins which was my 10k training pace, so I knew I needed to slow things down a bit. I said I'm stopping for a gel and a drink at the next stop, which turned out to be the bridge and I let them run ahead while I had a little breather walking across the bridge while taking in a gel and water, but not before another couple of photo ops, one from supporters Marina and Sal, and another from the other side of the bridge as I set off down the side of the river on my own.

Mid race...

After crossing the bridge I was now running along the side of the river and down the Lune Valley I think it was. This section is a long out and back section on walk/cycle path and often quite draining on the mind and legs. I was fortunate to catch up with Darren S at this point and ran with him for 3-4 miles as we chatted and had a catch up. We also kept passing a runner from Wigan Phoenix running club called Hayley. We all became aware that we were passing each other regularly so found it easier to run alongside each other instead while we all chatted about what marathons we were training for etc.

As we came past the 10 mile point we started to see a few runners walking back in the opposite direction all on their own, it appears they had each got an injury of sorts and had to make the painful decision to call it quits and return to the start/finish instead of running even further out on the course which at this point was heading in the opposite direction of the finish, it was practically the point of no return.

A little further on we hit another photo op, and one thing I like about this course and it's organisation is the abundance of photographers and good photo spots.

We did our best to time our approach to the next photographer at this particular point but he was a fair distance away so we are not really all smiling at the same time in the pics as we didn't want to be running 50 yards with a big cheesy grin on our faces.

Shortly after the next water stop Darren told me to run ahead if I wanted. I decided to do so and vaguely have an attempt to shorten the gap between me and Barry who was along way in front of me at this time. I wasn't even sure I could run much faster as it was only the 11 mile point and there was still another 2-3 miles to the last turn round point where we would be able to see how far people were ahead.

It was actually getting quite tiring by now and it was hard to see the runners on the return leg as for quite a while they run down a path alongside the road while we are running down the walk/cycle path. I did at one point see Barry going in the opposite direction but wasn't quite sure how far behind I was. I decided as I was getting tired that I wouldn't push it and decided to just get through the next 7 miles especially as I know had just hit the turn around point at 13+ miles.

I actually started to feel hungry at this point, this panicked me because when I feel hungry it normally means I've gone through a lot of my energy reserves and often light headedness and weakness ensues and sometimes I go really hot and dizzy.

This made me take my next gel at the next waterstop a little earlier than I would of done normally as I could still vaguely feel the last one in my stomach. This did help though and a little 2 minute stop at the waterstop to consume the gel and a half cup of water and have a stretch helped. In my previous visit here in 2014 I had completely crashed at 11 miles as I'd left my pre run fuel and gels in the boot of the car...oops!

I was aware though that I was several miles further on at this point due to the course change, and I was feeling better than 2014. I plodded on, as did those around me who appeared to consistently stay slightly ahead or behind me. the only time someone went past was when I stopped at water stops for water and actually stopping moving or walked for a bit, I would then subsequently speed up and overtake them again before settling in at a slow pace.

Final miles...

The final miles as always were fairly painful on the legs and as per usual I was getting all kinds of nasty little pains and twinges from my hamstring and the odd other niggle in other leg muscles as they started to complain about the distance involved. It was nothing new though, and the more you do these long runs the more you learn about your body and what it can and can't do, and more importantly, you learn that mentally as well as physically you CAN and WILL get through this because you have done it before and therefore know you are capable of it, and that makes you accountable to yourself, and as you are often you own toughest critic you have to succeed.As they say pain is temporary (or at least short lived) but quitting lasts forever! (You will remember your quitting or failure for years to come). Obviously if you are seriously injured you will have to quit, but you soon realise that was the right and justifiable choice to ensure you run again, that decision is always easy to live with.

I plodded on and looked at my watch with roughly 3 miles to go, and for the first time tried to work out if I could beat my time from 2014 which was a PB for the distance 2hr 51min it was. I was fairly certain this was not achievable as I was not in a position to speed up and I reckoned i was currently running 9 minute or so miles. This would put me nearer a 3hr finish at worst especially knowing I had a *** of a hill back up to the castle at the end and I figured I was going to have to walk up that.

The final mile finally arrived and I decided now that I did have a little left in the tank despite not taking my planned final gel at 2hrs 30min so was hoping the energy was still there. I pushed on and started to take back a few places of people who had gone past me but not really progressed much further ahead than that. I got past 3 or 4 before the final hill and with a bit of encouragement from the very loud lady with the cowbell (that would be Sharon B) and with a caped superhero called 'Powerman' stood at the bottom of the hill with his sign saying "Touch here for POWER!" I promptly received a power enriched high five and started to grind up the hill....

Hell this was not this long when we came down it surely.....I managed to grind up the hill and past 2 more people but the one person that had got past me in the later stages was also grinding up the hill and the same speed, so determined to beat them I carried on and jeopardized every last ounce of energy left in my legs as we hit the flat and then slight downhill at the top, my legs were now jelly like and I wasn't at the finish yet. I chased and we hit the cobble path up into the gates of the castle itself and I could now see not one but now 2 of the people that had gone past me, I may of been able to sprint the finish I wasn't sure, but I didn't want to be that one a**hole that sprints past women on the finish line just so he can beat them ( unless I know them and am actually racing them for a friendly pint, you know who you are :) ) I settled on just maintaining my speed and just crossing the line at the same time as one of them.

2hr 52min finish, only 1 min slower than PB.

Race over.....

Now it was time for rest, recovery, sit down and consume the entire contents of the goody bag whilst watching friends come in one by one out by the front of the castle. It was a great day out for the #cakersontour as we are starting to call ourselves ready for a year of running together at events around the North West and beyond. We had some great performances from our group, including Chemane who stormed her run, and also Sarah who is getting faster and faster at every event, and likewise Barry who is slowly destroying all my PB's one by one.

I am extremely proud of all the efforts of the members of my charity group which currently stands at 90 members and am thankful of their fundraising efforts as they have currently raised just short of £2400 over the last 57 weeks by paying 50p forfeits every time they miss a pledged run, and by making donations when they achieve a new PB as a way of celebrating. It's amazing how it all mounts up, and I know all 5 of our nominated charities appreciate our efforts, long may it continue and long may the cakers rule, and I think we can safely say the #cakersontour has officially commenced with the Trimpell20!

http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/team/runorcake 

'If you go in to the woods today, your in for a big surprise!...........yep 45mph winds!!

Montane Trail13 Grizedale Half Marathon Sunday 7th Feb 2016.

The day begins....

Well it wasn't as early as some starts I've had to run days, but today was a 6am alarm call after the usual pre run morning broken nights sleep. I'd had about 5 hours in bed if I was lucky, but I'd slept well the day before so I was fairly confident I wouldn't feel too tired when I got up.

I felt fairly refreshed after the usual shower and then made my final decisions on what running gear I was going to wear. Several layers was going to be the key today as the forecast was about 5-6C and likely very wet and damp. I had to consider there may be times where I have to walk and would rapidly lose body heat, so I layered up with a compression base layer, my Run or Cake tech tee, my zip up running top and then finally my waterproof jacket which I was going to use mainly for it's windproof abilities.

I had compression shorts, running shorts and a thin pair of showerproof full length pants, again to keep the cold wind of my hamstrings. I wore my compression socks as well, along with my hat and gloves I had the complete kit list pretty much on my body to start the race with.

Breakfast was the usual toast and coffee, and a carry along bag for the car with drink and flapjacks and Mars bars and a banana in so I could choose and graze on the journey.

The journey....... 

The journey today was courtesy of fellow runner Annie who was driving and our other fellow passenger was another fellow runner Maddalena. We all know each other from the various run groups we are in and often run together in run groups or social training runs in our local area.

I had made the conscious decision today to run with Annie and Maddalena because I wanted to start running with friends more as opposed to racing events on my own. This is all part of my 'Running with Gru' concept this year as well ,and I am trying to run with fellow 'Cakers' from my 'Run or Cake' charity running group in more of a support role and to have more relaxing fun.

The journey was a reasonable 1hr and 40ish minutes up to the Lakes towards Keswick, and then onto Grizedale Forest itself. Quite a few twisty narrow roads for the last 4-5 miles and a few panicked 'are we on the right road' moments but we got there safely and nicely parked up at the Grizedale Forest Visitors Centre car park right near the toilets and indeed the starting area.

