Virgin London Marathon

Well Wednesday was a long old day with links being put on facebook for the Virgin London Marathon ballot results. Thing is they were never set in stone 110% true... but I followed the link anyway and low and behold it asked me to enter my card details to pay for my entry.

Was I in???  It couldn't be true... no I will wait for the famous Marathon news magazine to drop on my doormat to confirm it. From then on I couldn't concentrate, with 58 notifications on facebook in the next 3 hours from people saying the link is spam, the link doesn't work. Virgin themselves also released a post stating the link isn't working so shouldn't be relied upon as being confirmation you have made it through the ballot. Argghhhhhhh I'm coming off facebook until I know for sure....

Yesterday people were then posting pics on facebook of their "Sorry you didn't make it" magazines with a blue smurf on the front. Probably the most hated smurf in the whole world by now! and others  were posting their " You're In" magazines. I felt sick, shaky and lacking concentration at work. I went home on lunch but the postman hadn't been. So I went back home after work and there it was...

OMG!!!!!!!

 

I felt like Charlie with the golden ticket for the chocolate factory! I had done it! After the dissappointment of not getting through the ballot last year my second year in and I had made it! Only three nights before I was googling the Boston Marathon as a dream race I wanted to aim for but with a qualifying time for my age and sex of something daft like 3 hours 11 minutes I knew this was an unobtainable dream...for now. So my next thought fell to the London Marathon I never in a million years thought I would be lucky enough to be chosen in the ballot. Next thing to plan was getting there, hotels, who I would go with... could I really go to the big smoke on my own?

Last night my darling sister and Simon offered to go with me as Simon knows London like the back of his hand. So coming home from relatives at 9.30pm I started reading my You're In magazine. Straight away I knew I had to be quick with hotel bookings as many people book before getting their results. Every website I checked hotels were £360 onwards for 1 night! And the cheaper hotels had no rooms available. I decided to post in Run for Fun help on hotels as let's face it I don't really have a scooby doo what I'm doing and it was all happening so fast! The London Stratford Travellodge was mentioned and with it being 1 tube station change from the starting line this seemed ideal.

My grandad was looking down on me last night and I found a family room for 3 people for only £53! I dashed downstairs in only my pants ( I had been in bed sorting this out I don't just strut around the house in my underwear) to fire up the laptop and get this room booked.. God the laptop took an eternity to boot up but eventually I got there and after reading over and over again the details, dates & times to my sister I had booked my accomodation for the London Marathon 2014.

Only the small issue of winter training to do now. I have chosen to also raise money for charity whilst taking part in this event and have chosen the Birmingham Childrens Hospital to raise funds for as my friends baby is currently being cared for there after being born premature with a hole in her heart she has undergone surgery at only a few months old and is now in intensive care with complications. If anyone would like to donate to my sponsor page here is the link http://www.justgiving.com/sarah-morris30/?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=fundraisingpage&utm_content=sarah-morris30&utm_campaign=pfp-share

Beauty & The Beast Half Marathon

This was the race of the year for me, I wanted to enter it last year but due to it falling on the same day as a family wedding I had to wait a whole year to tame the beast (their words not mine)

After recently obtaining a grade A pass in my sports psychology exam you would think that I am rather good at building up my confidence and gaining knowledge on my races...wrong! The night before I started googling details on the race and found a few things out that maybe were best left unread.
Point 1 - The beast is the large hill at the end of every lap (I had to do 3 laps) I already knew this.
Point 2 - The Beast was created by the same people that organize Hell Runner! ( If you don't know what hell runner is google it, I did and wished I hadn't)
Point 3- I read a blog from the previous year which admittidley was from a different venue but it still didn't fill me with much confidence.
Point 4 - The beast is deemed as being the toughest off road trail marathon/half marathon in the UK.

On this note I went to bed ready for the 6am start for the 2 hour drive to West Wycombe to tame this so called beast. Waking up at 6am and the fact that I had packed a towel, I must have been worried to do that? I considered not going but then came across a motivational video and listened to it, it made me cry as I realised my years dream had been to run this race and run it well. I realised that in sports psychology most athletes have a coach, I'm not an athlete and I sure as hell don't have a coach, the voice in my head is pretty damn useless at the best of times and needs to be sacked so I ripped the audio from this video and put it on my phone along with some new songs including the rather appropriate Katy Perry ROAR!!!! If you would like to listen to the video that I used to help get me around what is the hardest race I have ever and will ever do here is the link. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-jwWYX7Jlo

Arriving at West Wycombe Park I made my way to the tents to get my race number and I spotted a load of signs with motivational sentences on them. They were dotted around and I could see a line of them going up

a smallish hill..Is this the beast? I wondered.
At 10am I was ready chip timer around my ankle which I wasn't too keen on and the warm up started. I was pleased it wasn't a silly jump around dancey warm up but a proper runners warm up. Does this mean I'm a proper runner. It was led by some woman from Sky sports 1 I have no idea who she was but she seemed to know what she was on about. With a field of around 300 runners some doing the full marathon (6 laps) the half marathon (3 laps) and team events there was a wide range of runners. I got my watch ready and we were off........... running up a hill!

me at the start, check out the size of my calf muscle!

