Just occasionally, I manage to stay up until it gets dark. Ok, I'll admit it, I might have had 40 winks after work just to see me through, but sometimes it's worth it. And that my friends is that, it's time to go home, Singapore's been fantastic, but I'm not a big city person. It's too big, too crowded and at the end of the day there's no where to hang your hammock!
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I've mentioned before that sometimes it can hard be hard to stay motivated for this running lark. 100's of hours spent on the floor stretching and rolling tired muscles, dark nights slogging round local roads in the wind and the rain trying to get the miles in. All those evenings when you think "a beer would be nice" and you don't because there's running to do and you need an early start, all those chocolate bars and fizzy drinks that you don't have because you don't need those empty calories. Days spent fretting about niggly little injuries, 100's of pounds spent on Physios and other magic cures to fix the more serious problems. "The Emma" constantly complaining about the mountain of washing I make, even more so in the winter when it's cold and a couple of layers are required. The pairs of trainers, hats, foam rollers, weights, and other paraphernalia that clutter up the house and get in the way. Sometimes, I think "what the hell am I doing this for"? And then a couple of times a year it all falls into place and you think "that's why" I thought about staying up and having a few beers last night, and then I thought, no there's running to do. So, up at dawn and out with the other local lunatics for 8 slow and steady miles in the dawn cool (that's a figurative dawn cool as it's still 26 degrees and pretty humid).
But by f**k those 8 miles more than made up for a years worth of trying to stay motivated, missed beers, washing complaints, expensive shoes and all the other stuff! And that was that, my time in Brunei has unfortunately come to an end. As with most work trips I've not seen any of the touristy bits, but I have seen some of the bits the tourists don't normally get to see. Not that they missed much, unless your into jungle and oil extraction equipment! To be honest I've not got much to report on this week. I've managed a few stupidly early starts in order to get out running before work and before it get's too hot, there's no chance after work, it's far to hot until it gets dark, by which time "can't be arsed" has kicked in! I have seen a real life wild Monkey, unfortunately you'll just have to take my word on that one though, as all I managed to get were pictures of it's backside. By the time I spotted it, stopped running, got my phone out etc, it had seen me and decided to play the "I'll stay still long enough for the camera to focus and then move" game, cheeky monkey! I've seen a Cobra (the snake type not the AC type) crossing the road, I've seen a big lizard thing eating a different snake, I've seen loads of Egrets (there in zoo's at home but they're like seagulls here (everywhere)) and I've seen the inside of about 100 flats doing Legionella risk assessments. All exciting stuff but not remotely interesting. Unfortunately, that really has been about it, at the end of the day I'm at work and not on holiday, so the rest of my times been taken up working. Brunei seems like a beautiful country though, It's a bit warm and humid for working, but the people seem lovely, the sun shines a lot, and unlike most of the other hot places I've been lucky (or unlucky) enough to visit, it's green and lush. I could quite easily see myself living out here, I'm not so sure "The Emma" would be so keen though! And so onto Singapore, It really is a hard life this inspection lark. An early start to the Airport on Saturday and a 2 hour flight saw me into Singapore for early afternoon with a couple of hours to spare to get my bearings and get checked in to the hotel. I've had a quick mooch around and I'm impressed with what I've seen so far, a mix of ultra modern and historic. It's a bit like London, but warmer, cleaner, and there's no one trying to mug you every ten seconds. Anyhow, it's Chinese New Years day today and my hotels right on the edge of China town. So it's going to be a quick shower, change of clothes and back out to see how they celebrate New Years day here. I'm guessing there's no local Knacker Cracker? Juxtaposition 2 - 1800's architecture meets ultra modern, sound familiar?
