Dragons, not the Sutton Bank TT and rainbows in the rain at Thirsk.

A lot to catch up on, but I will keep it brief...

Second HDSRL fixture for 2015 was hosted by Dragon Aire at Yeadon, near Leeds. I was told this was an off road course and that I would enjoy it! We got there with time to walk from the cricket club down through town to the start and to get warmed up. I can't remember the course in detail, but it was very much off road! A lot of downhill to start, plenty of tree roots and rocks to play on, alongside 'Europe's Largest Sewerage Plant' then back up a stiff climb in the woods. I loved it! Every minute pretty much. Each time the marshals called for us to slow down, tree roots I was able to speed up! I was overtaking people all through the race, which is unusual for me! Managed to overtake Claire on the big climb and I didn't see her again until the finish. Only down side was there wasn't enough mud!!
The hosting club did a grand job and there was a feast at the cricket club! Sandwiches, cakes, chicken legs, pizza, crisps, sausages etc etc. Big pan of chips with a stack of bread and butter for making chip butties... I ate more calories than I ran!!

At the end of the month the club holds a time trial over 2 miles. In the summer we tend to go up to Sutton Bank for this. I decided that if I am going to get back on track with Ultra training, then a longer run would be more beneficial. Hilary was in agreement and so it was I ran down to her house on the far side of town, together we ran round Sowerby Fields, checking out the route for our HDSRL fixture, then I ran back home again. 9.4 miles clocked up in total, and on a school night!!

More recently, it was time for our club to host the HDSRL. I had agreed to be sweeper on foot, I also bought the paper plates and about a 100-weight of crisps for the buffet afterwards!
I dropped all that off and jogged down to the start area where I found my friend Sarah who I hadn't seen in ages, so that was good! People were still arriving as the start whistle blew, a couple of guys taking their time in the loo, so I had a sprint with them to catch up with the main pack. Then I realised there were still people joining the race, so I stood aside and waited for everyone to catch up. At long last they did, and so I had another faster than expected run to reach the back of the race. Here I found Marian, one of Thirsk's own bringing up the rear so I slowed down and ran with her for the race. The course consisted of two laps and we were lapped by the leading runners! We'd almost finished when the heavens opened! Sideways rain and hail, yuk yuk yuk but it was coupled by a glorious double rainbow! Marian made it to the finish, accompanied not only by me, but by several other marshalls and hangers on that we'd collected along the way!

Back at the club house, out of the rain, we had a great pile of sandwiches and sausage rolls and the all important buns in club colours, I think made by the Coy family!

There has also been club training, Thursday night fun in the woods with the forest people and a Sunday morning run on Sutton Bank with Basil. I have a marathon next weekend and another Ultra in September. I am not ready for either...

The Summer Season has started!

I made the right decision not to run last Sunday. The conditions were 'epic' (which translates to cold wet and windy and quite horrid) and on Monday I felt dreadful. I was dragged round Wickes in search of DIY supplies for the ongoing decorating project at home.

Thankfully I had perked up a bit by Tuesday and felt able to participate in the opening fixture of the Harrogate Evening League (HDSRL) held rather fittingly at Harrogate! At the last moment I had thrown an extra T-shirt into my back and I was glad I had as it was cold and windy on the Birkenwith Industrial Estate. I didn't have a plan in mind other than to just get round and run to feel, seeing as I had a cold and this was my first fast outing since the HM55.
Soon after the start, the stitch started. Gosh it hurt. The uphills were hard work and they're quite tough climbs but at least they didn't aggravate the stitch, unlike the fast steep downhills. The (very) short stretch of 'off road' was welcome and I over took a few people who were fannying about in the tiny bit of water and mud and straight into the next big hill. I had been leap-frogging with Claire a lot of the way round and I had to overcoming a spinning head and reeling tummy to get past her on this climb. She too had stitch and the pair of us ran with fingers dug into our ribs!
On the home straight however, she came past me again and I had nothing left to catch her, I just had to watch her go and I was a little cross. Not with Claire as she has worked so hard and made such an improvement with her running, but with myself because I should be able to beat her. But, that's a matter for another day and now I just enjoyed my post race water and quickly got changed as it began to rain.