No way a hill already! This hill came to a climax with a massive sqeulchy mud fest.. I was not impressed and then we took a sharp right to...another hill on gravel and mud. I ran up this hill and at 0.6 of a mile I stopped running, sobbed abit and thought this is it, it's going to be my second DNF. I simply decided I couldn't do it and got myself in a panick. I had already started walking at less than a mile in I wasn't happy with myself at all but I just gave up. I continued to walk then got a little trot on and we were soon into some woods with a muddy track around 8 or 9 inches wide half way up a slope so you had to be careful with footing as if you slipped a little to the left you would fall down a hill. Did I just use that word again.. hill hill hill! I was quite worried I would be holding people up as you simply couldn't pass on this part I was jogging and was pleased to see a line of runners infront of me battling their own way through the branches and nettles. Out of the woods and onto more muddy track and fields we then took a sharp left into a field and I was faced with a ridiculous hill... was this the beast? It can't be it's less than 2 miles into the course.

It seemed to go up stop then veer up even higher it was around 85 degrees at the top. I was very glad when I saw everyone was walking up this one. It took me nearly 4 minutes to walk from bottom to the top and my legs were like jelly. I did a little run out the field took a left into another field then at mile 2 there was the water station. I had decided not to run with my camel bak or any form of drink for this race so was pleased to get a bottle of water. After the water station there was another hill and another, at one point i tried to physically lift my own leg up as I simply couldn't move up the damn thing. The rest of the course went through a large field with tall hard grass that hurt to run through then we came down an incline that was so steep you had no choice but to put the brake on which hurt the front of my thighs. I then ran past my car! and then thought I was going to die. This part is not a joke.. you read stories of runners suddenly collapsing after/during a race.. I actually thought this would be me. I had the worst chest pains I couldn't breathe I was holding my chest where my heart is and the only thought that went through my head was "There wasn't anywhere to write emergency contact details on the back of my race number and I don't recall being asked to give any on entering, I am having a heart attack how are they going to call my mom" I then started crying and trying to breathe and came up to a marshall. I was going to ask for a medic but something stopped me. Come on Sarah pull yourself together if you have to walk it walk it but do not give up and most of all do NOT die! I walked past the marshall and was then faced with a lake. I was directed to run through it. What? This wasn't in the programme. Good job I had put my old stinkers on.. I ran straight through the middle of knee high icy cold water and absolutely loved it!

It sorted me right out and I decided I had nearly finished the first lap I knew what to expect and I will walk all the hills. The later part of the course was lovely we ran past a large lake with swans and little bridges with waterfalls to run over and came back to the tents where supporters were clapping and cheering. The only problem with finishing the first lap was tackling the beast. The small hill I mentioned earlier with all the motivational signs running up it. Small hill more like mount Everest. It was mocking me I walked up the first part got to a brow then it went up and up and up so steep I was breathing like a 90 year old. Where was my inhaler... at home! The only good thing about the beast hill is when you have ran up and around a statue of a man on a horse you got to run straight back down and you get to see the grimace of the runners coming up the bit you've just done. First lap done, from there it went something like this for the duration of the second lap, 20 seconds feeling good, 2 minutes of feeling crap. This is a lot of feeling crap when you add it all up. In the route through the woods I got a stinging nettle caught up in my ankle tag and couldn't get it out so left it. I thought running through the lake the second time around would free it. There were many people walking at this point and my aim was just to finish, I had set out with the hope of a 2 hour 30 - 2 hour 45 min half which would be the worst half marathon ever even worse than my very first half marathon but this wasn't a race this was an endurance event. At mile 10 I got to the first big hill again and phoned my sister for a bit of motivation I only had 3 miles to go and was on the last lap all was good.

