Night-time Green Man Challenge

 With the London Marathon out of the way, and the 60 mile Ultra Trail South West (UTSW) upcoming in June, I needed to find an excuse to put in a decent long training run to get my legs ready for some serious endurance.

Preparing for ultras is all about getting time on your feet. One good long training session can really help set-up the legs for an ultra race.

So it was, that some discussion within TACH (Town and Country Harriers) about possibly taking on the 45 mile Green Man Challenge, but at night, became a reality.

I chose a date that was 4 weeks out from UTSW, and was lucky to get a clear and balmy night.

Alex Foster, fellow TACH member, also undertaking UTSW (and needing a long run) accompanied me, which was a relief because, without Alex, I would have got hopelessly lost, and also pretty spooked on my own.

We set-out at 10pm from Brunel's Suspension Bridge and headed through Ashton Court and on up to Dundry.

Alex and I knew that there would be few options to take-on extra liquid or nutrition, so I was carrying about 2.5 litres of water, a bottle of Lucozade Sport and assorted gels and bars. All in all this made for a very heavy back pack - All extra training I supposed!

The Green Man Challenge was kind to us that night. Yes we were hampered by long grass, stinging nettles and brambles, but we were also treated to clear and starry skies, warm weather and pretty much ideal conditions under-foot..

Despite these good conditions, Alex and I found the latter stages of the challenge a real struggle. Alex was having knee issues, and I was suffering from a lack of energy and some calf-pain.

During the last section from Blaise Castle, we resorted to setting targets (that next tree) to shuffle to before we started to walk again. We certainly didn't feel like hardened ultra runners - More like some sort of has-been Ramblers, well past our best. Still, we made it in the end.

The first night time Green Man Challenge was completed in 10 hours.

I was glad to get this out of the way. Now on to UTSW...

London Marathon 2012

Well, it's been quite a while since I've blogged. This is in part because, after the Brecon Beacons Summer 40 ultra, I didn't do very much - I took part in the Run Rider off road duathlon in Ashton Court, coming 8th out of 32 in the Veterans class, 14th out of 300 at the 20Km, off road, Mendip Muddle race, and a few other odds and ends. I did however manage to get one of the TACH running club's London Marathon places.

So early in the new year I had a focus - To get fit and fast for 26.2 miles.

 For training, I loosely used the Furman Institute of Running and Scientific Training (FIRST) marathon programme, which focusses on only 3 runs per week plus cross-training. The advantage of this programme is that, whilst it is concentrated on high-intensity training sessions, the weekly mileages are low. This helps reduce the risk of injury. In reality, my training wasn't as successful as I'd hoped, because:

1. I was training really well in January/February. But then went skiing in February and this really upset my training

2. The combination of speed intervals, tempo and fast long runs was very effective

3. I didn't manage to incorporate very much cross training

4. I should have spent more time/money on stretching/sports massage, as road running is just bad for your body

5. I didn't do any races within my training window. This would have helped mentally with the preparation

6. I did too much road running, which was hard on my body

The race day itself was a mixed experience. On the positive side, I could not have prepared myself for the support all along the race route. On the less positive side, I didn't feel strong, my hip was painful for quite a lot of the race (but eventually loosened-up) and the last 3 miles were particularly arduous.

Still, I finished in 03:22:36, which was a PB by about 5 minutes over my last marathon in 2010 (the Shakespeare Marathon).

My splits weren't too bad - A gradual slowing throughout:

So overall, good to do, but road marathons are not for me. Would I recommend the London Marathon? Yes. It's such an occasion. Would I recommend road marathons generally? No. They are just so brutal on the body. I can't wait for my next long trail race...

One Day Ultra - Summer 40 Brecon Beacons report

Having completed the Green Man Challenge, I was looking for my next event over the Spring/Summer, something a bit quirky and not too far away.

Having checked out Man vs. Horse and Race the Train, I decided these were too far away. So I searched Keith Godden's ULTRAmarathonRunning.com for possible events. That's how I came across the One Day Ultra - Summer 40 Brecon Beacons organised by the Mightcontainnuts.com crew. The event seemed perfect - not being too far away, a 40 miles race over the mountains with fabulous views.

Having entered, I modified my training to suit this event - Plenty of box steps with a large weight in a backpack, two dumbells in my hands and ankle weights - to prepare for the ups and downs of the course.

So, on Friday 20th May, I travelled up to Talybont on Usk to the Talybont Outdoor Centre - A Grade 2 Listed former railway station, now used as an outdoor pursuits centre, complete with accommodation. I was booked in for Friday and Saturday night.

After arriving, I registered, then met and chatted with some of the event organisers and other competitors, then made myself something to eat (pasta/pesto followed by sticky toffee pudding).

The weather was looking lovely on Friday evening:

I shared my room with Pat and Ian. Pat, 58 years-old and retired from the army - Hard as nails but very green when it comes to ultra running. Ian, a 47 years-old surgeon from Nottingham.

