"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly. So that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat." -Theodore Roosevelt



Tuesday 18 June 2013

What makes a good blog?

I feel like all I've done for the last month is write race reports, and lets face it, there's only so many ways you can say 'I ran this bit quickly', 'this bit slowly', and 'I finished the race in this time'.

-My posts feel a little monotonous of late, but then, it's a running blog, so race reports are bound to feature heavily, right?

Anyway, this got me thinking; what makes a good blog? Well, I probably like blogs which are similar to mine - or what I try to deliver with mine:

Those that don't always take themselves too seriously, focus on running but throw in other subjects, as well as having a bit of witty humour to boot (ok, so maybe mine doesn't have all that much of the latter category !)

I sometimes think I post too much, but then, I really like IronLucy's blog by Lucy Nickells, and she blogs everyday... (Of course Lucy does wear superhero underwear, something my under garment collection sadly lacks)

Blogging about running and chucking other bits of life in mixes things up nicely, and Goldilocks Running's blog by Sarah Marsden does this excellently; check out her thigh gap post here. (Somehow I don't think I'd have thought to write about this subject)

Finally, getting quite technical about their running as well as humour-filled is something the Dreaming of Footpaths blog by Sarah Fry has got down to a T, shes also a little bit famous due to her escapades as part of Asics Target 26.2 (not jealous, honest)

So, with those 3 blogs in mind what makes a good/interesting blog for you, and whose do you enjoy?

Saturday 15 June 2013

Race Review: Active Knowsley 5k

The Active Knowsley 5k takes place in the grounds of Knowsley Hall – a magnificent state home with plenty of surrounding land to boot. A great tranquil setting for a 5k race!

Knowsley Hall: Not too shabby huh?!

Having run this last year and knowing the course I was really looking forward to it. It’s a fairly up and down course at times but enjoyable none the less.

After Sunday Morning’s Mersey Tunnel 10k I really wanted to try for sub 20 minutes to test out my fitness.

7.15pm sharp the race started and off I popped – the only competitor wearing my club’s racing colours, despite there being 3 club mates there. I was however, joined by plenty of Knowsley Harriers in contrasting red and white horizontal striped vests; I can only presume this was a club championship race for them.

I completed the first km in a speedy 3:51 through winding landscape, but on a tarmac-ed path which was best of both worlds! I slowed down for the next couple of kilometres to bring my 3km split to 12:04, so still on track.

Rain had started to pour down, that fine stuff that gets you really wet y’know? (Not the purple stuff – thanks Peter Kay) This was nice and cooling, but there was to follow a 20m elevation climb in kilometre four. Not a particularly daunting prospect but given my lack of speed and hill work something I struggled with.

Due to this I had to pretty much kiss goodbye to my sub-20 hopes as I clocked the penultimate kilometre at 4:18 (dang).

I was a bit annoyed with myself at this point for going out ‘too quickly’ as I was feeling the pace… Then came along a runner who decided to over-take me, so I thought I’d use him as a pacer – he was going pretty fast and was a fairly tall bloke, so I got in right behind him and tried to get into his slipstream (don’t I sound technical… I probably wasn’t in his slipstream or anything but I’ll take anything that makes me think I can run faster).

With 300 yards to go I was setting a pace to complete what would be a quick kilometre time; was I on for my sub 20 after all? Pacer guy and I (kind of rhymes) stepped it up a notch before turning a corner to the final straight and for the last 200 yards I absolutely killed myself in the sprint finish – my watch was counting to 20 minutes; 5 seconds to go 4 seconds to go…

I crossed the finish line…

I looked down at my watch….

20:05… DAMN!!!!

5 seconds quicker and I would’ve been sub 20 again!

Final Race stats

Time: 20:05 (The last kilometre, though a fast 3:43 wasn’t enough to offset kilometre four’s so arsed-ness)

Garmin here

A great race, nice and relaxed atmosphere with a small number of runners making quite an intimate, but competitive race.

Race bling:
 


Final notes

I’m not disappointed with my time. It would have been really nice to get sub 20, but my fitness is where it’s at, and I need to get back running like I was this time last year to get anywhere near my PB’s.

I’ll be taking a rest now and give the foot/lower shin problem I’ve had for the last month a chance to recover – it, and I, needs it!

Race Review: Mersey Tunnel 10k 2013

This was my third time running the Mersey Tunnel 10k, a race that starts in Liverpool city centre, and finishes in New Brighton on 'the Wirral' by going through the Kingsway Tunnel.

The Kingsway Tunnel is a road tunnel under the River Mersey and runs (see what I did there) between Liverpool and Wallasey. It is one and half miles long and is the' brother' tunnel of the Queensway Tunnel which runs between Liverpool and Birkenhead (which coincidentally,  and rather coolly, features in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 1)

Due to this the race is a point to point course - a bit of a rarity these days.