my finish picture on top of the beast

My legs and bum were burning like hell on earth I knew this race was knocking me about abit but I was almost there. I put my motivational pep talk on had a bit of a sniffle decided I was going to quit running you know the usual rubbish. Then came to the lake again and was slightly dissappointed it would be the last time I would run through it. Coming to the beast for the final time I had no energy my legs felt like they didn't belong to me, I was walking at -5mph or so it felt but my pep talk was still playing... as I got to the top of the beast there was a sneaky photographer and I shouted to him "make sure you get one of me smiling!" He didn't do a bad job and neither had I. I tamed The Beast in a personal worst of 2 hours 57 minutes! I felt a mixture of things, I was so happy to finish I was proud I guess but I had done a rubbish time and was giving myself a telling off. It wasn't until the official results were released that I was actually rather pleased of myself. In the solo half marathon event I finished 107 out of 122 runners male and female and in the solo female category I finished 28th out of 38.  We'll ignore the fact that some of the male runners finished the marathon, a whole extra 3 laps than me in just over 15 minutes more than my time.. bloody men hey.

Two days on I'm still walking like a penguin and is it any wonder looking at the elevation from the course.

I will never go back to the beast I will never do another off road half marathon but I am however building some proper hill training into my training plan. I went, I tamed the beast and got the medal, tshirt and sore quads and glutes to prove it.

Droitwich Saltfest 9 mile

For the duration of this race I had pesky little voices in my head saying "You can't do this Sarah, why are you bothering, why do you run, I think you should quit" Shut up... No not you I'm talking to the voices!

The day started off after only having a few hours sleep and eating a raw bannana for breakfast which the skin wouldn't peel off and was very bitter. I made the short drive to Cindys and we were on our way to the Saltfest. There were little market stalls set up maybe not enough to occupy Cindys children, husband and sister Wendy but they seemed happy enough. With the change in weather.. yes where did summer go? It is back to the old question of what to wear? Do I brave it with a tshirt knowing I'll warm up after a few miles but risk my garmin getting wet if it rained or wear jackets, waterproofs,hats. Too much choice! I opted for the cap and coat. The concept of the race as it was largely canal based was three runners would be free to run every 20 seconds leaving a gap so there wasn't too much congestion on the narrow parts. This I feel didn't work at all as it wasn't based on your estimated finish time or pace per mile so some slower runners (myself and Cindy included) starting near the front then just got in the way.

Off we went over a bouncy bridge which made you feel slightly drunk and onto the canal path which was very narrow with overgrown reeds that whipped in your face and some mud. Within the first mile we were overtaken by lots of other runners who had the courtesy to shout out "on your left/right" so we knew which side to move across to to get out the way. All of the runners stuck to this etiquette except one.. For the purpose of the blog I will call her Cellulite bum as well quite frankly that's what she was! Though her name will change as the blog goes on. She came up behind and yelled "MOVE" no please or even a thank you after we had moved over for her to then run I may add very slowly in front of us. At mile 2 I couldn't be arsed I wanted to give up not because I couldn't do it..heck I've ran 35 miles non stop before in worse conditions but because the voices in my head were telling me I couldn't do it. We had a stint of having to run single file so weren't talking too much I looked at my garmin at just under 3 miles and realised we were running a bit quicker than I would have liked but I didn't want to admit this to Cindy. Not to matter as half a mile on Cindy also noticed how fast we were running and said it was too fast and maybe we should ease back a little. After the canal path came the fields... lots of them big open ones filled with sheep and cow poo and even a herd of cows. There were these funny metal gates with locks on that we had to figure out you could only have 1 person go through at a time due to the mechanics of them and at one point we got stuck in a gate!! At around 4.5 miles we came across a big hill "oh god not a bloody hill" But with The Beast coming up next week which the sole purpose off is to run the hill I had to get down to it. I ran most of the way up then walked a bit and caught Cindy up at the top as she was stuck at another gate. We carried on running together at this point and all of a sudden Marathon Morris decided to up and leave and Moaning Minnie stepped right in her place. I admit I was boring myself with my moaning but Cindy managed to get me out of it soon enough spurring me on. At mile 5 we ran past a marshall who said go through the gate and up the big hill... I think marshalls should be banned from using that word. This hill Oh My God never seen anything like it! All the way up (and yes I did run it) I had that little voice telling me I should drop out of the beast next week after all that's 13.1 miles) Half way up the hill I noticed Cellulite bum in front and was horrified with the fact that she had peed herself whilst running. She had a massive wet patch spreading from her crotch all the way down the back of her thighs... So I then gave her the honorable title of Pissy Pants!