My sleep during the night was average, with plenty of snoring from my room mates and door banging from the next door bathroom. I got up at about 5:30am to have a good big breakfast and still leave plenty of digestion time before the 8:00am race start.

Over breakfast (rice pudding, followed by toast and marmalade) I managed to discuss the course with some fellow runners - Along a canal path and then over Tor Y Foel, Corn Du, a loop down to a car park (for more water) before going back up Corn Du and then onto Pen Y Fan, a long descent, a difficult climb up Cribyn, Fan Y Big and then finally back down to the finish back at the Outdoor Pursuits Centre.

The course profile looked pretty scary:

In my mind, I had decided to split the course up into approximately eight 5-mile sections and four major climbs.

My nutrition for the day would start with a bottle of Lucozade Sport, move onto gels, then finally solid food in the form of muesli bars and protein bars.

The race briefing:

The course started out with quite a long, flat section mostly on a canal towpath. Quite a big group took-off along here, but I was quite happy to amble along, knowing there was plenty to come.

The course markings were easy to follow:

The first descent:

After about 8-10 miles I found that Ian (who I'd met at the race HQ) and I were progressing at a very similar pace. We got chatting, and then ended-up completing the rest of the course together.

The views were stunning. Although some of the ascents and descents required enough concentration that some of these weren't appreciated as much as they should have been.

Ian and I were progressing well. It felt much more of a competitive race to me than I felt during the VoTwo Oner, which was much more about survival. This time, I was picking off other competitors (in the nicest possible way ;-) ).

There were only a few linking road sections:

This following picture is of the Cribyn. At about 28 miles into the race, this was quite a challenge!

Ian had decided to bring telescopic trekking poles for some of the sharper ups and downs. I tried them out and they seemed to help somewhat.

On top of the Cribyn (it was getting colder and beginning to rain a bit):



After Fan Y Big, we descended to a big dam which marked about 2 miles to the finish. During this descent, we overtook another runner, and by the time we reached the dam, he looked far enough back that we weren't expecting to see him again. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case - I had just opened a gate for Ian, and this chap came out of nowhere, and ran through the gate. Not wishing to lose the race position, I took-off after him.

We had about 0.5 mile to go, and I soon caught him up, but didn't have the legs to overtake. When we got to a small muddy bank about 100 metres from the finish, he ran up and I knew he'd beaten me. Still, I was pleased to have put in a run like that after 40 gruelling miles.

I waited for Ian before we both crossed the line to record the same time.

Looking somewhat more tired than at the start!

All in all, this was a great race - A great course (scenic, tough, but not overly long), very well organised by an extremely nice race crew, good showers, and finished off with a freshly cooked chilli con carne - What more could you ask for!

I was very pleased with my race performance. I think I prepared pretty well, got my nutrition on the day about right and felt like I was racing rather than just surviving.

For the record, Ian and I came 20th in 8 hours 21 minutes - Results

Not sure what next. Ian was keen to plant the seed for doing UTMB in 2012 - Something to think about. We also talked about the 3 Peaks Yacht Race, which is definitely something I'll look into for next year.

Take a look at these photos to get a real feel for the day:

Next step - 5 hours...

Up and out at 5:30am this morning for a 5 hour run/walk. Beautiful weather.

The run contrasted the industrial harshness of Avonmouth:



With the beauty of the Spring flowers:



My training is progressing pretty well so far. I've been reading the following book, which is giving me something to think about during my long runs:



I have a couple of weeks without a long run now but then will hope to go for a 6-7 hours longest training run before the Brecon Beacons race.

A new venture

Onwards and upwards (literally!). I have signed up for my next adventure - The Summer 40, Brecon Beacons. Billed as "a challenging, scenic, mountainous (40 mile) one day Ultra Marathon". The event takes place on 21st May.

My training for this event will mostly compose of 1) Building up my long run again to 6 or 7 hours, and 2) Lots of hill training and box step-ups with weights.

I got up at 5:45am this morning and went out for a 4 hour run. Pretty flat. Very comfortable. 5 hours next.

Luke's Green Man Challenge Report

Here's my report about taking on the Green Man Challenge on Sunday 27th February 2011. Warning: It’s very long!!!

Much of what I’ve written is rather more factual than those of some other Woodwoses because this my attempt to document my personal experience in the hope that it may be of some help or encouragement to others thinking of putting themselves forward.

Before I go into the background and preparation for the Green Man, I would like to give some very special thanks.

Firstly to Chris Bloor, who is the Father of the Green Man Challenge, provides encouragement and enthusiasm about the challenge and who very kindly transported me to and from the start line (and provided tea at Blaise Castle).

I'd also like to thank Ian Ruck and Antony Clark for accompanying me from Ashton Court to Shortwood Hill. Their good company helped make the first half pass by relatively quickly.

