17 September 2016 - The Day The Wheels Came Off

Plan A: Finish in 7 hours 30 minutes
Plan B: Finish in 8 hours
Plan C: Finish

It had to happen sometime, a race that never went to plan, and on 17 September 2016, that day arrived. I said to Steven on the way home, if race days were a football match, this was my getting beaten 7-0 by Barcelona!

The River Ayr Way Challenge is a 40 mile ultramarathon, starting in Glenbuck and finishing at Dam Park Sports Stadium in Ayr. It's source to sea, a cracking course that is both rewarding and very challenging.

Steven Watt and I headed down early Friday afternoon, and got into our digs in Newton Mearns about 4pm, and started get our drop-bags for the race sorted, we had a half hour drive the next morning to catch the bus to the race start. No problem...we'll come back to that.

Have to give a quick mention to Cosmo, Glasgow. What an experience, you are limited to a 1hr 45 minute stay for £15 all you can eat. Steven and I rolled out after 2 hours of (what felt like) non-stop carb loading!

Alarm set for 6am, leave at 6:30 for Ayr. Goodnight!

Woke around 5:50, had a quick shower, some nervous chat getting dressed and the time was flying in. We left the hotel around 6:40, a wee bit late, but still OK. Then we discovered the access road to the motorway isn't as easily accessed as the exit was, Steven got a map up on his phone and the estimated time of arrival was 7:20, oops.
Had visions of us entering the car park like Starsky and Hutch, but we actually made it with five minutes to spare, had time to pick up our race numbers, one quick pee and on the bus.

The bus was the usual chatter of pre race nerves and the chance to speak with people about what they had done previously, what their plans were for the future and the journey is over pretty quickly.

We arrived at Glenbuck at the memorial to Bill Shankly, and I took the opportunity for a quick photo.

The race starts at 9am, and it was a beautiful sunny morning, a perfect day for running. The event is very well organised, plenty water stops and 4 checkpoints.

I was running using Tailwind Nutrition and had opted to go minimal for the dropbags, mostly mini milky ways and jelly babies! When I arrived at checkpoint one I was asked if I wanted a milky way or...a milky way, that's all that was in the bag!

All was going well up until mile 23, I just went totally flat. My hydration was OK, stomach felt fine feet felt fine, but my head was gone, and I had no idea why. I got to a water station and the marshall told me I was at 26.8 miles, my watch said 24.75...my watch was right!

It took me about an hour to get my mind back on track, that hour was spent walking/jogging and plenty soul searching. I was thinking about previous races, was there anything I could draw strength from?

I thought about Katie Hall at the Great Glen Ultra, what did Katie do mentally to complete that course? I thought about would I DNF (did not finish) for the first time. I thought about the runners in JogPKC, the running group at work, and how they have embraced running and get so much from it. How they have overcome barriers both mental and physical to complete what they wanted to achieve. There are a few people I thought about specifically and I'm going to catch up with them and let them now how they helped me.


I got to checkpoint three (31 miles) quick top up of tailwind and I was away again. This tailwind was the 'naked' neutral flavour, however it turned out to be very sweet. And here is how my brain was... I was having a wee sook of tailwind and a wee sook of water and mixing it in my mouth before swallowing, why not mix it in the bottle?
Walk/jog, being encouraged by who I now know was Norrie Hunter (you'll never know how much that helped man), it was a bit of head down and crack on. Plan A was gone, Plan B was gone, would Plan C fall apart too?

The guys at the last checkpoint let me know there was 4 miles to go, so I set off and it was at this point, when I saw this sign, that I knew I was going to finish.

It was very hot by now, but having topped up both drink bottles I had plenty fluids. My feet were starting to feel sore on this last section which is on tarmac, and the studs on the soles of my trail shoes felt like wee needles. I actually passed a guy who was struggling too, we exchanged pleasantries and I could tell he just wanted to be finished too.

I created Plan B.5, let's get this done in under 9 hours. Three and a half miles later when I crossed the bridge and ran along the outside of Dam Park, the tears started to flow, and I couldn't stop them. I was going to finish, one lap of the athletics track and it would be over.

Into the stadium, the sun beating down, I heard Steven (who finished in an awesome 7 hours 20 minutes) roar me on. Sprint finish...no happening, not today.

Crossing the finish line, Steven asked me how I was, my answer was one word with a shake of my head, "brutal", referring to possibly the worst day running I've had. My finish time sums it up. Plan B.5 fell apart too, I crossed the line in 9 hours and 40 seconds.

Thanks to the organisers, marshalls and volunteers, I hope I said thank you to you all. The event was extremely well organised and they even arranged some awesome weather!

