September

[Sweder]

Crikey, we're ten days into a new month and I'm just about to post in 'August'. Fitting, I suppose, as my running life has taken a back seat since we turned away from summer towards autumn.

I don't know about you, but I welcome this change of season. The cooler mornings, the damp, soft turf, all conducive to an increase in training. Or, in my case, another re-start. The treadmill sessions in Hong Kong did little to stem the flow of late-night, beer-fuelled socialising. Now the hard work must start. I've set some targets for myself, some I'll be making public, others to be revealed along the way. Right now it's about building base fitness and weight loss.

Landing at Heathrow in the wee small hours of Sunday, I rushed home to a series of warm welcomes. None warmer than that presented by my dogs who, it's fair to say, have missed my running as much as I have. Without further ado we hit the hills. A short while later we returned, breathless, sweaty and, for my part at least, knackered. After a quick shower and an extensive Full English courtesy of my son Jake, I took off for the sun-baked wilds of Beckenham to cheer on the Fabulous Rookettes. You can see how that unfolded here.

This morning, under grey skies heavy with the promise of rain, I set off on a slightly longer quest. It took the best part of an hour to chug up to Blackcap and back, yet I truly enjoyed the journey. And this will be a journey, a journey back to fitness, towards Almeria, Brighton and beyond.

Well, yes ... and here we are again.

[El Gordo]

Crikey, we're ten days into a new month and I'm just about to post in 'August'. Fitting, I suppose, as my running life has taken a back seat since we turned away from summer towards autumn.

I don't know about you, but I welcome this change of season. The cooler mornings, the damp, soft turf, all conducive to an increase in training. Or, in my case, another re-start. The treadmill sessions in Hong Kong did little to stem the flow of late-night, beer-fuelled socialising. Now the hard work must start. I've set some targets for myself, some I'll be making public, others to be revealed along the way. Right now it's about building base fitness and weight loss.

Landing at Heathrow in the wee small hours of Sunday, I rushed home to a series of warm welcomes. None warmer than that presented by my dogs who, it's fair to say, have missed my running as much as I have. Without further ado we hit the hills. A short while later we returned, breathless, sweaty and, for my part at least, knackered. After a quick shower and an extensive Full English courtesy of my son Jake, I took off for the sun-baked wilds of Beckenham to cheer on the Fabulous Rookettes. You can see how that unfolded here.

This morning, under grey skies heavy with the promise of rain, I set off on a slightly longer quest. It took the best part of an hour to chug up to Blackcap and back, yet I truly enjoyed the journey. And this will be a journey, a journey back to fitness, towards Almeria, Brighton and beyond.

Well, yes ... and here we are again.

Good man.

My own revival has been strolling along rather than sprinting, but there has been momentum at least. Agree that autumn is a great season. Have tried running 2 or 3 times over the past month or so but hated the humidity here. Went for a walk this morning and suddenly felt that start of autumn thing that is so welcome -- even if it signals the end of summer. I've been enjoying some good Sunday walks instead and one or two gym visits per week. Not exactly setting the treadmill alight but at just enough to keep the weight off, without actually losing more.

Tomorrow we are off for a couple of days in the Black Forest. Didn't realise until this afternoon it's barely an hour or two from here by car. Apparently has more Michelin stars per square km than anywhere else in Europe, and "is noted for hearty beer drinking".

Oh well. [[forced sigh]]

BTW the Storify link didn't work on Twitter, so thanks for repeating here. Although, if I'm frank, it's... er, but I'm not frank. :=))

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Huh. Naive ol' me thought the Black Forest was actually a forest. Now I see it's so much more ... rather like Sweder. Time to crank out some miles mate, before your dogs get fat.

Do you have some respite now or are you off travelling again?

[Sweder]

@andy The Storify thing was a hurried first effort. Work needed, but it serves as a useful match summary for those interested & unable to watch or follow live updates. Lewes Ladies languish in the bottom half of the early-season table, three places above QPR. Brighton at home this Sunday. COYRs.

@MLCMan yes, a couple of weeks at home, so a good chance to repair the damage. Planning minimum every other day, with a few consecutive short runs to hasten the blubber reduction. Boy, does that ever get harder to achieve after the half century.

[marathondan]

Apparently has more Michelin stars per square km than anywhere else in Europe,

With the possible exception of Bray high street?

[El Gordo]

Apparently has more Michelin stars per square km than anywhere else in Europe,

With the possible exception of Bray high street?

Very good. I never did get to that snail ice cream....

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Very good. I never did get to that snail ice cream....

Do you get wafers with that?

