Photos from Navigation Course

Sunday night and tonight, I just did my 10k route. Nice and relaxed and getting ready for a good session tomorrow.

Here are some great photos from the navigation course taken by Steven Fallon. He has kindly let me put them on my blog.

Mountain Marathon/Navigating course with Steven Fallon

Yesterday was simply awesome!

6 of us including me from Giffnock North met Steven at the top car park at Midlothian Ski center in the Pentlands, Edinburgh. Now we weren't there to navigate the ski slope! We were there for a crash course in navigating the hills on foot and it was basically a complete guide on how to do a mountain marathon.

First of all we went into Steven's office for an hour. This way he could find out our levels of experience and we could get to grips with the basics. We then headed for the hills were we spent the rest of the day. It was great getting tips and techniques from Steven of measuring distances and also running techniques. For instance the best way to go through thick heather is to use a galloping technique like a horse.  There were these golden nuggets of information Steven would tell us all day.  You may have got the impression I really enjoyed it - You would be right!

The thing I enjoyed most though, was that once we all knew the basics we were basically replicating what happens in a mountain marathon - walking, running, eating and finding checkpoints.

How mountain marathons work is that you don't know where the location of the event is until the week before. All we know is that it is 3 hours north of Glasgow/Edinburgh this year. At the start you get given co-ordinates and have to mark them on the map. It then turns into a kinda game of golf. The more accurate you are at plotting the points and using the map and compass. The more likely you are to find the checkpoints easier.

Each checkpoint represents the hole until you complete the full round for the day. Then the next day you do it all again. Checkpoints are not always visible as it could be cloudy or over a hill or in a forest. So that's where the map and compass come in. Yesterday for example, the source of the burns were some of the checkpoints. The thing was the burns were so dried up that it wasn't really obvious and unlike a mountain marathon there was no flags or anything to indicate where it was. So really it was harder yesterday than LAMM will be on the day. The reason being streams are usually made up of lots of little streams joining together. Where as the map does not show this and would just show the one main one. Therefore there is more than one source to the main stream. The thing is though where the exact checkpoint is - is like the hole in golf. If you get on the green which is a wider target, more often than not, you can see the flag.

The locations are rotated just to keep things interesting and also to make things fair as people who live near the area that it is; are more likely to know the mountains better than people who haven't been (best routes to take, etc).

Steven Fallon doesn't just do courses for runner/mountain marathons. He also does basic/advanced navigating course for beginners right through to expert for walkers. He also has a book which goes through every area of Scotland and lists the best hill races and hill walks/runs. Starting from the easiest routes in a given area building up to the more difficult ones.

Navigating is a bit like driving. You can read up on what to do.  However the best way to learn navigating is to actually do it and learn from experience.

Yesterday in a word: AWESOME

Back on something other than track

Yesterday I went up to the club and it was one of my favourite sessions. Why? Because it was a long one!

Started off with a mile warm up, then 3 times 2 miles. I say 2 miles but really they are all just below 2 miles as the end points are more convenient than the actual 2 mile marks. I got talking to Hugh who is the one I was surprised to beat at the Nationals. We were talking about the Tuesday track session and how maybe its not the best thing for me as I am doing longer distances. I mean, I've got a friend who runs 400 metre races and he does this session we did Tuesday just past! Most the people that go on a Tuesday are doing 40 times that distance in races - at least. I have read some blogs by guys in America and they do track sessions for longer distances but they do mile reps, at least, on the track.

So he suggested that I do, 3 mile warm up, 3 times 1 mile reps then, 3 mile warm down. So guess what I'm doing next Tuesday! probably find a hill to throw into the mix  :-)

Today I went for a run round Gogurburn with Alex. Unfortunately he has had an ankle injury which he has been icing. He got about half a mile in and felt it hurting so sensibly turned round and walked back. I continued on, although I had heavy legs from the previous day, it's not difficult to keep going when your going round the fun cross country style route round Gogar!

So another 2 good days and looking forward to the weekend.

Here is a song to celebrate the rain falling on my head today - is there anything more refreshing?!

Back on track!

Literally and metaphorically :-)

The last few days I am happy to report have been up days. On Tuesday, I was at home all day doing some articles for the work newsletter. Then I went to the track at night. It was great.  We did pyramids of 200, 300, 400, 500, 400, 300, 200 meters. Then did it all again. I really pushed it and it was a really good session. Even more pleasing was that my sister-in-law went to the track for the first time and enjoyed it.

Today I had a great day at work.

I'd like to say a big congratulations to JK for winning the 'Top Motivator Award' by the Evening Times which is Glasgow paper. Tonight proved to me that its not just kids he motivates. After reading his latest post on the train home about how he did 10 miles today. It put the figure in my head and motivated me to do 10 miles (cheers John!). So I racked my brain thinking of a route and went all the way back to my Lochaber training last year where I sometimes did a mid week 10.7/8 mile loop. So I did that tonight and took it nice and easy. I feel a lot better for it too!

Looking forward to another action packed day tomorrow.

Here is my track of the moment - love the play on the word 'stranger'

A day of 3 thirds

Yesterday I woke up and my legs were feeling it from the Nationals. So I rested for most of the day just typing up running related articles and went for a wee 3 mile run at night to work away some of the rustiness.

Today I was back at work. Usually the the expression is 'a game of 2 halves' for football. Well today was more like a game of ice hockey as it was split into thirds.

