Well, this is pretty rubbish isn't it! I'd had plans all week to get out Friday night and into Saturday for a bit of walking, but the great British weather seems to have put pay to that idea. Friday night in my own bed it had to be then, and to be honest, when I heard the rain lashing against the windows in the night I was glad to be there! There was a brief break in the monsoon Saturday morning that I managed to take advantage of, with a cheeky 10 Mile walk around some of the local footpaths, getting back home just before the rain returned with a vengeance. It was a funny old morning though, with a strong wind blowing, but still really warm, the thermometer on the van was reading 14°C when I went out first thing and I can quite happily believe that to be correct. The wind has bought down plenty of Chestnuts and I stopped along the way to pick up a hat full (it was too warm to wear it and I didn't have a bag), we just need it to cool down enough now to light the fire so I can get the Chestnut roaster out. Lighting the fire when it's this warm just leads to having to spend the evening sitting in your pants, as it soon gets too hot, and no one should have to put up with that. There's not much else to report from the mornings jaunt though, the puddles are getting deeper and the paths muddier by the day, best stand by for a hosepipe ban next summer! With rain having stopped "playing out" on Saturday afternoon I needed something else to occupy my time and this bad boy caught my eye. This is the first year I've grown Squashes on the allotment instead of traditional pumpkins. I like pumpkins, but the only thing my limited cooking skills seem to lend them too is curried pumpkin soup, and they don't seem to keep very well either. So what to do with it? Not having any idea what it was going to be like, or even what was inside, soup seemed like the best option. The beauty of soup is that you can hide any disasters with the liberal application of curry powder or Tabasco sauce. Winner! Simply chop it into bits, that's easier to say than do, bit of oil, salt, pepper, a few chilli's and peppers that need using up from the greenhouse and an onion, bung it in the oven for 40 minutes and hey presto, one ruined oven tray! Chuck it all into a litre of boiling vegetable stock, make loads of mess whizzing it up and as if by magic, lunch is served. Yummy it was Too! And if you've got the oven on to roast some veg, then you might as well take advantage of the hot oven and make a cake. Sultana tray bake anyone? No? Just me then, don't mind if I do! Sunday morning things were looking better, not only was the sun shining when I got up, but, the clocks had gone back. For the normal people putting the clocks back is a chance for an extra hour in bed, in my case, it's an extra free hour of playtime. If I get up at 06:00 as per usual it's now 05:00, result, the only downside is trying to convince my stomach that it's not lunchtime at 10:00! Oh, and the minor issue of having to go to bed in the middle of the evening as I still think it's bed time when it's now only 21:00. Anyhow, with the sun shining it seemed rude not to take advantage and get out for a little pootle around one of my favorite local routes. So, brews drunk, breakfast 1 scoffed, breakfast 2 made (Thermos full of porridge with sultanas) and a brew in my flask, I was out of the house by 07:30 leaving the lovely Emma snoring her head off in bed. It's a lovely little ride this one, it's pretty much 15 miles downhill to Alresford, then 30 miles of rolling terrain through the Western edge of the Southdowns national Park and the Meon valley, crossing the South Downs way twice en-route, finished off with a 15 mile uphill slog back home. Apart from the bit too and from Alresford it's all lovely quiet little lanes (and even the bit too Alresford's alright) with some lovely views and very little traffic. There was loads of wildlife out and about, probably making up for being stuck in their nests, holes, or wherever they hide when it's raining, with lots of squirrels beavering away making hay whilst the sun shone and a surprisingly large number of horse riders out and about, all lovely to see and helps to pass the time.
And that pretty much was my morning, apart from a brief stop to admire the view above, whilst supping my brew and eating breakfast number 2, it was just a morning of plodding along, soaking up the late Autumn sunshine and generally enjoying being out and about. As always 60 miles on the bike passes for faster and is immeasurably more enjoyable that the same distance stuck in the car, but like all good things, must come to an end, and, as per my original plan I was back home again in plenty of time to sit down for lunch, lovingly made by "The Emma". It may only have been a sandwich, but when it's made by someone else (someone who doesn't just fold a bit of bread around a lump of cheese and call it done) and you've worked up an appetite it's so much better.