[Antonio247]

Crikey, we're ten days into a new month and I'm just about to post in 'August'. Fitting, I suppose, as my running life has taken a back seat since we turned away from summer towards autumn.

I don't know about you, but I welcome this change of season. The cooler mornings, the damp, soft turf, all conducive to an increase in training. Or, in my case, another re-start. The treadmill sessions in Hong Kong did little to stem the flow of late-night, beer-fuelled socialising. Now the hard work must start. I've set some targets for myself, some I'll be making public, others to be revealed along the way. Right now it's about building base fitness and weight loss.

Landing at Heathrow in the wee small hours of Sunday, I rushed home to a series of warm welcomes. None warmer than that presented by my dogs who, it's fair to say, have missed my running as much as I have. Without further ado we hit the hills. A short while later we returned, breathless, sweaty and, for my part at least, knackered. After a quick shower and an extensive Full English courtesy of my son Jake, I took off for the sun-baked wilds of Beckenham to cheer on the Fabulous Rookettes. You can see how that unfolded here.

This morning, under grey skies heavy with the promise of rain, I set off on a slightly longer quest. It took the best part of an hour to chug up to Blackcap and back, yet I truly enjoyed the journey. And this will be a journey, a journey back to fitness, towards Almeria, Brighton and beyond.

Well, yes ... and here we are again.

I'm glad you´re enjoying the wonderful scenery in the Downs after your trip in Hong Kong, S.

I've been told that Almería half marathon will be held on 27th January.

Looking forward to meeting you and any others who feel like coming.

Saludos desde Almería.

[Sweder]

Thanks Antonio
I may have a NEW RECRUIT for Almeria, a lady by the name of Louise who lives on Twitter as @PinkyAndNoBrain
Louise is relatively new to running, but is pushing her training to be able to complete the half in January.
So it may well be more than just me to join you for the next edition.

[Antonio247]

Thanks Antonio
I may have a NEW RECRUIT for Almeria, a lady by the name of Louise who lives on Twitter as @PinkyAndNoBrain
Louise is relatively new to running, but is pushing her training to be able to complete the half in January.
So it may well be more than just me to join you for the next edition.

It will be fantastic Louise does her first half marathon here.She has enough time to train.

It's a pity that other friends who have come other years can't come next year. I'll miss them a lot.

Saludos desde Almería

[Sweder]

Banked a couple more shorties his week. Really enjoying the cool, sunny weather, if not the time it's taking to get that 'I'm back' feeling. Oh well. Great track du jour this morning, Pat Travers, Boom Boom (Out Go The Lights). I imagined how cool it would be to have that at the end of my funeral.

Last night I commentweeted on Lewes U18s v Eastbourne Town U18s. I won't bore you with another Storify link, but I will tell you this. 3 players carried off, 2 to hospital (none from bad challenges). With ten minutes to go Lewes, down to ten men having made all three changes before the latest injury (captain Zak Dove's ankle bone protruding through his flesh), trailed 3-1. They scored 3 goals in 7 minutes before, in the 4th of 5 added minutes, an ambulance appeared at the East Gate (to collect the injured Rooks skipper). Despite protestations from officials, and as the game continued with Lewes threatening a fifth, the vehicle drove onto the pitch, heading for the dug-outs. Match stopped with 30 seconds left to play, Lewes now 4-3 up. Cue mayhem.

It's unclear this morning if the result will stand or if a replay will be needed. Aparently, once added time is entered, the length of the match is at the discretion of the officials. I'm not so sure. All this, and, most poignantly, an ambulance 'invading' the pitch, on the day that the families of the Hillsborough 96 learned the extent of the appalling abuse meated out to them and their lost loved ones by the colluding authorities after the tragic events of 1989. The findings take your breath away. I sincerely hope those responsible still in positions of authority have the good grace to, metaphorically, if not in reality, eat the gun.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

... on the day that the families of the Hillsborough 96 learned the extent of the appalling abuse meated out to them and their lost loved ones by the colluding authorities after the tragic events of 1989. The findings take your breath away. I sincerely hope those responsible still in positions of authority have the good grace to, metaphorically, if not in reality, eat the gun.

As part of fire warden training some years back, we wardens were privy to unedited CCTV footage of the Hillsborough stadium fire, and all I can say is that it changed my life. I mark that day as the point at which I converted from living-on-the-edge devil-may-care recklessness to conservative, consider-the-downside and triple-check-your-contingencies Mr.Safety-Car.

I totally agree, Sweder. If those responsible are still in positions of authority, then they need to be locked up well away from society, along with those who have allowed them to remain there.

Thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims, for sure.

