December 2010 review

Well we have reached the final day of December, i hope that everyone managed to complete the month with some form of training. Debs sent out the invite for anyone wishing to meet whether just for a run or for all those Marcothonies out there completing the 31 days, well done to you all, sorry i could not make it to Pollok Park today but it was always going to be a last minute thing if i could make it so hence i didn't reply to Debs(sorry), i ended up doing 14 miles at 14:35.so now back to December

I managed to run 25 days out of the 31
my lowest daily mileage was Thursday 9th with 4.66
my highest daily mileage was Sunday 5th  with 23.33
my total mileage was 256.11
average daily mileage 10.24

2010 review
***Total recorded mileage 1982.58 ( no details for jan/feb)***

Shettleston Bob

Week 2 Marcothon(the wheels came off the bogey)

Week 2 kicked of with a morning run on Wednesday at 5:15am ,the weather was so cold whilst wearing 2 pair of gloves i mis-pressed my watch and a mile later realised that my run wasn't being timed, i then had to reset it ,i managed to do 6.30 miles before walking to work(another 4.5 miles) as no trains or busses were running and my car was stuck at the house.
  Thursday i  walked 1.5 miles to get a lift that i had arranged, the temperature was showing minus 16 in the car and i knew that i would need to have a late run as Angela was going out after work as she was going to get her hair done for her Christmas night out on Friday, i managed 4.66 miles at 8.30pm. this also meant that i would need to run early Friday morning so i got myself out at 6:15am and did 8.69 miles giving me 2 runs inside 10 hours ( with very little sleep).
  Saturday i picked up Angela up in town before heading out for my run although the pavements are nearly clear of snow, there was patches of ice still lying so i headed for Robroyston and Hogganfield Loch, (some off road) this gave me another 12 miles.
  Sunday my Marcothon came to an end, i was out most of the day shopping and didn't get back to the house until after 6pm at which point, i decided i couldn't be bothered ( i hear you say lazy B**** ) yes you are correct so i opted for a bottle of beer and relaxed, after a few more beers my mind started telling me that i should have went for a run but whats done is done.
 Monday i kicked myself out of bed at 5am and was out the door for 5:17, i ran 14.62 miles in the freezing cold in a  time of 1:51:37,only to find when i returned to the house to go to work the car was showing the temperature at minus 7, i wondered what it might have been nearly 2 hours earlier.
 Tuesday, another 12 miles at 5:15 am the official last day of Marcothon week 2, how i regret not keeping up the challenge but i will continue to see how many days i do run in December, i would like to wish everyone at the halfway point the best of luck.

Wednesday  6.30
Thursday      4.66
Friday          8.69
Saturday     12.09
Sunday       D.N.R
Monday      14.62
Tuesday      12.02

Total Mileage 58.38 up to end of my Marcothon i will now revert back to adding my times Mon - Sun

Week 1 Marcothon

Like Thomas L ,now that week one is over its time to look back over a week where we were all trying to run in temperatures between minus 12 and 15, I think someone is taking the piss ( sorry D) or having a laugh. There are some good points to take from attempting to run as much as possible, mine from week one are:

1) I ran all week
2) My long Sunday run was just over 23 Miles
3) I Managed 10. miles at 5am on Monday prior to the heavy snow fall (thank goodness)
4) Decent mileage considering the week it has been

Here is my totals for the week:

Wednesday 10.1 Miles
Thursday  8.24 Miles
Friday 8.07 Miles
Saturday 10.04 Miles
Sunday 23.33 Miles (mostly Trail)
Monday 10.79 Miles
Tuesday 5.67 Miles

Total Mileage 76.15
* all can viewed on Garmin Conect Site

Clyde Stride 2011

Yesterday i had problems trying to get on the Born 2 Run website, i think it was down most of the day, however Lee contacted me this morning regarding it, thanks Lee, now i can say that my entry is in so i can relax knowing that i have acceptances for the Fling,WHW,Stride and the Devils. That gives me my 4 races any other that i manage to fit in will be a bonus, back to today, i managed another eight miles sliding along pavements of slush in day three of Marcothon Month taking my total to 26 Miles, only 28 to go.

