Scotland

Apologies for the delay in putting up a new post here but major laptop issues and a ton of running , climbing and driving about Scotland has left me with no time at all.

I arrived back in Scotland 2 weeks ago and was greeted to some cracking weather straight away so just had to head out. I went up to Arrochar and went a little hill run up Ben Donich. I have never been up this Corbett before and I am so glad I finally went. It has a brilliant runnable trail all the way to the top with only a couple of small steep sections that are fine. I was greeted with stunning views of the west coast although it was a tad chilly with a very brisk wind. The ascent took well under an hour and the very very slippy descent took me under 30 minutes. Cracking little day.

Great Trail to Summit

One of best view I have ever seen in Scotland

I then managed some of my local hill runs around Largs the next couple of days , some in the mornings and one fantastic night run. So after 4 10k runs in 4 days next up was my first 10k race in many years. I don't really like short fast races because to be honest I ain't really that fast but I just love to enter races and thought this would be a good way to improve my flat running speed. The race was in a place called Benmore Gardens not far from Largs, There was around 80 runners at the start line for two laps of a 5km circuit through the Botanical Gardens. 3 , 2 , 1 and off. I was a bit taken back by the speed of the start , totally not used to it. I was never going to properly compete in a race like this(or any for that matter) but once I started and realised this was all out or nothing then I just went for it. The course had a couple of little brutal climbs in it which definitely added a couple of minutes over a flat 10k but overall the course was really really nice and I loved it but my legs and lungs did struggle with the fast pace. I finished in 5th place with a time of 40 minutes.

Largs Night Run

After the 10k

The next few days were spent with Lauren and Fleur who travelled up to Scotland so I could show them around the highlands and do some running. I managed my usual little Glencoe scramble up North Buttress a few hours before meeting up with them and then the next day returned to do it again. The weather was not that great to us( it poured every day) but we got out for some cracking runs.

Glencoe - Beautiful

Glencoe next day - Wet and Cold

Showing Lauren the sights of Largs during a Trail/Field Run

Lauren , Fleur and Me

I knew where I was going all along

Next up was a trip to the Lake District in England to catch up with loads of friends , some of whom I hadn't seen for years. The first night and the cottage was a rather sober one for Lauren and myself as the next day was the Ennerdale Trail Race. I was doing the 50k and Lauren the 25k , her longest race yet and first trail race. It was a proper miserable morning , pouring down with rain. I set off feeling pretty good just plodding my way up the forestry road for about 12km to the Black Sail Youth Hostel then it was across the river and back down the other side of Lake Ennerdale on some brilliant trails. One lap was the 25k and 2 laps was the 50k. Coming into 25k at 2hrs 16mins I was feeling okay but not great. I didn't seem to have the usual spring in my step and my hip was hurting a little. I grabbed some more gels from Fleur and James and set off again. I did not enjoy the road section at all this time. I totally hate long roads , it bores the life out of me. Plus I was feeling pretty sore all down my left side , left foot , left knee , left hip. It was not going too great and my pace really really dropped. It started to totally pour down when I got to the hut this time but the weather didn't really bother me , I actually quite enjoy running in foul weather. Once I got past the hut and across the bridge it was now 12km to the finish. I was still not great but managed to keep up a decent jog. About 4 people passed me here and I was just waiting on hordes of others to do the same. Then somehow I started to feel really really good. I looked at my watch and I was at 42km! A marathon and now I was finally in my stride. Sounds crazy I know but I guess this is just what my legs are used to now. From 42km to the finish I really had a great pace going and once I hit the final 4km very technical and wet part on the lakes edge I was actually flying along it. I could see everyone who had passed me what seemed like ages ago and I was gaining on them fast. Now I was still well back in the pack but I just wanted to pass these people and I did. I managed to overtake all of the 4 in the last 4km and still finish over 3 mins ahead of them all. I finished in 5hrs 10mins , 26th/96. I am happy with my 2hr 16min first lap but pretty disappointed with the second loop of 2hrs 54mins. This was totally down to the second road section which was 12km long. It totally drained me. If I was better on the flat road and was feeling a bit better then I am sure this could be cut down to 2hrs 30mins or less if I ever do it again. I do think as well though that the past few weeks of being very ill was not the best prep for this race. Small things just didn't work for me. My eating was not right over the whole course and stupid little things like forgetting my water bottle and not having my usual electrolyte drink and more importantly forgetting my vaseline all played with my head a little. I just didn't seem well organised going into this but I still can't complain. I enjoyed most of the race and still finished. Big shout out to James and Fleur for coming along to support for the day in the miserable weather as usual it does mean a lot to have people come help out. I am super happy with my pace on the final section as I was loving it and really had great speed on a part most people were down to a walk to try and negotiate the techy parts. These people were well faster than me on the roads but to be honest they didn't stand a chance once I got to the bits I love and train on all the time. So over to Lauren. First 25k , First trail race and how did she do?? well she only went and got 1st place female didn't she. Totally amazing stuff from her and I was so happy for her as I knew she was a bag of nerves before the race. She came through at 2hrs 18mins. Pretty much spot on my first lap time. All this training together must do some good as we were running the race at the same pace. Her race started 15 mins after the 50k so we never managed to run any of it together. I had a feeling she could totally get a top 3 place as I usually come in around the same time as first female on my races and Lauren on distances up to Half Marathons is well on pace with me. I must admit I didn't quite expect her to get first! Amazing stuff from her and really inspiring. Watch out all other female trail runners , Woody has arrived.

