Started the year 2019 with a mindset of starting hard early and keeping it going. It didn't quite work out that way.
January was filled with runs with Dave and the dogs, a Dartmoor Micro of the
Two Moors Way and a cheeky Stonehenge marathon - starting hard remember as February brought me the news I had been waiting for. I was in the Tor Des Geants (200+mile mountain race). With this great news I filled up the month with finishing the
Two Moors Way through Exmoor and raced the Punchbowl 30 and New Forest Marathon. The year had started well and it even snowed.
As with life when things are going good you get knocked down it seems. I woke up after the New Forest with a sore ankle and this would lead to 3 slow months of recovering. I didn't panic with the training as I had both plenty of time and was able to walk fine. But boy i hate being injured and I can still feel a twinge in my ankle to this day. WTF did i do!!
With these bad boys...
After starting the trip with a distinct lack of snow in Champoluc, Italy we headed over to Chamonix where for 4 days we skied powder and tuned into our new skis. We only manged a days ski touring but boy it was a great off piste trip.
Not able to run we finished March with a fabulous trip to Wales and the
Traverse of the Rhinogs. What a place, beautiful, remote, mountainous.. it had it all and also wild camped the first night on a deserted island and the 2nd by a lake surrounded by mountain peaks.
Spring came and I did nothing in April. After set backs with the ankle the best thing to do is rest and that is what I did. So it was a case of catching up and going out.
Magical May. I think the sun just shone all month.
A Micro trip down to Dartmoor to the remotest parts. So remote that at the Tor we camped the boys got attacked by a fox - i sleep through it all!
Then it was back into running. The ankle seemed stronger - just dont twist on it.. I ticked of my 50th Marathon and then pushed through an Ultra with Rupe on the Pilgrims Trail the week after.
This was a recce/training run for what was to come. The Local running group had decided to put on it's very on Ultra run later in the year and had asked me to be the Race Director. So over the next few months we planned and figured out all the logistics needed to put on a great running event.
Fast approaching was my first race of the year so I needed to up a gear if my body allowed in June. Hills was my main goal. Went back to hike more of Dartmoor, ran the Purbecks and then hiked the Black Mountains in Wales. I felt ready.
Olympus Mythical Trail 100km race. I loved Greece, the people, the history, the landscape was all something magical. The race was special, I loved it apart from being 35'. The heat did blow me away and we had just climbed to nearly 3000m with snow still in the mountain gullies. But wonderful people helped me through the day and after the race we traveled through greece and visited a few historic sites - Meteora Monastries, Delphi and most of Athens.
With the Tor around the corner resting was not an option. So I managed a tough long run in the purbecks and finished July with Wales in a day.!!! I took Lola (dog) with me for a solo run in the mountains of North Wales and I drove 5hrs. Ran/hiked.scrambled for 10hrs. Lola then decided enough was enough and in the middle of the mountains took me directly back to the car!! I will never get lost with her in bad weather. So with worsening weather i just drove back home. One long day.
August Micro adventure was a nice couple of days in North Devon and a loop on the Coast and Exmoor. An underestimated place.
The Tor is less than a month away!!
I needed more hills. So pushed it hard over the next 2 weekends with 40miles on the Jurassic Coast then 3 long days in North Wales. Great places and very enjoyable training. And that was it. I had to taper, i had to be ready. All I could do now was fret over what else I could of done as there is nothing more you can do. Just be at the start line now and do your best.
The TOR...
The Magical Mystery Tor. A race that takes you 340KM around the Italian Alps with around 30,000m of elevation. Its quite a remarkable adventure in setting out with so little knowledge of what is to come apart from hardships both physically and mentally. But over 126hrs I persevered, toiled, enjoyed, loved it and then got disappointed when the end was near!!
Great experiences and friendships from a unique race.
Coming back from the trip I literally came down with a bang. Coming off my bike one night and totaled the bike and spent the night in A&E. No serious damage just niggles which persist to this day.
Lesson learnt - wear a helmet even on easy paths to the pub.
To take my mind of the injuries the local running group had organised an Ultra race (50km from Portsmouth to Winchester Cathedral via the Pilgrims Trail) and asked me to be the Race Director. We had a good time with the organisation and preparation and were all too pleased that 45 local runners had signed most to do their first Ultra plus 40 odd volunteers. The day came and the sun shone, the runners shined and the volunteers were superb. Remarkable we had a 100% finish rate - A truly exceptional day for all involved.
With winter coming it was time to slow down a little and let the body rest. So a little golf, a holiday to Exmoor, a fun weekend in Plymouth where the new Micro plan was hatched in that we would do the SW Coast Path again but in reverse.
Not wanting to wait to long we got on with things although they are never straight forward. With The Poole ferry being broken and most of the smaller ferry's taking people across the many rivers and estuaries in Devon closed down for winter. We had to jump a few sections but did get started and manged the Dawlish to Salcombe section.
My plans of taking it easy took another turn in that a race i had put myself on the waiting list told me that I was in the race and so I now had to prepare myself to run a 100miles at the end of January. So much for doing nothing I now had to get back into running and running a lots of miles.
But who wants to take it easy!!
It was back down to the Purbecks section of the SWCP to prepare for the Arc of Attrition 2020 whenever i could spare the time.
Lola used up another one of her lives up in that walking home one night out of no-where she chased a fox/cat across the road and was hit by a car.
Rushed her to the emergency vets and after a couple of nervous days (blood in her urine). All that was wrong with her was a gashed leg, a few cuts and grazes and a sore hip!!
One lucky dog and i'm grateful as i almost certainly would not know what to do without her x
And that was 2019. Good memories and as much as I hate how time flies by too fast 2020 is shaping up well. Here's to everyone's year.
2019 Stats..
1435 miles run
12 Micro Adventures
11 Marathons or Ultras done
3 trips abroad
