A Running Adventure

My running is rarely interesting. It's solitary. I run the same handful of routes. I think my thoughts. Sometimes are faster than others, and occasionally I see a funny animal or a car crash, but that's as interesting as my running gets.

Today I ran 7 miles with Vicky Weitz. She is an artist who is running 26 marathons in 26 days in the Edinburgh Festival, up and down the Royal Mile, between the Palace of Holyrood and Edinburgh Castle. When I heard about this I felt really drawn to go and run with her. I suppose I wanted to support her, because people who put themselves out there pushing themselves to their limits deserve support. And perhaps because she's not from Edinburgh, she deserves supported for coming to the city where I live.

I dropped the kids at school and tried to recruit another running mum to come with me, but she was planning a half-hour run with her friend. At that point I was feeling nervous, overly full of breakfast and wishing I hadn't resolved to go. Even the run up Easter Road felt difficult - how would I manage up the Royal Mile?!

After running once up the Mile and 3/4 of the way back down, I spotted Vicki. I was impressed by how fresh and relaxed she looked, because she's blogged about being in pain and finding it difficult. Even 7 miles later (by which time she's run at least 16 miles) she still looked fresh - I was sweating enough for both of us (quite embarassing and further proof that I'm doing the right thing by always running at 6am when nobody can see me!)

I'd been a bit worried that I'd struggle on the uphill half of the run, but it was fine - not least because the Royal Mile is dotted with roads that need crossing, so there were lots of stops. Also Vicki stops each time she passes her support crew outside the Storytelling Centre.

Vicki was very chatty and really easy to spend time with. I had wondered what I could tell her about to raise her spirits if she was flagging, and as she'd blogged about missing her children I thought I'd keep off the subject of my kids. But after a few miles, Vicki's children appeared! They had arrived the previous night and they both ran with her today. I was so impressed that they were so supportive of what their mum was doing.

I was fascinated to hear about Vicki's running history and her art - she was very friendly, chatty and open. When we stopped at her crew's stop, Vicki had a re-fuel by opening a tupperware and taking a jelly baby from a selection of sweeties - no sports gels or technical kit, just good old jelly babies, chocolate and mints! I loved that.

Vicki was getting supportive smiles and cheers from her regular supporters up and down the Mile, and when she stopped for a refuel a lovely man called Ken stopped and asked for a photo with her. He was from the Bronx and said he'd tell his running club at home about her! I was quite emotional that this one woman's run would become an international topic of conversation - wow.

Grinning like a chuffed person, feeling a bit embarassed to be sweatier than the athlete!!

I'm really chuffed that on her blog Vicki  said that I had "vibrant energy that was contagious", not just because it's a lovely compliment but also because I felt so happy after running with her that I was worried I'd taken more than I'd given. I hope I can get the chance to run with her again next week. Today was her 15th marathon so she only has 9 more days to go!

By the time I got home, I'd run 10 miles in 2 hours and 15 minutes. They were 2 of the best running hours I think I've had. I enjoyed being part of Vicki's work but mostly I enjoyed her company. I had a cold bath, made an omlette and chips and a pot of tea, and thought about Vicki who would still be running.

First time for everything (sadly)

I finished yesterday's Dunbar 10 mile Doon Hill Race in 1h 31m. My niggly knee held up just fine throughout the race. Both of these sentences make it sound okay.

Here's the rest of the story. I got lost and added 0.6M to my race. I was last for a significant proportion. I finished 70th out of a field of 81. I walked more times than I care to remember. My legs felt like they had nothing to give. At the end I had a cry and I felt terrible for the rest of the day. One day later and my knee is niggly again.

I've done this race twice before and really enjoyed it. This time the weather was beautiful, sunny but not hot, clear skies being ideal for viewing the lovely scenery from the hills to the sea. I'd rested all week and I was feeling confident. This was my 'tune-up' race before the Jedburgh Half Marathon in 3 weeks time. I've been working on my speed recently. So everything was pointing to a really good race.

I don't know what went so horribly wrong. The start was a little faster than I would have liked, but really I don't think it was so fast that I can blame it for messing up the rest of the race. I took my wrong turn at about mile 3. I found myself running down a field until the track I was on disappeared, and there was nobody to be seen. I knew I was near the back of the runners, but there was just nobody anywhere, so I ran back and eventually found the big dayglow arrow I'd missed. I felt so stupid! I tried so hard not to panic, tried to keep my pace under control, but perhaps I didn't, perhaps I sped up in panic and that's where it all went wrong.