A wee video treat of us preparing

What have I learned?
It won't always go how you planned
I can gain strength and inspiration from an amazing number of people and places
Talking to yourself, and cows, is OK
My mental strength is in a good place
There's always another day

Run The Blades 50k - 23 July 2016

Plan A, finish under 5 hours
Plan B, finish under 6 hours
Plan C, finish

Set within Whitelee Wind Farm, Run The Blades is a 50k (31 mile) event. Some would call it undulating, I would say it has some killer hills in there!

Set off at 6:30am, expecting to get there for registration by 8am, and I duly arrived spot on time. At the car park met up with Steven, Fiona and Simon. Steven was doing the 50k as well, Fiona and Simon doing the half marathon. There is also a 10k event for those of you interested in next year?

There was supposed to be a shuttle bus to take us from car park to the visitor centre for registration, I never saw it yet! So we had about a half mile walk to the visitor centre, all the time feeding the midges who were out for some breakfast. Once registered I was getting a wee bit stressed that we would miss the race briefing and start, we were due to start at 9am, it was now 8:50 and we had a 10 minute walk to the start. All of the races were starting from the same point, with 10 minute breaks in between. When we got to the start I was relieved to hear that the start had been delayed by 15 minutes. Chill out John!

Fiona's pal Susan arrived and there was time for a pre race photo before the off.

Simon, Steven, Fiona, Susan and Me

A very quick race briefing, an even quicker 3,2,1 and we were away.
My aim was to run 6.2 miles an hour (roughly 9 minute 35 second miles) and maintain this throughout. That worked...for the first hour! The second hour got off to a crap start...literally. Stomach cramps had me down to a shuffle, anyway moving on. The wind turbines felt and sounded like they were right above your head, and going around at some speed.

The elite runners will run all the way, most ultramarathon runners will walk the ups and run the flats and the downs, and that was my strategy. Plan A was gone my mile 9 and the focus was then on Plan B, under 6 hours. Although the event was set in a windfarm, it was bloody warm.

Wind turbines

Another strategy I use in ultras is to pick someone out ahead of me (around a half mile) and aim to cut down the distance between me and them over the course of the race. If the person in front stops to walk up a hill, I make sure I run a wee bit further than they did before I walk, and I also make sure I start running again before they do on the flat/downhill.  I also found myself talking to the snow poles either side of the tracks, I would use these as a start/stop run point, saying 'alright guys' but quickly turning to 'f**k you guys'
At least I knew I was doing it this time!

Just after mile 16 was a real downer for me, my whole body ached, I was hot, uncomfortable and not really enjoying myself. Then, on a bit of an incline, there was a wee shower of rain, which cooled me down a wee bit. I stopped (to check the colour of my pee) and took a wee breather. Pee check was spot on (straw colour) and this put me in a good place. I was using Tailwind nutrition mix for the first time in an event and it worked perfectly. Basically, the claim is that it's 'all you need' for running all day, providing carbs, salts and electrolytes. I'm not confident enough to go without whole food for 5-6 hours, so I had banana, jaffa cakes and pork pies (and as always, flat fat coke) at checkpoints. I ate the jaffa cakes and pork pies, but only because I'm greedy! The tailwind did it's job.

Between checkpoints 2 and 3 seemed to take forever, the distance was around 8 miles, but felt like 12, from checkpoint 3 there are 6 miles to go to the finish, a lovely downhill to start and then back to up/down, up/down...aaarrrgghhhhhh!

Somewhere along this six mile stretch I realised if I ran 10 minute miles I'd get in under 6 hours...wisnae happening (finished in 6 hours 6 minutes), but you learn a lot from these times. At mile 16 I could've chucked it, but I've somehow developed a stronger mental toughness, or maybe stubbornness and almost thrive on these situations. 'This is what you came for' (copyright Scott Jurek) was the wee mantra that got me through a bad spell.

Up and over one last hill (ye think) and your almost there, then there's another wee cheeky hill and you see a sign that reads '400 metres to go'...I sure it felt longer! Turned a corner, saw the banners and the finish, man what a feeling. Steven very kindly videoed my finish, and I love watching it!

Also at the finish, Katie Hall! Was great to see Katie and have a quick catch up. Delighted to hear she's recovered well from the Great Glen Ultra and is gearing up for her next challenge.

And so am I...

Thanks to Garry and Lee the event organisers and to all of the marshals and checkpoint volunteers, everyone had a smile and encouragement in abundance. It does make a difference, thank you all.

A great ultra event I'd recommend to anyone thinking about having a go at a distance further than 26.2 miles

Lessons learned:

• Don't fixate about shuttle buses
• Tailwind nutrition works for me
• Injinji socks work for me
• If your giving someone faster a run home, give them the car keys
• Running two ultras three weeks apart, is maybe too much (further tests required)

#inabootit

Great Glen Ultra - 2 July 2016 (Oh Ya Bam!)

I love a first, but I wasn't sure about this one...