The morning was brilliant, good laugh and really productive.

The afternoon I dipped to a low that I haven't experienced that low really since the holiday. I tried to get myself out of it but any attempt just didn't seem to work. I was still productive but just wasn't my normal self. I think I almost peaked to early in the day and wore myself out. When I left work I was wondering how long my run would be tonight.

On the way home though I started listening to the Red Hot Chili Peppers album 'Live from Hyde Park'. I could gradually feel myself picking up through the journey home. By the time I got off the last train, I cranked it up full volume and getting the positivity back. Then when I was out running I got into a nice and relaxed rhythm and managed 8 miles. On the run I was thinking about my plans for tomorrow which I think is going to be a better day. So a combination of music and running got me through :-)

Here is another song which I was listening to today and is one of my favourite tracks of the noughties

19/02/11 - National Cross Country Championships

I LOVE IT when a plan comes together – Hannibal from A-Team

What a day. It started early as I wanted to support one of my clubmates who was doing a 24 hour spinathon. I didn’t actually do the spinner, just chatted for a bit before I headed for park run. I have to say considering she had already been going for 15 hours when I saw her, she looked fresh and was in great spirits which was great to see.

I then headed down to park run. I wasn’t actually assigned a job this week – I just acted as a general dogs body providing extra help at the start and the funnel. It was fun and a good laugh as always.

I headed home had a snack before heading to Falkirk with White Lies new album on loud to get me psyched up for the race. I arrived just in time to see the Women completing their first lap. I cheered on the Giffnock women and new ultra buddy Silke who was in her Greenock Glenpark colours.

I went for a warm up then headed for the start. There was a 30 second applause at the start for 3 runners who had unfortunately passed away. I then went through the course in my head and the plan of action. The gun went off and I blanked out everyone and just concentrated on finding a nice sustainable pace for the first lap. I knew from my warm up that the course was a lot more muddy and chewed up this year. So I re-evalutaed my expectations, as a PB was probably not on the cards. So the first lap was all about working out the best line to take – through the middle of the deepest mud or to the left or the right. Then you have to decide how far left or right! All part of the fun and I was pleased that I was getting really muddy on the first lap.

After the second hill the course flattens out then goes on an up and down dip. I used my hill running knowledge here and went to the far left going down the hill then went diagonally up and right. This meant that I was going up a less steep gradient than I would have gone up if I chose to go straight up. I was running along the other side of the banking and looked over to where I had just come from and realised there was very few runners and I was quite far back.  This was the plan though. At the corner just heading left where Callender house is. Hazel who is David L from my club’s partner was there so I threw the gloves over to her. As now I was getting into it. I started gradually overtaking. I think I must have been 2^nd or 3^rd last Giffnock at this point. 

Now I figured out short and long term targets. Short was the person in front of me regardless of club. Long was the person in front of me in a Giffnock vest.  I went up the last big hill and Alan the team captain was there and shouted encouragement -  he always seems to know what to say at the right times to get me going!  I kept going with my short term targets all the way round then all the way round the second lap. Up the last big hill Alan shouted “catch Neil” who was in sight but I still had a bit of ground to make up. Just on the straight before the home straight on the second lap. Lots of cheering was going on. It was the leader. Now last year it was a Shettleston guy and Alistair Hay of Central going for it neck and neck. This year it was a guy from Kilbarchan who absolutely romped home to victory. In fact second and third didn’t overtake me. They were crossing the line as I was turning up the hill for my third lap. At last as I was going up that hill I overtook Neil. Next in sight but still far off was David L. I remember before I went up the hill into the forest. I saw Hazel and joked that I had a fishing rod and was reeling him in. It wasn’t until after the steep up down going along the straight to Callendar house when I overtook him.

Next up was Hugh. Who said he hasn’t been training much recently. I knew instantly when I saw him he wasn’t performing like he was capable of. A) because he is a sub 19 minute 5k runner usually and B)I should be nowhere near him!  But up the last major hill I overtook him. Next up was Billy but he was way ahead and I thought there was a slim chance of catching him. I stayed positive though and went back to my short term targets and knocked them off one by one. Then in the finishing straight I realised Billy was next up! I cranked on the gas into full sprint mode giving it everything I had left. I must have been about 40/50 meters to the line when I drew level. He glanced at me and then also went into full sprint mode. He was getting away when the blaze turned to grass and he tripped up and fell over. I didn’t even try not to laugh! This was brilliant! What a finish Billy got overtaken by another guy too but there must have been seconds between the 3 of us.

We had post race analysis and I was pleased to get under the hour although not sure my time exactly as I forgot to stop my watch at the finish due to the madness! We all shook hands and I reckon Billy will be back later in the season for a revenge race – I can’t wait!

Overall a great day, I appreciated all the support – It was very nice of the Giffnock women to stay behind and support the men. Also the wives, girlfriends and Alan the men’s team captain for all the motivation round the course.  And thanks to the marshalls, organisers and everyone else involved in making this a great event.

Scottish Ultra Marathon Series (SUMs) Analysis

Today I walked up Ben A’an which is near Aberfoyle. The route was really nice and although it was very cloudy and misty. I could still see the surrounding lochs from the top. If anyone wants to see photos, feel free to add me on Facebook (Link on down the right of this page) if you are not already a friend. I was by myself today as my hill walking buddy Steven is busy with his new business which is selling flags for the Royal Wedding.

