Wooo whoo- PB time

Day 253 Sunday 9th September 13.1 miles : miles to date 1675.4 The Voldemort training schedule kicked in big time today. I ran the Grunty Fen half marathon with the Flying Scotsman George Arbuckle in a new massive PB time of 01:27:41 watch time, which probably puts me in the top 5% of the 800 field based on last years times (official results not out). As this is my blog, its difficult not to talk about me, but the truth is I am still on a massive high. My previous PB for a half was this race in 2005 on the same course, with a time of 01:40:41, so a nice neat new PB by 14 minutes or about 2.2 miles. It was a blisteringly hot day but for once, the sun didn't effect me. I had wanted to go below 1.30 and set out trying to run an average 6.50 mile pace. I went through the first mile at spot 6.30 and didn't feel like slowing, so I cracked on. George had by this point slipped past me as I expected and I settled into my plan of steady miles. At around three, I thought I ought to slow a little given I went past the 5k mark just a minute off PB pace and tried to run evenly. I could see George in the distance, but no part of the plan had me running anywhere close to him. I'm not sure who was surprised the most as I eventually drew level at 6.5 miles and with some reluctance went in front. I then spent the next 6.5 miles waiting for him to retake me. The course was mainly long, straight Cambridgeshire country roads with three or four 90% turns where you could look sideways to see those behind. At every one, I just focused in front and didn't look once, to avoid telling speed boy I was flagging, which I was. After the race, he told me he could see that I didn't look so the mind games worked! It was still a massive shock to cross the line in front and in the 1:27's, with an average overall mile pace of 6.40 for the race. Me, an average of 6:40? I still cant quite believe it. George was totally magnanimous and if I thought before my respect for him couldn't increase, I was wrong. He missed his PB by a minute and was behind me. To top it off, after the race as we were talking to Carolyn O'Connor and Catherine Course, when the former asked the Sean Connery sounding Jockster if he was Welsh. The highlight of the day. Almost.

MK Parkrun

Day 252 Saturday 8th September 3.1 miles : miles to date 1662.3 Fi and I ventured over to Milton Keynes parkrun for this am's little jaunt. Parkruns are totally free 5k events every Saturday all over the UK, where you just turn up, run, scan your barcode in at the end and coffee up. Results are e-mailed and were on their web page by the time we got home. They are run by volunteers and are a brilliant way to encourage a wide cross section to have a go at a manageable running distance. We were early and blagged a coffee from a closed pub, before sitting in the sunshine and enjoying the start to the day. We had a chat with Paul Newton and Nicky Double, who were two of what seemed to be an army of David Lloyd runners. We wandered over to the vague start area and it was great to properly meet David Lewis and David FoxyDavy Bayley. We were gassing merrily away, when someone noticed people were running and we were off. It was the most low key start ever ie no-one appeared to say go! It was a little congested as around 390 peeps were there and we were behind about 220 of them. The course is a little twisty and I had been warned by the whippets that its about twenty seconds slower than my local run, although I was there to just enjoy the morning with Fi, who without warning put her foot down and came very close to a new PB. So much for our planned gentle jog. It was a lovely sunny morning, very nice atmosphere and well worth a second visit when the go fast shoes might come out. As for yesterdays science lesson, coffee and food won over more running!

Science lesson

Day 251 Friday 7th September 3 miles : miles to date 1659.2 Just a short recovery run tonight around the village early doors. In fact, it was too early. I saw too many people on the way home and pressed the accelerator when I should have been coasting in fifth gear. I was only running three miles and knew I couldn't do too much damage. Still, its strange how your mind and body adapts to what you are doing. If I know its three miles, I'm tired at the end. If I know its twenty miles, I still don't tire until the end, at least most of the time. I'm sure there must be a neurotransmitter that kicks in based on my predetermined decision to cover a specific distance. Neurothingies are brain chemicals that transmit information throughout the body and brain, telling the heart to beat, lungs to breath and stomach to digest. Having failed science O level in the last century, I feel totally under qualified to provide a research paper on the subject. All I can say from experience, is that on days when I'm only running low mileage, I cant go past that level and yet the next day I can breeze past the previous shorter distance. There has to be a scientific connection somewhere. I do know that dopamine is our main focus neurotransmitter and is responsible for drive and ambition. This can be elevated by caffeine, which explains why lots of running websites recommend a cup or two before a race. So I guess that's the answer. If you go out for say a five miler, pop into Starbucks (other coffee shops are available), stimulate your excitatory neurotransmitters with a large brew and slam in another five on the way back. Or just call it a day and have a bacon sarnie to go with it. I'm off to a parkrun with Fi in the morning and will put my new found scientific thesis to the test. My moneys on, can I have brown sauce with that please?

A taper???

Day 250 Thursday 6th September 4.2 miles : miles to date 1656.2 As I was about to start up the afterburners on the Owenmobile at 11 pm tonight, I had a bit if a shock as a runner stormed past me running right down the middle of the road. I had to pause, look in the mirror and just make sure it wasn't me. It wasn't. I have often wondered what drivers might think when they see me running at them at that time or later, which I have had to do a few times recently. It was a mixture of can't you organise your day better to be able to run at a decent time, you must be barking and can I get my daps on quickly enough to catch him. No was the short answer. I had put in an earlier easy run in the daylight, as part of a three day pre race taper. I have at short notice been able to wangle an entry into a local half marathon at the weekend and want to have a crack at a new PB. In the last six or seven years, I have only run three half's and strangely my current PB of 1.41 something was set in this race seven years ago. Since then, I have concentrated on marathons and very long ultras almost exclusively to get the juices going. When I stayed in bed until around an hour before a marathon last year, turning up with about two minutes to go, I knew I needed a new challenge. One great side effect of the Voldemort schedule, is that I have become excited again at running 5ks, 10ks and now a half. Whoop whoop woohoo.

