The infamous Belvoir Challenge

Hello Harby!

Oh. My. Gosh. This is the hardest race I have ever done and I'm not just saying that because it was 26.4 miles.  Not only was this a marathon, it rivalled and surpassed our toughest cross country course.  First off there's mud. Not just a little mud, there's a LOT of mud.  Ankle deep mud. Mud that sticks to your shoes with the tenacity of beggar lice on your favourite trousers (this section of mud made me curse out loud quite loudly which the guys behind me found hilarious). Mud that does its dead level best to make you slide into the ditch. Stinky mud with the eau de stench of cow and sheep poop. Mud that tries its best to steal the trainers right off your feet. I could go on but I'm sure you get the idea...mix that in with a few kick ass hills and you have got a doozy of a course.  Oh, let's not forget the seemingly endless stiles and gates to clamber over that caused huge backups in the beginning especially on those located on the uphills, I read somewhere that there were approximately 30 of those buggers in previous years, one of which this year seemed to be on the verge of falling over at any moment--we all were very careful on that one!

Hey crazy lady, there's a bus right behind you!

Hmm, what else about the course that bears mentioning...there were more than a few brambles hanging over the paths waiting to snag you, I have several scratches on my legs and one caught in my hair then scraped my shoulder and I saw quite a few runners with major cuts from their bramble encounters.  There were a few sections that had small rocks embedded in the paths that beat up my feet something fierce--one of the perils of opting for the more aggressively lugged trainers. While most people avoided the mud puddles I looked forward to running through them because the cold water numbed my feet. There was also a somewhat fearsome near-vertical set of iron stairs with very narrow steps that we had to climb up!

Elevation Chart--Click to Enlarge

It might seem that I'm listing only negatives right now but there were some awesomely right things! There were an appropriate number of porta-loos at the start and they were some of the best ones I've seen at a race--not only were they clean, they also locked properly, you could "flush" and not have to look at the previous person's business, they were well stocked with the appropriate paper products, and you could wash your hands with soap! Ok, I might be gushing over-much about the loo situation but hey, this is something so rare it bears writing about!

Other good things: the course this year even though there weren't many marshalls was very well signposted and marked out, there were only a couple of times that I had to pause a second to figure out the route (very important if you didn't bring an OS map along).  The checkpoint feed stations were amazing, very much like an ultra with the variety of foods available.  Be warned though that there are only 5 checkpoints on the marathon course and one is a water station only and a couple in the middle are spaced quite far apart.  Next year I think I might consider Nordic Walking the 15 mile option so I can partake of the massive cream tea stop!

Pre-Mud

When you weren't worried about having to stay upright in the mud there were also some gorgeous views and we do get to run quite close to Belvoir Castle. I was wishing I'd brought along the gopro in the chest harness in order to film some of this but I was having some delusions of grandeur about putting in a halfway decent time so opted to leave it home.

Belvoir Castle

The finish line food was another plus, coffee or tea, 2 different kinds of soup, gluten free bread, quite an impressive array of puddings (pudding=dessert), water pitchers and cups on every table so you could refill as needed and enough room so that most people were able to get a seat.

Belvoir Challenge 2015 Course Map

Now onto my day...the wheels pretty much fell off for me thanks to a sensitive tummy.  I had to make 3 loo stops, 2 of which were sans loo.  Thankfully the third time I was able to make it to the checkpoint (Checkpoint 4) and not have to try to go off the course to find trees or a hedgerow to hide behind.  Wish I could say that took care of everything but my stomach continued to roil for the rest of the distance in a most unpleasant way.  I also had a few too many sideways slips in the mud and the same leg I tried to do the sideways split with at the Bakewell BDL XC started acting up around mile 7 and continued to get worse from there. I was almost in tears when it came time for the course to split off and I had to turn right for the 26 and nearly everyone else went left.

Hello Finish Line!

However I did survive the distance albeit with a new personal worst time, quite a let-down considering I clocked in four 20-milers at just over 3 hours each and this is the only race I had budgeted to do but I knew going into this event that it wouldn't be a fast one. I just didn't expect so many issues...ah well, live and learn.  A huge thank you to my partner and a friend who also ran the marathon today for taking such good care of me afterwards!

My favourite photo of the day

One thing to note about the Belvoir Challenge, if you expect bling then this isn't the race for you.  We did however get very lovely certificates that the local schoolchildren personalised, I think that is quite a meaningful finishing token. Speaking of bling, good luck to all the Arkansas friends running the Little Rock full and half marathon tomorrow!

Trainer Travails

Love the quote!

