Run away to the hills......

The original plan was for a lovely relaxing weekend up in the Cairngorms to chill out after the marathon (plenty of good food, good drink, good company and use of the spa/pampering facilities), but as the marathon hadn't happened, there was nothing to recover from and so it would have been "wrong" not to get out and play in the hills!

As more of a hill novice, I was happy to leave all the routeplanning and packhorsing to my experienced "tourguide" and just carried my own essential gear (though clearly I stole some of his food as well!). We started by driving up to the end of the road at the Linn of Dee and set off up Glen Lui.

The bitter wind was a slight indication of the weather to come but there were also periods of sunshine - oddly enough, at one point the sky was completely blue overhead yet it was snowing!!!! We jogged past the boarded up Derry Lodge (a former shooting lodge) and then headed up the steep slopes on Carn Crom. It was so warm in the sun going uphill that we actually had to remove layers of clothing, though they were soon replaced as we hit the wind higher up. By the time we reached the summit at 890m we were already in and out of the snow (both underfoot and in the air).

Towards Ben Macdui from Carn Crom

From there it appeared to be a snowy ridge run towards Derry Cairngorm though the summit at 1155m was not visible as the snow clouds descended. As long as you were warmly wrapped up, it wasn't bad running weather - though is was more of a run/hike on the uphill sections. It wasn't the easiest to work out a line to follow as your feet sometimes sunk in a very short distance but at other times you were ankle deep in softer snow.

By the time we summitted the visibility was rather poor and the wind was whipping snow into our faces. We descended to the next col to put on full waterproof clothing and eat some food. When the clouds cleared, there were amazing views to be had in every direction. Not wanting to cheat ourselves out of a summit, we detoured slightly to the top of Creagan a'Choire Etchachan (1106m) before heading towards Ben Macdui.



Fun descents in the snow!!



At 1309m, Ben Macdui is the second highest mountain in Britain, but unfortunately I didn't really get to see much of it. I knew there were cliffs over to our left and so we had to make sure we didn't veer too far that way, as overhanging cornices were a worry. It was a good lesson for me in how deceptive things can appear in whiteout conditions. I was constantly trying to look for visible rocks to stay right of, but lines in the snow could be mistaken for an approaching edge. I was so glad to be there with someone who was confident in those conditions, though luckily I managed to avoid him looking back and seeing me in tears due to the pain from my cold almost(!) numb feet!! What a big girl's blouse I was!!

We may not have reached the summit by the most direct route (on a sunny day) but we did just keep climbing until we made it - and I know I was there as I saw the cairn, trig point and view (!) indicator. It didn't seem very worthwhile continuing on our planned loop to a few more peaks as it was tough going in the snow, and there was little (ie nothing) to see so we decided to make our loop slightly shorter. This involved running a certain distance on a specific bearing, then turning and doing the same again on a different bearing, which took us to the edge of the plateau and our final high point of the day (Srin Riach - 1110m).



Looking back at the view as we
descended and the skies cleared



It was fun trying out different running techniques in the snow depending on the slope, the depth and the wetness of the snow, ie straight-legged or knees bent landings, leading with a flat foot or a heel dig etc. The fastest bit of running I did, however, was actually straight down a slope when the map slipped away and started making its own speedy descent - aided by the wind!!

By the time we got back to the valley floor and the longish run out, I was confident of my footing and stride again, and so offered to take the heavy pack for the last few miles. I only ran with that weight for about 3 of the 19 miles...and it was certainly a leg workout, so full respect to Neil for carrying it for the other 16 (though I did try to lighten the load by eating the food out of it!) !!

Before driving back home a couple of days later, we decided to get another "little run" in - this time in the Lochnagar area. I was reassured that it would only be about 20K, so I thought my tired little legs would be able to handle it, though it was forecast to be rather windy.



Lochnagar's northern corrie



We drove to the carpark at the Spittal of Glen Muick set off across the valley to the far side, initially on a track then along a lovely path through the woods. I felt really tired as we ascended a rocky track, as if I was at the end of a long run, but this seemed to improve as we turned off onto a smaller path and climed up to the coll between Lochnagar and Meikle Pap (and it did look rather like its name suggests!!). It would be a shame to miss a summit so we ascended Meikle Pap (itself being higher than Scafell at 980m) and then took a break to eat some food and put on extra clothing as the wind was really rather strong! It was worth it for the great view across Lochnagar's northern corrie with a lochan cradled below.