It's all a bit different this week, it's a lot hotter, far more humid, a bit more jungly and a lot closer to the equator than normal. As I mentioned at the end of my last post, I'm in Brunei for work, so the normal routine of "playing out" has been replaced with a lot of sweating, a bit of sunburn and plenty of hiding inside where it's a bit cooler. Oh, and lots of work obviously, after all that's the whole reason for being here. So, what have I been up to that's of any interest? Well, not a great deal really. The time difference caused a few issues for the first few days. Being 8 hours in front of the UK meant my body seemed to think I needed to be awake all night, which would be fine on holiday, brilliant in fact, party tastic! Ideal if you can spend the day sleeping off the night before lazing around the poolside, not quite as convenient when you've got to go to work during the day. Not to worry, we might as well make hay whilst the sun shines, and being awake for most of the night did mean I got out for a couple of early morning runs whilst it was still cool enough. Running in the dark can be pretty tedious at times, there's nothing to look at except the small pool of light cast by your head torch, and nothing to distract your mind from the task in hand. A whole new world of sounds greeted my ears, and the head torch beam picked up plenty of new things to occupy my imagination as I stepped out into the darkness, running shoes on and head torch at the ready, for the first time here though. The sound of crickets and other insects, chirruping in the grass by the road side, unseen birds calling from their roosts, waiting, just like us for first light to start their day. The sound of the sea, waves gently breaking against the shore off in the distance and the crew of a mobile oil drilling rig, which appeared, as if by magic overnight, lifting drill pipe up into the derrick, calling to each other in a well practiced routine. Making ready, poised to start the drill off on it's long journey, deep into the cool earth, in search of the black gold which has shaped Brunei into the country it is. All these things and more caught my attention and occupied my mind during those first few hot and sticky miles. Each and every new sound bought a smile to my face, bringing back fleeting memories from long forgotten travels. The sound of the Crickets taking me back to Corfu on my first holiday away with the lads. The birds calling in the trees, heralding the dawn and the end of the cool night outside the hangar in Afganistan, another world and lifetime ago. All set against the back drop of my feet gently falling onto the damp road, tapping out their regular rhythm, just like they do at home. Maybe the worlds not so big after all? There’s not been a great deal to report on this week, yet again the weekends been something of a wash out. Unusually though it’s been work that’s disrupted things and not the weather. A long standing agreement to cover a couple of weeks of Legionella inspections in Brunei, followed by a short hop over to Singapore on the way back (hard life isn’t it), required flying out on Sunday and spending most of Friday night packing and sorting out schnizzle ready for the off.
Typically, whilst running around like the proverbial Blue Arsed Fly on Friday night, I happened to glance out the back door just as it got dark, to be greeted by a perfectly still night, with an enormous full moon shining down. It’s always the case that you wait weeks for a night like that to come along, offering the perfect opportunity to get out for a bit of winter Bivvying, and when it does, work stops play! Oh well, I suppose I need to earn a living and this job does give me plenty of opportunities to get out and about so I shouldn’t complain too much. I needed to see “The Old Cheese” before I disappeared off to warmer climates so managed to tie in a trip down to see her on Saturday with a bit of cycling and a cheeky overnight in the Van Friday night. The night started off clear, with the temperature just above freezing on the drive down, but had warmed up considerably as a storm front rolled in overnight and I awake to a bit of a gale blowing. I almost considered a change of plan due to the wind but was glad I didn’t, as I had a good morning out in the end. A quick wind assisted ride North through the South Downs from Steyning to the Devils Punch Bowl and back again gave the old legs a good work out. It’s a nice fast run up through that part of Sussex and the edge of the Surrey hills, fairly flat for the most part but with a couple of cheeky little leg testers once you get towards the top end to keep things interesting. An early start in the dark saw me back at the van by lunchtime with 100Km in the book, a puncture repaired and an interesting chat with a like minded lunatic, whilst admiring the view, at the half way mark. Leaving plenty of time for a nice long visit with “The Old Cheese” before heading for home. All in all, a good day out and everyone’s happy. Sunday morning, I managed to squeeze in a quick 10-mile plod around one of my local routes and a bacon butty for lunch with the ever-obliging Emma, before heading off to sit and stare into space for what seemed like forever at Heathrow, so it wasn’t a totally wasted day. It was a nice morning, with the sun shining