[Sweder]

Suspect that may have been Bradford City fire. Hillsborough saw 96 innocent fans crushed to death after Police failed to safely control entry to the ground, opening the exit gates to relieve congestion at the turnstiles.

The ground had no safety certificate. Fans and clubs had complained in previous years at the unsuitability of the ground to host such an event (FA Cup semi final). That night police and officials from the emergency services met to 'set our story straight', pointing finger of blame at 'drunk, ticketless fans'. Police ordered blood alcohol tests on all 96 victims, including children, as their still warm bodies were laid out in the club gymnasium, to establish medical support for their 'line'.

Politicians and news agencies colluded to perpetuate the lie that Liverpool fans caused the incident through drunken, yobbish behaviour. It has taken 23 years under governments of both colours to reveal the extent of this treachery. For all that time families of those killed lived with the suspicion that their families had died effectively at their own hand. It transpires that of the 96 killed, at least 41 had the possibility of resuscitation - that is, showed signs of heart and lung activity after 3.15 pm, the cut-off set in the original report as the time beyond which no-one had died. The EMS/ paramedics were in chaos, had no contingency plan for a major incident. 40 ambulances were officially reported as 'on scene' in the official report/ whitewash, but only 3 accessed the pitch (where, we now know, the injured lay dying). This was corroborated by the driver of the one vehicle to reach the Leppings Lane end of the pitch. His testimony, along with 116 other accounts critical of the authorities, was removed from the first report, and 164 further statements 'altered' to bring the reports into line with the story issued by the police.

Liverpool fans have been subjected to abuse, accusations and derision for 23 years, ugly taunts about how they robbed their own dead, urinated on the police as they tried to help victims, caused the whole thing through hooliganism. My own club's 'fans' have been at the vanguard of some of the vilest chanting imaginable (LFC fans also sing about the Man United dead at Munich in '58, but that doesn't excuse anything).

For 23 years the families of the Hillsborough 96 raised their own money, got the backing of a few MPs and celebs, and continued to fight against a huge wall of official denial. Yesterday that wall was flattened, crushed into disreputable rubble, by an independent, open body of inquiry. Amazingly all the skullduggery, collusion, the pre-meditated smearing of Liverpool fans, was a matter of public record. Official papers were released 7 years before the 30 year public access date, and we now know the results. PM David Cameron offered a full and unreserved apology in parliament yesterday.

It simply isn't enough. Those responsible must be named, publicly, and brought to justice for a heinous and despicable crime that has lead to suicides, lives blighted by doubt and torment, to 23 years of unimaginable hurt.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Suspect that may have been Bradford City fire.

You're right of course. Too much Californian zinfandel.

Apologies.

[Bierzo Baggie]

Politicians and police lying, changing statements and covering up just to suit their needs, it’s been going on for years and who’s to say it isn’t still going on today. Sometimes it’s portrayed as necesary for a “greater good” (read “national security” at one level ...or just to “keep the peace”on another).

Can’t see anything changing in the future unless the very core of our democratic system is changed to make our elected leaders and their power bases even more accountable.

What happened at Hillsborough, the subsequent cover-up and how it was possible must be seen in the context of the football hooliganism at the time (I went to a lot of football in the 80s and it was , at times, pretty horrific) and in the context of Thatcher’s campaign to put football’s house in order, the Heysel disaster of a couple of years before and an (understandably?) paranoid police force. Not trying to make excuses, just telling it how I see it and how I saw it at the time. One thing (inevitably?) led to another.....

MLCM...I remember watching the Bradford fire images live on TV as it happened ...really horrific, but somehow reflective of what English football could be like in the 80s at its worst. Watched countness games couped up in cages which would have been death traps in case of a fire or a serious crush. It was sometimes a miracle that this hadn’t happened more often and with even worse consequences (at Bradford at least people could escape onto the pitch). The questions weren't really "how?" and "why?" ...but rather "when?" and "where?".

Heads will no doubt roll, a scapegoat will be found but the whole thing was a terrible tragedy reflective of English football in the 80s.

[Sweder]

Good points BB. Heysel remains a dark stain on our (British Football's) history, and, yes, hooliganism was rife at the time. That's why the attempted cover up was so plausible, so readily accepted by those who weren't there. But the fact remains that what occurred was akin to manslaughter. Hillsborough was known to be a deathtrap, a tragedy in the wings. LFC CEO Peter Robinson asked, on the record, for the tie to be moved to Old Trafford (Manchester United had already offered their ground for the match). Hillsborough was taken off the approved venues list, by the FA, in 1981 following a similar incident when 500 Spurs fans were crushed. On that occasion gates were opened to release the pressure, and lives were saved.

