St Peter's Way 45 miler

Yesterday was my third running of the St Peter’s Way Ultra, and it was absolutely brilliant.  I’m still on a high, and if ever there was a race that reminded me why I love ultra-running, this is it.

I've had a few races in the last month – the 66 miles of the Pilgrims Challenge across the North Downs Way, and a marathon distance run at the Hugin Challenge along the Kent coast last Sunday – both of which were excellent events. However, I think yesterday’s was probably the race I've enjoyed most so far this year.

I caught a lift to Ongar with Morgan and Marc – two other ultra runners from Billericay – which meant a great start to the day, chatting about the race and what else we had coming up. Morgan’s unfortunately injured at the moment, so he was helping out at a check point, but Marc was aiming for a sub 7 time (which he smashed with an absolutely storming performance!).

Anyway, we arrived in lots of time and got kit check done, numbers sorted out and then stood around bemoaning the cold and chatting. The number of runners who didn’t have the compulsory kit was a real surprise – Lindley, the race director, is a stickler for this, and when he says waterproof jacket, he means it, and if spares hadn’t been found for people, they wouldn’t have been allowed to run. However, I’m not really in a position to criticise, having turned up at the Stour Valley Path 100km last year without a survival blanket, risking not being allowed to start myself, had another runner not come to my rescue!

Anyway, at 8am, off we trundled, and very excited about it I was too.

It wasn’t all easy though, far from it. The first six miles were tough. I could feel the previous week’s marathon still in my legs which were heavy, and my heart rate soared. I kept reminding myself that I hadn’t done enough training and running through my mind was the fear that I was stupid to even consider attempting a run of 145 miles when I couldn’t even run 6! Luckily, once that first section was out of the way, I did start to feel better, although unusually I couldn’t get my nutrition right, and continued to feel tired until about thirty miles in when eventually my body seemed to remember what it was meant to be doing! 

The course itself was great. It’s generally flat with a few hills to walk up but nothing of much note, and there is a lot of mud! I love the route, and despite everyone moaning about the conditions underfoot and how challenging the self-navigation is, I really enjoy it and feel like I’m on an adventure. There are sections through villages, farms and even a marina, but generally it's across the fields and often with great views of the Essex landscape.

The weather was stunning yesterday too - chilly but bright sunshine, and absolutely perfect for running.

I don’t know if it was the result of the caffeinated gels I was taking (alongside the babybel, flapjack, and dried mango I carried with me) but every so often, I had that often talked about, rarely experienced, runner’s high – I just couldn’t have felt happier or more relaxed. The mud wasn’t as bad as I’d expected, and although at times it was absolutely epic, there were fields that I’d expected to struggle over, that turned out to be runnable. I was feeling a bit anti-social, and wanted to run on my own, so plugged myself into the ipod for the whole race, but at times had to stop myself from singing along out loud!

The aid stations were impressive too – very well stocked with all sorts of food, and drink (love an aid station that has water, two types of squash and coke) and most of them were manned by friends so I was well looked after and enjoyed a quick chat.

I’ve run the race twice before (and got lost both times) but in the last month had recced a couple of the legs of the route, so generally knew where I was going, but after blindly following everyone else for the first few miles, realised that was stupid and so started also paying attention to my route instructions which made me feel much more in control. By the end of the race, I’d lost count of the number of times I redirected other runners who were taking wrong turns – it’s definitely a race that requires some concentration as the red St Peter’s Way route markers disappear from time to time, and you find yourself stood in the middle of field wondering which way to go! 

The second half of the race is flatter and less muddy than the first, and I found myself feeling stronger as the day went on, which was very reassuring. The last five miles or so were fantastic – the sun was low and the colours of the landscape became beautifully vivid, and at one point I stopped on the sea wall that you run around in the last couple of miles before the finish at the ancient St Peter’s Chapel and just looked around me, trying to commit to memory how lovely it was.

There were very few female runners this year – out of 79 entrants, only 10 were women, and I don’t think everyone made the start. As a result, I ended up managing to bag myself a trophy for 3^rd Lady, which I’m very pleased with – it goes nicely with my trophy from the race last year when I was 2^nd Lady! However, I was a bit disappointed with my finish time as I ran slower than I had planned – my excuse is last weekend’s marathon. I also saw my pace just fall away as I walked across particularly boggy fields, scrambled across the endless stiles, and spent too long at a couple of the aid stations. I ended up being 27 minutes slower than 2014.

I really enjoyed the day, I loved it in fact, and am taking away the positive that I felt strong at the end, and could have quite happily carried on running. 

Following my own path

I've had a bit of a revelation.

