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Crossing the Finish! Juneathon 30th!

30/6/2015

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So here we are, the final day of Juneathon 2015! As with last year, I've not found it much of a challenge to engage in some form of physical activity every day (there have been only a couple of fairly deliberate and really quite necessary rest days), the cycle commute helping significantly with that statistic on the few days when I didn't run. The main thing that I shall not be sorry to let go of is the daily blogging. I really do prefer to wait until I have something more interesting than 'went for a run' to say! Nevertheless, true to form I shall include a quick run down (oh those puns, won't you miss 'em!?) before a brief reflection on the month to close.
My next main challenge will be participation as a relay team member in the UKRunChat team at Adidas TR24, a 24 endurance challenge, much like the TrailBlaster12 but twice as far and twice as long (10k laps over 24 hours). I'm not sure what to expect. 12 hours of solo running was one challenge but it was all on my terms and no one was relying on me. In some senses, it might seem less of a challenge to be part of a team but having to perform on demand is going to be a very different experience. One of the main physical differences will be the stopping and starting. At TrailBlaster, though I slowed to a walk when I felt like it, I never had to actually stop. Running relay laps means I'll have to get used to running as well as I can for 10k, stopping, and then starting again. And again. And again. I don't actually know how many laps I'll do but without final numbers on the team it's hard to know. For this reason, after a blissful couple of days of running as far or as fast as I fancied, I'm back into 'I'd better run like this' mode and trying to train my body to get used to running more than once a day, possibly on tired legs. I think I'd better drop some off road running in too over the next week or so, given the ankle stiffness I experienced after TrailBlaster (really not a huge issue but it made me realise how much I'd been road running). So, taking all that into account, training for June 30th included a 5 mile breakfast run and then a 5k treadmill session squeezed in before my evening class. (Tuesday is a half day at work by the way if you're looking at those cycle commute times, I'm not a complete slacker!)
Final Day
Juneathon 30th - Double Trouble!
So that's that for Juneathon this year. Has it been a success? Well, I suppose that depends on your assessment criteria. I didn't set out with any particular goals other than to try and reengage with a community that I'd grown a little distant from having been unwell at the beginning of the year. In that sense, yes, I think it's helped. 
It's given me a reason to get back online a bit more and share what I'm doing. I've been lucky to receive a lot of support from that effort. It's also got me back in virtual touch with a couple of other Juneathon bloggers and made me a couple of new contacts too. It's been reflected upon by some that this year has not seen the same levels of community engagement as 2014 and that may be the case, but I certainly think I have found enough interaction that I otherwise wouldn't have to have made the effort 'worth it'. There probably have also been one or two days where, when teetering on the 'can I be arsed?' brink, the though of my commitment to blog the outcome was the the nudge that tipped me into activity, not onto the sofa. I haven't tracked every single thing... There have been swims, yoga classes, abs crunching, lunges and dumbbell lifts that I've not bothered to mention, but I've picked out the highlights, and in a busy month there have been plenty of stories to share. Of what I have logged through Garmin (running and cycling) it's interesting to see how the miles mount up. If nothing else, Juneathon has given me a reason to do a quick 'stop check' of my achievements over a section of the year and as runners, we don't tend to look back very often. 
Running Only
Running Only
Run and bike
Running and Cycling
Always focusing on the miles yet to run, it's easy to neglect the distance we have already covered, both literally and in a more analogous fashion. For me, it's been a good litmus test for my steadily recovering health and fitness after a very challenging start to the year. I think, when I look at the stats, I can state with some confidence that I'm pretty much back up and running. Up, Running and full steam ahead! Oh Hi July, What shall we get up to then? 
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TrailBlaster12; The Longest Blog for the Longest Run!