Thanks to Ruth (Ian’s wife), who not only got out of bed early on a Sunday morning to transport Ian and Antony to the start, but was there at Shortwood hill with my drop bag, a deck chair (which I was too scared to use) and a wonderful smile.

Finally, I really, really want to thank Jonathan Gledson. Jonathan helped me round the whole of the second half of the course - putting up with my dwindling sense of humour, carrying sodden, mud soaked trail shoes and letting me raid his rucksack for snacks and drink.

OK, now a little about the background and preparation...

The Green Man Challenge was something that I quickly got to know about after joining TACH in about September 2009. I had originally planned to run the challenge in March 2010, but was prevented through a back injury which kept me out of running for the whole Summer.

Some of the reasons to attempt the Green Man Challenge were in part the distance - a proper Ultra distance but nevertheless not too daunting, and also because it is a personal challenge rather than a race. However, the main reason is that it has been a wonderful chance to connect with the countryside which bounds our city (we are so very lucky to have such wonderful countryside, so close by).

My preparation was based upon the following principles:
1. Don’t use any fixed training plan as the challenge could be attempted at any time
2. Specificity - The course is long, reasonably flat and quite uneven under foot. I needed to prepare accordingly
3. Always remember, it's often the lack of recovery that causes injury rather than over training, and so always prioritise recovery over more training. Similarly, I read somewhere "Those that under-train will always finish. Those that over-train never get to the start line"
4. Judge long runs by 'time on your feet' rather than distance

Using the above principles, my training generally fitted the following pattern:
● Long run every 1-2 weeks (building from 2-6 hours)
● TACH training runs on Thursdays
● Some treadmill intervals (to strengthen legs)
● Core and upper body gym work

The treadmill sessions were pretty sporadic due to the combination of work commitments and recovering from the Sunday long runs. And looking back, I think I could have made more use of some of the very short 'free' runs that often present themselves if one puts ones mind to it. Like, for example, running over to where the swimming pool is for a family swim rather than going in the car.

A week in advance of the challenge, I completely abstained from alcohol and caffeine. The caffeine abstention was intended to give my body time to become more sensitised again to caffeine, such that when I really needed a lift, a caffeine hit would keep me going.

Also, on the Wednesday before the run I subjected myself to the pain of a thorough leg, hip and back sports massage.

My nutrition plan was to take just Hammer Perpetuem (in a sweet, gloopy mixture) and water (with Nuun) for the first half, and then move onto solid food in the form of homemade choc-chip and banana bread, muesli bars and finally caffeinated gels.

Finally, in terms of preparation, my strategy for the run was simple - run at a very easy pace on the flat and downhills, speed march any up hills or when other walk breaks were required, and try to limit the time taken at any stops.

So to challenge day...

I got up about 5:45am to give me plenty of time for a good big breakfast (muesli, yogurt, honey and toast), lots of water to drink and time to digest.

Chris picked me up at 7:40am and we met Antony and Ian at the Green Man in Ashton Court in good time for an 8am start. Any thoughts of nervousness were dispelled as our conversation strangely veered onto the relative merits of Deadly 60 and Horrible Histories, against the ever so slightly surreal Chugginton.

The off:



The first leg up to Dundry followed by legs 2 & 3 to Pensford and Keynsham were all pretty straight-forward. Although, by Keynsham I was beginning to feel a slowly worsening twinge in my right knee. I swapped socks here as my original ones were in a pretty sorry state, and I could feel a few large pieces of grit irritating the soles of my feet.

At Kensham with the old Cadbury’s factory in the background:



Throughout the whole course the going underfoot was varied - some good, some wet and boggy, and some sticky.

Leg 4 to Shortwood Hill progressed quite well, although I was beginning to feel a bit tired and my knee was still sore. Thankfully, Ian and Antony were good company which helped a lot, and also, Antony's superior knowledge of the course proved invaluable on several occasions.

At Shortwood Hill, Ian's wife Ruth was waiting with my drop bag. I refueled with more Perpetuem and extra water, and departed with Jonathan as my support for the remainder of the race. Jonathan kindly carried a spare set of road trainers for me in his rucksack.

The next leg from Shortwood Hill to the White Horse at Hambrook was one of the hardest for me. I was beginning to feel really tired by now, and my knee was still pretty sore. So, as soon as we got to the end of the leg, I used the opportunity to take a couple of ibuprofen and caffeine tablets. Within 20 mins of the next leg (no. 6 to Patchway) I was in much finer fettle.

Jonathan was proving to be the ideal support, helping with gates and providing encouragement.

At Patchway, I had run out of fluid, and Jonathan kindly gave me a spare bottle he had of Lucozade Sport which turned out to be a welcome change for my palette which was getting sick of the over sweet Perpetuem.

I really enjoyed the route from Patchway to Blaise, the terrain is very mixed, with the contrast between the boggy flat land around Easter Compton and the views from on top of Spanorium Hill.

Just before Blaise Castle, I changed socks again and also moved to road trainers. I was surprised how heavy my trail shoes had got - they were caked in mud.

