Stoptober 2012

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

You really are astonishing, Sweder. Well done mate.

[marathondan]

Excellent work Sweder - clearly, forgetting about a race until the night before is a good strategy. And I almost mean that seriously, if it were possible. I'm always interested to see if it's the legs or the lungs that are limiting performance - it's pretty clear in this case, although maybe you'd expect that on such a hilly course.

When you look at the teams that LL are up against, they really are punching above their weight. After their runaway success last year, they should have a decent chance of staying up?

[Sweder]

   

I'm having some tech issues posting photos from iPad. I know, first world problems and all that ...
Once I've attached or inserted an image, the file is automatically named 'image.jpg' - the second image is similarly tagged by the upload process, and an error message occurs. I've downloaded a program to metatag and rename photos in iOS6 but this hasn't cured it ... My only option appears to be to post each picture as a separate reply, or to post to Flicr or Facebook and link to that.

Frankly I'm exhausted and my will to live has packed it's bags.
Harrumph.

[Sweder]

Le start ...



   

[Sweder]

   

Mile three, the vests are Lewes AC. I spent a good deal of the race, ah, trailing just behind these two. Ahem.

[Sweder]

   

Mile 6, poppy fields to the left, to the right the Big W, beyond Firle Beacon and Seaford Head. Cracking day for it.

[Sweder]

   

Mile bloody 7. Looks flat-ish, doesn't it?
It isn't.

[Sweder]

When you look at the teams that LL are up against, they really are punching above their weight. After their runaway success last year, they should have a decent chance of staying up?

Thanks Dan.
Yes, they're definitely in amongst it now. They drew 0-0 v Brighton and beat Millwall in the cup, narrowly losing away in the league. These two are the class of the field, so far as I've seen. Not to be unkind but QPR were pretty ordinary yesterday. Rookettes should have been two up at half time. Aggers (manager) left them alone in the dressing room at halftime to think on the first 45. Naomi Cole, the England U23 player that I sponsor, must have picked up my boots by mistake. She hit most of the infrastructure at the Pan Siro without getting close to the onion bag.

Gillingham at home in the FA Cup preliminary round robin next Sunday, Spurs two weeks after that. Can't wait.

[marathondan]

Great pics mate. Champing at the bit even more now...

[Antonio247]

Congratulations, S! You're on the way to several PBs next year. Beautiful report and pics.

Saludos desde España.

[The Beast of Bevendean]

Ah, Ashcombe Bottom.

[The Beast of Bevendean]

The mighty Sweder and I have discussed this before, but the Sussex habit of calling any declivity a bottom still makes my inner school-boy snort.
I also remember, for no very good reason, that line in Miss Beatrix Potter's Tale of Jeremy Fisher, 'all sloppy-sloppy in the back passage'. It was hard to read that story to my children when they were infants without corpsing, but it describes Ashcombe Bottom, aka mile bloody seven, perfectly.

[marathondan]

Ah, Ashcombe Bottom.

So, is that Ash Come Bottom or Ash Comb Bottom?

We need to find a hill runner in the area of the Welsh Marshes. Someone who enjoys Lord Hereford's Knob, and frequently goes up Myarth. (Hat tip to Brian Viner for those.)

Good to see you have a brace of 10Ks lined up, Tom. Did you miss the Downland 10 through malady?

[Sweder]

Wee update.
Forgot to mention I bagged 5 miles on Saturday, then ran a decent recovery run on Monday (3.4 miles) followed by a series of small yet perfectly formed soggy plods on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

This morning I'm waiting for Barry's Fun Bus to carry me off to Gatwick for the flight to Cork and the Mayfield Golfing Society Autumn Debauch ... Er ... golf tournament. I am determined to avoid carbs of the solid variety but have no qualms about breaking my self-imposed booze ban. After all, this is the home of Murphy's and Jamesons. It would be motion to wars to refuse.

I have packed running gear, but as ever, the usual caveats apply.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

I have packed running gear, but as ever, the usual caveats apply.

Thank God for that!

[The Beast of Bevendean]

Ah, Ashcombe Bottom.

So, is that Ash Come Bottom or Ash Comb Bottom?

We need to find a hill runner in the area of the Welsh Marshes. Someone who enjoys Lord Hereford's Knob, and frequently goes up Myarth. (Hat tip to Brian Viner for those.)

Good to see you have a brace of 10Ks lined up, Tom. Did you miss the Downland 10 through malady?

How I would love to run in the Marches. Beautiful country. Yes, sequelae from my July Glaswegian injury mean I can manage nothing more than 10k, and that slowly. Had to scratch the Lewes race, and the Barns Green half, in both of which I had places

[Sweder]

Turns out our congenial hosts here in Cork like a drink.
Who knew?

[Sweder]

The golf tour is over. We're still in Cork (at the airport, waiting for the flight home), and I've flicked my resolve back on as easily as hitting a light switch. The debauch was not as ugly as I'd feared, nor the damage so great I can't put it right this week. I'll run later, just to underline the return to boot camp.

I wore the Garmin during rounds two and three. Fota Island's Barryscourt course racked up an impressive 8.09 miles, yesterday's Castlemartyre flog a mere 7.44. Yes, I'm bagging these as cross-training. The elevations will show the undulating terrain. I can assure you, Guinness-lag notwithstanding, it was a physical test, enough for SP see a need to take buggies on both days. Once again, for what seems like yet another in a long line of these events, I finished as the bridesmaid, losing out to a high handicapper who played out of his skin. At leat I was in his group and could take pleasure from watching him rip the course - and the contest - apart. C'est la vie.

I have a writing project in the mix. I had occasion to revisit my Two Oceans race report this weekend. What a pile of tosh. I'm not fishing here, it truly is a train wreck of a report. Unsurprising, given the nature of the race and the immediacy with which I hacked out the piece. Even so, I cannot let it stand, so I'm taking it off for a Director's Cut.

Food-wise I did OK. I did get stuck into a communal bowl of skinny fries yesterday, and I may have eaten half the ciabatta off a steak sandwich, but that aside I've stuck to my guns. I'm on the wagon now, with no fixed finish in sight. Training runs are set to increase from now until Almeria. This is it, time to admit I'm in training, not just base building. I'm ready.

[Sweder]

Update: got home and bagged 3 miles before supper. Weary, heavy legs to start, a ponderous plod, but needed well with some good form in the last mile. Planned for this week: 5 mile tomorrow, 3 on Thursday, 5 on Friday & Saturday, 8 on Sunday. Wednesday is an neforced rest day as leaving at 5am for a working day in Amsterdam.

TOM re-write is underway. I feel better already.
Speaking of Tom, La Roper sent me a message this week. He suggested that, as I am known to favour ill-prepared hilly long runs I make like a place in the Beachy Head Marathon, as one has become available. I declined, partly because I can't be sure I'll be here for the race, but also because for once I'm taking the long view. A brutal, hilly marathon would impact adversely on my steady recovery/ fitness programme. I'd love to run that race though.

[marathondan]

Wow. A low-calorie trip to Cork. Passing up the chance to run Beachy Head. EG getting on the wagon for 14 months. Sweder on there as well - at least until his Christmas Day Buck's Fizz, I'm guessing. This is getting serious. These be strange times, for sure.