Sub 3

Smashing half results today, great work. Didn't seem like the easiest of days, but great times anyhow. Wokingham was the place to be today....

Some good training as well by folks!!

Previous pb was 1:23:49 set at Wokingham 2 years ago.

Target for VLM is some thing to build on for an attempt on sub 2:45 at Abingdon later in the year so probably 2:50ish.

Just read back and some fabulous Wokingham results. Really just wanted to say that: well done to you all for the pb's and great times. Superb. 

LD Marc Almond is 56 now, incredibly, so unlikely to be the real deal. Well done on your win. Is the V50 at London Marathon also a poor category in your opinion? I'm hoping next year to give it a bit of a thrash.

I know there's a labelling issue but what's the problem with eating horsemeat?

Nice run Jools, but now I can't wait to see what you can really do in Bath.

Tremendous PBs Dachs and Al_P, sub-75 is a big landmark. Dachs, the golden portaloos await...

And you're back with a vengeance there Dan, congrats on your PB, and a huge chunk off yours StevieG. Stylish finish to claim yours postie.

LD -- I'm hardly a hill expert but I think it's worth practising the careening downhill side of things too. You should start lying about your age to get some worthy competition...

Simonx9 -- good to get a long one in, even if unplanned! In the Garmin choose Training... Do Course, which works well if you have the optional map screen enabled on a 205/305/309 etc where you can follow the wiggly grey line (it's not there in the sleeker running-oriented models). Screenshots here.

LJ -- glad you had a satisfying XC (and wild long run).

I claimed not to have beaten myself up too much yesterday, but now my legs are admittedly creaky. Day or two off I think.

Awesome results at Wokingham, seems like almost everyone had a good run. Particular congrats to Al_P for a massive PB, and the other PBers (Dachs, Dan plus others I've forgotten).

Marigold - I'm rubbish in mud too, I think it suits the shorter people!

On Saturday I cycled to the final Chiltern League XC - 25M and it started snowing quite heavily during the ride! Got fairly cold, and didn't really manage to warm up throughout the day.

Loads of impressive long runs too. I'm expecting good things at VLM!

The course was ridiculously tough - saw loads of people with shoes missing, or even struggling to just get through some of the mudpits. I ran pretty poorly, nearly a minute down on my clubmate I'm normally close to. 36:33 for (supposedly) 9k - the fact that I can actually believe it was 9k shows how tough the course was.

The ride home was a bit more pleasant - we put the hammer down a bit, so managed to stay warm.

Couldn't face cycling outside yesterday as it rained the entire day, so just did 90 mins on the turbo. Then enjoyed seeing England win - not the most attractive game of rugby I've ever seen but it was strangely compelling.

Padams: speaking from the other end of the height spectrum, mud doesn't suit this short person...

Congrats to all at Wokingham yesterday. Sounds like less than ideal conditions but some very impressive times being run.

Well done to Jools and CD, and congratulations on the PBs to Postie, Dan, Stevie, Dachs and Al_P.

Seeing those PBs tumbling has whetted my appetite for Wilmslow Half in 6 weeks.

Oh, and great effort by Charlie. 21 with 15 @ better than MP is pretty good going!

Cracking results from Wokingham yesterday, especially PB's from DanA, Postie, Al P & Dachs. It was an awful day!

I was at Wokingham too, but never started! Woke up yesterday morning and had started to come down ill. Toyed with the idea of trying to run, but started going downhill quickly and in the end spent all of yesterday from 12 doubled up in bed, and still not feeling great now.

Well done to all the racers at the weekend.  Surprised at the quick Wokingham results in those conditions.  Get well soon A.W

A better XC for me Saturday (even if we got relegated) - interesting to see that even a couple of weeks of plodding has some training effect.  Then yesterday needed to take my daughter to the Guildford Spectrum and needed to walk the dog, so he and I did 95 minutes of sloshing round Stoke Park in the freezing rain.  Oddly enjoyable.

" I'm rubbish in mud too, I think it suits the shorter people!"

You seemed to do ok at the county champs in the mud (you very easily ran away from me...but maybe that says more about my ability/fitness!)

LD - not really expecting me to let the facts get in way of a post of mine are you?  For the record (pun not intended) I'd never heard of that particular 'mixer of the muffins' I believe the youth might say so as namedrops go it wasn't your best.  I guess my squareness is equal to your agedness.  Let's tear it up in the Red Lion eh?  I'll bring my Bay City Rollers Long Player - you bring the Cresta.  Maybe we could get the Big Dawg Westwood to drop a few phat ones - even though he's a 55year old former public schoolboy from Norfolk.

I know there's a labelling issue but what's the problem with eating horsemeat? - if you look (not very) carefully you'll see you've inadvertently answered the reason it's a news item.

As you were.

Excellent HM results, good XCing and long runs. Huge congrats to the PB'ers and the podium climbers.

Liversedge HM for me. Was doubtful initially due to forecasted snow but fortunately it didn't materialise. The race was bitter sweet for me.

Having looked at the entry list beforehand, I stalked my dodger rivals. There were 2 guys that would beat me (by minutes), but then a guy who normally beats me but is coming back from injury, so I knew I had a chance of 3rd. Spotted the 2nd of the faster guys at 7M and he was coming back to me slowly. Amazed to pass him going up the hill at ~9M and I eventually finished 31st and 2nd dodger.

