A week has passed and I can almost feel my sausage toes again which prompts me to try to jot down some thoughts on the Madeira Island Ultra Trail, so here goes….. MIUT was one of those races which you don’t remember in order. Random moments jump into your consciousness and these little vignettes invariably …
Eight days until race day and I was sitting at work with a wet trouser leg and a puddle appearing on the carpet under my desk. The casual observer may have questioned whether the excitement of the impending race was getting to me. The more astute observer would also have noticed the bag of rapidly …
On a rainy Saturday morning we took a wee trip to Rowardennan. The West Highland passes through Rowardennan before heading off into the relative wilderness of the East side of Loch Lomond. After many years the “Low Road” has been cleared, the path upgraded and it is now open to walkers and runners once more. …
Ultras are usually quite complicated logistically. They are usually also longer and harder than you expect. Here a few questions to ask before you enter your next Ultra. I go through this list every time I want to enter a new race Where does it start? Do you actually know where that is? Are you …
I am lucky enough to have built up a good selection of ultra gear to mix and match which is versatile enough to do me for most types of races, so I no longer need to go on a shopping spree every time I enter a big race. My most used kit currently is Jacket: …
Phew! That was a close one. Despite having no plans whatsoever to run the New York Marathon this year, I still nearly entered the ballot. A post from a friend on Facebook alerted me to the ballot being open, and despite a trip to New York not being either physically or financially viable this year, …
At some point in every ultra race it gets hard. Really hard. At this point you need to decide if you are going to quit or if you are going to keep moving. How do you get through this point? Dead easy, just ask yourself, do you really want to stop? Can you justify stopping …
Be Humble That way you won’t be distressed when that old guy comes floating off the hill on another path and hands you your ass on a plate. Even though that old guy is probably younger than you Even though you are 3 hours into a long run and he probably isn’t long out the …
It has been a while since I have written something here, mainly because I didn’t really have too much to say. This year has been a bit of a write off on the running front, which is OK I guess as we can’t keep going further, higher, faster forever and sometimes life gets in the …
On a sunny day I took myself for a run on the section of the West Highland Way heading south from Tyndrum. This is the reverse of the way the route is normally travelled. On the way I tried out my new camera with some mixed results. The following clips are unedited, apart from the …