The Final Countdown

Well time is accelerating to Showtime.  Monday evening as always, well that’s the way it seems, was a return to the hill.  We just call Arthur’s seat ‘The Hill’ as we are now on familiar terms with the 340 million year rock, well it’s better than referring to its acronym A’sS! Surprise, surprise it was wet which meant we cut our session short – you can get pretty wet out there in such a short time. Instead of running both our colours we only ran one.

On Tuesday we treated our jogscotland group to an interval session. One minute intervals, run out for a minute drop a cone and that’s your mark.  Always amazes me the honesty of runners, out they run as hard as they can for a minute and drop the cone and give themselves a challenge. 

Strathclyde parkrun gave me another opportunity to run using the Chi running method.  If it’s consistency that you are after you can’t argue with the results, I clocked 21:25 which compares with 21:24 two weeks ago. Moira, on the other hand was unhappy with her run (getting old, unfit grumble grumble).

Our last long run before Speed of Light turned out to be 2 miles longer than planned. We were approaching the final homeward stretch when Moira pulled a fast one – let’s go this way. Before to long we had added a further 2.5 miles, all because Moira felt good at mile 9 (not old at all!).

Our last Monday night on the Hill was a somewhat crowded affair; you couldn’t run down a path without bumping into a run leader. Either the run leaders are conscientious or panic has set-in, I think it might be the latter – well it is in our case! Just for a change the conditions were perfect, and with the grass recently strimmed, navigation was a lot easier.

Tuesday saw me successfully complete my own personal Jammython – 31 days running at least 3 miles (or 20 minutes). In the end I clocked up 182 miles running, 22 miles cycling and 6 exercise classes – so safe to say the injury nightmare is well and truly behind me. It is all part of a masterplan for next years Jogscotland Challenges for The Jammys and all those that would like to join us in an accessible challenge for all – watch this space.

August arrived and that could mean only one thing, we were now days away from ‘The Speed of Light’.  Friday was the first technical rehearsal and the nerves were building all day. I couldn’t settle to anything on Friday – I was frantically studying my choreography notes. Eventually I came up with a set of notes that made sense to me. Fortunately on the Friday night I was down as a Reserve Run Leader, so I was unsure how much I would need to do. Moira, however, was leading the green colour along with Ann. As we assembled with the other run leaders there was an odd mix of fear and excitement. 

My duties were pretty straightforward I was there to assist at the far end of the hill. Encouraging runners to keep the 10 metre space between themselves and the next runner. Being able to look on from afar – it was amazing!

As the runners arrived in the “holding tent” the excitement grew. Once assembled Ann and I briefed our group before being suited up and before we knew it we were off up the hill. The green group were brilliant, entering into the spirit of things and having a good time. The green route is tough; there’s a couple of time we’re at the bottom of the hill heading straight up to the top. We had no complaints and some of the group did both sessions and loved it.

After the late night, Saturday morning parkrun was less appealing but it was our monthly pacing Saturday and I was committed to running with the 22 minute pacing vest. Despite Pat’s best efforts to swap with me, the flattery did not result in me taking up his 21 minute pacing vest. It was a bumper turnout for us at Strathclyde parkrun, smashed our attendance record with 243 runners enjoying the perfect conditions on Saturday. I came in at 21:57 – not bad – job done. Whereas after a night on the hill Moira could only manage 24 minutes.

Saturday evening saw us attend a lecture on the history of The Hill and for  me to lead The Dream team aka The Blue team.  Catriona and I had quickly established we had the best team on the hill. The team were awesome from start to finish and if we get teams of that calibre every night we are on, it will be a breeze and there will be no need for nerves. The conditions, however, were horrendous. The mist came rolling in and made visibility poor resulting in other colours claiming they were the best.

 

Saturday night saw Moira with no duties. Along with the other “no duty” runleaders, I was asked to be part of the audience. This was as a training exercise for the walk leaders. The fog really restricted the view and we didn’t make it up to the top to get the whole effect. However, the mist did eventually clear and we were left with the awesome sight that will be Speed of Light. I pity the poor walk leader who had to deal with Fiona, Tim and myself, cause we just didn’t want to leave the hill. Watching the show we kept saying “oh look they’re doing a lighthouse” or “that will be the red group there” or “look at that hub it’s really pulsing”. Up on the hill as a runner you don’t get to see the visual effect so it was great to see and it’s going to look amazing.