The FA took a central role in all this. They dismissed Robinson's pleas, ignored their own findings from 1981 (and from 1986, when Liverpool fans reported crushing in the same end of the same ground). The police were being used as the government's enforcers in others areas - namely the miners' strikes - and saw themselves AS the law, not just there to enforce it. They fucked up, but there was the easiest, most believable of explanations. It was too easy. Bernard Ingham, Thatcher's press man, after visiting the scene the following day, was quoted as saying that he 'leaned on the spot ... there would have been no Hillsborough if a mob, who were clearly tanked up, had not tried to force their way into the ground.' The people responsible for that lie should lose their liberty.

The hardest thing to read now is that up to 41 people might have survived if attempts had been made to resuscitate them on the pitch. Their families now know which people might have been saved, and that must be like losing their loved ones all over again. They deserve to know who made the decision that their kith and kin should be left to die whilst a sick pack of lies was being prepared to cover the arses of those responsible.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

When police, politicians, football officials and newspapers attempt to cover up their mishandling by blaming Hillsborough on hooligans I suspect (most strongly) they are denying not just their reponsibility, but confirming their own bias and bigotry.

Like the maker of munitions, or the one behind the lines who orders an attack, those who make decisions but who are removed from directly observing their consequences will rarely be held to account. People who gamble with other peoples' lives seem unable to appreciate the dire results of what they do. Then, when catastrophe strikes and the guilty are sought they are often held to be a 'victim of circumstance' and thus considered guilt-less or at least 'forcibly compromised'. The bureaucrats and the lawyers then step in and resolution - if ever achieved - can take aeons. Charles Dickens wrote about this sort of thing back in the 1800s, and whilst in many respects society has improved, the problem keeps showing itself frequently enough to illustrate that it's a persistent failing of human society.

That various man-made disasters occur frequently enough for me (for example) to get them confused is terribly sad and upsetting.

In my younger days I also experienced the hard-headedness of police bigotry, and of course establishment, political and bureacratic bigotry survives everywhere to this day, and I understand that it's mere human nature to treat with contempt those you may despise. But the consequence, as at Hillsborough, is far too often out of proportion and meted out fatally, if indirectly, on the innocent. Bigotry may be understandable - perhaps even in rare cases justifiable - but acting out that bigotry never is. It's far too dangerous and has too often led to many horrible conflicts and wars. Death is final, but bigotry seems to go on forever.

[Bierzo Baggie]

Just reading this, it might be of interest.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/201...iel-taylor

[Sweder]

Woke up to the pure joy of MLCMMan's Sydney Marathon classic. I'd planned to leave well alone for today, having run on three consecutive mornings, but how could I after reading that? Overcast skies, cool breeze, damp downs rustling her autumnal skirts ... this be running country. I donned the vibrams and hit the trails, dogs in tow.

3.4 miles later I arrived home lathered in sweat, a corpulent raspberry, bent double to leak last night's Guinness onto the pavement. A weekend of sporting action at the Theatre of Screams saw victory (my team won the club quiz night by 1.5 points, though I'm still contesting the loss of half a point for naming Paul Young as the singer of Toast. Apparently they had a goofy band name assigned to the single. Pah!) and two honourable draws. The men snatched a point with the last kick of the game against Cray Wanderers, teen sensation Max Howell firing high into the roof of the net to unleash pan-demonium amongst the Rook faithful: 2-2. Yesterday, the Rookettes took on lofty neighbours Brighton & Hove Albion in a tense affair. The match ended goal-less, but that doesn't tell the tale of the on-field drama. The girls have now played the three favourites in this league; Reading (won at home), Millwall (beat them in the cup, lost narrowly away) and now Brighton (honours even). Staying up is the priority, and they're looking good for that at least.

Trouble is I'm enjoying the social side a bit too much. After-match drinks with the teams yesterday was great fun, but I didn't need that third pint. Quiz night was a write off, I lost count of the number of pints of Harveys changing hands as the rounds unfolded. Hong Kong featured a series of late night/ early morning finishes and very little running. The sum of all this, despite a good effort since I got home, is I'm still in deficit. A spell of wagon riding looms in the not-too-distant future.

[ladyrunner]

Thanks Antonio
I may have a NEW RECRUIT for Almeria, a lady by the name of Louise who lives on Twitter as @PinkyAndNoBrain
Louise is relatively new to running, but is pushing her training to be able to complete the half in January.
So it may well be more than just me to join you for the next edition.

Good news re. Almeria Half Marathon. Both Cam and myself are definates with Marian being a possibility at the moment.

Been trying to get out running a bit more over the past couple of weeks hoping to be quicker than last year. It would be good to try and aim for sub 1hr40 again. What do you think Sweder??