At Blaise we were met by Chris, this time with a very welcome cup of tea. I took a little more time at this stop, and had another couple of caffeine tablets, in preparation for the final 10k back to the Green Man.

As one can imagine, this final stretch was the hardest. By now my legs were pretty much spent. I suggested that perhaps Jonathan and I could swap legs, but he didn't like the look of what he was going to get in return.

There were a lot more short walk breaks now as I could feel my hamstrings cramping. But I knew I would finish, so my spirits were high even if my body was a bit broken.

It was wonderful to see Chris and Ian at the Green Man. As you might expect, I felt rather emotional.

At the finish:



I believe that the Green Man Challenge is the embodiment of TACH, Bristol, and most importantly, the passion Chris Bloor has for connecting people with the countryside. I wholeheartedly encourage anyone who reads this to consider taking on the challenge in some form (run, walk, relay, one leg at a time, etc.).

Luke Taylor - Woodwose XXXVIII
(Green Man Challenge, 8hrs 31mins, Sunday 27 February 2011)

The Green Man Challenge

The Green Man Challenge celebrates Bristol, a green city in the midst of the countryside, as part of the Forest of Avon. The Challenge follows the 48 mile course of the Community Forest Path.

Chris Bloor created the Green Man Challenge. He keeps a record of those who complete the challenge on his Closer to the Countryside website.

Chris has also created route instructions which split the course into 8 legs, each between 4.5-6.2 miles long.

The challenge can be undertaken solo, in pairs or as part of a relay.

My only plan so far for 2011 is to complete the Green Man Challenge, preferably in February/March.

Training so far has been sporadic rather than planned. However, I did have a day off work on the 4th January and used this to run/walk the first 4 legs of the course (about 22 miles). The course can start from anywhere along the route, but often starts from the Green Man sculpture in Ashton Court (the current blog header picture). The photo at the top of this post was taken just before I set off, looking out towards Dundry - the first leg of the course and about 5 miles by foot.

My 2010 Annus horribilis

Following my completion of the VoTwo ONER in August 2009, I took some time out before beginning to ramp-up my training again in December. Unfortunately, my training was curtailed by a back injury that nearly got better, but not quite.

My plan was to build up to a March attempt to run a 48 mile route around Bristol - The Green Man Challenge, and then run the Shakespeare Marathon in April.

My training continued to be hampered by the back injury. This put paid to the Green Man Challenge attempt, and probably effected my marathon training. However, I ran the marathon and finished in a PB of 3hrs27mins (I've only run one other marathon which was a shocker).

After the marathon, I consulted an osteopath and started a treatment programme. Unfortunately, this meant I had to take a break from all running over the Summer.

In August I started running again, building up slowly and just enjoying being out running.

Most of my really enjoyable runs have been out on training runs with the Town and Country Harriers (TACH) - Night time, offroad and about 10km.

I'm now at a stage where I can begin to ramp-up my training and look forwards to running the Green Man Challenge later in the Winter/Spring.

My back is now about 85-90%, and continues to improve when I take the time to do the exercises to help with strength and flexibility.

Onwards and upwards!

Finally

I spent much of my time and energy training for the Oner. And whilst finishing was a very satisfying moment, the journey was what mattered:

"Focus on the journey, not the destination. Joy is found not in finishing an activity but in doing it."
- Greg Anderson (American best-selling Author and founder of the American Wellness Project., b.1964)

Roll-on my next journey!

78.6 miles, 22 hours 27 minutes, 2 feet...

I hope you're feeling strong as this race report is a bit of an epic. However, with 78.6 miles to cover, I'm sure you'll realise it was a bit of an adventure.

After about 6.5 months of training, plus a rather leisurely 4 week taper, I arrived at Corfe Castle in Dorset on Friday evening and had a quiet night staying at my Mother-in-Law Pauline's house.

I opened the curtains on Saturday morning to see that the 'light' rain was rather more persistent than had been forecast. Thankfully, from the afternoon onwards the forecast came good, and the weather for the race could not have been better.

After breakfast, lunch and final kit check, I changed into my race gear, and Pauline very kindly dropped me off at the registration point (which would also be the finish) at the National Trust car park just near the Studland chain ferry.

After registration, Ben (the race director) gave a briefing which included such delights as:

• This is a self navigation race. Keep the sea on your right and the land on your left, and if you see a hill then it's most likely you need to climb it!
• There are 40 competitors in the race. To be honest, I only expect 10 to finish

Plenty of incentive then!

Finally, we all got on-board mini-buses for the 1hr+ drive to Lyme Regis - The start.

A final photo before the off (I'm in the centre with the red top):


Between the start and the end of the race would be 12 checkpoints. These were a chance to grab food and drink, and to get my number marked and time taken.