Plan A, finish in 17 hours
Plan B, finish in under 20 hours
Plan C, finish

The Great Glen Ultra event (71 miles from Fort William to Inverness) starts at 1am, never experienced that before, of the events I've entered so far most start around 9am, so this was a wee bit different.

Susan and I set off on Friday afternoon, we were staying in Spean Bridge, 10 miles from the race start. 
The plan was that Susan would drop me off around 11:30pm for race registration at the Moorings Hotel, just next to the start at Neptunes Staircase, Fort William. We drove up through Glencoe and just as we were approaching the Kingshouse, Susan announced "This is us 71 miles from our front door"...talk about an eye opener!

We stayed at the Distant Hills guesthouse, I made my way to bed around 7pm and planned to have 3 to 4 hours sleep. Around 8:50pm I became aware of a banging noise from the corridor outside our door. Turns out the lock of the door in the room next to us had developed a fault and the owner and a joiner spent the next 3 hours trying to fix it! 
So that was me up. The bonus was I watched the second half of the Wales v Belgium match!

We left the guesthouse (past a very apologetic owner, he got dingied) as planned around 11:15 and drove to Fort William, on our way there we were behind a coach, it turns out this was the 'party bus' of runners who had traveled down from the course finish at Inverness to get registered.

Into the Moorings Hotel, handed over medical form (no form, no registration), handed in my drop bags for the 6 checkpoints, and then it's all about getting your head right, an hour and fifteen minutes until race time!

Susan left around midnight to go back to the guesthouse (where the banging noises had thankfully stopped) and I set about applying the Avon Skin So Soft (wasn't bothered by midges so must have worked!), and sipping away at some water.

12:40 we were asked to make our way across to Neptune's Staircase, which is a five minute walk, we listened to the race briefing and at 1am we were off!

1am start

Neptunes Staircase to Clunes, 10.5 miles
I've done a few runs with a headtorch, but never anywhere as dark as this! I started worrying that everyones headtorch was stronger than mine and my batteries would run out, so tucked in behind a group and turned mine off! Turns out this group were going at a pace much faster than I intended so I let them pull away and turned my torch back on. I then became aware of two runners behind me who had turned their torches off and were following me!

The time got to around 2:45am, had run about 8 miles, and we crossed over the canal, there were two runners ahead of me and they took a sharp right and stayed on the canal towpath and then up into a forest, I followed and quickly met them coming back towards me, they had come across a padlocked gate, we had taken a wrong turning. 
Don't panic...we had a quick chat, figured it out and backtracked a bit to read the signage which would be quite visible in daylight but not so much at 2:45am. 
Now, the worry set in, miss the first checkpoint cut-off and your race is over before it's begun. I'm a big fearty at the best of times, but put me in a forest with a headtorch in the middle of the night and I become a big petrified fearty! Then someone mentioned this is the 'fairy forest', I so wanted out of there. 
The three of us stuck together and eventually (15 minutes later) we saw a few headtorches in the distance which meant we were back on track. Made the checkpoint at around 3:10am, had a quick top up of water and picked up some food from my drop bag and away again.

Clunes to Laggan, 20 miles
The next 10 miles was undulating, and I felt I was running quite well, the headtorch went off as the daylight was breaking through and I was confident of being able to see where I was going. It started to rain, got my waterproof on, put my head down and got on with it. A few times I thought of people lying in their bed and I'm out here running. There's only 98 people on the planet doing this right here right now, and we're all mental! One of the runners I'd taken a wrong turning with in the forest and I had stuck together for about 5 miles, but he was running just a wee bit too fast for my pace so I stopped for a pee and let him go on (never saw him again) We'll talk about pee a bit more later!

Laggan to Fort Augustus, 31 miles
I had aimed to be at 35 miles before I phoned Susan around 8:30am, that wasn't going to happen, I was a bit short, came into Fort Augutus around 7:45am with 31 miles under my belt. There were a couple of climbs between Laggan and Fort Augustus, but it ended with a 3 to 4 mile run along the canal again. I enjoyed this as I could settle into a decent rhythm, although the legs were starting to tire slightly. I spoke with Susan, who told me what a lovely breakfast she was having! We arranged a time to meet at the next checkpoint...Invermoriston

31 miles in

Fort Augustus to Invermoriston, 40 miles
This is where the real ascent started, although my legs were tired I felt good and marched on up the climbs, the views were amazing and the craic was great with other runners on the course. One thing that gets me about the ultra running community is the spirit of togetherness shown between everyone. The massive climb (1,000 feet) was followed by a very steep descent, and I could feel my toes banging off the inside of my shoes. I mentioned about pee earlier, and a good gauge of if you are properly hydrated is the colour of your pee (straw coloured is perfect), mine was causing me a wee bit of concern. Came into Invermoriston around 9:45am, had my favourite drop bag here, beans and mini pork sausages, was awesome. No sign of Susan and when I mentioned this to the marshall she said "yer no waiting for her, on yer way!"
I entered this checkpoint to ELO "Roll Over Beethoven" and left to The Alarms "68 Guns", very uplifting.