Back down to the col and then straight up the next slope, known as the Ladder for its steepness. I have to say that this was rather a scary ascent for me. The sun was shining brightly but there was a big windchill so that the snow had quite a hard crust on top of it. I found it hard to get my feet to sink into the crust far enough for good purchase so I kept being blown sideways across the icy surface as I climbed (despite trying to stab my mitted hands through the top as extra anchor points). It was the one time when I wished that I was heavier, or was carrying a heavier pack at least (though not enough to have seriously offered to carry the heavier gear).



On top of Lochnagar - not the warmest of days!!



I was so relieved when the slope eased off onto the plateau and realised we had reached the top of Cuidhe Crom (1082m), and luckily it was still clear so we got further fantastic views as we ran round to thr right following the edge of the cliffs (though not too closely). The wind felt like it was blowing shards of glass off the surface into our faces as we tagged another couple of cairns on the way round to the rocky outcrop of Cac Carn Beag (at 1155 this is the true summit of Lochnagar). The cloud was coming and going and so there were brief glimpses of the whole Cairngorm massif, though I could understand why Queen Victoria is reputed to have written "it was cold, wet and cheerless, and the wind was blowing a hurricane" when she made the summit!



I enjoyed running across wide expanses of snow from there, though had a few funny moments when descending off the plateau. I was trying to land as I'd been shown 2 days previously (with a straight leg to sink into the snow and get some good purchase) but would suddenly hit a raised lump/rock with one foot. This would throw me totally off blance and see me pitch headfirst into the snow - comedy really!

Some of the joy might have come from thinking that Carn a'Choire Bhoidheach (1113m) was our last Munro, but then I heard the words " we're about halfway distance-wise but have done most of the climbing"..... After dropping back down to start yet another climb, I was very tempted to just lie down in the snow for a rest. It's amazing how much energy is required to take each step when the snow is sticky and wet. By the time we got to the top of Carn an t-Sagairt Mor at 1047m, I wasn't up for much chat or looking out for our last glimpse of the view to the north, and even had to be convinced to eat some food.

Looking towards Loch Muick from Broad Cairn

The food clearly worked as we made great time after that, knocking off Cairn Bannoch (1010m) at a fast pace. In no time at all we were on our last peak (Broad Cairn at 998m) looking down towards Loch Muick. From there I could pick out the path down across the slopes below and along to the end of the plateau, from where a few steep rough zigzags took us down to the lochshore. The final few miles were covered at breakneck pace, as my stomach was now loudly protested about how long it had been since it had been adaquately replenished. As it turned out, that "little run" before driving home, had been 18 miles long and covered about 3800feet of ascent, but I have to admit that it was worth it!

If I thought that I'd coped well with the hills, this was certainly put into perspective the weekend afterwards. I went down to the Lake District to assist on a speedy Bob Graham Round. A traditional BGR is a 66 mile, 27000 foot ascent of 42 of the highest Lake District peaks that mjst be completed within 24 hours. The fastest known time for a lady was just over 18 hours, and Jasmin Paris was aiming to run faster than this, possibly covering the distance in under 17 hours. I know that Jasmin is an amazing runner, and the fact that I was the only female crazy enough to be doing any running support should have given me a clue as to how fast she was going to go, but she outran everyone's expectations (including her own). I was going to run Leg 5 (Honister to the finish at the Moot Hall in Keswick) as it had the least amount of technical hill running and a road section to finish with. Jasmin started at 4am and I got updates at the end of every leg about how much time she had made up on her planned schedule. I worried that if she carried on gaining 30mins per leg, then I wouldn't keep up over the last 3 summits and actually have to do a road time trial at the end.

A chilly wait at Honister

Unsurprisingly, her pace steadied during the day (still blisteringly fast but not gaining as much as earlier) though I was still rather nervous about letting her down on the final few steep descents. We ended up with a good group of guys at Honister to support the "glory leg" so we agreed that I would set off just a couple of minutes ahead and they'd catch me up. As soon as I saw Jas heading down into the carpark, I was off up the other side as she hardly broke her stride coming acorss the pass. I made good pace up Dale Head but did keep turning back to see if they'd catch me before the summit (Jasmin could see me climbing ahead of her, so hopefully it spurred her on to keep pushing). I decided not to wait for them on the summit (as descents are not my forte and I was sure they'd fly down them) so I continued along the route, with regular checkbacks on her progress. I saw them all leaving the top of Hindsgarth (the penultimate peak) as I climbed up Robinson and thought that I might just survive the leg. I knew they were planning a short but very steep run off the ridge and so forced myself to take that option so that they didn't pass me. It felt like I was in a race (with the "fear of Jasmin" spurring me on) but surprisingly I got down to the valley bottom before seeing them crest the edge.

