Man V Horse 2014

      As the sign says, Llanwrtyd Wells is the smallest town in Britain. I had travelled by train on the Friday from my family in Carmarthen and had to change at Llanelli. The scenery from the train window was incredible. Massive hills, tall trees and low flying birds of prey when we got to Llandovery. When I had reached my destination, I really did feel like I was in the middle of nowhere. I was the only person to get off the train and there was no-one on the platform either. The song "ghost town" came into mind. It wasn't long until I saw life though as I followed the signs into the town centre. All the people were smiling and super friendly but I couldn't stop thinking about the Simon Pegg film "Hot Fuzz".

     So, Man V horse is a race I read a bit about but didn't really know a lot. I knew It was a weird town with a population of just over 600 people. I knew they held strange events like the "World bog snorkelling championships" and was home to the "World alternative games". This includes bizarre events like "Gravy wrestling", "Worm charming championships", "space hopper racing" and "wife carrying" plus many, many more crazy things. In the nature of things, Man v horse sounded just as insane!
To me it sounded like they were calling it a marathon even though it was just under 24 miles. You would be racing horses and running through streams and a bit of mud. That's what I knew...

    At the start of the race and my hotel.

         I booked in to my room at the Neuadd arms hotel. I managed to get a last minute cancellation thanks to Bob the race director who emailed me to tell me so. What a lovely guy he is. Obviously being the smallest town in Britain, I guess news travels fast there! There is also a free pasta party at the hotel for the runners. Didn't matter if you were staying the hotel or not. Free food is always good. Went to collect my number from the hall on the Friday evening and asked for directions. I couldn't have asked a nicer guy either. His name is Melvin and he was so friendly and welcoming. We walked down to race collection together with a few others from his running club (Collingwood). Everyone was joking and laughing. This was great and exactly what I needed as I was here on my own, getting nervous about the race and being trampled by horses. Melvin asked me if I was a virgin and I said yes, so he filled me in with lots of course details and gave me some very useful advice which I would remember on the way around. He also told me about the time he was lost and had to be rescued. Like I wasn't worried enough already..lol.

          There was a list of running clubs in the hotel foyer that said people had travelled from all over the world for the race. I was pleased to see my club Lordshill Road Runners on that list.
There were a lot of relay running teams too as well as 60 horse riders who had entered. A last minute look at the course profile made me wonder if I should have done the relay. Was I mad to do this solo? What I had thought is that it's only 24 miles but I had later realised that the elevation was in units of 500 feet and not 100 feet! Some big hills then. I would soon find this out anyway.
All runners start at 11am and the horse riders/horses start at 11.15. We had to get a move on before we got trampled, the start was quite congested but we had chip timing for the first time on this race. I managed to run my first mile in just under 8 minutes. This race wasn't so bad afterall! :)

        Not long after the first mile, hills like the above one started to appear. That sub 8 minute mile was to be my only one. What makes it even tougher is that it is mostly off road trails with mud, streams and the occasional track, but all hilly. It was either up or down but I seem to remember a lot of up.
The thing that annoyed me a little bit was that you couldn't tell the difference between a solo runner and a relay runner. I think different colour numbers would be a good idea.
A bit later on in the race I could tell the difference as the solo runners were covered in mud and flies and the relay runners had shiny clean legs and lots of energy. Even so, it was not nice watching little girls fly past you and wondering if they were doing the solo run.

      So where are these horses then? After 3 miles I could hear one approaching and approaching at lightning speed. I looked around and there were 2 of them. I said the mantra back to myself which I had read in the manual. "Runners to the right, Horses to the left". Now these 2 horses were running side by side. One of them had a rider and the other i'm guessing had lost it's rider so it was just a crazy horse galloping towards me. I really hadn't expected them to run with such speed as I have never seen a horse racing before. I must admit I was a little bit scared. I just stopped running and stood back and prayed a little bit and this seemed to work as they flew past me.
Later up the hill I was using my ultra skills to walk up the bigger hills. Then I got chatting to this girl from Brecon, so we slowly ran up the hill together while we talked about races, life etc.. She was a lot fitter than me and obviously did a bit of training as she later left me at a water station but I didn't cry.

