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We did Darlington parkrun on Saturday, which I can thoroughly recommend. A classic old-style Park. 3 laps on tarmac with good parking, toilets and a nice post run cafe.
The indoor track race was also a pleasant surprise- a bit like running on carpet. The banks were tricky but not too scary. Anyway I came 2nd and got a shiny silver medal.
You are getting some good miles in hillstrider 👍
HS - I haven't tried letting my Mum use my old hearing aids yet but she is really struggling to hear nowadays, which is why I'm tempted. I know she would never think of getting any herself (probably thinks she wouldn't get her money's worth) which is why (joking aside) I considered it.
OO54 - I might consider the BBC Sounds app if it was me. But Margaret has a radio on her bedside table and puts earphones in at night (R4/World Service droning on in the background help her sleep). She is 'old school' and I think she quite likes having the radio pages handy to see what to listen to rather than scanning through something on her phone. I'm into podcasts but she isn't. Well done re the silver medal for the rack race btw.
I'm just 3 miles short of 100 for the month, which I will get on Wednesday.
WtnMel, It's a shame that your mum is losing her hearing.
This morning was a nice chatty 10k on roads with Sarah F and Mike.
I didn't walk early this morning because (a) I was too tired (b) Margaret and I were heading for Croome earlier than usual this morning to miss the 'rush'. In the event, because it was colder than the last few days, Croome was quieter anyway. We were glad of our woolly hats and gloves and did 2mls at Margaret's pace (plus of course, coffees and then lunch afterwards). It was too cold to sit outside so we had to sit inside and put up with the hubbub!
I *may* go out for a fast walk in a bit. If not, I'll take my gear with me as I'm off to see my Mum tomorrow and driving to Tring in the morning. I'll do what I did last week - see my Mum, check in to the hotel, go for a fast walk, shower and change and then eat - possibly a pasta meal from the services but maybe steak & chips or similar at the Beefeater - not decided yet!
Aquarius, thanks. The forest is ok, at present, and we haven't had any rain for several days. We did have gale force winds a few days ago, but it has quietened down now.
That's good that you and Steve both improved your parkrun times on Saturday. Who would have thought that the Beefeater would serve 6 fried eggs. I imagine that the two men were pot bellied!
I've never got on with treadmills, and there is no way that I could run 5k on one.
Happy birthday and congratulations for your 70th🎉🍰 I'm sorry to hear that your dodgy leg is painful again. Definitely see how your leg is after Saturdays XC before deciding whether or not to do the 5k and XC the following Saturday.
I hope that you really enjoy this evenings birthday meal with the family. I trust that you won't be eating6 fried eggs🤣
This morning was a solo 3.37 mile road run at recovery pace.
I'm having lunch tomorrow with Helen and Chris.
I'm with you on the treadmill HS, can't seem to run well on them.
Hope your mum is doing well WtnMel. Surely the steak 😋 I rarely eat steak but had my first in over a year at a hotel in Wakefield. It was thr night before my 3000m race so must have done the trick. I'd almost forgotten how tasty steak was.
We are back in Keswick this weekend and I'll be doing the parkrun tomorrow. No other races planned in Feb apart from the South Shields mile which I may try next Wednesday. Its a monthly series and a good mid week sharpener. There are also the 'signals relays' later in the month (you may know them Aquarius). Teams of 4 * 2miles. I might do this if asked.
On the way to Keswick we stopped off in Bardon Mill, on the A69. A tiny village with one cafe. We really felt for the owner, struggling to make the business work, so we had an unplanned lunch which was very nice. We also visited the pottery which is still going after several generations in the village, and bought a large salt glazed pot (made on the site), for our doorstep. So it proved to be quite a costly stop!
That was nice, having lunch in a cafe struggling to make ends meet. The large salt glazed pot will be a nice reminder of your stop in the village.
This mornings parkrun was a disappointing outcome, but I was 1st AG, so could have been worse.