29/6/2015

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Just over a week ago, I ran in my first ultra marathon distance endurance event. Having spent the next seven days with my head reeling from the experience and being pretty busy with various other things, I've only just got round to a full reflection. It's a bit epic...
Following busy weekends at the UKRunChat training camp in Eastbourne and Liverpool Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon pacing duties, finally the scariest weekend in June rolled around. It was time for TrailBlaster12, my first attempt at anything over marathon distance, which would see me finding out how many 5km trail laps I could run in 12 hours, from 8am to 8pm on Summer Solstice round a country park in Burnley. Though I ended up being accompanied by a super-supportive friend which meant catching a lift, I’d already decided to camp as there was no public transport  to Towneley Park for 8am on a Sunday. 
Chippy Dinner
Chips 'n' Curry! Yes Please!
Still, it was enjoyable to arrive at the site early and after supplementing my packed dinner with chips and curry from the local takeaway we went for a stroll around the grounds. It wasn’t until after I’d hopped on the round-a-bout and almost turned myself upside down on the swings that I realised being unable to run from a kids playground induced injury would be a bit daft, so we cut the evenings activity short and decided to get an early night! As we walked back to the tent, it was interesting to see many of the preparations for the following day, including the onsite physio setting up his gazebo. I noted with interest an inflatable ice bath; I never knew such a thing existed, though I commented that with the cold wind, gloomy skies and soggy forecast, it seemed pretty optimistic!
The morning started smoothly enough; not the best night’s sleep ever but that was only to be expected and I was at least well rested. A substantial breakfast and a couple of painkillers to be on the safe side (no, the pesky ITB still hasn’t totally settled down) and we were off to collect our timing chips and listen to the details of the day in the race briefing. There’s really very little of interest to say about this point in the day to be honest and that’s to the credit of Cannonball Events staff and their organisational skills. It was nice to see some familiar faces at the start though and I caught up with Scott and Nicola who formed the main part of the UKRunChat relay team and who I knew from Anglesey.

At 8am, on the dot, we were off. I had thought I might walk the first lap just to get the lie of the land but of course, with so much pent up enthusiasm that idea quickly evaporated. As I was planning to stick to the 4:45 marathon pace I’d been training to for Liverpool, a warm up hardly seemed necessary and I decided it was best to just get ‘in the groove’ as soon as I could. I was initially rattled by the number of people speeding off like rabbits at the first shot but the tell-tale batons they were invariably gripping soon gave away their alternative aims for the day; they weren’t expecting to be running non-stop for 12 hours and could afford a bit more speed! Shortly after we set off, I was delightfully unsurprised (I was expecting the pleasure!) to encounter Autumn Howard, an inspirational runner whose own adventures in the sport I have been following since meeting her at the first race of the Todmorden 5k series last summer. Her efforts have been impressive but strangely parallel to mine and this would also be her first ‘ultra’. We caught up for a while but she surprised me by dropping back to walk the first hill, telling me to go on ahead as she knew it went on for about a mile. Now, I had been expecting to walk at points myself but having eventually decided to set off running I was surprised that someone whom I perceive to be almost bionic was walking so early on. Nevertheless, we all have our own game plans and I was fairly sure our laps would cross again later when she overtook me! 
And so the run continued without much incident, my fantastic friend seeing me over the ‘finish’ each time as I completed a lap and doing his level best to supply me with sustenance and hydration from the bags of snacks I had pre-prepared with notional times. Obsessive? Possibly, but I’m a teacher, planning is what I do best (apart from running and eating of course). There was almost a hiccup when I managed to miscommunicate my ‘please may I have some water now?’ requirements as I legged it through waving frantically on one loop  and got a bit dehydrated but this was easily fixed with an iso gel and a liquid top up. This was before I’d realised how many people were stopping to chill out and refuel between laps at the impressive picnic table laid out by the race crew. I really could have done that but I was absolutely determined to keep moving until I had reached official ultra marathoner status at mile 27. With that achievement in the bag at about 2pm, I decided a strategic change of trainers was in order (slightly sore tootsie pegs!) and then awarded myself lap ten as one to walk in entirety as I contentedly munched on avocado and houmous focaccia sandwiches and tried to reconcile myself to the fact that after 6 hours of almost continuous running… I still had another 6 to plod through. As I arrived at mile 30 at a walking pace and a tummy full of solid food that was now beginning to require energy to digest, I began to actually doubt for the first time all day if I could really keep going until 8pm. 
“Well…” I told myself mentally “You’ve already run further and for longer than you ever have before. It wouldn’t really matter if you just walked the whole thing now. Or stopped even. No one would judge you. Cut yourself some slack!”
It was also at this point that my stiffening ankles and bruised toes began to politely suggest that perhaps I had been foolish in overlooking the 'trail' aspect of this race in my training. It’s one thing running a gentle 4:45 marathon on reasonably flat (undulating at worst) roads and another thing doing it on a hilly, grassy trail. I’d not stuck to 4:45 pace either and actually did the first marathon distance in around 4:30. Not superfast… on a road… when you are going to stop at 26.2.
Landscape
A somewhat familiar view...
Thankfully, I then realised just how bloomin’ long it takes to walk 5k. If you think you’d get bored running it, trust me, you’d get a lot more bored walking it. I picked dull legs up into a little jog, spurring them on into more of a trot and then finally back to what passed for running. It wasn’t easy though and I think loops 11 to 14 were probably the toughest mentally. I don’t think I really would have stopped but the fact that it was an option seemed closer to mind then than at any other point. I also realised that those who had walked the hill from the start (she’s not daft, that Miss Howard) had a good thing going, as did the runners whose nutrition strategy was much more about the little and often than my avocado sandwich feast had really allowed. Being flexible is a pretty important life skill in any circumstance but here I think it was actually rather critical. I abandoned the ‘sandwiches at X and Y laps’ plan and opted instead for snatched handfuls of peanuts and bites of banana at the food stall, stopping to drink sips of water and becoming far more relaxed about walking the hills. I also turned to the dark side. So much for real food; I demand ALL OF THE GELS! That only lasted for so long before I started feeling like I was at a children’s tea party, however. 
I have long been familiar with the phenomenon that is the relationship between distanced travelled and the enjoyment of food. The more miles you run, the better it tastes. Fact. The inverse is true for gels however, the more you run, and therefore the more you try and consume, the sicklier and more revolting they become. I had to go cold turkey at about mile 40. No more pukey gels after that point.
At mile 42 I discovered that I can officially go for longer than a Garmin battery. They charge fast though and I was only naked for 2 laps while long-suffering friend babysat the re-charging device on an ancient laptop. Funnily enough, by that point I really wasn’t even that bothered that the data would be incomplete. At a shorter distance that might have (sadly) bothered me but given that it was inevitable anyway and I’ already clocked over a marathon and a half, somehow I wasn’t vexed by this. It did mean I totally lost count of how many laps I’d done though and could no longer regale the saintly-patient marshals with my excited ‘I’ve run THIS FAR!’ updates. 
Garmin 1
That's a fair amount of elevation gain, right?
Garmin 2