Having reached the track, I decided to hotfoot it along to where some other supporters were waiting at the end of the road to tell them that she was on her way (as it turned out I did this at 6:45 mileing!!). The final few miles are along the road back to Keswick - some people take the time to change into road shoes, but Jasmin wasn't stopping (and I don't think she actually owns any road shoes!!). The group of guys was quite large by this point, and so people naturally jogged off in little groups chatting to each other (as it's not often that you can catch up with that many fellow runners of a similar standard).

Leg 5 support team in full swing

However, myself and the two guys that had been down as "official leg support" (and Jasmin's fiancee) made sure that we stayed with her, running alongside to chat to her, look out for traffic, and supply her with whatever food or drink took her fancy (which was actually just pepsi by that point). Amazingly, despite her tiredness, she still looked strong and was able to smile and chat to me!!

As we came in to Keswick, severeal of us dropped back to allow Jasmin to run ahead to the Moot Hall, but the route appeared to be blocked by a huge throng of several hundred people. We (the support team) glanced at each other wondering if someone had arranged this to mark the end of such an amazing run.....but it turned out that it was just fortuitous timing. A charity walking group was having a briefing before they set off up a hill and so they all turned, cheered and created a path through for Jasmin to finish what was an epic day out!!

Jasmin's run into Keswick

She completed the round in 15 hours and 24 minutes - the 5th fastest time ever. That is a brilliant time for anyone whether male or female, and I can see that being the fastest known time for a lady for many years to come - it was amazing and humbling to have had the opportunity to have been just a tiny part of such an awesome run - Jasmin....total respect!!! What a legend!!!

"Round the Houses" ?? - well, the name does describe the route rather well......

A lovely surprise pressie from Fiona ;-)

Having never been one to sit around moping, I decided that I should get out and run on Sunday rather than sit around following marathons that I'd planned to be racing. I wasn't confident enough of my return to form and fitness to go to the Scottish 10 mile championships, so instead opted for the Jim Dingwall "Round the Houses" 10 K in Grangemouth. I thought this would be a lower key event, and it would also give me the opportunity to catch up with my lovely "running mum" Fiona Matheson (her club organise the event, and it was actually the 50th running of it).

Not really the most inspiring route!!!

Little did I know that there were only 300 runners in the Strathclyde Park 10 mile race, whereas almost 1000 had entered the 10K. While registering, I heard that it was set to have the highest quality field of any race so far this year in Scotland.....which was quite surprising, as the route isn't exactly scenic, though it is rather fast and flat. Still, as I caught up with Freya Ross in the toilet queue, and then watched Hayley Haining jog past my car, they did seem to have a point. I met up with Fiona, we commiserated each other over various tendon issues (interestingly, neither of us had suffered with the usual running Achilles problem - hers was a tendon in her foot, and mine my shin!), went for a jog, gossiped and spotted various other familiar faces lining up. The race was doubling up as the Scottish University 10K Championships so I knew there would be speedy youngsters, but when I also saw Lesley Chisholm and Jenny McLean, I didn't think I'd even have a chance of making the top 3 LV40s.

Although the race started down a wide road, we were penned in quite closely to make sure that everyone crossed the chip mats, so I took my usual place right at the side and off the front so that I could get away without any mishaps (I wonder when that fear will leave me?). There's little to say about the route as it really does go "around the houses" in a big square and is mostly on main roads. The first few miles seemed rather fast, but I was well back in the ladies' field, but after a mile or so I started to close the gaps to those in front of me. It's always tempting to relax and take your foot off the gas whatever the race distance, but gradually reeling people in does motivate you to keep going.

A short track finish

I'm not used to chasing so many (young) ladies in a race, but it made for a good tussle. I'd get past one and then she'd overtake me again, and then we'd both move up on the person in front. Unfortunately this did mean that I was running wide on a very long gradual left hand bend into a breeze as I wasn't going fast enough to get ahead, but slightly too fast to tuck in behind. I was trying to keep my eye on Lesley up ahead as I know she is slightly quicker than me over the shorter distances. I hoped that she would drag me along to a decent time, and my watch did have me just ahead of PB pace at the halfway point.

