15 30 20

2015. I'm turning 30, so going to make the year a challenge. At least 20 of them.

[thomas153020]

New Start

So, Friday was my last day at work. 6 years and 7 months, all wrapped up in a few beers, hugs, handshakes, and lot’s of ‘good luck’.

Tomorrow I start an ‘Advanced Diploma in Personal Training’. I’ve umm’d and ahhhh’d over going into the fitness world for many a year. I guess like many a person, I’ve struggled to think what to do with myself, ‘career wise’, and for a little too long. Last years year of events and sports was really a big eye opener, and a good calling card. Maybe I’m a few years late to the party, but I’ll make sure I’m the guy people remember when I leave it.

Hopefully the next few weeks/ months will bring me a little better health too. Since September 2014, I’ve had an unknown acute pain on my spine. I say unknown, because I woke up one day with it and it’s never left me. It started over a much larger area, but localised itself to a very specific 2 spots a few weeks later; one on the spine, and one to the left of it.

Doctors, physiotherapy, and strong anti- inflammatories couldn’t do the job. Recently I saw a sports specialist doctor who listened to my tail of woe and took it more seriously. He arranged an MRI, Ultrasound and more physiotherapy. At long last it seems the issue may have been found.

The MRI didn’t seem to show anything too unusual. The Ultrasound wasn’t too different. But with close inspection of the 2, my doctor seemed to get rather excited at the prospect of seeing something rather unusual. It seems, somehow, one of my lower vertebrae suffered some case of trauma; serious enough for it to fracture a little. This fracture managed to never heel itself, as the small chip becomes recognised by the body as an independent bone for some reason, and it doesn’t think there is anything to heal. The chip managed to slightly lodge itself and irritate the vertebral disc below it, draining it of the correct fluid it should have, enflamed it, and caused a bursa.  

Well, quite the situation. Given the location and the nerves around it, this is probably the reason my left side has being irritated too. But if the doctor approves the findings and agrees to the treatment, localised anaesthetics and specialist steroids injected into the spine should eventually rid me of the problem, after a few dosages.

To hear this, as much as anything, felt like a huge weight off my shoulders. All those events and then some done with all that shit going on. I’m either tougher or more stupid then I realised. Don’t feel free to answer that. 

Finally some answers. And hopefully, soon, those answers will get me back to my old self. After the Achilles Tendinopathy goes down too. Sign....

[thomas153020]

Start Small, Build It Up Again

So it would appear that I haven’t written a blog for quite a while. 7 weeks, 3 days to be precise. And for good reason too; it was to accompany my year of events, and the events had finished.

I didn’t plan on stopping there and then though. I wanted to carry on running, after my final challenge, and do another 62 miles before the years end. This would have given me a years total of 786 miles run, the equivalent of 30 marathons. That sounded pretty awesome. But all was not to be.

I had developed a small stress fracture in my left shin after the final event. Amazing timing. It was very sore to walk on at first, and utterly impossible to run on. This was coupled with my on-going Achilles Tendonitis, which, wonderfully, was in both ankles! Oh the joy. And so, I had to stop. Properly stop.

The last few weeks have been no running, and light gym work. ‘Recovery work’, one might say. From the feeling of it the stress fracture has gone. The tendonitis feels much better, but still needs a lot of work to fully recover. The ankles are evidently more swollen than they ever used to be before the tendonitis, but there is light at the end of the tunnel.

I saw a rather helpful doctor, who listened to my list of sores and woes and took them seriously. I have an x-ray and MRI scan lined up. I saw a podiatrist, who has given me some inner soles to help relieve the pressure and correct the angle of my right achilles. I saw a physio, who has given me a list of exercises to do to try and clear it all up once and for all.

Obviously though, I had to ask, ‘can I start my running again?’ All those professionals I asked pretty much said the same thing: ‘start small, build it up again, and so long as it doesn’t hurt, it should be fine’. Music to my ears.

And so last week I went for my first run of the year. It’s a weird feeling. 10 months ago, I could run for 6 1/2 hours in a day. Now, it was 16 1/2 minutes. And boy, was it tiring. My lower back has a tendency of hating a run after a long time off the feet, and it gets ridiculously tight. After 8 minutes, I turned back home, for the shortest run in memory.

A couple of runs in though, and this morning I went for a 35 minute light one on my old favourite haunt, Wimbledon Common. 

It was time to take the Vivobarefoot Trail Freaks out for their first muddy excursion, and I loved being back in the mud and trees. Again, hard work, sore back, but not as sore, and I had a great time. I’ve thankfully managed to retain most of my speed, which isn’t particularly impressive anyway, but the endurance will certainly need work. Like the doctor, physio, and podiatrist said though, small steps, build it up again.

[thomas153020]

A Year’s End

And so my year is done.

The multiple little adventures can be nicely sewn together to create one truly unforgettable one. So, how best to summarise it? I guess with the statistics to begin with;

Challenges completed: 20

Challenges failed: 0

Original Challenges not Started: 3

Extra challenges added in the year: 3

 Injuries sustained in the year: 9

Injuries I still have: 4

 Running Challenges: 8

Obstacle/ Assault Course Events: 9

Cycling Events: 3

 Time running: 108 hours 53minutes

Distance covered: 728.0 miles

Runs: 63

Elevation Gained: 25,302 ft

Longest run: 40 miles

Miles covered cycling: 4,230.8

Longest ride: 142 miles

Punctures: 5. And 2 snapped chains.

 Times in gym:  77

Time spent weight/ bodyweight training: approx. 115 hours 30 minutes

Time spent stretching/ performing recovery exercises: approx. 23 hours

Press Ups Performed: over 4,900

 Obstacle course obstacles tackled: Over 385

Trifecta Earnt

Completed all 110m of monkey bars in Dirty Weekend

Tough Mudder double header completed

 Beers drank: Not enough

 Girlfriends impressed: 1 (I think)

There has been a few low points, as any hard training and injuries will almost inevitably cause, but for the most part it has been fantastic, and has taught me a lot about myself. I am a man who is really in love with sports, challenging oneself and pushing myself into the uncomfortable. To be performing in some of these events, after the hard training, and to be pushing myself to a level better than I thought I could, is an unrivalled feeling.

I have really enjoyed the blogging too, and plan to continue it with random streams of consciousness from time to time.

So, 2016? Well, first and foremost, I need my Achilles Tendons, back, and shin’s stress fracture (if that is indeed the problem it has) to recover, before I go charging around again. Man Vs Mountain, the hardest one in my eyes, has already been signed up to again, and is a distant 9 months away. The start of it all though, The Terminator event organised by Pewsey Vale running club, is Feb 29th, and again is one which I would love to do again. I accidentally threw away my running number from that one anyway, and I need it to go on the wall with the others. However, given my current injury list, it would seem a little too close and foolish to consider. 