Clyde Stride/Marcothon day 2

I have decided that i needed to send in my entry for the Clyde Stride 2011, however i am having problems in the final stage of payment,( no i my cheque has not bounced) so i have contacted Mrs Mac to sort the problem out, i know she will, it is a small blip but i want to make sure that although there are only 29 entries shown on the website, i want to participate again next year, this was my first ultra in 2010 so it means a lot to me, i will wait for Lee to advise, so meanwhile back to today i set of in day 2 of my Marcothon, i managed 8 miles, i thought at one stage these motorist don't like runners, i was on, off, on  and off pavements so many times as i tried to get in to a rythem i thought they want to run me down, not even a head torch did the trick, but at least day 2 has now passed, so now i can look forward to tomorrow.

Running total 18 Miles after 2 days

Welcome December

Most folk have been talking about snow but lets talk about December, it's Marcothon month, did we all get out today? are we going out tomorrow? will we all complete December? who really knows, all we can do is remain positive , i have not enroled on Facebook but i am with you all in spirit as i plan to run every day in December,yes the countdown is on and most of us have at least did the first day, only thirty to go so lets forget about the white stuff is only a minor setback and remain positive, hey santa is coming so continue to open your advent calendars. and hopefully we will all complete every day in December, Maybe santa might bring you something to get you motivated into the new year when Marcothon has finished.

Wednesday 1st December 10 Miles ( in the white stuff)

bye bye November

I never thought i would be glad to say it but thank god November is bye, i thought that it could not get any worse i managed a rather dreadful 142.5 miles over 30 days, P**H, again the only plus was my three long runs which added up to 68.5 miles,

6th Nov - 24 Miles on WHW
13th Nov - on Holiday
20th Nov 27 Miles over Barr Fort and Croy Hill
27th Nov 17.5 Miles in the snow

Stats

Whilst it may be less than six weeks to Christmas most of you will now be starting to focus on training runs for the WHW. Reading the forums most folk tend to use the Highland Fling as stepping stone, so i thought to cheer you up as you train you can mull over previous fling results (by surname/time), if i have missed your name my apologies,i hope this gives you that boost over the winter period that may just encourage you to keep your training up. Happy Training

Enter Stats Page

Running Update for November

Monday 15th November- on Holiday

Tuesday 16th November - 9 Miles

Wednesday 17th November -  10 Miles

Thursday 18th November - DNR
Friday 19th November - 9 Miles
Saturday 20th November - 27 Miles (back out to Barhill Fort and Croy Hill - see map)
Sunday 21st November 22.5 Miles

Total Mileage 77.5

Australia calling

I returned home on Tuesday morning at 9am and was out running nine miles by lunchtime, i wasn't long in when the phone went, my mate Stu  from Oz on to say that he saw my acceptance for the WHW, as we chatted he tells me that he has also got a place but is waiting on confirmation for a place in the Western States Race which is confirmed in December and is run around the same time as the WHW (he's keeping his options open) so we will wait to see which race he takes up.

Central Park

My first weekend without running in several months, i had booked a 40th birthday surprise for my wife Angela by taking her to New York, we flew out on Friday 12th November so i knew that no running was going to take place, the guys of course said you can't do new york and not run Central Park, i said no its a proper rest, i will just enjoy the place. We did the bus tour including Liberty Iisland and the Empire State Building along with the other sites,Ground Zero, the Rockerfeller Centre and Fith Avenue shopping. on Sunday we went to Central Park, Angela wanted to do the Horse and Carriage and i wanted to see John Lennons Memorial, so off we went, the Weather was fantastic all weekend and as we drove through the park i could not believe the number of people running,cycling, on rollerblades and the people being driven round like us, oh how i wished i had stuck a pair of shoes in the case, but at least i returned home with a memorable time and a short rest from running.

WHW Confirmation

What a wait it has been to find out if my application was going to be accepted, i wasn't sure whether i would need to run a qualifier or not but after some words of encouragement from the forum my e-mail form stan arrived to say that i was being given a place so now i can enjoy whats left of this year and look forward to 2011.

1st - 7th November (update)

I have managed four runs in the first seven days of November, it was good to continue with my long run yesterday, i headed out to Drymen and back, my total distance being twenty four miles in a time of  three hours and twenty minutes on the whw, today i did sixteen considering the month of October was poor i am pleased, i will loose a weekend next week as i will be in New York celebrating my wife's 40th birthday, i think i can afford to take it off or i would not be forgiven. My plan is to get back on the way in  a few weeks time and take the mileage up to thirty, fifteen out and back and try to build on this each month. if anybody wants a run on the way in the next few weeks then drop me a line via my website and we can meet up.