Registration and then find a friend time...... 

In it together and raring to go.

Next was registration time to pick up our race number, chip and event memento t-shirt. This was all done quickly and smoothly and we went back to the car to pin our numbers on etc and put our final gear selection on.

I was now wearing my entire kit list with the exception of my spare base layer. I was feeling nicely prepared and reasonably warmer now so happy with my selection.

Next was get to the start and watch the people doing the marathon set off on their journey as they start 20 minutes before us. Quite a few people we knew were doing the full marathon, Mainly Darren F, Michelle B, Gillian V, Paul G, Rachel R, Dom G and several others.

We saw them off and then looked for fellow halfers who like ourselves were doing the easier option of the half marathon. We managed to find Sarah and Marc, Kelly and fellow injured runner Sharon who obliged in taking the obligatory pre start smiley picture...

Myself, Marc and Sarah, Kelly, Annie and finally Maddalena.

Race start..... 

So the 9:50am start was here and we were off, out of the visitors centre and compound and of up towards the forest with a fairly gentle incline. This incline was infact pretty much going to carry on for 3-4 miles and it got steeper and less fun as it went on. 

We were now on the Grizedale Forest fire roads and steadily climbing but it was not too hard, and varied with ups and slight downs and then back to ups again. This went on and we ran and chatted and tried to admire the views as we went whilst trying to determine our comfortable pace.

Annie and Maddalena were both nursing injury issues and did extremely well to get to the start itself and to make the decision to crack on with it. It seemed to all be going well and we stayed together as our paces were similar.

As the hill got steeper and we started to work our way up the first and biggest climb I slowly ran ahead but tried not to go too far so they could still see me and I wanted to push up the hill to practice my hill running as I never get to do any and I need to train for Excalibur in May.

It was a hard slog and I was determined not to stop and several people were walking already as it is a long climb. I started to get warm but was content with the fact that when I got to the top I would be nicely warmed up and I could take off my waterproof .

Official map of the half marathon route.

Once I'd decided to stop at the top to wait for the others the top never seemed to arrive, I thought it topped out at about 3 miles in but I was rapidly approaching 4 miles, but it finally arrived and I did it without a walk so I was very happy with that.

I stopped a bit further beyond the top where you go downhill for a while and then hit open hill top and indeed the full 40+mph winds. I stripped off my waterproof and stood at the side waiting and at least half a dozen people said "Thanks marshal" to me thinking I was a trail side marshal as I was stood there with my luminous yellow top, but once they spotted my run number I could hear them saying "Oh, I though he was a marshal,lol".

Annie and Maddalena arrived about 5 mins or so after I stopped , and we carried on across the open hillside. It was extremely wet and muddy and boggy in places as you would expect considering the weather we have had over the last couple of months, and everyone was concentrating on foot placement that didn't involve sinking into a bog, losing a shoe, and slipping on yer a***.

This went on for quite a while but the views on this section were stunning although it was a bit grey and overcast and with the high winds I didn't bother to take my phone out and take pics as the wind would of just given me camera jitter. 

I ran any hilly bits and waited at the tops so I could admire the view and get a breather at the top, and waited briefly for Annie and Maddalena to catch up. I think people thought I was playing cat and mouse with them as I kept running up the hills and past them as they walked and I then stopped at the top and looked around as they went past me again.

Picture courtesy of Michelle B.

The views were indeed stunning and I would highly recommend a visit to this area as it is ideal for walking as well, and Grizedale Forest has dedicated cycle and mountain bike trails as well. The visitors centre has toilet facilities and a full on cafe as well.

Approaching halfway.... 

After multiple slippy wet and muddy downhills and technical bits the path went to a narrow trail back into the hillside forest. This was now single track and technical as you had to watch your footing all the time otherwise you would stub your foot on a rock or even trip over one, and it was puddles galore.

We were approaching the halfway point now and we hit the fire road again through the forest but it was a wide road and fairly open section of forest, but it gave you good views.

Thankfully all the fire road sections of forest etc did keep us pretty much sheltered from the extremely high winds that were howling through the region.