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I spent most of last week with an eye on the weather forecast, wondering if the weekend was going to be another wash out, holding off on making any firm plans until the last minute in the hope the forecast would get better. By Friday the early week predictions of doom and gloom had changed to "it might not be too bad" so I thought I'd better make up for last weekends lack of cycling and get out on my bike. To make the most of the weekend I came up with a plan to get out straight from work on Friday night with the Bivvy kit, get a few miles in with an overnight stop, then head for home Saturday morning, all I needed was the weather to play ball. Friday morning dawned bright and still and I spent the day at work enjoying the sun thinking myself lucky that I don't have to spend my days sat in a windowless office. Obviously that was too good to be true and by the time I got home it was back to raining with a rapidly strengthening wind! Not to be disheartened though it looked like there might be a gap in the rain early evening, it looked dry further North and the wind was going to be behind me on the way out, so that was it, decision made, bike packed and as soon as the rain eased go for it! Unusually that worked a treat and I managed to get away dry and stay dry. A couple of hours of enjoyable cycling later and I was sat in the square in Watlington enjoying a portion of chips for my tea and watching the world go by, there's defiantly worse ways than this to spend a Friday evening. Fed, watered and dressed for the rapidly decreasing temperatures I knocked off another couple of hours along dark country lanes, before finding a nice quiet spot to get my head down. The sky was totally clear and as always it was an amazing feeling laying in my Bivvy, looking out at the stars, listening to the odd rustle as the little creatures went about their business, probably wondering what this impostor was doing in the middle of their patch, seeing the long grass silhouetted by the moon and feeling the chill air on my face whilst snug and warm in my sleeping bag. Saturday dawned cold and clear and once packed up, with a hot cup of tea inside me, I was on the road by 07:00. A stop for breakfast sitting in the sun and an extra stop for a brew and biscuit on the way home still saw me back home for lunch time, leaving the afternoon clear for chores and other domestic bliss (A.K.A the hell of Tesco). And whats not to like about that, an ideal way to get a few bike miles in when most people are sat watching TV or laying in bed thinking about getting up. A beautiful night sky, great sunrise and an extra few hours on quiet roads before everyone gets up to go shopping, chips for tea, porridge in the sun for breakfast and a great Friday night mini adventure. Not a bad use of my time! Sunday morning was all about running, with a cheeky 20 mile off road loop from Kingsclere planned (part of the route I'd been to have a look at last weekend). In order to get an early start and make the most of the day I'd taken the van up to my planned start point Saturday night after tea and was up and raring to go well before 08:00. Despite clear skys at bedtime it had clouded over in the night and whilst still dry, it was a cold and grey typical Autumn morning by the time I got going. It's surprising how far 20 miles actually is once you get going and whilst nearly all off road the route regularly crossed bits of road I often travel on my bike, giving brief moments of "I know where I am" before dropping back onto footpaths, rough tracks and byways before popping out at a high spot and another go of "I know where I am", all pleasant stuff and helps to make the time go by. It's a nice little run this one, dropping slowly downhill for the first 10 miles from the high point at White hill down to a low at Ashe before a final 10 miles back up and an evil leg killer of a climb at 19.5 miles, just what you need to finish off tired legs. 20 easy miles then, in a smidgen over 3 hours, not a bad mornings work, with plenty of muddy bits, some lovely views and Autumn colours on display and a few cheeky hills to make it fun. And the best bit, getting up and out early not only gives you the best bit of the day but I was back home in time for a very pleasant lunch with the lovely Emma. Everyone's a winner! A couple of easy hours on the allotment Sunday afternoon saw the last of the tomatoes picked and the plants composted, Squashes picked and moved into the cold frame to hopefully harden off and broad beans planted to over winter. I've planted 2 rows of dwarf broad beans this year, one under a cloche and one not as a bit of an experiment, so watch this space in 7 or 8 months for the results. I seem to think that there's an old wives tale about lots of berries = a hard winter. If the ones below are anything to go by then we had better watch out, I can't recall seeing sloes loaded on a bush like these very often!