What happened in October

I don't know where to start after my build up for the RAW i thought this would be the springboard through the winter but i must say i have went flat, with only 13 runs i didn't even do 50% of the month, the only Conciliation was that i managed good Sunday runs

2nd October - Forth & Clyde Canal out to the Union canal and back - 38 Miles
9th October - Run Round the Glasgow Boundary - 27.5 Miles
16th October - The Stride - 33 Miles
23rd October - Sunday Run with the Nicholson Guys - 25 Miles
30th/31st - Working (not really an excuse)

take it in your Stride

I decided that i should start to get some speed in my legs, i have no current plans to compete for my club in the relays at present but now is as good a time to get started. I did three tempo runs during the week and on Saturday i decided to run the stride to Strathclyde Park but after taking a few wrong turns and hitting the 20 Mile mark well before the park i decided to about turn as i could feel the mid-week in my legs and i still had to get back home, i suppose it has to be expected after my tempo runs.



Monday- Rest
Tuesday - 7 Miles Tempo- 7.49,7.04,6.52, 6.42,6.40,6.44 and 6.28
Wednesday - 9 Miles Tempo - 7.05,6.52,6.49,6.44,6.13,6.03,6.14,6.11 and 6.25
Thursday - 5 Miles Tempo - 6.31,6.04,5.59,5.51 and 5.44
Friday - Rest
Saturday - Long Run - 33 Miles - See map
Sunday

Total Mileage for week

Topsy Turvey

What a week  i have had, not much to say, i only managed to get 61 miles

Monday  4th October- Rest
Tuesday  5th October - 11 Miles
Wednesday 6thOctober - DNR
Thursday 7th October - Rest
Friday   8th October - 10 Miles
Saturday 9th October - 27.5 - see map
Sunday  10th October - 13 Miles

West Highland Way 2011

Well it has been eight days since the West Highland Way Race opened for entries, with a further four weeks waiting time to see if i have been successful in getting a place but at least it gives you a buzz of excitement, well back the usual stuff, since my last race of the season, the River Ayr Challenge i took a few days off then started back with 7 miles on the Tuesday followed by 13 miles on the Friday i don't normally run on the Friday but as i was working the weekend, this would give me a couple of runs in the legs.
 I decided as it was holiday Monday i would head for the Forth and Clyde so off i went at 06:30 and manage to put in 31 miles, the following day i rested then did 10.5 on Wednesday, rested again on Thursday, then ran Friday the same as my Wednesday run, i went back on to the Forth and Clyde Canal on Saturday and took it out to the Union, just up the hill from the Falkirk Wheel, after a juice and a bite to eat i was off heading home, it started to rain as i came back in to Kirkie and my watch ran out of charge showing 31 miles, i new in my legs that i had over done it today as i got to 35 miles i decided to walk and run finishing off the last 3 miles, giving me a total of 38 miles. Sunday was a easy run from the Nicholson Centre with Sam, as he had just returned from a Marathon so we did 13 Miles. Over the week i had completed my most mileage in a long time by doing 103, no wonder i was tired! it was my own fault because i had given my self 2 set days off, Monday and Friday but i broke that rule due to working the weekend and the public holiday Monday, i will not do this in future.

