Running Miles Ricky Races Marathon (23.11.23), a half marathon with Tara (24.11.23) & Saturn Running Beer and Bear Marathon (26.11.23)

Running Miles, Ricky Races, Marathon, 23.11.23

A cheeky Thursday chat-athon with Sarah! Lovely day for it, and apart from a couple of hours of greyness, it was a beautiful sunny day.

I love this route, and it was my third time here. Plus, the route is a little bit long, so that means extra chat time for free! For a marathon, it was 8 laps all around the lakes (Swan Lake, and Seagull Lake), and through the woods. As the light changed, the colours on the trees changed, so each lap was like being in a totally different place. Autumn is definitely the most beautiful time of year.

Favourite bird of the day award went to "teenager swan", who for the entire morning stood in the middle of the path, with brief moments of getting in to the water to submerge his head, before stepping back into the middle of the path, and totally ignoring everybody.

Chat agenda included work angst (tube ride PLUS 2 laps), packing lists for Lanzarote, benefits of afternoon tea, mountain weekends, dogs (including lost ones, and ones in coats), football (yes indeed), jumpsuits, November snot, and the pitfalls of instant communication. Also, fabulous to have some Sean miles, and lots of catch ups too. 

And, we reinstated our half way Freddo strategy. Hurrah!

Nice to catch up with Craig and Tony afterwards, and brave the journey back towards London together, just like old times! 

Half marathon with Tara, 24.11.23

A Friday adventure to Guilford, to meet Tara at the Pilgrims Way post box, to begin a 13 mile loop up to St Martha's (to earn our Cake Pass for later), along the Downslink, Fox Way, and the River Wey, and back to Guildford for waffles, shopping, and making ourselves smell nice in Lush. 

Saturn Running, Beer and Bear Run, Marathon, 26.11.23

You could tell the temperature had really dropped today - it was freezing, and there was a lady walking along knitting gloves (she actually was!) But, wrapped up, it was a fun Sunday saunter along the Thames with Andrew and Sarah, with lots of the usual crowd out - to celebrate Kerrilee's birthday - happy birthday Kerrilee! 

Remembrance Double Marathon weekend

We Will Remember Marathon with Saturn Running, on 11.11.2023

This event was at the Lee Valley White Water Centre, which is not very far from our house at all, and so it was nice to just have a short and easy journey to the start.

I love it here, and have not run here for a few years, and it was so nice to be back, running along the paths and trails, by the water and through the autumn colours. The weather was outstanding. Imagine!! Bright blue skies and sunshine, and chilly but nice to run in once you'd warmed up. The autumn colours of the trees was just beautiful against the sky. 

The route was 6 laps for a marathon, including a first lap of northern abuse (aka encouragement) with James. There was also a two minute race freeze at 11:00, with it being Remembrance Day, where everyone stopped, and the park fell silent. 

I enjoyed the run, and felt happy just running along. Its funny, I think, that although you are moving so much when you run, that you can feel so still and calm inside your mind when you are doing it. I suppose that it is quite a meditative process, and I am reminded on days like this how helpful I find it and how much better it makes me feel.

It was great to see many running friends out, and thanks Saturn Running for a great event! 

Remembrance Marathon with Phoenix Running, on 12.11.2023

A not so sunny day, by the River Thames! Although, all things considered, the weather really wasn't even a tiny bit as bad as it was meant to be.

This was a huge event, about 400 people doing the half marathon (two laps) and marathon (four laps). It is built around the 2 minute race freeze at 11:00, which is a very special and beautiful moment to be part of.

The sun actually almost came out for eleven, and the bells were ringing half muffled beforehand, so it was a reflective and peaceful atmosphere. 

I find this route difficult, especially the part through Hurst Park, which seems to last for million miles, and the stones are too sharp 😆

But it was the best day, and it was fantastic again to see so many running friends out and about. Had some good chats and catch ups, and it was a brilliant day all around. 

Thank you Sarah for our chat-athon! And according to Facebook, this weekend was our 5 year friend-versay! Chat X 5 years! 

My first ever Phoenix events were 7 years ago almost to the day, which was also my first double marathon event weekend....I just re-read my blog about it ( here ) and I have loved it since my very first event!

Thank you Rik and Team Phoenix!

