An Ode to 2014

D33 Finish:
Photo by Sandra McDougall

So 2014 is almost all gone,

The races are done, and the training goes on.
With plans now in place for 2015
What life is there left in my aging machine?
 

The D33, a new event for me this year,

Flat, mostly tarmac, it filled me with fear!
With no expectations I set off cautiously.
And to my great joy, finished beaming with glee!

 




Fling Finish:
Photo by Stuart MacFarlane

This year saw me tackle the Fling one more time,

A brilliant event, and goody bags with wine!
I climbed into Tyndrum, my body held out,
Down that finishing straight, and never in doubt!

 




WHW Ceremony:
Photo Clark Hamilton

The West Highland Way Race, the pinnacle of my year,

The training was full-on, through blood, sweat and tears.
Toe'd the line at Milngavie, full of excitement and dread,
"Next stop Fort William", whispered the yellow angel in my head!
 

A roller coaster of emotion, great highs and great lows

Why we put ourselves through this? Nobody knows!
With support from 'the family' and my No.1 crew
The goblet was mine, and the memories too!


Caroline & I at Lundavra on Devil
Photo Clark Hamilton

A last dance with the Devil; the Triple Crown in sight

I had to dig deep, body putting up a fight.
A good friend running with me, we kept up the pace,
The finish line beckoned, we'd finish our race!

Glenmore, and ‘the horn’ my last aim for this year

It didn’t go great, there were plenty of tears.

The body wasn’t willing, and the weather was hell!
Alas, I wasn't to hear that finishing bell.



Helen & I at start of Glenmore
Photo by David Mooney

Recovery took time, and the wine eased the pain

Lots of vitamins and rest - I will race again!
The Marcothon is a godsend to get me on track,
Going out in all weathers, my mojo is back!

Distractions aplenty, some days have been tough

And with 1 day to go, there’s been more smooth than rough.
A close to the year, no DNF for me!
I’m ready to come out fighting in January.



John & I at Lundavra on WHWR
Photo Clark Hamilton

Some goals are in place, some yet to confirm.

Training will be tough, I need to stay firm!
Cupboards full of good kit, I just need to get fit,
No grumbling or moaning, no reasons to quit.

 



Devil support
Photo by David Mooney

It’s been a great year of running, that much is true

With so many great friends, to keep pulling me through.
And my hubby beside me, spurring me on
There to pick up the pieces if something goes wrong.
 
2015 let’s see what you’ve got.
The mind is still willing, even if the body is not.
I’ll train smarter and harder to get myself fitter,
Because I love what I do, and I ain't no quitter!

Finding My Mojo

The Marcothon does different things for different folk.  It can make you or break you, and make you question 'WHY?' on many a cold, dark, wet morning when you're up before dawn to get the required miles done.

For me, it was about trying to get some of the spark back; that wee flicker of motivation that drags you out of bed to go training when the duvet is warm and inviting. I was also in dire need of trying to get my fitness level improved, and offset some of the over-indulgences, and we might come back to that later!

It has probably taken most of the month for me to get the mojo back, and I think it's finally here! The realisation has returned, that my body physically doesn't function well when it's fuelled with alcohol, sweeties and cheese, and carrying an extra stone of blubber around all the time; and that mentally, trying to get through the stress using a bucket full of caffeine is not a sustainable approach.  It's been fun though, and I think we all need some time off the disciplines every once in a while.  Now it's time for action though! (well, after the New Year actually as there's still a kitchen full of tasty stuff I'm going to have the pleasure of acquainting myself over the next week!)

A couple of other things this month have helped get me back on track.  