RiverAyr Challenge 2010

Photo Courtesy of John Kynaston

It was the final race in the SUMS calendar,The River Ayr Challenge, i woke  up at 05:00 as i was arranging to pick up Gavin Harvey at 06:00 in the west end, we arrived at the Citadel around 7am, i said a quick hello to John Kynaston and had a chat with John McLaughlin (from my old club Springburn Harriers) before picking up my number,shortly afterwards 2 buses appeared to take us out to the start at Glenbuck. on the way out there was a threat of rain but once we arrived it was fine we assembled in a small car park before being asked to head down to the side of Glenbuck Loch for some photographs , then it was back to the car park to start. we headed down a short hill then turned right through a gate on to the path, at this point Grant Jeans had opened up a good distance between himself and the rest of the field, i settled in and ran with Kenny Valentine until 10 Miles after this i had moved in to second place at around 12 Miles, Marco came jogging by and told me that Grant was a minute ahead.i continued along and before i knew it myself and Grant were running along together when we came into Sorn we came through the checkpoint crossed the road and turned right up a hill and had went about 800 metres when Marco drove up and told us that we had taken a wrong turn, so it was all the way back to the main road, we continued to run together until around 22 Miles before Grant was off on his own. by 32 Miles i came around a path and missed the gate on the left as i turned back i met George Cairns coming towards me, we stopped and looked at the "trick bits" that i had downloaded and laminated as we looked at them we saw the gate on the left  that took us back on to the road, we ran together for a mile but i could feel my legs starting to struggle as George pulled away, this left me lying in 3rd place.i arrived at a water station at 39 miles  when i could see a white vest approaching it was George Cairns again,he must have taken a wrong turn, i let George go because i didn't have much left to respond with, just then Gavin Harvie passed me so i got myself back running as we came into the town centre i could see Gavin in the distance crossing over a bridge as i got in to the Town Centre i took a bridge too early and ended up in amongst the shoppers, i managed to get back on track and before i knew it i could see the Citadel and the Finish Line, i crossed in 5:31 i was just glad to see the finish line.Gavin had then told me that he beat George in to 2nd place. i knew before the race that i had done enough training to see me through but what i have learned from today was that i set off too fast, but the positives are that i ran a mile more than the Stride and finished 10 minutes quicker and i was 2 places better off finishing 4th. i will now have a few days rest before starting my winter training schedule. (Results)

week 6 build up to the RAW

Today i set out with the plan of running around 2 hours 30 min as my final run before the River Ayr Ultra, so many runners taking part next week will have their own ideas of easing off before the race, i wanted to put in around 12 miles on my own  today before meeting the guys at the Nicholson Centre,I left the house at 07:45 with the weather perfect,i headed down Cumbernauld Road and did a few loops taking in Robroyston Park and Hogganfield Loch on my way to Muirhead, as i approached the centre i had completed 14 miles. i had a few minutes rest to chat before we set off at 09:30, all that remained was to head out a few more miles before turning back.i returned home in 2 hours 40 having completed  just over 21 miles. I have planned for many weeks to rest the five days leading up to the race as i know that what i have did over the last 6 weeks will see me through and hopefully this time i will have a stronger finish in my legs. My mileage broken down for the RAW is as follows:

Monday - Rest
Tuesday - 10.5 Miles
Wednesday - 6 Miles
Thursday - 11.5 Miles
Friday - Rest
Saturday - 34 Miles
Sunday - 21 Miles

Total Mileage 83 Miles For Week

Average Mileage 78 Miles For Week

Overall Mileage for  6 Weeks Training plan for RAW 473 Miles

The Antonine Wall

Who ate all the Kippers

Well Saturday arrived,Looking out the window at 6:45 the weather looked miserable so as planned i would run for an hour then head to meet the guys so off i went with my waterproof jacket on but before too long i was sweating buckets although the rain was on it was very mild, i was glad when i had completed the hour back at the house as this allowed me to take a toilet stop,change out of my wet top and socks and change my road shoes to trail because i knew Sam had planned to take us off road. Once changed i headed to meet the Sam (yellow top) and Andy at The Nicholson Centre, Sam arrive just before Andy so off we went running onto the old railway track at the rear of the centre and headed out towards Kirkintilloch, part way along the trail we headed back on to a country road in the direction of Twechar, this is where the off road begins so we climbed up the hill towards Barr Hill, an old Roman Fort where we stopped for a moment to grab a snack and take in some fluids from there it was down through the grounds were we briefly joined the road before taking in our second hill (Croy Hill). we headed over  this until we dropped on to my regular route, the Forth & Clyde Canal which took us back in to Kirkintilloch, today the canal had a head wind and was covered with a lot of surface water. We arrived in Kirkintilloch and it was  back to the road for a Mile before rejoining the old Railway Track Back to the Nicholson, as we headed along my watch had hit the 4 Hour mark,with the guys going on 3, as we continued back we eventually said farewell to Andy. Sam was planning to run around 3.30 as he was training for 2 Marathons within a fortnight of each other so we ran togerther for about another mile before going our own way, i arrived back in just over 4.30 for 34 miles, so for me it was job completed.
Tomorrow i plan to meet Andy and Sam Along with the rest of the group for a shorter run probably in the region of 2.30 then take it easy next week before my race.