I had decided to take a Camel Back 'bladder' in my rucksack with a drinking tube. This contained water and Nuun tablets for hydration. Most of my nutritional needs would come from a special powdered nutrition called Perpetuem which I carried as a very sweet, concentrated, gloopy mixture in a hand-held bottle. My Brother and Sister, who were staying along the course, had kindly agreed to meet me at checkpoints 3, 6 and 9 (20, 40 and 60 miles) to let me refill with more Perpetuem.

The start of the race was unusual to say the least, with most 'runners' ambling off, not wishing to start too quickly. This gave a nice chance to meet some of the others in the race. I don't think there were too many for whom this was their first ultra-marathon, and it was good to hear about some of the other 'famous' races that some had completed.

The first obstacle was Golden Cap - the highest point on the South coast of England. Climbing up I didn't feel like my legs fancied another 75 miles, but in the end I think this was probably just nerves.

Checkpoints CP1 (Seatown) and CP2 (Burton Beach) passed smoothly. I refilled with water and Nuun tablets and grabbed savory bread rolls (tuna mayo, Marmite, etc.) which helped counteract the over-sweet Perpetuem.

Between CP2 and CP3 (Abbotsbury) a friend of Suzi's - Louise, her husband Simon, and her parents, were on the route lending support. It was great to see such friendly faces - a great boost.

At CP2 it was beginning to get dark, and by the time my brother Colin met me at CP3 (with the next batch of Perpetuem) it was time to don the head-torch for the night run.

The night was beautiful - a half moon only occasionally shrouded by cloud. With my head-torch providing a really good light, I started making good progress. But this was hindered somewhat when the ground under foot started to get quite uneven across fields.

Along this flat section towards the next checkpoint at East Fleet (CP4) I met two other runners that I ended-up spending the rest of the run with.

Sophie and Phil knew each other from a famous ultra-marathon - the Marathon des Sables (a 6 day / 151 mile endurance race across the Sahara Desert). We soon found that we were a good match. Firstly, we all seemed comfortable at the same pace. Then I could offer a good knowledge of the course, which helped Sophie and Phil, especially during the night. In return, they provided support, especially helping me to keep my walking pace up - Walking fast is a key part to successful ultra-running.

After CP4 we set off for Portland, 1 hour 45 mins ahead of the cut-off.

I was so glad to have recc'ied Portland when it was light. This helped us reach CP5 on top of Portland. Unfortunately I completely lost my bearings due to the darkness and only partially managed to navigate the way out. We took a detour into a quarry, but eventually found a road
that took us back to the causeway towards Weymouth.

Sophie, Phil and I had by now settled into a good pace. Our reaction to the terrain was generally either 5 minutes running / 5 minutes walking on the flat, walking the uphills, or gently running the downhills.

Weymouth at about 3:45am on a Saturday night was not a pretty sight. There were plenty of plump, semi-clad drunks happy to hurl abuse at weird looking sober people with head-torches. Not surprising really!

When we got to CP6 (Weymouth and 40 miles) it was great to see my brother again. This provided me with a real lift. And, with Portland and Weymouth behind us, and the very first light beginning to show, Sophie, Phil and I headed off for Osmington with raised hopes.

I stopped briefly to tape the bottom of my right foot which felt like it was beginning to blister, and then we got stuck into the Jurassic cliff paths.

After Osmington (where Sophie and Phil enjoyed a quick pasta meal) we headed up to a headland called Whitenothe, where there is a small terrace of 19th Century coastguard cottages. These are now mostly used as holiday homes. And whilst being well built, they still don't have electricity or running water. My family have spent many years holidaying at Whitenothe, and my brother and sister and their family were all staying here while I was racing. So, when Sophie, Phil and I passed, my sister (Hilary), sister-in-law (Teresa) and niece (Ruby) were all there to give their support.

I was now well into my longest run ever, and whilst my leg muscles weren't too bad, my heels and ankles were quite painful.

The terrain from Osmington to CP8 (Lulworth Cove) starts to get very hilly, and Sophie, Phil and I started to show our strengths and weaknesses. I was able to march quite steadily up the hills, but found the steep downhills very difficult. Whilst Sophie and Phil weren't so quick on the uphills, but easily caught up on the steep descents.

After Lulworth Cove we had a short stop while Phil popped and taped his poor blistered feet.

The section between Lulworth Cove and Kimmeridge is just brutal. I hadn't done this section before as it passes through an MoD firing range which was closed when I practiced the 2nd half of the course.

The uphills here were tortuous. I think this was the crux of the race. Getting through here in one piece with a reasonable time buffer should get us to the finish within the cut-off.

Despite all beginning to slow, we made it to Kimmeridge. Again, I think that being a small group working well together really helped us through.

At Kimmeridge (60 miles) I was beginning to comprehend the enormity of the last 20 miles. However, Hilary, Teresa and Ruby were there again which was great. I refilled my hand-bottle with Perpetuem for the last time and off we set.