Pretty much me all over then. 

Here is the first picture I took for the year. Let’s see what this one brings.

[thomas153020]

The Road Of Rest And Recovery

Shortly before challenge 20, Mel (the girlfriend) said something to me in response to my stating of running 724 miles in the year. ‘It’s the equivalent of running 27.6 marathons in a year’ I said. ‘Why don’t you run more until you have done the distance of 30? 30 Marathons for your 30th year. That has a good ring to it’ she replied.

She was of course right, and so that turned out to be the added plan in the end. 786 miles. 30 for 30.

However, there seemed to be an immediate problem after challenge 20. My left shin was very sore. It had felt a little sore a few times before hand, right along the shin bone, but this felt far worse. The next day, I could hardly walk on it. The pain was causing me to noticeably limp, and needless to say I was worried. From reading around, it could be shin splints, muscle compression, or a stress fracture. Only time and rest could tell. This, unfortunately, put an end to any additional miles being run, and so the year of events was well and truly over. 27.6 for 30. It’ll have to do.

5 weeks have passed since the last event now. Had my injury been shin splints, apparently the pain would have subsided in 10-14 days, and I could slowly start running again. However, just a couple of days ago, I went for a light 30 minute run, only to have some my calf feeling sore and poorly functioning again. Looks like it could be one of the worse sounding other 2 then. Again, reading into it, it is more than likely a stress fracture, and will need a good few more weeks rest.

Enter Christmas, and a period, well and truly, of rest and recovery. This is my fourth day in a row now of doing almost nothing, being off my feet, and lounging around the home. The shin feels much better. The Achilles Tendonitis is feeling better too, although given the obviously still inflamed and bruised appearance, I would say they still have a long way to go to be back to normal.

For anyone following my blog, you will know I am quite the fan of zero drop/ minimal running footwear. Given some of the running I have done this year, my Merrells have done the fair share of miles, and the Vivobarefoots a fair bit less. Due to the intensity of my training and activities I thought this would be best, given the Merrells have a fair bit more protection and padding. December (and Vivobarefoot making much better subtle colours) though has rekindled my love for Vivo, and there is another new kid on the block;

I am now the proud owner of Vivo’s ‘Trail Freak Waterproofs’. As one can see from this pic, I am already the owner of a pair of Trail Freaks. I only used these a few times this year in events, but am hugely fond of them in general and for training. It would appear though, that in this year of running and training, my feet have either got a little longer or a little wider, or maybe both, and the size 41′s are no longer any good. Although I am usually a 42, the 42 Vivo’s originally felt too long, but not any more. The waterproof material and removable thermal inner soles of these sexy new puppies will be welcomed extras too.

Of course, given my current predicament, I can’t actually go out and run in these right now anyway. My calves, as one can see, have returned to the size best situated to that of a Ken doll, as they have done little to no work recently. If only I were blessed with the legs of Usain Bolt. For speed and size, come to think of it.

Well, I’m not. But in a few more weeks, when I predict my shin and Achilles are looking good and strong again, I’m going back to basics. I shall start slow, concentrate massively on form, and get all manner of my legs, feet, and tendons, strong and tough. It was pretty hard not to over train this year given the circumstances, but I have fallen in love big time with a good run, and I want my running form and ability to be perfect. It’s not just about your speed. There is an art and beauty to running well, and I want to be a respected artist.

In the mean time though, they rest. Apart from gym work. And the odd swim. Oh and stretching, massaging, and icing. They rest.

So not that much rest.

[thomas153020]

Guest blog - Mel Ramsawhook

‘Energy and persistence conquers all things’

Benjamin Franklin

An apt quote I feel, to encapsulate the essence of this ‘guest post’ I have written on my boyfriend’s 153020 blog.

As all you avid followers know, Thomas has come to the end of his 2015 year of challenges. So naturally, I was insistent that I be given an opportunity to write a guest post on this very personal page of his because, above all things, I wanted to publicly acknowledge and pay written tribute to what he has achieved this year.

My boyfriend is one of the strongest (physically and mentally) and most dedicated people I know. And no, I'm not just saying this because he's my boyfriend! For the last 12 months, I have watched with a combination of admiration and awe, as he tirelessly put his body through all manner of pain to fulfill his goal of achieving 20 challenges in one year. I've witnessed first-hand his blood, sweat and even his tears as despite a multitude of tedious and inconvenient injuries, he never once let them hinder his fierce perseverance to accomplish the next feat. It was almost as if running became as intrinsic to his life as breathing. To say that he loved it would be a gross understatement, but as you readers already know, running does not come naturally to Thomas. I felt it to be a harsh injustice that someone could love something so much, but has to work so tirelessly to achieve what they deem as greatness in it.

They say that passion is the oxygen of the soul. There are very few people I know who I can say, live their life with passion. Thomas is definitely one of them. If this year is not a testament to a person’s passion towards a cause, I don’t know what is.

Throughout the year, I too have become infected by his enthusiasm to complete fitness challenges. I joined him on one of them – challenge 8. My heart would swell with pride every time I narrated his next challenge to a friend, a colleague or a family member - only to receive a raised eyebrow in response. "Sorry how many marathons did you say he was running?! That’s so impressive!’’ or ‘’is he insane?!" Well, some might argue that this may have been a masochist mentally, but Thomas never let any naysayers get in the way of him achieving his ultimate goal and never (to my knowledge) allowed a shred of self-doubt creep into his mind to cloud his pursuit of victory. Most people would have given up at the first Achilles heel pain or IT band strain. Thomas simply got up again and again and soldiered on to the next obstacle.

This resolute, iron-willed, determination was rewarded on 22 November 2015. I stood at the finish line of his final marathon of the year, filled with jubilation and immense pride as I watched him cross the finish line. He was overcome with emotion, possibly at the realisation that his year of events was over and quite possibly overwhelmed, that despite not being in 100% health, he had attained a personal best marathon time. As I held him in the biggest congratulatory hug I could muster, it also hit me; the magnitude of what he had achieved this year and I too felt tears brimming.

Yet in spite of his year of victory, Thomas is a terrible perfectionist when it comes to acknowledging his own well-deserved success.  Even after completing his 20th challenge, he pinned up his final medal and looked up at his wall of fame whilst chiding himself “I could have run that one faster. That event wasn't that difficult, anyone could have done it really’’.

Yes, the latter may indeed be true Thomas, but what you fail to see is that YOU, completed 20 challenges in 9 months! That is no mean feat and an accolade to be proud of.

So as I write this guest blog dedicated to you, my amazing boyfriend, I sincerely hope that you will take a moment before the year is out, to allow what you have accomplished really sink in. Let it fill you with pride. Relish a moment of pure selfishness to recognise what you have achieved.