Km 35 , Horrible Road but still happy. Just!

So I have rested for the past 5 days and have my final race of the year on Sunday. The Culloden 17k. Oddly enough a 10 mile road race. There are no other trail runs around at moment and this is organised by CHSS who I raised money for in the summer so it will be nice to finally meet some of these people and try and enjoy running on a road best I can. This is also going down as speed work. Will stick up a report for that next week.

What a little legend. Award given by fell running god Joss Naylor

Scary Times

So my horrible run may not have been due to a lack of salt or proper fuel but it looks like it was the beginning of my body shutting down and telling me to stop.

The day after the Crochue experience I was fine but when I woke the second day after things were not too pretty. I felt a bit funny when getting ready for work but thought nothing really of it then but as the day went by at work I slowly started to get worse and worse. I was super tired and always putting my head down to dose off for a few minutes but more worryingly I was starting to get really dizzy. When 7pm arrived and we were closing up shop I was in a proper state as my work colleague looked at me rather worried as she had seen me get worse as the day went on. It was straight on home to bed. I crashed out in no time but waking up the following day I was very worried. I couldn't walk to my bathroom without holding onto the walls either side of me and I was horrendously dizzy to the stage where I could feel myself ready to just collapse. This went on for the next 3 days then I decided to go to the hospital. The doctor properly examined me and my balance but told me I had no viral infection and that I was actually fine and would get better and if I didn't in a few days go back for a blood test. I was happy he said I was not in real trouble but worried as I was still really dizzy and could hardly walk properly without looking like and feeling like I was completely drunk. I did slowly begin to get better and 10 days after it all started I was pretty much back to normal but still taking it really easy and resting. Apart from a very bad case of food poisoning a few years back this was definitely the scariest thing I have ever felt. At least with food poisoning you know what it is and it will pass just like when you catch a bad does of the flu or some sickness bug you know what it is and it will go away but with this dizziness I had no clue what it was and how long it would last.

There are a load of suggestions as to what it was that caused the problem but the most obvious one could be that I have just done too much this summer. This does kind of make sense but since Leadville I really have not pushed my body at all and have rested a fair bit so that is the reason I have my doubts. People seem to think I absolutely beast myself all the time but that is so not the case. I trained smart this summer just going easy , even on long runs I wasn't going all out and never do. I rested when I knew I should and I ate properly or so I think. I am more inclined to believe that yes this was the summer catching up with me and my body just wanted a proper long rest for a few weeks and this is the only way it found it could stop me from doing anything and it worked. I must admit in summer I do take my fitness pretty serious but let my guard down in winter quite a bit and I think this could be one of the other main reasons for my shut down. Yes I ski loads over winter and tour a fair bit but yes I do have way more nights out. It is pretty obvious that 6 months of skiing and partying then going straight into 6 months of fitness and no alcohol does not work or does not work for me any more. Not that I am old but I ain't 21 any more. So this really has given me a kick up the arse to take it easy or should I say easier this winter with regards to the nights out and I am really focused to do this now. I am at a great fitness level right now and want to just slowly keep this for as long as possible. I am not going to train hard over winter but I plan on definitely running twice a week through the snow and ice plus I will be touring and if I cut back on the nights out I believe this will have me in a decent shape for starting to properly run again come late April/May and I will be ready for races again come June. Just like a lot of the serious ultra runners they take the entire winter off from running and just ski mountaineer race to give their body time to recover and recuperate until the next running season. Now obviously I ain't near that level of fitness but it does seem like a very wise strategy to adopt.