Well, there we go, another weekend over and done with and not a great deal to report! After last weekends efforts and not having had a full weekend at home since some time in August it's been a quiet one. Or to be more truthful, it's been pissing it down all weekend and I couldn't be arsed to do anything good! So what have I done with myself all weekend? Well, I've ruined another pair of new shoes, I've eaten the best apple I've ever had, I've done a bit of cooking, I've cleaned the heating magnetic particle filter, bled the radiators and checked out the heating ready for the winter, I've cut a bit more off the back gate, I've done a bit of walking and I've got wet at least 4 times! Not bad going I suppose. After a week of hobbling around like and old man, having ruined my legs last weekend, I finally felt good enough for a run! I managed a few weights etc Thursday and Friday but my legs were in tatters for the first half of the week and there was no way any running was happening before Saturday, I could barely walk Monday let alone do anything else. Any how, I've had a new pair of shiny white Trail Shoes sat in the van for a couple of weeks, just teasing me, so thought it was about time I give them a go. Unfortunately it started raining about 07:00 and never stopped, so it was a case of man up and get out there. Luckily my skins still waterproof and it's not that cold, so it was a pleasant, if a bit muddy and wet 10 miles on one of my local off road loops. Surprisingly my legs felt pretty good once I got going and I had a great time splashing through the puddles like a five year old. We spend half our adult lives telling our children not to get muddy and wet, but by Jove it's good fun and I for one think we should be encouraging them, get out there, jump in a few puddles and kick some leaves and see what I mean. Brilliant fun! Back home and on one of my never ending quests for stuff to eat I spied the apples dangling temptingly from the apple trees in my orchard (or Paul's sticks as "The Emma" insists on calling it). There are 3 different apple trees out there, 2 red ones and a yellow type, so one of each for starters, that should keep the tummy monsters at bay for a bit. A red one first, and a nice apple it was too. Mind you, anythings better than a cardboard supermarket substitute, nice and juicy, crisp and tangy, you can't go wrong with apples like that. Onto the yellow one then and Oh My God, if I never eat another apple again I'll die a happy man, it was the sweetest, juiciest, ripest apple I've ever had. Just thinking about it now, sat here typing this it's bringing a smile to my face. Apple heaven, It's just a shame there's only a couple on the tree. Maybe next year once it's a bit more established it will fruit better, but until then, I'm going to remember that apple for ever! And the other red ones, there still 100 times better than a shop bought job, but not as good as the yellow ones! I had hoped to get out on my bike Sunday, but, having woken up yet again to the ongoing monsoon I chickened out. It's not that I'm a fair weather cyclist, far from it, but I've got wet enough this week and there are a couple of issues with cycling in the rain. Firstly, at this time of year it's still too hot to be wearing waterproofs, but at the same time it's too cold to get wet. You sweat your bits off with them on, but, if you just man up and get wet the wind chill soon makes it unpleasant. Secondly, being out in the rain can be a bit of a lottery. The state of the roads is bad enough without filling them full of water and the standard of driving gets even worse with a bit of rain. "Sorry mate I didn't see you on your bike whilst I was doing 90 down this little country lane in my Suburban Main Battle Tank because; It was raining / I'm in a rush because the shops are open / I'm drinking a coffee / I'm on your side of the road in my 4x4 because of the little puddle on my side / I'm just an entitled idiot driving around I'm my penis extension and I couldn't give a toss about you on your bike" (delete as necessary). As such, sometimes, discretion is the better part of valor, and your better off doing something else. So something else I did, I went and scoped out a new off road running route down a few quiet little footpaths that I've been eyeing up for a while. The rain's not so off putting when your walking and your waterproofs seem to actually work. So, waterproofs on, flask of tea and sandwiches for lunch, hood up and 13 miles of soggy fun to be had. Too be fair, I was out for about 4 hours in total and it only rained for 3 1/2 of them so it could have been worse and my feet stayed dry for most of the time so that's a small mercy. Rain or not, it was still good to get out, far better than sitting at home watching TV and eating biscuits. Coming home too a big pot of Chili bubbling away in the slow cooker, filling the house in delicious aromas made it even better! Young Spidey below seemed about as chuffed with having his web filled with planer shavings as I was with having to take the back gate down again to cut more off it so it would shut. That's the 5th time since I made it in the summer and I would guess that I've cut at least 15mm off so far, I can't believe it can possibly swell up any more!