     After only 9 miles, my legs were feeling trashed already. This hills were ridiculous. I had never seen anything like them. I was beginning to think that maybe Snowdonia marathon was pretty flat now. I also thinking that I might not finish this race, I was less than halfway and really struggling. I was already having to dig deep within my soul and push myself.
 The most stupidest thing of all was that I didn't bring anything with me. There were water stations aplenty but that was it. I didn't bring any gels, food or energy drinks. Well I thought it's only 24 miles, i'll be fine. The miles were passing by slowly and by mile 12 I was offering out the promise of free beer to anyone who had an energy gel I could have. No-one seemed to have any until I got to my 15 or 16. I asked this guy who looked like he was off to Butlins for a week. Turns out he had loads and was more than willing to give me a gel and even offered me a second one. I just took the one and said i'd buy him a drink tonight if he could find me. He was a fell runner, so this wasn't really that hilly to him, just kind of the norm. I was meeting some really interesting people now and that's the great thing about distance running.

      There was quite a bit of mud in places and the horses that passed had obviously made the mud even worse. About 15 horses or more had passed me by the time I had reached mile 16. There was probably more.
How the course works is that there is a runner's route and a horse's route but they both overlap and join up at certain times. Some of our course through the narrow woodland downhill would have been impossible for them. Slate was slipping from underfoot as I ran. It was hard enough for us.
I think I may have been close to getting trampled twice. Once was about mile 7 on a flat and rare bit of road where I decided to pick up my pace while the surface was good to firm. I am running where I think is probably leg 2 of the relay and I look behind me and there is a horse literally about to run into me and going really fast. I managed to dart to the right and let them pass. The lady said sorry afterwards. The second one was on a narrow wooded area and the path had only a bush and about a 6 foot drop. I had to jump into the bush and luckily I didn't fall down the drop. I was really annoyed with this rider as most riders would normally slow down a bit or shout when they are coming. Most riders were friendly and cheery but a couple were not so nice. A lot of the times though if I saw a horse coming I would simply shout "Horse" to the runners in front and many others did this too.

       A picture of the finish line that I took the day before the race

          About mile 18 I was getting cramp in my right hamstring, so I did some stretches and ate a couple of jelly babies that a kind marshal offered me. I was walking more and more now as the hills got bigger and bigger. At one point I was running at 1600 feet and was watching the Red kytes hovering and cycling above the trees below me. What an amazing and breathtaking sight that was. I pointed this out to some other runners as well. No matter where you were on this course, there always seemed to be someone around which was weird but there were a lot of runners in the relay I guess.

      I battled on and found the cramp fading away the more I ran. I was now running with an iron man dude. He loved it. He was such a calm and relaxed man. He told me about his next iron man and also told me about this 100 mile bike ride the day after this race and there was me wishing I had booked the Monday off for recovery! We ran for a few miles together but he said he was gonna wait back for a friend for a while. I pressed on, just wanting to finish. The water from the stations were mostly being poured over my head now, just to cool me down. It was hot but we were lucky that it wasn't too sunny. I had put on suntan lotion but instead of a tan, all I got were dead flies covering both arms.

      I didn't see anymore horses for a while until I got to mile 22. Then 2 passed me at once. I remember being proud earlier in the race where I actually passed a horse running downhill but managed to kick a rock really hard with my big toe as I was descending... But I passed a horse.
    At mile 21 I was chatting to another guy when I routinely said "Just one more parkrun to go!".
He laughed and then we compared times. My marathon time sub 3.30, his marathon time 4hrs. Yes! My parkrun time 19.44, his parkrun time 19.04. Bastard!

Photo by kind and supportive volunteer, a lady named Katie Page. Thanks Katie.