and not too much of a breeze, and I was quite surprised at the number of other runners out and about. I suppose I was out a bit later than normal and I’ve been concentrating on the trails more recently, so I’ve not been out locally on the roads at the weekend for a while. It’s always nice to see some fellow runners, even if the only acknowledgment that each other exists is the briefest of exchanged glances, or the slightest wave of an otherwise still hand. It’s a bit of unspoken shared bonding and respect. Plus, it’s always nice to know that there are others out there making the best of their weekends and working up a bit of an appetite and I’m not the only idiot! And that was about it, another weekend gone. I’m sat safe and sound in Brunei now, having survived the 14 hour flight, I’ll grant you I slept through most of it, so it wasn’t actually that bad. The time difference is another matter though, who ever thought being 8 hours in front was a good idea, it’s 03:00 in the morning, I’ve been awake for 2 hours and I’ve got to go to work in a couple more! Oh well, it is what it is, and if I’m up I might as well make use of the extra time. Now where’s my running shoes? Apparently, there’s a whole new country to explore outside! Is it summer yet? If not why not? I'm fed up of the dark and dismal weather, it's about time the sun came out so I can go out to play. Apparently, the worst bits over and the evenings should be getting lighter, which means not too long until my wanderings can get longer and more adventurous. Until then I suppose I'll have to just content myself with the odd day out and start catching up on some of the odd jobs that get neglected in the summer in preference to having fun. So, to that end, whilst I got out on the bike for an enjoyable plod around one of my favorite local routes on Saturday morning and managed 10 muddy off road running miles Sunday morning there's not much to report on that front. Odd job's it was going to have to be then, starting on Saturday afternoon with moving all the stuff, and believe me there's a lot of it, across to my new company car. It's amazing how much stuff you end up lugging around with you and it's not until you get it all out that you see how much there actually is. Whilst all the junk was out of the car I did finally get around to cutting my safety barrier in half and adding an extra set of hinges to allow 4 folds instead of 2. Surprisingly it now actually fits in the car and takes up half the space. Considering I've lost my temper more times with this one thing than anything else I've ever owned when trying to get it in and out of the car I don't know why I didn't do it years ago, but there you go, job done now. Next on the list, a bit of extra insulation for my thermal mug. These mugs are great, stick a cup of tea in there and it's still warm a couple of hours later, any longer though and it's touch and go. The best thing in the world when your out on your bike is a warm brew and a mymalade sandwich (it's just marmalade but made by me). But, when you've been looking forward to that brew for a while and it's cold when you get there it's pretty disappointing! A bit of left over insulation from the van build, some sticky tape and in true Blue peter fashion I've got myself and insulated flask sleeve. I'll give it a trial run next time I'm out on the bike and let you know how it works. Sunday afternoon was Allotment time among other things. I've been working on renewing the paths over the past few weeks. They were originally put in when I got the allotment in 2013 and since then most of the edging boards have moved and the wood chippings have rotted down allowing the weeds to take hold. So it's been a case of digging out all the old chippings and dumping them onto the compost heap, lifting and refitting the edging boards and then shoveling in new wood chippings. Not particularly hard work but time consuming none the less. It's done now though and will hopefully last just as well as last time. Whilst up the allotment I grabbed some veg for tea, considering the time of year there's still plenty for picking. Roast chicken for tea, so some freshly picked Leeks, Carrots, Sprouts and Kale and some spuds from the shed and that's tea sorted. Ground to plate in a couple of hours and zero transport miles, you can keep your imported out of season floppy stuff, seasonal and fresh for me thank you. Just time for one more job then before it gets too dark, a quick bit of rough and ready carpentry. Grab a coupe of lengths of wood that have been knocking around the allotment from a previous job. Cut a couple of rough and ready half lap joints in the middle, no point getting the power tools out for such a simple job, mark it out, pop in a few saw cuts to the line and knock the waste out. Pop in some screws, add a couple of stretchers and cut the ends of flush. And what have we got, apart from a mess to clean up? It's a set of legs for a potting table for the allotment, I'll grab some timber to make a top and a shelf and screw it together in situ next time I get a few minutes. Slop a quick coat of creosote on every now and then and it'll last a few years. Not bad for half an hours messing about and plenty strong enough for my needs. Far more satisfying than just buying a ready made, flimsy, lightweight job too!