After a couple of years of constant racing, and racking up crazy numbers of marathons and ultras, I've come to realise that I've lost sight of what’s important to me about running – really enjoying it!

I think it started in December, when I signed up for coaching with Robbie, and he suggested I drop out of a few of the races I had coming up, as with the frequency that I’d planned to race in 2015, there’d be no time for proper training. So, I followed his advice and with a heavy heart withdrew from Country to Capital. It got me thinking about the importance of races v training. To a certain extent, I am surrounded by friends who race near on every week – people who achieve the most extraordinary things in marathon and ultra running, and I think I've felt I had to try and keep up with them. To try to do what they did if I wanted to be considered a “proper” runner.  But this weekend, my outlook on racing, and how I approach my running, has changed.

My mum and I attended a funeral on Saturday, of a family friend, Tanya. My mum had known her for 40 years, and Tanya and her late husband Ugo (who ran a local nursery on a beautiful plot of land) were an intrinsic part of my childhood and teenage memories, particularly at Christmas when we would go and chop down our Christmas tree from their nursery and then catch up for a chat in their wonderful home, that they had built themselves.

I was so sad to hear that Tanya had passed away after being diagnosed with leukaemia in June, but it was a privilege to be able to attend her funeral. It was a humanist ceremony, and so more of a celebration of life, and there was laughter along with the tears. Tanya was buried next to Ugo, in the woodland on their land, where her daughter now lives. It was a wonderful ceremony - very moving, and sad, but full of warmth and memories of a life truly lived to the full. Without doubt Tanya followed her own path and was a strong, independent and adventurous woman - a role model.

The following morning, I went for a trail run with Nicki. We had been for a run the weekend before, with another friend Lindley who as well as taking part in some of the toughest races going, also organises trail events, including the St Peter’s Way 45 mile race, and it was the route of this event that we were recceing. So, Nicki and I were out in the countryside in the winter sun, up to our ankles in a hundred different types of mud, trying to follow the SPW route without getting too lost, through the woods, across the fields, and nearly to the coast. It was a brilliant day, and reminded me just why I enjoy running – we were very slow with all the mud, and walked often, but our 19 miles were rewarding and fun.

When I got home, I starting reading the Facebook posts from friends who had been running the Viking Coastal Marathon Double this weekend down in Kent, put on by Traviss and Rachel, and a better organised and friendly event you can’t imagine. All of their races are absolutely brilliant from that point of view and I’ve done quite a few of them. I did their summer Viking Coastal marathon along the same route last year and ended up getting injured, but even so, am somewhat surprised I hadn’t signed up for the winter version this year, as so many of my friends were running it, and that seems to have become my main criteria for entering marathons recently.

Usually, seeing everyone’s posts, I would feel sad not to have been there with them, and disappointed that my day's running hadn't resulted in a medal (Traviss and Rachel’s medals are legendary!) or another race finish to count towards my 100^th Marathon. But yesterday was different.

I had spent the day thoroughly enjoying the experience of being out on the trails, and I knew I wouldn't have enjoyed the marathon as much because although there would have been many friendly faces, it would have felt very social, the medal was lovely and the aid stations well stocked, the straight, dead flat tarmac route with four out and backs along the sea front just doesn’t tick enough boxes for me. For the first time, I had the realisation that a training run could be more rewarding than a race. I’ve realised that I’ve got to stop chasing my numbers, and focus on what makes me happy with my running and what motivates me most - that’s new experiences, being out on the trails, feeling I’ve achieved something, enjoying the scenery, and when I race, being strong but rested enough to finish strongly.

Lots of people I know have recently reached the incredible milestone of completing their 100^th Marathon and received the hallowed shirt and I think I’ve fallen in to the trap of thinking it’s important that I join them as soon as possible. This means I’ve been doing races for the sake of the numbers, and not for the love of them. I’ve enjoyed most of them because I was able to share the day with the other runners, but more often than not, they weren’t the rewarding experience that I wanted or the type of race that really motivates me.

So, I’m going to change the way I approach racing.

I’m not going to sign up for events just because I think I should do them to add to my numbers, or because I have a month without a race booked so I might as well do another one, or to try to catch up with those who are running more races than me, or who have already reached their 100^th marathon. I’m attempting some very challenging races this year, and trying to fit lots of other events around them for the sake of adding to my tally is, essentially, daft. I don’t need to fit in everything I want to achieve in running by the time I’m 35 – I want to be a runner for the rest of my life. I have another (fingers crossed!) forty plus years to fill with challenges and new experiences out on the trails!