Wednesday, another day, another league, another race! This time a fell race held out on Carlton Bank and the opening race of the Esk Valley Summer Series. This is a favourite of mine, but I wasn't looking forward to it. I was tired from last night and the lingering cold, my muscles still hurt from yesterday's stitch and I was dreading it coming on again. It was also much cooler tonight and I set off wearing too many layers! My waterproof and gloves came off within the first couple of miles and I was still a bit warm, but I kept my other top on as it protected me from the wind up on the moor.
From the start I was stuck behind a couple of other women, this first stretch is good fun but is very narrow with very limited passing opportunity. As it was, I felt I wasn't running fast enough but every time I upped the effort, I was rewarded with the stabbing pain of the stitch. I had to make do with where I was. At last we reached the woods and a very steep decsent, and the other two women pulled away, Pat almost got away from too but I reeled her in after the drop! There were a couple of hills in the woods that I had forgotten about and I overtook one of the women before we got to the main climb on the Cleveland Way. Up Live Moor and onto Round Hill then all the way along to the double trig point of Carlton Bank. The flags weren't too wet, first I passed Alan from club then at last caught and passed the other lady from earlier. I didn't feel too bad now and could run most of the return leg, the stitch seemed to have subsided quite a bit now.
After touching the trig comes the horrible fast descent, first on the flagged steps then on a corner you hop the barbed wire fence (of course I got snagged on it!) then follow the sheep trods down over the tips and hopefully emerge at the finish! I did have a couple of runners in my sight trying to establish where the race line was, but I think I missed it as I ended up on a near vertical bank sliding down heather on my bum!! As I hit the bottom, just a short distance to go, the second lady I passed emerged on the flagged path to my right! Oh no! There was no way she was going to beat me so I ran like hell on the narrow path across the heather and made sure I beat her to the gate! I was going to congratulate her (as we had chatted during the race) but she didn't hang around.

There had been a good turn out tonight, we had a full men's team for a change consisting of Alan W, Steve M, Duncan and Pete W. We also had two ladies teams Lorraine, Hilary and Carol making up the A team, with me, Pat and a 'ghost' being the B team.

It's meant to be summer! Carol, me, Pat, Hilary and Lorraine at the Carlton Challenge

No rest for the wicked! Back out again on Thursday night for a run round Kilburn Woods. There was another big turn out, including some new club members who didn't even stop to say hello...hmm. There was quite a range of abilities so we split into smaller groups and the fast lads went for an eyeballs out blast round the trails. We had a more sedate plod around and enjoyed the evening sunshine. Must admit I was tired at the end of this run and glad I had a couple of rest days coming up.

In 'Nature News' I am glad the swallows are still here, I was beginning to wonder if they had stayed. The bluebells look lovely in the woods and in my garden, I just wish the temperature would get a little more summer like!

Two runs and a DNS...

I have generally speaking, been having an 'off month' from training following on from the Hardmoors 55 in March. This last week, well week before really now, particularly lacking in training!
Thought I had better start getting back into the swing of things before I forget how to run completely.

Wednesday should have been a time trial at Club, but I felt too fat (I've put on several pounds too due to lack of exercise) and unfit to do that justice, so I decided to go for a jog into town and back. It was a run of two halves to say the least! For the first mile and a half I suffered terrible stitch, having to have 3 walk breaks in that time to try and shift it. I felt like a beginner all over again! Once that finally cleared and I could get into some sort of rhythm, I felt much better and ended up finishing strong with a good run up Plump Bank. It wasn't a pretty run by any means, but I felt better having done it.

Thursday is the traditional Kilburn Woods run, just 6 of us tonight. My legs didn't feel too bad once we'd set off, but my lungs didn't want to work and the whole way round they burned, made worse by any sort of incline. It was uncomfortable to say the least, but we got round in a respectable time.