My right foot is a bit painful. I think it's down to wearing some new leather shoes yesterday at C&C which aren't flexible enough yet and I need to 'wear them in'. I would have walked this morning otherwise. I'm hoping it will have improved so I can manage a fast walk later this week.
Interestingly, my foot seemed to be fine yesterday at Croome when I wore my walking boots. BTW, we were there later than usual and by the time we went to the cafe they had run out of baked potatoes AND pasties. So we had to make do with scones instead.
I'm over with my son today as its his 46th birthday. We're off out for a meal at the local Beefeater (his choice) so I've alerted Margaret and told her I won't be needing dinner later.
A rather chilly 3.5 mile run last night at the coast (our club's GP series), weirdly exactly the same finish time as the last one I did there, despite having to queue at the end to get into the finish funnel (so many runners arriving at once). Steve also went for a run while waiting for me, then as we were staying overnight at the Premier Inn as soon as we'd got back and showered we went out for a nice Indian meal just along the road. It made a pleasant change to our usual routine of driving back home immediately after the run.
I'm hoping to get out for a longer run tomorrow, but will see what develops with this threatened snow.
WtnMel, it sounds like you had a nice time with your son for his 46th birthday. You got a good bargain for your rib eye steaks with that 33% of offer.
Good to hear that your right foot isn't as painful as yesterday.
Aquarius, it's good to hear that your aches and pains are starting to feel better. Your visits to the physio seem to be paying off.
I hope that you enjoyed your eggless birthday meal at an Italian restaurant?
Well done for first AG in Saturdays XC Masters. I'm glad that you enjoyed the race, especially the "shoot out" with another 70 year old. Well done for last nights rather chilly 3.5 mile, equalling the previous race time, despite queuing at the finish line. A nice Indian meal afterwards was a great way to end the evening. I hope that the snow holds off for your tomorrows run.
I ran a recovery pace 3.92 miles on Sunday, and 6.39 miles in the forest on Monday with the Monday Group. It was more walking and wading through mud and water, than running. I can't remember the forest being in such a state, especially as we hadn't had much rain in the previous days.
Yesterday, Andy who used to be a Club Coach fitted a new shower in my bathroom. The old one started flooding water out if the control box. It was at least 10 years old, so not surprising.
Today was a 6.72 mile forest run with the Wednesday Group, including a 5 x 1k interval session with 2.5 minute recoveries between each k. The intervals were round a gravel track which was relatively mud and water free.
The Club has introduced "parkrun golf." Don't get too excited Mel, it's not what you think! It started with Saturdays park run, where all the club runners times were entered onto a spread sheet, and the ladies and men's times were subtracted from the world records for 5k, which became our handicaps. We play once a month, and the runner with the best improvement chooses the next venue. My 100th parkrun will be the Southampton one on the 2nd March, so there will be a good club turn out. A week ago they had over 1000 runners, which I don't particularly like. I've run it twice, the second time being on Christmas day. It's a pb course for those starting at the front, but for the masses, it takes quite a while crossing the start line.
Your club's parkrun golf sounds fun, I hope Southampton won't be too crowded when you do your 100th parkrun there on 2nd March.
Fortunately my 6 mile run this morning was completed just before the snow started, but it was very cold and frosty. Enjoyable though. I noticed my right arm and leg were both starting to ache towards the end, which was frustrating as I thought they were both improving.
Aquarius - serendipity with the timing of that email from Beefeater. The foot seems better (see below). That was a coincidence to have exactly the same finish time at your club's GP series race. I saw on GC where that race was and that you stayed over at the Premier Inn. We're likely to be staying there again ourselves when we head 'oop north' in September. You'll have to let me know which Indian restaurant you went to - last time we were there, we ate at 'Hinnies' just down the road a couple of times. Reading on a bit further, I see you've had snow (exactly as they were promising in this morning's forecast). I'm glad to hear your 6ml run this morning was unaffected. Hope those aches and pains afterwards soon go away.