The podium came at a cost though. After the long gradual climb, at about 10M I felt my calf, a bit like cramp but the tightening came on gradually. Should've really stopped and stretched but hung on, knowing that beating the guy I had passed was too good an opportunity. The tightening steadily worsened and ended up limping over the line in 86:24. I have been having niggles for a few weeks now down my left side, the calf the main culprit. But returning to the gym recently seemed to sort it out. But this calf problem is on the right side!

The calf is very sore so a few rest days (this was going to be a cut-back week anyway) are in the offing. I'm booked in for a massage Wednesday evening too. Hoping that a week should see me back training again. Don't think it's a tear, maybe a strain as I can feel it when walking but it's very painful if I lift onto my toes. Anyway, bench for me for now.

Had a brief chat with Njord (and Caz) afterwards, as the weather was not ideal to stand around for long. Also met Parkrunfan who had been long running whilst spectating.

HR -  I used to know Marc Almond back in 1981-3. (Yes, Crab, guilty as charged). He was just making the unusual transistion from cloakroom attendant in the club I went to, to international mega-star.

Horsemeat? there's nowt wrong with it, well, compared to your gorilla's hand stew! I saw on the news that they are concerned that what's being sold as horse, is actually donkey meat. Not sure what difference that would make? There's also a very amusing chain involved: comes from abattoirs in Romainia, via a dealer in cyprus, via their dealer in Holland bought by frozen food factory in Luxembourg, sold to UK. If it's still cheap after all that lot have taken their cut, then it's hardly going to be haute cuisine.

My youngest daughter is doing child-minding for an Asian lady, and was served sheep's foot curry for tea the other evening.

Andy D - much to my continued annoyance my PB was set at Wilmslow. I actually think I prefer Blackburn to Wilmslow. The arrogance of the organisers, the banal announcer, the chaos of that field at the end, the poncy residents. Eek .... I'll be doing the Coniston 14 that weekend instead.

Asian lady - ooh you're toying with us aren't you?  Shami Chakrabati?  Gets everywhere and with the Beeb re-locating North of Watford I'd say I might be on to something as they seemingly wheel her out several times a week. She'll have an opinion on horse meat for HR too - christ we get subjected to her opinion on just about everything else.  I prefer to get my poltical and social commentary from Lorraine Kelly...at least she's run the marathon so she is qualified.

Lest I get chastised for erring slightly off topic. Zero miles run today.

As you were. 

CRAB - Nope, not her and not Baroness Warsi if you are going to play 20 questions. Anyway, a sheep's foot curry is what was made. I just had to spend a couple of minutes googling just now as I suddenly felt like I might have been the recipient of an 18 year old's joke. But sure enough, it is a proper dish. (hope they get a manicure and trim before being served).

Anyway, I think horse meat is yesterday's news now, now that old Polish former Nazi Youth member has decided he's too old to chase young boys round St Peters. Shame really, because he had so much to offer the world with his progressive views on AIDS and rubber johnnies and the like.

I'm going to apply for the job. Not interested in religion (in fact I'd abolish it) but I reckon I'd get more competition in the v50 road running category from them old priest dodderers than I'm getting at present round here.

I think I'm going to have to log off all comment forums and facebook posts until the new Pope is safely elected as I don't really have much patience for the "paedo AIDS nazi" bigotry that passes for progressive enlightened banter these days.

Not sure why the press is acting so surprised as for those of us who actually read his work and pronouncements, he's consistently said that he would resign when he felt incapable of doing the job. 

I'm mightily impressed with the general standard at Wokingham and the amount of PB-slaying going on.  Particularly the sub-75 landmarks as it doesn't seem too long ago I was eyeing that up myself.  Top bombing everyone! 

Brian - Sorry to hear you suffered for your victory.  Good work though.  Take care.

We managed to pull one out of the bag on Saturday by overturning Thames H&H's lead in the Surrey XC League and winning the title!   I was consistently either 8th or 9th scorer for the 3 out of 4 races I did (35th overall Saturday, picking up a "I beat BEJ" t-shirt in the process  ), so pretty happy with my contribution.  Then 22 miles yesterday @ 7:01/m, with the heart barely murmuring away at 131bpm (64% max).  80 miles for the week incl. 22, 18 and 14, feels like proper marafun training now.

...*random catching up with posts from several pages back...* Wardi - Isle of Dogs is largely trouble-free of an evening, and as good as I can get for tempo running until it's light enough for evening sessions in Greenwich Park, but I had my fair share of dodging pedestrians with spatial awareness issues last Thursday.  I even deliberately wear my brightest, foulest, luminous training t-shirt specially for tempo night so that I might be more visible.  Doesn't help when the person coming the other way has their head in a phone.  Arse!

Love the banter on this place - much laughter in Camden Town.

Couldn't Run A Bath wrote (see)

I know there's a labelling issue but what's the problem with eating horsemeat? - if you look (not very) carefully you'll see you've inadvertently answered the reason it's a news item.

As you were.

I expect you may be partly right CRAB, although I can't help thinking that the Daily Express would be less breathlessly excitable if the story were along the lines of:

'Prime cut venison discovered in beefburger' ? Or 'hand-reared breast of pheasant passed off in beef burger scandal'?

PP head-in-phone people are a serious hazard I agree.

LD race you next year at VLM when I'll just be 50? Are you good?! By the way, I'm fairly disgusted at myself for eating monkey back in the day. The defence that 'well everybody did it' doesn't seem to tenable here as it did in the rainforest.