Day 249 Wednesday 5th September 8.3 miles : miles to date 1652 I was joined tonight for another eight miler at seven thirty mile pace by the fab four. Not the Beatles of course, but Satnav Jones, Silver Surfer, Flying Scotsman and Martin Beare. Mmmm, now given the first three sound like super heroes from a DC comic, I think the last one needs a nickname. We met the the Beare in the woods, so I googled a few options along those lines. It appears there are a variety of Bear related names with meanings, including the following;- 1. Bear - a police officer 2. Baby Bear - a rookie officer 3. Bear in the air - police helicopter 4. Bear cave - police station 5. Care Bear - police in a construction zone 6. Bear in the grass - speed trap 7. Bear in a plain brown wrapper - officer in unmarked cars Now being the law abiding type that the Bearmeister is - by gadooks, I think that's it - I am sure he wouldn't mind being mistaken for a law enforcement officer. Mind you, the way he took off and left us tonight halfway through the run, the Speed Beare might be better. It seems that an average 7.22 minute mile pace wasn't quick enough for the whippet. Oi, Bearemeister who do you think you are, an international Great Britain triathlete or something? Oh, yep come to think of it you are. I think I'll just call him awesome.

I feel the need for speeeeddddd

Day 248 Tuesday 4th September 5.3 miles : miles to date 1643.7 Tonight's speed session took place in the scenic and undulating Ampthill Park, which has a ridge running along the top and drops in every direction. The effort seemed straight forward on paper. Run hard for five minutes, rest two and then get back to the start point times two. I set off in error in third place, with Ste Hartley leading. Now if the bloke in fronts nickname is Hartley Hare, you know he's going to go hard out and he did, or at least to me he did. I tried to maintain the effort on what was a roller coaster of a trail but still slipped back to about tenth place. By the end of the second effort I was gasping and felt ready to blow a few chunks although with a half time break I was able to recover but that was a hummer of a session. There is just no way I would have pushed myself that hard if it wasn't part of a structured club session, with me trying to keep up with the crew in front and staying in front of the crew behind. Another corker.

1st - 3rd September

Day 245 Saturday 1st September 20 miles : miles to date 1631.4

 It was our 17th wedding anniversary today, so what better way than to get up and leave Fi snoozing in bed whilst  shooting off for a twenty miler? I did drop off a cuppa as I slipped out early doors. We went into London later in the morning to watch the stage version of Chariots of Fire and grab a bite, which meant that it was first thing or not at all. Anyway, she was off to a park run not long after so I wasn't feeling too guilty.

 I was down for another twenty, although I changed the planned run slightly following Philip Horan asking to tag along. Phil is training for his first marathon and we are running at slightly different speeds, so we each did ten miles on our own and met at halfway for the next business ten. 

 Having met on time, I thought it would be good to get a few miles in off road so we headed over to the JB/Greensands trail and chewed up the miles. Now Phil is the king of double entendre and I made a number of innocent remarks that led to various phurnaa phurnaa moments. These include mention of the following;-

1. Various sheep in fields

2. meeting at the entrance

3. taking the back route

4. taking the muddy route

5. slipping into the side entrance

6. not enough vaseline

7. having a bite of my chocolate bar

and various others. The innocent chap I am, I only understood two of them. Phil had a great run although did stumm up at around seventeen miles which is not surprising given he only ran eighteen for the first time last week. I kept waffling away and asking him questions to try to take his mind off the last few miles which included a hill at 19.2 that he flew up. 

 I think I needed a longer run where it wasn't just me and a large white rabbit called Harvey, so whilst I was happy to help the big man get his longest run in ever, he also helped me chill out.

Day 246 Sunday 2nd September 4 miles : miles to date 1635.4

 Having trundled around Town after yesterdays long run, I woke up this morning feeling every one of my 16,474 days old. The training schedule is a little tough on the mind at times but it was most definitely the old bones creaking this morning. I opted for a run to the butchers at a slow to steady pace, dreaming of possibly the last bbq of the summer. With five weeks to go to Chester, one last hurrah was called for before the next three weeks of hard training. My legs seem constantly tired at the moment and I could really could do with a day off. With any luck, that wont happen for another 121 days although I am under no illusion that come the 1st January, the family will be wrapping chains around me to stop me going out.

Day 247 Monday 3rd September 3 miles : miles to date 1638.4

 Having made the most of yesterdays bbq, I retired to bed early a little, er, under the weather. Luckily I ended up today having a half day at work and I chilled out for a bit watching the wheelchair basketball on the tube at the paralympics. I know its easy to say that watching the athletes perform at the highest level was inspirational, but it truly was. None of the coverage focuses on the athletes disability other than to explain some times in a factual way about the various classifications. Watching the basketball, I just admired the sheer power and skill of the athletes and made me realise that my tired body was capable of knocking out a few miles despite my self induced lethargy. A straight forward recovery run was duly undertaken before resuming my body is a temple thing, albeit right now it feels more like a dumping ground.