Thames Trot 50 Training

I've often run the Oxford-Abingdon stretch and never seen it quite so bad (though most of the times I've run it have been in the warmer months). Hopefully some of this rain will ease off over December and January or it could be very unpleasant.

yes bit worried about getting knackered by the mud in the first half...  does anyone know if the second half nearer to henley tends to be drier?  

ran two hours out in the full force driving rain and 4 degrees sunday morning, didnt see another soul out (on the north downs way near maidstone).  loved it and love running on trails but the muddy bits are exhausting and not sure about keeping that up for a whole day...

anyone done the dorset marathon in early dec?  website describes it as ëxtreme" but i thought it might be a good training run for the TT...  

L 

ecky thump!

Ran the TT last year and doing it again this year as training for the TP100. The mud  was all frozen over through the course so wasn't a problem. I wore trail shoes for the first 28 miles and my other half took my road running shoes and met me at half way. The change of shoes was like putting on really light slippers. I would recommend having a change of shoes as an option at the check point at 28 miles. I ran it with a friend last year and will be on my own this year, niether of us can really remember much of the race now except the end, which was awesome!

Hi Laura, I did the TT last year. Its pretty consistent in terms of terrain, so no drier in the first half compared to the second tbh. I thought it was mostly flat. For what its worth, the bits to keep an eye out for are (going by their map you can download): 

(1) page 9, about 30miles, theres quite a steep track/hill - not what I was expecting from a river path! So will be a lot of walking for that bit

(2) page 10, I almost missed the point where I had to come off the river way and start heading into CP4

(3) I (and a couple of others found the signage after CP4 very bad round the housing and it slowed us down a bit. Once we got back to the river it was fine so worth studying up before hand

(4) By the time we got to about 45miles (I think), near Mill Lane I think (page 13), it was very dark and we took a wrong turn in a field of sorts. Realised we had gone wrong when the path took us to a locked gate we would have had to climb (you dont climb gates), but the sign was obscured I think by the snow. Anyway another watch out

(5) I was bloody fed up of fruitcake by CP4 and was disappointed that at the end most of the stuff was gone/depleted and I was reduced to a cup of tea and more fruitcake!! [BTW I really like fruitcake and it was a nice recipe but .... well you'll get what I mean when you do it]

Apart from that, I quite liked the race, the organisers seemed friendly and it has the potential of being a fast one (if you get through the hilly middle). Was thinking of doing again as a training run for the TP100 6 weeks later.

How could anyone get fed up of that fruit cake? It was truly scrumptious, I could have scoffed several kilos of it and probably did!

I apologise to anyone behind me if they had run out of cake

i agree with Dougie Slaneuk!! i LOVE gobeyonds fruitcake-its what kept me going at Northants ultra!! yummy- didnt  you realise thats the only reason im running this thing? for that cake!!!!

im likely to be wearing THIS much stuff!!!!

Without your midriff showing, it has no appeal 

i could do but id get hypothermis in 20  mins Slaneuk.....

 can i hope for more than4 degrees at TT?

just like your facebook pic 

And just to cheer you up, it started at -8C last year - 

what FB pic???????? where where?

-8? *gulp*

-8C and that was without the windchill  - I remember wearing just a tshirt uptop, lol

send me a pm and I'll send you the other details

My worst navigational blunder was missing the turn back to the river near Tilehurst station (just after point 3 in slanuk's advice. Definitly one to avoid as it is (or seems like) miles to the next chance to cross the railway track at Reading. 

When I did the TT a few years ago there was snow underfoot for the first 30 miles!

Will the organisers drop a bag at half way for you 28 miles, or do you have to sort that yourself? Shoe change, biscuits, cuddly toy... 

And I was thinking this was one where I wouldn't need to navigate!  More details about the potential route-finding problems?

NID, I dont remember an intermediary bag drop, but the aid stations had plenty of food and water. Cant help you with the shoe change but if you ask nicely, someone might give you a hug to substitute for a cuddly toy. 

DB, not sure how many races you can do without a map, unless you like doing laps on a 400m track - even then I'd still get lost :P

Well I had this mad idea that "along the Thames tow path" and "follows the course of the Thames" meant just that. I did a 20-mile run in Lyon by running upriver for 10 miles then turnng around and heading back. No map needed.

Seriously: I'm not at all sure I'll be able to manage pre-race recces for this. How easy is it to follow/miss the route of you don't know it? If I can fit in ONE recce which section should I do?