Summer Running

It's been ages since I updated my blog!! Quite a bit has happened...after a good run in Arden 9 (my last post), I then went on to tear my calf muscle half a mile into the Stratford 6. It was only a minor tear, and after 2 weeks off I was back to running again with no pain. Unfortunately, my fitness levels dropped a bit, and coupled with a few other things going on, the running fitness has dropped a little. However, I'm getting back to fitness and enjoying all the various races! Here is a summary to bring my blog up to speed!!

26th July Inter Club Champs - Spa Striders vs Kenilworth vs Stratford-upon-Avon

First race back. Just under 6 miles. 41mins 22sec.

Team photo before the Inter-Club Champs

A win for Spa Striders ladies - men came 2nd. A great evening followed by food and drink in Stoneleigh.

12th August - Hooky 6

A 6 mile race in Hook Norton in Oxfordshire. Quite a few Spa Striders at this one. 

4th woman - 40:53.

1st ladies team.

Great weather, so followed the race with a picnic in the sun!

16th August - Rowheath 5km

A Wednesday evening run. I really enjoy the evening runs and this one was in Bourneville not far from my old home in Umberslade Road.

Time: 20:01.

Suffered a bit on this one having gone off a bit too fast!

22nd August - Godiva 5

Another evening run as part of the Warwickshire Road Race league. A slightly different course around Coventry War Memorial Park.

Time: 33:14.

Really struggled tonight!! Got some fitness to get back!

2nd September - Kenilworth Half Marathon

I knew this one was going to hurt! But a great course, though challenging.

Time: 1hr41.12.

Finishing straight of Kenilworth Half Marathon

Arden 9

On 24th June, I headed out to Henley-in-Arden with fellow Spa Striders to take part in the Arden 9. 9 miles isn't really a common distance to race over, so it would be a guaranteed PB if nothing else! I set off at what felt a comfortable pace and was feeling good. It was a lovely route through quiet country roads - I think 9 miles is a good distance to race over. Not the speed and pressure of a 10k, but speedier than a half marathon - I really enjoyed it. I was hoping to go under the hour, but a muddy section around the lake towards the end put a stop to that. I finished 6th woman in 60.37. At the end we were presented with a nice medal and a banana and I really enjoyed cheering on the Spa Striders as they came in. A really good team atmosphere!

Havant Parkrun

Well I'm a bit behind on my blog, but being inspired by the start of the Olympics this week, I thought I'd right about my recent activities. In fact, I'm over a month behind, so I'm going back as far as June 16th, when a weekend down in Horndean led me to take part in the inaugral Havant Parkrun. It was about time a parkrun hit that region and I was pleased to take part in the very first one! It takes place in Staunton Park and involves a couple of laps of off road paths. After a small 400m loop at the start, the route takes you on a steep downhill and then you climb gradually back up to start the second lap. It was a lovely sunny day and I enjoyed the route - though it's not really a PB route. I came through as first lady in 20.47. I will certainly be making sure I go along to this parkrun everytime I'm back down south. Being the first ever race, I of course had the pleasure of setting the course record - I can say that it held for about 5 weeks, but has now gone. Something to aim for next time I'm there!

Two Castles 10k

The Two Castles 10k is a unique point to point run going from Warwick Castle to Kenilworth Castle. It is very difficult to get a place, as usually fills up a few days after entries open. However, a fellow Spa Strider was giving her number away after developing an injury and I was lucky enough to get the spot. On the morning of the race I met with Dawn, Charlotte and Trevor and jogged down from the club house to Warwick for the start of the race. It was a sunny morning, and although fairly early, we could tell it would be fairly warm for the race itself. There was a big contingent of Spa Striders. The course itelf was along the back roads between Warwick and Kenilworth heading up through Leek Wooten. It was undulating in parts, with the final kilometre including a short climb up to Kenilworth Castle. The crowds along the route were great. I wasn't really sure what kind of time I might get, but was hoping for something under 43 minutes. I went through the line in 42.11 and 10th lady overall so I was pleased with that. I hope to get my 10k times down over the course of the summer. Then it was off to the Almanac in Kenilworth for a cold drink and some cake.