I kept thinking about that marathon winner in the news the other week who took a wrong turn and still did a PB. Probably that didn't help, it probably made me push faster.

When I caught up with the end of the field, I calmed down a bit. There was a really steep hill shortly after and I overtook a handful of runners there. Shortly after I had my first walk - this was only the second race I've EVER taken a walk break in, and I felt so crappy about it. My mantra became "you're a pathetic f***ing loser", over and over in my head. I put on my iPod to get rid of the negativity because I coulnd't get rid of it on my own! But once I've had my first walk break, it's like opening a packet of crisps - once I knew it was open, I couldn't leave it alone. I can't remember how many walk breaks I took in the end. Again and again it felt like my legs had nothing to give at all. Which, after a week off, I really didn't expect.

It was a long and lonely run. I was grateful to the marshals who were friendly and supportive as I passed, but mostly I felt pathetic and apologetic for keeping them there while I was having such a terrible race. When I crossed the finish line I had no pride at all - I felt totally ashamed at my time, which was 10 minutes slower than last year. I sat on the grass and had a cry.

I have "no further comment at this point", as I'm feeling a bit down about running and life in general right now.

Running update, life update!

It's been a long time, and I've been busy with my other life! Which you can read all about on my other blog, if you're interested. It's been an emotional time and I've found it quite draining, but it a good way.

My college course is going well - I've done fine in my assessments so far, but it really is continuous assessment, with a tests or a piece of work due every week. I'm sure continuous assessment was a lot more intermittent when I was at university!

I've survived what I think was my first ever practial assessment, unless you consider having to cover a book for my Brownie booklover badge in about 1980 to be a practical assessment. I found this much more difficult than studying and swotting to sit an exam, and to be honest I didn't really get to grips with what I was supposed to be doing before I went in. It's a bit alien to my head, to have to perform something correctly under scrutiny, and I hadn't really got to grips with the fact that this is what a practical assessment is all about. I passed, but I learned a lot about what I have to improve on too!

My running has been a bit of a disappointment too. Before the competition, I found myself running at a very, very silly time in the morning (okay, 0345!) so that I could fit one in before flying to London for a rehearsal! So it wasn't a lack of motivation! But I think the competition really took it out of me, emotionally and spiritually, and I got a bit out of my schedule and haven't really scrunised my performance in my last few runs.

Then a week ago, I got a niggle in my knee at the end of a 40-minute tempo run. I was nearly home, considering slowing down, when I got a sharp pain going through my right knee, which didn't pass. I've never had any knee problems, but I bet I'm not the only runner who lives in fear of them! I went straight home for R.I.C.E. and funny looks from the kids, and ran again on the Saturday, 12.5M with no problems. But in my easy recovery run the next day, I changed direction slightly - again, right at the end of my run - and it niggled again. It isn't agony, but I'm paranoid about it. I've taken four days off so far - although it feels like about a fortnight!! - and it still niggles a little bit. I've foam-rollered and cross-trained. Part of me doesn't want to know what's wrong with it in case it's serious, so I'm just sitting nicely with good posture and hoping it will mend.

In fact I'm hoping it will mend by Saturday! I've entered the Dunbar 10M Doon Hill Race, which I've completed in 2010 and 2011, and starts at 11am on Saturday. I found this picture of my slogging it from last year! It's a brilliant race - aah, selective memory is great, isn't it?! The course has lots of steady hills, which somehow I quite enjoy as I'm pretty good at keeping a steady pace through the gradients. The first time I did the race, the steward directed me into a big field, empty but for cow-pats, saying "up to the top, round the cairn and along the ridge!". I had no idea what a cairn was, but I know what a ridge is, and man, that ridge was really high up! The view, of course, was splendid!

It's a small race with a fast field (fast by my standards, I'm sure I was in last place for quite a stretch last year!) and truly amazing hospitality at the end with soup and cakes. It's the sort of club race won by ridiculously healthy-looking young men (like the ones on my college course!) where women a few years older than me look utterly shocked when they're awarded a prize for being best in their catagory. I aspire to that one day! I'm confident my knee will hold up for the up-hills but I expect I'll be slower on the down.

Race report soon!