midweek update

I have now completed my three midweek training days before my last weekend prior to the RAW and  i managed to get myself back out before going to work in the mornings starting with 10.5 Miles at 05:25am on Tuesday, 6 Miles at 05:22am on Wednesday and 11.5 Miles today at 05:10 giving me a total of 28 Miles. I will have my Rest day on Friday with my last long runs over the weekend,the plan is to do an hour prior to meeting up with the guys at the Nicholson Centre in Muirhead then do at least 3 hours with them as they are finishing off their marathon preparations followed by a shorter run on Sunday.

S.O.S

After checking the E-Mails i have now got a co-pilot for the journey down to Ayr, Gavin Harvie put out an S.O.S for transport so now i have someone to chat to on the road  down rather than sing at the radio.At least we can discuss the previous races along with how we expect to run the course, the plan is to leave at 5:45am and pick Gavin up near Byres Road around 6am allowing us plenty of time to arrive, if anybody needs a lift drop me a note and we can sort a location out.

Highland Fling 2011

I thought that with entries opening on the 1st September for the Highland Fling i would like to see how people had finished over the course since its introduction in 2006,and just for good measure i added the 2010 results for the Devil O' the Highlands. by clicking on the link you can view the results in fastest times order or number of entries by a person

Enter Stats Page

Autumnal Equinox

They say that the 23rd September is officially the end of summer well i felt it had arrived this morning,up i got at 5.15 and headed out the door at 5.20 before going to work,as i set off  on my ten mile run it was pitch black, the rain was starting to come on and it was windy, where has all the fine weather of the past few weeks went to, as i got to mile three the rain started to become heavier and the wind increased and by mile eight i was soaked, i headed around one of my usual routes which included Hogganfield Loch as the streets are well lit and by the time i would be in the park daylight should be with me. for all you runners about to set off on a run as i write this you will certainly think looking at the weather now, he must be on something.

week 5 build up to the RAW

Today completed my fifth week of training for the RAW, i did 6 miles before meeting up with the guys at the Nicholson Centre in Muirhead,again another great day for running the weather was ideal and it was a chance to get some company.I  have altered some of the basics to my training by changing my rest days and this seems to be working well, i have started to build back in a speed/tempo run into the middle of the week with my long run on Saturday followed by a slightly shorter run on Sunday.Things are going well at the moment so i don't won't to over do it and risk an injury with just under two weeks to the Race.

Monday - Rest
Tuesday - 12 Miles
Wednesday - 10 Miles - Tempo Run (See Wednesday 1st Post)
Thursday - 10 Miles
Friday - Rest
Saturday - 33 Miles (4hrs 20 Min)
Sunday 16 Miles ( 2 hrs 15 min)

Total Miles 81 Miles

Average 77 Miles

Doon the Watter

Last  Saturday i headed East along the Forth and Clyde Canal out to the Falkirk Wheel so this week i decided to go West and head out to the Erskine Bridge, so off i went at 6am with my hydration pack and my small flashing light, i was surprised how dark is was today compared to this time last week. it became lighter around 6:15 with the sun  just starting to come up, there was not a sole in sight. as i continued along the canal,i could feel my session from Wednesday evening still in my legs i know that i had did too much ,as  the day startedvto get warmer as i ran, my initial times were slightly slower but my marathon distance was up  by 2 minutes compared to last week but i was starting to fade so i decided that i should take the shortest route home which is around  33 miles so i opted for this rather than plod it out for another 30 minutes to get the same as last week. overall i am still pleased,i will shorten my speedwork next week to see how that goes.i also saw that John Kynaston was looking for anyone interested in running the last part of the RAW  on Sunday i was tempted but favoured the longer Saturday over the Sunday ,good to see that John is on the mend.