Friday is always rest day and Saturday was too as I was due to do a half marathon on Sunday. However, by mid-morning on Saturday it was clear I had a cold. Second one of the year. By Saturday evening, I wasn't sure if I wanted to race, especially as the forecast was awful. Still, I got my stuff together and figured I could decide in the morning...

...Sunday dawned and this time the forecast was right, it was pissing it down and blowing a gale. I lay in bed pondering what to do. I figured that 3 hours (it's a Hardmoors race, so Half Mara = 15 miles = 3 hours running) out on the moors in the lashing rain and cold wind probably wouldn't do my cold any favours. A shorter race or better weather and I would have stuck it out. I felt a bit of a pansy, but I didn't go. Of course, I have two more races coming up in quick succession, so they are in jeopardy too! Looks like my 'month off' might continue for a few more days... grr.

A Mixed Bag in Edale.

Last weekend saw my step-mum's 70th birthday, so we all piled in to the Viceroy Indian restaurant in Duffield for a slap up meal. It's a very posh place, the waiters in traditional costume and lovely food. My curry was a coconut one, but still quite spicy. I also tried panneer for the first time and wasn't disappointed.

The next morning, Paul and I headed into the Dark Peak for a spot of camping action. We got a pitch at the Field Head campsite in the little village of Edale, nestled below the hulking mass of Kinder Scout. The forecast was terrible, but now we sat out in sunshine by the tent!

We went for a little walk, just a 3.5 mile loop starting along the Pennine Way as far as Upper Booth then back along the valley bottom and the River Noe. We tried to find some geocaches (there are 16 along this short loop!) but my phone couldn't keep up and in the end we only got a couple. Still, it was a lovely afternoon and it was nice to stretch our legs. The path seemed very popular and there were lots of people about.

It was nice enough still to sit outside at the Ramblers Inn when we got back to the village, but the breeze was getting up now.

We went back to the tent to rearrange our things and feed the dog, before having tea at the Ramblers Inn. I had fish pie and it was really quite good!

Various people in the pub and the weather forecast at the visitor centre suggested horrible weather tomorrow, we bedded down for the night and thought we'd deal with whatever the morning brought...

Monday morning was cold and frosty, but totally clear blue skies!
After a breakfast of porridge, we got organised and set off on our walk. The first objective was Mam Tor. A steady climb from the village lead up to the road, then a final short steep push to the summit. I didn't know there had been a celtic settlement up here. There were tiles depicting Celtic artefacts in the paved footpath.
We soon made it up to the top and where treated to stunning views.

Back down and onto easy to follow tracks leading across rolling farmland, arcing around to join the Limestone Way as it descended into Cave Dale.

Cave Dale is a very narrow, steep sided valley cutting through an ancient limestone reef. It is not clear if it was always like this, or if it was once a cave and the roof has since collapsed. Either way, it is very dramatic and the little tower of Pevril Castle sits high up on the cliffs just adding to the drama!

We reached the town of Castleton a little before the pubs opened, so we had a look in the visitor centre and the little museum/display within. Once it was 12 we retired to the Bulls Head for a drink. The clouds had started to scurry across the sky now and the wind was quite chill, so we didn't sit for long.
The next task was the long climb up onto Lose Hill. It was all on good track which helped, but was still a stiff climb! Eventually we reached the summit, which has a nice viewfinder, and dropped down out of the wind for a snack break. Once we'd eaten, we struck out along the ridge towards Mam Tor. The ridge runs East West from Lose Hill, over Mam Tor and along Rush Up Edge. It is disconnected from the Kinder Scout massive and the moors surrounding Lady Bower reservoir.
We crossed Backtor with it's impressive outcrops and got to the col known as Hollins Cross, here we dropped off the ridge and headed downhill into the Noe Valley. From here it was an easy stroll back to Edale. We sat inside now at the pub as it was decidedly cold and really quite windy.

