Salty Boobs....................

Well that got you reading............ the salty boobs bit is a bit further on!!!!
Forget mid week buzzes - try a 3 day BG in the sun - what an excellent trip - apart from the fact that I cannot now walk!
It rained a bit on the first day which was a little chilly but still managed the day without gloves, we could see some of the tops and we didn't get blown off Helvelyn - at last I have been up that hill in good conditions - I could see it and I wasn't hanging on to a rock to keep me attached to it - oh and at this stage my legs were working too!
This soon changed! I was on a BG recce with Karen Davison (newby to Run Like a Girl), who is attempting her BG in 3 weeks with Dark Peak Fell Runners, and her Dad, John, who is trying for his Josh Nailor soon. Karen is a very bouncy lightweight runner - I had to follow this all the way - my legs eventually gave out half way through day one just after Helvelyn, Johns legs also gave out here so we plodded on behind Karen. We abandoned the last two hills on day one as we could not get off the hill in time for some food - we had been out for 11 hours (well one of those was in the pub at Threkeld!) and we were buggered! Luckily my Sister was on holiday in the Lakes so we had stayed with her and her mates the night before, so we did set off at 8am that morning, else I think it would habe been a long day!
We stayed at a Youth Hostel in Grassmere and it was supperb. The food was good and cheap and they even opened a bottle of wine for me - must have heard I was coming!!!
Breakfast was huge - thank goodness! Then we stopped off at the locaal post office for hill supplies and set off up Steel Fell, good pace - even if I could hardly walk - wish I had my poles with me. Karen did but gave them to her Dad who was in even worse state than me!
The sun was out - the hills were gorgeous and we had a great day route finding and climbing over grassy hills and rocky tops later on. What a stunning peice of countryside. When we got to Scafell, Karen did not want to go up the Broadstand bit and was going to go off the hill. I decided that missing two out yesturday was not in my book anymore and persuaded them to go up the Foxes Tarn way, which was lovely apart from me twisting my left ankle (had already turned the right one!!!) So was a bit slow on the slippery path down to the gully up to the tarn. Karen was well pleased we went up as it gave her an idea on timings of the alternative, she was getting within all the leg times as we timed each other between the tops. Karen then spead off down the hill to Wasdale, while John and I hobbled down with downhill wobbly legs - I felt like an ostrich! If you have ever had trashed quads then you know the ostrich feeling of collapsing uncontrollable legs. John and I headed off to the Wasdale Head Pub, luckily Karen jogged up the road to meet us there. The pub looked great - BUT - the food and service was terrible and very expensive - they defiately have a captive audience! We had to pay extra to have ice-cream on our sticky toffee pudding - you can't eat that with nothing on it!!!! Rant over - have now recovered from the experience!
The B & B we found was miles down the lake so we hitched and got there a bit too early for a welcome reception - the land lady was out and her daughter had not mastered the meet and great yet!!!! Still as soon as the land lady showed up it was excellent - lots of drink making facilities, a towel for a shower (much needed) and some left over shower gel - perfect!
After starving myself on day two - didn't have enough food, we decided that a massive cooked breaky would be the order of the day - it was lovely and it got me all the way to Honister Pass. And I must have run fast cos even my boobs sweated!!!! Yep - I have sweaty boobs and proud of them!!!

I was back, my legs nearly worked (well if you ignore the pain they almost ran!) and I was making the times between the tops - blimey that was a surprise!
We had a sandwich at Honister and set off on the last three hills, sending Karen off for a speedy finish, while John and I pootled off Robinson and ambled along to the layby at the road, sat in the river to recover the quads and then walked ike slugs on the road untill karen turned up in the car!
We'd done it - and loved it. What a confidence boost - may do it the other way round next - and then try for my new 30 hour schedule - cos no way am I ever going to be fast enough for 24 HOURS!

Mid Week Buzz!

I like mid week adrenalin buzzes!
I did another short fell race, from Totley - it looked like a hilly route so thought - try this - you enjoyed the last one! So off I trotted - well it worked - I tried hard, pushed hard as I could up the hills, even though in the McDonald fell running world I always walk up the hills, I actually found myself doing a trot up the first one! Blimey - must like the competition! It felt great and I even overtook quite a few people, mind you some came back passed me on the flat on top of the hill, but then the downhill was really slippery so I flew passed loads again (well a few!) and kept most of them off my shoulders on the the next downhill and sprint to the finish - what a blast! Mind you my evening could have been improved if the photographer had decided that us lot at the back were not worth photographing, how am I supposed to get my little buzz from the boost I get from giving any photographer a big teethy smile? Then just round the corner there was another - his excuse was he was changing his memory card - am I not allowed my flashy teethy grins anymore? Oh well - have now learned to race without the grin! And I wasn't last - big bonus - took me just under an hour and I think it was about 5.5 miles (doesn't sound good now but felt like a sprint all the way!)
Bring on the next adrenalin buzz!

Fellsman from the other side!

I stuck to my guns and didn't run in Fellsman - oh what a good descision - it rained and hailed and was soooo windy - and I saw it all from the inside of my pink flowery van, in the warmth!


What a bloomin good descision - for a change! I had an ace weekend and still got less sleep than when I ran in it last year! Spent the morning putting up the runfurther flags, cajouling gorgeous looking men into taking photos for me at the start, while I cycled up the bridleway to Ingleborough to take photos of happy (cos it wasn't actually raining then) runners on their first hill!