You did it Thomas. And bloody well too!!!! Your 30th year has indeed been one that for all the right reasons, you will undoubtedly never forget.

#youareinspiring

[thomas153020]

Challenges Over

It’s been a good year.

I’ve achieved many things which, this time last year, I couldn’t see myself ever having the package to do. That is, the physical, and mental, strength and endurance, needed to do these challenges over the year. Not to mention the time and commitment. The calendar in the centre of the pic sort of shows that nicely. Each run, cycle, or gym session marked off, as well as the challenges themselves. This excludes the additional round trip of cycling 18 miles to and from work, which happens most days. At the very end of the year I shall put down all the statistics into a nice little blog, to properly put it into context for me (and you!).

For anyone following my blog, you will know the year didn’t go particularly smoothly for me, at any stretch really. I’ve had so many various injuries, and carry many of them still now. This caused only one challenge stopping from happening though, but it was the biggie, the Ultra Marathon in June. It is still something that bugs me immensely, and something that I will have to do in the next couple of years to really appreciate it’s beauty. Apart from this, all the injuries brought with them much experience and training in a different light. I have learnt to listen to my body in new and different ways, and now really know the difference between pushing through pain and halting to avoid injury. It’s a fine line, and one which requires patience. Mental grit can never be underestimated too; to help you recover, for training or an injury. To help you get through a tough event, such as I experienced in the 2 toughest (in my opinion) events; Man Vs Mountain and the Beachy Head Marathon. In both events I found myself against the ropes at more than one occasion, only to discover my body and mind can find another gear later on and finish in a flurry. Doing 2 tough mudders in one weekend, running 45 miles in a day, succeeding in the full 110m of monkey bars in the Rat Race Dirty Weekend, Cycling through the night 125 miles from London to Dunwich, and cycling from my home in London to a hostel in Brugge in one day, with my cousin, and then staying up until the early hours drinking Belgium beers at the bar, are all things that I am glad and proud to have done, and it really does leave you wanting more.

....And more I shall have. Next year will bring new challenges for me, and I can’t wait to take them on at full force now. Hopefully I shall find the time to keep up the training and smash through some more events too. Hopefully I shall also find more reasons to keep up with the blog, as I’ve actually really enjoyed writing it. I’ve signed up to Man Vs Mountain again, and there’s a rather tasty looking mountain Marathon around Wales too in June. Best start training I guess.

2015, it’s been good.

[thomas153020]

Challenge 20; The Wimbledon Half Marathon Complete

So here she is. The final challenge of the year!

The year was a little bit of a mix in regards of my challenges in the end. Arguably, the biggest and toughest one didn’t happen. I was gutted to have to pull out of the Ultra Marathon due to injury (3 weeks before the start), but these things happen. Next year, I’ll probably do one to make up for it. Some other challenges were changed and substituted for others from the original list too, as the year evolved and adapted. One challenge was going to be a personal one of a run at night around centre point in Tottenham Court Road and back to my home. I’ll still do that towards the end of the year, probably as the very last thing to get those running miles in. This Wimbledon Half Marathon was picked only a few weeks ago to substitute it, as I wanted another medal on the wall if truth be told! Being the day after the Men’s Health Survival Race, I thought it was a good way to toughen up the weekend and go out in a bang too.

Well, as you can see from the first pic, it was a cold morning. 1 degree in fact. This was a pretty nasty shock to the system, given the entire year up until this point had been run in relative comfort. I had sort of forgotten how to appropriately dress for this, and so I wrapped up the top half well.

A little too well it seemed. On the start line, there were some people around me in running vests and short shorts only. I double checked; it was definitely only the one single and lonely degree. Those people were clearly insane.

Anyway, Mel was there to support me again, and act as a tiny sexy mule to my jacket, backpack and general bits. She was also responsible for these few pics of me, so thanks for that lovely.

There it is. The start of the run, me starting my music on my iPod, slight smile we’ll note, and Mel getting a nice pic. Kudos. Note the blonde girl to my right wearing giant fluffy black earmuffs. Double kudos.

The run it turned out, couldn’t have gone better. I felt a little tired from the day before, but it seemed my body new this was the final one for the year, so it was time to go hard or go home. The course was a 6.5 mile loop twice, with a reasonable hill in it, twice obviously as a result, and some residential road manoeuvring and meandering. As usual, I started at what I thought was a sensible but reasonable pace, only to have what felt like the entire running field overtaking me. This filled my head with the usual ‘surely that chunky guy can’t be faster than me!?’ and ‘seriously? YOU?? At that speed?’, which was all soon replaced with ‘oh fuck em’, let them burn themselves out and finish on a slow low’. This is by far the better thought process. I like to take mental notes of people I see flying past me, who I can’t see maintaining that level, and then snigger to myself inside as I then overtake them in the latter miles.

My pace was good, and on the second lap I ran as hard as I could. I got almost completely lucky with dodging cars and pedestrians where need be, with only minimal hold ups. The hill was a slow burner which sapped some much wanted seconds away, but again I didn’t let that stop me. I overtook many of those fast starters. HA.

I came over the finish line in 1:33:34, a new PB. Given the cold, the extra layers having to be worn, and the fact that I did a 10K OCR the day before, I was aiming to come in around a modest 1:45, so couldn’t have been more happy with a new Half Marathon PB. Although at the time you wouldn’t have known it. The slight smile at the start was now long gone. I spotted Mel on the side and ran straight up to her for a big old hug, feeling quite the emotional one at finishing my year of events. There was no happy face for a while, at least until we were on the walk home. In fact, the official finish line photographer probably captured my emotion best as I finished.....

Tired, and extremely relieved. 

Challenge 20, Wimbledon Half Marathon, your medal was happily collected. I finished 104th out of 755. Admittedly I thought I would finish a fair bit higher up the field, say in the top 40, but it seemed a faster bunch than usual, with many people mentioning new PBs. Kudos all round. 

I did this same run earlier in the year, the day after running the Thames Marathon, and thought it was quite frankly a bit of a rubbish run. It felt good to do it the day after a Marathon of course, but that was the only redemption it received. This time though I really enjoyed it, and will look out for more of them. Doing the final event on practically my doorstep was a suitable exit, and it felt good to be home by 11:30 and be able to crash out on the sofa for a few hours.

I earned it.

[thomas153020]

Challenge 19; Rat Race Survival Of The Fittest Complete

So, the penultimate event.

I wasn’t worried about this one being intense or difficult. A 10km obstacle course was sounding pretty tame at this point in the year. I would, as usual though, push myself as much as possible, and make my training worth while.

The weather didn’t help with this one. The rain and wind was a bit of a killer in the Thames Meander Marathon 2 weeks previous, and the forecast was looking no better this day. In fact, worse, with the sudden dip in temperature. Out came the merino base layers.

