Thursday, February 05, 2009
Feeling Better... Weather Shite...
Well. I finally got rid of the lurgy and we end up with about three winters worth of snow in just under a week! It's the kind that quickly turns to slush and then decides to freeze, so less than ideal running conditions. I have been out for a slow march with my pack instead of the hill run I had planned... daren't even walk up hill... if I break a leg or something at this stage, it's game over...
... Seven weeks to go before we fly to Ouazazate!!
I have had my gym programme revised- she has changed the weights, and made them much more serious. I now have to squat with a 20 kg bar on my back, do lunges holding 5 kg weights and do deadlifts. I also have upper body stuff, in the form of circuits. She has promised me it'll change my body shape!
Had a good walk Saturday- it was the Tring 2 Town. This was originally a 40 mile route along the canal from Tring in Herts to Brentford in London, until it was made into a two day event. We decided to do the first day, which was Town 2 Tring. Well, when I say decided, I hadn't actually entered it- Perks and Tricia, who is doing the MdS next year had, and suggested that me and Rach go along to walk and keep them company.
We left Perk's car at Tring and took mine to the Premier Inn at Brentford, where we met Rach and settled for the night- although I didn't sleep well. The start was a civilised 9am, and me and Rach hung back during the pre race briefing, trying to look inconspicuous. I saw a few faces I knew, including Jo, who has just completed the Lanzarote Ultra and is in training for the Arch to Arc- amazing lady! Most people there seemed to be running it, except us so me, Rach, Perks and Tricia stuck together. We managed to maintain a fast pace, around 4 mph, for most of the day as the cut off times for the first three checkpoints was quite tight.
Not much I can say about the scenery... flat, canal on the right, flat, canal on the left, dodge the dog sh*t and used syringe on the ground... I managed to choose two wee stops next to a busy train line... and we found ourselves on the wrong side of the canal at one point, and had to traverse a lock...
My legs started to ache at 20 miles, and really felt them for the next 10. Probably cos my pack was the heaviest I'd had it, around 5kg- 6kg. I felt much stronger after 30 miles though so the nurofen had probably started to kick in! It was Tricia's first Ultra, she felt the cold a few miles before the end but we helped her put another layer on and make it to the end. We all got a t- shirt and medal, plus soup- even me and Rach! Best event I've ever gate crashed!! We finished in around 10 hours and 40 minutes, so a PB for us all.
we got back and tested expedition meals and pot noodles... I had experimented by piercing a bag of crisps, squeezing all the air out, crushing the crisps, leaving it for a few days before stuffing it into my rucksack for the day. The result? Crisp and perfectly edible, so I think crisps are on the menu for the Sahara!
... Seven weeks to go before we fly to Ouazazate!!
I have had my gym programme revised- she has changed the weights, and made them much more serious. I now have to squat with a 20 kg bar on my back, do lunges holding 5 kg weights and do deadlifts. I also have upper body stuff, in the form of circuits. She has promised me it'll change my body shape!
Had a good walk Saturday- it was the Tring 2 Town. This was originally a 40 mile route along the canal from Tring in Herts to Brentford in London, until it was made into a two day event. We decided to do the first day, which was Town 2 Tring. Well, when I say decided, I hadn't actually entered it- Perks and Tricia, who is doing the MdS next year had, and suggested that me and Rach go along to walk and keep them company.
We left Perk's car at Tring and took mine to the Premier Inn at Brentford, where we met Rach and settled for the night- although I didn't sleep well. The start was a civilised 9am, and me and Rach hung back during the pre race briefing, trying to look inconspicuous. I saw a few faces I knew, including Jo, who has just completed the Lanzarote Ultra and is in training for the Arch to Arc- amazing lady! Most people there seemed to be running it, except us so me, Rach, Perks and Tricia stuck together. We managed to maintain a fast pace, around 4 mph, for most of the day as the cut off times for the first three checkpoints was quite tight.
Not much I can say about the scenery... flat, canal on the right, flat, canal on the left, dodge the dog sh*t and used syringe on the ground... I managed to choose two wee stops next to a busy train line... and we found ourselves on the wrong side of the canal at one point, and had to traverse a lock...
My legs started to ache at 20 miles, and really felt them for the next 10. Probably cos my pack was the heaviest I'd had it, around 5kg- 6kg. I felt much stronger after 30 miles though so the nurofen had probably started to kick in! It was Tricia's first Ultra, she felt the cold a few miles before the end but we helped her put another layer on and make it to the end. We all got a t- shirt and medal, plus soup- even me and Rach! Best event I've ever gate crashed!! We finished in around 10 hours and 40 minutes, so a PB for us all.
we got back and tested expedition meals and pot noodles... I had experimented by piercing a bag of crisps, squeezing all the air out, crushing the crisps, leaving it for a few days before stuffing it into my rucksack for the day. The result? Crisp and perfectly edible, so I think crisps are on the menu for the Sahara!
Labels: gym, snow, Tring 2 Town