And when you add it all up... (plus 2 laps) you get 59 miles and nearly 12 hours!
At around 6.30 pm, I judged that I had about 2 more laps in me. With the end in sight the common psychological boost kicked in and I began to feel really quite good. 7.15 and I started my final lap, determined just to really absorb every moment and suck up the experience. It was also an excellent opportunity to make sure I acknowledged the marshals. I know who faced the tougher endurance challenge that day. It’s one thing to jog on for 12 hours, gazing variously at the same 200 trees whilst being showered with increasingly supportive cheers and applause and fed regularly on salty snacks and sugary treats; it’s another to stand in one spot. On your own. For 12 hours. Looking at the same tree. And increasingly grumpy, sweaty runners. Thank you marshals. I don’t know your names, I don’t know your stories and I have no idea how you find the selflessness required to do that job but I do know that you made my crazy hare-brained idea of a good way to spend a Sunday infinitely more bearable by your smiles and your presence. If I had a hat, I’d take it off to you.
Marshals. You Rock. Thank you.
Lap Splits
The official dirt!
And suddenly, there it was. The inflatable ‘FINISH’ arch that had lied to me an unknown number of times was suddenly telling the truth. What passed for a semi-sprint finish and I felt good. 19:56 on the clock. I’d been on my feet for nearly 12 hours. I checked around me. Yes, those cheers really were for me. I noticed my friend on the side, accompanied by another who had turned up, a lovely surprise. “Are you going to do another lap?” I was asked. “Haha, yeah right! No way, time out!” I declared. 
How could I possibly run 5km in 4 minutes? It wasn’t possible that they were being serious, surely. My timing chip was cut from my shoe and disappeared into the bucket. It was done and dusted. I jogged (I think I jogged. Maybe I walked!) over to the information screen. 19 laps. Not bad. Slightly frustrating that I hadn’t quite made it to a nice round 20 but hardly lacking in achievement. “Why don’t you do another lap then!?” I was asked, apparently seriously this time. “Um… Because… I can’t run 5km in 90 seconds…?” I ventured. It was then that I discovered I really should read the instructions more carefully. The rules, it transpires, are that as long as you start your lap before the cut off time… it’s all good. And no, you can't try and fish your chip back out of the bucket. So there we go. For want of having been a bit more on the ball I could have done 20 laps. That would have brought me to 62 miles, as opposed to my clocked 59. Lesson learned. Still. I shaln’t dwell on it. And you know what? Not one single person has said “59 miles? Why not 60?”
Another lesson learned; scoff not at deflated ice baths. It’s amazing how your perspective changes on that one and no matter how cloudy or grim it might be for June there was little else I could think of that I wanted to do (once I’d eaten the remaining avocado sandwiches) aside from leap straight in to that puffy pool of icy joy. And boy did my leggies love me for it. Many, many thanks to Gary at GW Fitness and Rehab for that one! Good call! As my glutes, quads and calves relaxed (yes, really) into the cooling water, my feet decided to join in the sensory conversation with my brain. 
Ice Bath
Hell, yeah I'm an ultra marathoner and ice baths is just how we roll, yo.
The Damage
This little piggy went to Burnley...
“Excuse me, do we have time for an ouch yet? It’s just that there might be a bit of a blister, and maybe a bruise or two, if you’d be so kind as to become aware of the damage, it might be good to take some action, such as, please don’t put shoes back on us. Also, would it be OK to stop running up that sodding hill now? Please?” So yeah. That’s what your feet look like when You’ve run on them for half a day. Well, that’s what my feet look like. The black toenails were historic, and from what I can tell from looking at other photos, I’ve really got off quite lightly!
In terms of recovery, the last seven days have been every bit as surprisingly fine as the race itself. I knew due to my sheer bloody mindedness that I’d batter myself through as much of the race as I possibly could but I was absolutely dreading Monday morning. This time of year is incredibly busy at work and there was just no getting out of it. I had prepared for the worst as best I could, scheduling totally justifiable student one to one tutorials instead of full classroom sessions and I’d even made Monday lunch before I left on Saturday but there wasn’t much else I could do. I barely slept on Sunday night, waking up almost every hour for toilet trips as my body tried to balance my hydration levels and feeling strangely queasy. Bizarrely, I had no appetite for breakfast (unheard of!) and forced down some Weetabix and a sugary coffee (I never put sugar in my coffee!) as the only things I could stomach. Actually, though I did feel a bit odd, almost like I had a mild hangover, Monday was not even half as bad as I might have feared. I didn’t get my appetite back properly for a good few days though and for the first time in I cannot remember how long I actually left dinner on my plate on Monday night! I suspect, the jiggling up and down whist simultaneously putting food in it just didn’t sit well and perhaps I need to practise that a bit more before my next long distance attempt. Aside from that… Not much to report at all. Slightly sore ankles (Yes, I should have trained for the trails) and a blister or two is pretty much the worst of it. A week later and I’ve now done 3 runs, including a not badly timed 10k race and I feel what passes for normal. The only thing I am aware of really now is that the Recovery Advisor feature on my Garmin has been reporting my recovery as only ‘fair’ far more than usual (I’ve rarely seen it ever say anything other than ‘good’). From this I think I can learn that my biomechanical recovery may well be fine but perhaps there are other processes, such as the cardiovascular that are still getting over the beating. Generally though, it seems ultras are much quicker to get over than marathons, a fact I put down to the reduced speed.