Here we go again then, 1st January 2020, New years day, or to give it it's correct name; Knacker Cracker day. Time for the most bonkers 10K of the year. Hills that are too steep to run up, more mud than you can shake a stick at, fancy dress, a rendition of the National Anthem and loads of steps, what's not to like about that! Possibly the most fun you can have with your running shoes on. There's a couple of things you need to know about the Knacker Cracker, firstly it's bloody hard, you need 50m of height gain per Km to qualify as a category A Fell Race, the Knacker Crackers got 52.6 meters per Km so it's not an easy day out. The fact that a lot of that height gain is up steps, due to the slopes being too steep for a normal path, just makes the job that bit harder. Oh, and there's the small issue of making things harder for myself by having run an ultra marathon 3 days before. Apparently the great Paula Radcliffe used to have a minimum of 2 weeks, and often a month off after a marathon. So, 3 days between a hard marathon and this cheeky little number, it should be fine shouldn't it? Well I say 3 days. Ultra marathon on Saturday. Sunday I had a day off. Well as much of a day off as I ever have, I spent the morning under the van changing the brake fluid and the afternoon on the allotment shoveling chippings for a new path. Monday was an easy 45 miles on the bike, Tuesday a cheeky 30 miles on the bike and Wednesday Knacker Cracker day. What does Paula know anyway? The other thing you need to know about the Knacker Cracker is it's brilliant. Nearly everyone gets into the spirit of the day by getting dressed up in fancy dress, there are loads of walkers with small kids out on the course who offer some amazing encouragement and did I mention it's so hard it's impossible not to have fun! So, at a few minutes before 11:00 we were all lined up at the bottom of the hill, fancy dress at the ready, making an awful attempt at a rendition of the National Anthem, poised, ready for the off at the stroke of 11:00. A quick dash across Burford Meadows, over the bridge as the stepping stones are under water and then it's sharply uphill for the first ascent of Box Hill. Within seconds it's too steep and slippery for the path to continue as a path and were onto the uneven steps hewn into the fabric of the hill, heart pumping hard, breath ragged and legs begging to stop.
There's no stopping though, not at this early stage, keep putting one foot in front of the other, constantly climbing upwards, eventually reaching the top and straight over for the descent on the other side. Downward, past the piper, looking good in his kilt, pipes sounding out load and clear in the still air, down the slope to the cone, round the cone and back up again. It's too steep to run for more than a few steps, so get bent over, swing the arms and push your legs to walk up as fast as possible. Past the National Trust cafe at the top, no time to stop for a brew today though, straight into the woods at the top of the hill for a Km or so of respite. It's flat here as things go and not too muddy this year despite the rain. It doesn't last long though as your soon at the other end of the hill, dropping rapidly down, ready for the leg killing Eiger steps, don't fret though, there are only 100 or so uneven steps to the top and the turn. A quick word of thanks through ragged breath to the marshal who's given up their day to make ours possible and were coming back down the same way. A bit of encouragement for those coming up on the way down and it's straight into the next ascent, it's a long slog up the grassy slope at Juniper Hill. Again it's too steep for me to run, maybe that Ultra Marathon wasn't the best idea! But head down and keep on pushing, I'm over half way now so forget about the legs and keep going. Another flatish section to get your breath back before a final steep descent, ready for the last lung busting climb back up to the lookout point with it's stunning views over Dorking and away to the South Downs on a clear day. The Pipers moved over to the lookout whilst we've been off climbing steps and there is a good crowd here cheering you on. Not far now, just a short climb back up to the National Trust site at the top of the hill and the finish line. Fancy dress hood back up for full effect and a final push to the line and that's it, all over for another year. A few minutes to get your breath back, grab one of the famous cheese and pickle rolls and a cup of hot tomato soup courtesy of Dr Rob's amazing organisation and spend a few minutes cheering on those still coming over the line before a slow walk back down to the van, a hot brew and the drive home. There really is no better way to start the new year, every year I say "maybe I won't run the Knacker Cracker this year" and then by the start of autumn I start to think, not long now, best get my entry in. Who am I trying to kid, of course I'll be back next year, it's the best fun you can have with your running kit on! |
Paul PerrattOld enough to know better, young enough to still feel invincible, stupid enough to keep on trying the same thing again and again. Cyclist, Gardener, Runner, Hiker, Cook, Woodworker, Engineer, Jack of all trades and master of none, Anti social old git and all round miserable bugger. Archives
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