Obviously, I’ll continue to raise money for the St Francis Hospice with the races that I will do over the next year, because it’s an incredibly worthy cause and supporting them means a lot to me, and I want to continue to run in memory of my father in law, Roger. However, I believe that the magnitude of some of those races is sufficient to raise money on their own – I don’t have to fit in 24 events in 12 months as well, and I don’t have to reach my 100^th marathon in the next couple of years. With this in mind, I plan to withdraw from some events, and to just focus on the ones that I have been particularly looking forward to, and that are going to give me real satisfaction when I complete them!

I will train well, I will race strong, and I will enjoy my achievements. They will not be diminished by being more spread out than the achievements of my friends. I don’t need to emulate other runners around me, who are following their own, very personal journeys, with their own motivations. I will follow Tanya’s example to be my own person, and follow my own path. 

To be the best I can be

I can't believe it's already 2015. Time passes so quickly it's frightening, but I love the fact that through my running I really feel that I achieve something special each year. I do need to remember though not to compare myself to other runners' achievements - we're all on different journeys and although some of my running friends have completed many more races than I have, or are much much faster, my achievements are still worth being very proud of. 

I had a look at last year's "Year End" post, to see what goals I'd set myself for 2014. Essentially I wanted to be more dedicated to my training schedule, to stop running junk miles and put some structure into my runs. I felt that by doing this I would achieve my main race goal of completing Thames Path 100, and to run enough marathons to join the 100 Marathon Club as a Wannabe.

Unfortunately I didn't really manage to stick to my training schedule - my running was as haphazard as ever - but I did complete my other goals, the Thames Path 100 and my 50th marathon. In fact, I'm still incredibly surprised at how well I did at TP100, finishing in 22:20, as 4th lady, and feeling (relatively) strong throughout...until collapsing abut 20 minutes after crossing the line and ending up in hospital. But glossing over that, I did love the experience of running 100 miles much more than I had expected. 

As for my other goal of reaching marathon number 50, I did that, and received confirmation of my Associate membership of the 100 Marathon Club in June. I'm so proud to be a part of the club, and to be friends with so many amazing runners who inspire me every day. Getting full membership and being able to wear the shirt will be incredible...but that'll not be for a good few years yet. I finished the year by running my 60th marathon on New Year's Eve at the inaugural Flitch Way Marathon. 

So, during 2014, I racked up a total of 22 marathon or ultra finishes and although I didn't enjoy every one of my races, some of them have been absolutely brilliant - TP100 would be top of the list, but Country to Capital, The Pilgrim Challenge, St Peter's Way where I was 2nd lady, the Ranscombe Challenge, the Stour Valley 100km where I was 3rd lady...they've all been awesome I think it's safe to say 2014 is the year I really became an ultra runner. 

My haul from 2014

I've had a few injury struggles but nothing too horrendous, and fingers crossed, with sensible and consistent training, I will be injury free through 2015 although this morning I've been icing my Achilles as it's playing up a bit already! It's going to be such a challenging year - more races than ever, and my A race is GUCR. 145 miles, unsupported, non-stop. Such a classic event - it just sounds ridiculous in it's toughness - but I'm so determined to finish...and I suppose the goal is to finish strong and not end up death marching for the last 40 miles. My other goals for the year are to beat my 2014 time at the Thames Path 100, and to complete an Ironman triathlon. That's definitely a journey into the unknown and it scares and excites me. I think that's got to be the best feeling and it drives me to improve. For the first time, this year I will also be working with Robbie Britton, who's going to help me achieve my running goals - I really believe that his support and direction will be the key to maintaining consistency in training, and through that, I should be able to really achieve my potential in my racing.

When I look back, at the end of 2015, to see how I've done, maybe that should be my main goal for the year that I measure myself against. Hand on heart can I say I've done as much as I could have done to achieve my goals? Maybe that's the most important aim for anyone, to be the best they can be, and that should be my target for the rest of the year.

Getting serious about training

A couple of weeks ago, I decided to make a change, and get some help. I felt I'd lost my love for running and could quite happily never train again...despite the fact that I still loved races and earning my bling. However, running marathons when you haven't done enough training starts to get less and less fun and with such big races coming up in 2015, my training needs to become the core of my running, not the add-on!

So...I've signed up for coaching through Centurion Running, with Robbie Britton. I imagine most people reading my blog will know who Robbie is, but if you don't, here's his blurb from the Centurion website and below that a list of some of his incredible race performances:

Robbie Britton

Robbie's ascent to the top of the UK ultrarunning scene was a fast one. He began running 100s in 2010 recording some solid performances, learning quickly how to refine his training to maximise success, taking his first win in 2011. He has expanded on his multiple 100 mile podium places, earning his plance in Team GB's 24hr team for 2013 where he went on to a 17th place finish covering a total of 239km. Shortly afterwards he went on to win the Petzl South Downs Way 100.

