2006 - January

[Sweder]

Roses are red
Violets are blue
I'm a schizophrenic
And so am I

Blimey, I hope the PC Police are having a night off . . .

[Seafront Plodder]

Blimey, I hope the PC Police are having a night off . . .

So do I


Don't employ a dwarf with learning difficulties.....























It's not big and it's not clever.

[Nigel]

Sweder made the point about hijacked threads, so I thought I'd transfer onto here.

Yes, Andy's point about the tension-breaking cheer which follows the ref blowing his whistle at the end of the silence at a football game is the exact analogy. And I really liked (and could identify with) MLC Man's story about the Aussie approach to emotions, too.

Right. Let's whack another shrimp on the barbie, then.

[El Gordo]

Good idea.

[Tim]

Hi Andy,

It may cheer you up to know that it's barely two weeks since I badly mucked up a mid-week 13 miler and hit the wall like I've never done before.:o

It was dark & windy and being familiar with the hilly route and my normal hydration/ntrition requirements, I hadn't taken anything with me. I made it home (eventually) but not before I had given lying down and sleeping in the ditch serious consideration. (It seemed such a good idea at the time)

I was wobbling about the road and feeling like i wanted to throw up whenever I stopped moving. Oh the joys of the long run eh?

Still, what doesn't kill us makes us stronger (and smarter)... I hope.

[El Gordo]

Cheers Tim. Yes, these things happen, though I was a bit taken aback that I managed to get so much wrong. I would have been very unhappy to have mucked up a race in this way, but I suppose it's part of what training runs are for -- to make your mistakes there rather than when it really matters.

[Sweder]

A brave post Andy, and one many if us can relate to.

Your story brought back painful memories of my own doomed run this summer. There's not much to say that will bring comfort, other than it seems to be part of the running ritual to lose one's head completely and, for no easily discernable reason, try something that on reflection looks plain stupid.

You survived, and no doubt will approach this week with a good deal more care than was aleady planned.
No bad thing, really.

[Tim]

Cheers Tim. Yes, these things happen, though I was a bit taken aback that I managed to get so much wrong. I would have been very unhappy to have mucked up a race in this way, but I suppose it's part of what training runs are for -- to make your mistakes there rather than when it really matters.

Absolutely. Have you decided what calories you're going to try next? The problem with dried fruit is that while it may be fine for rowing across the atlantic it's just too slow release for running (or at least marathon running & training).

I know you didn't get on with gels but they're not all horrible. Yes, they're all a bit snot-like but some are less wallpaperpaste-like than others. I started with High-5s (which are a bit wallpaperpaste-like) and got used to them but I found them too small for longer runs. I'm currently working my way through a box Lucozade gels which are more palatable if a bit sickly.

Jelly babies are popular amongst the hill running fraternity so they must give you a fairly quick boost but I've never used them myself.

Anyway, don't despair. One bad run does not a bad runner make. It might not have been a pleasant experience, but it's one you'll remember and enjoy recalling and relating in years to come.

[Nigel]

All my long runs have been like that recently. Well, maybe not quite that bad, but not good either. And every training campaign has had several like that. Even the odd 4 miler, too, especially in the taper.

The key mistake for me recently, I think, is running the day before. Problem is that sometimes there's been no way around it, unless I want to get down to running only two days a week. Which I don't, at least not yet, even if SP did have some outstanding success with that approach for his Dublin Marathon, as I remember.


On a different note, and making up for all that pain, I really enjoyed that London Marathon video. I'll forward the link to the people who have supported me in the past and asked me what it's like to run the best race in the entire world. It's a brilliant record - so thanks for that, Andy.

[marathondan]

A brave post Andy, and one many if us can relate to.

Never mind all that, surely the Simile of the Year Award is already sewn up by "a variegated narrow-boat was gliding sedately along the canal, like a lump of butter sliding across a hot frying pan". Not only does it capture the motion perfectly, it also reveals what was going on in the subconcious of the writer. Top class.

[El Gordo]

It might not have been a pleasant experience, but it's one you'll remember and enjoy recalling and relating in years to come.

Absolutely Tim, that's exactly my attitude.

I'll try the jelly-babes in Almeria and report back. Gels aren't usually a problem. It might be because I've been eating well in the last month, with no sugary things at all. Perhaps my palate rejected the sweetness.

[El Gordo]

Tim - I bought some jelly babies but forgot to take them with me. As it happens, the gel I took on 5km, plus the orange quarters, did a reasonable job.

I'm halfway through the report btw, but it's taking longer than envisaged.