2.5 weeks out from the Belvoir Challenge and I'm having a bit of a challenge with sorting out what shoes to wear! Admittedly I've left it a little late but can't change that now so just have to get on with it.  My problem lies in that my normal trail shoes are well over a year old (Brooks Cascadia 7) and are pretty much broken down so even Nordic Walking in them is becoming uncomfortable plus I'm on an extremely limited budget.  The shoes I wear for cross country (Inov-8 Bare-Grip 200) and shorter fell runs (Inov-8 Trail-Roc 255) do not have near enough padding in them to get me over 26.2 miles of trails and tarmac.

This had me going to my usual source of reasonably priced fitness gear SportsShoes.com and deciding on the Inov-8 Terrafly 277, a road/trail hybrid.  Shipping took a little longer than normal and I was beginning to get impatient because I was really looking forward to trying these out!  Once they finally arrived and I re-laced them to my preferred method I was out the door for their maiden run.  Initially they were very comfy for a minimalist shoe but within a mile I noticed a problem I'd only encountered with cycling shoes--a hot spot was developing on my left foot.  Thinking it was the socks I was wearing (not one of my preferred pairs) I waited a couple of days then paired them with the Injinjis, same thing, only much worse in the exact same spot.  Still thinking that perhaps unlike most of my other trainers they were going to require a break-in period, I gave them a go a third time with yet another style of sock on Monday.  Absolutely not happening, this was the worst occurrence yet of the hot spot, I was hobbling by the time I got home.  In between the runs with the Terraflys I was running with other trainers and not having this issue so in my opinion there is a defect with this particular shoe.  It's a shame because they really do seem to transition between the road and non-technical trails with ease.  As of yet though I've not had a reply from SportsShoes about what my options are despite contacting them via email and facebook.*

Sorry about the mud in the tread but I do think it gives a good indication about how well the shoes do or don't shed it

So now with even more limited funds I took to ebay and found a pair of brand new Adidas Kanadia 6 going for cheap and they arrived the day after I paid for them (rather than almost a week).  They are not minimalist and have more of a heel drop (11-12mm) than I normally favour but for a substantial looking shoe they are surprisingly lightweight.  Last night's club run was a good initial test for them because of the mix of canal trail and road and they were quite comfortable for both.  The Kanadia's seem to shed the mud quite decently, not anything near the Bare-Grips but they are certainly far more comfortable!

 Adidas Kanadia 6, another mud in the tread pic

I do prefer the looks of the Inov-8s over the Kanadia (I likened the latter to orthopedic shoes) and I certainly like having a lower heel drop but the Terraflys are just not working for me, at least this particular pair isn't.  An interesting observation is that I actually ran more on the forefoot with the higher heel drop Adidas which goes against the conventional wisdom.  The trail shoe I am most looking forward to trying though is the Brooks Pure Grit 3, I adore the 2s, they feel like slippers once they are broken in but their failing is shedding the mud and that is one thing I have in abundance here.  Brooks is great about listening and acting on constructive criticism and it looks like they have gone with a more aggressive tread on the Pure Grit 3.    

As a bonus for me going on for so long about trainers, you get a cute Ben picture, he was feeling quite playful yesterday and eviscerated the penguin toy.  There were piles of stuffing downstairs and then he carried it upstairs to finish off the job in the office and took the squeaker out of another toy.  At least it wasn't trainers...

*After writing this I did finally receive a response on facebook saying to send them back with a note explaining the issue and they would inspect the shoes to see if there is a defect.

Marathon training fatigue and BDL XC

Yesterday was a return to the Holme Brook BDL cross country race, our final one in the winter series. I must say that despite the weather conditions being much better the course was only marginally easier and it still ranks as my least favourite.  It certainly didn't help that I was running on very fatigued legs after completing my last long run for Belvoir on Wednesday and putting in a respectable time for the club handicap on Tuesday, it's safe to say that I was completely out of gas (that's definitely an Americanism) by the time Sunday rolled around.

Yes, that is snow in the background

Last year's weather was horrid: it was windy (25mph plus winds) and it was alternately sunny then completely overcast. If memory serves I think we even had a bit of sleet interspersed with rain and prior to the race we were all standing around inside the building shivering and postponing heading out for the warm-up run. This year it was debatable about whether the park was going to be runnable at all on the grass due to the heavier than usual snow and ice the previous week (one section still was ice covered yesterday) but the conditions on the day were almost perfect for a winter xc--bright sunshine and dare I say it, an almost balmy 42F/5.5 Celsius.