A spring in my step

I enjoyed my rest day on Monday so it was back to business on Tuesday, i managed to get out the door around 6am and completed 12 miles prior to starting work, as my club don't meet up for sessions until the end of September i thought i should start today building in some speedwork, this would give me at least 4 weeks before we start training over the winter period. i decided to try out a 10 mile run and increse my pace as i went so here is the breakdown:

Mile 1 - 7.31     Mile 6 - 6.59
Mile 2 - 6.53     Mile 7 - 6.15
Mile 3 - 6.37     Mile 8 - 6.18
Mile 4 - 6.44     Mile 9 - 6.27
Mile 5 - 6.19     Mile 10 - 6.36 

apart from a piece of trail during mile 6 i am pleased with the way my speedwork session went.i don't know if my good running was just a spring in my step as the Fling opened for entries today ,whilst it is eight months away my entry was posted first thing today, i now have two sums events in my diary for 2011 so i need to put in the work over the winter and aim to be ready for early spring.

week 4 build up to RAW

well it has turned out to be another good week for several reasons 1) i did what i'd said i would do (take Monday and Friday Off) that was easy 2)complete my first 5 hour run since the stride 3)run at least the distance of the Speyside Way 4) no niggles, job well done, so my week went as follows:

Monday - Rest
Tuesday - 12 Miles - Robroyston /Lumloch
Wednesday - 6 Miles - Run to Gartcosh
Thursday - 8 Miles - Robroyston
Friday - Rest
Saturday- 37 Miles - Falkirk Wheel
Sunday - 12 Miles - Hogganfield Loch via Robroyston

Total Miles 75
Average Miles 77

Tales from the riverbank

I had missed the opportunity to run the Speyside Way today so i decided that as i was training for the RAW i would attempt to at least cover the same distance now after last weeks training i  wanted to change the way i train so i had downloaded the Comrades Training Plan but all i took from it was to ditch the Monday And Friday allowing me a proper rest before a big mileage weekend followed by a recovery so i put it to the test and today proved that taking yesterday off made me feel better,back to my run off i set at 05:40 and headed for the Forth & Clyde Canal at Kirkintilloch i decided to head out to the Falkirk Wheel and back,so off i went, only a few guys out fishing ,the sun was just coming up and it seemed just perfect, the times per mile were looking good apart from my toilet stop so i arrived at the wheel 2hrs and 30 minutes later (ideal) and i about turned, i checked in at Marathon distance (3.25) and then at 35 Miles (the distance for the Spey) and the watch showed 4.38, so when i got back home at 37 Miles with the average pace just under 8 min miles,i felt fine and low and behold a few hours later and even my legs feel good, so i will continue to see if this is the case over the next few weeks.

week 3 build up to RAW

Week 3 was a nice steady week of training as i managed to get to the 90 mile mark, the week went as follows
Monday 12 miles running around Robroyston and Hogganfield
Tuesday just under 12 miles out via Gartcosh and into Drumpellier Park
Wednesday 9 miles out through Robroyston
Thursday REST
Friday steady 11 miles out through the old railway path to Kirkintilloch
Saturday 4 hour run (28 miles) on the Forth & Clyde Canal
Sunday 3 hour run out through Kirkintilloch with the guys from the Nicholson Centre

Total Miles 91
Average 77 Miles

Entry accepted for the Devils for 2011, roll on next year

week 2 Build up to RAW

This week i was looking for consistency but i had a slight niggle in my knee and i knew was working all day Saturday and Sunday so it was going to be difficult
Monday 10 Miles over Robroyston at around 5:15am
Tuesday 14.5 i did a long looop round the house into Gartcosh,Bargeddie along Edinburgh Road and back up Cumbernauld Road, i could feel that niggle back in my Knee
Wednesday 11 Miles again following Mondays route
Thursday back to Gartcosh for usual 7 Miles
Friday 12 Miles along the old Railway Path from Muihead to Kirkintilloch Swimming baths
Saturday and  Sunday no run as i decided to rest my Knee
Total for Week 54.5 Miles
Average 76 Miles


we'll see how week 3 goes

week 1 Build up to the RAW

I decided that i would have the train of though that if i double my race mileage then my body will adapt to the later part of a race so week 1 was completed with the following:
Monday 14 easy at 5am prior to starting work
Tuesday 12 again easy over robroyston after work
Wednesday a 7 mile loop through Gartcosh
Thursday again another 7 miles this time Hogganfield Loch
Friday back into Gartcosh (7 Miles)
Saturday 22 Miles on the Forth & Clyde canal starting in Stepps and heading into Lenzie and then Kirkintilloch
Sunday 19 Milngavie out 9.5 on the WHW and back
Total For week 88 Miles
Average 88 Miles

Has the Bug got me

I get home from work one day and Stuart has been on from oz,just to a note to bring you up to date, i ran the North face 100k the other week and won it so i read the report, he's becoming a celebrity down under, appearing on morning television along with being picked to represent Australia in the 100k at the end of the year in Gibralter, this just confirms that this is the direction that i want my training to go so i am now building up for the RAW, the last race of the season in the SUMS championships, this time i will try to train better now that i have an understanding of the distance, so its a cut down on the wine or maybe not,but i will try too get a six week schedule under my belt ,nothing fancy as i am not doing any speedwork just steady running and i'll taper off the week before.