Unfortunately, the weather meant certain obstacles were closed. This included the big water slide thing at the very end, which was supposed to be one of the main big ones, which was quite disappointing. Luckily though the rain stopped before my waves run.

To be completely honest, the whole event was quite disappointing. To be carrying the combined branding of Rat Race and Men’s Heath I thought would mean a pretty decent and tough 10K urban event, but compared to the Spartan Race Sprint or the River Rat Race (the other 2 urban OCR’s I did this year) this event was nothing to shout about.

Still, I didn’t know this at the time, and I ran quite hard and tried my hand at all the hard obstacles, which is more then can be said for a lot of people. I’m not sure on the point in coming up against a hard obstacle and just saying ‘oh sod that’ before walking around it. Seems a complete waste of money and time to me, but clearly not to everyone. A couple of obstacles were tough, such as the beer keg swinging and the short pole swinging, and I was glad for their testing.

Admittedly, I did walk past the tyre obstacle. The cueing was unbelievable, and simply crawling through some tyres was not worth the (I’m guessing) 20 minute cue. With many events, the organisers release you in waves to try and slim down the field in tight spots on the courses, but it really doesn’t work if you start in a later wave. Basically, if you ever train hard and want to try your hand at a good position or time, you have to start early.

It was pretty cool to have a good at a travellator though, as can be seen in this shiny pic. Got up it easy, obviously. I mean really, I wouldn’t have messed this up at this stage of the year now, would I?!

I came over the line in 1hr 16min. 8th in my wave of 132, 596th overall out of 5351. Not a bad result, but it is safe to say I was holding back enough fuel for the next day, the Wimbledon Half Marathon.

The medal was collected, and the Rat Race events were finished for the year. I think if I had done this course in a much earlier wave start, and had their been no obstacle issues due to weather, this event could have been much better. Overall though, great stuff Rat Race, I look forwards to more of your events in the future.

Roll on Sunday, the final challenge.

[thomas153020]

Challenge 19 & 20 Coming Up; Men’s Health Survival of the Fittest and Wimbledon Half Marathon

So this is it then!

My final weekend of the year for packing the North Face Backpack with my adventurous kit of wonder. Tomorrow’s challenge, the Men’s Health Survival of the Fittest, is coming up. This 10K Urban assault course has had mixed reviews over the years, but it looks like they have finally got it properly right, with a supposed 75 obstacles to tackle, some which look awesome. From what I can see, it lies somewhere between a typical off road obstacle course race, and ITV’s ‘The Gladiators’ final part, The Eliminator. 

This all sounds fine really, except the weather has taken a dive and a half. 6 Degrees forecast, and possibly a lot of rain. Best keep on the move then. Sorry in advance Mel for standing around and supporting me in those conditions!

Sunday shall be the Wimbledon Half Marathon to see me off. I did the same event as Challenge 3 earlier this year;

There I am, with the now significantly smaller chesticles, dodgy little smile on my face.

Honestly, it’s a pretty crap Half Marathon. Considering the amazing COMMON it starts next to, and all the possible routes it could take when the gun fires, the organisers have done a pretty decent job of finding the most boring 2 lap circuit. Still, it is the final official challenge for me to do, so I can’t wait.

Oh, what’s that? 1 Degree forecast, with mist?? Fabulous. Get the pub open quick, cos’ that’s where I’ll be running straight to when I finish.

Once again, sorry Mel. Pub for you too.

[thomas153020]

700

So. There she is. The, almost faultless, breathtaking, view of my 700th mile run this year.

To put this into perspective for you, and me come to think of it, last year, I ran around 95 miles in total. About 45 of these were in the build up to Tough Mudder, which was at the end of October. When I went out for that first training run about 4 weeks before it’s start, I could only manage 1 1/2 miles before my lower back was in agony from tightness and soreness. I knew that wasn’t a good sign, and that I had to get my running & cycling butt back in gear. 

Lifting weights constantly and building a lot of muscular strength has it’s plusses, but not balancing out weight lifting with good cardiovascular exercise and ample stretching is a bad move I shall avoid from now on. About 1 month after Tough Mudder, I decided to do this year of events, and the consistent ‘proper’ running began.

Previous years before the last, I haven’t done any running really. Maybe 1 or 2 short runs here and there, but certainly nothing you’d measure. You have to go all the way back to 2007, when I ran the Dublin Marathon, to see any real miles run by yours truly. Even then, I trained for only 8 weeks before the event, so I couldn’t have run loads.

This probably helps explain why my Achilles tendons are now sore and swollen beyond belief, and why my right IT band is a constant spot of irritation. Still, I’m proud to have run so many miles, even if it has come at a bit of a cost. By the end of Sunday, and the completion of all my challenges (hopefully), I will have run just a fraction over 725 miles.

And then I’ll put my feet up. 

[thomas153020]

Challenge 18; The Thames Meander Marathon Completed

The final ‘big one’ of the year.

Thus far, with the exception of the Prudential ride 100, I have been strong enough through all my challenges to see them through in a pretty positive manner, despite various injuries and setbacks throughout the year. After a good performance at the Beachy Head, I felt confident in my abilities going into this one. I had done it earlier in the year, in a time of 3:37, and have become a faster runner since then. My aim now? Not just to finish, but to finish well. 3:20 or less was the target.

As mentioned in my previous blog though, and as has been all too common going into my events, I wasn’t feeling my best the week going into it. I had 4 out of 6 nights with very poor quality sleep, leaving me feeling very tired, and quite a sore throat too. Maybe the intensity was starting to catch up with me a bit. Who knows. I also only went on 1 training run in the last 2 weeks as a result of feeling a little off, and to allow my Achilles tendons ample recovery time after Beachy Head. That one run resulted in me stopping after 17 miles due to utter leg fatigue, but I didn’t think that would be the case on the day. And so the day came.

Unfortunately, the weather was very much against us runners. Strong winds with a mix up of driving head on rain. Along a muddy Thames path, this can be quite energy sapping and tolerance beating. The only real plus was that it wasn’t cold, which would have been the icing on the cake with the other two factors. Regardless of these things, I found myself on the start line, waiting for the countdown to start.

My appearance amused many a runner around me, due to the can of beer I had in my right hand.  It’s not my usual running addition, but knowing that my family were going to see me run past, and given it had been my father’s birthday 3 days previous, I had to give him his ‘card’. I wrote happy birthday dad on the side, so it was an acceptable card, and one he’ll definitely get more use out of anyway.

The run was on, and immediately pretty much found my pace. An unusual thing for me, I often start slow. Good sign. My KM’s were hovering around 4:45-4:50, and with the target being around 4:43, this wasn’t bad. Like I said, I am a slow starter, and what with the weather, this was OK with me so far.