      It was then time for the deeper stream near the end that my new mate Melvin had told me about. He wasn't wrong, it was thigh deep and even deeper if you had managed to slip and smash you knee on a rock. It loved it though. The water was nice and cooling. The marshal asked if I was okay. I made some stupid joke and grinned as I ran on. My knee had a cut with blood seeping out, I was 23 miles into a race and I was racing horses. I couldn't have felt any more manlier! This was bloody hard but I was glad to be doing it and finishing it. Despite all my conversations, I can honestly say that I ran as hard as I could and even had stitch for nearly 2 miles at the end.

    It was still bloody uphill even when I got near the end but as I was told there only 300 metres to go I picked up the pace and the crowd cheered as I ran onto the grassy area and over the loud speaker I heard " And here comes number 659. Dean Jones of Lordshill road runners". The crowd cheered even more and the hairs stood up on the back on my neck. I felt euphoric. I knew there was a reason for running this race.

    I collected my medal and queued for free sandwiches and a drink. Who wants a goody bag with a load of crappy flyers and a two year old mars bar when you can have ladies making you fresh sandwiches there and then. Although after running 24 miles it's tough to make decisions. Cheese, ham or egg?

Check out that elevation! Official chip time of 4 hours 20 minutes and 56 seconds.
I also beat at least 10 horses. Anyone fancy the relay next year? 3 people, roughly 8 miles each.
I think this race was only about £20-£25 to enter as well. A weird and wonderful event and they have already bribed me back next year by giving me 3 free jars of peanut butter, Hope to see you next June for another crazy day with some awesome and inspiring people.

The Ox Ultra (35 miler)

                                           Nice long sleeve t and massive bling


            So Rob Kelly is my old coach from my running club, Lordshill road runners. He sends me a text one night: "Wanna do this race called the Ox ultra?". I google it and sure enough there is such a race and it's run by some people under the name of "White star running". Never heard of them? Me neither. Anyway, looking at their website you can tell that they are totally clued up and well organised. It didn't take me long to reply to Rob and tell him I was in. I was dying to do another ultra after the Thames trot in Feb. We both entered without too much thought and one day I thought i'd do a bit more research into the race and maybe read something.
It was going to be the first time that this race had ever been held and there was roughly 4000ft of ascent! Oh dear. I spoke to Rob and told him about the elevation and what a nice job he had done on picking his first ultra marathon race. It really didn't matter, I was still so excited.

   View from the car park, registration and close to start. Yes, that's part of the course down there!

          Anyways, Rob picks me up at 6am. We had been discussing food, hydration, maps etc..
We were really well prepared, apart from the lack of training but I told him to treat it as an adventurous day out. Time did not matter. Neither of us had a 35 mile pb yet.
The Race is on an estate in a place called Tollard royal where they hold the Larmer festival. It's kind of between Salisbury and Shaftesbury I think.

         We get there with plenty of time to spare and go to collect our number. It's bloody cold and very windy on top of this big hill. There were three events on today. There was the 35 ultra, the marathon and the half marathon. We queued and the man asked "Ultra?". We said yes and then I made a joke as it reminded me of that bit from the Monty python film, the life of Brian. "Crucifixion?". "Eh no, freedom.."

          We had a good race briefing with some great humour in there and then headed over to the start. This was it, we were ready. Just after 8am, we set off in the cold wind. I was hoping it would get warmer as I was only wearing a t-shirt and didn't bring a base layer or even a coat in case it rained. It looked like it might rain at the start as well.
Lots of runners were chatting and exchanging stories as we ran on the uneven, bumpy grass. I was concentrating on my footing as i didn't want to roll an ankle on the first mile. After the first mile or so we started to head down the hill and around a corner and then before long we were rising up again. it was time to walk up the steep hills.