Without turning this into a novella, I think I’ll stop there. (If you fancy a much briefer and far more entertaining summary of the day by the way, please do look at Autumn's 'video diary' of the event on her own blog here.) So yes, this is ‘late’ in terms of my usually prompt blog posts but I really think I’ve needed the time to reflect fully and digest what was a uniquely exceptional experience. It also seems timely to reflect on the achievement as I begin my 35th orbit on the 29th of June. I’ve run 1,470.47 miles in the last 365 days according to Garmin. But there were two laps I didn’t clock, right, so you can add 6.2 miles onto that and round it up to 1476.67... So there’s some distance covered, and there’s some lessons learned and in a year where I have been required to accept many of my own weaknesses, coming to know these better than I really might have liked, I have at once discovered depths to my strength that I could never have known existed.

I am genuinely excited about what the next 12 months will bring!

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Thirty Fourth at Platt Fields 10k

28/6/2015

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Those regular Juneathon readers with a keen memory will perhaps recall that last year on June 28th, I celebrated my thirty third birthday at the Clumber Park 10k TrailBlazer. Having had a somewhat busy June 2015 planned out in the diary, I had been reluctant to commit to anything this weekend as I really expected to feel substantially more broken than I appear to be only 7 days after my first ultra marathon (and yes, I know I still need to do a proper blog about that experience!). As a result, everyone was busy, it was too late to register for any races and I was staring at a potentially solitary birthday with far too much in the way of baked goods all to myself. I'd have jumped at the chance to return to Burnley for the Pennine 10k but I had no way to get there. Home made scones and jam was to be the highlight of my day. Fortuitously however, I found out yesterday while chatting after Oldham ParkRun that there was a 10k in Platt Fields; the Manchester Harriers Platt Fields 10k no less(!), and that there was the possibility to register on the day. So Cinderella did  go to a race. It was no PB, but it was lovely to be able to continue my rediscovery of running a bit quicker (as discussed yesterday) and gave me the time to ensure I came in at an appropriately placed position of... thirty fourth. What else? 
And then I went to eat jam and scones...
race number
results
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Oldham ParkRun

27/6/2015

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Having seen on the Twitter-vine that today was a day for celebrating ParkRun volunteers, I realised that there was only one person I know who leapt to mind when prompted to consider the most selfless and supportive amongst the running community. as I knew he would be Race Director at Oldham ParkRun, I decided to hop on the bike and indulge in a little ParkRun Tourism to say hello. Having Excelled myself but failing to become lost in Failsworth, I arrived at the beautiful, sunny (always helps) Alexandra park with a spring in my step; or a spin in the tyre!?
route
See; no diversions or loop backs! No getting lost!
Oldham View
Kinda like Heaton Park... But more manicured...
ParkRoute
Even the run route was smiling...
Simon, today's race director, (yes, that's him there in the hi-vis!) is a long standing 'run buddy' who I first met at the Southport Sandgrounder in May last year. he runs for Royton Road Runners and it's difficult for me to get through a conversation with him without hearing about one runner or another who he is helping to get up to speed (literally) or coaching to achieve their goals. He's a very regular volunteer at ParkRun, often directing in Oldham and has been very supportive of me personally, especially at the start of this year when I was struggling to maintain my mojo while struggling with ill health. All this, whilst managing his own injuries which have prevented him from running as he'd like to and knows he can. Most runners who have been sidelined for any reason (myself included) know only too well that when injury strikes and you cannot run, the last thing you want to see is other people merrily plodding, trotting or speeding past. It certainly wasn't me who coined the term 'runvy' but I know exactly what it means and to even maintain contact with other runners is tough. That Simon can continue to support and encourage others with a genuine grin is admirable quality, not to be overlooked.
I didn't really have any expectations today for my own run, after all, it was only yesterday that I chanced my first post TrailBlaster12 run and while it went well and I felt good for it, I didn't want to push my luck. Having cycled mostly up hill to get to the park as well, I wasn't too sure what my leggies would have in 'em! Nevertheless, once you get the wind under your tail it's hard to hold it in the tank (it's only 5k after all!) and as i said yesterday, it feels very good indeed to be able to crank the speed up a little having been deliberately going slow for a few months. I don't think an average of about 7:20 minute miles is too shoddy. A reasonably respectable 30th place at 22.42? Yep, I'll take that, thanks!