Ultra experience (major races):

• 24hr World Championships 2013: 239km (17th)
• Spartathlon
• South Downs Way 100: 15:42 (1st & CR)
• North Downs Way 100: 19:47 (1st)
• Thames Path 100: 16:02 (2nd)
• Cotswold 100: 20:26 (2nd)
• Caesars Camp 100 - 21:30 (3rd)
• Barcelona 24hr: 231km (4th)
• GUCR: 31:26 (7th)
• Pilgrims Way Ultra 2014: Winner and Course Record
• Canterbury 10: 55 mins (1st)

Getting coached by Robbie is a real honour, and it's great to work with someone who has achieved so much in some of the races that are important to me. So far, I've had a week's worth of training. Robbie is confident that he can help me enjoy training (nearly) as much as I love racing, and that with the right amount of commitment I can really improve on what I've achieved so far. My big goals are to go sub 22hrs at TP100 and to finish GUCR. The Ironman is still going to happen in July too, but that is a B race for this year - GUCR is the real A race for me now.

Robbie's suggested cutting down on some of my races to really maximise the benefits of my training plan, so I withdrew from yesterday's Phoenix Marathon, and also from Country to Capital. I did so with a very heavy heart, but it would be great to see what I can achieve under Robbie's guidance, and I'm only going to do that if I follow the advice and do what he thinks is best. The races will be there next year and I'll be in a better position to run them well and enjoy them more then.

So, following my new training plan, I ran 35 miles last week across 5 runs, mixing up easy miles with some intervals and actually really enjoyed getting back to some structured training. It all seems to be focused around running for an amount of time rather than miles and really looks at getting a bit more speed in for some of that time, instead of just my usual plodding, for instance yesterday's run was 2hrs easy, with the last 20 minutes at marathon pace.

I had my traditional Christmas Day run included in my plan last week - we were staying with Franc's family in Southwold and so my run was along the sea and it was beautiful. I took the puppy with me though, so it was definitely challenging and a bit slow as we had to keep stopping for him to have a sniff or to say hello to the many other dogs that were also out for their Christmas walks.

This week I have the Flitch Way marathon on Wednesday - the last race of the year - which I'm really looking forward to, and so my training plan from Robbie seems pretty relaxed. I have a feeling that after the marathon, training will start ramping up and getting more intense and challenging - and hopefully I will feel that it becomes more rewarding and fun. We will see!

Cycling through the winter

As it gets colder and more unpleasant outside, I worry about cycling through the winter. I've always loved going for a ride when it's beautifully sunny and warm, with just a slight breeze, stopping at a pub for lunch - the very definition of a fair weather cyclist. But getting out there in plummeting temperatures and driving rain is not my idea of fun on a bike! When you're riding through an arctic wind, it's so much more unpleasant than running, and the prospect of icy roads certainly doesn't fill me with confidence about staying upright.

So, a couple of weeks ago, Francis set up the trainer in the living room so I could try biking in the comfort of the house. It worked pretty well, and I've done it a few times...but cycling in front of the TV really isn't the same as getting out on the roads and although it'll be a great substitute for those days when the snow is a foot deep, the fact remains that I need to just prepare properly so riding outside over the next few months doesn't seem so scary.

I was approached recently about doing a blog post for the insurers LV to share some of the advice they've put together about winter cycling, and it seemed like a great idea - I need that sort of help more than most! There's all sorts of information on their website but I love the below infographic that they've put together which includes a Winter Checklist, and "Wise Up", "Light Up" and "Wrap Up" sections.

I think my biggest concern is cycling on icy roads and LV Q&A section on winter cycling has this to say:

• LV=: What’s the best way to handle wet and icy roads?

RW: Cyclists should always be aware that braking distances are increased in wet conditions. In icy conditions it’s a good idea to reduce tyre pressure a little, as this gives you a bigger contact area with the ground.

I suppose the key thing to remember is to be careful and to be aware of any suspicious looking puddles or shimmers in the road.

The other advice my husband always gives me is to be particularly careful riding over drain covers - they can be particularly slippery even in the rain. In fact, it's best to cycle further out from the pavement so you miss them entirely. If you position yourself at least a meter from the curb, not only do you also avoid all of the ddetritus that gathers in the gutter of the road waiting to puncture your tyre, it makes a big difference to your relationship with other car users if you control your space. They are forced to wait until there's a gap in the traffic on the other side so they can overtake safely, as per the highway code, instead of squeezing by.

If you're a relative newbie to winter cycling, like me, take a look, be prepared, and hopefully cycling through the winter needn't be too scary...we just need to make sure we're all safe!