 I've decided to do some posts on how I view the Scottish Ultra Marathon series after its debut year in 2010 and also thoughts on the Highland Fling this year. Here is what I'm covering in this post so feel free to pick and choose what you read.

Please note = When doing calculations -  To make it easier for me and since I am just doing examples I've said last place gets 0 points where as the SUMS system currently awards 1 point to last place. 

1.     What are the SUMS and how does it work?

2.     Ultras a team sport?

3.       2010 – The First year of the SUMS

4.     Highland Fling 2011 

5.     Grant Jeans

6.     V40/V50 men/ women

7.     Other Races in the SUMS

8.      Is SUMS system unfair on Women?

1.       What are the SUMS

The SUMS series consists of 9 races throughout the year of different lengths with the best 4 results to count for each athlete. As ultras are different distances, participant numbers, terrain and lots of other variables. To make it fair - each Race Winner gets 500 points with the person coming last getting 1 point. The rest of the points are divided up in between. For example if 5 people turned up to one of the races here is how the points would be divided roughly under the current system. 1^st – 500 points, 2^nd – 400 points, 3^rd – 300 points, 4^th 200 points, 5^th 1 point.  

Normally the SUMS series have full entry lists but some ultras out with the SUMS can get numbers as low as 5. In fact in the Kintyre Way 110k ultra in 2009, 1 man named George Reid was the only person in the ultra race and he completed it. There was a relay race happening at the same time too.

2.       Ultras a team sport?

The SUMs series is a great idea and makes the sport in Scotland a lot more interesting. Eventually I can see this being like Formula one, with potential team tactics amongst clubs and runners. I see this happening already in road races in Scotland. Take the Greenock 5 mile road race the other week . Was it a coincidence Bella Road runners had quite a few guys finish together? I don’t think so, I think they set out for the team gold in the first place and good on them for getting it. Clubs in Scotland are still quite thin on ultra runners but you can see a few clubs starting to get together ultra teams for example the likes of Carnegie, Garscube and Carnethy to name a few. Just look at Carnegie Harriers at the 2009 West Highland Way race. Would have Scott Bradley won if it wasn’t for fellow club mate Ritchie Cunningham pulling him through a hard time? If Jan Lantink who came second, had some of his Dutch buddies who are the same standard there would they have pulled him through to victory? I think it would have been a lot closer but kudos to Carnegie for working as a team. I think the team element will only expand as the SUMs series becomes more popular and attracts more people to step up to ultra distance. 

3.       2010 was the first year of the SUMS

I think the method of calculation on the whole is fair because ultras are any distances over 26.2 miles so no race/races in my opinion should get special treatment.  To me the West Highland Way (95 miles) race already acts as a bonus ball for top runners anyway at the moment as a sub 20 hour WHW in 2010 gave 12^th position out of 109 – 449 points in SUMS

Where as a sub 10 hour fling last year (53 miles) which to me is about the equivalent would be -  40th/271 participants – 436 points in SUMS.

When you look at some of the categories last year there is a single point separating some positions. Grant Jeans won overall men’s competition by 5 points. So every point is valuable.

4.       Highland Fling 2011

This year there is the added twist that the Highland Fling (First 53 miles of the West Highland Way) is so important by being made Scottish/UK trail championships and also is where British team selection for another event will come from. This means top runners where some will have no intention of doing the SUMS will push down the rankings of people who are doing the SUMS. Or will they? This is where the fun bit comes in and the unpredictability unless you know everyone who is running it/how their training is going and their predicted time which is exactly what the outcome will be. In other words with the Fling it is very hard to do the maths. One thing that we can do is work with statistics and probability.  There are clearly going to be more top runners ( Let’s say top runners for men are sub 10 and women sub 11) running this year than ever before. I think that’s a fair assumption to say there will be more top runners this year.  

Therefore more top end athletes will push women and v50 men in particular further down the places rankings than what they would have placed last year. But this doesn’t mean that they will get fewer points in the SUMS I don’t think. If there is the same amount of new people entering the fling, men and women who are just planning on getting round, let’s say 11 hours plus for both. This will in turn make the top end runners receive more points. So the only way to even think how many points you’ll get in the Fling compared to other SUMS events is to work out how many people are running it, then count how many people you think will finish ahead of you given the entry list then do the SUMS (which is easier the better you are!). Of course it’s all estimation and you just don’t know how people will perform on the day. Take Richie Cunningham for example. He dropped out of the Fling last year then went on to win the West Highland Way race 2 months later. This shows that clearly the Highland Fling last year was just an off day because you can't fluke an ultra win especially not a 95 mile one!

5.       Grant Jeans

The question is could Grant Jeans who came in the top 3 for all the races he ran in the SUMS series last year – in fact he had 3, 1^st places, 1 second and 1 third work out the best strategy for winning SUMS. He has his name down for the Highland Fling this year. Now don’t get me wrong, he could win. But compared to the races he ran last year the competition is a lot greater. Plus this will really put to the test how is on technical stretches of trail and hills as we already know what he is capable of on roads and less technical trail. Personally I think he is doing this race to try and get into the British team rather than for SUMS. And he'll know that if he picks the same races as last year that there is a good chance he could win 4 of the other SUMS races (Excluding West Highland Way)  meaning maximum of 2000 points all being well. Therefore I think the only people who may be disadvantaged in the SUMS by doing the Highland Fling, will be the people looking to get the maximum 2000 points in the SUMS. The rest in my opinion should benefit from higher points if they perform on the day and that the number of “53 miles in one go, is an awesome achievement in itself” runners is higher than the number of top runners.