My last 2 days off have been spent
recovering up at the Midi café staring at all
the new fresh snow dreaming of winter.

In all honesty I do not run that many races a year. I would race loads more if I lived in Scotland or somewhere that doesn't get an epic winter of skiing powder. In the Alps there really is not many races over the winter season , well running races. It is all ski mountaineering races and I am not sure if I have the cash yet to invest in the kind of gear for this but you never know. I would like to run more Ultras over summer but due to work and the cost of entries and travel to and from the event it is just not possible. I am happy with it this way at the moment though. I like having one big race a year to aim for and do some others along the way. I am really looking forward to these 3 races in the UK in the next few weeks but have no idea how they will go or how I will feel after this little problem. The 10k next weekend for example will be somewhat strange. I have not run a race of this intensity for years , many many years so have no clue what to expect. Over the years I have trained to run slow and steady and go on forever but 10ks are all out sprints and I reckon this could be a shock for the legs and the lungs next week. I was never a fast 10k runner anyway, my best ever in a race was 42mins on a trail which did have a fair few climbs. Other than that my local 10k in Largs I have done in 39 mins. Yeah I guess these times are not slow but I have friends who run 33-35mins 10ks. Not a chance for me. So who knows next weekend 40-50 mins??? I have no clue. Graham did say to me the other night maybe I should do a lap of the 10k before the race to get warmed up! This is actually a good idea , without sounding totally big headed this does make sense as when I am out on big races or long runs it does take a good hour for me to kick in. Sometimes even longer. Getting my legs to go maximum speed from the start is going to be hard. The week after is the Ennerdale 50k and I cannot wait for this. Again no aspirations for a time but I was looking at photos from last years race and it looks amazing. There is some dirt road sections but one long section by the side of the lake on what looks like awesome single track heaven so really looking forward to this one. Lauren is running the 25k event so I will hopefully be able run with her for a bit as the 25k is one lap of the lake and the 50k is 2 laps , we set off 15 mins apart but sure she will catch me up. Then to finish it all off I have a road race! A 17km run near Inverness. I am doing this to try and get some momentum on roads again , I noticed in America just how good the Americans were on the flats and it is because they have the space to train on flats unlike me in Chamonix which is up and down America has great long flat sections and in big Ultras loads of time is won and lost on these flat sections and I to be honest am rubbish on them. I can keep good pace on trails , little ups and downs , steep technical descents but then I hit a flat road section for say 4 miles and boom my legs go heavy and it is hard to keep the momentum going. The Americans were great at this. Also the race is organised by CHSS Scotland who I raised over £1000 for doing Leadville so it will be good to meet the people who I have only spoken to through email all summer.

11 days without these on was hellish

So today I managed a little run. 11 days of being unwell and sitting around resting was a bit of a nightmare but had to be done. I am still not 100% but went out for a 7km very very easy pace flat run today along some road and some trails. It went quite well actually. I was not really that dizzy when running. It is quite hard to turn my head quickly to the side when going forward but if I just focus on the road in front then I am fine. As I said it was a super easy going 7kms in 40 mins. It felt great to be back out doing something again. I will rest tomorrow and on Tuesday I fly back to Scotland for 3 weeks so my next run may be the 10k race or if I feel good I will do my local 10k on Wednesday or Thursday. Slowly easing myself back into it.

Pain , Dizziness and the Flying Phone

I know it has not been long since my last post but I had a rather horrible experience the other day that I thought it would be best to share it now then I will try and forget about it.

I hate rest days

So I had been resting for a good few days. My calf is not as bad as first thought but needed rest and my knee really is not too great so I have been icing it every morning , day and night. I hate sitting on my backside so on Tuesday I decided I would go out. I planned on hiking just hiking from my house up and over to Lac Blanc via the Crochue Ridge traverse. The lifts are now all closed on the Aiguille Rouge side so knew it would be very quiet up there. It is about a 21km loop from my house to Lac Blanc via this traverse and home again , yeah not really that far but does involve about 1600m of ascent and 1600 descent.

