Monday 30 January 2006

looking better

thanks for all the positive support guys'n'gals

Saturday
Northern Cross Country Camps today, so it's off on the club bus to Blackburn with teenbeanz.
Team manager says he reckons teenbeanz may be a counting memwber of the team today, as only four U17s on the bus.

Arrive in plenty of time to frozen puddles in the car park but a glorious blue sky - and a cold wind.

Teenbeanz goes off to investigate the course, while I investigate the clothing stalls ands buy a new fleecy hat and some more magic £1 gloves - I thnk the magic bit is that they get lost easily but at least as they are even handed, odd ones will always match.

Teenbeanz is in the first race and another U17 turns up with his dad, so maybe teenbeanz will not count after all. I go down to the start with the lads to collect their outer layers in a bin bag before the start

and they are off! I find somewhere to cheer him on at the end of the first lap - and he has at least two behind him

and the finishers begin to come in - but where is Tom our No1 runner? not to be seen - and here comes teenbeanz with someone close behind - we yell as he comes in and he stays ahead - so not last !

it turns out that Tom dropped out after the first lap - and TB saw him walking back, so knew he had to do as well as possible to count, and several others dropped out too so TB was even further up the field than it appeared - he was pleased

we went over to teh stalls and did some spending - a hoody with the race date on, and a fridge magnet with his pic - and one for grandma.

then a bonus - XB and the xbettes turned up to support Bobbis - so a natter with them and we had to collect the senior ladies' kit too

then U17 girls, so we walked out to one of the hills to watch and encourage them - a tough hill too - rather rutted with tracks and muddy in places

Collected the kit for the senior men and then walked up the hill to watch them and take a few pics - got very confusing, because the men passed our point 4 times on their 12 km race, so there was multiple lapping going on!

and soon it is time to go home - full of fresh air and some exericse, if not running, for me

Sunday
Another early start as tigerrunner picks me up to go to Tough Guy - we get there with time to look at some of the course - eek the ice on the pools is ¼ inch thick!!

Met up with Meldy, cougie, Annaspanna, oxymoron, jj and the count's lady and a good time was had by all as we wandered through the course watching the crazy people struggle through freezing cold water, over enormous obstacles and electric fences - mad all of them!

Back at the finish I wondered what time TR would do as I had only managed to see him at the first obstacle and then I lost track of the order of the fences and did not see him again. And then he was there - showered and cleabn but VERY cold - shakign so much that he coould not put on his gloves or hold a cup to drink the hot chocolate. So it was back to the car and warm up. Then off to the pub for Sunday lunch and home to my long suffering family.

Another day of fresh air and some walking but no running for me.

Monday - and a run!
Was supposedotbe my 'long' run today - but I knew I had so much work to get done and a meeting at 2 pm so I changedto a short 3 miler to turn over my legs and the long one tomrrow.

As it turned out I was pleased I did a short one as my calves were SO tight - never really loosened up in the whole run - lack of use and no stretching over the last week I guess.

So just my normal route out and back up the main road, with the killer hill on the return and keeping my HR under control.


Mile Pace AHR
1 13:12 133 main road to cross and then mostly downhill
2 13:51 135 downhill to the turn
3 14:13 138 really must get this under 14:00
0.25 14:55 137 road to cross and uphill
3.25 13:51 136 45:00

It was good to be back running - even if it was not very pretty.

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