Last year 1 runner – Craig Stewart won and was the only runner in the field to get under 8 hours. I reckon this year you might have to go under 8 hours just to get in the top ten if some of the guys on the start list run to what their capable of. Maybe it’s more realistic to think that 5 will go under 8 hours.

6.       V40/V50 Men/Women

There are some of the V40 men who are more than capable of winning the Highland Fling. This has been recognised by the Highland Fling organisers and anyone in the M40 category that think they can do the course in under 9 hours can move to the Senior men’s race starting at the later time with approval from the governing body/Fling organisers.

Of course with V50 men and women there are some exceptions and as are people in those categories who do compete for the top positions in ultras. The above is more generally speaking.

7.       Other Races in the SUMS

So will the SUMS come down to the lesser well known races? Tricky one – All the ultras apart from the Highland Fling and not sure about the Glasgow to Edinburgh double,  have limited entries and won’t attract the same amount of top runners as the fling. More runners will get higher points in the Fling though because more people are doing it. An entry list with say 100, there will be less people who get the higher points because  50^th/100^th in say Clyde Stride will get 250 points than 50^th/potentially 400 entrants in the Fling would get 437 points.

It will be interesting to see if anyone works out tactics for the SUMS to try and maximise points by doing certain smaller/bigger races based on their strengths and potential opponents. One of the biggest variables is who turns up on the day and how they perform – but with many entry lists being published makes it tempting for the top dogs to do some maths and statistics if they wish. I know John Kynaston worked out what he needed to do in the River Ayr Race last year to get 3rd M50. I wonder how many others did the same

8.       Is SUMS system unfair on Women?

Personally I think the current system is unfair on women. The reason being with the current system women do not have their own points table. They are mixed in with the men. I would have understood the system if women were competing for the same prizes as the men but they don’t, they have their own set of prizes.  So for example: Lucy Colquhoun won every race she ran in the SUMS last year. This means that if there was a separate table for women she would have earned the maximum 2000 points. But because women are mixed in; she finished with 1897 points. She still won but surely if you win every race you run you should get maximum points. The reason for this is because all the women who are awarded points below Lucy in races depend on how many men there are between Lucy and second place, then how many men there are between the 2^nd and 3^rd place women. Some races there might be 20 men between 1^st and second women. The next year in the same race there could be 1 man between first and second women.

In other words this is totally random and depends on how many men turn up on the day.  I’ll do a quick example with the Women’s Highland Fling last year – Lucy was 5^th overall and 1^st women. Sharon Law was 26^th overall and second women out of 59 female finishers. Using the current system Lucy got 493 points and Sharon got 454 points. If there was a women’s table Lucy would have got 500 points and Sharon would have got 491 points. That is a massive difference of 39 points difference and could have made the women’s competition a lot closer like the men’s competition and also fairer as it does not depend on how many men turn up. The same applies to V50 men as all the other men and women competing in a race mean that points awarded for V50 men depend on how many other people finish between them.

From this we can see that although it appears the Men’s competition and Women’s competition appear to be the same and fair. With further inspection the system works differently for men and women because where the men finish effects how many points the women get. The women have less impact on the Men’s point system at the moment because it is only really Lucy that finishes in the top 5 of ultra races in Scotland. So this has little impact on the Men’s points system overall.

This is just a theory and I may be totally wrong and missed out some of the maths which do indeed make the current system logical and if there is please shout and tell me to shut it! ha

If this theory is correct which I think it is – would it be easy to fix? I think so because most results these days are done in Excel. So if there wasn’t already, all that needs to be done is add an extra column which states whether the competitor is male or female. Use filters to filter out the men, and copy the women’s results into another spreadsheet, then apply the formula to calculate the points. Then do the same for the men and filter out the women.

Roll on SUMs 2011 J

Double dose...

...of running to report.

Yesterday I had a really good session with the Psychiatrist nurse, must have been chatting for about an hour and a half. At night I did an easy 4 1/2 miles ticking along quite nicely.

Tonight I went down to the club where due to the Nationals this weekend, 7 of us did the traditional pre-race Thursday session of the Club Handicap route. It was great chatting about the up and coming race and last years race.

Last year I finished the 12k in 56.56. This year I reckon I should be under 55 minutes. But I'll go into the race with the approach which seemed to work for me last year with races generally. Just not to put any pressure on myself, take the first lap reasonably comfortably and gradually try and get into the race in the second lap before the third lap trying to pick as many people off as I can. That's the plan so wait and see!

I am really excited about it, I love the course and I hope the juniors and women chew up grass lots for the senior men so I can finish the race with mud all over my legs.

I can only hope!

Step by Step

Today I made another big step in my road to recovery by returning to work. Who I have to say have been brilliant. They are just letting me do my own thing, getting on with the job at hand and even said I could leave early if I was getting tired out.

Of course my mind is in ultra mode these days so I was like -" I'm doing the whole day!" ha

I felt I coped well today and has given me strength. On the running front tonight I just went on a 3 miler as it really hit me how tired I was from the effort today. But I have day off tomorrow to chill and an appointment with a psychiatrist nurse just to talk things through and keep me on track before getting back to work again on Thursday.

