Running beer-foot.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

I've got to admit that stabbing pains in the knees can be kind of fun. They motivate you in new and different directions (literally) and open doors that otherwise you would have simply run past without ever noticing. It's not that I've suddenly discovered positive thinking! No, far from it...

You know what I really hate in life is those times when the light at the end of the tunnel has gone out, your back's against the wall and some mongrel has a gun against your head; and there's always some cheery bastard who pipes up with a "well it could be worse!" and a cheesy grin that makes me want to vomit. Hate that. Really do. So no, it's not that I have had some God-granted bout of positivism.

It's just that if I hadn't had to stop running due to ongoing knee problems, I would never have started brewing beer at home. I mean, in finding an alternative to running, you might think I'd have tried swimming, or cycling, yeh? But no, I go in for brewing. Something to take my mind off joint pain and simultaneously anaesthetise them, see? Clever eh?

And having made a nice draught beer, then a stunning sparkling ale, and then a bloody excellent pale ale; and now about to bottle the darkest of dark stouts that ever came out of the dark isles; I have to say that it's all working out very nicely indeed thank you. My knees no longer hurt, I'm still fit through all the long walks I undertake in order to avoid drink/driving charges, and I don't have to struggle with motivation anymore.

To be perfectly honest though, I am missing the running, and am now (with the benefit of better knees) contemplating a limited return to some slow, perhaps weekly, trudge around the neighbourhood. The main difficulty is avoiding hard surfaces, but there are some grassy foreshore parks close by, so maybe I can become a kind of "Seafront Trudger". With beer.

I wholeheartedly endorse the beer. Full of vital nutrients too. An excellent training supplement and just the thing for replacing lost yeast cells after a run.

Right. Must dash - I have a specific gravity reading to take.

[Sweder]

May I suggest Seafront Slurper as a new moniker?
Personally I have always championed the positive properties of the Black Stuff relative to running recovery. You'll get no argument from me on that front.

Infact, the only issue I have with your extremely positive post is:
how can I get to try all those fabulous beers?

Good luck with the knees.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

I have been inspired recently by the running of my favourite race (sadly sans MLC Man), but I feel a grim determination growing in my beer gut. The annual Point to Pinnacle race here in Hobart is held each November, and is a very nearly half-marathon from sea level to the summit of Mount Wellington (1270 meters) with no downhill sections. With added publicity, it is beginning to attract larger numbers (1200 runners and walkers this year), and if I only ever ran one major race, this would be it.

So, dodgy knees or not, I feel the need to run this race. Having now moved house to the side of a very steep hill, I am at least getting plenty of general fitness walking to and from work (8 km round trip) but running is still a painful
assault on the bones and cartilage, which my doctor cheerfully asserts will never get better. However, "soft surface" running may be acceptable... and as there's not much sand or grass here on my hill, I am considering the possibility of a treadmill. Not sure if that constitutes a "soft" surface, but at least it's not concrete or bitumen.

Oddly, it's not pain that bothers me nearly as much as the weird, freaky noise that the cartilage makes after a run. It goes all crinkly and sounds and feels like my knee is suddenly full of cellophane, and can be easily heard in a reasonably quiet room. Young children start backing away nervously and calls are made to the Men In Black department. My doctor just smiles and says "ah yes, that knee will need replacing in a few years".

Well sod it, maybe I can get a half marathon out of it before it's supplanted by a titanium hinge...?

In the meantime, beer helps enormously. Very therapeutic stuff, and as I said before, the harsh drink/driving laws ensure that I get plenty of walking done. You are all very welcome to call in for a few next time you pop over for an Aussie marathon.

Dipping into runningcommentary.net always lifts the running spirits too, even if I seldom have any running news to contribute these days. Just hanging on for an Andy sub-5 hour marathon keeps me on edge too. A bit like waiting for England to win back the ashes... one day you're thinking it's never going to happen, and then *bang*, Freddie, Skunk (Kevin Pietersen) and co prove you wrong, so all things are possible, clearly.

New Zealand scoring 332 to beat us in the second last over of the final match of the one day series also proved that the impossible is possible. Over 660 runs in one day of cricket! Even Seafront Plodder would have found that game scintillating, I'm sure. (Though he would never admit to it of course! )

Tomorrow I'm off to scare myself looking at treadmills.

On on!

[El Gordo]

Good to hear from you, MLCM.

A knee that sounds like cellophane? Crikey. It sounds almost marketable. It's not a doctor you need, it's an agent.

It's one of those irrational assumptions of mine that one day we'll share a beer or two on the side of your hill, but in the meantime we, the people of the United Kingdom, demand regular bulletins. The race sounds like a great target, and I'm sure you could make it up there. Whether you'd get back down again is less clear, but you never know.

Why not write a book about it?

Treadmills are a subject slightly closer to my heart than they were a couple of weeks ago. No plans to buy one, but I joined a gym recently, and I've a terrible feeling that they may enter my training schedule, particularly when there's a big match on TV.

Could be a good solution for you. They are much easier on the joints than the road, and you can build in an incline to help prepare for the big hill. The main drawback is tedium. After a few minutes on a treadmill, you tend to question the meaning and purpose of your life. I'd suggest keeping a bottle of beer within view to remind you of the answer to such profound questions.

Good luck.

[Sweder]

Good to hear from you, MLCM . . .

. . . It's one of those irrational assumptions of mine that one day we'll share a beer or two on the side of your hill, but in the meantime we, the people of the United Kingdom, demand regular bulletins.

Here here.
Good to hear from you old boy.
We're all getting away with far too much nonsense in your absence.
Must get over to try that beer some time . . .