Crewing at Grand Union Canal Race

Well it's been a pretty awesome weekend. I was part of Lindley's crew at Grand Union Canal Race a 145 mile ultra run from Birmingham to London. This was a new experience for me and have to say I loved it, was really good to see a race from a different viewpoint. I was glad I was with Sue and Becky who are experienced at crewing and Laura who was new to this as well.

The race started at 6am Saturday morning and the weather was pretty horrific, rain, rain and more rain. No one wants to get wet at the start of a race whatever the distance but being soaked through in the first few miles an ultra is just awful. 

Crewing for a runner means driving from checkpoint to checkpoint meeting up with your runner, making sure they have food and drink, dry kit, and generally look after them for a brief few minutes before sending them on their way. 

The weather improved for a brief time during the afternoon but running for hours with wet feet takes it's toll and Lindley's feet were not in great shape, even with shoe and sock changes, but he continued on in good spirits. Drying, cleaning and vaselining feet is one of the less glamorous crewing jobs!! 

      18 miles in and smiling in the rain.

The early evening saw more rain and thunder, the conditions were not great for the 100 or so runners that had started the race back in Birmingham. At 76 miles Lindley made the tough decision to pull out, not wanting to damage his feet further as he has some tough training ahead for Spartathlon in September.

The highlights for me and there were lots...

Crewing with Sue, Becky and Laura was fun, I learnt lots and how important they are to the runners. 

Meeting so many incredible people, ultra runners whose names I knew, had followed their blogs, read their books and had inspired my own ultra running journey. 

Watching the determination and willpower of the runners, this ultra running stuff really is as much a mental battle as a physical one.

The crews and volunteers were cheerful, happy to help anyone and welcoming of a newbie to all of this.

This weekend has inspired and excited me, the ultra runners I had looked up to are so down to earth, they have jobs, families and juggle their running with all of that like most of us do. The atmosphere at GUCR was amazing and extremely positive, it's a very low key event but these runners aren't on this journey for fame and fortune, it's not what it's about. These are ordinary people getting out and doing something amazing, pushing themselves beyond what is 'normal' and seemingly having fun a long the way. There were lots of smiles and laughs even when the runners were obviously hurting.

I'm probably going to ramble a bit now but there is lots going on in my head today. I've always been a believer in the saying 'everything happens for a reason' and also that people come into your life for a reason, (if my daughter is reading this she will be shaking her head and giving me one of those looks I get, we have to agree to disagree on this one!). Sometimes we don't know what that reason is, but taking part in Stort30 last year and meeting Lindley has been a major turning point in my running journey. I am truly excited about training hard and completing Challenge Running's Grand Slam this year. A whole new world of ultra running has been introduced to me and I'm excited to be a part of it both as a runner and I definitely want to do more crewing and volunteering. 

Thank you to Lindley, Sue, Becky, Laura and everyone else I met for an awesome weekend xx 

It's hard to sum up exactly how I'm feeling today but one thing is 100% certain is that next year I really hope that I am on the start line for Grand Union Canal Race to give that 145 mile journey my best shot... 

I believe...

Been an easy recovery week for me running wise but something strange has happened!! I know you are all wondering about the post title 'I believe' I expect you're on the edge of your seats with anticipation!!

Each run I did last week felt good, Friday morning I ran with Lindley and Maxine, 6 miles at an average pace of 9:20 minute miles and it didn't feel hard. I remember back in January when I had a tempo run which I was supposed to do at 9 minute miles and I struggled to do 9:30s. 

Saturday morning was Parkrun and I almost didn't go due to having a migraine but I did and thought I'd just run round and not worry about time. I actually felt ok as soon as I started running so pushed it a bit, I didn't continuously check my watch but on the last lap round the castle I was surprised to see I was at 23 minutes and with not far to go I stepped it up and managed 25:40 (official time) my watch said 25:26 but won't argue over a few seconds as it was still a Colchester Parkrun PB. 

     Parkrun concentration!!

I think that finally getting that sub 4:30 marathon last weekend has made me realise that I can run faster than I thought. Lindley has been saying you have to believe you can do it and suddenly this week   I do believe I can! The last four months, which really isn't very long, has seen my running improve in leaps and bounds and now my brain has cottoned on too!! Really excited about the next few months of training and events.

Have a great week and happy running xx 

Halstead Marathon

Nerves had built in the last few days leading up to Halstead Marathon, a sore throat and runny nose on Thursday had worried me slightly and I did my best to convince myself I was imagining it and it was just 'taper madness' getting to me.

Sunday morning was cool, windy and raining, but I wasn't too concerned, blazing sunshine and heat would have worried me more! 

We arrived at Halstead Leisure centre, collected numbers, chips, chatted, did pre race photos and numerous trips to the loo!! (Possibly was only me that did numerous loo trips!!)

     Myself and some of The Commado Runners before the start.

So this was it, this was what Aprils training had all been about. Lindley was running with me and we had a plan. Plan A was get round in sub 4:15 and Plan B was a new PB there wasn't any other options one of those was going to happen...

The rain stopped as we began and it was reasonably pleasant running conditions, the wind was pretty strong in places and that made it tough at times. I love Halstead Marathon, the course is great, if a little hilly, but it is really well organised and well supported for a small marathon, this was my fourth time and I will continue to take part each year.

The first few miles flew past and I felt really good and would have made my usual mistake of going out much too fast if Lindley hadn't been there to slow me down! It was nice not to have to carry anything, Lindley kept me supplied with sweets, gels and drinks, I wasn't wearing a watch so the only thing I had to focus on was running which was great.

     Enjoying the race

Plan A was pretty much on target until 20 miles then the pain hit my legs and although mentally I was still focused I just couldn't keep to target pace, had also started to feel a bit queasy. My legs just wouldn't do what I wanted them to. I was still running albeit slowly and I know from previous experience if Lindley hadn't been there to encourage and motivate I would have run/walked those last six miles. 

We finally crossed the finish line in 4:22:53 which was a new PB by ten minutes, the happiness probably didn't show on my face at that stage as I was concentrating on not being sick!! 

Was I disappointed to miss Plan A... In a word no, I can honestly say that I gave 100% for the entire race. There aren't any sections where I think I should have pushed harder, it was a tough race and I'm really proud and happy with what I achieved.

I have to say a massive thank you to Lindley for pacing me round, it really helped me to stay focused and push on through the tough sections and although at first I was concerned about not having a watch, that combined with not carrying anything really left my head clear to focus on running the best race I could.

Yesterday was another big confidence boost that the coaching, training and hard work is paying off, I thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience and now (after a couple of days to recover) I am ready to focus on the next two months of training to prepare for my next ultra run, The Saffron Trail, a 70 mile over night trail run. 

For more information on coaching with Lindley and The Saffron Trail Ultra have a look at 

http://www.challenge-running.co.uk

Lindley is really helping me to believe that I am a good runner, that I can achieve my running goals and the whole coaching experience is making my running even more enjoyable, even the sore legs today are a happy reminder of a truly awesome day at Halstead!  

Well done to all my friends who also ran yesterday you did some awesome times and thanks to those, including Abbi and Laura, who supported on the course and were there at the finish x

Have a great week and happy running xx