 KM 8 came, the run went through Richmond, the parents were spotted, the beer was handed over. No time to stop, I had my time to think of.  The route narrowed, and I found myself running closely in front of and behind a couple of people, keeping me at a pace I was slightly wanting to better. Eventually I found a gap, but I could feel myself working harder than I would have thought or liked given the pace. My KM’s were still just off by a few seconds each time, and I thought I had been chasing back the time. Was it the wind? The rain? Off of form? Not sure yet.

 The half way turnaround came, and as I did indeed turn around, my legs had a moment. A silent internal scream. Not a good sign. Too early for that. Halfway? I was behind my target time slightly. Halfway and I had run 1:41. 1 minute behind. This could still be chased down I thought. From experience, my middle miles are often my best, so let’s turn on the adrenaline.

...‘actually no, let’s not’ said my legs, as they again moaned at me. This time, the moaning stayed. They felt tired and sore. Especially the right. Big time tired. I could feel the outside of the knee was sore too; my IT band strain slowly creeping its way back in to haunt me after hundreds more miles run since it last bothered me. 670 to be precise. I stopped for a minute to stretch them and bend them around fully. Damn they hurt. I really wasn’t expecting this. I decided to stop looking at the watch and counting my KM’s. Just run, as comfortably and efficiently as possible, to stay on track. Hopefully I’ll have a second wind in a bit.

No second wind. Actually the opposite. A second ‘oi, Thomas, have you forgotten about us?! We’re still not happy, and don’t want to run today. Screw your times’ scenario. This was bad. I had to stop and sit on a bench for a minute. I didn’t feel tired at all. Mentally, I was fine. I wasn’t out of breath. What was happening? It really was all the legs. They just died. Suddenly. It was 2:05 into the run, I had covered a little over 25km, and my legs were over.

 It was a painful and bitter realisation that this event was no longer going to go my way by any stretch of the imagination. The next 17 KM were the slowest I have ever covered running. Running being a very generous word. There was a big mix of running, walking, and some more sitting and stretching. The driving head wind on the way to the halfway point had magically stuck two fingers up at me and proclaimed ‘fuck you Thomas’, as I realised I had a head wind and driving rain in my face again on the way back too. Swell.

At least, when you stop trying to concentrate on your own run and your own targets, you can take a look at what others are achieving around you. The route, doing a complete U turn at the halfway mark, lets you see the whole field running, as you all inevitably pass each other. At Barnes Bridge, I saw a man running as an escort for another. He had a bright yellow bib on and a small rubber ring in his hand. Holding on to that rubber ring also, the other person was of special needs, and doing his best to run in sync with his escort (apologies, I know this doesn’t sound too politically correct to call him this, but I only saw them for a brief second, and could see the second man to be obviously handicapped to some degree, but how I do not know). The handicapped man looked to also be visually impaired too, but had a huge smile on his face, and seeing him for that split second, I know his achievements this year will completely overshadow any produced by me. That moment will stay with me for a very long time.

Back at Putney, and I slowly jogged over to the family. They were all there now, and expecting me to pass them with speed towards the finish line. This did not happen. I stopped for yet another rest and a chat. The one time they had all come to see me, and my biggest ‘fail’ at my goal. Bummer. Still, the show had to go on, and so so did I.

Anyone who speaks to me about my running will know I have a slight issue with chafing. I’m pretty sure when I pull those running shorts up and on, and testicles transform themselves into pinecones, because boy do they rub me. This Marathon, in this rain, set a new record for uncomfortable chaffing. Both the inside of my legs are now red/ yellow raw. My right thigh is still weeping, and I am using anti- burns cream to treat it. What the hell. As you may have guessed, this also played it’s part in slowing me down...

3 days on, I can now see both nipples are scabbed over, from the top rubbing in the rain. First time for that one.

I haven’t been so happy to see a finish line before. I managed to run/ jog/ walk my way to a time of 3:55 in the end, 35 min over my target. First half time; 1:41. Second half time; 2:14. That’s some inconsistency. Still, it’s not the end of the world. The challenge is done. Medal earned. And man oh man is it one ugly medal. Could it possibly be any bigger and more bling? Good one organisers for letting Flava Flav design it.

So, 3:55. 128th out of 338. That doesn’t sound too bad I guess. Had I got my target time though, I’d have been sitting pretty at 20th. That’s a big difference, and leaving a bit of a sour taste in the mouth. Maybe I should have just entered the half marathon. I’d have got 47th out of 362. I guess I wasn’t the only one who suffered that day though. Before the race started the organisers announced a 960+ strong field for the day for both distances combined. Really? That’s over 260+ people who didn’t finish, for whatever reason.

I bet they all pulled out with ball chafe.

Thanks for the pain Thames Meander. Hopefully over the next 2 weeks I can nurse myself better and strengthen up for challenge 19 & 20, the final 2, on the same weekend. 11 days and counting.

[thomas153020]

Challenge 18; The Thames Meander Marathon no.2 Coming up

So 2 weeks ago was the second toughest event of the year for me, the Beachy Head Marathon.

The result went perfectly; I made a decision to aim for a sub 4 hour run, and got in at 3:57. It was hilly and hard, and the race organisers stated ‘this marathon will add an average of 30-40 minutes on to your fastest marathon time’. So on this logic, I can run about a 3:17-3:27 marathon, right? Given this result and with this in mind, I though I’d aim for a sub 3:20 marathon tomorrow.

Well, as usual the last 2 weeks haven’t gone exactly perfectly. For starters, both my Achilles tendons were quite inflamed after Beachy Head. The right Achilles was irritated quite a while back now, in training for the Man Vs Mountain, and after that event, the left tendon felt a little sore too. Funnily enough after the Beachy Head’s 26 miles and 1,100m+ of climbing, neither tendon felt fresh. I took the decision over the next following week not to run again until the weekend, to give them a rest. 

The weekend came. I planned a run in the morning and had a massage and acupuncture appointment booked for the afternoon. It rained so heavily all morning, I skipped on the run. Softie I know. The massage/ acupuncture was practically my punishment. Georgia, as usual, took great pleasure in murdering my muscles, before she stuck needles in my calves and thighs. There are times when this does not bother my muscles. This was not one of them.

Clearly, the impact of many miles is taking its toll. It was almost unbearable, and I felt beaten and sore afterwards. She informed me I would feel very sore the next day, and would need to drink a lot of water over the next couple of days. Apparently it was the tightest my muscles had felt all year.

The next morning came. I got up. Feeling good? Yeah, I was. The weather was also much better than yesterday, and with the forecast being pretty grim again the next day, I decided that I was going for a big training run.

In just the first few steps I could feel my legs were SORE. They didn’t feel it when I got up and moved around first thing, which was unusual, so I took advantage. Georgia though, as usual, was right. I should have rested. Still, too late now, I was off. For the first 95 minutes, I ran well. Very well, in fact. There it was; my fastest ever half marathon, 1:35. And then there it was too; as if by magic, my legs felt REALLY very heavy and sore. Another 30 minutes later and after 16.9 miles I called it a day. I had planned a 22 mile/ 2:45 run, but 2:05 was all I could manage.

Given my blogs always contain a picture, and to help break up the text, I thought I’d add one now;

Here we have myself, a couple of days after my birthday in June this year, and looking pretty much how I feel right now.

Since Beachy Head, I’ve had that 1 run. Not really enough. I haven’t felt well for a chunk of this week too, for no real reason. Last weeks run was also very slippery the day after the rain, while tomorrow is forecast heavy rain the whole time, which won’t help with a desired time in mind. Oh and the knees hurt a little too. 

On the plus side, for the first time in any of my events, the family are coming to watch! Sorry it’s raining folks. But hey, that makes it a challenge for you lot too. If they position themselves well, they’ll see me run by twice, hopefully with a big smile on my face.

Challenge 18, I hope the mud and rain don’t get in the way of my target time. I feel they will, so on a side wish I hope not to slip, get injured, and simply have a great time. 12 hours and counting.   

[thomas153020]

Challenge 17; The Beachy Head Marathon Completed

I can’t remember when I read about the Beachy Head Marathon. It was obviously some time last year, when planning all my challenges, and it obviously appealed to me, with it’s reputation as being both a great run and one of the toughest UK marathons. The last 3 weeks have all been spent running (no gym) to get me up to speed with the distance and talked-about hilly terrain. An email went out from the race directors a week before the start, stating ‘on average this race will add 30-40 minutes to your average marathon finishing time’. This sounded pretty serious, particularly because I have no ‘average marathon time’. I ran one seven years ago in 3:56, and more recently March this year in 3:36. That meant I should finish Beachy Head somewhere between 4:06-4:16, if I were still on the same form as I was in March.

In recent weeks (2 weeks ago to be precise) I ran a new best half marathon time of 1:39, albeit on a flat route. On this logic, I could potentially push out a 3:20ish Marathon, and so again, using impressive mathematical reasoning, a sub 4 hour (just) Beachy Head time was not an impossibility. So this was the target. It would also mean a pretty high finishing position, looking at previous years results, which I would be happy with.

Another target (or nice thought really) was to not walk any hills or hard bits of the course. Doing that on Man Vs Mountain was unavoidable given some of it’s brutal gradient, but demoralising nonetheless. This course looked hilly, but I got the impression somewhere that there would be no real hard climbs, just many general ups and downs all over.

How wrong I was.

50 meters after the start line, that pictured hill climb started. That’s also only the first part of it. It levels out for a bit, then continues. People around me were talking. ‘It’s pretty long and hard. I wouldn’t try and run it all, you’ll be knackered in the first 10 minutes’. So there it was. Walking before the end of the first climb. And that was a very fair call. It was a long hilly start, and my walking/ light running it seemed to work nicely enough.

As usual, I was stunned at the pace of other people going past me from the start. I was positioned right near the front of the start line, probably in the first 30 people, yet at a guess would say I was around 300th after the first 20 minutes. Everyone it seemed, from the most unsuspecting looking runners, were gradually moving past me. From my experience, I am a relatively slow starter to find my rhythm and flow, but I would have thought my early slower pace was still quicker than a short fat 40 something year old womans. Apparently this isn’t the case.

I was heavily sweating. Wrong choice of top? I think so. Legs feeling heavy? Heavier than I would have certainly liked, at that early stage. The course profile was also looking harder than I thought it would be. There were a lot of ups and downs, and the flats were often very uneven and lopsided. After the first hour, I had covered around 6.6 miles; just on time for a 4 hour marathon. Not what I was hoping for, having heard the end part was by far the most hilly and difficult. Still, not a killer blow yet.

Over an hour in and I was still feeling slow and not into the rhythm of things yet. I made mental notes of more obvious people going past me, to try and catch them again later. Shaven-headed man in white vest. Tall blonde in short shorts. A cow. A cow? A cow. Great. Just what I needed to see. If you’re ever planning on running an event well, the last thing you need to see overtake you is someone dressed as a cow. Motivation if I ever needed it. The pace was upped. The cow was dropped. Rhythm and flow was found, but possibly too late for the target time.

Halfway point. 13 miles. 1hr 56min. I was now about 4 minutes up on my target time. The terrain was still hard going, and I needed to pee. Conveniently, a porter loo in a car park right next to the course appeared. A quick dash off, a useful relief, and back in the action. My new Salomon backpack was proving very useful; I was carrying a litre of liquids and a bunch of energy gels. When the food and water stations appeared, I could simply sail on through and not stop. Value time saved.

3 hours in and I was feeling knackered. I was around the 19-20 mile mark, and only a couple of minutes ahead of time. I felt I was fading hard now, and the ‘hardest hills’ were still yet to come. Just after the 22 mile check point, I saw shaven-headed man in white vest again. A few hundred meters in front was also tall blonde in short shorts. I had almost caught them, and then, just like that, I hadn’t. The spoken-of Seven Sisters kicked in, and again, there was a lot of ups and downs. And they were much bigger. I had around 5km to finish, and 25 minutes to do it in. 1km every 5 minutes is a pretty standard training pace for me, and not one I’d expect to do comfortably at the end of a marathon, let alone over these hilly bitches. 4 hour target seemed hugely unlikely now, and I was just looking forwards to finishing.

Over the course of the year, my descending has improved a lot. Strangely, I think my climbing has possibly become weaker, but I felt I could really let loose on the way down hills in the Beachy Head Marathon; none more so than the Seven Sisters. They’re wide and relatively consistent, so I practically threw myself down them, to try and make up for all the walking. The walking. Surely I had walked too much? Surely others had run much more than I managed over many of the climbs? Time was still against me, and I felt I had nothing, literally nothing, left to give.

After 40km, the Seven Sisters were over, and there was around 2km left to go. The time was 3:51. I had under 9 minutes to get to the end of the course, which would have meant the 2 quickest kilometers I had ever run, back to back. However, In my previous 2 marathons, I found out something about my running in this same scenario. That is, somewhere, I can recruit hidden energy I didn’t otherwise know was there, in the dying moments of the run.

The course had leveled out, and I knew a slight descent to the finish was on the cards. On Thursday I had downloaded a new gangster rap song that had been running through my mind. I skipped to it and turned my earphone volume up to it’s max. There it was. Energy overdrive. Before I even really thought about it, I was flying. Within 2 minutes, I could see shaven-headed white vest man up ahead, right next to short shorts blonde. In less than another minute, I had sped clear past them. I was running my legs off. Could I do the time? Descent time, round a corner, through a narrow section, and straightened up. There, at the bottom of the hill, I could see the finish line. I went down faster than I have ever descended, and got over the line. 3:57. Three minutes to spare.

I was shattered. More than shattered. I stopped my running watch, only to have it reveal to me that I ran the last km in 3:44, and the last mile in 6:06; my new 2 personal bests. Both were downhill though, so does that really count? Don’t care. White vest guy and short shorts can down the hill a few minutes later, both missing the 4 hour mark by less than 1 minute. Tough break.

Later that evening I checked the official results. I had finished 116th out of 1,425. I was in the sub 4 hour club too, which contained 127 people that day. Few. I had an email from Strava awaiting me too, regarding the event. Turns out I set the 10th fastest time down that final section of the day, and I sit 14th fastest of all time on the Strava list of 686. Not too shabby.

Again, this challenge has been great. I got lucky with the weather, as I’ve heard some real horror stories regarding Beachy Head in the rain. No matter. Challenge 17, you will be one to consider again in the future. Thanks for the great run. Now on to the next challenge, another marathon......

[thomas153020]

Pitter Patter, Pitter Pata(gonia), Merrell(y) I Go

Crunch Time.

Yesterday was my final ‘proper’ training run for the Beachy Head Marathon. What a blast it was. Tougher than tough old boots. Which is just what I needed really.

More usefully, the choice in kit for the run has been pretty much made.

 The trusty Patagonia shorts were a no-brainer really. These badboys have been excellent since day one. Next season, when they are back on Patagonia’s site to buy, I’m getting another 2 pairs, such is my love affair for them. Top marks Pata.

The Merrell’s earnt their place around my smelly extremities too, after a solid enough performance on the run this weekend. Just enough toe space for me, decent enough traction, and although I’d prefer more cushioning for the swollen Achilles, they just feel right to run in at the moment. I’ll deal with the swollen ankles afterwards.

It was a 3 hour (to the second) run, covering 35.11 kilometres. A distance I was happy with given the terrain, but I was properly knackered afterwards. Even my sweat was sweating. The route was as follows; out the front door. 1km to Wimbledon Common, through that for a bit and into Richmond Park, 2 laps of this hilly-enough-trail-run-esque-on-it’s-out-most-perimeter slapper, back into Wimbledon Common, finishing with a cheeky lap(ish) of that sexy beast. All in all, pretty off-roady, and certainly something I would consider good enough training. I hope.

 This fit mudder helped me out too. No Mel, it’s not a pair of pants. This would be my new Salomon S-Lab Ultra running backpack. Yes, I do already own a running backpack and waist pack. But anyone following my blog (thanks for that) will know from my last rant that I’ve fallen out of love with my waist pack big time, and my current running backpack is a bit of a 17 litre capacity heavyweight beast. This 5 litre super-light bare-essentials-for-running type badass is waaaaay more suited to competition running adventures, and after some playing around with it’s position, pockets, and general runners experience tweaking, I was very happy with the purchase. No Mel, it won’t live in the underwear draw.

 One of the most awesome things with Salomon and their running line up is the soft flasks. They are soft silicone, with a bite-and-suck-to-drink valve design, meaning as you drink your fluid (ahem) they flatten down to nothing. This in turn means you can pack them away flat in your pocket or somewhere on your run when empty! Genius stuff.

So shoes, shorts, and pack are sorted. Phew. The other bits are a lot less of a headache and something I will choose weather dependent. I think one final run home from work tomorrow, just for shits and giggles, and I’ll be all set for Saturday. Challenge 17, Beachy Head Marathon, I look forwards to your hilly hard challenge.

[thomas153020]

Back To Square One Squared

So it’s been 12 days since my last challenge, number 16, the Bear Grylls Survival Race.

All my training has now turned towards the art of running. Even though the last 3 events have all involved running around a lot, it has been of a noticeably shorter variety, and broken up with lots of obstacles. Such is the life of a typical OCR event.

So, on with the bigger miles. The running has been a bit of a worry for me, as I have managed to get Achilles tendonitis from over training it seems. For a while, this was getting progressively worse, and I was really worrying about long term damage. I enjoy to run in and often use the barefoot variety of trainers, and with their lack of cushioning, I knew they couldn’t be helping.

Bring on the mentally thick super cushioned Hoka One One Huaka’s. The beast in the background.

Hoka One One is a brand I had heard of but had never seen in the flesh. They are known in the running/ ultra running scene for their super thick cushioned bases. I’ve been a relative minimalist runner for a while now and so this kind of thing generally doesn’t interest me, although my mindset has been changing, as has my thoughts towards my own biomechanics.

Previously I believed the cushioning and heel lift of modern shoes to be problematic for me and cause injuries. I think I’m now discovering it to be almost purely a heel lift thing though. I need a ‘zero drop’ shoe; one in which the heel and forefoot sit at the same level inside the shoe.

The Hoka One One Huaka (yes, that really is it’s full name) has a tiny 2mm difference here; too small for me to tell. The cushioning though, I figured, would help absorb impact during running, and help with the Achilles swelling. Yes, stopping running altogether would have been the obvious answer to helping, but with 2 marathons and a half marathon coming up, that was a no go solution for me.

One 11.5 and 15 mile run later, and I can confirm, the cushioning is great. The shoes feel great to run in. They are very comfortable. What’s more, I’ve been running some quick times in them (for me anyway). Some of my quickest in fact. Big thumbs up there.

However, a problem with them has come to light after a 19 mile run on Sunday. Again, the run was quick and comfortable. The problem was when I took the shoes off. I had a little suspicion that they were a tad narrow for my protruding little toes. I was sadly right. The right small toe had an instant electrified feeling run through it, and it felt very weird. I removed my socks to find a pair of bruised little toes, with the right one also bleeding from the nail. Bugger.

The run took me 2hrs 25min. I suspect the Beachy Head Marathon, fast approaching in 9 days time, will take 4 hours, given the course profile. I can’t see my toes lasting that long in the Hoka’s, given that toe width problem, which brings me round to the beginning; what do I run in?

Yesterday, I pulled the Nike’s on for a trail run. These are much wider and didn’t irritate my now discoloured little toes. They felt slow and sluggish though in comparison, and the run was indeed much slower than other recent one’s. I didn’t enjoy using them, and was happy when the run was over. A no for the Nike’s then.

The next choice will be the Merrell’s seen in the foreground of the pic. These are now of the barefoot variety, albeit with their ‘zero drop’ policy and 10mm of base. That’s a considerable reduction compared to the Hoka’s (25mm), and one which my Achilles and calves will no doubt notice pretty quickly. Back to square one then is it?

My other current problem is my waist pack. At first, I though highly of the Salomon Agile pack I have. Time, though, would turn things around, and I now pretty much loathe using it. It bounces around a lot, is an awkward fit for the water bottles, and has now caused this;

...apologies, this has to be my worst posted picture to date, and by some comfortable margin.