Sunday, thankfully was a rest day which meant we could watch some small event happening in London that clashes with the main event – The Speed of Light!

No 'I' in team

Running is a team sport - it’s a community, it has moved a long way from being a solo sport! The Speed of Light adds weight to this statement. On Monday evening we returned to Arthur’s seat, well where else would we go on a Monday! Up on the hill we bumped into Kristi and Paul, who were out running one of their colours. Once again we opted for running both our colours without the choreography and working on our fitness as a priority. For a change this summer it was a lovely evening for running.

This month I have been on a mission – my aim – to run every day in July, at least 3 miles or 25 minutes. Those of you who signed up for the Marcothon for the last two Decembers will be familiar with the concept. The Marcothon challenge was set up by Utlra runner Debbie Martin Cosani after her husband Marco challenged himself to run every day in November 2009.  Debbie then followed it by running every day in December 2009.  Debbie posted the challenge in various social networks and running forums and before she knew it there was a group of runners equally eager to take up the challenge. I found the experience last December got my fitness levels up, so for the Speed of light I challenged myself to my very own Jammython – run 3miles or for 25 minutes every day in July.

In December the toughest week was the third week so I was expecting this week to be the most difficult. True to form that’s how it turned out. Wednesday and Thursday were particularly difficult to get my tired legs out for a run. But we got there! It’s times like these that your fellow runners get you out and running, whether it’s the company or not wanting to let someone down you find the inspiration or motivation to get out there and do it.

On Saturday, Moira ran her 51^st parkrun resplendent in her coveted red 50^th parkrun running top. No PB for this run but it felt good running in my new top. John took his place in the Strathclyde parkrun ‘Dream team’ competing in the Clyde Stride Relay race. The Clyde Stride is an ultra-marathon running along the Clyde walkway from Glasgow to New Lanark a distance of some 40 miles. The dream team were Pat Smith, Neil Robbins and Anthony Butler and me. The plan was to meet up at Strathclyde Park at 8:00 am and head off to Partick in Glasgow. Neil, however, stayed behind to set-up ‘his parkrun’. It therefore fell to Moira to make sure Neil got to the changeover point on time. We felt a little unprepared as we headed into Glasgow for the 9:00 am start. We just had time to pick up our numbers, have a quick chat with familiar faces including Gavin (Sweatshop) and Helen (Falkirk parkrun Heartbreakers) and attend the pre-race briefing and before too long it was time for Pat to head off.

Once seeing Pat off, Anthony and I made our way to Cumbuslang Bridge for the first changeover point. Contrary to Anthony’s blog ( Blog) we arrived with no detours, perfectly navigated and in plenty of time. The wait for Pat was agonising – I just wanted to get my leg underway. All too soon I got my wish and I was on my way – leg 2 of the Clyde Stride, destination Strathclyde Park. I had opted for my Trail shoes and it was an inspired choice as the terrain was mainly off-road. 

Fortunately, there wasn’t any scope for overtaking between mile one and mile three allowing me to warm-up slowly and ease my way into my leg. By mile four I was running strongly and continued to feel strong all the way to Strathclyde Park. I had a few wrong turns but got back on course pretty quickly. As I ran into Strathclyde Park it was great to see the parkrun regulars there to give a rousing reception. Moira, Ross, Ian, Jon, Neil, Pat and Anthony were all there. Neil didn’t waste time and was quickly off the mark as soon as I reached the changeover point.

For the rest of the day I could relax and just enjoy the spectacle and that’s what I did. Moira, Pat, Anthony and I made our way to the next changeover point. Maudslie Bridge was packed with runners and support crew. Neil appeared and we now had something to hold onto, 3^rd place. Anthony set off on the glory leg in with a chance but he would need to be at his best. This was the time when the support would be vital so the support team stopped off at Crossford Bridge to cheer Anthony there, we then caught up with him again at Kirkfieldbank. Unfortunately this was at a cost, we got held up in traffic in Lanark and arrived just in time to see Anthony finish in the distance – he’d done it we were third.