An unexpected pleasure was bumping in (not literally) to another running friend Mike, who was handing out the tokens at the funnel. I wasn't expecting to see him at all so it was good to catch up there. Mike's got a few impressive accolades of his own, not least of which is that he's the European Indoor 400m Champion for 2015. I don't do sprinting. I don't feel warmed up until I've done 10k. How someone can drive themselves round a track in 50 seconds is quite frankly a bafflement to me. Thankfully, he seemed equally impressed that I'd managed to plod along for nearly 12 hours last week, so I guess we're semi quits but I'm not a champion of anything so kudos still owing! Of course, hanging out with the crew meant I got to go 'back stage' and went for coffee at the parks little caff with everyone while the results were uploaded, actually really interesting to witness that process in action as it's not something I've seen before. Ahha! so that's how the token scannery gizmo-me-widget magically telecommutes the magic numbers to me as a text message? Interesting!

I was a little sorry to tear myself away but with other commitments back in town for the afternoon, having rehydrated and fuelled up on a drop of caffeine, it was sadly time to trundle back down (thankfully!) into Manchester... and today the Garmin Recovery Advisor told me I was back to 'good'; well I could've told you that!
Race HQ
ParkRun HQ; where the magic happens!
Mike
Yay I found a Mike!
Simon
And of course, Simon, the man who makes it all happen!
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Legging it!

26/6/2015

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Today you are going to be treated to another Garmin screen shot I'm afraid, but it's not one without some significance; I managed my first post-ultra run today, a nice steady 10k in which I thoroughly enjoyed a bit of (gentle) speed! Having spent the last few months training myself to go slow for reasons of injury recovery, pacing duties and a need to endure 12 hours of running, it felt really great to let all the 'should', 'could' and 'ought to' just disappear in my trail as I ran whatever the heck speed felt good. I took a steady 2/3 mile warm up as I 'cased the joints' and worked out how I was feeling before kicking out a couple of 7.40 minute miles (or there abouts) and then a slow down to bring it home. Interestingly, later this afternoon/evening as I cycled about town visiting a couple of mates, I noticed the Garmin Recovery Advisor had me clocked at only 'fair' recovery. I guess the old heart rate is still a tickle elevated so maybe there's some background recovery still ongoing... but other than that... I feel good! \o/
post ultra 10k
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Back on the Bike

25/6/2015

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With barely perceptible niggles remaining from Sunday's exertions, I decided I could risk saving the train fare on Juneathon 25th by hopping on the bike to work. Interestingly, I noticed that my heart rate was higher than ususal, (a maximum of 137 bpm, instead of my usual 120 or similar. I guess that just goes to emphasise the difference between biomechanical and cardiovascular recovery!

The cycling went well, no aches, pains or niggles, but I've been continuing to play it safe on the running front, following previous experience with causing myself injuries and the like. Maybe if it's all good tomorrow I'll get out for a gentle one though, then I can stop drooling at runners in the street like a Lycra fetishist!

Mmmm... Lycra...
Picture
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And on the Third Day...

24/6/2015

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On Juneathon the 24th, and the third day after the amazing experience that was TrailBlaster12, I have been extremely surprised by just how fast I appear to be recovering. (Touch wood) not a hint of the ITB injury I have been dealing with, next to no soreness in my legs at all, feet still a little tender, an occasional twinge in my left ankle. I think the fact I have apparently got off so lightly is not by accident though, and am continuing to be as careful about my nutrition and training as I was in the lead up to the event. Eating well (despite an uncanny lack of 'runger'), continuing with my foam rolling and stretching routine even though I may not feel like I need it and engaging only in steady active recovery seems to be working so I'm running with it. Well. I'm not running. Yet. see how sensible I am? Today, feeling pretty awesome and realising that I had without thought broken into a jog a couple of times in the park with my students (if you can't let your hair down enough to jump on a climbing frame or two on the last day of term, when can you!?) I did a slow gentle 15 minutes on the stationary bike and then the same on the cross trainer before some very sensible weights/core work and 20 slow lengths of the (small!) pool. All good. We shall see what tomorrow brings!
And no, I still haven't got round to writing a proper race report. There's just too much to say to rush the job and to be honest, I'm still not sure I can articulate it well enough to do the experience justice yet. But I will do, and in the mean time, I would like to share this blog post and video of the day made by fellow ultramarathoner and constant source of runspiration, Autumn Howard, who has clearly been more organised than me in recording her reflections!