Now past the halfway and a feed station was due around the 8-9 mile point, as we got to 8 miles or so I spotted fellow running friend Darren F, aka #Fatmanultra or Ultra Darren as I often call him. Darren was doing the full marathon and was not particularly feeling the enjoyment of it all at this point, and I'm not surprised as I wasn't exactly feeling fresh myself at this point and I was only doing the half.

Myself and Ultra Darren.

I ran and walked with Darren for a while while Annie and Maddalena ran ahead as I hadn't seen Darren for a while so we had a catch up, and luckily a photo op as you can see from the above picture.

Darren was considering stopping at the half marathon finish point instead of going out for the second more technical second half of the marathon, as sometimes if you are really not feeling it or don't feel right with regards to previous injury it is sometimes a wise decision to stop and start the next step which is recovery ready for your next big event.

Full respect to Darren as the Grizedale event is a fairly tough one and the marathon definitely was a tough one, and I found out later in the day that Darren did himself proud by sticking it out and doing the whole 26.2 with an additional 3+ miles for good measure because he was clearly loving it so much out there. Well done Darren.

I ran ahead after saying goodbye to Darren and caught back up with Annie and Maddalena which wasn't as easy as I expected as I was more tired than I thought, and as usual my hamstring was being awkward and didn't feel right and I was a little worried that extra exertion might cause issues. It hadn't been helped by jumping over big puddles earlier and over stretching every time I did it.

After catching up we hit the feed station and stopped for a quick drink and nibble of whatever they had. I went for the flat coke and had a gel just to keep me going for the last 3-4 miles.

Shortly after we hit another photo  opportunity with the official photographers Sports Sunday, and we managed to pull off a decent smiley picture again so we must of still been enjoying it at that point...

Maddalena, Annie and myself.

The rest of the route was now pretty much going to be fire road like you can see in the above picture, and we shortly came across Rachel who was running the marathon so I had a chat with her while the others ran a little ahead. Again full respect to Rachel for taking on the full marathon, I really wouldn't of wanted to do it myself as I hadn't trained up to marathon distance over the Winter as I've been trying to get some rest in. Especially as my hamstring still causes me issues.

I left Rachel and ran on to catch Annie and Maddalena again, and again found it harder than I expected to speed up, but it was fun to practice catching up with people ahead of you as it can be vital for when you are actually racing an event.

We were now down to the last couple of miles and after about 10 minutes Rachel reappeared and caught us up as she was clearly having a good day pace wise, so we all chatted as Annie and Maddalena hadn't officially met Rachel before whereas I've met Rachel loads of times at other events over the years.

The finish at last...

So the finish line could be seen in the distance, albeit down the hillside and several twists and turns away. The 12 mile marker had been passed and we were on our way to the finish and I think I can safely say we were glad to see the finish but we were all finishing feeling in decent shape for a tough run.

A couple of switchbacks and turns later and we were now on flat land and the last couple of hundred yards, we regrouped a little and pretty much all came in together with the exception of Rachel who had another loop to do.

Finish line crossed in roughly 2hrs 29minutes chip and gun time which included little stops we had along the way, and overall for a toughish course it was a respectable time for 3 injured older runners lol.

Medals collected and around our necks and it was now find the cafe time for a nice hot cup of coffee and a chat and catch up with fellow runners and friends who had already finished.

Official finishers medal.

 All done and dusted....

We were now ready to set off home after a bit of a clothes change and the odd painkiller or anti inflammatory, to aid the long journey home so we could actually get out of the car at the other end.

I think I speak for us all when I say we had a great day, it was great to run with friends during the actual event and be able to stop and walk and chat or indeed run and chat with others I knew along the way without worrying I was losing precious time on a PB time attempt. 

The Grizdale Forest and indeed the visitors complex was top notch and I will return another day as it was tough but not tough enough to put me off going back, and it would be nice to get back on a sunny warmer day so we could take in the full splendor of the scenery in that area. You never know I may even get to wear the great looking t-shirts you get at the event as a memento. 

I can safely say I have officially joined the Trail Running Revolution and am getting ready to run #Further Faster.....