Invermoriston to Drumnadrochit, 54.5 miles
The marshall informed me there was a water stop about 8 miles in, but I'd made sure I had around 1 litre of water with me before I left the checkpoint. I can normally go around an hour and a half on one 600ml bottle (and my pee colour is fine!) 
You know when you see those films of the Italian countryside with the winding roads, that's what the next climb was like, up, up and ever up! My GPS battery in watch number one gave up and I switched to my second back up watch. The sun came out, the midges came out, and I was seriously flagging. I was sipping away at the water I had, but it was going down as quick as the hills were going up. 

Above Loch Ness

After what seemed like an eternity the hill started to descend, I stopped for another pee (oops, kinda bright yellow now) and was in serious need of some proper hydration. Had a quick chat with Susan who had missed me by 5 minutes at Invermoriston, and she also informed me if it got really bad, I could drink my own pee, gotta love a resourceful support crew!

About half a mile after I'd spoken with Susan, I came to the end of that section of forest, through a gate, turned a corner and saw the water station, apart from the finish it was my most welcome sight of the day. Angela was in charge here, and I'll be forever grateful to both her and Brin the dog. A lady (Gill?) asked me if I wanted to share a packet of salt and vinegar hula hoops? I agreed and then had a seat to take in some liquids. As I was sitting there another runner emerged from the forest announcing that unless there were 'Tropical Soleros' there was nothing he required and kept moving on!

Leaving the water station there was about a 2 mile run on tarmac before coming into another forest and descending into Drumnadrochit. As I entered the forest I was chased down the track by a greyhound with it's owner running after it screaming! Why does this stuff happen to me? You can see Drumnadrochit for miles before you get there, they really should think about building a bridge over the river which would cut about two miles off your distance.

Drumnadrochit is where I first met Susan all day, what a welcome sight that was. And then...she informed me she had a pie supper for me! Drop bag ditched, gimmee the pie!

Ya dancer!

Turns out Susan was inspired to get the pie supper from fellow runner Sean who had opted for chips and a single deep fried mars bar!

Drumnadrochit to Loch Laide, 62 miles
A long 1.5 miles out of Drumnadrochit on road before the climb started again. As I went up I swear there were some bits I was thinking, "this isnae right, humans urnae built for this!" My pee is now the colour of Tango.

It's about this time I start 'seeing' stuff. I'm tired, my brain is playing tricks on me. 
I'm a big fearty in the middle of a forest and I'm seeing aw kinds o' shit!
At one point I had even agreed in my head it would be OK to die here...woah, wake up call, let's get this done. It's a very slow jog, every stone underfoot feeling like being stabbed at every step. It was relentless, unforgiving...but that's what I came for. 
Mixing it up with nature is an awesome thing, but always remember that nature is in charge!
Arrived at Loch Laide, sort of fell into a seat to look into my drop bag and feel repulsed by everything in it. Katie Hall is there before me, we'd met earlier in the day and Katie was in some very sore pain. Bill (one of the BAM's) informs us it's all downhill to Inverness from here, just down through the spooky forest and then onto...wait a minute, did he say spooky forest?

Loch Laide to Inverness 71 miles
Katie and I set off, 9 miles to go, my second watch had packed in by this time, I was past caring. Half a mile behind us were Graham and Gill, they caught up, we moved, they caught up, we moved on...and repeat. I should probably apologise to Katie for my inane drivel, given that she was suffering enough without listening to a madman saying things like... "Oh look, there's a cheetah, with a rat in it's stomach!" 
I'm being serious here.
After what seemed like forever, (Bill was right, it was mostly downhill) we arrived in Inverness, along the canal towpath, across the swingy bridge thing and into the stadium. I spot Susan right away, the tears started a while ago, but they are in full flow now. I'm so close, there are 70 miles behind me and 200 metres to go. I took off my backpack, let it go and ran for the finish, it wasn't a sprint, but it felt bloody good!

71 miles...done!

The number 1 support crew

My new pal Katie

The next morning at the prize giving I blubbered all the way through, some very emotional scenes, amazing achievements by extraordinary people. Many thanks to team BAM (ye are bams by the way) every marshall (humans and dogs) and everyone who helped in any way from registration to finish line. A fantastically well organised event which I would recommend to all.

Prizegiving

What have I learned?

• These old bones are on a journey, I never knew if they could go 71 miles, I hoped they would, and they never let me down.
• Hydration, regularly check the colour of your pee, more than I did (it's back to normal now, took 24 hours though).
• Always appreciate those you love and who are there for you, it's a special thing.