Much to my delight, I caught and passed her at the 8K point, with all of us ladies slowly creeping up the overall field. The end of the race is not the best, psychologically speaking, as you have to run past the stadium, turn 180 degrees round bollards in the road, run back a kilometre, and then skirt round the back of the track. When you finally skid round onto the track, you've less than 100m to go for it to the finish line. I was managing to keep in touch with the girls in front, but knew their young legs would have more of sprint in them than I did.

You have to love a printout of your time as soon as you finish

Although I know I should be pleased with my time, it was actually disappointing to see the finish clock, as I must have run the second 5K slower than the first, despite moving up the field. When I looked at my watch afterwards it was my 4th mile that was the slowest one, as each mile after that got progressively quicker again. Still, I was happy with my run all things considered- and it is testament to the depth of the field that my time (which was over a minute faster than the first lady ran in 2014) put me in 10th position (though only 21s separated positions 4-10)....but you have to challenge yourself and race faster ladies if you want to get the best out of yourself!

Marina Madness

Family Zakrzewscy hit Hartlepool (post race sunshine)

I'd originally planned on running the Marina 5 as a pre-marathon sharpener, but have obviously had to pull the plug on the marathon as I didn't think I'd do myself justice as I'd had to take 4-5 weeks out of training. However, I haven't tried a short, fast race since the tendonitis so I thought that I might as well give it a go. I thought there would be a decent field as it was also doubling up as the North East Masters' Championships, and it gave me a good excuse to spend a weekend catching up with family.

Mama demonstrating how warm it was on the prom

It was lovely of my parents to come and support me on the day, and it really felt like a family outing as we headed down to Hartlepool on the Sunday morning. In my last race, we picked up our numbers in a castle (an old prison), and this one kept up the unusual venue tradition as we had to register on a boat. Still, there was a nice cafe on the boat - my mum and I both spotted the delicious-looking carrot cake to try after the race (and it tasted as good as it looked!!!). It was easy to spot my bib as there was no entry on the day and the 600 numbers had been pre-allocated in alphabetical order. For once I wasn't last, but I still thought it wouldn't be that tough a challenge to finish in a higher position than my number (599)!!

The appealing North Sea?

It was lovely to catch up with a couple of friends, but as it was rather chilly, I decided to go and check out the start of the course as a warm up. I have to admit that the North Sea isn't at its most appealing on a cold overcast morning, and I was very reluctant to strip down to my race kit (how I wished I'd kept my gloves on, as my hands didn't warm up until I was on my way back to the finish!!).



Starting through the houses



We all gathered in the street (with bollards and tape hemming us in to ensure everyone crossed the starting mats for accurate times) and were started by a cannon (not exactly the most common start gun!!). The first half mile was along streets between houses so we did have to be careful of cars (both parked and still driving, though the marshals were very helpful) but then we were up a rise and onto the prom.

Picture credit Karen Newton

The race then consisted of 2 miles along the seafront before turning round a marshal at the very far end and coming back on yourself. This meant that you could see the field stretching out ahead of you, but also spot others on the turnaround and encourage each other as you passed. I had originally thought that it was quite a still day, but there is never no wind by the North Sea. As the wind was in my face on the way out, I hoped it would then be a tailwind as I tired on the run back - I'm sure it was to some extent, but it never feels that way!!

I worked my way up the field slowly but steadily on the outward leg, but wondered if I'd overcooked it without realising, as I spotted the second lady coming towards me once I'd passed the halfway point. In my head, she looked fresh as a daisy while I was exhausted, so I expected to see her fly past all the way back. It did give me confidence to overtake a couple of men on the return run, as this must mean that although I felt tired, I was still moving OK (either that, or they were just more tired!!!).



Into the finish



Getting support from runners coming the other way (clubmates, friends and even total strangers) is definitely a boost....as was the fact that I'd not heard a single shout for other ladies. Coming off the prom, through the carpark and back between the houses I knew I had less than half a mile to run. We were marshalled onto the pavement rather than the road, which meant negotiating kerbs and grassy segments, but the finish line came into view without any major stumbles. There wasn't a clock on the finish line so I had no idea what my time was going to be, but managed to talk myself into pushing right to the line.