This course features a mean set of uphills, they are (mostly) fairly short but they are wicked brutal on the legs, combine that with ankle deep shoe squelching mud and it can be almost soul-destroying knowing that you have to go around it TWICE! There seemed to be an unusually high number of runners dropping out on the first lap after the first big hill, it would be interesting to know what the attrition rate is for this race.

Run-by wave on the 2nd lap

Abbreviated description of the route: Muddy grass, little bit of footpath, sharp right back onto the grass for a little downhill, sharp left to run alongside the football pitches, smile for the camera, more downhill, watch out for the low tree branches being whipped back into our faces, little more downhill into the trees and through the slalom course of earth mounds, start climbing, look at the cars driving by over to the right and wish you were in one of them instead of running xc (not really, lol), the uphill climb gets steeper, thank the marshall, and get a breather on the little downhill before you start running uphill again, still going up...still climbing, omg is this hill never going to end, notice with interest and a slight bit of smugness the number of guys walking off the route to call it a day right before you realise you still have more hill to get up, onto some footpath (ow that hurts with luggy cx shoes) and then in between the football pitches where you (read I) get passed by one of the women in your club like you are standing still, more footpath, right by the visitor centre which looks like a great place to take off the gloves and toss them to the side, left alongside the field where the start/finish line is just over there (cruelty), sharp downhill, back uphill, try not to fall on your arse in the iced over field, curve to the left, curve to the right, and curve back left while enjoying the slight decline and trying to catch your breath and not lose your shoes in the quagmire of mud, steep downhill, even steeper uphill, run by the finish line because you have to do all that over again! Ok so maybe that wasn't quite so abbreviated.

Not sure why I was looking so worried, the race was finally done

I would like to say that I didn't walk at all during this one but unfortunately on one of the hills on the second lap I succumbed to the screaming legs and the little voice in my head that was whispering "You can't make it, just walk already."  Thankfully the girl I encouraged to keep going that was right behind me returned the favour by getting me running again after a few steps.  This is where Caz from the running club also caught and passed me which is the same place that Catherine did last year, the old adage of history repeats itself comes to mind.

All in all, this wasn't one of my better performances of the season, I struggled far more than what I would have liked but I ended up bettering last year's time by over 2 minutes on a course almost a quarter of a mile longer and managed to place 2nd in my age category.  Not sure yet if I'm happy or sad that the woman who took 1st in our category was almost 5 minutes faster than me yesterday instead of the 9 second difference between us in the previous XC race!  Well done to everyone who ran yesterday, our club put in some VERY respectable performances, even getting around the Holmebrook course is an accomplishment to be proud of.

Holmebrook 2014--even the same shoes just much colder and muddier

Sometimes...

Sometimes you go for a run and come back looking like this...Well I do on most runs but that's not the point!

And on some of those runs you come back to discover that your garmin recorded the time but no distance!  Too bad that happened because I was really looking forward to seeing the map trace on last night's crazy mystery run--we had it all, snow, ice, mud, hills, more mud, tree roots, ankle deep water crossings and yes, even more mud.  My main regret is that I chose to wear my road shoes (didn't know there was an off-road option last night) because my trail shoes were still sopping wet and muddy from the impromptu midday run.

On a sad note, my Sock it to Me "Bad Ass" socks developed a hole on the big toe area during last night's run. Not impressed because I haven't worn these socks that much and they were fairly expensive.

Trent Meadows once more

Trent Meadows December 2013 XC

Last winter the Trent Meadows BDL race was held on the first of December 2013 but I don't think having it in January changed the conditions much. It was bright and sunny, a little chilly but not near as cold as it should have been and just as bloody muddy.  Today also marked a sort of anniversary because this was the first race I did wearing the IRC vest (FYI there are closer running clubs to me but this one was the nicest and bestest* in replying to my emails when I was looking for a club to join).

So what has changed between that first time and today?  The course according to my garmin is slightly longer, we got to run by sheep and llamas (nice having something to distract you from the agony of running fast), and they added this steep little incline which required using your hands to get up and over it which we had to go over TWICE.  We also fielded quite a large women's team--yay ladies!!!!! Another change was having appropriate footwear** for a cross country race, that made such a huge difference in my confidence about getting around and there was no almost falling over in front of another runner because I couldn't get a good foothold in the mud.  The course was also much better marshalled this year in my opinion, no wrong turns today!