I was pleased that the navigation was now straight-forward because my mind was starting to get confused and I was beginning to mix-up bits of the course or even add in bits of other runs I have done during training. This wasn't so good for the others, especially Sophie, who was finding the uphills a real strain, and my uncertainty about the upcoming terrain wasn't helping.

It was during the CP9 (Kimmeridge) to CP10 (St Albans Head) that we all first began to fall apart. Sophie was suffering due to the hills around Chapman's Pool. But she also had stomach issues, and very bad chaffing between her legs. She really showed her strength to tough it out through this section. Phil's feet were troubling him, and my heels and ankles were slowly getting more and more painful.

After St Albans Head, the last two checkpoints were both long at 11km and 12km. The first of these leading to Peveril Point at Swanage was fairly flat but just seemed to go on and on.

On this section I began to really suffer, and I found that I could not run. This was definitely the low point of the race. We were mostly silent as we trudged towards the next checkpoint. Phil was the only one who was able to give encouragement. This was really helpful, even if I was getting fed-up with him saying "come on now, let's get a wiggle on".

Arriving at Peveril Point (CP11) we all looked a mess - John Cleese would have been most proud of our reenactment of the Ministry of Silly Walks.

For the first time in the race, and with 12km to go to the finish, I decided that some refined sugars were the order of the day. So I had two cups of coke and took a good handful of sweets.

We set off for the finish on the last, but at 12km, also the longest leg of the race.

Once along the promenade at Swanage, we climbed the headland (Ballard Down) and made our way to the point where there's a big chalk rock in the sea called Old Harry.

I was still really suffering, especially with my left ankle. Phil gave me a couple of ibuprofen and that really did the trick. Within 30 minutes I was back to speed marching.

The last section along Studland Beach just went on and on, and comments like "come on now, the others who came through here were running!" didn't help!!!

Finally, we rounded South Haven Point and finished - 78.6 miles, 22 hours 27 minutes, 2 feet.

Louise and Simon were at the finish, and a bit later Suzi arrived with our children, Laura, Helena and Felix.

As you might expect I was very emotional. But we had done it.

I'm so grateful to Sophie and Phil for their support. Would I have made it without their help? Being my first ultra, I don't think so.

Of those I spoke to, the consensus was that the Oner is one of the toughest (but also most beautiful) ultras around. Most of the difficulty being the combination of the tough terrain, combined with going through the night and all of the next day (as well as the 78.6 miles of course!).

Would I recommend the Oner to others wishing to undertake an ultra-marathon? Absolutely!

Will I do the race again? Almost certainly not!

Physically, I haven't been too bad afterwards. I have several broad bean-sized blisters around my heels, and my feet keep swelling, but are recovering.

I will add more photos as I get them. However, I'll leave you with my feet after 78.6 miles non-stop (Hmm, nice!!!):


Arriving at the finish:


Great to see my family there:

Inspiration...

We all have people who inspire us.

Here is someone who inspires me - My eldest daughter Laura, who like all my children, inspires me greatly.

This picture was taken last weekend when she took part in her first triathlon.

Oooh, ER!

The second course recce, this time over the second half of the course, started with an early drive to Swanage, then bus to Wareham and finally a train to Weymouth.

Another nervous, on the bus picture:


The run started from the clock-tower in Weymouth:


After a short while things started to get hilly. However, my nutrition (Hammer Perpetuem) was working well and I felt strong.


The above picture (Bats Head) sums up the beautiful Dorset coastline.


More beautiful views at Durdle Door (pictured above) and then on to Lulworth Cove. Here I stopped to sort out a couple of spots on my heels that were beginning to get sore because my socks were too short. A combination of Compeed plasters and duct tape (which didn't stick terribly well) sorted the problem, and I was on my way.

However, my route from Lulworth Cove to Kimmeridge was majorly diverted inland due to the Army firing range being closed. I had to head to East Lulworth, then along a road that was open through the firing range, and finally back down to the coast path at Kimmeridge. The diversion added a bit of distance but was probably a more forgiving terrain.

I ran out of drink at about East Lulworth, but managed to find a pub where I filled my Camel Back (water not beer!).


The above is Chapman's Pool - A truly majestic scene.

The route after Kimmeridge had some major ups and downs. My legs still felt pretty strong, but it was very hot and I emptied my Camel Back of water quickly. Unfortunately, there was absolutely nowhere to get more water, so I just had to carry on regardless.

I was still reasonably well hydrated, but couldn't really eat anything else because I knew, without water, the food would stick in my stomach and make me feel nauseous. So I carried on more slowly, walking a lot more, and resigned myself that my day was pretty much up.

When I finally reached Swanage again, the thought of carrying on towards Studland Bay was not very palatable. So, I ate and dipped my feet into the sea before heading home tired but quite pleased with the day.


All in all I covered about 34 miles in 8hrs 20mins. I have had no ill effects, and feel surprisingly chipper today with no muscle soreness or fatigue.

There are 4 weeks to go until the ONER, so from now on I will taper slowly until the big day.