A chilly prizegiving ;-)

It turns out that it was worth it, as I really surprised myself by clocking a much faster time than I'd expected (my fastest for about 3 years and a cheeky new CR by 14s), but it also meant that my legs were rather tired on the run back to Durham (possibly not the best idea I've ever had!!).

Breaking out of jail.....

Having been "good" (and actually taken time out to rest and recover) for what seemed like forever, I am over the moon to be back running again, though I'm "trying" to be sensible and listen to my body/tendons to prevent a recurrence or flare-up.

Although I'd pulled out of my Spring marathon, there was a 20mile race that I'd entered prior to my injury. I hummed and hawed about whether it was a stupid idea to try running it - yes, I'd been able to run again in the few days leading up to it, but I'd hardly hit double figures. However, I'd never run the race, some friends were going to do it (so it was a good excuse to catch up with them), and I knew from the course map that there was one point you passed at 4 different times, which did give me the opportunity to stop without being too far away if I felt any niggles at all. Having finally made the decision to run, you'd think that I would have slept well...but instead I worried about whether I was being stupid and would actually set myself back on the road to recovery. 

Looking round the prison

Registration was slightly unusual - not just in that it involved climbing a steep hill up to Lancaster Castle, but because the castle was used as a prison until relatively recently (I was told just 10 years ago) and so you could wander in and out of the cells and have a good look around! Unfortunately there were no routemaps available, and no obvious start or finishline either. Following the directions of a few marshals, we walked down a steep slope to a narrow path below the castle. Somebody living on that hill had had the unfortunate idea of having a bonfire that morning so there was a lot of smoke and ash in the air. We were then told to gather into 2 fields (1 on either side of the path) and told that we would be told where the "finish" was by the race director in his pre-run briefing, though I'm not sure I actually heard him say that we would have to run all the way back up and into the castle itself (though it's possible that I just blocked this out!).

And they're off......

Dropping back from the boys...

As the start was announced, we all poured out of the fields and onto the narrow path. It didn't exactly feel like a "downhill start" but some people certainly flew straight off - they must have known that within the first halfmile there were 2 bollards in the middle of the path (that could only be passed by 1 person on each side at a time). I decided to try to stick with a couple of guys I recognised as they had set off in a decent group, but when they went through the first mile in under 5:50, I realised that the pace was too tasty for me and dropped off the back. There was a large field in the race so I had thought I would have company on the run, but it was clearly not to be ;-(

My lonely run

Having doubled back I passed my first "drop out point" without feeling any niggles so happily carried on across the river. I soon recognised that I was running along a stretch that had been the route of the Valentine's 10K, so I have to confess to feeling a slight moment of disappointment that I was not going to finish after 6 miles but instead carry on a lot further. I had some brief company as I caught a guy up, but unfortunately he suddenly felt some pain in his foot and so decided to stop and stretch it out.

As I passed back across the river I picked up a gel from a friend and he told me that I had had a decent gap on the next lady when he'd seen me at the 3 mile point so I just tried to relax into the run. I gave my legs a mental once-over to ensure no niggles were developing - my tendon seemed to be doing just fine, though I couldn't quite say the same for the rest of my legs, as they were starting to protest at running further than they've become accustomed to!



2-way traffic on a nice wide path



The next 11 or so miles were a long out and back section.....and did it ever feel long as I tired. Every rise and fall on overpasses away from the riverside felt like a big incline and the turnaround point seemed a long time in coming. I couldn't remember exactly how far away it was, but figured that I would get an idea of the distance still to run when I saw the race leaders coming back towards me. Unfortunately, it wasn't an exact turnaround as we were sent away from the path and up onto a parallel road at the far end, hence the reason I hadn't seen any speedsters coming back.

After a while we left the road and rejoined the path again (unfortunately this didn't cut out any of the rises on the way back!) which was a real mental boost as it meant that you could see runners coming the other way. I got a lot of support from ladies running the other way, and when I passed my friends, they gave me an idea of the gap that I'd had the last time I'd passed them, and they also told me my overall position in the race. By the time I was into the last couple of miles, I felt like I was running through treacle, but as I still had no shin pain, I just kept trying to keep moving forward as fast as I could (admittedly a lot slower than I'd started!). I could now definitely appreciate that it had been a downhill start as I now had to ascend the gentle incline to it. The sting in the scorpion's tail came after running through the start line as it turned out that the finish was actually inside the castle itself. 