The Malvern Challenge

My second walk with the Bear walking group was a biggy - the Malvern Challenge. An 18 mile loop of all the Malvern Hills. The Malvern Hills are a range of hills in the English counties of Worcestershire, Herefordshire and a small area of northern Gloucerstershire, dominating the surrounding countryside and the towns and villages of the district of Malvern. The highest summit of the hills affords a panorama of the Severn valley with the hills of Herefordshire and the Welsh mountains.

There were 21 of us and we were lucky enough to have one of the sunniest days of the year so far. I drove down with Dave and Ian and met the others in the car park at British Camp. The route was a figure of 8 which meant that we were back at the car park half way round (and an ice cream stop) and then continued with the remainding hills. I was pleased to get out on some hills, albeit a bit smaller than the ones I'd been used to in Scotland, but steep nonetheless! Some great views from the top.

Hilly 100 and Coventry parkrun

I'm enjoying some of the local races as a Spa Strider now. A few weekends ago I took part in the Hilly 100. A 100 mile race in the Cotswolds, finishing up in Stratford upon Avon, with teams of 10 all running 10 miles each. I had leg 4, and was partnered with leg 3 runner Jude. I supported her for her leg, as she did for mine. It was an early start - though not as early as legs 1 and 2 who started at 5am! We got to Jude's changeover point in good time for the second leg runner to come in (it had all been worked out based on us running an average of 1hr30mins). We waited...and waited...and waited...! Then we had a message saying the leg 2 had taken a wrong turn and had gone a long way out. Doh!! He eventually got back on track, having run more like 15 miles that 10. Jane set off and we were back on the correct route! I drove the car, stopping at various points along the way with water. Then 10 miles later is was my turn to run. We had done a recce earlier in the week, so new the way to go, though was great having Jude at all the turns to make sure I stayed on track! It was pretty undulating most of the way - the Cotswolds are really beautiful, but they were certainly hilly - as the name of the race suggests. The last mile was the biggest hill of all!! Straight up and seemed to go on forever! I was pleased to see a group of Striders cheering at the top though which really helped! Managed to run my leg in 1hr14mins17s, which i was pleased with, given the hills! I handed over to Leg 5 runner, and headed home for a rest before driving back to Stratford in the evening for the final runners coming in. A great race and team spirit - loved it!!

The following weekend I gave the Coventry parkrun a go! It was a really hot sunny day, but lots of the course is sheltered under the trees. It takes place at the Coventry War Memorial park, and the 5km involves 2 and a bit laps of the park. Much flatter than the Leamington parkrun, great course. After chasing a girl from Warwick University most of the way, I was pleased to edge past her with about 1km to go and held on to make it round as first lady in 19:45. I'm looking forward to trying a few more local parkruns in the area.

Warwickshire, Spa Striders and Leamington parkrun

My new place! I'm the middle top window.

So it's been a busy couple of months. Now that the big events are over and I'm settling into a new life chapter I thought I'd take a moment to update my blog. The London marathon was fantastic and my legs are gradually getting back to normal. At last count I was on £1300, so well over my £1000 target. A MASSIVE thank you to everyone who sponsored me, it means a lot to me!

Other than the marathon, lots has been going on. At the end of March I had my last day at CAHRU, where I worked for 5 years, and I left Bonnie Scotland for Warwickshire. What an amazing time I had in Scotland - I had so many great experiences and a chance to visit some of the country's most beautiful locations. And most importantly, I made some lifelong friends. I may not be living in Scotland anymore, but I'll be back regularly for visits, and cherish my memories there. 

On April 9th I started my new job at University of Warwick, working on the Families for Health project. So far I'm really enjoying the new challenges it is bringing and my new colleagues are great. So, now I'm settled into my new job and my new flat (which happens to be right opposite the local running club!) lets move onto what adventures my new location has to offer!!