We used the facilities on the camp site to get showered up etc then went back to the pub! It was too cold to sit out at the tent and too cramped inside the tent. I had a Mam Tor Burger for my tea which I thought was appropriate given todays hike! We spent the evening in the pub drinking and I got my diary written. Eveyone was knackered! It started to rain so we headed 'home' before it got any worse and I spent the night listening to the wind and rain lashing down...

...only to find on Tuesday morning it was snow! We got packed up, it was bitterly cold, and ready to come home to Yorkshire where it was still sunny! Our route measured exactly 10 miles and a more detailed description is contained in the 'Hiking and Running Routes' section over on the right.

A short dog walk

I live in North Yorkshire on the southern edge of the North Yorkshire Moors. I live outside of a town, on a country lane. It's very rural which is nice. The farm across the road used to be home to a dairy herd, but foot and mouth ruined that, so now it's all arable. Today's little stroll with the dog took me around the edge of a field of oil-seed rape which seems to be flowering early this year. The field edges are teeming with wild flowers including dog's mercury, forget-me-nots, mustard cress and others which I don't know the names of; and the hedgerows are full of buckthorn blossom (I will make sloe gin this year!) with the hawthorn yet to flower. In the sunshine, various butterflies were courting.

On one side of the field, under a fallen tree there is a burrow and for some time I had wondered who lived there. I had assumed rabbits, but a more logical think says this cannot be the case as there are no droppings around the holes which rabbits would normally leave. There are also no piles of used bedding which can be indicative of badgers. Today however, I found out the identity of the occupants, it's a fox den. Sadly (or not, depending on your view point) there was a dead fox cub on the ground on top of the burrow. It looked quite fresh but was too far into the branches to investigate further.

A little further on I found evidence of predators in the form of damaged pheasant eggs. It could be the nearby foxes, or maybe even crows as there are quite a few locally. The area is managed by a local keeper and the left over birds from last year are looking quite splendid and will be preparing to nest. They occasionally manage to raise a few babies, but are less successful that you'd imagine!

Could I write a 'countryside interest' blog?

...and would it need to be separate to this which is essentially a running blog?
And how does one promote such a thing? Is there not enough of them already I wonder?
This has been triggered by a conversation with my boss while travelling around clients in Scotland and Northumberland recently. There's a lot of time to talk and mull over things when you spend three days in the car!

While away we stayed in some nice hotels and got very well fed! First off was The Angus in Blairgowrie. We had the three course set menu which was good and in the morning I had time for a quick swim in the pool before a big cooked breakfast.

The next night was spent at Brandy Bank on the A68. The boss has used this place for years, and it's easy to see why. Michael the proprietor is very attentive and the rooms clean and comfy- as one would expect. But the highlight is dinner! He makes as much as he can from scratch and this time we were treated to smoked haddock risotto, lamb cutlets and apple crumble for pudding. I don't really like lamb so he did me pork and apple burgers from his local butcher instead and they were lovely. We whiled away the evening chatting to a pair of hikers from Canada who were over doing St. Oswalds Way.

We saw a few bits of interesting wildlife, eider ducks at Seahouses amongst the usual gulls. Oyster catchers, curlew and lapwings around Brechin and back near Hexham scores of swallows. I wondered if the swallows had arrived at home yet, they normally make an appearance between the 19th and 21st April. My first chance to look for them was on the 23rd and I paused between chores to scan the sky and sure enough there they were, wheeling and chattering overhead.

I love this time of year, the weather has been very kind and I had my breakfast outside on the patio surrounded by the busyness of nature. The garden was full of the voices of birds and the distant clatter of tractors working the fields.

