Huh .... where did 2007 go?

I've just submitted an application for the 2008 White Horse Challenge. This is a 150km cycle race around the Berkshire countryside in April.

I always do this at the end of the year, I get gun-ho and sign up to marathons, triathlons and cycle races for the next year. I forget about the hours of training that lies ahead, the cold dark mornings in January and February, the panic in March as the early races approach .... and then in April I normally fall apart and get cross with myself for entering these events.

I know that if I don't do this now, while the joy of crossing the finishing line in 2007 is still fresh in my mind, I will never enter any events.

Tentative schedule for 2008

06th Apr 2008: Grove half marathon (confirmed)
13th Apr 2008: London marathon (waiting for lottery place - 9th year of applying)
18th May 2008: Copenhagen, Denmark marathon
25th May 2008: Edinburgh marathon (not sure about this one if I do Copenhagen)
15th Jun 2008: 70.3 Half Ironman, UK (confirmed)
23th Aug 2008: Reykjavik, Iceland marathon
07th Sep 2008: Ironman UK

................unless I win the lottery, in which case I will be sitting on a beach.

Finished marathon

The first 15 miles were great, I felt fantastic, hitting around 8:30 minute mile pace .......... but then I died. The earlier climbs and a killer over the top of a flippin huge mountain at 23 miles wiped me out. I was resigned to a slow overall time and was now aiming just to finish. The weather was terrible, wind and rain, but ever onwards.


At about 24 miles a women 100 meters in front of me suddenly stopped and started shouting, grasping her leg. Cramp!!! I stopped to help her, much to the relief of fellow competitors, but I was not racing for a time just to finish. She had cramp in both legs. She moved to the ground and I lifted both legs up in the air pushing them against my chest, as I rubbed her calves. I walked with her for a couple of minutes and left her walking slowly but determined to finish.


I crossed the finish line and was not too disappointed with my time, considering the weather and hills. Its certainly sparked me on to do another marathon soon, but this time, a marathon without any mountains.

3 days to go

Yikes ........... panic...............

12 days to go

I ran in the "Hanney 5 - Stewart Horwood Memorial Trophy" race yesterday. The winner finished in a time of 25mins 32 seconds. This was toooooo fast for me, I tried to stick at my marathon pace and was quite please with 39mins 31 seconds, a bit too fast.

Gulp only 12 days to go.

14 days to go

I'm running the Hanney 5 mile tomorrow, its a good course, I train on the roads every week.

16 days to go

All too often nowadays I find that work stuff fills my head and the only way to clear the junk out, to reset myself, is through a tough workout. A full on, gritted teeth, gasping for air workout, that's what happened today at the gym. It started with knocking up the tread mill to a 14% incline, continued with the rowing machine, which I crawled off gasping for air and then pulled and pushed the weights till I could do it no more. I'm sure it was incredibly stupid ...... but just sometimes ....... I need to do it.

Now, I'm back to proper controlled training.

19 days to go

I've been out for the count with a cold and flu for the past couple of weeks. I'm recovered now and back in training for marathon in 19 days time (OMG) !!!!

38 days to go

Hit the gym this evening. Started on the treadmill with heart rate really low for the first 5 minutes but them knocked up the speed and heart rate bounced up to 175 bpm ..... nearly collapsed at the end of the work out. Probably should not be doing this, but had a lot of aggression to work through !!!!!! 30 minutes on the weights and then crashed into the steam room ...... Ahhhhh

No oomph

It was Sunday 7am and a great morning for a run, a cool crisp morning with blue skies and not a cloud in sight ...... perfect.

However, I got to about mile 4 and died, no oomph. I looked at my stop watch and was shocked by the slow time. I struggled for another couple of steps and then stopped. It was a beautiful clear quiet morning but I couldn't run another step, I can't explain really, but today I had no oomph.

I have 40 days left until my marathon.

Older

Its my birthday today ......... woke up this morning a year older,wiser, grumpier and slower, oh no I'm soooo old.......

46 days to go

Crikey 6 dead rats, 4 dead rabbits, 2 dead pigeons and a partridge in a pear tree, well OK not the last one, but that was the carnage I saw out on the roads yesterday, very smelly.

I've bumped up my distance for longer runs and now go running with a water bottle, its awkward but at least I'm not dying of thirst and ending up like a crispy rat on the side of the road. Yeuk, I'm off to think about something else.

50 days to go

Phew knackered from a 10 mile run this evening, started out way tooooo fast, I nearly died at mile 7. I've downloaded a marathon planner schedule training thingy. Oh dear I'm rather behind. I've got to do another 13 miles before Saturday and then next week I have to run 50 miles in the week?

52 days to go

I've calmed down now and stopped being so angry all the time ...... side effect is that I can't run as fast?!!!!!!

Just got back from my usual 10 mile run. Found myself running the last 2 miles in dusk. Alas I trod on a dead rabbit which I failed to spot because of the failing light. (Yeuk).

Still running on angry

I've just got back from a 10 mile run this evening. 10 miles of running on angry. Yet again my anger and frustration with life and work pushed myself all the way around my run. The higher heart rate and aggression partnered easily with my anger.

I hope this phase of being angry all the time goes a way soon.

60 days to go

Despite the long weekend up in London watching "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" I was still able squeeze in a couple of training runs. Gosh only 60 days to go until my Snowdon marathon.

The Joseph show was OK, I thought the director compromised on the show as it did not seem to flow very well. The performers were excellent, the narrator played by Preeya Kalidas was superb. (I could have done within out the kids in the show, I found them very annoying).

Running on angry

I went out for a 10 mile run. I achieved a PB. I was able to do this because I was angry and forgot about the running. The more angry I got the faster I pushed myself. As I approached the end of my run I had worked myself into such an angry state that I could have given Paula Radcliffe a run for her money. I would probably still be running if it had not have gotten dark.

Alas, my anger still resides with me and now causes me to be awake at 10 past midnight.

Hmmm..... anger..... good for training bad for sleeping !!!!!!

Monday morning

"Bjork - Play Dead"

Oh dear its Monday morning and the work week stretches out in front of me ...... I must stop procrastinating and get a grip.

Can I just go and hide?

I know, I'll go for a run at lunch time that will save me.

Back to life

So its been two weeks since I came back from my holiday and earlier this week I finally snapped back into life. I had a shave (getting too much grief at work about growing a beard) and no.2 haircut. So that's it, back to humdrum.....

On Monday I mapped out a 12 week marathon training schedule. doh! I'm arelady behind as I've only managed a six mile run this week. Just about to hit the road for a nine mile run, although its just starting to rain!!!! oh well guess I'll get wet.

English rugby hero Martin Johnson

I met Martin Johnson yesterday. He came into my office as part of a corporate motivational talk, (my company is sponsoring the Rugby World Cup)

He's a great guy, although I did feel sorry for the chap, having to come to a very boring data centre with a load of blokes asking for his autograph every two seconds.......

Had a quick chat with him about the Tour de France, as he saw a stage while he was on holiday in France this year. Great guy told some good stories.