January 2015

[Charliecat5]

I did it… I only went and bloody did it!  All 1,548 feet and 13 miles of it.  

It has been a private goal of mine which I have been aiming at for the last six months… to run the first half of the Moyleman. 

Today I had just the excuse I needed.  Whilst our chief race organiser is doing his best to singlehandedly consume every Margarita in existence across Florida, I have been out re-routing parts of the Moyleman and a crucial part of this was to re-set the beginning, as we cannot start from same place as last year.  So if I was re-setting the beginning, it would be good to map all the way to Southease bridge (the first half); that way we can see what impact the changes have on the total length.

I am planning to write up a mile by mile account to post on the Moyleman site to help people picture each stage so I will leave the detail for that, suffice to say that the trails today were the muddiest and wettest I think I have experienced.    Large parts were very slippy and in places, treacherous.  Frustratingly the worse bits were on the downhill sections which did nothing to help my pace.

The weather was OK. Apart from the top of Blackcap, which was concealed in cloud, the views were clear and I didn’t have to endure any rain, but it was cold.  For the first time I suffered, particularly my legs, which resulted in my calves starting to pull over the last few miles.  I would invest into some of those weird running trousers if it wasn’t for the petition signed by the local towns’ folk pleading with me not to wrap my shapely arse in any form of lycra. 

Reassuringly I felt the fittest I've been since I started running back in April and although I was mullered by the time I reached Southease, I could imagine running further… and if the head can imagine this… the body will follow.
 
What’s next? Well the second half of the Moyleman obviously!


The elevation map for the first half: