From Across the pond

I'm really not sure if I should bother blogging as I know hardly anyone reads them, but sometimes I like putting my thoughts down for me so I can look back & remember things as the memory starts to fade in my advancing years. It's just before 9am on a wet Tuesday in middle England & I'm in bed, I was up at 6.45 to help sort out my little fella for school & I'm so tired & the house is empty apart from the cats so decided on an early siesta. I have so much to do but so little get up & go to do it. I will get some work done later & I will drag myself out for a run - my longest run in the past 5 days is 5km, I'm still running every day but wondering why & what the value is of doing so, are the targets I have set myself really worth chasing ? does it really matter ? There are times I wish I wasn't so motivated to hit so many training milestones, but without goals I'd just quit. Why am I tired ? why am I in bed ? I have some great excuses honestly !!! One of which isn't that I'm in bed with Miss World & champagne George Best style !! I'm jetlagged after flying home from Atlanta over night on Thursday night / Friday morning. The first half of October was great with so many highlights, but like a rollercoaster after the continual ups come the less than joyous downs - not that Rollercoasters work that way perhaps the opposite way with the downs the thrilling part. The month started with a trip to the Portuguese capital & the chance to run with so many other English runners & socialise over a few beers whilst enjoying the fact that I had rounded off my countries count to 20, I do like round numbers so will have to do something about those 11 Capital Cities I have now run in. I do get a bit anal about numbers at times. The trip was helped logistically by my "rent a local" friend Tiago. He spends so much time in the UK but this was my first visit to him home country & I really enjoyed it. Whilst logistically the race start was a bit of a nightmare,8 miles in a cab & 40 mins on a train (bizarrely a girl chose to sit on the floor with her head 2 inches from my crotch ?!! why ????). A lack of portaloos (honey buckets) meant I left the facilities with 30 seconds to spare although the race thankfully started 2 mins late allowing me to weave through 2000 of the near 10,000 runners out there. I got to the start line 2 mins after the gun about to press start on my Garmin & it had gone into power save mode :( do i wait for a GPS signal allowing the 2000 runners to pass me & weave through them knowing my time but slowing me down or do i just go ? I decided to go, it took around 2 mins for me to get a signal & must have covered maybe 400 yards. Once I had a signal I decided to go wth the game plan of running sub 7.30 min miles the first half & allowing for 8.30's in the second half for a sub 3.30 finish, I still had to calculate in the bit at the beginning. The first half pace proved tough but I stayed on it & didn't fall away as much as anticipated, some rough maths using the timing clocks on the KM markers had me thinking I could maybe break 3.25 ? I crossed the line & stopped my watch in 3.23 amazingly with a distance of 26.31 miles (many of my friends were close to 26.5 miles) & I'd run a reasonably tight line 26.31 would be fine but of course I had to add my starting section. I grabbed a beer with some of my fellow countrymen & headed back to see my mate Karen who was supporting on the course 200 metres from the end & accompanied by a case of beer we cheered in ever single runner in the half & full marathons. We cheered 100 marathon club members, Marathons Maniacs, Swedes, Brazilians, Estonians, Poles everyone as lets race it we are all one race, one religion, one breed we are all runners & this is our church. A brief day & a half stop in the UK to unpack, wash clothes & repack before heading for yet another airport (4 different airports in 3 different countries could be a record for me ? ) late Thursday evening & Michael & myself crawled into the Holiday Inn at the airport in Atlanta after a long flight & 2 mini bus rides, time for sleep before an 8 hour drive through the Carolinas to the Bluefield on the West Virginia / Virginia border. The next 5 days would see us tackle 5 marathons across 5 states as we worked our way back to Atlanta. Day one & the Heavens opened 10 minutes before the race started, this was to set the tone for the days ahead, With 7 sub 3.30 marathons in 2014 & just 2 races beyond this series I decided to go with my usual plan of a hard first half & time in the bank for the second as i chased a round 10 sub 3.30's & in the process my 50th lifetime sub 3.45. All was going well until 18 miles & i lead the race by over quarter of a mile at one point. Having never won a marathon my mind started getting ahead of me & I started thinking of how cool a win would be, I should have been focussing on running a marathon, at 18 miles the wheels fell off & I was forced to walk in places until I was finally swept up by Jesse & Daniel two brothers from Minnesota (dubbed the "Fargo boys" by Michael as he had been watching the TV series of the same name). Both Michael & another guy called David (also from Minnesota - is the stare so bad that everyone wants to get out ?!!!) past me too & I settled for 5th spot but at least i could add another run to my list of Sub 4 marathons. Day two was a day i was dreading. The day two course would be the same as the day one course due to the fact that the course crossed the state line. I knew what was coming & that didn't help mentally,the course was littered with multiple short sharp climbs nothing major but with the 12 laps course they were just relentless & were grinding me down, the first 6 miles was good the final 20 less so. I really didn't have much fun & barely broke 5 hours, but the beer afterwards went down well, before we hit the road South to Morganton, NC. I went into day three with a much more positive outlook, I had a mission a desire & thankfully a new unknown course to tackle. North Carolina was my nemesis state. I had started 199 races of marathon distance or longer & finished 198, the one blot on that copy book was the Graveyard 100 along the the Outer Banks of the state. I made it to 72 miles but like a well hit fly ball it was long but I didn't hit it over the green monster. I had a point to prove, not that there is any comparison between a marathon & a 100 miler. I went out conservativley with the goal of running under 9 minutes per mile & many were closer to 8.30 minutes per mile. I just kept ticking off the miles one by one & I was done finishing second behind Jesse.I actually didn't realise that his brother was a lap down so I finished a pleasing second but this was about some kind of redemption, a return to the times I am capable of in a state that had given me the most heartbreak in my running career (I'll never forget the feeling of failure whilst sat on the steps of a bank at 11pm in Kitty Hawk shivering with a pulled groin in 2013.) Now the question was with all I had put in physically & emotionally in Morganton what would SC hold for me ? Thinking it couldn't be wetter than the first 3 days I proved emphatically wrong, we were warned of lightning strikes & just over an hour into the race the heavy rain became torrential & within 30 mins there were 6 inch deep rivers running across the course. After a solid first 4 miles I just gave up mentally but luckily found some wonderful folks to tag along with & enjoy the ride. I ran with Tim, the Bladerunner, Tim had one leg & an Oscar Pistorius style blade (thankfully his similarity with the South African ended there as I

exitted an on course bathroom still alive !) Not one to shy away from the obvious questions I asked how he's lost the leg & recounted his story as a crazy kid on a motorcycle having a harsh disagreement with a garbage truck in his youth, but he had a wonderful sense of humour as he told me of his rehab & hot nurses speeding up his recovery. After a lap with Tim I ran a bit with Steve Boone, a smart guy from Texas (some would argue smart & Texas don't belong in the same sentence !! LOL !!) Steve is the head honcho of the US 50 states club for those who have completed a marathon in all 50 states, by this point I had dragged myself through halfway with no idea of how long I was taking & for once I really didn't care I was getting to know some fantastic folks. Steve had wondered why I was running with him when there were so many pretty girls on the course & you know what he had a point !!!! There was the lovely blondes Nicole & Chavet, Maria from Portugal who ironically had a British boyfriend Saul team GB member number 3, Christina the lovely sports therapist from New York, Patricia who had dressed as Miss America with stars & stripes everywhere & Emily from Georgia. It was Emily that drew the short straw & got stuck with me !! we had a few laughs & I learned a whole new language & I'm now fluent in "South Georgian Y'all ;) I actually thought we must be on the same lap but with 200 yards to go Emily sped up to finish or to get away from me ? probably the latter ? The clock said 4.45 & so I though can I run around 8 in miles for about 1.8 miles ? I thought why not give it a go so off I went like a greyhound (The dog rather than the shiny bus that stops everywhere & banned me getting on with beer back in May !!) I even ran the hills but I got in under 5 hours so a small success. It was now time to have Georgia on my mind as we headed towards Helen, GA. I' really not sure if i loved it's Oktoberfest feel with German/ Alpine housing or found it rather manufactured & fake however I did appreciate the entrepreneurs who had put the place on the tourist map & made a few bucks along the way I'm sure ? The change of scenery was a welcome one too. We checked into our lodge at the Unicoi state park before showering & heading for dinner in a great roadhouse style bar & grill. The group dinners had been a great part if the 5 days & between 20 & 30 had come out to dine together & share "war stories" of races & travels, dreams & goals & the odd beverage. I had experimented with some great local ales over the course of the trip plus a Mojito (I think that had to google how to make one in SC it took so long ?!) as well as managing to work my way through an 18 pack of sodas (or Bud Light as it says on the label) I did have to recount my Monty Python joke, please forgive the language Q :"what does having sex in a kayak with a hole in it have in common with American beer ? A : They are both F***ing close to water !! Day 5 dawned & guess what ? it wasn't raining, however the 4 days prior had taken it's toll on the planned route so a rain route was enforced as we headed out on a soggy grass course & it was like school cross country but much warmer & without Mr Giles yelling "get a bloody move on Bayley" Patricia,Christina & myself had decided day 5 would be Superhero day - I thought it was rather appropriate given that the London Marathon rejection magazine featured Ironman on the cover & 5 marathons in 5 days in running terms is a pretty heroic undertaking - not many folks do 5 marathons in a lifetime & even less do it in under a week. There were 4 of us as batman / batgirl, Robin, Christina as Iron(wo)man, Patricia as Wonder Woman, Kevin was Spiderman, Ila & Edna were Wonder Woman too. I did debate with Tim Michael Keaton style that "I'm Batman" before admitting he was the better Michael Keaton so settled for being Val Kilmer (despite some folks in the UK suggesting that at my age I should be Adam West !!!) Karen my Enigma Running PA/RD & Driver had very kindly bought me a snug fitting Batman compression top which was very kind of her but still not sure I measured up as well as the Iceman. Today was all about having fun & we did, everyone was supportive of each other from those at the front of the pack, to those at the back. For every "Good Jawb" I got I returned the sentiment with a shout of "top Drawer" or "Splendid" & did discuss reclaiming the land for the Queen before deciding we didn't need anymore uncivilised savages as we'd retained Scotland the month before - LOL !!! With a lap to go I found myself in the same situation as the day before, I had run with another pretty girl - Patricia this time the unfortunate recipient for my company for a handful of miles & found I need to accelerate to get under 5 hours so i did. With 200 yards to finish i couldn't help but shed a tear, Why ? for a variety of reasons, I had met some great folks, had a wonderful holiday, finished a tough 5 days in awful weather & I had made it to 200 marathons in total, but maybe the biggest reason was the relief that it was over ? Chris handed me a bottle of Full Nelson Pale Ale from Virginia to balance my body with the Bud Light in my other hand as we chatted & waited for more of our buddies to finish. Patricia finished in tears too & we hugged, I know it had taken alot out of her & i also knew how proud she was of what she had achieved & indeed what we all had achieved. Chavet twisted my arm to join her & a handful of others to Fireball ? I had no idea what this was or what I had agreed to do ? was I going to be set on fire & left in the woods ? thankfully not, it turns out it's a cinnamon whisky & we were doing shots of it, who was I to argue ?!! Clint the race director very kindly presented me with a plaque & a note to commemorate my 200th marathon & i wa pleased to get a second 100 done to prove the first 100 weren't just lucky !! Anyway enough of my ramblings, I'm sure most of you got bored before this point & went out for coffee ?! A most memorable week :) keep on running Foxy

Freedom !!

I made the bold leap on Friday to quit Facebook - do I really need it ? yes & no - it's great to see how my friends are doing & what they are up to but for so many it's just a way of seeking, craving attention. The fact that i have been gone for so long & only had 3 folks text to ask me why just shows how absorbed folks are in their own worlds. 600 plus "friends" & half of one % noticed which I guess just shows I don't need it ? I can communicate with those that matter in other ways without wasting hours talking crap to people I hardly know. Maybe eventually curiosity will get the better of me & I'll return but no need to rush right now. I have time on my hands I would fill / waste time commenting on various topics many of which I actually didn't care about or indeed care what people thought. I come from a small village where everybody knew everything about everyone & it's nice to be anonymous - no one knows where I am what I'm doing & it's like a breath of fresh air. Ultimately if I choose to continue my current line of work I will have to return but maybe life's about to take another turn & a new direction - after 4 years doing my current job & 18 in my job before that (including a 3 year overlap of both) perhaps I need something fresh to get my teeth into ? Right enough rambling time to post this on facebook for no one to read ?! - LOL !!! As a good friend once told me "Blogs, never has so much been written by so many & yet read by so few !!!! I'll get by with a little help from my friends :)

London Calling .....

I really need to get back into this blogging lark - I used to blog regularly but then just couldn't find the time, but I'm back to prove the saying "Never has so much been written by so many & yet read by so few !"

I have to say for the most part 2014 has gone pretty well from a running perspective. In March for a joke I decided to sprint off at the start of a marathon - i was just messing about,but after a mile & still leading I felt good so decided to see how long I could keep it going & yes I faded but I ended up with my fastest marathon in 4 & half years & 4th fastest ever & that got me thinking. What could I still do if I worked at it, if I trained for it ? I decided to do what many would consider a bizarre move, I decided to run less cut my mileage but increase my intensity - I set myself the goal of trying to run for a whole month at an average pace of 7.30 min miling & I managed it & completed a further 3 sub 3.30 marathons making 4 for the year (my best ever is 5 in 2009 & I had only done one other prior to this year a 3.29 in Malta in 2011.)

In late April I went down to the London marathon as a spectator & decided I really wanted another crack at the big one whatever it took - there are basically four ways in (excluding the Elite & Championship starts) The public ballot, club ballot, a charity place or a Good for Age place (basically running a time quick enough to qualify for your age group) I hadn't looked at the requirements for years but decided to have a glance & for once age was on my side,I had gone past 41 ( I know hard to believe with these looks ?! - now you've snorted tea out of your nose laughing I will continue !!) & the required standard was a marathon quicker than 3 hours & 15 minutes, my fastest in 2014 to this point was 3.19 & I had one road marathon left prior to the cut off date.The Coeur D'Alene marathon in Idaho was my one shot ? How was I going to train up & get that in the space of a month ? I needed to train even harder push the pace even more. I needed to go all out, no excuses no slacking, I really had to push myself. Training at 7.30 pace wasn't gonna cut it, I felt the need "The need for speed" yes it's a cheesy movie line but for me the only way I was going to race faster was to train faster. In May I just decided to go for it I decided to gamble what the worst that could happen ? yes I could go for it & it go horribly wrong seeing me crawl round dejected vowing to never run again,but sometimes you gotta gamble - the week before the race in Idaho I decided to see how fast I could go over 5km, a distance that I had previously only done in under 20 minutes once in 60 races. The goal was 19.30 but I blew it I went out too quickly & ended up somehow finishing in 19.03 much to my amazement.

Inspired by the words of my good friend Traviss Willcox & the words of US Olympian Steve Prefontaine the only way to go for it would be suicide pacing as "Pre" was famously quoted "The only good pace is suicide pace, and today's a good day to die !" I decided that to get the time I wanted I would need to go out harder than I had ever gone & try to hang on.

The week prior to the event I decided I wanted to apply for another shot at my favourite event on the planet the "Brathay 10 in 10" - an event that requires the running of 10 marathons in 10 days whilst raising valuable funds for Brathay a childrens charity helping Children from disadvantaged backgrounds realise their true potential in life, by doing so & committing to fundraise for them I had increased the pressure on me to get that London place based on my time, the ballots for London would be what the Americans would term a "crap shoot".

Race day arrived in Idaho & this was it my one chance all or nothing & to my surprise I executed my plan to perfection something that rarely happens. Had I known how hilly the 2 lap course was in advance I wouldn't have entertained going for a qualifying time but luckily my ignorance paid dividends & I just kept rolling through the miles banking enough time for when I faded at 20 miles, I still had to battle that final 6 & a bit miles but mentally I was unbreakable & wasn't going to be denied, I don't recall being so happy when crossing a finish line & for the Greyhound ride the following day I couldn't get the classic from the Clash "London Calling" out of my head & you'd have struggled to wipe the smile off my face. I was even dragged away from the post race beer garden not once but twice I was 2nd in my age category & 3rd in the overall vets category, I was elated & almost in tears these things don't happen to me & I didn't know how to react, so I sat down with a smile on my face & got the beers in for the rest of the yellow clad team I'd met at the start & continued rehydrating in the afternoon sun ;)

2015 was now all mapped out April I'd be in the greatest capital city in the world & in May I'd be back in the Lake District for 10 gruelling days of hills after hills on the scenic Windermere course.

Ultimately I wanted it enough to work for it & go get it - Sometimes you just gotta believe.

Reminds of a line from a song - can't remember it's title (LOL !) but it had been one hell of a "Journey" ;)

Foxy

PS - I wouldn't be offended if you wanted to donate online towards my fundraising ? please !!! www.justgiving.com/foxyagain