Lots of Reflection

I have been reading a lot of other peoples blogs and facebook notes etc and there seems to be quite a bit of nerves, angst, questioning, niggles, pain, motivational mojo missing and general malaise..

Only natural I reckon, we spend so much of our year shaping ourselves to spend a few heartbeats on a 10 m wide, 95 mile corridor in the west of Scotland that the reality of the focus becomes a little intense and the questions come out .. Physical and mental, emotional ..

It is a long road to the start..

So a slight interlude..

How the fuck can 2 blokes who are supposed to be sweeping a 55 mile run in perfect conditions lose the last runner in the race ? Waiting on a stile 350m and a short downhill to the next checkpoint I said to George "Should we wait " "Nahh, it's just downhill, he is just there, we'll go and get a bit of a blether " .. Downhill, past the THREE BIG RED ARROWS POINTING TO THE CHECKPOINT and what we thought would be 10 mins break .. Skip forward 45 mins, phonecalls, Sean out in his car.. Luckily some random folks came past in their car and asked if we had seen a lady walking a dog .. We countered with "Have you seen a short moustachioed bloke wearing shorts and joggers ".. "No.." ... They brought Ray back 10 mins later.. From 3 mile away.. WTF ???? .. 10 miles later..Kirkmichael "Ray, end of the road (20m away) turn RIGHT, then take next LEFT .. Ray goes to the T juntion and turns LEFT "YOUR OTHER RIGHT RAY ! " Bloody funny bloke.. What a great day - 55 miles of cracking weather, views and company ..

Anyway that's it .. Just been watching a Neil Young Doco - he is the Man !!

"Don't let it bring you down, Its only castles burning, find someone who is turning and you will come around "

I've been thinking

In 42 days and 90 mins me and a few other folks will leave Milngavie on a little 95 mile adventure... This will be my 6th time, and I reckon I feel as good at this stage as I ever have. Have a little niggly ankle from the Fling the other week, and my hammy is sore as ever but reckon I will be ok...

So I find myself now thinking .. A lot .. A run up a hill makes me think of the one at 61 miles at Bridge of Orchy, a slight incline the gentle but definite rise up off Rannoch Moor, stairs at work I take, they are the Devils, cobbles and rocks underneath my feet I seek , they are Lairig Moor..

And I keep thinking, isolating the bits of the Way, the tree roots, Darios book, the bothies, the ups and downs, how did I feel this time last year there, what am I going to eat, ahh that where I was running with Eric, or Alyson.. Shit I felt crap there, ahh Carmyle where Mike was waiting for me .. Still thinking and visualising .. I need to get rid of this niggle sure, but I am thinking, the long 13 miles from Kinlochleven, Lundavra and the fire, the forest, the ache of the hill down and the last 2 miles, and the door and the end and goblet number 6..

I am just thinking at the moment, and running, but every run now wherever it is, is another step on the way .. Every day walking into work, each step is another step closer.. It sure is tiring this thinking, can't wait to start the running bit.. But thinking is important, it helps in the doing when your mind is telling you that the Devils is just the stairs at work, the rocks that don't budge are the cobbles on the way to your front door and the door at the end is yours to open as long as you think you can ..

A bloody impressive run

So along with a lot of WHW Family and some new friends I ran the Highland Fling at the weekend. That is the subject of a different post. I feel privileged to know Rachel who ran the London Marathon at the weekend. She is my mate Mikes sister in law and this is a post for her..

Rachel had run a marathon a few years back and did a good honest time, no world beater sure, but an achievement like all marathons are. In 2007 Rachel and her husband David were pregnant with twins. However, Rachel went into labour at 23 weeks. They lost the little boy, Finlay, but Eilidh (who was 1lb when she was born!) was a wee fighter and is now a happy and healthy 2 and a half year old. However, because she was so early, her eyesight was damaged and, despite numerous operations when she was only months old, she's completely blind in one eye and only sees partially out of the other.

So like so many people Rachel ran in London at the weekend for her chosen charity LOOK which helps and supports visually impaired children and their families. Only for Rachel it was a little bit more than just another marathon. Less than a year ago Rachel had open heart surgery. She crossed the line yesterday in a little over 6 hours - "a little bit disappointed because she had to walk a bit "

A bloody impressive run...

Some of us can wonder why
and moan and cry
about the path our life has taken
then there are those that just crack on
do what they do
lest a moment be forsaken..

http://www.justgiving.com/racheljohnstone1

33 x 3 + 33

It was all about the numbers... At the start of March I went back on my pre WHW race sabatical and gave up beer, wine and all things alcoholic.. I also thought I would get a bit of running in and put myself in some sort of shape for the efforts of the next few months.. And there was the little matter of unfinished business from the attempted Marcothon of December.. You know, the running every day (at least 3 miles ) for a month .. I gor to 22 in December when a combination of a couple of slight tumbles and some sort of attack of the frilly blouse stopped me in my tracks..