Looking back towards Index and the Cham Aiguilles

I left the house at 11am with some gels , Clif bars and a litre of water. It was actually pretty hot for being the end of September but I plodded on up the 900m of zigzag trail behind my house in just over and hour. I felt fine here and all the way on up to Col Cornu. Then I started a light jog along to the Index , my calf was a little tight and my knee was not bothering me much either but I still took it easy and mixed up very light jogging with walking. Once I hit the Index things started to go a little wrong. I did not really notice it too much at the time but looking back there were signs I should have turned around. I was getting out of breath just walking , then I just kept stopping not just stopping to look around at the view but to actually find a rock to sit on. I just thought at the time I had not eaten enough so got some Clif bar down me and some cola bottles and kept going. I climbed the first pitch of the Traverse no problems(it is very easy) and continued along the traverse to the summit feeling okay. It is not a hard traverse but you need to pay attention to your feet as it is exposed in areas so I didn't really have time to notice my body was not doing great.

The chimney climb

Cannot beat this

Once on the summit I sat down , took in the amazing view and total silence. After about 20 minutes on the summit I stood up and felt a little dizzy and it took me a second or two to get with it. I then put my bag back on and as I swung it around my arm my phone came flying out of the front pocket and took a sky dive down the face of the mountain never to be seen again. I then continued along what was left of the ridge but I was having too really concentrate so hard on parts I would normally run over , I was feeling really unsure about myself on my feet. Anyway I got to the end of the ridge and began the descent to Lac Blanc , this was rather pleasant as there is still some snow so managed to slide down a lot of it and then got a little jog on again to the Lake , by this point I had run out of water and I wouldn't drink out of Lac Blanc but I didn't think it was that bad as it really wasn't too far from home or so I thought. The sun was starting to disappear behind the Chamonix valley so I knew that would keep the temperature down and help me from getting dehydrated. I had drank a litre of water from when I set off but never really felt thirsty all day and still managed to drink it all.

So I started to the descent to my house from Lac Blanc. It is pretty much all downhill but a long winding trail for 10kms. Just after leaving the Lake my thighs began to hurt and I was a bit concerned. My thighs should not be hurting after 11kms on the go! I can go 100km+ and not feel this bad. Just out of nowhere my thighs were burning and really badly hurting , so much so that again I just had to keep stopping to sit down. It took me a while(40 mins) to just get to the Flegere gondola station which normally would take 20 mins. I was not feeling good , my mouth was very dry and a was getting bad dizzy spells. I got to Flegere and knew normally I would be home in 35/40 mins if I was in good shape. I was hoping I would have seen a hiker by now to ask for some water as I was dying for some water but I didn't pass a soul.

The descent to Lac Blanc

Body 5 minutes from shutting down

So I began the Flegere descent , 1000m down to my home. This was horrible. I was walking and then my legs got too sore to walk so I tried to run but couldn't keep up any kind of pace before I had to sit down. I was a bit of a dizzy wreck hunched over my poles most of the way. I remembered at this stage that just after the turn off to Floria there was a little stream I always crossed when out training so began a little jog to get there as soon as possible. I never normally drink out of streams but I just had to once I got to it and I spent a good 10 minutes here downing a ton of water until it made me feel a little sick as I had taken so much so fast. So I plodded on and passed another two streams I also drank out of. From here on it was not far from home but I stumbled my way down the trail in a total mess. I felt pathetic , I just kept thinking that I had never felt this bad on any race, ever. I had only done 20kms and I was done. I was tired , dizzy and shaking and now my right knee was sore but that was my fault for turning a hike into a run on the down hills. I finally hit the road and was only a km from home but before I got to the little hill that leads to my house I passed a bench and had to go and sit on it. I was less than a km from my house and I couldn't face walking any more. I sat down for a good 10 minutes trying to force myself to get up and go home. Finally after being out for five and half hours I got into my house , got a bottle of water , a big glass of milk and made a litre of instant noodle soup and added a stupid amount of salt to it and it perked me up a little but now I was getting splitting headache so I lay on my sofa for pretty much the rest of the night and thankfully managed a great nights sleep and woke the next day feeling fine.