First was an unexpected 17 mile run with Glee last weekend from Braeval, Aberfoyle.  Arranged by Stan as a relaxed, social run, once-a-month-ish over winter, I'd gone along with the expectation of doing 10-15 miles maximum...and VERY slowly as this would be the furthest I'd run since Glenmore at the start of September.  A couple of others on the FB group had indicated they were also up for this...and then....*panic*....didn't come along on the day!  Not a great start, and I was ready to pack it in after the first couple of miles when most of the group (there were about 15 of us) set off at a decent pace, and appeared to be running all the hills (which were pretty steep).  Stan, Lorna and Donald stayed with me for a while, and seemed to be ok shuffling along at my pace.  We lost Donald to the faster group after about 6-ish miles, and I did then 'fess up that I was a bit worried about my pace and holding Stan and Lorna back.  Thankfully neither seemed too bothered, Stan reminding me several times that 'it's only December' and now was not the time I needed to be setting any speed records! (He did also say the route we were doing was only 13/14 miles...but I'll forgive him....).  The weather was good, the route undulating, and I never in a million years would have thought I'd have managed 17 when I set out that morning!  Felt great, albeit knackered at the end....I still managed a lap of the carpark to tip the Gamin over the 17 miles and appease my OCD!

The other major point in December was the ballot for the 2015 WHW Race entries. Having been lucky enough to be accepted last year, I was less hopeful this year as entry was over-subscribed by almost 100 places.  I felt much less on edge about the announcement this year (last year I was nervous from the moment I submitted my entry!)...However, on the Monday morning, the day after we knew the ballot had been drawn, I received a text from David Meldrum not long after I got to work.."you might want to go and check FB"....cue instant panic as I checked in on my phone....latest post from Ian Beattie..'blah blah...list of names...' followed by frantic scrolling...'I'm not on it, I'm not on it, WHY isn't it in alphabetical order??'.....pause, breathe...re-read the 'blah blah'.....oh cr*p, this is the balloted OUT entrants....scroll down...another post....'I'M ON THE LIST!!!!!!!'

Several swear words running through my head, and close to tears...I text Clark, I text Helen...I tried explaining to my team, who didn't truly understand my high pitched warbling....I went and sat in the toilets for 10 minutes...shaking with excitement.  We're in! 2015 challenge for my second WHW race goblet.  A challenge I'm proud and privileged to accept!  And if that doesn't motivate my to get off my fat ass and run, then nothing will!!

5 Marcothon runs left.  I'm already in my highest mileage month since June, and those 14,000 calories I've burned off running this month have to have offset some of the fun times! Most important of all is that I've got that mojo back.  No-one else can do this for me, and I'm back in the right place to kick myself into action!

Reflections on the year, and plans for 2015 to come before year end.  Enjoy the festivities, and a few extra days off to get out there and do something!!

We do run, run , run, The Marcothon

From Debbie MC on FB

Fear of missing out (FOMO say the 'kids')...it's a powerful thing...

I wasn't going to do the Marcothon this year, and I held my guns I think until 30th November....and then I caved!

I knew I needed something to motivate me, and whilst I did, was also conscious I was only on the first steps of recovery and didn't want to push myself too hard. On some days I was still suffering a bit - days after work had been particularly hard, or I'd taken on too much.  Even just some fairly 'easy' training was still in some instances causing some fairly interesting DOMS that I'm not really used to at that level of effort.  I considered some options - should I just try and do my own thing, and try 30 mins exercise each day. 

Photo from Helen & John Munro (copied from Daily Record)

And then I just decided to go for it!  The worst that could happen was a DNF (I failed in year 1, completed in year 2 last year).

The rules are up above, and some history of the event now in its 5th year, is in this link to an article in the Daily Record .




So here we are on day 14 - I'm still in!!  14 runs and 55 miles.  Not any massive shakes in terms of distance, and I'm not upset at that.  The vital thing for me is having a wee bit of mojo back; that stubborn streak that makes me want to complete!  

Cori perfecting 'suicide' look.  And this was
before we hit the knee deep drifts!

And I've also had some nice runs so far this month - including a nice snowy yomp across the Ochils from Frandy fishery in Glendevon to Blackford - eternally gratefully that Clark is a 'willing' chauffeur to drive me into the wilderness and drop me off.  Yesterday he got 'revenge' by sneaking up the hill from the Blackford side to hide in the heather and ambush me and Cori dog with snowballs!!

Almost half way through the Marcothon then, and the weather can't get any worse?!  We've had snow, ice, gales and not much sunshine....what doesn't kill us makes us stronger!!