I just need to keep patient and I'll get back to where I was.

I realise this blog has got a bit 'heavy' so to lighten things up here is a quote from my yearbook at school I was famous for saying:

"I'll be killing 2 stones with one bird with that one"

Yes you read it right! ha!

Inspiration video

I did my usual 10k tonight which I haven't done in a while. It felt really good both the rain falling on my head and physically. I took a day off yesterday to recover from my long run and I feel springy and totally recovered today which is good.

I watched the nutrition video and a wee bit of Dr Cuthill's video but I stopped because I realised I wasn't taking it in. This was always my problem in uni. I would go to lectures take in the first couple of things then my mind goes walkies until I start concentrating again and then they are on to something different. It's not the lecturers fault as some people can absorb all the information in the lecture and can re-sight all the points afterwards. That's why I eventually I took notes in uni. I found by reading things after, I absorb them better which is why I'll be reading the slides instead because all the stuff that is said in those videos is very important. Learning by reading and learning by doing are just my preferred methods of learning.

The exception though with me is inspirational speakers - I can listen to them all day. Chris Moon should take a bow - that was inspirational!  I'm so glad John recorded this as whenever I need inspiration I'll watch this. I was going to pick out quotes but there are just too many.

For me though the thing which makes Chris Moon and others like him really inspirational. Is how he deals with being an amputee. He is a funny guy, has the right attitude (see 10 mins 30sec to 11 mins 10secs but I recommend all of it), he can laugh at himself and he has done things some people don't even think is possible.

Respect.

WHW - 12-02-11

This time last year I was up Carnethy hill watching the hill race. I was half tempted to go again - but running on the West Highland Way was more appealing.

I had heard from Norry that last time he was up there, Beinglass farm was closed for refurbishment. So I phoned them on the off chance, that since it was getting refurbished if we could park there. But no one was there/answering so Drovers Inn it was. I drove up and met Ann, Sue, and Helen there. They put some stuff in my boot then onwards to Auchentyre. We set off about 9am where they were planning to run to Inversnaid and back and I was aiming to do as much as possible.

On Friday I bought I hydro pack as Sue said it would be a lot easier. So thought no better time to try it than the present. The journey up through Crainlarich was awesome. The forecast was snow but in fact it was very mild with high clouds so we got some cracking views. There was still some snow but not enough for spikes. Then after about 3-4 miles I managed to make the nozzle for my hydro pack fall off. I put it back on but I could only get little bits of water out and even that was a great effort. So I was going to Beinglass farm probably having drank 200mls in the first 10 miles. Not an ideal start to a long run especially as I usually try and drink 750 mls for 10 mile stretches or 500 mls for 7 mile stretches.

It was the first time I had been on the section between Crainlarich and Beinglass farm and I really enjoyed it. I wasn't sure what to expect in terms of terrain and paths. There was also an awesome waterfall which I'll need to get a picture of next time I'm on that stretch.

Just before getting to Beinglass Farm, Helen fell awkwardly on her ankle and was limping for quite a bit. But she still managed to keep going. Once we got to Beinglass Farm we had a chat about a plan of action. I had to go to the car and get bottles of water and dump the hydro pack. So we decided that while I would do that, they would get to Inversnaid and I would turn round when I met them on their return. So I headed off to the car, had a bannana restocked with frusli bars. I was eating marmite sandwiches which I used a lot last year. But I don't know if it was because of the lack of water I was taking in. But I found them really hard to swallow.  I also changed into my Hokas to give them a good test on the trails, since there were no icy patches on the high ground.

Off I went to Inversnaid, with some fantastic views down Loch Lomond. I got to the fun bit along the shoreline and found there were a lot of branches along the path from all the bad weather. So I cleared some of the bigger branches, as I was thinking - can't have the lead runners in the Fling getting injured because of branches!

I was wondering how far I would get before meeting them and it must have been about 200-300 meters short of the hotel as I could see it. They had a nice break though. On the way back I started to feel it and I am pretty much certain it's down to not hydrating early enough. I was tripping up quite a bit on the technical stuff. I have to remember that I have to lift my foot up a wee bit more with the Hokas as they have that extra inch on them. But they are fine on the less technical sections and road

I got to Beinglass Farm and ran back to the Drovers Inn, making I reckon about 25.5 mile including getting to the Drovers Inn. The ladies went on to Carmyle Cottage where I met them so they could re-stock before I headed home and they headed to Auchentyre.

Good News, Good News, Good News, Tinto and Clyde Stride

I went to see the doctor yesterday and he is happy for me to go back on a phased return, with the aim of getting back to full time in a month.  He was really complementary, saying I did the right thing catching it early and getting help. He said there are many people who out there who don't realise they have a problem. To be honest it was easier for me to realise I had a problem this time as I've been through it before. Last time it took me a lot longer to realise I had a problem. At the same time getting a compliment from my doctor is awesome! I'll still be seeing the psychiatrist just in case.

It will be a bit different going back to work this time as last time this happened all the problems started in work and it really took a lot of courage to go back. This time work had nothing to do with it so I am half expecting some questions but I feel good and ready for going back and I'm looking forward to seeing everyone again as they are a great bunch of people to work with.