Every Ultra runners lifeline

I really do not want to sound over the top here but I really did feel that bad from the summit of the Crochue. Looking back on it I reckon it was just a mixture of lack of fluids , food and the heat. I am still a bit confused as I have gone much longer on less food and water and not felt nearly that bad. I am usually pretty good at going on empty for a good while. Also this was an easy hike/jog day and I was not going at anything near my usual pace. I really really hope this never crops up on me during a proper long race or it is game over. On the last section about 5kms from home I would have been really worried if I had been out somewhere with say 20kms to the nearest water or food. I was really really bad. The fact I drank so much once home and the salty noodle soup really sorted me out pretty quickly shows it was most definitely dehydration. Now I know this was no life or death situation I was in , nowhere near it but it was surprising how much I have done in the past few years and not once came close to this. Yeah I have had very sore thighs many a times and had a couple of little bonk runs but the dizzy feeling and feeling like I was not actually in my body(if that makes sense) was all very surreal. Some would say a day like that is a good training day and in a strange kind of way I can understand that as over the course of an Ultra you do get little pains and feel a little empty but nothing ever like this so if I can deal with that experience then I can deal with a lot I guess. I just hope it never ever gets that bad on a race.

 

It is always quite funny when people ask what kind of races I run and when I say Ultras always always always the first thing they say is "oh you must run really fast , what's your marathon time?" errrr no I don't , that's why I run Ultras, I don't have to run fast and get a time , I am out to enjoy and to test myself by seeing just how far I can go. There are millions of people out there way faster than me but maybe as the miles go by I start to show my endurance but I am not fast. The other thing they think is that you are immune to pain and I think this little experience proves I am not.

 

I know I said this was ONLY 20km but I am just putting it into perspective compared to the mileage I have been doing all summer. 20km is still far. That is the one other thing people always get confused by with regards to Ultra runners. People think if I am going out a short run then I am going out for 4 or 5 hours errr nope. My short runs can be 30 mins , just like any other runner out there. I think the difference between a twice a week runner aiming for a half marathon time and myself is not that huge. The only thing you need to change when hiking up the distance you are going to run is train train train. Some people just don't have time to train for long distances and I believe anybody no matter what fitness level can train and complete Half's and Marathons(if you want a time then that is different) but it takes just a little more dedication and work to push the mileage up to an Ultra but remember most Ultras take place on Trails which are a million times more fun and interesting than running for 26.2 miles around London.

Anyway , I am all good now and going to properly rest for a good few days maybe even a week as I now need to focus on my UK races.

Taking it easy

Well it has been a strange couple of weeks. I am still getting out running but not nearly to this summers level. It's all a bit odd not having a huge objective to aim for as of yet. My distances are varying from 10-15km a few times a week. My best run was from Brevent to Saint Gervais then I got the Tramway Du Mont Blanc back up to Bellevue then ran down the mountain and home. A total of 30km and I felt really good the whole day even after doing an all out sprint from the Col De Forclaz for 6km downhill to the train station thinking I would miss the last train and ended up having 15 minutes to spare.

Awesome ridge run on the left

Sprint time to the train

My other runs have been the usual Plan Aiguille to Montenvers then down to Chamonix , and a couple of Brevent to Flegere laps. Most lifts are closing now here as we head to end of season and the town is getting really quiet as we slowly start to get ready for winter. So most runs now involve a mandatory 1000m hike before I can properly stretch my legs.

I had a little trip down to the south coast to visit some friends there and finally got my rock shoes back on for some very easy climbing on the sea cliffs near Finale Ligure. I have never climbed somewhere like that before and it was awesome clipping into a belay about a half metre above the Mediterranean. Getting smashed by some huge waves was also pretty fun.

I am not really an Ocean person but admit
this was a nice change from the Mountains

Sea is a slightly different colour to the Clyde back home

Happy to be back Climbing

Abseiling down to the sea

Just after the first wave struck!

I am actually getting a few little running injuries as well which is not very common for me , except for my knee which I now know the problem as I went to see a physio here in Chamonix who told me my knee was fine that it was my hip , right calf and lower spine that was the problem , that's all! I have some exercises to do and I go back and see Neil(physio) next week to see where I am at.