 Getting to the top we then ran into a field.  Now bear with me on this part... for those of you old/young enough to have read enid blyton books you may remember the Magic Faraway tree in the Enchanted wood? Well this field was like something out of this... it was as I called it the Never Ending Field..... it went on and on and on and on and on in the far distance you could just make out the high vis jackets of other runners and still it was going on I half expected Moon Face to come along to tell me it was a joke. We came across a lot of headwind and rain in the Never Ending Field. It did eventually come to an end and at 6 miles Cindy and I were feeling good and had reached the point only runners will understand when you feel like you can run forever. The last 3 miles took us back the way we had come along the canal and we managed to run together this time chatting away. I realised maybe the race wasn't too bad but was still pleased it was nearly over.. I wasn't impressed that Cellulite Pissy Pants had beaten us but you can't win them all.

Coming to the finish line and our little crowd of supporters were waiting taking photos and we were presented with our medals and could have free bangers & mash from the local pub. I skipped that and opted for a bag of sugar donuts 4 of them! Whilst walking back to the car with bag of donuts in hand, one being mashed into my mouth a farmer market man came across with a box of apples and said "now you look like a healthy young lady here's an apple!" Sorry did he miss the massive wedge of donuts in my mouth and hand?

It was a great day and I'd like to thank Cindy for getting me and Moaning Minnie around in one piece.

Getting lost and not even minding

The little gem I have discovered recently is Wyre forest only a twenty minute drive from my house and with a cafe, toilets on site, go ape and three different routes to explore it's no wonder I have gone twice in the last 3 weeks.

Pulling up to aim for a 10 mile run though I would have been happy with 9 with my drink at the ready and a fruit snack pack in my vest I set off to start the yellow trail around 0.80 miles. This first trail takes you around the Go Ape centre with people whizzing through the air above you on zip wires.. majority of them screaming as they go! After the yellow route was done I started on the green route slightly longer and with some hills to contend with and running of the beaten track. I remember running the green route the last time I came and was looking forward to getting to my favourite part of the forest. It appears to be a part where not many people venture and was beautiful and quiet.. trotting along the green route I realised I had missed my favourite part and couldn't understand where it was.. maybe I had took a different turning though still following the green markers.

 

my favourite place

I carried on regardless and finished the yellow/green route at just over 3 miles, I took this time to sit on a bench and eat my fruit snack pack. Last time I did the red route, the hardest one I remembered a pretty nasty hill right at the end which I walked up so decided to mix things up and run the red route backwards. First part was all downhill which was brilliant though the downhills I did the first time around the right way were now uphills. Around 2 miles into the red route I came across my favourite place...

I don't remember it being on the red route before but I was there and that's all that mattered. It is far enough out the way that you cannot hear the Go Ape screams and far enough away that I stood there looking around and gazing up at the trees for twenty minutes and not one single soul came past. ( I may add I forgot to pause my garmin whilst tree gazing damn it!) If i take up tree hugging I must be sure to pause my watch.

After tree gazing was done I took the gate through the field where I got lost first time around and found my way back out the opposite gate no problems. I finally reached the final stretch and was pleased to be running downhill to visitor centre rather than the long slog I had done previously. A quick toilet stop was needed and I decided whilst on the loo to run the green route backwards too. I set off following the green markers but the other way around. One thing I realised when I'm running is I tend to only look at things on my right hand side and in front so doing things backwards meant I was taking in different views. I started off great following the green markers then after a while I realised I hadn't come across any markers of any colour at all.... F@^CK I'm lost!

 

 I carried on for around half a mile then picked up a red marker, bugger I was running the longest route again! I carried on with the red route and was coming up to just over 7 miles. Along the forest there are sign posts directing you to the visitor centre and telling you how far it is.. I came across a sign with Visitor centre 2.5 miles pointing to the left or 1 mile heading back the way I had just come from, perfect that will get me to the 9-10 miles I wanted!

I carried on running, I was tired I had eaten all my apples and grapes and I began to get a bit lost in my own head. I kept running past a man whizzing by on his bike we past each other probably 4 times in total and everytime he looked at me like "why are you still running?" I was thinking the same about him cycling!
As I was running I noticed a sign in the distance... no... surely it can't be?
Visitor centre 2.5 miles to the left... or 1 miles heading back. What on earth was happening I had followed the route but ended up at the same place... bermuda forest sprung to mind.

 Nothing to it but to keep running so that's what I did and ended up finishing the yellow, green and red route twice with a time of 1 hour 47 minutes  total of 9.60 miles.

Although I spent most of the time it would seem lost I can think of no better place to get lost than in wyre forest.