I have joined local running club Spa Striders. A really friendly club who have training sessions on every day of the week (!!), and even do a bit of cycling and open water swimming. I've also had the chance to try my local Leamington parkrun, and have run this a couple of times, yesterday along with fellow Birmingham Uni friend Hannah Roberton. Her husband Neil and cutie pie daughter Emilia were there to support! The course is really nice off road, but has a sneaky hill at around 1km. So far I have run 20:22 and 20:36, so the aim I think will be to do a sub 20 on this course. I was pleased to only lose 15 seconds on the first post-marathon race yesterday. There are other local parkruns, such as Coventry, which I hope to try soon.

With a new area to be living in, and a friendly new running club telling me about lots of fun events, my hopeful plan for the next few months is as follows...

16th May - Rugby 6 - an evening race, part of the East Midlands Grand Priz series

24th June - Stoneleigh 10K (Race for Life 10k, along with Hannah and others)

30th June - Stratford Summer 6 - an opportunity to run around Shakespeare's home town

15th July - Northbrook 10k - in Coventry, a chance to hopefully capitalise on marathon endurance for a fast 10k

12th August - Great Shakespeare Ride - a 65 mile cycling sportive. Might try my hand at a bit of cycling this summer

18th August - Race the Train, Wales - a 14 mile race (against a train!) in Snowdonia, Wales. Always fancied doing this, so this year is the year. Might even go and explore Snowdonia afterwards too.

30th September - Bristol Half marathon or Robin Hood Nottingham Half marathon (to be decided!)

Think that's enough to get me started....haha! As always, if anyone fancies joining me on any of these, do let me know!

London Marathon 2012

So, Sunday April 22nd had finally arrived - the day of the London Marathon!!

I had had a good 16 weeks of training in the build up to the marathon - with only one week and a half going a bit wrong in January with a sprained ankle, but after that I managed to get in a good 13-14 weeks of training, including 1 x 18 mile, 3 x 20 milers and 1 x 22 miler. I was really grateful to have the other CAAC marathon girls to train with, which really helped for the Wednesday evening longer runs, which were made so much easier with the company. The 22 miler from N Berwick back to Edinburgh with Susan and Fiona was also a great run, as were the long runs I did with Porty runner Gareth, which really helped.

Mum at the PCUK cheering point

Mile 9 - still looking fresh

I was ready and raring to go on Sunday morning and was pleased to see that the weather Gods were with us. Somehow I managed to bump into Jillian Hogg in one of the many queues for the porta-loos before the start. (I wasn't brave enough to try the female urinals) so it was great to see a friendly face. I headed off to pen 3 in the blue start. Before I knew it we were off...I headed over the matt and started my watch. The first mile was sooo crowded. I was feeling a bit disheartened as the time was slipping away and I got stuck behind other runners. It didn't help matters when we merged with the red and green starts later on. I went through the first mile in well over 8mins - not the 7:25 I was hoping for! As a consequence I think I got a bit overexcited once it opened up and the following miles were 7:04 and 6:57 - oops!! I was feeling good though and dragged my average pace back to 3:15 pace. I thought I would give 3:15 a go, and just see if I could do it. I didn't want to finish the race fresh, I wanted to know I'd given it my all! I went through half marathon in 1:38 so was not far off target. It was great to have supporters at mile 9, and then my charity and parents at miles 13 and 22, as well as my London friends jumping around so I could see them again at mile 19 and then at 25! A real boost! I started to feel 'a bit tired' at around mile 15, which concerned me, as I hoped I would be ok till at least mile 20. Perhaps I had gone off to fast early on! I went through the usual ups and downs of marathon running - feeling great one moment, and terrible the next. At times I just closed my eyes and concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other. A particularly poignant moment came as I approached Canary Wharf and could see a fellow PCUK runner with 'for Mum' emblazoned on the back of his vest. I felt a wave of emotion come over me and I sped up to reach him. I gave him a friendly pat on the back and told him well done. We ran alongside one another for a moment before carrying on.

