bad weekend

Looks like John Pares had a bad run in Basel. I don't think he'll be happy with 133k. Ramona would, I think, be pleased with her 162k. Les Hill I think will be disappointed with 180k but where was Jim Rogers ...

My bad weekend has resulted in me having to take some drastic action to restore my sanity. More details another time.

The reasons for Sharon's bad run in Bergamo appear to have been of a medical/nutritional nature ... too much sodium.  Electrolyte imbalances over a long period of time when exercising can cause major problems.

chasing the distances

All the best to Les Hill, Jim Rogers and John Pares who are running the Basel 24 hr race this weekend no doubt in a bid to get a qualifying distance for the Commonwealth Championships.

As Les is Scottish and John is Welsh their performances won't effect my chances of being selected for England. Jim is English and although he had a bad run at Tooting Bec last October he is definitely capable of passing 225k to join Chris Finill, Ken Fancett and myself with the English qualifying standard.

I hope Les has a better time than his previous 24 hr race (Hull 2008) when he collapsed during the 22nd hour whilst in a good position - I don't think he ran again in that race.

Ramona Thevenet-Smith is also running ... hope she does well too.

Thanks to Nadeem Khan for posting the piece on the IAU website. I feel honoured to have my story on the site of the world governing body (I did find a small mistake when I read it but I think it's just a typo).

I certainly don't feel as if my life has been extra ordinary ... I'm just a lucky guy doing something he loves which he happens to be quite good at.

Rehab going well

Apparently I was wrong about the weather at the Round Rotherham 50 last weekend ... it was just as bad as last year, if not worse. Well done to Les Hill though who finished in 9 hours (well over an hour slower than he's capable of).

Today I moved into stage two of my rehab from knee injury. This means I can run continuously for 35 mins (slowly increasing to 60 mins). I'm also cycling 3 to 4 times a week and doing strength exercises three times weekly. Still doing the straight leg quads exercises twice a day.

Congratulations to William Sichel on being guaranteed a world number 2 ranking for 2008 in six day races - well done to him and his crew.

charity fund raising

charity number 1080540


Well here we are - the big announcement. Regular visitors will know by now that I plan to raise some money for charity next year. After much deliberation I've decided to raise funds in aid of Orchid.

Orchid is the only UK registered cancer charity to focus entirely on the male-specific cancers; prostate, penile and testicular. Orchid exists to save lives and suffering caused by these diseases by funding medical research and promoting awareness about them. More information can be found here.

The race I plan to take part in is a 48 hour race which is part of the Athens International Ultramarathon Festival 2009.

I'm sure you lot will give generously. Most of you know by now that I had cancer back in the 1990s (testicular which then spread to my lungs) so this is quite dear to my heart.

Right ... moving on ... the song lyrics on the last post. Well Alastair Humphreys got the first one correct. They were Nothing Else Matters by Metallica and Ain't Gonna Cry No More by Whitesnake. The latter especially has lots of memories for me ... when originally told I had cancer I couldn't seem to stop playing that particular Whitesnake album (Ready an' Willing). Must've driven all the other patients mad but it certainly helped with my frame of mind.

Another brilliant song which puts things in perspective is When A Blind Man Cries by Deep Purple.

Now then - why would Alastair Humphreys be reading this blog. I don't have anything in common with this adventurer type bloke except that we're both Yorkshiremen. He's twelve years younger than me and I don't recall ever meeting him ... if he does though I 'd be interested to know when and where. Anyway I wish him all the best for his long journey home !!!

All the best too to Steve Battle, Les Hill and Paul Tranter who are taking part in tomorrow's Rowbotham's Round Rotherham 50. I hope the weather is better than last year for you ... it can't be worse. Commiserations to Phil Robertson who has had to withdraw through illness.

Remember - Orchid exists to save men’s lives from testicular, prostate and penile cancers through pioneering research and promoting awareness.

Yesterday - ouch, today - much better

Yesterday I had planned a 24 mile run where each mile was to be quicker than the previous one. After about a mile I put my foot down awkwardly on the kerb and went over on my ankle - the right one. The immediate pain wasn't too bad but the next four or five miles found me running with a limp - not good. The following couple of miles were much better but I decided it would be wiser to stop at eight miles instead of treble that distance.

Back home I applied ice immediately and took some ibuprofen. Will continue with this course of treatment for at least a few days even though my ankle feels almost normal again now.

In a slightly unrelated development it seems that Les Hill of Dumfries RC has signed up for the Hull 24hr race. Les is obviously a decent runner having taken part in the last six editions of the Round Rotherham 50 mile trail race and finished 14th, 2nd, 1st, 3rd, 4th and 5th. He also competed in this year's Anglo Celtic Plate 100k in Cardiff, finishing ninth in 8h 37.

Although he's much better than me over the trails, 8 hours in the mud hardly compares to 24 hours on the track. I also believe I'd have finished one place ahead of him over the 100k had I been fit. Still, he's a definite threat though.