HS - I see you did a road run and then ran in the forest and the conditions were very wet and muddy. I guess the water is still hanging around from the very wet spells of weather we had recently. Always good to have a reliable workman to do work. Our 'favourite' plumber has been to our house today as the radiator in the downstairs loo stopped working recently. I'm not there (see below) but I assume he's fixed it. I see you did another forest run and the conditions were much improved. The 'parkrun golf' idea sounds intriguing - and fun.
I'm in Tring again as I've been to see my Mum this afternoon. My foot seemed to be better today so I brought my sports gear with me. And this evening I've been for a 5ml walk and my foot seems fine. It was drizzling when I set off - but had turned to heavy rain by the time I got back to the Premier Inn. The gear is hanging up on the hangers of the wardrobe and I've cranked up the heating hoping the things will dry out.
It was raining this morning when I drove to Tring and the entrance of Oxford Services was one huge puddle you had to negotiate slowly. I happened a few weeks ago so they obviously need to sort out the drainage there. Thankfully, they had a reasonable selection at Waitrose at Oxford Services today. So I was able to get myself a honey & mustard chicken and pasta meal and some fruit (berry selection). Much healthier than whatever I would have had at the Beefeater next door washed down with a pint of beer.
The XC I was intending to do tomorrow has been cancelled as expected due to the ground being waterlogged. Hopefully it can be rescheduled, although there is only one weekend available seemingly. Most of the snow is still lying, despite the rain, so it remains to be seen whether any nearby parkruns will be on. Earlier today I entered myself, Steve and our son into a ballot for places in a popular local race (Blaydon Race) but will not find out if we've been successful until 19th of this month.
Aquarius, we haven't had any snow yet in the South. I've just seen from your latest post that tomorrows XC has been cancelled. It's not surprising really, considering the weather you have been experiencing. Well done for your 6 miles yesterday morning, but sorry to hear that your right arm and leg started aching towards the end. I hope that you, Steve and your son will be successful in the ballot for the Blaydon Race🤞
Thanks, re Southampton parkrun on 2nd March, but I expect the turnout will be in the region of 1000 again. We are intending to do the Wilverley Inclosure parkrun tomorrow, but might have problems getting there, as roads in Brockenhurst have been flooded again.
There is a lot of controversy now with the parkruns no longer publishing much of the usual data such as age category records, course records, male and female records etc. Apparently, this is because of transgender men running as women, and claiming women's records.
WtnMel, the rain water doesn't seem to be draining away, and the forest seems to have more mini ponds than in previous years.
That's a bit of a coincidence that you also had to call a plumber.
Yes, I think that the parkrun golf could really catch on. It's only once a month when the handicaps are revised, but I'm not so keen on the "winner" choosing the following months venue.
Good to hear that your foot seems to be better, and you were able to walk 5 miles. Also good that you had a healthy meal in Tring.
I ran a solo 6k yesterday on roads in heavy rain and strong winds, and did the usual Friday Farmers Walk this morning.
The parkrun we opted for today had an event number (610) that we were advised is a number in the Fibonacci sequence, and would therefore attract a lot of parkrun tourists. The reason being collecting numbers in the Fibonacci sequence is apparently something parkrunners do (news to me). So instead of the usual 400-500 runners this morning 683 turned up. This meant a very slow start, but I still managed a PB so I was pleased with that. Steve got a PB too!
I'm glad that you and Steve did do a parkrun this morning, and that you both got PB's.