Last night we ate at the Crab & Lobster, a very posh local restaurant. I had mussels followed by duck. For a posh place, the portions are huge, I was full after my starter! I was a little surprised that they didn't ask how I'd like my duck to be cooked and it arrived rare, that's fine for me but I know plenty of people who don't like it that way. We were all too full for a pudding, but fancied something sweet, so we thought we would order the assiete of desserts and share them so we each just had a spoonful or two. Well, we didn't get 3-4 little bits of pudding, no, we got 8 mini puddings!! Oh my! Good job we hadn't ordered one each!! There was hazelnut praline, trifle, apple strudel, sticky toffee pudding, berry cake, sorbet, crème brulee and some fancy pastry thing. Between us we managed to finish it! We were pleased we hadn't ordered individual puddings as we saw the size of the portions delivered to the couple behind us, and they were massive. I declined a coffee, but still got a truffle and a piece of biscotti.
Unfortunately, I was ill in the night, I think due to sheer quantity of food rather than there being anything wrong with it. I don't feel poorly now but I am very tired and have a dehydration headache. Yuk. I have eaten a lot recently (see above re the client trip) and my body said enough. Well it is a temple don't you know!

So, what next?

Had a little time to reflect on the Hardmoors last week as I have been poorly with a cold, got the timing just right on that one!!

The HM55 was my A-race for this year so I feel like I can relax a little. I have a whole summer of shorter races to look forward to in the form of the Harrogate League and the Esk Valley summer series.

So, how did the race go? At the time it hurt like hell and I mustn't forget that! Sunday was lost in a haze of fatigue and pain- walking was comical. By Monday I was able to get up without wincing, but was under the grip of my cold. Tuesday my physical body felt fine, only really the bruised soles of my feet still hurting and by Weds if I weren't full of snot I would have considered going to Club training!! So I feel I have recovered quite well, I am still on a high but am dreading the onset of post-run blues and want to be able to get out and run soon, stupid cold.

I need to do more long runs and more hill work if I am to attempt anything like this again! But I think we knew that already...

I also need to work on different things to eat, I ate very little on the run, had I been running for longer I may have run into problems. I had my sweets that work and I'm ok to pick up sweets from checkpoints, but a girl can't run on sweets alone! There didn't seem to be much food at the checkpoints, but that could be because I was at the back... My crisps didn't go down well, nor the pizza (which was an experiment) and my Jaffa cakes got too squashed for me to fancy them!! The only thing I really enjoyed was the melon. I also wished I'd packed some grapes. Trouble is I didn't fancy anything. Reading peoples blogs, a lot of people were eating little nibbly things like nuts and raisins, yoghurt raisins too, I love those, might have to give them a whirl! I also should have eaten my Chia bar sooner. Another thing I'd like to try is salty potatoes, sound yummy.

Of course, then I have to run long enough to feel like I can't eat, then try and eat!

The other thing is of course my knees.
Although they gave up on the descent of Clay Bank, so about 18-20 miles by Monday they were fine. They don't give me any problems day to day. I need to have a chat with our fizz at club but I think it might be ITB related. So, lots of strengthening work on the glutes to try and stabilise it a bit more.

Gear- the normal pack I use for running couldn't carry all the compulsory kit, so I used my hiking rucksack! I have run with my rucksack, but no more than 4-5 miles at a time. I didn't need any of my kit (thank goodness) but easier access to my food would be good and also the option of having two separate liquid sources, I get tired of electrolytes after a while.
However, this may be rectified as my OH has gone ahead and bought me a Salomon running vest! No idea what model or anything so we'll see how that works. Just got to wait for it to arrive...
At some point I also need a new waterproof jacket. My current Berghaus one is on it's last legs and I am pleased I didn't need it. At the moment I can't stomach the price of a new one, but I shouldn't put a price on safety I suppose. It'll see me through the summer fell races and may make a good Birthday/Christmas present later in the year.

I'd also like a smaller arse so I'd look better on the official photographs!! But I guess I can't have everything!! Maybe not a smaller arse, a more toned arse...

Better think about putting a plan together for the summer so I am ready to crack on once this cold subsides, I think that will be soon as I am feeling a lot better today.