Game ON!

Something I think I forgot to mention in my last post was that I have finally done it...after months of reading and watching the efforts of mentalists who think that 26.2 miles is for sissys, I've decided that it's time to see what all the fuss is about...My name is on the list..for the Fling. And so 'game on!'

Upon mentioning my intentions to my good friend Karen..expecting her to do the honourable thing and talk me out of it..she also said..'game on!' And so it is that we have been hounding the experienced among you for advice (If we haven't yet we will!)...sorry!

So taking our committment seriously we set out today to make a start at upping our weekend mileage..a dreicht day but a good run all the same..we did the undulating strathblane route to Killearn and back..the shorter version as we really haven't been doing many long runs lately..10.4 in total.

It was a cold wet run..low mist clinging to Dumgoyne throughout the duration of our run...I'm sure it was a nice day above the cloud!

And the coffee, eggs and tattie scones tasted extra good afterwards!!

And now for a game of Spot the Difference!

DAAA XC Relays

I was working Mon-Thurs this week so I squeezed in a couple of short runs through the week but nothing spectacular.
Thursday N?S I get a text from Maz..garscube Ladies captain, seems she was keen to get a couple of runners to make up a 5th team for the DAAA xc that was to be held at Garscube on Saturday..so, following the advice of one Davie Hall, to do as many xc as possible I felt I couldn't say no...I was going to be there as Registration official anyhow!

11:30 on Saturday I roll up to Garscube..it's a lovely day but I spend the following two hours in the basement allocating numbers....time flies when you're having fun!

Both Cody and Lucie took part in the U11 race with fab results...Cody was the 4th boy and Lucie was just a minute behind him! Well done kids.

Abandoning my post at 13:35 for a race that starts at 13:50 I did a very short warm up and hit the starting pen for the first leg.
Now I am not good at xc, it plays hell with my lungs and I am not good at short stuff but I do know it's good training...

So I set off and by the first corner I knew the pace was way too fast for me...The first leg runners were meaning business and I would have keeled over if I had taken them on! So I killed my pace untill I could breathe once more and tried to focus on my own race..not the fact I was so slow by comparison.

The Garscube course is pretty good as it's a bit trail and not too much gloopy field, I could do with out the bits around the pitches though...boring..

As I settled into a slightly more doable pace I could tell Mo wasn't far behind me, and I have to say it was her that kept me going...

I love the last bit of the route...through the overgrown path by the river..bamboos and all sorts..I take the kids along this route quite often as it's very jungle like! It was a great relief to get to this section as I knew I was nearly there...
I was up against some pretty nifty runners in that first leg and so I didn't do too badly with 9th out of 15th placing...full results are here

Stephanie and Karen made up the rest of the team both doing good times and a promise to do more!!

Well done to the Garscube ladies A team who wiped the board!

And I did work hard!

facebook friends

Today I ran a few miles round Mugdock with Karen. Robert joined us for the first 1.5 but had to quit due to a calf injury.

It was such changeable weather I didn't know what to wear and I was a bit on the toasty side..still we werent exactly reaching race pace so I survived!

As ambled along one of the forest pathways we encountered a group walking with a border collie who was sporting a giant stick... We had one of those polite 'annoyed I have to stop running to navigate around your dog but I'm glad it's not biting me' moments trying to dodge the dog and not even looking at the owners we eventually carried on past them, they were a tad embarrassed.

I forwarded a couple of pictures of the run to facebook, and logged on a little later to see how they'd come out. A comment on the pictures already, from an old school friend Russell-used to help me out with my paper round on really ghastly mornings at 6am many moons ago.....

"Ah, so it was you my Border Collie tried to trip up! Sorry"
(note that school was 320 miles south of here in cheshire!)

Small world eh! And we didn't even recognise each other!

Anyway the run was the best part of 6miles followed by coffee eggs and tattie scones...bliss

3

Ran 3 after work..trying to get out more! Really need some new road shoes...

4.6

Having had a week of little running it was good just to get out of the door and the short 3 became a slightly longer jaunt of 4.6.

Once showered and fed I got round to watching the adventure show from last week, covering this years whw race....http://bbc.co.uk/i/n8rc3/ Boy do I feel feeble for having only ever done a marathon...I wonder...

McAndrew Road Relay Race 2009

Well I bit the bullet and got my racing vest out for the McAndrew relay today. I woke up feeling pretty rotten with the start of a head cold.(..just in time for returning to work.)
I pitched up at 14.20 feeling slightly nervous as it's been over a year since I last did a race (not including the mugdock one which was too much fun to count!)There were tons of Garscubes there, I think there were 5 women's teams alone.

I was on the last leg of three with debs doing second and Emma taking first. That meant waiting around in the stormy conditions for a good 20 -25 minutes at least..Of course with 15 minutes to go I realised I really needed to p but I was a bit wary as I know Deb's has turned into a real speedster and I didn't want to underestimate her time. So I just crossed my legs and hoped that I would finish the run before I p'd my pants.

I had a good chat with loads of folk I haven't seen for ages. A really good atmosphere. Kept my mind off the race and the course which I wasn't sure of!

As the third leg runners were called into the pen it felt like the wind whipped up and reports were coming back from those who had done the first-or in some cases the second- that there was a hellish head wind throughout most of the course. Great!
Rain, snow sleet I can handle but wind...yuck.

So as Debs wee cap appeared over the brae, Jill confirmed my vision with a back up call, I readied myself at the starter..and went.

Round the first two corners...keep it steady..don't kill yourself in the first mile (I know but remember I haven't raced for a while...you forget basic race rules and start doing stupid things if you're not careful!) as I turned onto Anniesland Rd the full force of the head wind hit me...and it was definitely there! I glanced at my watch..thinking I would be happy to be doing 8mm and to my surprise I was maintaining somewhere around 7:15..would I be able to keep it up though..had I broken the 1st rule already?

Concentrating on keeping it steady I realised that I was closing the gap on the runners ahead and so I focused on them.

It wasn't long before i heard the sound of footsteps closing in behind me...the first on the men, on their 4th leg! Oh well to have legs THAT long and THAT fast...

I was feeling quite good, believing that I could keep the pace up for the 3.25 miles..then the hills started. it was on these that despite slowing I manged to pull in the two women in front..as hit the final stretch they put up a bit of a fight which brought out that little competitive edge that rears it's head occasionally and forced me on to stay in front of them...I hadn't worked that hard to loose in the last few hundred yards!

I have no idea about places but on a personal level I was delighted with the run and really quite surprised that i had it in me to pick up the pace. The will hasn't been there for a while and I hope that this really is the start of a new running phase!

Splits: 4:24, 4:35, 4:32, 4:37, 4:33...(last 0.15m 1:01)
3.26m 23:43 average 7:17mm

...

I have been running..... a bit
I did go away for the September weekend for a short visit in a lovely cottage near Kelso en masse
I can't get my phone to upload any photo's cause it's rubbish. The only way I can do it is by mobile up load to face book. Hence no photo's cause of pc rage every time I try.

I have committed to doin the Mc Andrew relay later today..just a short one, I'm rubbish at short ones.
Will let you know how I get on!
I am also planning to do a x country race in Buckinghamshire with the SFR athletics club next weekend..maybe my running is about to pick up a bit more direction after all!

I'm also coming to the end of my 20 days off and am set to return to the action packed streets of Clydebank on Sunday...whoopeee!