                                                Hiking up one of the hills

        It wasn't too long before we were nicely spaced out. I loved the fact that the scenery and terrain were changing all the time. No chance of getting bored on these 35 miles! We would be out in open fields on the grass and then running through shaded woods on trails. Later it was be a nice country traffic free lanes with amazing landscapes. 6 miles at the start just flew by. We were told that it would be roughly 36 miles today as they had diverted the course to avoid some flooding, or a 4ft deep puddle as they put it.
We were still going to get wet feet though. We passed through farms with cattle, there were sheep and pigs on route as well. We also spotted a bird of prey hovering overhead in the later miles.
The aid stations were fantastic and so were the marshals. You were allowed bag drops for your stuff. Rob and I decided to share bags. We left one bag at mile 13 and one at mile 25. We had put so much food in there and we didn't even touch any of it as there was food at the stations. Pork pies, savoury eggs, jelly beans, party sausages, chocolate, even sandwiches and watermelon! They really had treated us well. Every marshal was enthusiastic and spoke to us. Making jokes and encouraging us along.

                Food station around mile 16 and 21? We were so grateful for the coca cola

      We had got to the place above. I think it was mile 16. Anyway, when we got there the leader was coming in the other direction. He had covered around 5 miles more than us already!
There was a bit earlier in the race that I had forgot to mention. We came to a wooded area where the yellow arrow was pointing left. We went left and came across lots of confused runners. No-one knew the way. We were all lost. One guy told us he was 4th at one point but had now ran 16-17 miles. We had only ran 12.5. Poor guy. Someone had tampered with the sign and we should have taken a right turn. The sign had been moved by someone.
There were plenty of theories of angry dog walkers or motocross riders. It didn't really affect us but I felt sorry for the other guys who were racing this. The organisers were very sympathetic and assured us that this would never happen again.
Apart from that, the whole 35/36 miles were so well signed and marshalled. In fact, it was faultless apart from the obvious that happened.

                             Rob and I enjoying the scenery and a bit of slight downhill

       We had run through some mud, but not a lot. We had also ran through some puddles now as well. Our legs were aching and we had wet feet. We had decided on a nice long pit stop at mile 25 so that we could refuel, change our socks and a change of t-shirt for me. About 5-6 minutes we stopped for and it felt well needed. We chatted to others and shared blisters etc.. That rest and the clean socks and T-shirt was brilliant for our spirits. We were felling great again and ready to attack the last 11 miles of so. I was struggling a little bit in the woodland earlier, so when we hit some open road, it was much appreciated by myself.

    I had told Rob that this is what happens. You run so far and your legs ache and they keep on aching but after a while you become desensitised to that feeling and it becomes the norm. We did a celebration whoop as we reached mile 27 as it was the furthest that Rob had ever ran. We were ticking off the miles now. I said at the start that we are only doing 5x 7 mile runs.
I always do the same at races. Tick off the miles. 10k done, 10 miles done, half mara done, 20 miles done, 25, 30 etc..

                        Beautiful views ahead and i'm not just talking about the ultra ladies!

      The next thing we were looking forward to was the "Love station". White star running knew how to organise an event. At 32 miles there was the Love station. At this station there was cider from a brewery in Wareham and Vodka! Now that was worth visiting but even more so, we were very low on water and it was hot in the heat now and we were getting a little dehydrated. I was a little dizzy at mile 30 and made Rob walk for a bit as i had to fight off a panic attack. Seems to be a common thing for me in the 30 mile zone for some reason. i knew it would pass in a couple of minutes. Fuss over and we were running again.

We spoke to more runners as we got nearer to the finish. We even passed a few who were now looking tired and walking, we were also passed by some as well though. There must have been about 6 miles where we ran and never saw another person though. That's what makes ultras so good. Not overcrowded and if it is, it will only be at the start. Little did we know after the event that there were on 75 runners! I thought there were a lot more.

                                      Another very memorable part of the route.