Finished - at the hotel with my medal

Me and Marc with poster made by Julia

 The last few miles were tough, and to be honest I don't really remember much about them. The last 800m however are memorable, turning the corner to see the finish at the end of the mall. I crossed the line in 3hr24min12sec - totally elated! Even better I raised over £1000 for Pancreatic Cancer UK, thanks so much to everyone for your sponsorship - really appreciate it!

Coniston 14

The last weekend in March, I headed to the Lakes with Gareth, Susan, Scott and Ruth for the Coniston 14 - a 14 mile loop around Coniston Lake. We stayed in the youth hostel in Hawkshead on the Friday night and headed to the race the following morning. It seemed to be a really popular race, apparently 1600+ runners. The weather conditions were perfect for racing, cool but sunny. Much like the Lasswade 10 from a few weeks ago this was an 'undulating' course. I felt strong all the way round, although mile 12 was a tough one, climbing to the highest point of the route. However, we were rewarded with a steep downhill to follow and a flat final mile or so to the finish line. I was taking in the beautiful scenery on the route round and really enjoyed this course. I felt strong in the final mile finishing 8th woman in 1hr38.25. A Coniston slate coaster for finishing and a slate place set for 8th woman. Gareth was 10th man too. Scott ran a really fast time and broke his half marathon PB en route! Susan also had a great run and Ruth, although struggling with fatigue recently, had a good run and enjoyed the route. After some lunch and prize giving, we headed back to the hostel for a quick shower and rest, and then walked to Hawkshead for some well deserved drinks and food. We had a feast of local foods, including Cumberland sausage and mash and Lancashire Hot Pot - yum!

The following day the sun was shining, almost felt like summer. We headed out for a walk from Coniston to Tarn Hows - a 7 mile loop, not too taxing on our weary legs from the day before. A great weekend.

Lasswade 10

On 4th March, instead of doing a longer run, I thought it would be a good idea to try the Lasswade 10 in order to incorporate a bit of 'speed work' into my marathon training schedule. I'd heard good things about this race, a scenic route, but undulating. I headed out with Gareth in the car and we drove the second half of the route to see what we had ahead of us.

Really enjoyed this course - a few tough hills, but certainly scenic with a sprinkling of snow on the Pentlands. I wanted to try and get below 70 minutes but was just outside in 70.14! Still a big PB though so can't complain and pleased that the marathon training is going well. 5th place for Gareth - another great run from him.

2012 Scottish XC Championships

Another year and another Scottish XC Champs at Callender Park. I really enjoy this course, though it can largely depend on the course conditions as to just how much! We had 4 seasons in one day (as is the norm for these occassions). Started in sleet and wind and finished in calm sunshine. As always I set up the first hill feeling good - I was only about 20m behind Freya Murray at this stage ;-). But then the legs suddenly realise what they have ahead of them and the first lap of this course is always a shock to the system. Lots of little killer hills and mud to remind you this is indeed a cross country! Great to have CAAC guys spread all around the route though cheering us on. There was a team of 5 CAAC girls today and we were all pretty close together which meant we could work together along with some friendly rivalry!
Finished the course in 64th place, in 35min49, a bit slower than last year, but pleased nonetheless. Legs didn't feel as bouncy as usual, perhaps due to the previous weekend's half and some miles in the week. Really enjoyed watching the very large number of CAAC men running in the race after ours - great team spirit and some great performances by all.