Saturn Spooktacular Chasing Numbers Run, 50km, 03.11.2023 & Phoenix Tiaras and Tutus Two, Marathon, 05.11.23 (my 300th marathon)

Saturn Spooktacular Chasing Numbers Run, 50km, 03.11.2023

Three weeks of chatting to catch up on with Sarah made for a fabulous Friday 50km!

And (finally) a run with (barely any) rain!! In fact, a lovely sunny day running along the Thames from Runnymead, amongst the autumn colours and leaves.

There was a lot of work angst to work through, so we had some therapy laps. 

Then we spent some time catching up on the status of some new houses being build on the river, and chose which ones we would buy (sigh).

Also spent some time trying to work out what the willow sculptures were in the meadow (Sara Holmes willowtwisters ) and the big bronze chairs (Hew Locke's The Jurors ).

And the rest of the time we spent catching up, and also lots of chats and hugs with the troupe on the towpath. A fabulous day! 

Thank you Saturn, Nathan, Katie and Tracey for an excellent event and for looking after us (and keeping the cookie box full up despite our best efforts!)

Phoenix Tiaras and Tutus Two, Marathon, 05.11.23 (my 300th marathon)

For my 300th marathon celebration Rik very kindly made a Tiaras and Tutus Two event (after the Tiaras and Tutus event for Sarah's 300th at the start of the year). The medal was now green, and so outfits were planned accordingly!

I loved every moment of the day!

(Apart from the journey there, which included the bus not turning up, the Plan B taxi also not turning up, not being able to get into the underground, and then the train being delayed. But I am sure there is a moral to this story somewhere? Maybe, never give up?)

The whole day was amazing, and I loved running around in a tutu and a tiara again. Fancy dress, I feel, is like dressing up for a wedding, or having pancakes on pancake day. When I do it, it's such fun, that I vow to do it every day throughout the year...and then never end up actually doing it again until the next occasion.

The fancy dress generally seemed to be a hit with the public, and we only had one conversation which could be perceived as less than positive, with a cyclist who, after weighing up our explanation, concluded "you do look a bit weird, but fair play". I was most offended by the "a bit" part. I was going for "total" weird, but there you go. 

The Swan Spa was flooded, and all the swans were looking extremely clean (as well they might, I suppose they have been having a constant shower for about the last month, with some power showers thrown in from the various storms). Dimitri seems to have moved, which is a shame firstly because I miss him, and secondly because the council have redone the part of towpath his boat used to be moored on, so now it's nice to run (or strut, in Dimitri's case) along. 

I was so delighted that the cake from Rinkoff's Bakery went down a treat!

I am really feeling so grateful for everyone who came, dressed up, smiled and laughed, for the presents and cards, and for all the kind messages. I really don't deserve any of this, and I am feeling so overwhelmed by it all. 

Thank you so much Rik and Team Phoenix for putting on the event! And thank you to you all! I love the friends I have met through my running, and the wonderful community that I am so lucky to be a part of. Running has been a part of my life for so long, and I appreciate every day that I am able to do it, and know that I am very lucky. 

Some memories of the day! (thank you David for the photos!)

The LDWA Founders Challenge, 30 miles, 21.10.2023

 A trail adventure with Andrew, in the Surrey Hills.

The Founders Challenge is an annual event, remembering the founders of the LDWA - Alan Blatchford and Chris Steer. It starts and finishes just outside Guildford, and is a circular route, all around many of the places that are significant in the LDWA's history.

It was the 26th running of the event, and that first time I have done it officially, but I have done versions of it with Tara and Andrew during our Surrey Hill adventures, and I love the trails in this part of the world. When I run here, I feel free, and happy and calm. 

As no run is complete presently without the addition of a storm, this weekend it was time to be joined by Storm Babet, who was not shy about putting in an appearance.

We registered, and drank a cup of coffee, slowly, whilst delaying going out into the rain. Another participant arrived, and registered, and the marshal asked "is it brightening up out there?" He replied "I'm confident it's going to brighten up", whilst zipping up his waterproof to the top.

Thus instilled with confidence, and caffeine, we headed out into the mud monsoon.

To be fair, the weather wasn't really as bad as it could have been, the torrential rain was only torrential on and off, and it was actually really mild. Pretty nice to run in, all in all! 

The route was a big muddy, hilly, bog fest, and I loved it! It is such a beautiful place to be, and being at one with nature (literally, after launching knee deep into a bog in the first mile) is just the best medicine for everything (and mud is good for your feet and skin). 