The weird sink hole in the top reservoir.  My route goes
up behind those trees and off over the shoulder.

The Facebook group is great for motivation - I love seeing how many folk post that they're out because the CBA or think the weather is too rough, only to receive a flurry of 'motivational' comments and then an hour later be posting about how great they feel having been out and done it!

Here's to the next couple of weeks, injury free, with smiles on our faces and the wind on our backs!  

For me, I'm hoping this re-boots the mojo for good, and provides a sound base for the January focus on structured training, healthy food, and no alcohol!!

An Evening of Adventure

I was lucky enough this week to attend an event I won tickets at through work - hosted by the Black Grouse, an evening of adventure with Ben Fogle, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Olly Hicks and Kenton Cool.  What a great privilege it was to hear them share some of their experiences, and to understand how they've gone through (more on the mental side), some feelings that touched very close to home for me.

I'll confess a couple of things...I have a wee crush on Ben Fogle...and I'd not heard of 2 of those presenters before the event, so here's a little more about them..

Kenton Cool - wow - I have a new crush on him now!  And I would highly recommend going to hear him speak if you ever get the chance.  As his website says, 'energetic, entertaining, inspiring', and close to tears with emotion at one point!  He's successfully climbed Everest 11 times and is one of the world's leading mountain guides.  He was honest, humble, funny, and not at all 'up himself' with what he has achieved!

Olly Hicks was the youngest person to row solo across the Atlantic from USA to UK in 2005, surviving 124 days on his own - and not giving up on his dream (he almost had a companion, but after a dispute on which way to cross the Atlantic, Olly stuck to his intentions to start in the USA, and went solo!).  He retold his adventure in an unassuming and understated manner - making jokes about being short and ginger, and along with all 4 of them claims to be pretty 'thick' and that's why they all turned to adventure!  He said he quite enjoyed the solitude, after having partied hard with his friends for a few years before hand.

Ben Fogle I'm sure most of you know was one of the participants in one of the early 'reality' shows - Castaway.  Stuck on the Scottish island of Taransay for a year with 32 others.  He's gone on to do many (often televised) adventures, often with James Cracknell (who I have mixed opinions on).  He was the host for the evening, and 'interviewed' the others with some pre-set questions, and others from the audience, whilst also sharing some of his tales of adventure.

And Ranulph Fiennes, probably needs no introduction.  Again, I was struck by how unassuming he was.  I had some pre-conceptions that he was going to be a bit pompous (having tried on a couple of occasions to read Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know, and not really got on with it).  Hearing how he and his late wife spent years searching for a lost village, and years working in bars trying to live and raise funds for expeditions, without any airs and graces, was really quite humbling and inspiring.  How many of us give up on dreams when they seem so difficult to achieve?

It was a captivating couple of hours, with the audience hanging on the words of all 4 speakers. The time just flew by. For me, aside from the extremeness of some of their achievements, a couple of things really struck home.

When talking about what was better, the journey of preparation, or the event itself, they spoke very openly about a sense of 'bereavement' when the challenge was completed, often after months or years of fundraising, training and endeavor.  It was comforting to hear that even people at that level of awesomeness still suffer the same feelings some of us mere mortals do, and that really resonated with how I felt in the aftermath of the WHW this year.

Another question was around what was more important, the mental or the physical preparation.  To which at least two of them answered, neither, it's actually about having the correct kit!  I do like a bit of new kit...however, also appreciate that when something 'works', it has to be a keeper!  There was also a valid point about not doing months and months of training solely in the discipline in which you will compete - Olly Hicks spoke about there being 'little point' spending all his time on a rowing machine, when he was about to have nothing else but rowing to do for the 124 day expedition!  A good lesson in cross-training... And while I'm not dismissing mental and physical preparation as vital parts of what we need to do, it was funny to hear that these elite guys place extremely high value on good kit!

I'm sure there were many more tales and inspiration I should remember and share.  Suffice to say, I came away enthused and optimistic....a great end to a Monday which had seen the results of the WHW race ballot for 2015 announced!  Goblet number 2, I'm coming to get you!!