It was great to be placed in a race and even better to receive a trophy for our efforts. It wasn’t exactly expected but very welcome and we probably milked it a bit too much (you don’t say!!!!! Moira).  It was a happy team that arrived back at Strathclyde Park already planning next years race.

On Sunday, in a change to the plan, Moira and John returned to the bikes and managed an impressive 22 miles. This of course, meant that I had not done the planned long run and had to fit in a quick 4 mile run in the evening, so the Jammython is still on with one week to go!

Time to get serious!

It’s time to get serious, Monday saw us return to Arthur’s seat for the first of the runleader’s extra training session in a concerted bid to practice the choreography. It’s all very well going out on the hill and learning your routes, it’s a completely different ball game leading runners through a session packed with choreography. For a runner Speed of light is about distance and time but not in the usual sense – we have got to be in the right place at the right time to nail the choreography. The variables are runner’s ability and the terrain, so instead of losing yourself in your running you find you have to concentrate for the full session and be very aware of your surroundings.

The underfoot conditions were tricky to say the least with some of the descents hair-raising. As always with the best intentions in the world it takes a lot longer to run through a section when you have several run leaders involved, debates about what this or that means. Thankfully we are getting closer to ‘all singing from the same Hymn Sheet’.  There is definitely a togetherness building up between the run leaders that has evolved over the last six months.

With August just around the corner our training has gone up a notch, our mileage in July has already surpassed June’s total mileage. This is partly due to my return from injury but also the focus switching to the Speed of Light. The injury nightmare gave me time to think and assess what’s gone wrong after a couple of years relatively injury free. Being like all runners, I have thirst for knowledge and was tempted by the barefoot running fad on the back of reading the ‘Born to Run’ book by Christopher MacDougall. I could definitely buy into the thinking behind barefoot running but feel it’s something I need to introduce gradually.  However, I am now convinced that my ankle problems are a result of the weak right hip that I developed several years back and that if I strengthen the hip and work on my running gait I will avoid the more serious injuries in the future. So for the last two weeks I have been trying to concentrate on my form. My first port of call was Chi running, Thank goodness for Amazon.  I am currently reading Danny Dreyer’s book on the Chi Running. Together with the various You Tube guides I have adopted the four main principles into my running. It is very difficult trying to alter your running style and it requires constant concentration but you have to bear in mind it is a long term goal rather than a short-term fix.

On Friday after a 7 mile lunchtime run we returned once again to Arthur’s seat for another run leader’s session, this time it was one of Moira’s routes we were running. This session went very well and teamwork got the job done. However, late home on Friday night meant we had to grab a pizza and get organised for parkrun the following morning.

Moira was Race Director for Strathclyde parkrun and I got the chance to run the course for the first time in a wee while. Equally important was that Moira picked up her 50^th T-shirt, a new record for parkrun – dispatched within a week. My tactics for the run were just to go out and run and concentrate on the form, I was more than delighted with my 21:24, my best 5K time post-injury.

With next week’s Clyde Stride Ultra relay in mind, Sunday’s long run was to be a leisurely 10 miler. Must have forgot to mention that to Moira because as we headed into mile 6, she upped the pace and for the next three miles we were close to race pace – still it’s all good training.

Why does always rain on me?

Following on from the June Super Sunday we headed back up the hill the following day – although the hill was still wet the overhead conditions were not too bad. Our training session consisted of us both going our separate ways and running our legs from start to finish. We did, however bump into each other a couple of times most notably at Hub 3 – definitely the centre of the universe, well in August it will be! We both managed to run both our colours so it was ‘happy campers’ that left the hill that night.