#beinspired #betheinspiration

Glasgow to Edinburgh Ultramarathon - 2 April 2016

55 miles, my longest distance to date, I was a wee bit apprehensive to say the least.

I had three plans (each of them included short walking breaks):

Plan A: Run 11 minute miles and finish just under 10 hours.

Plan B: If I can't maintain 11 minute miles, try and get to the finish in under 11 hours.

Plan C: Just finish before the cut-off of 12 hours.

I normally comfortably run 9 minute miles on a flat surface and this was flat all the way, apart from a wee climb I intended to walk at Falkirk, so we're good to go.

Day started off great, jumped in a taxi at George Square to get to the start at Ruchill Park, and the cab driver announces he's not for hire, he's only stopped for a break to read his paper! After some gentle persuasion from Susan, he agreed to take us the short three mile trip into Maryhill. On the way he asked what we were up to today and we explained about the Ultramarathon and that I was doing the run for charity. We arrived at the park and cab driver told us to donate the £5 fare to the charity. How awesome was that? Feel good factor in overdrive and it's not even 9am!

The start was a very laid back affair, a relaxed race briefing at 8:55 and we're away at 9:00 on the dot.

My 11 minute mile plan was under threat from the start, felt myself getting sucked into other peoples pace...held back focused, had a wee chat wi' masel. "It's 55 miles, a long way to go", and settled into a comfortable slow jog.

Every song on the mp3 player had been selected by those who donated to the charity split between Diabetes UK and the British Heart Foundation. The songs in total was just over 7 hours, so the player was put on random to play until I stopped. 

First song was Curtis Mayfield - Move On Up, and great upbeat tune to get you in a groove. This was followed up by Johnny Cash singng Your Own Personal Jesus, I realised right away that I was gonna have to control how I reacted to songs as my pace was instantly altered by the first two tunes of the day! I won't mention all of the songs, but a few will feature along the way.

The route from Glasgow to Edinburgh is 55 miles long, following the Forth & Clde, and Union canals, with checkpoints as follows (including what song was playing at each):
Auchinstarry Bridge (13.1 miles) - Divine - You Think Your a Man (Your Only a Boy)
Falkirk Wheel (22.25 miles) - Justin Bieber - Love Yourself
Linlithgow (33.75 miles) - Rod Stewart - Baby Jane
Broxburn (42 Miles) - The Commitments - Mustang Sally
Ratho (47.25 miles) - The Clash - White Man (in Hammersmith Palais)

Went through Checkpoint 1 with Divine - You Think Your A Man (But Your Only A Boy) blasting in my ears! The field had thinned out now and I had my head straight that it's my race, with only myself to compete against, this is a lot harder than it sounds! As I ran under the M9 at the Castlecary Arches, Labi Siffre  - Something Inside So Strong came on and the tears just poured. I was smiling though, thinking how that song sums up my feelings towards injustice and peoples struggle for equality, the line "we're gonna do it anyway" especially emotional.
Right after this came The Smiths - There Is A Light And It Never Goes Out, totally changed my mood and I was running along singing out loud (this was to be feature of the day!)

As I approached the Falkirk wheel at 1pm (bang on 11 minute mile pace), Justin Bieber - Love Yourself started, I did smile thinking I wouldn't normally listen to this...but this was no normal day.

Spotted Susan at the Checkpoint, always a welcome sight, her encouragement and motivation is nothing short of remarkable. Also there, was JogPKC Leader Matt McLay, I realise now just how important the wee chat Matt gave me played a massive part in the rest of my day. Thanks for that Matt, and also for the fat Coke...this was to be the day of fat Coke! Had some baked beans and pork sausages before saying my goodbyes to Susan.

Me and Mr Motivator!

There's a hill from the bottom of the Falkirk Wheel up to start of the Union canal, Matt walked with me to the top, his chat focusing on the positive, and sending me on my way down the first of a number of long tunnels, where I decided to walk, although this was eating into time, I'd rather that than risk injury. The Edwin Hawkins Singers - Oh Happy Day had me in tears again!

Next checkpoint was 11 miles away, so we're looking at 2 hours of running for Plan A. Started to struggle a wee bit and it was because I needed more to eat, but didn't feel like I could stomach anything. Walked for a bit chewing on a couple of gel blocks and the Snuff version of the Black Beauty soundtrack Galloping Home came on, cheered me up, made me smile and got me into a jog again.

There are a couple of bridges where the footpath is cobbles and quite narrow, slows you down to walking pace for fear of going in the canal, and are actually quite a welcome break.

Checkpoint 3 arrived and there was Susan, and this time Dot was there too! Great to see them both, hadn't seen Dot for a while, had a quick bite of a banana and was off again quite quickly.