Many years ago, at least 8 years PB (Pre Boy), back when I was young, could still handle partying every night and had not a care in the world, I did a little bit of walking with my Step father. We were never particularly successful, failing to complete both the South Downs Way, something I've since remedied and the Downs Link, but we had some fun, it was all a good learning experience and we got to spend some quality time together. I seem to recall that our idea back in the Autumn of 1990 had been to attempt the Downs Link in one day and had vague memories that we may not have started from the beginning. What I do know is we got caught out by a lack of fitness, followed closely behind by a lack of daylight and had to abandon our attempt before the end. I also seem to recall, that, not only were we pretty well broken from our meager efforts, but Pip the dog who had accompanied us on our little adventure was pretty well knackered too and retreated to her bed for the next couple of days. So whats all this reminiscing got to do with now then? Well back last winter whilst looking for stupid things to do I stumbled across a link for the Downslink ultra marathon, a cheeky wee run down the length of the path we had failed to conquer all those years ago. Surely, having been beaten by our attempt at walking it as a fit and healthy 19 year old, running it as an aging 47 year old should be a walk in the park. Right? Which is how I found myself boarding a bus from Shoreham-By-Sea at 07:15 Sunday morning heading for the start line at St Marthas Hill. The weather forecast during the week had been for torrential rain and strong winds all day. But, having spent the night listening to the rain beat down and woken to some pretty wet roads it looked like the bad weather may have blown through in the night. And, whilst the clouds to the East were heavy and grey, the view to the West looked a lot better. Safely ensconced on the bus the true scale of the days en-devours became apparent, an hour sitting on a bus seems like a long time and as we slowly moved North towards Guildford quite how far 38 miles really is started to sink in! Not to be downhearted though and after a quick round of "does anyone know the way" from the bus driver we finally arrived at the start just as the sun was making a full and very much welcome appearance. A few minutes milling around at the start, a bit of chatting, pre-race briefing and a blessing from the vicar of St Marthas church, which, incidentally I recognized the second we arrived (the church, not the vicar) and which I guess shows that my recollections of cutting short the start in 1990 were incorrect, and at the stroke of 09:00 we were off. The first few miles are on sandy tracks and quite narrow, however we soon got onto the disused railway line that makes up the majority of the trail and started to spread out, settling into a steady rhythm with a small group of similar paced runners, steadily racking up the miles, chatting amicably with those close by, bonded temporarily by the task in hand. We quickly reached and passed through the old station at Bramley, complete with railway crossing gates, and ran on-wards towards the first aid station at the 9 mile mark at Cranleigh, catching the odd glimpse of the Autumn sun glinting through the trees and dodging the puddles left behind by the nights rain. Having obviously not learned my lessons from the previous week, or any race I've ever run, I'd settled into what felt like a nice, easily maintainable pace. However, whilst the running felt easy and I was running well within myself, I was aware that the pace was way faster than anything I had considered possible, or planned for, in the weeks proceeding. Maybe my lack of summer miles wasn't the problem I thought it too be? Or maybe the fast pace would come back and bite me later? There was only one way to find out though and I pushed steadily on through the half marathon mark to the second aid station at Slinfold, where I stopped for water and a few nibbles. Things were going well, I was feeling good and was well ahead of where I had predicted I'd be time wise and the sun was shining, and most importantly I was having fun! Being an old railway track there are no hills, just a few steady gradients, slowly rising and falling as the path passes through the Sussex countryside. Whilst this makes for easy running, the view is limited due to the trees either side, so there's not much to distract your mind from the task in hand and it requires a constant effort. A hillier run, whilst making it harder to hold a steady pace tends to give the legs a bit of a break, different muscles being used going up and down hill and helping to stretch out tired muscles. The 26 mile mark (marathon distance and 2/3 of the way) came and went in under 4 hours, a respectable time for many runners, but in this instance probably too fast and my legs were starting to tire, with occasional twinges of cramp running through my calves, not a good sign with another 13 miles still to go! I'm quite happy to admit that from the 26 mile mark my run started to go downhill quite quickly. By the time the 27 mile aid