Portsmouth Coastal Half Marathon

Yesterday I ran race number two in my PCUK sponsorship series - the Portsmouth Coastal Half Marathon. Conditions were near perfect - clear and still (very unusual to have minimal wind on Portsmouth seafront!). Although it was pretty cold and icy in places, the runners soon warmed up once we got started. The race started behind the Pyramids Swim Centre and then headed off towards Eastney along the prom. Around 4-5 miles in we headed off-road across parts of the pebbled beach, some fields and trail paths. Although my split times for those miles were obviously slower, I quite enjoyed the change in terrain and it certainly added to the enjoyment of this scenic race. Really well organised too - would definitely recommend this race to others. I noticed a few other girls ahead of me at the start, but managed to close in and overtake a couple of them by half way. At the point where I usually start to feel tired and start to slow, i.e. mile 9, on this occassion I actually felt strong and able to push on. During the long stretch back along the prom I decided to take an energy gel and just 'push on' as fast as I could. I saw my Dad with a couple of miles to go which spurred me on - then it was a couple of miles to the other end of the prom, around the amusements and my old school playing fields and a short loop back to the Pyramids centre. I looked down at my watch and I hadn't reached 1hr30 yet - could this be the sub 1:30 day?! It was starting to hurt - at times like these I just think about the important cause and people I'm running for and the pain is numbed. As I came into the home stretch I could see Katherine, Jamie, Jorjia and Pete cheering me on, which was really nice!

It wasn't the day for my sub 1:30, but I came in at 1:30:47, taking almost 3 minutes of my PB, so very pleased with that!! Also found I was 3rd woman and 52nd overall and was presented with a trophy and goody bag as I crossed the line!

I have now raised over £500 for Pancreatic Cancer UK and am truly grateful for everyone who has sponsored me so far. Next event is the Coniston 14 at the end of March, but in the meantime I'll keeping up with all that training.

Marrakech Half Marathon, Morocco

Last weekend was big event number one of 2012 - the Marrakech Half Marathon. Susan and I headed off on our flight to Morocco on Friday and arrived that evening. We were whisked away in a taxi to the Medina in Marrakech, and a man came to meet us at the car park and took us to our riad (traditional Moroccon hotel). The narrow streets were full of people walking, on bikes, scooters, the odd car! It was the hustle and bustle I'd imagined. The door to our riad was hidden away in a corner, but as soon as you stepped off the busy street you were in a world of peace and tranquility. After venturing out for dinner of tajine and couscous we headed back for a good night's sleep. The Saturday we headed to the Marathon village to collect our race numbers, and we had an explore around to get our bearings. Really enjoyed visiting the souks, but the amount of hassle you get to buy stuff is something else!! We went to a nice restaurant by our riad for dinner. We wanted to make sure we had something 'safe' and not experiment the night before the race. We had some really tasty salad and chicken/vegetable coucous - just what was needed. The mint tea which is traditionally drank in Morocco was very tasty too.

The next morning the riad staff brought us some hot water to our room and we made our porridge pots. My half was at 8:30am and Susan's marathon at 9am. The temperature in Morocco isn't actually that warm in January, and at that time of the morning still fairly cold! We jogged down to the start and I managed to squeeze myself somewhere near the front of the mass of runners. Fortunately it was a chip number so the timer didn't start till I crossed the line. The first mile was quite chaotic - lots of people everywhere. But then as the miles rolled by the field opened up a bit. There were some long, straight roads which meant I could get into a good rythmn and get some quicker miles in. I felt pretty good and considering my ankle problems in the weeks leading up to the race I was pleased with how I felt. I didn't see many other women around me till about mile 7 or 8 when I spotted a couple in front of me. This spurred me on to pick up the pace a bit and I managed to reel one of them in. It was great running in these new and different surroundings, quite an experience. The last couple of miles were a bit of a struggle as the sun was coming out, but I hung in there to finish 23rd woman (out of 603 apparently!) and in a time of 1hr34:36. Pleased with that as only around 45 seconds slower than my PB. Susan did really well in some hot conditions to finish 30th woman in the marathon in a time of 3hr59.58, so just getting under the 4 hours! Even better I'm up to £500 on my fundraising efforts for Pancreatic Cancer UK, so a massive thank you to everyone who has sponsored me so far!

The next day we headed out on a day trip to the Atlas mountains which were fantastic - would love to go back there some day and hike up Mount Toubkal!
Next race is the Portsmouth Half marathon in a couple of weekends time - hoping to go a bit quicker if I can!