Not too long to go...

The Harpy Throne

The Harpy Throne - a mostly off-road route around Bristol that I discovered via the Closer to the Countryside website, which in-turn I found when investigating the Town and Country Harriers off-road running club.

Having already completed a hard 50mins hills session during the lunchtime of the same day, and some leg exercises the previous evening, I set out at about 8pm and ran 15 miles from home out to the Beehive pub and then around the route until exiting Nightingale Valley. At this point, as I lost the route and the wooded-sections were getting pretty dark, so I headed back to the centre of Bristol, went around the harbourside and then home.

My legs felt pretty good the whole way round, so all is well with the training at the moment.

I had recently bought some Hammer Perpetuem nutrition and this run gave me a chance to try it out. Carrying a concentrated solution in a hand bottle and sipping frequently seemed to work really well. I'll test some more in my next few long runs as liquid nutrition may well form much of my calorific needs during the second-half of the ONER.

My next run is hopefully a 5am start on Saturday morning. At which point I'll probably try to complete the whole Harpy Throne route 20-24 miles.

The ON - 38 miles, 9.75 hours, 2 (sore) feet

I did it! There is some detail and pictures below, but in summary the positives and negatives are:

Positives:

• My previous longest run was 24 miles in 5 hours. Completing 38 miles in 9 3/4 hours is a big step in terms of miles and time on my feet (both important)
• I have no significant bad physical outcomes - a bit stiff if I sit for a long time, but no tendon or muscle injuries
• I handled the uphill parts of the course pretty well
  
• I learnt a lot about navigating the course, especially some of the route I will be covering in the dark, so hopefully no surprises
• I learnt more about nutrition on really long runs
  
• I have completed an ultra distance (50Km is the recognised starting distance for ultras, I completed 60Km)
• I hope (expect) that when I do the ER (2nd half of the course) I should handle the distance a bit easier
  

Negatives:

• I felt completely exhausted and my feet, legs and knees all hurt at the end. Although, this didn't last long, and by the time I got home, the residual hurt was fairly minor
• I'm not sure where the next 40 miles is going to come from (I felt pretty spent)
• The 1st half of the course was I think a lot easier than the hillier 2nd half will be
  
• I need to work on my quad strength as some of the steeper downhills were becoming quite difficult
• I'm a bit worried about navigating Portland in the dark, the route is quite complex and changes from coast path to footpath to road quite often
  

Anyway, here is a bit more detail and some photos of the day:

The day began at 04:00am, after a broken night's sleep (thanks to Felix). I drove to Weymouth and got the 06:15am bus to Lyme Regis.

Here I'm looking nervous on the bus ride:

At Lyme Regis I bought a coffee, and then struggled to find the start of the coast path which, once I had found it, immediately turned into the first of two diversions on route due to landslides.


Having got onto the coast path proper, things started to get pretty hilly, the climax being Golden Cap (shrouded in cloud):

After Golden Cap it was still quite hilly for a while, with lovely views, but flattened-off at about Burton Bradstock.



Everything was still going well as I swanned-around (sic) Abbotsbury:


After Abbotsbury, there was a long flat section alongside Chesil Beach, leading towards Moonfleet Manor, and then on to Ferrybridge (between Weymouth and Portland). There were a few sections here where prior knowledge of the course should hopefully help me during the race.

Somewhere after Moonfleet Manor I ran out of anything to drink which was a bit worrying, however around East Fleet I came across a campsite where I could refill my Camelback.

At East Fleet I reached the marathon point at 6hrs 30mins.

From East Fleet to Ferrybridge, I first began to feel quite fatigued. So before making my way out to Portland, I found a cafe and bought a Strawberry Split ice cream and a bottle of Coke. After wolfing these down I felt a lot better and continued on to Portland.

The trip around Portland was fairly demoralising - a dusty island mostly populated with quarries and a prison - I will be pleased that this section will be dark during the race.

Navigating around Portland was also difficult, and I was really starting to feel tired. However, having got back to the causway, I ran reasonably well back to Ferrybridge.

The journey from Ferrybridge back to Weymouth bay was another matter - I think I'd run low on nutrition, and this being combined with the last leg being 2.5 miles rather than the 0.5 miles I was expecting, made the going very hard.

Finally I made it back to Weymouth and dipped my sore feet into the lovely cool sea:


My nutrition for the day was:

• Approx. 1.5ltrs water with 3 x Nuun tablets
  
• 4 x Crunchy Granola bars
• Lunch of 1 x Marmite sandwich, 1 x Peanut butter and jam
• 1 x Strawberry Split, 1 x Coke (330ml)

Probably a bit light for 9 3/4 hours running.

Even though I feel pretty good, I've decided to rest for the next 3 days to give my endocrine system a chance to recover. Back to training on Monday.

Beautiful little run

I was staying at my sister-in-law's at Chesham Bois over the bank holiday weekend. Managed a 13 mile run on Monday - starting from Chesham Bois, running to Chesham, and then along an ancient trade route from Chesham to Wendover (Chiltern Link Walk).