What I am trying to show is the peeling skin in the middle of my back and the rather itchy scratch. If the pack isn’t tight enough, it bounces up and down. If it’s too tight, well, it’s too tight, and becomes very uncomfortable and restrictive. Either way, it also scratches and irritates my back, which is a big issue.

Won’t be using that on the run then either.

Back to square one squared? Looks like.

[thomas153020]

Challenge 16; The Bear Grylls Survival Race Completed

I had very high hopes for this event. Backed by none other than Mr. Survival Adventure himself, the Bear Grylls event promised much on it’s website in it’s 10k OCR. What’s more, the girlfriend had come along for support and to watch too, so a good performance from me was a necessity.

We showed up to a pretty good looking venue. There was a big ‘festival’ zone, with various food and clothing stands, and as usual, the mix of OCR contenders getting themselves ready for the course. There was a very small unisex tent to get changed in, which I did. Lucky ladies.

The wave start times were delayed by half an hour, but nevertheless I headed off in my 10am wave. With my current level of fitness and experience in these events, I was confident of a decent finish.

I wasn’t ready, however, for the disastrous course planning. Only a few minutes in, and the leaders of my wave start time, including myself, were lost. We had to hang around for a couple of minutes until a volunteer showed up and shouted which way we should go. The whole wave was together again, so all advantage was lost. A quick getaway was needed again. Annoying.

The course, it has to be said, was pretty disappointing. Looking at the Bear Grylls website for this event, I was expecting it to be much harder, with more unique elements. Nope. Not one. I guess it’s only unique element was getting lost. Again and again. And the lack of marshals, course direction, and course planning. Swell.

The course, when going well, was fun enough though. It just bigged itself up too much on the website and advertising. It was another OCR, but with simpler to-do things. It was utterly spoiled with the getting lost 5 times and having almost no marshals on course. At one point I had to ask a course photographer what to do and where to go. Some people have said that ‘locals’ removed course markings the night before, but I find this hard to believe.

 After the first 5K, I was annoyed to the point of no return and just wanted to get the course finished. Lost again, the enjoyment was gone. I eventually found myself back on course after having to backtrack to the previous obstacle with a couple of others and then carried on.

It turned out I was not alone. Many, many other people were annoyed by it all and complained, some even asking for refunds. It seemed lots of effort had gone into advertising the event, and the festival area for afterwards; more money making for them there. Much more attention needed to be payed to the actual reason everyone was there: the race course. 

The Facebook reviews were very mixed. Eventually, the reviews were taken down by the organisers. There has been no post event emails, or acknowledgment of a poorly run show. Apparently a Marshall accidentally ran over a dog and killed it too. 

I ended up with a finishing position of 38th of 1,249. Not bad, but what with getting lost a lot I know I could have got a much better time. As I’m sure could have many others.

I’m sure this event will be better organised next year. It can’t really get worse anyway. Negatives aside it’s another challenge done and again I tried hard doing it. The saving grace are these event photos. Very epic, a good selection of them, and all free!

Thanks for another completed challenge Bear Grylls. Challenge 17, The Beachy Head Marathon, 2 weeks now and counting. Time to get the running shoes on again.

[thomas153020]

Challenge 15; Spartan Beast Completed

So after the previous round of Spartan mayhem and mud, I felt more prepared for the beast. I straight away opted for the Innov8 Baregrip ultra-grippy-mud shoes for a start. I knew as well, to save myself a chunk of time, to start at the front of my wave. This should help as soon as the river wading started, as that was a real time sucker last time.

So, once again, things didn’t go completely to plan. I was arguing to get in on my start time wave, which had apparently changed once more upon arrival. I signed my wavier and selected my start time in January. Obviously that’s not early enough....

I managed to get in the wave in the end, but was once again near the back. When the wave started, I practically sprinted off. I was dead set on getting a good position for the river, and was running ahead of everyone. Running, running, running..... where the f**k was the river?! Little did I know, they had changed the course, and ditched this part. I knew the course wouldn’t be the same, obviously, as the previous week, but I still expected that at the start. Total wasted starting effort, and wasted energy.

Instead, not so long into the event, there was a different water obstacle, and the dreaded cueing to go with it. I had to wait 15 minutes to get in and get it done. And as usual, there was more cueing and hold ups to go with that one later on.

Still, I made my best effort across it, and my best effort to look damn cool on the other side, obviously.

It was a round here that I heard my name shouted out by another Spartan. To my surprise, I turned my head to see it was being shouted out by a Spartan, literally. He lifted his mask to reveal himself as Paddy Evans, an OCR fanatic, of whom I had met at the Man Vs Mountain. He and around 150 other Spartans all started in a wave just before mine, dressed appropriately for the event, littering the course with capes, swords and AHROOS! from every direction. A cool sight indeed.

It has to be said I was a little disappointed with the Beast. I expected it to be harder, and really challenge me. The Super was surprisingly tough I thought, and I would have expected this to be as challenging, but longer, and thus more challenging??? You see the logic. Maybe the event organisers made the Super too hard? Maybe people complained a little? Whatever it was, there was some obstacles removed, others put in, but nothing harder. It was 5km longer, but mainly this was just open field running I felt.

Still, I had gave it my all, and came in at a time of 3hrs 28min, only 8 minutes longer than the previous week. Overall, I finished 360th out of 2,827. Not bad, but not as good as I’d hoped. 

I’d like to give one of these a full on first wave attack, just to see how I could do without the traffic, but to get to the start for 9am to any of these is a big ask, without a car, or overnight accommodation. I shall continue to wonder on my potential.

It would have been nice to have gone in to this with a less problematic ankle too. Again, minus the previous 2 events before this one, I haven’t been doing any running training, due to the tear on my Achilles, and the need to rest it. As a result I tired earlier then I should have, and cramped a lot towards the end. Let’s hope that clears up for the Marathons.....

A few words need to go out for another Spartan of the day, Lionel! 

He fractured his finger last week doing the Super, so was understandably worried about the Beast. But hey, when there’s a Trifecta on the line, you’ve gotta suck it up. His thick padded gloves were put on, and he got on with it.

With the injured finger came a few missed obstacles for him, and as such a few more burpees then one would like, but he did it in 3hrs 49min 49sec, a great time.

And a great final sideways fire jumping pic. Made me lol.

So, thank you challenge 15, and Spartans, for your contribution to my year. I am pleased to have earned the Trifecta; it’s a cool medal set up to have. 

And now, without rest, comes Challenge 16; The Bear Grylls Survival Race. Another assault course event, of the 10k variety. The journey there is a lot easier going, the girlfriend will be there for eye-candiness and to support me, and another medal, and a day of World Cup Rugby matches, awaits the finish line.

Bring it.