It is a lot easier in March, but even so, getting in 31 x 3 mile runs requires a little bit of focus .. But in the last 6 weeks I watched "Running the Sahara" about 3 blokes running 8000 miles across the Sahara (117 days, non stop), Eddy Izzard (a tubby British transvestite comedian ) doing 43 marathons the length of Britain in 7 weeks, or William Sichel running 1609 times around a 1k track in Athens in 13 days to come 2nd in the World 1000 mile race (not bad for a 53 y.o bloke ), so it was not really that much of an effort..

So anyway, 31 x 3 mile runs (minimum ) is what I did .. With a couple of decent ones in there as well. A nice 18 miler up in the Pentlands in the last of the snow (so we thought) with Norman and a cracking 36 miler from Balmaha to Beinglas and back again on a glorious March spring day which topped off a 75 mile week.. Then back to the grind of getting up at 6:15 to get in a run before work...

So some things that I learnt from running every day even for a month.. It is a good mental challenge but it does become a bit of a grind just to tick off a run for the sake of putting a 1 in a diary.. And even with just a short run, you need to give yourself a day off to let niggles go away and the body and mind to relax.. Well at least for me.. But the routine is great and it definitely has given me a good base for the next couple of months.

So I got to 28 , clocks have gone forward, ya beauty !! Easy street now, until winter had its last (???) stab ... Sleet, rain, torrential downpours, floods on the Water of Leith.. Went out on Tuesday with Adrian and made our way up the Water of Leith, except the W.O.L was coming down on us - knee deep and hoarsing it down the path.. And another nice dunping of snow on the Pentlands .. But made it to 31 so job done.. Until I worked out that another 2 would bring me up to 33, and I had a little matter of ther D33 on the day after.. So I did them too..

The D33side way (http://deesidewayultra.webnode.com/) is a cracker.. A tenner to enter, cake, beer, jam sandwiches and a choccy medal at the finish.. Great company and very very flat which is not really to my liking (I need hills to walk on and stretch my legs ) but a great day out.. I ran ok for me, 2:34 for the half way, finished in 5:18 so pretty happy with that .. Grant Jeans won it in a sensational 3:34... When he passed me (it is an out and back course ) he was going like someone doing a 5k.. Really impressive..

Today I had a day off, even though I worked out that another 19 runs would bring me to 53 runs in a row.. Which is a nice number before doing a little 53 miler in 20 days time.. Tomorrow some stretches, and I might not run as well...

All change

So went to Aus, came back.. Had an absolutly cracking time but of course it seems so long ago, even though it was only 3 weeks ago today that I was on the beach having my last run, swim with the girls, a chat to my mate, put my best boy to rest on the sands he and we loved so much and then a bomber of EB to finish the trip and the long but fun travel back home.

It seemed to have been such a short time but so much done. Caught up with mates, spent time with Mum and Dad and my big Sis, had a run or 2, and best of all had time with just me and the girls, what a hoot, sleeping in the same room, chatting away, go to sleep, yeah but Dad, What ? go to sleep, looking at stars on the beach and just chilling being we 3

Back to home, to the cold but brilliant sunshine and the hills gleaming, back to my empty flat and the reality and the quiet too much, back to my work of 6 years but only for a week till the end of that without a card or even much of a goodbye but lots of good memories and a few beers and some friends, the last weekend of February and some cracking runs, a wine or 2 then goodbye to that too..

2 days looking, till the Yes that I was waiting for, then 3 days off, some runs, a brekky and driving a big digger at my mates, new job awaits, new challenge and a kick in the arse of comfort and complacency and some more runs and stretches a canal and some sunshine running and bright and starting again as is my world at the moment so lets see how it goes, all change and thats 4 weeks..

It IS all about the beach - A Very Special Day in Aus..

So this morning I was due to leave my sister Karens house and go further south for 2 nights.. But then my middle niece (and most closest in age to my darlings ) had another day off.. So we went down to the beach with the girls winging all the way about how cold it was (+28C) and how they didn't want a swim..

After a little 5 k trot on the totally empty beach, including a k or so with my nephew Hayden, we decided that we would stay another night... And then we went for a swim... Not really much else to say except what followed was about an hour of pure bliss and a day that I will never forget..

Some days like time
can pass with a frequency and familiarity
that only leaves the ticking of the clock
in your soul

Some days will shine in the now
and the future
and will always be the perfect day
and yes they may only be 1 or 3
but when they are at the end
it is not with sadness that we sleep
or for their brevity that we weep
but we rejoice for all they were
and we remember for time
and be happy
until the next we meet...

For my big sis Karen, her great husband Glenn, Hayden, Rosie... Thanks for a great few days - Uncle Keith, Kirsty and Caroline.

It's not just about beaches

Yesterday had a top day with Sis, the girls and my niece and nephew... Went down to see the dolphins but they did not come in... We then went for a little drive in the country.. Ended up in the very picturesque Fergusson Valley, just past Dardanup... Bit of a twilight zone moment, ended up in Gnome Town.. Not sure of the population - but at least in the 100's.. Enjoy