Coming into the castle



A lovely (and unusual) prize!

This meant a climb of over 100feet in the last 1/4 mile. I don't think that the climb was so bad in itself (though the guys who finished in front of me all said that it made their last mile 30s slower than any other mile), but we had to run through the smoke and ash of the bonfire again (I admit that I'd totally forgotten about that). A final turn and I was onto the cobbles running into the castle itself, so happy to have got through without any flare of the tendonitis (though my quads and glutes weren't that impressed that I hadn't dropped out). When I spotted the clock I realised that I'd run a much better time than I'd thought I would do which just goes to show that running without time pressure and expectations can work wonders!

Now.....I just have to be "sensible" again......

"Do as I Say", don't "Do as I Do"...

It's only when you cannot do something that you realise how much it means to you. I think of running as a hobby I have, but as I've been injured and not able to run at all this week, I have come to realise what an important part if my life it is. It's not the lack of training or the fact that I can see my race targets disappearing off into space, but more the fact that running is my "de-stress" for the rest of life. It enables me to switch off from work and other dramas, and also gives my week a bit of structured routine. I've almost found myself lost as to the days of the week when I've not been running. 

I've been trying to be good and rest my leg, but it's not been easy, especially as Dumfries definitely lacks the facilities for any rehab/cross training. The sports/leisure complex was closed for emergency repairs over 18 months ago and there's no sign of any work actually being done on it. This means that there is no real public gym to speak of, and the "temporary" pool which was constructed in a carpark is only 1.2m deep, hence aquajogging isn't possible. I fully admit that this set of circumstances, along with the usual pressures of GP work, has got me down and probably made me a bit of a nightmare to know over the past few weeks.

A random Maltese statue

I had originally planned to run the Malta halfmarathon as a target race. I had wanted to find a good spring marathon which wasn't going to be cancelled due to ice/snow and so it seemed ideal. Unfortunately, 2 weeks of not being able to run (and indeed walk for some of it) isn't quite the same as a planned 2 week taper. I'd already booked and paid for my flights and accommodation so I decided to go and enjoy a weekend away in the warmth anyway (and sneaked in my running kit.......you know...."in case").

My leg had been gradually improving and it was no longer painful to walk around (well, not too much anyway), and I knew it would be really tough to watch everyone else race and not take part......and, let's face it, I wasn't mentally strong enough to do that.....so I picked up my race number on the Saturday night.

Using ice hadn't really been helping (apart from making my leg cold) but warmth had, so I got up early on the Sunday morning, soaked in a got bath, dosed up on painkillers and headed off to meet my friends Alister and Jacquie for the 7:45am bus to the start. Jacquie had also been injured and in two minds about running, so we couldn't believe we were actually going to start and see how things went. It was forecast to be about 22 degrees so we knew that if we had to stop running and just walk to the finish, then at least we wouldn't get cold. 

Yeay, back in running gear ;-)

As we waited for the buses, it did seem rather windier than expected.....there were whitecaps on every small section of water between boats in the harbour. This meant that hanging around for an hour (the buses dropped us off an hour before the start) at the highest point on the island was rather chilly.

There were no specific pens/corrals, but I found my way to the front and made sure I was at the edge of the crowds as we started the race. Luckily for me, we started with a bit of climb, which slowed down some of the "chargers" and I didn't get pushed around much. I was dreading the fact that it is marketed as a "downhill race" as my leg had been much more sore when walking down hills than up them.

Maybe it was the painkillers, or maybe it was due to the 2 weeks of rest, but as we started the first steep descent I didn't seem to be in pain and so smoothly passed the other ladies. If it had been any other race profile, I would think that my first couple of miles were way too fast, but I thought that holding myself back would probably do my leg more damage so I just tried to relax into the descents and let myself go at whatever pace felt comfortable. 

For a downhill course, there were still a remarkable number of uphills, but the main thing that slowed everyone down was the incredible strong wind. The problem with the race being a point to point race, was that we had to battle a headwind for most of the run. It was little comfort to be told that the wind usually blows the other way and has assisted runners in many other years. The wind direction also meant that it was coming from Africa so it also held the heat and the sand from the direction of the Sahara. 