2012 - the year ahead

So 2011 is well and truly over. I enjoyed a great New Year weekend with Rosie and Martyn and spent the last day of the year exploring the beautiful Dorset coast on foot, and the first day of 2012 mountain biking in some pretty challenging conditions!! 2011 has been a good one - not as many PBs as the previous year, but did manage to get my half marathon time down to 1hr33, and in the meantime got to visit another of the Outer Hebrides islands, this time in the form of the Isle of Lewis. One of the highlights of the year has to be my week of trekking in the Julian Alps in Slovenia. What a fantastic country and amazing hiking to be done. Has left me wanting to explore more of Eastern Europe. Another highlight was the Avebury - Stone Henge 26 mile trek I did with my Dad to raise money for Help for Heroes in the summer. The furthest my Dad had ever walked and a great achievement, especially in the hot conditions we had that day!

So, here I am in 2012 and I have some exciting challenges and adventures for the coming year. On 22nd December last year, I was lucky enough to win a Corstorphine AAC 'club entry' place for the London Marathon, along with Jillian Hogg. Many other CAACers have also got an entry due to having a 'good for age' or 'championship' place. So on April 22nd I will be on the start line of the London marathon and I can't wait! I'm following a 16-week training plan which started last Monday - week 1 almost done and so far so good. A long way to go though! I will be running not only for Corstorphine AAC, but also for the charity Pancreatic Cancer UK, and I will post further details of this soon. So in the meantime, I have the following plans in the coming year....

January 29th - Marrakech Half Marathon, Morocco
Susan and I are heading to Africa for a bit of a warm weather race. I will be doing the half and Susan the full marathon. Training for this is going well. No idea how the temperature will affect our running, but looking forward to a very exciting race in very different surroundings.

February 12th - Portsmouth Half Marathon
Two weeks later I'll be heading back to my home city to give the Portsmouth half marathon a go. I originally thought this might be a fast course seeing as it is flat along the coast, but have since found out part of the race is along the shingle beach. Looking forward to it though, and support from family, friends and previous training buddies will be great!

March 11th -18th - Snow shoe trek, Southern Alps, France
My legs will have a rest from running this week, and I will swap my trainer for snow shoes. Heading to the Southern Alps in France with Alison to trek hut to hut across some beautiful Alpine mountains! Haven't tried snow shoeing before! Should be great fun!

March 31st - Coniston 14
I have long wanted to give this race a go, so have decided that this is the year. Along with a few fellow runners I will be heading to the Lake District to do this scenic run.

April 22nd - London Marathon
The big day!!

16th September - Spire to Spire Trek
Last year it was 26 miles to Stone Henge to raise money for Help for Heroes, this year, my Dad and I will be walking 26 miles from Winchester Cathedral to Salisbury Cathedral. Another great challenge and a chance to explore another part of the UK. Being in September, it hopefully won't be as hot as last year's walk!




In between these I hope to have some great training runs and other smaller local races. Here's to a great 2012 and best of luck to everyone in their dreams for this year, whatever they may be! Watch out 2012 - I'm coming to get you!!

Eastleigh Parkrun - New Years Eve

I decided to give the Eastleigh parkrun a go on New Years Eve. As I was on my way to stay with Rosie and Martyn for the weekend, I did it en route to Poole. It's quite different to Edinburgh parkrun. This one is off road and is three laps of the University of Southampton playing fields. There had been quite a lot of rain the previous few days and the ground was pretty muddy and slippy. Wasn't too sure how I'd go in my road shoes! My Garmin battery had died so I was running without the aid of the pacer on my watch to see how I was getting on. I have to admit, I struggled on some sections to get any kind of grip, especially around the corners. I also wasn't feeling as sharp as previous runs. Perhaps the week of mince pies and Xmas puddings was coming back to haunt me! I crossed the line in 32nd (3rd woman) in a time of 21:39. So not the best of times, but given the conditions and my footwear, probably not as bad as it sounds. A good training session and really enjoyed a new route. I will definitely do it again when back down south!