My right knee is a little sore in the IT band area so I hope this is very small and doesn't come to anything but I will keep doing the good old RICE to help it along. The most worrying thing happened today on lunch. I went out for a 12km run and on the descent my left calf just popped. It didn't feel like an over stretch but more like a snap or proper tear and it was agony and I had to walk/limp down the rest of the route. Not a good sign and it is something I have never felt before , it is still really painful now so I will give it a few days rest and see how it is but after doing a bit of research I have a feeling I could be doing no running or anything on my calf for 2 weeks meaning I might just recover for my 10km on Oct 12th. I am not too bothered if I miss that but I do not want to miss my 50k in the Lake District on Oct 20th. I am just glad this problem has happened now as I was very lucky to go all summer without anything major when training. I have a feeling though that this is now my body telling me to take it easy after a lot of summer training(870 miles running since mid April) and obviously running my first 100 mile race has taken it's toll on me.

20 mins before the pop in my calf

So I really do not know what is going to happen in the next couple of weeks , I had planned a few long runs on my days off but that has all changed now and looks like I won't be able to climb with this problem either so it may be a waiting game and I hate doing nothing.

Feeling the love for Cham again

It should come as no surprise that all I have been doing lately is running. Not really on the same distances as before the big race but I have been going out quite a lot on the trails and still loving it. I have also been enjoying a few beers now and then but I really am not in the mood for a lot of alcohol or nights out. Now that may be me getting old but having gone all summer training and getting myself in great shape I now feel it would be a total waste to just sit back and lose it all.

First run back in Chamonix

I still really really want to find my way to the States next year , it is looking unlikely I will be able to obtain a visa for a while yet but I do think I will be going over for a couple of months next summer if I can get the cash together over winter. Next years big race is being planned but I will explain that all later.

Recently a good friend of mine came for a visit. Lauren worked a season over in Chamonix when I was here a few years ago and she was finishing up her summer job in the south coast of France so flew back up for a couple of days in Chamonix to say Hi. She hadn't seen Chamonix without snow so on the first day I decided we would go for a run along the Aiguille Rouge. Sandy and Ally also joined for a cracking day out. I don't normally run with people when training as I prefer to do my own thing but with major training over it was great to get out and just have a laugh cruising about the trails , taking pics , stopping for lunch and listening to classic Ally Swinton banter. Just enjoying being out the hills. We ran from the Brevent top Station over to Le Tour via Lac Blanc. A 17km route which is just stunning the entire way. We took it super easy all the way stopping now and then for photo's and food. I felt great the whole day and everyone else was awesome. Ally is just generally super fit (having just done a Chamonix Centre – Frendo Spur – Mont blanc Summit – Valley...Solo and in a day!) , Sandy is training for his first 50k race and Lauren well Lauren spent 4 months on super boats on the Med so she did amazing having had pretty much no running training and certainly not on trails.

Dream Team. Ally , Sandy and Me

Myself and Ally

Lauren and Me

Me heading to le Tour

Just past Lac Blanc

Sandy , Me , Lauren. Easily one of my fave days all summer

Can it get better than this? Nope. I prefer to make
pennies and run in this than make millions and run in a city

The following day was climb day. It was a super lazy morning and we got the 12.30pm lift up the Midi to do a little Cosmiques Arête lap. Again it was the same team as the previous days run. I won't go into any detail on the route as I am sure I have posted many a times about it but we had a cracking afternoon at 12.000ft cruising along the route in beautiful sunny weather. It was so amazing to be back up high again. I know I don't climb nearly enough these days and I did say I had lost a bit of the love for it but it was great. Especially seeing someone else's reaction to it all. Lauren was going mad , in a good way. She was speechless at the scenery and what we were doing and it did make me realise more just how good it can be out here and this was a route I have done god knows how many times but I still love going over it without the summer crowds of July and August.

Me , Lauren and Sandy heading down the midi Arete

Awesome pics from Ally

Start of Arete

Ally where he belongs

Me and Lauren near the end waiting on some slow
Brits to get moving up the final chimney.

What a team. What a couple of days.

The following day I was working but myself and Lauren managed to get out for a wee 8k trail run through the trees behind my house on my lunch break before she had to leave for the airport. We had planned on an easy 5km recovery run but we actually ended up setting a pretty mean pace for the entire run and we were both pretty chuffed at the end.