The following evening it was ‘the road and miles to Dundee’ to take on the 5^th JogScotland 5K challenge.  We left Edinburgh with a hint of rain in the air and arrived in Dundee in the middle of a downpour. It was miserable, it got to the stage that you just wanted to get started and finished as quickly as possible. JogScotland obviously sensed the mood and the challenge begun a couple of minutes early. Camperdown Park is a nice course or least it would be in better conditions, the rain was incessant. It was a rather bedraggled bunch that hung around for the prize giving but it was worth the wait, we scooped 1^st and 3^rd female (yes Mo got another 3^rd place), 3^rd male (no not Jo, although he was 5^th) and The Jammys took a team prize for the 4th challenge in a row! There was to be no hanging about, it was straight in the car and home.

The Challenges come thick and fast at this time of year, the Wednesday night saw us complete the tour with the Edinburgh double-header, back-to-back 5K challenges. The biggest challenge was getting the kit dried in time for Edinburgh, that and getting there on time – we travel the length and breadth of Scotland, yet it is the transport to Edinburgh that is the most stressful.

The first 5K of the evening was a wet one albeit nowhere near as wet as Dundee. Right from the off it was evident that once again we had a course change but too our surprise the course was on the short side this time! Our entry back into park was accompanied by the Drifters performing – yes The Drifters! Almost immediately after finishing it was time to swap numbers and congregate for our second 5 K of the evening. Thankfully the overhead conditions were improving. The second 5K is more of a procession than a run – all The Jammys run together on this one – it’s a tradition. And all too quickly that was the challenges over for another year.

On the Saturday it was back to parkrun and a chance for Neil and Ross to bag their 49^th parkrun and set themselves up for the big five O the following weekend. We completed the weekend with a nice wee 10 hilly Harburn mile run on the Sunday morning as we attempted to get out stamina up for the Speed of light which was now a mere month away.

Another wet Monday evening saw us return to Arthur’s seat, although we were unable to park in our usual location, some sort of garden party going – even in those conditions. We were joined on the hill by two girls that had got our name from Run 4 it, and they wanted to get a flavour of Speed of the Light and get an idea what they had let themselves in for! The conditions underfoot were once again treacherous, and clearly demonstrated the need for trail shoes for anyone contemplating doing The Speed of Light. Instead of doing our two colours we chose to run one colour. As time wore on the mist descended on the hill and we were unable to see each other on the hill - Justified our decision just to do the one colour.

The remainder of the week was spent getting some regular training in as most of midweek June was spent running the JogScotland challenges. We even managed a toning session at Harburn Village Hall. However, all too soon our focus switched to someone’s 50^th parkrun, the countdown had begun – 3 sleeps to go. Honestly, it was worse than Christmas! A cake had to be baked, no ordinary cake but a cake in the shape of a 50 parkrun T-shirt!

Saturday morning arrived after the protracted countdown and even the torrential rain failed to dampen spirits en route to Strathclyde Park. I was once again Race Director, so I opted for a freedom run ahead of the main event – gets me out of erecting the tent! As I addressed the runners the ‘all new 50 club were in position – Moira, Ross, Neil, Pat, Eddie and Eamon.  The field got underway and the 50 club all managed to complete their run with young Eamon recording a PB. So to the cake, well there wasn’t much left by the time the last marshals arrived but thankfully enough to go round.

It was back to business on Sunday morning with the infamous Harburn ‘12’, a hilly 14 mile route – don’t ask! After the run we both felt that at last the training was back on course.

If it's Sunday it must be Arthur's Seat!

Well that was some week!. Basically we stretched ourselves so far this week that the days all seemed to merge into one another. We started and finished the week on Arthur’s seat. Last Monday we headed back to Arthur’s seat clutching our ‘hot of the press’ choreography routine for the next Super Sunday. We had no time to lose, we now had our two colours to concentrate on. I had Pink and Blue and Moira had Green and Red. So the plan for the Monday evening session was to try out our new colours.

Following on from the weekends downpours the underfoot conditions were pretty wet and far from ideal. The plan as always was to get round the new colour and familiarise ourselves with the route i.e without the actions. On the whole the training was quite straightforward and we seemed to get round the new colour quite successfully. However, once again my ankle started to play up and I was forced to hobble off the hill after finishing the last legs of the Blue route.