Yesterday I went up Tinto Hill with my friend Steven and his brother. It was a lovely day, no wind, 360 views and could see right into Glasgow. No racing up it this time just a nice relaxing stroll. Steven fancied going to New Lanark after to have a coffee so I was only to happy to go back to the place where I finished my first ultra. I didn't explain fully to them why we went to a certain patch of grass but told them this is where the race finished. I don't think anyone could relate unless they have finished their first ultra. Especially one where I had such a good experience.  I don't think I really appreciated at the time what I achieved - probably due to tiredness. But looking back it is one of my greatest achievements and New Lanark will always be special to me. Not many races out there apart from ultras that you get a handshake from the Race Director. Also it was great my parents being there to see me finish.

I know the race was meant to finish in Bonnington Linn but didn't I think because of roadworks or something. But this year I'm still going to walk back down to New Lanark after the finish. I know I keep referring to the Clyde Stride video and said at the end  Temper Trap was "Partly appropriate"as we went up river, not down. Well if you listen to Aerosmith's - Amazing in full - you'll realise that, that song is fully appropriate!

Let the good times roll :-)

Ahhhhhh, that's better - Now back to RUNNING!

I feel like I've just let off a huge fart in that last post and feels so much better. Thank you for all the comments/emails. Now time to get back to what this blog is all about - Running, Running and other adventures!

I've been thinking a lot about other races I'm going to do this year and also my strategy for the fling.

Feb - National cross country - I love the course in Falkirk and I really hope there is a good turnout from my club as it is part of our club championships
March I'm still torn between the D33 and the Alloa half which are on the same weekend.
April - I might do Tom Scott 10 miler as a tune up race. The Highland Fling I've decided I'm going to try and take it as unseriously as possible. I realise there is aspects you have to take seriously - food, hydration and I want to finish below the cut offs but that's it. This way it takes the pressure right off me and hopefully I can have a nice relaxing run/walk up to Tyndrum with some pain to make it an authentic ultra experience.
May - I was going to do Goatfell but then the club announced that part of the club champs would be the Fire Service 10k on the same day. So I've decided to do that as a tribute to the great jobs our firemen/women do.
June - Could not miss the Kilpatricks hill race! and will be doing LAMM too.
July - Clyde Stride!
August - Not decided yet, maybe Lomonds of Fife hill race
September - Hardmoors 60 - Will be good to get a 60 miler in before hopeful WHW training for 2012
October - Pentlands Skyline and/or Mugdock trail race if its still going
November - Tinto time!
December - West Districts cross country

and some relay races thrown in for good measure

So an exciting year ahead :-)

What does Jim Carey, Stephen Fry, Axl Rose and me have in common?

We all have Bi Polar Dis-order!

I don’t think I’ve ever posted on non running/fitness stuff before in this blog but here is the exception. The aim of this post is to re-visit what happened on holiday as I realise anyone who doesn’t really know me, I imagine will be a bit confused. Explaining what happened to people I know find it confusing enough! I mean saying “I burst in tears on the slopes” then needing to go to the doctor and psychiatrist seems a bit extreme. Saying that was more in the hope people from work might read it as they know what I have been through before rather than being aimed at runners and so people at work would understand why I was off.

I’ve decided to finally blog about it. 

A) I’m not ashamed/embarrassed by what happened or who I am, 

B) I have a very small audience (which I am grateful for and the way I like it) so it is not like I am telling everyone. 

C) I am going to try and summarise it as much as I can because the full story would take a full book. 

D) This feels like part of my recovery documenting my thoughts.

In 2008 I experienced the most difficult period of my life. In a build up over 6 months reaching a climax in July. A lot of stuff happened to me which to anyone else, people would just say are coincidences. But it got to the point where everything just felt like a coincidence. Things people say or do, TV shows, songs on the radio (relate to lyrics), signs, hearing voices. I could go on but I’ll give you two examples. In June 2008 my friends took me to see a film called “Wanted” which was about a guy who got stressed out over his job and was battling his demons. It is one of the few films I watched the whole year. At the time this is what I was going through at work too. Another example was when I went out for a walk in July and saw a sign outside a house up for sale by company called “King Sturge” who I had never heard of. But what did my mind focus in on? -  “Stu”. Now I am sure the company have been going for years but this was the first time I had heard of them. This is 2 examples of coincidences which on their own are totally innocent but this kind of thing was happening all the time in a 3 week or so period end of June/July 2008. There are some other things which happened which led to getting help but they are long stories in themselves.

 They all seemed to link in with my life and it still is the most horrible thing I have ever experienced and I don’t wish it to happen to anyone. My Dad always said if you start thinking like this to treat it as an irrational thought which is what I tried to do.  I didn’t know what was going to happen, I feared for my life on several occasions which is why I had to move to my parents for a good 2 months. I was really scared by what was happening and was extremely paranoid. It wasn’t easy for my family either seeing me go through this and I know I put them through a lot. But what I was going through I felt I had no control over. 

In July 2008 I started seeing the doctor, psychiatrist and I was a assigned a key worker from Esteem and was off work for 3 months. I was put on a 2 year program with Esteem where I saw my key worker once a month which was eventually reduced to every 3 months. I was diagnosed initially with short term psychosis. Now I hate the name because if I told people I had psychosis and they didn't know what it was, people would think I’m a psycho. This is so far from the truth it is unbelievable. I wouldn’t harm a fly. Psychosis is where you lose touch with reality and where you feel like you’re in your own wee world. Now to me everything I saw, heard etc, was my reality. But it wasn’t normal and my thought processes were not my normal self. One of the triggers to my irrational thinking seems to be a lack of sleep. 