The next section was just over 8 miles and I got going with about 75% enthusiasm. Started thinking about what was wrong, thought back to the chat with Matt, and also to the fat Coke. This was the game-changer, happening right here. The fat Coke Matt gave me was still a bit fizzy, so I slowed down to a walk to sip away at it and then let it settle. Broke into a wee jog, had a burp you could've heard back in Perth and I was off, flying, at one point having to tell myself to slow down. I wasn't far from Broxburn, was walking a wee bit and watching a game of football being played on the edge of the town when Wham - Wake Me Up Before You Go Go came on. I must have looked mental as I danced the start 'You Do The Jitterbug' bit! Feeling great I powered into Broxburn to be met again by Susan and Dot, with this time, Megan and Kerry there too!

Spent a bit longer at this checkpoint as I knew Plan A was gone, and also was enjoying the time spent together with everyone.

5.5 miles to the next checkpoint, a half marathon to go to the end...mon then!

The rain started, not heavy, but had to make a decision to cover up or not. As the trees were providing a wee bit of a canopy cover I decided to stay as I was. Had some more flat Coke, let it settle in (takes about 8 minutes) and opened the legs. BOOM! There had been a few runners changing places with me for the last 5 or 6 miles, I flew passed them at 10 minute mile pace for about two miles and never saw them again.
Tina Turner - The Best followed by Roy Orbison - Penny Arcade, ye coudnae script that! Hammered into Ratho (accompanied by The Clash) as Megan and Kerry turned a corner and said "alright?" as if we just met casually on Perth High Street. Susan and Dot were having a well deserved cup of tea at the time, but looking up they were running over a bridge to join us. Susan was running not knowing her bag was open and Dot was running behind her picking up the contents as they fell out! Megan gave me one final bottle of flat Coke (or as I was now calling it...'The Solution')

The rain was quite heavy now, but I was actually enjoying it, just under 8 miles to go, Plan B was there for the taking...was it?

Pigbag - Papa's Got A Brand New Bag, Blue Rondo A La Turk -  Klacto Vee Sed Stein, Justin Bieber - What Do You Mean (WHAT?), Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run, Crowded House - Don't Dream It's Over...the inspirational songs were coming along rapid.

As I approached a young guy (early 20's) 100 metres in front of me, The Jam - Town Called Malice came on, I instantly upped the pace and as I passed him said
"Well done mate"
his response was "Woah, what age are you?"
I responded "50, how?"
He said "50 miles in, how can you run like that?"
"Simple...Get The Fuckin Jam On!"

He laughed, I laughed and I head off for the finish, Plan B, Plan B, Plan B...

It's getting dark, it's 7:50pm, I'm about a mile away, all or nothing, let's go.

Head down, passing runners who are struggling and will be happy just to walk to the end, to walk sounds awesome, come on head down, one foot in front of the other...PLAN B!

I see a sign on a bridge over the canal, it's numbered '3', are they in descending order towards Edinburgh, the next bridge is numbered '2'...ya dancer!

Under bridge '1'
Frank Wilson - Do I Love You, Patsy Cline - Crazy, Kenny Rogers - The Gambler,

A sign '100 metres to the finish', it's 7:58, come on John, come on!

I see Dot, she starts jumping, I see the finish, Susan, Megan and Kerry are there, I start punching the air and let out a roar as I cross the line...in 10 hours and 59 minutes...Mon Plan B!

Song at the end...The Cranberries - Dreams, well done Pigeon, I'm at your service Brother.

In my excitement, I totally missed that my niece Rose and her partner Steve had come along to cheer me in. It means so much when people go out of their way to simply be there for you.

So that's my story of the 55 mile run.
People, together we have raised over £1,000 to be split between Diabetes UK and the British Heart Foundation. You provided the music, love and motivation. Thank you.

Keep The Faith. Peace. x

Self Transcendence 50k, 27 March 2016

As soon as the Self Transcendence event was available to enter, I didn't hesitate. The thought of running around the North Inch in Perth 21 times (31 miles) would turn most sensible thinking people off. But I've never been accused of being sensible, so it was full steam ahead!

To add a wee bit of spice, fellow JogPKC Team Leaders Steven Watt and Matt McLay had entered too, always good to have a friendly ear now and then.

The event itself included the Anglo Celtic Plate competition, teams runners from Scotland, England and Wales competing at 100k distance, beginning at 7am, the 50k event starting at 10am.

I went down to take in the 7am start, the weather was dry, but quite cold too and there was me in t-shirt, shorts and sandals amongst people with layers and puffa jackets!

Susan and I took down the gazebo to try and stay a wee bit warm and dry (rain forecast for later), however the weather was looking up when we arrived at the Inch around 9am.

It was off to registration at Bells Sports Centre, and then get myself ready for the start. Steven and Matt arrived a wee bit later and we were all in good spirits thinking our preparations had been done properly and we were good to go.