I'm used to running on my own, but on a couple of occasions it really did feel like I just had to put my head down and fight to move forwards at any speed at all. I knew that I was leading the ladies' race, but I still found myself blocked and cut up by male runners at various points over the course. The full marathon had started 1hr 45 mins ahead of us, and the routes converged, so before long we were weaving in amongst them as well. 

The last few kilometres around the waterfront seemed to take forever, but finally I spotted the finish line up ahead. I struggled with my leg pain on the final steep descent to sea level, but by that point I wasn't going to let myself DNF. I passed a lady accompanied by a cyclist and realised that she must be in the top 3 of the marathon, but I didn't think any ladies in my race had overtaken me.

Just happy to make the line!!!

I heard my name announced as I ran in, but that was all the ceremony there was, so I didn't actually get confirmation of my position until the award presentation that evening. I got my finishers medal and was then escorted to the medical tent as I was limping. They gave me some lucozade thinking that I had cramp, but I didn't stay long as I wanted to go and cheer Alister and Jacquie in. Being handed a hot Quorn meal and a fruit smoothie right after finishing was a definite first for me (and it definitely didn't agree with the codeine I'd taken as me had severe stomach cramps later) but at least it lined my stomach in preparation for some post-race anaesthetic refreshment with the others!

I'm definitely suffering leg-wise for having run ("do as I say" rather than "do as I do") but I did enjoy actually getting out there and running, and my woes were all put completely into perspective that day - as my thoughts go to the family of the English man who collapsed and passed away just before the end of the race.

An impatient patient...

It's always interesting when the doctor becomes the patient.....but from a personal point of view, I think it's beneficial to see things from the other side.

I had been referred for an MRI scan by A+E, but thought there might be a waiting time of a few weeks, so was surprised to get a phone call from Glasgow within the week to ask if they could book a slot for me. It turns out that Dumfries and Galloway Health Board have something called a "Waiting Time Initiative", which enables them to send people out of the area for an earlier appointment. I wasn't complaining as I was keen to get my scan done, and so having discussed it with my colleagues, I took an afternoon off work and travelled up to the Nuffield the next Wednesday afternoon.

I wasn't really sure what to expect from an MRI scan, but when the radiographer told me that it would take about 45 minutes, I thought I'd have a nice relaxing lie-down. How wrong could I be? It is one of the noisiest experiences around.

Despite wearing earplugs, I could hear a constant background thump which sounded like a rather rapid heartbeat. To add to that, there was  something which would have sounded like birds tweeting away happily had it not been quite so regular (and had I been outside rather than enclosed in a tiny room). While each of the scans was actually being done, there was an extra noise which sounded rather like a jackhammer going at various rates ("intellectually", I knew that this would occur due to the expansion and contraction of the coils in the machine, but at the time, it still took me by surprise)! I'm astonished that I could actually hear the radiographer's voice over the intercom with all that going on in the background.

However, I figured it was definitely worth it to find out what was going on with my leg, and as they'd promised to report it that day and then email/ring the results through to the A+E consultant in Dumfries, there was really very little to complain about.

At least that was what I initially thought, and I was prepared to extol the virtues of accepting a 2 hour drive up to Glasgow to all my patients that had it offered to them.

Unfortunately, after the scan I was informed that they would not email or phone results through for NHS patients (hmmmm.......I wonder if they would for private patients?) so I said that I was happy to wait for the scan to be reported and take the results back myself.

The next bit of bad news was that the radiologist was having some "car trouble" and so wouldn't be coming in, hence the scan wouldn't be reported until the following week (I didn't date ask why a bit of cat trouble on Wednesday lunchtime precluded him from reporting a scan until the following week).

By this time, I was feeling rather frustrated that I'd just had a totally wasted trip (which actually turned into a 5hr drive plus an hour for the scan). Eventually they kindly agreed to copy the scan onto a disc for me, so that I could get an unofficial opinion from my local radiologist while awaiting the formal one.

Yippee......I was off down the road clutching my disc and dropped it off at Dumfries hospital later that night!

The next morning, I got further bad news.......the disc was actually blank and so there was nothing to be done but to wait a week (well, it's been a week so far and still no word....) for the formal report to be done and sent down. What an insight I got into how doctors really do "make the worst patients"!!!

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly...

Let's start off with "the good"....and for me, it was a good time as I ran my best 10K in over 2 years on Saturday!