Despite having finished up a long run week (20 miler on Thursday) I was feeling remarkably strong and confident albeit not especially speedy at the start line. I think that might have had something to do with running 2 miles from my house to the car share meetup point with a heavy rucksack--all the pre-race nerves were already burnt off.***

With not having any speed expectations once the initial mad dash slowed I just settled in slightly behind one of the guys who usually finishes ahead of me and used him as a pacer (Thanks Alan!) even though he didn't realise I was doing so until after the race, lol.  I also resisted the urge to glance at the garmin whenever it would beep at the mile points mostly because right now every time I look down too much on a run I end up with a nose full of liquid snot that is determined not to stay in my nose (yes, it's as gross as it sounds). It would probably be easier to just forgo the watch altogether but then you don't get the fun of comparing your Strava segments afterwards.

Pic courtesy of LERC

The aforementioned steep incline caused a huge bottleneck on the first lap so we all ended walking up it but on the second lap there were only 3 of us close together so I was able to scramble up it quite quickly, passing another woman in the process.  It wasn't any less hellacious trying to get back into a rhythm after it though, a definite pace killer but that's part of all the fun of XC, eh? The finish this year also featured a very short but steep climb right before the chute and I got pipped to the line by one of our guys! I just couldn't muster up that last kick, great fun though!

Somehow I managed to finish up a minute and a half faster than last year despite the longer course (per my garmin connect stats) and I came in at 139th instead of my usual 180(ish) placement.  Another bonus--I didn't end up near as muddy as I usually do after a xc event!

Trust me, that's clean compared to normal

*Yes, I know that is a made up word
**You can get around in a pair of trail shoes but something with more aggressive lugs on the bottom will keep you upright and get you past other runners when it's muddy
***Not the recommended warm-up

Bonus Ben picture with my clean again trainers

A running tip that I thought everyone was familiar with but after a recent facebook convo found out differently is to stuff your trainers with wadded up newspaper after a wet run. Not only does it dry them out quickly (you might have to change the newspaper a couple of times depending on how soaked the shoes are) but it also deodorises them! The trainers are usually dry enough to run in the next day with this method especially if you place them near a radiator or under the refrigerator kick plate.

Bakewell BDL

Being silly pre-race

Race reports are funny things, you (or rather I) need to get them written while they are fresh in your mind, hence there not being one for the Chaddesden Park cross country race earlier in the month which is a shame because it involved several very cold stream crossings and me taking a wrong turn.

Crossing the stream at Chaddesden Park

Today as you may have surmised from the blog title was the league xc race at Bakewell which is new to the schedule.  Bakewell, for those not familiar is a very picturesque market town that is famous for the Bakewell Pudding--we've driven through many times but because it is so incredibly popular with tourists we've not taken the time to actually stop so I could sample the dessert.  That was remedied today...as part of our warm-up a couple of us walked over to The Old Original Bakewell Pudding Shop so I could buy one for after the race.

Bakewell Pudding!

Wasn't I supposed to be talking about a race??? Today we were fortunate to have a beautifully sunny and dare I say it--almost balmy temperatures for the last day of November.  Didn't mean the course was any less muddy though! There were 3 laps which meant going up a big damn hill 6 times, in reality the hill wasn't terribly huge but it sure does feel like a monster when you're clambering up it.  

Is it a grimace or a grin?

There was also a water crossing but the course designers very nicely provided an alternative route around. It was shorter going through the water of course and the first two times round I took the high ground to bypass it but decided on the last lap that I HAD to go through it just to say I did, there was a second or two gain but alas my legs were too trashed to take advantage of it.  My favourite sections were the massive downhills because I was confident enough in my shoes and ankles to take advantage of them and just let gravity do the work.  The flat sections around the bottom of the course over the plastic gridding were slightly soul-destroying though, not quite sure why but for some reason that area just felt odd, almost like it was sucking the energy out of me through the soles of my trainers.

Definitely a grimace.

I made it almost all the way through the race without any mishaps (yay me!) until the last lap and instead of leaping over the wood creating the steps on the first downhill I caught the edge of it and my right leg shot straight out to the side along the very slick wood (Miss Oops is back!). Imagine a very deep side lunge and you have what I ended up doing while trying to leap past an obstruction. OUCH!!!!!!! It's not good when the marshall audibly gasps and asks if you are all right. It certainly put an end to me being able to muster up any speed.  

Hmm, speed. There wasn't any for me today except for the aforementioned downhills but I'm not whinging about it--no, really, I'm not!  I've come off a hard week of training mileage wise and I am just happy to have gotten this one done for the club.  There was absolutely nothing left in me at the finish line, couldn't even muster up one last minute sprint so if anyone had charged by me they would have taken it easily.  No clue about my finish position, I couldn't even talk when I was handing over the token much less think to look at the number.  Would I do it again? Of course I would!