A couple of others arrived and enquired if the gazebo was for 'all runners', we told them it wasn't but they were more than welcome to leave their drop bags there if they wished to. So, time for the pre race briefing and then the start.

And we're off! My plan was to lap the Inch (2400 metres) 4 times per hour, this would see me home in 5 and a half hours.

People generally go off fast from the start of an event, and this was no different, but using the pace timer on my watch, I settled into running 10 minute miles. Felt like I was going very slow and getting left behind, so I upped it a wee bit. A mistake right at the start, ALWAYS run your own race, don't get sucked in.

Still comfortable though, and felt great for the first 15/16 laps, here's my splits.

I'd had some great craic with a few people on the way round (and round, and round) really nice to hear the 'elite' athletes encouraging the mere mortals amongst the runners, it really is a humbling sport this ultrarunning, everyone has everyone elses back.

The 'round and round'  bit, wasn't quite sure what to expect, but it actually wasn't that bad. The stretch down by the river was hellish at times, with the wind in your face all the way to the Cenotaph thingy. Was great seeing Susan every lap and she was doing an awesome job getting me what I wanted food/drink wise and also helping the other dudes who left their stuff in the gazebo!

Plenty visitors too. Karen and Andie, Mhari and Stewart, Karen 'Jog Leader' Hughes with her partner, kid and dog!, and finally, Megan and my Mum. A big thank you to you all, it may not look like I hear your shouts of encouragement at times, but I hear them all and they are very much appreciated and at times just what you need to keep going.

Started to struggle about the end of lap 16, asking myself if I wanted to go on, and why I do this kinda stuff! 

Then, as I stopped for a wee drink before starting lap 17 Steven arrived (to lap me for the third time!) said he was having a bit of a sore calf, so we ran the next lap together nice and slow. Was really good dropping the pace a bit, chatting about how we were feeling and how each others run had went. Just what I needed at just the right time. 

Steven was then onto his last lap and to a 04:18:56 finish, absolutely awesome!

I was feeling crap, struggling to get myself going, four laps to go, 'take it one lap at a time John, one lap at a time...

As I approached the Albert monument, it dawned on me, I had ran just under 28 miles, it was a total of 31 miles in total, the Inch is almost 1.5 miles round. I had miscalculated! I only had two and half laps left! What a lift this gave me, saw Steven's wife Fiona and son Murray who were both clapping and encouraging me round, heard a " Come on JC!" shout, looked up and there was Karen, smiling and punching the air, and as I approached the end of lap 19 there was Susan, Megan my Mum, Mhari and Stewart all clapping me through and willing me on.

Two laps to go, mon then.

Had Matt in my sights all day, he was generally always a half lap ahead of me and seemed to be moving at a very settled pace for the whole event. Although he was that half lap ahead, Matt pulled me through lap 20, as I glanced across the park I knew if I kept pace with Matt, I was less than 30 minutes to the end. Keep going forward, get to the final lap.

A glance at my watch (which was on autopause) as I started lap 21  and thought "I could get under 5 hours here!" 

Right, head down, get that long wind in yer face stretch by the Tay out the way, come on! As I passed Albert for the last time that day, Stuart and Dawn Scott were there asking how I was feeling and how far I had to go. Felt great to say I was on my last half mile.

Last half mile!...looked at the watch 4:54:02...I could do this! Along past the bowling green, past the Rugby club, Bells Sports Centre, can hear Susan shouting me on, look up I can see her waving, I start crying (what's that about!) Ten yards to go, look at the watch 4:59:48...

Crossed the line in 4:59:57 (watch time) BOOM! 

The Badlands Ultras...Ooosh!

Great event, very well organised, and recommended next time it comes to Perth.

04:18:56

Seville Marathon - 21 February 2016

This all started in November 2015 when Susan asked me "Do you never run anywhere warm?" 

So I took to the Internet and within 15 minutes had signed up to run in Seville. Have to admit that starting and finishing in the stadium where Celtic played in the 2003 UEFA Cup Final influenced my decision. I also decided to wear my Celtic home top for the marathon.

So we booked up for a few days in Malaga (recommend) and got the train up to Seville on Saturday morning. Has to be said, very good rail service , hassle free and ran bang on time.
First thing to do in Seville was to get registered for the event. This took place at the FIBES Auditorium, we made our way there, got signed up and attended the pre race pasta party...load up fella! Hadn't got my longest run in as I'd wanted in the weeks leading up to the marathon, but I've been this distance before and knew what to expect (or so I thought).

The Seville marathon is used as an Olympic qualifying event for the elite runners, and most of them were staying in our hotel, as were the officials/marathon organisers and also the Real Betis football team!

Sunday morning was breakfast with the Kenyans (last time I'd see them all day!) at 6:30 as the bus to the start was leaving at 7:15
A very chilly, blowy day welcomed us at the stadium, and the nervous excitement that goes with the start of any big race filled the air. 