The following day it was back to The Jammy’s tour and a first jogscotland Challenge in Peebles. The drive to the Borders, thankfully, featured the return of that unfamiliar yellow ball in the sky! Striding up to registration we were greeted by fellow run leader, Cat, who was handing out leaflets for Run-4-it. Peebles was a huge success for The Jammy’s in that we had 17 runners taking part. I was struggling with my injury and contemplated pulling out but this was to be my 42nd consecutive JogScotland challenge. The course involves two loops along the side of the tweed, crossing the tweed four times in total. As it turned it wasn’t a PB course, it was 500 metres too long! The Jammys once again scooped the community group prize, the 2^nd and 3^rd female prize and the 3^rd male prize. Yes, Moira managed yet another 3^rd prize.

Wednesday saw the Jammy tour roll into Glasgow, a place where we have struggled to make an impression in the past. Again I was in two minds about running. It was heartening to see JammyHenshite and JammyKatie join the tour for the Glasgow challenge. As always Glasgow proved a fast course, however, I was just glad to get round as the ankle appeared to be getting worse. At the end I took advantage of the Nuffield Health physiotherapists that were on hand to provide quick taster massages etc. Eventually the physiotherapist set to work on my ankle and inflicted pain at one particular point which did appear to alleviate something. I emerged from the tent only to discover The Jammys had managed to get their hands on the Community prize for Glasgow – a first for the Jammys. JammyKenyian and JammyMadge also managed to record a PB.

Moira was out on Thursday training but I opted for a rest day ahead of the planned running at the weekend.  Saturday morning arrived and it was off for our weekly dose of parkrun. I was running and Moira was volunteering or should I say she was patiently waiting on the gang of four catching up to 49 parkruns. The pain had shifted the front of the ankle but I still managed to finish the 5K in a shade under 23 minutes, one minute slower than my average. I had booked an appointment with Grant McLullich so that he could take a further look at the ankle. The result - yet more exercises to do in my rehabilitation process. There was an afternoon trip to Sweatshop in Glasgow where Gavin fitted us up with new running shoes, so that’s us sorted for another 500 miles.

Suddenly the Speed of Light Super Sunday was upon us once more. Nerves set in as we drove into Edinburgh. A new choreography to perform and 30 runners to ensure would have a good time. Our preparation was limited but at least we had managed up on the hill to scout out the routes earlier in the week, surely that would stand us in good stead. As the run leaders gathered, the team ethos took over, after all we were all in this together – united we stand! The nerves evaporated as soon as you got the light suit on – showtime! Before too long the runners allocated to your session were seeking you out and so the briefing could bring. Catriona and I were straight into it, you wouldn’t have known it was our first time working together. The weather this time round was much kinder to us even if the underfoot conditions did prove testing. After the afternoons sessions over-running we were starting off at leg 3 so it was straight to our home from home – Hub3.  I don’t know why but time slipped away so quickly and before long we were heading back for a suit change. The second session benefited from the falling darkness and with it the luminescence of the light suits. It’s always the same, put a runner in a light suit and their face lights up, it’s incredible to see. Once again time ran away for us and it was soon time to come off the hill. You are left with the feeling – can’t wait for August!

Hills, Hills and more Hills

Well, it is no surprise that we are spending more and more time on the hills as we focus in on the Speed of Light. On Monday evening we headed to Arthur’s seat for a date with Katri Walker. Katri is a visual artist and filmmaker that has been commissioned to do a piece on The Speed of Light and it was to this end that Katri accompanied us on the hill.

We decided that this training exercise was going to be to run our respective original routes as a continuous run, that way if we could do that then the fitness should be OK when we incorporated the actions. So after meeting up with Katri in the car park we headed off to our starting positions – a gentle 1 mile warm-up. The plan was simple, Katri was going to accompany me on the first three legs and then hook up with Moira for her final legs. Katri was full of questions and the time passed very quickly. I would like to say I didn’t notice the steep inclines but I wouldn’t quite go that far! Just for the record, my ankle felt the best it has been since the injury coming off the hill.