Andrew and I marvelled at how there are so many nice places to run in the UK, and how few dangerous animals there are to contend with, compared to say America. I said, that despite this, I would still like to look in to doing some runs in America, even if there were bears, which along with alligators, were Andrew's top dangerous animal to consider. This lead to naming all of the types of bears we could, which included (and was limited to): black bear, brown bear, polar bear, panda bear, Bear Grylls, bear left, bear right, and teddy bear.

It was lovely to see some familiar faces, and to see Tara who was expertly running CP3! Thank you for the cup of tea!

It was a lovely day out on the trails. Thanks London LDWA and all the marshals for a most excellent event!

The Palma Marathon, 15.10.2023

The first time I did the Palma Marathon was in 2012, when it was my 5th ever marathon, and my first one that I had taken part in abroad. I have very happy memories of it, and I was really looking forward to going back. Especially as it was five whole weeks since my last chat-athon with Sarah, and we had a whole four days of catching up to do! 

We caught a flight from Gatwick to Palma at Friday lunch time, and arrived just after 4pm. Hopped on the A1 bus from outside the airport and straight into Palma, and walked along the water front past the Marathon Expo, to our hotel - Hotel Artmadams, which is completely fabulous, and quite hard to describe! Sort of a fusion between an art gallery and a hotel - with pictures and sculptures along every wall and around each corner. I adore it, absolutely! 

Saturday was spent having breakfast in the square, and picking up our numbers from the Expo.

All participants could do a free guided walking tour of the town, so we did that, which was most excellent, and we learnt all about the history of the city, especially the architecture.

Afterwards we re-fuelled with ice cream (Giovanni L Gelato - pistachio with sea salt!), continuing on our "ice-cream a day" mission for the weekend (four trips to the same shop 😂😂)....

.....and poke bowls (Pokemania!), before catching an early night.

Sunday was marathon day, and was stormy (the rain flooded our hotel room!)! There was a big storm (it didn't have a name, so we named it Stupid Stupid Storm) at around 6am, so the start of the marathon was delayed from 8am to 9am so the organisers could check the course, so we did a photo shoot in the hotel to pass some time. 

The weather was hot and humid, and the rain held off for the first half. The route was two laps. The first half of each lap was along and back around the water front and marina, which was fantastic running past all the fancy yachts and boats and the giant cruise ships (which we named - Floating Tower Block of the Sea). We had decided on "cruising" ourselves today, and on enjoying the run and the atmosphere. The second half of each loop was all around the old town. It was an interesting route with lots to see, and had great support on the way round. Just after starting lap two, Sarah and I had a shrimp and salt tablet break, and on setting off again, the next rain storm started. It was completely torrential, and just the best fun running through it! The course was very flooded at the far end, and had a chunk of wading knee high (for short people such as myself) through flowing water. Everyone seemed to be in the spirit of having a laugh about it ("it's raining men!"), and it was all completely hilarious, and I loved it. 

The rain eased off after a while, and then everything, and everyone, started steaming in the heat. The finish was such good fun (even if it was a bit uphill) - like arriving into a party, with music, cheering and laughing. The best fun!

Fantastic to see some familiar faces from the 100 Marathon Club! After we finished, we braved the port-a-loos (I have to say, one of memories from 2012 was being traumatised by one of my first big city marathon particularly bad port-a-loo experiences, and the port-a-loos this time were positively luxurious in comparison), and then headed to the finish line in order to cheer on the other runners finishing. 

We headed back to the hotel for luxury showers, which we had been looking forward to ever since starting running, and made ourselves presentable again, before heading to the hotel bar for tea and sweets (in a deviation from usual post-run tea and chips), before heading off in search of poke bowl #3 of the holiday..... Disaster struck, when we discovered the poke bowl shop was closed on Sundays. After a brief moment of panic, we found a pizza place, and began the task of calorie replacement. 

The rest of the weekend was spent mostly eating brunch....

...wandering round the hotel looking at the art, and sightseeing in this beautiful city.....

...and visiting the cathedral. My favourite part is the Chapel of the Holy Sacrament, which is strikingly different to the rest of the interior. It is decorated by Miquel Barceló, in a huge art work that covers the walls in ceramic.... and is inspired by the artist's love of the sea, and represents two stories - the multiplication of fish and bread, and turning water into wine. 

It was a fun and friendly marathon, and a great route. Loved it, and the whole weekend. Thank you Sarah for a brilliant weekend!