station at Henfield came along (actually closer to 29 by my watch) I was suffering. I still felt OK physically and mentally, but my legs were starting to fail with spasms of cramp periodically stopping me in my tracks. Occasional stops to stretch over the final few miles saw me safely to Henfield, although my pace had dropped off considerably and I took the opportunity to stop, have a really good stretch, get plenty of water on board and take on some salty nibbles in the hope that would help on the cramp front. Revitalized, the next couple of miles saw me back up and running, with a few miles of more varied terrain between Henfield and Bramber providing a welcome break for my tired legs, I would guess I got to around the 30 -31 mile mark before the cramps came back with a vengeance. I was still moving forward though and with a combination of Jogging alternating with speed walking made it to the Bramber aid station at 32 miles where I repeated the stretch and salty food / fluids routine. By this point only 6 miles remained, less than 10Km, a distance that on any other day would be a pleasant, easy run in the afternoon sun, today though things were going to be a bit different and whilst I managed another mile or so of jogging, cramp soon bought me back down to earth with a bump. Although struggling I was still moving steadily and found that by setting a target of speed walking 100 steps followed by a slow jog for as long as I could manage (which wasn't far) and repeat, I was still making steady progress. Whilst a few people overtook me, I could tell from the time they took to come past and then pull away that whilst they were still running, they weren't actually moving much faster than I was with my walk / run method, which provided a welcome morale booster. But by the time I got to the Toll Bridge at Shoreham the game was up, and as soon as I tried to run my calves instantly cramped up. I was still capable of walking at a reasonable pace though, and whilst not the finish I would have hoped for, with only a mile to go, I knew that no matter what happened I was going to finish. I finally hobbled over the finish line in 6:26:01, the 49th finisher from the 168 that started, relieved and elated in equal measure, in a time that I hadn't considered possible in the weeks proceeding and one that I'm more than happy with. So there it was, 38 miles completed and what was possibly the hardest (physically) event I've completed to date. I think my early fast pace, yet again, played a significant role in my downfall over the final miles and whilst in the early stages the pace felt fine, requiring little effort to sustain, it was painfully clear that it was too fast to maintain for the full distance. Whilst I struggled at times with cramp, I never felt that I wouldn't or couldn't finish, once I'd got to the 26 mile point with plenty of time in hand it was clear that even at a slow walk I could finish ahead of the cut off times, which I think helped enormously, making this a purely physical challenge and removing much of the mental battle. I believe that the majority of the endurance events I undertake are basically a battle of mind over matter and, if approached with the right attitude, a bit of planning and thought, anything is possible. As soon as you allow doubt to seep in then the games up and you may as well give up, total focus on the cause in hand and breaking the monster down into smaller bite size chunks is the key in my opinion. I'll just run to the next aid station, I'll just run to that tree, I'll just walk for 100 paces, all make it easier to trick the brain into continuing and when push comes to shove and your brains screaming that enough's enough then you've just got to get your head down, find something to distract yourself and keep going, but I guess that counts for most things in life! Or as Jens Voigt the cyclist famously said about pushing on when it's all starting to hurt, you've just got to say "Shut up legs's and keep going". All in all then a brilliant day out and one that wouldn't have been possible without the selfless volunteers that give up their time to make these events happen. Any selfish idiot, and I count myself in this group, can put in the training to run or ride a long distance, but it takes a real hero to give up their weekend to stand in the rain and fill up water bottles, or take the timing tags off tired runners sweaty, dirty ankles so they don't have to bend over at the end of a race.
It's the volunteers that turn up, rain or shine, with a smile and kind word of encouragement, that take the time to make you a brew at the end of a hard run, that tidy up once all the runners have gone home, that make these low key events the special things they are. Yeah I ran 38 miles, but another 100 people gave up their Sunday to allow me to do that and for that I say, Thank you! Oh, and it would appear that it is possible to do the the Downs Link in a day, you just need to put in a bit of effort and not mind hobbling around like an old man for a few days afterwards! |
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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