On Tuesday it was back to leading our JogScotland group, it was to be everyone’s favourite session, not! Grassy Hill reps. Has to be said that we must be going soft as we gave the group options – 6 reps, at least 2 of which had to be long. To our surprise many opted for more than 2 long reps – obviously there is still a belief that – no pain, no gain.

On Wednesday, The Jammys were back on the road, this time the destination was Inverness, the Highland capital. Inverness has always been a great hunting ground for the Jammys and this year proved no exception. The Jammys won best workplace group and JammyBilly was second male and JammyMo was third female. It is a long way to go for a 5k but the trip is a tremendous team building occasion.

After the long trip and arrival back in Edinburgh in the ‘wee sma hours in the morning’, Thursday’s run round the Innocent railway, in the shadow of Arthur’s seat was a somewhat subdued affair. Nobody cared to divert to Hunter’s bog and take in more hills. In the evening, Moira and I had a much-needed sports massage.

The planned middle distance run for Friday didn’t materialise, what with the rain and my ankle grumbling we thought it prudent to give the run a miss.  On Saturday, I had planned to do parkrun but again I felt my ankle was just not right so again declined to run.

The problem with our training of late has been the lack of long runs, usually Sunday is the day for long runs but with the intrusion of the Kilomathon, Speed of light and the Marathon the long run has become a distant memory. However, that was put to right on Sunday with a hilly Harburn 10 miler. The price to pay, well apart from being sluggish, I collected a huge blister on my right foot. My own fault really, went back to using my old Asics and re-introduced the orthotics. Lesson learnt – don’t fix what ain’t broken!

On the Road Again!

Who would have thought it? Five years ago we set up the Jammys with the sole purpose of raising awareness and much needed funds for the Simpson Special Care Babies (SSCB) charity. Each year we take on the JogScotland 5K challenges the length and breadth of Scotland and this week we set-off on our sixth tour. The Jammys have always believed in their motto – Joy, Laughter and Fun – it’s a great philosophy to take into these events. The Jammys have grown in number over the years and instead of getting all Jammys to commit to the whole tour we now try and get as many Jammys as possible to each event.

JogScotland are a tremendous organisation who aim to get people active and we remain committed to this aim with our workplace JogScotland group. Throughout the month of June JogScotland put together a series of challenges for their members to aspire to and for many it is the focus of their efforts to get fit.  Over the last few months we have been organising our tour – booking the minibus for Aberdeen and Inverness and sourcing and printing the T-shirts for the new Jammys joining us for this year’s tour.

So the main focus of the last seven days has been The Jammys tour. On the eve of the tour we were dealt a blow with JammyJules, one of the new Jammys, having to pull out of the first couple of challenges as a result of injury. So on Wednesday we headed up north with only eight Jammys for the first challenge, however, this did not dampen spirits as it was just great to be on the road again. The first two challenges are nearly always Aberdeen and Inverness and these challenges have a special atmosphere with the group travelling together in a minibus – a really good bonding session. Over the years there are a lot of traditions that have been implemented. Maynards directly benefit from one of these traditions – the consumption of copious amounts of wine gums – mostly it has to be said by JammyBilly.

It was a miserable drive up to Aberdeen, wet and misty. We arrived in good time, so much so that we were charged by JogScotland to recall the course from our previous visit a couple of years ago. Nobody else seemed to remember the course, so we ran what we thought was the course and amazingly enough our route came in at 5K – total recall or what? The challenge got underway and the heavens opened, definitely the wettest challenge we have been involved in. The Jammys all made it home safely, the bonus being that everyone was pleased with their times. You can donate on our fundraising page.

The weekend was taken up with the Grand Harburn Festival, it was our first festival so it was an all new experience for us. We decided as the festival essentially takes place at three sites we would take our bikes. It has to be said that not much cycling took place, Moira was located at the village hall selling burgers and John was at the Sawmill looking after some of the games. Thankfully the rain stayed away.

It wouldn’t be Saturday without some connection with parkrun and so on Saturday night it was off to Bellshill to celebrate Ally’s 27^th birthday for the 24^th time. It was great to see so many of our parkrun friends dressed up in something other than running gear! I’d like to say they all behaved themselves but that would be somewhat glossing over the truth.