After the run, I was expecting to meet everyone else at a play area in Wendover Woods, but the risk of rain meant that there was a change of plan. Instead I had to hot-foot it over to Wendover station to catch the train back to Amersham to meet the others at a coffee shop before going for a family swim.

I thought that the meadow flowers and wild garlic in the woods deserved a couple of photos (even if my mobile phone isn't very good quality):

Preparing for the ON...

Next Thursday (28th May), I shall be attempting to do the first half of the ONER course (hence the ON!). The plan is to drive to Weymouth, then get a bus to Lyme Regis, and run back - about 38 miles or so.

For the day I need to make a list of what to take:

• Running kit (trainers, socks, compression tights, shorts, tee-shirt / tri top, warmer top, waterproof kagool)
• Head torch
• Map
• Backpack with Camelback pouch
• Money
• Nuun tablets
• Caffeine tablets
  
• Food - Peanut butter and jam sandwich, Marmite sandwich, energy bars, gels
• Loo roll
  
• Mobile phone and digital camera
• Flask of strong coffee for the journey home

Leave home at 4:15am, drive about 2hrs15mins to Weymouth, 15 mins to park and walk to Kings Statue to catch bus (service 31) at 06:45am (next bus 07:40am).

Arrive Lyme Regis at 08:20am. Start run at 08:30am, hoping to finish before 09:30pm.

Leave Weymouth at 09:45pm, back home about Midnight!

Swim, bike, run?

Today, I cycled North of Bristol to Tockington Manor School to take part in a dry-run of the inaugural BAD Tri Bristol Triathlon. A pool-based super-sprint triathlon (400m swim, 20Km bike and 5 Km off-road run).

I would have gone out for a long run this morning, but the club were looking for volunteers to try out the course, and I thought that if I cycled to Tockington and back (circa 16 miles) and did the triathlon, that would be a reasonable workout.

The weather was appalling on the way to Tockington - Windy and rainy. However, on exiting the pool after my swim, I was pleased to see the day clearing to sunny intervals.

I was quite pleased with my swim time of 7 mins, which considering I haven't swum since last September, was OK against my best 400m swim time in a race of 6mins20secs.

I didn't particularly enjoy the bike. My legs just aren't trained for 20 Km of all-out time trial, so I found it rather frustrating.

I had totally misjudged the run, not realising it was off-road. All the rain in the morning had made the hilly tracks pretty slippery and my trainers just weren't up to the job. However, on the positive side, my base endurance meant that, whilst my run wasn't particularly fast, I felt comfortable throughout.

The rest of the day was fairly quiet, playing with the children, and then we all went out to Zizzi's for a family dinner, which was a good end to the day.

Update:

Got the results through from the triathlon dry-run. I ended up 4th out of 19. The three in front of me were very fit young things, so I'm pleased with my performance.

Sunday cycle

Decided to go out on my road bike rather than mountain bike.

Left the house at about 5:45am. It was a beautiful morning.

My route went from Bristol, down the A38 to Churchill, through to Winscombe, over to Axbridge and then Cheddar. Up through Cheddar Gorge (photo) and then over to Priddy, West Harptree, Chew Valley lake, over Dundry hill and finally back into Bristol.

3 hours, 50 miles = tired back, tired legs, sore backside.

Back to running tomorrow night - over to the BAD Kids track night at Filton Sports Academy and then a longer route back.

During the ride today, I had the following track running through my mind - No batteries required!

A matter of pace...

Just wanted to get over what a finely balanced race the ONER will be.

To complete the course within the 24 hour cut-off requires an average speed of 3.3 mph.

The ONER in 2007 had 20 starters and only 5 finishers. The second placed finisher completed the course with an average speed of 3.93mph.

So, 0.6 mph average is the difference between just squeezing past the cut-off and achieving second place.

GULP!

GWR Towpath 10k - Race 1

These races are great - Turn up with your number pinned-on, race, finish, go home (happy).

The course is a measured 10km along the towpath under the Clifton Suspension bridge. The terrain only has a few undulations, nothing you could call a hill. It's an out and back course.

Last night's conditions were very good. It was cool with a bit of a breeze, and a few muddy puddles to keep the legs cool.

I went out with the goal of beating my one and only previous attempt at the race in June last year - 41mins01secs.

The race began well, and the first 5km passed fairly easily. However, after the turnaround (19mins28secs) I began to slow. There just wasn't much in my legs/lungs. The difference in pace was very noticeable. But I hung-in and just managed to squeeze under 40mins (39mins58secs), which is a personal best and brought me in 33rd out of 229 finishers.

Today I've recovered well, and could probably do a long run tomorrow, but just to play it safe I'll go out on my mountain bike - Hopefully a hard 4 hour session. I'm making some good progress with my training and I want to make sure I keep progressing, and don't get injured.