I have enjoyed getting out for a couple of races so far this year, but it's hard to work out how well you're running when the races are XC ones, as results are totally dependent on the course, the weather and the rest of the field. I wanted to give myself a wee test over a measured distance and so entered the Lancaster "Valentine's 10K".

Rather chilly!!!

As usual, I was full of doubts on my way to the race. I hadn't slept well the night before, the temperature was hovering around the freezing mark, and I wasn't that sure exactly where I was going. Still, nothing ventured, nothing gained, so found the sports centre, picked up my number, and did a warm up with Niall, my clubmate. Niall is quicker than me over shorter distance but I've still got the upper hand over the longer stuff.....and he's famous for going off rather quickly, so my goal was to keep him in sight for the first mile at least!

We stripped off down to club vests and shorts (though there was no way that I was being parted from my gloves), and lined up on the track. We had to run a lap and 3/4 of the track before being marshalled out along cycle paths. I've never been a fast starter but on this occasion it meant that I did have to run a lot of the first lap in lane 2/3 to try to get past people and into a rhythm.

Chasing Niall down after the 180 turn

By the time we got to a 180 degree turn at the first mile marker Niall was about 50m ahead of me, so I thought I'd never see him again. There was a short stretch alongside the river and then we turned sharp left to run along a cycle path. It seemed like it was going to be a rather lonely run for me as I could just see a couple of guys away ahead in the distance (they were easy to distinguish from the walkers on the path as only the runners had any bare limb flesh showing in the cold).

Happily finished!!!

I caught Niall up by the 2.5mile point and tried to get his to push on away from me, as his pace had definitely dropped off. He managed to move away slightly but then I passed him at the 3 mile marker....and that was it as far as social interactions in the race. I did try to smile, wave and thank any marshal I saw at the various corners (not that there were many) en route, but although I did close the gap to the man in front, it was never going to be close.

I had been hoping to run in the low 36s, but as I rounded the final corner of the track finish, I saw that I was going to duck under 36 and so I dredged up any slight element of sprint finish that I could (my pace probably didn't actually change at all).....and was rewarded with a lovely flower for crossing the line in my best time since September 2013!

I cheekily checked both the Scottish and GB V40 rankings that night but, as they say......pride goes before a fall.....and hence on to "the bad".



New sleeping attire?



Could these become my new "best friends"???

A shin niggle that evening became shin pain on the Sunday and by Monday I could hardly walk. I think it took me about 15 minutes to limp/hop/hobble from A&E round to X-ray on Monday afternoon. I initially thought I was imagining things, but my shin had actually become rather red and tender on Sunday despite icing and elevating it, so I was a good girl and took the advice to get it checked out again the hospital. What a lovely way to spend an afternoon off work.....hobbling around the hospital! Luckily no obvious stress fracture, but in all likelihood a tibialis anterior tendonitis.......which needs REST (boo hoo!)! To be fair, there was little else I could do, as I couldn't really walk at all and it was even painful to change gears in the car!

I shouldn't whinge though, as it's just a sore leg, and there are many people worse off.....so onto "the ugly"...

Riana winning the 2015 WFLWR in S Africa

I've written about the Wings For Life World Run before. I ran it at Silverstone in 2014 and then in Cape Town in 2015. Although I ran considerably further in 2015, I finished runner up to Riana Van Niekerk who outran the catcher car for 55K, and then became a friend. Unfortunately Riana was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer only a few weeks after the run, so I'm honoured to have been able to be there for her last competitive race. She was already unwell at the time, but you would not have known it. From watching her run, all you would have seen was a strong, determined athlete.....and speaking to her afterwards, she only mentioned being a little tired, and so declined coming out for a meal. From the brief time that I knew Riana, this was typical - she was a fighter through and through, and would not let many people know what she was going through  how hard she was fighting, how exhausted she was, how ill she felt or how much pain she was in.

Whenever we were in touch, she always made light of her suffering, just mentioning how much she was missing her running and how much she was looking forward to returning to it.

Due to her illness Riana was unable to run Comrades in 2015, and so all of us Nedbank ladies ran wearing pink ribbons in her honour. Unfortunately, after many aggressive cycles of chemotherapy, she lost the fight on Friday night and so it seemed only fitting to wear a pink ribbon for her in my warmup on Saturday - she was an amazing lady, athlete and friend and will be sorely missed by everyone who knew her!