Aquarius - thanks for the heads-up re Takdir .. I'll look it up nearer the time. My gear dried out okay - as it was just me, my clothes stay in the suitcase, so I was able to drape my gear on the 6 hangers in the room .. and I cranked up the heating to help. I've done that sort of drying dance myself in the past - when we walked the Thames Path, I also got very adept at stringing up an elasticated washing line between the shower pipe, towel rail or whatever else was to hand in the bathroom. So we can both say we do the dance of the solitary towel - instead of the dance of the seven veils
HS - as you know, I'm not a park-runner but was surprised to hear they've stopped publishing times and records. Apparently, the plumber was only here for 10 minutes and all he needed was WD-40 to fix our radiator. But it's a temporary fix and if it happens again (the valve may get stuck again), it will be a major job replacing the radiator and having to drain down the system. Well done re your recent runs and farmer's walk. Shame to hear about the flooding around Beaulieu stopping you getting to the Wilverley parkrun. I get the impression parkrun has ALWAYS been competitive, despite the original ethos of them being unchanged.
I did a 4ml fast walk this morning and now the bruised right foot has gone away, am back to my normal sort of pace (15:48mm today).
Another (cough) 'busy' week coming up. u3a country dancing tomorrow so no walking; u3a open meeting on Tue afternoon so I hope to walk first thing; on Wed, Margaret and I have arranged to go to Croome; then on Thu I'll be driving to Tring to see my Mum and driving home on Fri morning - all being well, I'll be able to get out for a walk on Thu evening between seeing my Mum and eating later.
It's u3a yoga on Wed but as it's the only day Margaret is free this week, I'm not able to go as we'll be at Croome. In fact, I've decided to stop going to yoga all together because I struggle to fit it in now it has changed to the new day/time. I do plenty of other stretching in between times (yoga is only once a month) and I have made notes of the usual poses we do. So I can incorporate those into my stretching and let someone else have my place at yoga.
That was a good pace for your 4 mile walk yesterday, just make sure you don't bruise your foot again with some over-exuberant moves in the country dancing today
HS Nice to hear your run yesterday was in mild and sunny conditions, fingers crossed this change in the weather lasts a bit longer. We have sunshine today too, typical on a non-running day. No doubt the heavens will open again tomorrow for my long run. Pity you couldn't get to parkrun on Saturday due to the flooded roads, but I see you did manage a longer run on one of the courses you used during Covid.
WtnMel, good to hear that the plumber has made a temporary fix for your radiator, and hope that it will last, otherwise an expensive job.
You are right, parkruns have always been competitive. Even the slowest runners/walkers are competitive amongst themselves.
Well done for yesterday's fast 4 miles walk, and good that your right foot is now ok.
You've certainly got a busy week ahead. I note that you are giving up yoga sessions. I'm sure that all your other stretches will make up for it.
Aquarius, thanks; today has been another bright and sunny day, and I ran 7.28 miles this morning in a very wet and muddy forest with the Sarah's. Unfortunately, they both fell in the boggy sections, but not the same one. Sarah H first and Sarah F further on. They both said that it was ironic that I was so much older than them, and didn't fall. Seems like my balance is still ok😀
A shame that you didn't run today in the good conditions. That's typical, as you said that it will probably be raining tomorrow on your long run.
Yes on Saturday we did 5 laps of the 1k course on the gravel track in the forest with 2.5 minutes recoveries between each.
I'm living dangerously now! A new shower installed last week, and a new Hoover wash and dryer delivered and installed this afternoon. The old one was 8 years old and could have packed up anytime. There's nothing worse than a breakdown in the middle of the wash, especially if it's a full load.
It was strange to read that both the Sarahs fell in the mud during yesterday's forest run, as I've just got in from a run on the Derwent Walk where I struggled at times with deep mud and standing water. It must have lasted for about half a mile, and went right up to the very edges of the path. That section has sometimes been a bit muddy in the past, but never as bad as today or with so much standing water. It didn't help that it was frosty and slippery on the dry bits, and even icy in places. I hope the better weather is on the way soon. (Well done for not falling yourself yesterday btw).
We were surprised how wet and muddy the forest was, especially in areas where it was usually fairly dry. Well done for struggling with the deep mud and standing water.
Thanks, I was lucky that I managed to avoid a fall, as I said to them "things usually happen in threes."