The weather started out brilliantly - a nice warm summer morning with a hint of a breeze. My plan was to start out quickly as the course had a large downhill section in the tunnel before a a climb to get out and then a sharp rise upon leaving the tunnel. I figured I would 'get ahead' in the first half of the race where it was a faster section allowing for a bit of slower second half due to the course conditions.

The first part of my plan worked very well - I completed the first 4kms in a fairly quick 15:20. After this I pretty much lost my pacing as I was now in the tunnel and my garmin had lost its signal. Many people wonder what the air is like in the tunnel, and if its claustrophobic or scary to run in.

Truth is, the air is a little stale, nothing more, and I never feel claustrophobic or scared in the tunnel.... I don't normally get claustrophobic, and it really didn't cross my mind - I was too focused on my running. Having said that, there is a bloke from my running club who doesn't do this race as he hates the tunnel.

So, 4km in and I'm thinking, "sub 40?" but I quickly pushed those thoughts away, especially as the tunnel began to rise! It's not the ascent in the tunnel that gets me; it's on exiting the tunnel - there is a sharp left with a really steep climb that sucker punches the legs and breathing.

After this point the race is half done and runners make their way onto the nice flat promenade. I somehow missed the 6km marker so when I finally hit 7km I didn't worry about my time and tried to finish strongly. I knew sub 40, and sub 41, were out of the question as the steep climb out of the hill as well as the sun, which was now beating down, zapped energy.

The finish line was soon in sight and the crowds began to thicken, I raised my pace for a sprint finish and crossed the line, happy, drenched, and knackered! 

Final Race stats

Time: 41:26
Final position: 144/2852

Garmin here (although it's a bit all over the place due to losing signal in the tunnel)

Race bling:



A decent medal and really good quality technical t shirt (which isn't actually a half bad fit for a change)
 
Final notes

The Mersey Tunel 10km is a fantastically novel race. Add in it's brilliantly organised, as well as a quality medal and technical t-shirt make this probably, my favourite race there is. It's not really a PB course, but then sometimes, that's not what running is all about

The time was a season's best and I worked really hard for it, but it felt brilliant. Despite not training as much as I'd like I feel like my fitness is really coming along.

Tuesday 4 June 2013

Quick update....

So my running has been going ok, but I'm still feeling the effects a little from the shin splint / foot pain that has been troubling me for the past month or so.

I'm just trying to manage it at the moment as I've got two races coming up; the Mersey Tunnel 10k on Sunday, and the Knowsley 5k the Wednesday after.

Both of these races I have completed before, and I really like running them. The Tunnel 10k is an excellent course; it starts in Liverpool and goes through the Kingsway Tunnel which is a road tunnel under the River Mersey. It is a fantastically novel race and I PB'ed doing it last year. -A PB that still stands today (39:27 if you're interested).

The Knowsley 5k is set in the idyllic grounds of the state home Knowsley Hall. It's a fast course and very scenic, its also never too crowded so there's no cramped start line but still has a great atmosphere.

I'm really looking forward to them and will report back on completion - fingers crossed my foot holds it together :)

Book review: The Ghost Runner

Or, to give the book its full title "The Ghost Runner: The Tragedy of the Man They Couldn't Stop". The book is a biography and is about the life of John Tarrant.



I read this book last year, however, there was a small feature about John Tarrant on The One Show by Iwan Thomas which prompted me to write this review as the book is so good.

So, back to the book, and John Tarrant. The story tells of a young boy who at the age of 18 starts boxing as a way to keep fit and earn some money. In total, he was paid £17 in expenses.

His boxing career was short lived; mainly because he wasn't very good at it (aside form his dogged determination, which would serve him well later in life), so he moved on to running. John Tarrant discovered that running was something he was actually pretty good at, and before too long decided to join the Amateur Athletics Association (AAA).

However, back in t'day Athletics was amateur; rules clearly stipulated you should take no payment and, as John Tarrant had taken payment from boxing (albeit as expenses) he was banned from joining the AAA, for life.

Undeterred by this Tarrant continued to run, and gatecrashed races that he wasn't allowed to run in, (hence gaining the nickname the ghost runner) in a bid to prove himself to the AAA that he was worthy of being a member, as well as trying to fulfill his lifelong dream of competing for his country in the Olympics.

The book goes on to describe the many races he entered, records he set (including the record for the marathon of my home city; Liverpool), his fight to become an AAA member, as well as his working and family life before his premature death due to cancer.

The book is an excellent read and provides a heartbreaking insight into the life of a world class athlete who just wanted to run, and in doing so, pushed everyone close to him away. It is a very sobering story and a must for runners who want to know about a very much one off character and athlete.

Please, please, please, if you get a chance, read this book!