A total of 14,000 runners, by far the biggest event I've ever been involved with. Took a wee while to actually get to the official start line, start the stopwatch...off we go!

The crowd never split or provided any space until about 10k when the road got wider and the overexcited starters were blowing a bit! The 4hr marker runner was sitting just behind me and I was feeling really good. The sun got up a bit and the temperature started to rise. I was taking on fluids, little sips often preferred to big glugs. Only food I has was a pack of biscuits and some jelly babies, but I wasn't to concerned about that. 

As we made our way through the streets of Seville, the locals were out in force urging the runners on, it makes one hell of a difference to your morale, and I thank each and every one of them. There were plenty shouts of "Celtic Glasgow, Vamos" directed at me, which was really nice.

Seville is such a beautiful city, and to be able to run through the main streets closed to traffic is awesome. Around mile 17 I became aware of the heat starting to having an effect. I was drinking more than I normally would and my pace had slowed down and wasn't so comfortable anymore. This continued through miles 19 to 23, I found myself seeking little bit of shade for some respite. The information stations showing 22 degrees, my last run at home had been in 3 degrees! Runners were struggling all around me, the medics were busy treating people at the roadside as the weather and effort took its toll.

Running around the Plaza De España, then down by the University and directly past the wonderful Cathedral buoyed me, and also knowing I'm going to finish gave me a wee boost. 

Over the bridge, the last mile and a half brings you into the stadium for a final lap of the athletics track, there's the finish. People are in tears and collapsing as they cross the line. I scanned the crowd for Susan, I knew she'd be there somewhere but I couldn't locate her. Just knowing she's there to see me over the line gets me emotional, and I shed a few tears, as I always do! I finished in 4:26:15

Not under four hours, not my best ever run. However...it's still only 4 years ago I couldn't run round the North Inch in Perth without stopping.  We've come a long way Baby!

What have I learned...you NEED to get that last long run before a marathon, it will not 'be OK'. 

People are awesome, muchos gracias Sevilla!

Mon February

Here's the idea:

On 2 April 2016, I'm attempting to run 55 miles from Glasgow to Edinburgh, and I thought i could raise a few bob for much needed research as I go.
You may be aware of the love of music that runs through my life, so I'm hoping to combine running and music as follows:

For every donation (£5 suggested, but please give what you can, no matter how big or small) you suggest a song, any song and I add it to my currently blank mp3 player. Please add your song choice to the donation notes.

At the start of the run I hit 'play on random' and whatever song is playing  when I cross the finish line is the winner.

The prize? I will DJ an event of your choice for free. Mon then, InAbootIt!

Click To Donate and Choose Your Song

Who woulda thunk it...I'm a Jog Leader!

Sunday 17 January 7am. It's baltic, I'm trying to reverse out of our drive onto the road and the cars slipping all over the place. Had to get out and grow some salt under the tyres to get moving. Eventually got on the move. Why am I up so early on a cold, frosty Sunday morning? Steven Watt, that's why!

Steven has secured funding to start a jogScotland PKC group at work. Part of this requires you to have Jog Leaders, so Steven enrolled Karen Hughes, Matt McKay and yours truly.
We're heading through to the Jog Leaders course being held at the Scottish Hockey Centre on Glasgow Green. It was a full, informative, day, think there was 24 people in total. 

At the end of the session, we were all told we had passed and were presented with very fetching bright orange Jog Leader vests! What does this mean? It allows Steven, Karen, Matt and I to take out groups of joggers from Beginner level upwards. We learned how to structure a session and the importance of warming up and stretching at the end of a session.

Steven's idea is #JogPKC, and we hope to kick it off very soon.

Be inspired, be the inspiration...InAbootIt!

Hopes and Dreams...

I'm upping the distance more than I planned to this year, that's down to a certain Mr Iain Beedie. Last year I ran 1025.27 miles, the equivalent of 39 marathons, I did intend to do the equivalent of 40 marathons this year (1048 miles), but then Iain suggested going for 2000kms (1250 miles) and I thought if I'm gonna do that, I'm as well to go for 2016 kms, so the target for 2016 is 1253 miles. 

That's just a wee bit of a jump, so I better get serious as of now!

I've a few events planned for the first part of year, so far I've entered:

Seville Marathon in February 26.2 miles
Self Transcendence Ultramarathon in March, 50k (31.25 miles)
Glasgow to Edinburgh Ultramarathon in April, 55 miles
Great Glen Way Ultramarathon in July, 72 miles (my biggy for the year!)

I've named this post 'Hopes and Dreams', I hope I can stay injury free and I am able to complete the events listed above, I dream of my application being selected to take part in the 2017 West Highland Way Race.

Also training to become a Jog Leader this year, that's down to a certain Mr Steven Watt from #JogPKC

InAbootIt!