P.S. The Bakewell Pudding was delicious. However the after-race homemade flapjacks provided by Catherine were even more so!  

More cross country

Ahhhhhh, cross country racing. I'm not sure if I love or hate you, today was a bit of both. It was cold, muddy, hilly, muddy, did I mention muddy? Nearly lost my left shoe, walked way too much, slid around like I was a drifting extra in Fast and the Furious, flew down the hills like a bowling ball headed for the gutter, and gasped like a fish flopping about just out of reach of the water. Oh did I mention the mud?????

Before the mud and before the sun disappeared

And we are off! 

Suffering, attempting to sprint for the finish line

stats are a bit meh

yep, muddy. Soaked through my shoes and socks

Water hose and newspaper:  xc runner's necessities 

Unfortunately we were one female short of fielding a team for today but the men were well represented and I think they all had great races. Having that camaraderie and support is AWESOME, especially when you are struggling to keep trying to go UP what amounted to be a slide made of mud (thanks again guys!) . The coffee provided by one of the members afterwards was soooooooo good as were the biscuits (the cake was almost gone by the time I finished and I was heaving too much to grab a piece of it). Today was also the other lady's first ever cross country race and she did fantastic, think she's hooked as well now :-).  

Run Britain had a great article this evening about cross country racing. I had to chuckle about the "event" style races and how much they cost. Loving the fact that I get to do what is essentially the same thing several times a year for the £20 annual club membership fee, I'm not much of a medal or t-shirt collector anyways so not getting them isn't a big deal for me. 

5th and 6th

Hmmm, looks like my Janathon blogging pattern is a post covering 2 days in a row.  Yesterday was a 7 mile muddy trail run--without Elsie the mutt this time. She was having no part in leaving the warm bed, can't say I blame her, I was wishing I'd stayed there myself in the beginning.  Parts of the path once I ventured away from the canal trails was pretty much a quagmire, there was no running through it and even walking was treacherous a time or three. I even slipped and fell once and it was on a section parallel to the M1 so yes there were witnesses.  All in all it was a good run though, my two slowest miles were on the endless uphill sections that also included the swampy bits (10:43 and 10:05, miles 3 and 4) and I kept a 9:33 pace overall.

The aftermath

Mud bath anyone? A shave wouldn't hurt either 

Today I skipped the run since our club handicap run is tomorrow night. Not sure that what I opted for will leave my legs anymore rested though.  5 minute warmup outside with the jump rope then did a full body workout with the kettlebells. Definitely time to move up past an 8kg bell for the swings and for giggles I threw in 5 burpees with every set. Yes, I am not bright at times ;-).  

Books, races, and shoes

I'm adding "Running Like a Girl" by Alexandra Heminsley to my reading list after watching 3 youtube vids featuring her.  Seems like it would be a fun read and she comes across as quite charming.  

I started to sign up for the Stafford Half Marathon again since it's almost full (I ran it last March) but found this one instead, Newton's Fraction Half Marathon. Love the name, hopefully it will have a cool t-shirt and medal to match.  More importantly I hope it won't be near as miserable temperature wise in the UK as it was this year, so many people showed up to the Stafford race, collected their tee and medal (still seems odd they handed it out BEFORE the race), decided it was too cold to run and went back home.  Another tidbit that tilted me towards the Grantham race is that Brooks Running UK is sponsoring it, gotta love the #runhappy.

The bling--March 2013

Speaking of Brooks, I'm wondering when they will produce a shoe for the UK/Euro market specifically for fell running since the sport is huge over here. They do a shoe called the Aduro that's market specific but it's made for road running, not trail. I love my PureGrit 2 trail shoes but they are better suited for drier trails, the super-slick mud here in wet conditions leaves me sliding about a little too much for comfort.  In the meantime I've gone back to the Cascadia for the muckier stuff, I've even found some of the older 7s in stock online that my partner has bought me as part of my Crimble present.  

My old Cascadia 7s from 2012 along with a KT Tape sweat and mud fail (go with the pro version!)

Just for fun pic, trail runner "ice bath"

Also upcoming are the cross country Christmas Relays where I seem to have mistakenly been placed on the "fast" team. No pressure there then, lol.  This will be interesting because the only relay race I've done before was a road race, will have to see how this goes.  At least there won't be a long tunnel as part of the course......or there isn't as far as I know, I'm now having flashbacks from the Hogeye Half relay and my claustrophobia induced panic attack.