After going through pretty much my life history with my key worker I was diagnosed with Bi Polar Disorder which I much preferred to psychosis.  My past seems to make so much more sense now.  As the name suggests Bi-polar is where your mood can go to extremes – happy to depression, nervous to excitement. I have had this my whole life it has just never been diagnosed till 2008 where things all seemed to go wrong. The thing is it works both ways. I have been so high on life people would think I’m on drugs. The irony is I have been prescribed drugs for the last 2 years which stabalises my mood and make me appear normal, if that’s possible, ha!  And they worked for the last 2 half years as I have had the best times in my whole life and I'm not just talking about my running times :-) – at work, with family and friends too.  I certainly can’t remember any bad times till recently. I put this down to running as well as I honestly think that running has a stabilising effect on my mood. Take a look at my Clyde stride video for instance. That was me when I was taking drugs and after 4 miles  I was talking about my nervous/excitement levels. The video shows at this point that I’m still full of excitement. Can you imagine what I was like at the start?!

Just before I went away on holiday, I saw some signs of the psychosis starting again but I just took my Dad’s advice and laughed it off as an irrational thought. That is how I have dealt with Bi polar. I like making jokes about it, eg -  like it has its ups and downs.  I also realise I am lucky to have a disorder that has positive effects too.  This time everything came on a lot more suddenly and it felt like the drugs were all of a sudden not working. I have spoken to my line manager at work about the week before I went away and he noticed I was acting a little different but I felt totally fine. The first half of the holiday I could feel it happening but again I just laughed it off and put it down as an irrational thought. That was until it just got too much and that is where I broke down in tears. My tactic of dealing with it this time was that if I see any signs or messages through tv, radio etc I would either turn it off or go up to my room which is where I spent a lot of the remainder of the holiday just resting and chilling out as much as possible. My head goes through a lot when this happens so rest is so important.  This time was different to last time as last time I was going into the unknown and I really had no clue how things were going to end up. Of course this time I still don’t know how things will unfold. But from experience I have dealt with it so much better. I got help immediately, I tried to get back to normal as quickly as possible, they changed my medication which seems to be working and I kept running.  Also I got through it last time so I knew I could get through it again. 

It’s times like this I truly appreciate good friends and family for getting me through this tough time and I really feel now I am close to being back to my normal self which is a 3 week recovery as oppose to 3 months. They are the reasons why I wanted to get through this as quickly as possible. I could say thank you to everyone who has helped me. But what’s the best way to thank them? Not with words but to get back to my normal self and see me happy again and making other people happy. That’s the aim. 

06/02/11 - Renfrewshire 5 mile Road Championships

I haven't done a proper road race since the Great Scottish Run last year. Therefore I was going into today a bit "in the dark" as to what to expect performance wise. I thought I'd be doing well to get under 35 minutes, should get under 40 minutes and be no more than 45 minutes.

I don't normally do 2 races in a month but at the moment I'm just doing what I feel like and I felt like really going for it so I chose to do this race. Another reason is because it is part of the club championships so I knew Giffnock folk would be there. I know I won't come anywhere near competing for any trophies or anything but I still like competing against people in my club and wearing the vest.

The Race


There was 8 men representing Giffnock today and top 10 get points for the Club Championships so I knew I was in the points. I started towards the back and found a good pace. I wore my garmin but it was more to check what distance I was at as there were no mile markers. Early on it was clear that I would be racing against Martin and James. I was ahead of them for a bit. But when the route goes off out of Battery Park heading east along the promenade. Martin and James took off. I thought that's fine I'll run my own race. They must have gained a good 400 meters at least on me but I could always see them. The promenade section is a long out and back. When heading back into Battery Park I caught up with James and managed to overtake him. He said after he just went out too quick. I was slowly reeling in Martin but in the end I just ran out of path as he finished just a place above me, and it can't have been more than 10 seconds difference.

I finished in 34.50! Delighted and I really feel I gave it all I had today. I have never done a 5 mile race before so a PB.  The pace per mile average is 6.54 which is pretty much my 10k pb pace. This is even better as I've hardly done any speedwork since November so looking forward to see how much I can improve this year. I was 5th Giffnock member out of 8. If I had pipped Martin I would have counted in the team competition.

Thanks to Inverclyde for putting on a great event. My mum for supporting along with the other Giffnock supporters. Also thanks to Alan the team captain for organising and getting us registered.

The Beauty of Ultra Running

This is a bit of a random post but just feel like blogging at the moment as I'm really excited about my running and other peoples! I realise it is a bit long so I have split it into sections so you can pick and choose what you want to read. By the end you'll probably realise I follow ultra running like I follow football :-)

I realise that for every runner I mention below there is another 10 I have missed out and another 50 I haven't heard of. That's the beauty of ultrarunning. To quote Scott Jurek from his Post race Badwater interview where he won "There are always unknowns out there".  (2 mins 20 seconds into video).