I head back to Scotland in October for a month and I have a few races lined up. A little 10k , a 17k and a 50k in the Lakes District which I am excited about. I also have another plan. I was saying before how I wanted to do the West Highland Way race next year but having thought a lot about it recently I have decided why wait until next June when I can do it now. So my plan is to give it a bash as soon as I get a good weather window in October. It will mostly be a solo effort but I have a couple of good friends who are keen to help me out. Martin will run the final 10ish miles with me and will also help support at different points with extra food , clothes etc. and Scott will join me for some sections which will be awesome , I really miss running myself into the ground with him. He is a way faster runner than me but we just seem to be able to get on with things really well together and as strange as it sounds we can read each other super well so I can't wait to run with him again. Most of you will know the route but for those who don't it is a hiking trail that runs for 98 miles from Milngavie which is just outside Glasgow to Fort William in the highlands. I have ran it before but over 2 stages in opposite directions and neither went very well. Myself and Scott many years ago ran from Fort William to Tyndrum around 50 miles in 10hrs on the back of zero training so we were a mess at the end but managed it. The other section we did was Milngavie to Ardlui around 41 miles. We had planned to run to Tyndrum but I was crippled by about mile 35 and was struggling to even walk so we had to bail at mile 41 and get Craig to drive up from Glasgow to rescue us. Ended up I had overdone it and got tendinitis. Those last 6 miles that day were probably the most painful I have ever felt when running or trying to run. Scott would normally push me to keep going but that day he did sit next to me “you are not good man , we need to stop” I said we could push on but I think he may have laughed and said “look at yourself” then I decided enough was enough. Great day though. So the plan is to just go for it in the oner and see what happens. Going well I think I could do it sub 24hrs but sure I could be under 30hrs. I think the current record is around about a ridiculous 16hrs. Let's see if the weather let's me have a go.

Ally heading along to the descent.

So to next summer. So many ideas. I am definitely going to pace Kim over 20-30 miles of Leadville and as I said earlier plan on staying in Colorado for a couple of months. I am going to put in for entries to two big races but doubt I will get into either even though I have done the right qualifying races. First up is the Hardrock 100 in Colorado , in my opinion the hardest 100 mile race out there. 100 miles , 10,000m of elevation gain , average altitude of 11,000ft and you pass over 14,000ft 13 times! The cut off time is 48hr , just 2 more than the UTMB. The average winner does it in 27hrs compared to the UTMB's 20hrs so that itself shows how tough it is as the UTMB is ridiculously hard. The downside is that they only let in 140 runners each year so chances of getting in are low but I will put my name in the hat and see what happens. Second up is the famous Western States 100 in California again a small field of under 500 it is the oldest 100 mile race out there and the one that started it all , it is very similar to the UTMB in terms of vertical gain and cut off times but you have 1 in 17 chance of getting into it so my hopes ain't high. Obviously these 2 races are on my radar due to their reputations but also because I want to run in America again , I want to travel away somewhere again to run and discover new trails and areas I just don't know , I seriously am not bothered in the slightest about the UTMB. I now have the right amount of points to put my name in for it but I won't. I think the whole UTMB weekend in Chamonix is amazing and must be experienced and it is one of THE races to do but I don't want to do it just for the tick and that is the reason I would be entering it next year if I did so I will wait until I have a real passion to run it before putting in my name for it. Never say never.

The race that looks like it will be the one as Hardrock and WS 100 probably won't happen is the UROC(Ultra Race of Champions). This is a 100k race with 4'500m ascent and has a cut-off time of 19hrs. Nothing over extreme but sure not easy. The reason I want to do this is that it goes from Breckenridge to Vail in Colorado. Two places I visited before Leadville and fell in love with the trails. It looks like one of the best trail runs I have ever seen. It is also run by pretty much all the ultra running pro's out there so it is nice to share the field with these people even if you never see them until maybe the end after they have showered and had their dinner and probably had a sleep as well. All these races allow pacers and I sure as hell know I got the best ones out there already.

Finally a massive shout out to Graham who not only finished his first 100k race(CCC) but totally smashed it to bits! He managed an amazing time of 18hrs 40(something) minutes or it could have been less. He was in the top 200 runners overall out of a starting field of 1900. Just totally amazing stuff from him. I totally loved following the race after work. I got a real buzz clapping in runners to aid stations and seeing the smiles on their faces as they said “merci” “thank you” and so on. It was strange to be the one clapping and shouting encouragement but I loved it because I could relate to the exact feeling these guys were getting from the spectators. For once I really didn't care I wasn't running. I had a great night.

So for now it is work and run. Then come October it's just run run run probably in Rain , Sleet and Snow.

Excuse the new title , pics etc.. Just playing around with a few things to see how it looks.