Oops forgot my gloves and a warm jacket - so froze whilst waiting for the runners - took hundreds of photos with a battery guzzling camera and cycled back down the bridleway with numb hands and a whoop - the track was supperb! See - biking - and I'm soooo happy again!!! (Nothing to do with the two glasses - oops nearly wrote bottles then! of wine I've had this evening! - just happy!)

Next - frozen hands can't undo the poles for the runfurther flags - so enlist the help of some bloke in the car park - well I am a helpless female! Pack up all the flags and banners, get in flowery van and race up the road to Checkpoint Three - meet a bloke called Harry - he's done this race about 20 times and now follows it in his car - brilliant bloke - says he does it to follow the top guy Mark Hartell - had to give him the unfortunate news that Mark has absconded to the USA and isn't actually in the race today (for the first time in 10 years!) - he looked a little dissapointed, told me all about everyone who has ever run in the event and spead off after Andy, Jez and Swatts had gone through - obviously only follows the elite! Anyway - Mark - he says "hi". (this is presuming Mark reads my blogs? - that reminds me - met more people that read this - it does scare me that people read this - it is just me venting my emotions to myself - or something like that!!!) Maybe it is a bottle of wine not a glass - umm - must check the fridge!

Sooo where was I - oh cheering people on pretending to take photos - well the batteries had run out now so saved it for peops I knew - and I had alot of people posing and smiling for me - sorry! Oh get back on track - it started to rain and rain and rain and the more I told people it was just a shower, it got heavier and heavier - then Matt pulled out - hooray I had a play mate. We spent the rest of the day hiding from the weather and chillin in the van, drinking tea and following everyone around. Trouble was we knew the top racers and all the rest so we spent hours at Fleet Moss Check Point waiting, luckily Hannah had supplied me with choclates (posh belgium ones) and the local co-op had supplied me with cookies - so we spent the day getting fat in the van watching everyone freeze!

Jez Bragg and Sarah Rowell were focosed when they were cold (well supposed it also had something to do with them being focused top runners and in the lead!), Andy ranking was frozen and bordering on hyperthermia, Swatts was moaning about a stomach bug, but he didn't moan as much as Mick Kenyon, he just didn't want to be there - he'd forgotton his ipod, was running alone and I think it got to him! (It was his camera I had borrowed and I probably have all of his agony on film!). Hannah, Rachael, Claire and Helen were just bubbly whatever happened. Will complained of not training enough. Bruce said "hi" - another converted cyclist - neither of us knew each of us was now into running. Paul, usually in an orange wig, dumped his wig for a more conventional warm hat and several more friends pulled out in severe weather conditions or cos their bodies just packed up. BUT I had a great day seeing them all through the checkpoints and cheering them on - I think I got just as much of a high from this as running in it!

Next was putting the flags and banners up at the finish, cheering the top runners in, cajouling Andy R into getting a quick shower, not having any food and joining me and Matt for last orders in Grassington whilst cheering in all the top girls and and the rest of the crew out there in the dark!

Eventaully I got to bed at 2am, in the van, for only about 3 hours before getting up to perform miracles on knackered bodies by offering sports massage to all! I now need a thumb massage, but the wine has helped!

Great weekend - great event from a another perpective, oh and I've eaten too many cookies!

Biking and Winning

I'm back - it may have been a local event but you have to be in it to win it - and I was - and I won it! Oh sooooo happy and full of adrenalin and I rode hard and I loved it. God good stuff makes a difference doesn't it??? If just feel great again - but am gonna stick to my guns and not run in Fellsman - scared of falling off the adranalin buzz again - not good at coping with a bad race obviously!!
Better go - woodworking classes on Thursdays!!! Poor wood will get an adranalin fueled chizzeling tonight!

Back from the dead!

Wow my legs recovered - never thought I could trash my legs that badly - thought those days had gone and I could do these races! Anyway it took a few days to be able to walk again, then a few more to recover the dead leg feeling and then I spent bank holiday weekend biking and running - I am back! Happy again - I didn't disgrace myself on the bike - I got up the hills, fell off on the rocky bits and pushed through the windy bits - god Sunday was windy and cold! Where did that summer go - I'd worn shorts! So anyway I was pleased I could still move and so went running on Bank Holiday Monday with Karen Davison, team Run Like a Girl's newest recruit, she is far too fast for me to run with normally but she did the Fling too and trashed her legs too and if you send her off to open all the gates you can just about keep up!!! Also ran with some other local friends Hillary Bloor, who now bikes more than runs, she's done the opposite to me and a new friend Kim, who has just moved into the Peaks like me. I just about stayed with them all up on Kinder, looks like I keep finding friends to run with that are just ahead of me all the time - must seek out some slow people one day - make me feel good!!! Mind you I spend my bike rides going as fast as I can to keep up with the front riders as I know this improves my biking, but I just can't seem to do this one foot, maaybe need a lighter carbon pair of feet, my lead lined ones are getting a bit worn out!
I am (so far) sticking to my guns and not running in Fellsman this weekend - I really want to as I like the event and the hills are just my sort of running BUT if I run in it like I did in Fling - it will make me cry and I'll hate it and never want to do it again - so will I stick to my rest from the races or will I cave in???? Ummm..........................