Grab a cuppa and enjoy...
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Lapping it Up

23/6/2015

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Though recovery is progressing better than I might have dared hope, I have yet to make time in a busy last week of term for a full race report from Sunday and so you'll be treated to yet more retrospective drip feeding on TrailBlaster12, my first attempt at an ultra marathon on Sunday:

The details of the lap splits were released yesterday and whilst I had a fair idea of how things had gone from my fractured Garmin data (there were 2 laps where I had no watch while my mate charged it on a laptop in the race tent!) I tracked that in miles, so it was fascinating to see the details of the actual laps, at 5k measurements. While I did slow down in the second half of the day (after my slowest, walked, 'lunch lap'!) I'm surprised how consistent I actually was, and while my fastest, at at 31:36 is certainly no 5k PB, given just how hilly the trail was that's hardly a shock.

Lap Info
I've spent too long already trying to work out the gradient but suffice to say it got steeper as the day went! It looks from my data as if there was a total of about 55 meters of climb in the lap... but of course that wasn't evenly spaced over the 5km. Anyway. Other, fairly dull news for Juneathon 23rd is that I managed to double my time in the pool from 15 minutes of recovery swimming yesterday to half an hour today and have staved off a certain amount of post-race anticlimax by registering for two more races. I will be enjoying and certainly not racing the We <3 MCR 10k on July 12th (about 3 weeks recovery for that one!) and the inaugural Rochdale Half Marathon (another Cannonball Events special!) on the 23rd of August... Two whole months away!
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TrailBallad12; 59 Miles in Haiku

22/6/2015

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I don't think my brain has returned to full capacity yet and I've found neither the time nor the motivation after managing what passes for a normal day in work to fully write up in blog form the incredible experience that was TrailBlaster12. In so far as Juneathon goes, I managed a 15 minute recovery swim and about an hour in the jaccuzi/steam room!
I did write this though:

TrailBallad12; 59 Miles in Haiku

As I eat breakfast
I wonder why I’m running
In this race today.

We set off! I ask
If I can really do this?
Do I have the strength?

Feet fly over earth
Grass and gravel, up and down
In the second hour

With smiles and chatter
I befriend other runners
On this lap or that.
Burnley Landscape
In this, the fourth hour,
I commence the approach
To previous limits

Hour five and I reach
Mile twenty seven; I am
An Ultra Runner.

Time for sandwiches!
I arrive at mile 30
And walk a whole lap.

As body digests
Energy is drained away
Hour seven is dark.
Less than five remain.
The smell of grass fills my nose.
I exist in space.

Now a warm, wet pain
I have never felt before
Appears in my toe.

In hour ten I watch
Dramatic dark clouds roll by.
Mind dissolves skywards.

Two hours to go.
I have passed forty five miles.
Watch battery dead.
Stats screen
Found my new boundary
Today between land and sky
On Summer Solstice.

An ice bath and food;
A recovers duo.
I hear I came third.

As I lie in bed
I give thanks for all I have;
Mind, body and friends.

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Juneathon 21st. Shortest Blog for the Longest Day.

21/6/2015

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TB12 results
That'll Do, Pig.
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    Glittermouse is a visual artist, educator and practising Buddhist who also likes a bit of a run from time to time.  In 2014, she realised others could benefit quite a lot from her reflections on running trials, tribulations, triumphs and trip-ups… so she added another volume to her package of blogging adventures.
     
    You can find out more and source links to other projects on the 'home' page of this site.

    Mandala

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