1. Scottish Ultra Running
2. UTMB 2011 - Bragg vs Clark
3  Testing Colquhoun
4. Problems with ultra races
5. Potential Solution?
6. Things gradually falling into place
7. The most important thing

1. Scottish Ultra running

Been reading blogs, blogs and more blogs. A post that leaped out was John Kynaston's blog about his WHW run with his running buddies. If you look at the picture of who was running and that's not even including Sharon Law and Debbie Martin-Consani who were also present (who as you can read in JKs blog will be representing Scotland in March). I could spend all day going through the achievements and potential of this lot and its great to see them all training together. This is a group of Scotland's best ultra runners and to me is the Scottish equivalent of the American revolution going on in Boulder at the moment. Check out this video from Irunfar with 4 of the top ultrarunners in the US right now! I realise the Scots group in the picture is not all of Scotland's best eg Jeans, Brown, Harvie, Bradley, Cairns, Hart and Stewart to name a few. But It's exciting times for Scottish ultra running with more and more people actually treating ultras as races which can only be good for the sport, and hey maybe one or more of them may even give Jez Bragg a run for his money.

2. UTMB 2011 - Bragg vs Clark

Speaking of which, another thing which is going to be exciting this year is the battle of the Brits at UTMB. Some might think Jez will come first Brit, afterall he won UTMB this year and has been tearing up the British ultra running scene for quite a few years now. Don't get me wrong he has every chance. But I think at UTMB this year, with both being fit, I think he may have met his match in Nick Clark . A Brit now living in America. Now I could be wrong but I don't think these 2 have ever raced each other before in an ultra, certainly not recently to my recollection. Nick Clark came 4th last year in Western States where Killian Journet just pipped him to the line in 16.06. If it was the previous year when Bragg ran and a lot of other years he would have finished first with that time.  That's the beauty of ultra running though, it all depends on who turns up on the day.

3. Testing Colquhoun

This is especially the case for women's ultra running in Scotland where Lucy Colquhoun has dominated most ultra races she has run. How cool would it be if she was really tested against the likes of Lizzy Hawker, Krissy Mohel, Kami Semik, Tracey Garnaux, Jamie Donaldson amongst a whole host of others.

4. Problems with ultra races

What's preventing this happening? Geoff Roes hit the spot in his blog about a UTMB equivalent in the US where he highlights there is no equivalent in the US or really anywhere else in the world to my knowledge. The nearest is Western States but due to having restricted numbers a lot of the top runners don't get in. I know the top 10 men and women from last years race and there are certain races where the winners get entry. But take Jez Bragg for instance. He ran it in 2009 and I was told he was going to go for the win in 2010. But then of course he got injured and now has to go over to the US and win or come second in one the qualifying races  or go in the ballot like everyone else.  Going back and forth to the US ain't cheap! The thing is even the UTMB is going to a ballot now and that could quite easily get to the same point as the American ultras. The other American ultras have lotterys for everyone with no qualifying races and some let previous winners in or if you've ran it so many times.

There is a whole host of other reasons preventing the best coming to together which there is no solution. For example think of 100 meter events - they are only held on track and that's it. Ultras come in all forms - road, trails, flat, hilly, hot, cold, high, low and of course length. There are just so many more variables in ultras and no course is the same. Apart from races round the track eg 24, 48 hour races or longer. Then of course people have different strengths and weaknesses. Some are good on roads, some hills etc. I could go on but I realise I do go on and on and on ha.

5. Potential Solution?

My solution would be to have specific races for the best to race each other and rotate the locations around the world to keep things interesting.  I mean how cool would it be to see Journet, Krupicka, Jurek, Roes, Heras, Bragg, Clark, Jeans, Semick, Kimball, Colquhoun, Hawker, Garnaux, Donaldson, Frost and the rest going hell for leather up the West Highland Way! This would mean that people who want to race can all get together and people who want to finish can do so and can race if they want in all the other races. The reason why I think other people who do not want to race should still have an event. Is because they are covering long distances and anything can happen. Weather, out of food or drink, get injured.  For this reason checkpoints and/or support are important. Not forgetting that covering long distances is a massive achievement. At the moment I am in that position as I just want to complete distances. I see "races" as a safe way to run long distances. Also you get to share the experience with like mind people who love to be outdoors.

The one thing which I think needs to happen in order to bring the best together is bringing money to the sport. Geoff Roes highlighted this in another one of his posts. Look at the North Face 50 San Fransisco results. The depth of that field was ridiculous and there was a good 30 people going for the win in the mens race and the womens race was very competitive too. Why? try $10,000 prize money! It worked for a 50 miler, why not a 100 miler? Who won the nf50? Many apart from experts and folk in Europe would have never heard of him - Miguel Heras. Most in America would have put there money on Mackey or Roes. When I use to think of ultra running in Europe I would just think Killian - but there are loads of unknowns - but this guy is definitely known now. Why was he there? Would he have come over if not for the money? strength of the field? who knows.  It seems a bit unfair that just because ultrarunning isn't really TV friendly it shouldn't be recognised as a proper sport.

6. Things gradually falling into place

This is starting to get fixed though in Britain with the Highland Fling being named as the Scottish and UK ultra running championships which is a step in the right direction especially since the Fling doesn't have a limit. We just need the equivalent for 100 mile events, give or take 5 miles.

7. The most important thing

How people who run 100 meters get paid to run where as people who run 100 miles have to pay to run just doesn't make sense to me. But at the end of the day to even think about contemplate running 100 milers you have to love what you do (which is the most important thing) or else mentally you couldn't do it.

I realise this is a similar post to Geoff's about having a 'Championship race'. This is just saying 'Yo Geoff, I agree!' :-)

I'll finish there, ha!

Just my 2 pence