My first Ultra

It was a summer of volcanic ash cloud when my phone went,it was my training partner,Stuart
Gibson now living in Melbourne,wots happening,i said where are you as the call did not sound like it was coming from Oz, i'm in Glasgow visiting my parents and i am stuck due to the ash cloud, do you fancy a run tomorrow, sure i said, so next day i pick him up at 7 and we head out to Strathclyde park and during our run he tells me that he has just returned from a week in the desert after doing the MDS,wot i reply ,yep finished 11th and top Aussie (he's got dual nationality now), so we finish the run and Stuart tells me,all the details,inc photos and the medal,then before i know it its time to go.

A few nights later,a bottle of wine and surfing the web and i see the latest addition to the SUMS series,the Clyde Stride, the quote says (It also provides qualifying status to newbies (that's me) in the ultra scene who are looking to tackle longer Scottish ultras like the Montane Highland Fling and the West Highland Way Race),so the cheque was in the post, wot have i done!.

Next day i decide i need to take this serious after all my last Marathon was 1987(Glasgow) and i vowed never to return back to that distance until i was a vet(not the animal kind), but of course i am now 45 and doing nothing more than 10k distance along with the odd race at my club, i tell my self i have six weeks to see what i can do, how hard can it be?.

I start of sensible but think to myself on the first week, I'll throw in a three hour run,well help ma boab,I'm dying and end up walking back home after 2.20 on my feet, so i start using the old cliches no pain no gain,onwards and upwards,and all the crap that you use to gie your self a kick up the backside.

It's week 3 (time flies) and i start to feel better,i keep telling myself, your doing alright,by week 4 i throw in a 28 miler (Kirkie to the Falkik wheel) and again at the end i am dead on my feet, again i tell my self two weeks to go and then your on your holiday's, so i need to get the time on my legs up to 3:50 (that was my last marathon time) and then i stop for holiday.

On holiday i decide to throw in two weeks of light training and we'll see wot happens, so its back to 10k every day, as you can do much more in Florida without sweating buckets before i know it i am back home and on the countdown to the stride,so i rested all that week.

CLYDE STRIDE

It's 7.30 and i decide i better move as registration opens soon, i have no idea what to expect, so i register and chuck my bag in the finish pile,have i done the right thing!,before i know i meet some guys i have run with in the past,John McLaughlin(we ran at Springburn Harriers) and Les Hill of Dumfries RC, so then we all listen to Lee explaining to the runners the low down and before i know it were off.

The first ten miles i settled in and think this is just fine,so i get chatting then before i know it we are approaching Strathclyde park,19 miles,still i am settled in a small group, then as i pass John Kennedy, who tells me keep working away your well up there,i think surely not,theres a lot of people out there who eat this distance for fun.we approach 30 miles and i decide to fill my hydration pack up when i get talking to Lucy Colquhoun briefly, she offers a bit of banana, but i say no thanks and continue on before i know it shes past me on a hill and disappears into the distance,i know i have not much left as my training only got me up to 30 miles,by 33 i am struggling, the last ten seems an eternity as i get passed twice, before i know it i can see the heritage site, by this time i am walking, i know its not far but i can't see the finish,then someone shouts keep left only a mile to go,well that was the nail in the coffin, i could hardly walk,never mind run,my thighs bursting at every step i went down,finally i get near the finish only to see more steps, i have a small moan,then i went for it crossing the line in 5.41 and finishing in 6th place, wot a feeling i got i could hardly stand, but inside i felt over the moon.i thought to myself this is better than club running and during my day i have met some great people on the route, this has given me a buzz do more (i am mad now) John Kennedy kindly offers me a lift home along with John McLauchlin and John Donnelly, I'll definitely be doing more.