     
       Rob got stung a few times by the stinging nettles. Made me laugh every time he got stung as I was wearing running tights. He reckons the Dock leaves worked but they've never worked for me..lol.
We knew there was a big hill to come at the end but just before we got there we met a guy called Nick from Bournemouth. We got chatting and ran together for a while. The marshal warned us about the hill and so did some local villagers. I high-fived a little kid who was holding his hand out and then we turned a corner and saw a sign saying "Up". We were here. Then there was another sign saying "The Hill" and underneath it said "Sean Connery". I was confused by this but Nick explained that the hill was a Sean connery film and it was very good and also Sean Connery's favourite. (i'm yet to check it out).
When we got to the "Up" sign. I told Rob i'd take a photo. He got on his knees and I said he had to try and look like the dude on the cover of the film "Platoon". (not a Sean Connery film).

                             Platoon would never had sold any copies with this cover!

        Not only is the hill too steep to run up but it's also covered in thick, gooey mud. We get to the top though and even though we're on grass now, we still seem to be climbing. What a view though! We keep going and we know we are nearly there. The excitement is overwhelming. We see Rob's wife Kim who cheers us on. Me, Rob and Nick all run together and finish together. There was no race here, we were proud to all finish together. We ran in to a big cheer from the crowd and I watched the big digital clock tick away. 7 hours and 44 minutes! Rob was thinking 5 hours at first. I was think more 6 or 7 hours. We were pretty sure at mile 18 that we would get a sub 7 hour time. Seems crazy as we are both around 3.30 marathon finishers. Just goes to show you how tough this course is.

                               Nick, Me and Rob. Photo taken by Rob's wife Kim.

     We had lovely showers and I ate 2 cheese burgers as Rob didn't want his. The cheese burgers and baked potatoes were free to the ultra runners. Rob already said he wanted to run it again next year and I agreed. This is a must do race. One of the most beautiful, well organised with very friendly people. I can't wait for next year. Sub 7 next time! Not bad though as none of us had trained for it. Took me 3 days to walk down the stairs properly and i've just put a hot needle through my black toe nail but all worth it :)
       

                               This photo was taken by a photographer on the course.                                       All photos are free and everyone at the event shares their photos for free. What a great idea!

30 miles: From Southampton to Salisbury

                                          (Me about to leave my house at 6.45am)


            I'm not sure why but i've always wanted to run to Salisbury. A lot of people get killed on the A36 just trying to cross it, so I had to find an alternative route. I thought maybe through Sherfield English or Wellow. Then I got this book about the Clarendon way. The Clarendon way is a 25 route that runs from Salisbury to Winchester from one Cathedral to the other. I thought about getting a train to Salisbury and doing this but I like to get out the door running pretty early.
I also have a book on the Testway. The Testway is a 50 mile route from Eling Wharf to Inkpen Beacon. However, I was not very confident that I would succeed as I tried to run some of the Testway before and it's not always well signposted. Last time I had only got as far as Squabb wood when I took a wrong turn and ended up in somebody's back garden. I was then in Shootash and ended up in East Wellow somehow! This time though, I did a bit more planning and wrote down some directions from the internet.

             So I get up early, eat my crunchy nut cornflakes and pack my trail backpack. This included: A map, vaseline, socks, 2x t-shirts, shorts, a flapjack, 2x cereal bars, Lucozade sport and water, Mobile phone, wallet with money in, keys and some toilet paper. My phone and compact camera went in a bumbag/fannypack along with some of my written instructions.
   A cup of coffee later and i am out the door running. The sun is shining brightly but it's chilly and my hands are cold. Should have worn gloves maybe? Nah, it'll soon warm up after a mile or so I think.

    I run to Lee but decide on the shortest route possible, so I ran on the main road to Romsey and take the second exit on the roundabout. I was only able to do this as it was so early and therefore would be very little traffic. As soon as you get to Lee you leave the busier areas of Southampton and hit Lee lane. Lee lane can be quite boring as it's just long and flat for about 3 miles. It's a lovely day though and i'm enjoying the adventure and the not knowing what is to come.

                                    (one of the ways into Lee via the railway bridge)


         I get to Romsey (pronounced Rum-sey) and tell myself that when I get to Sadlers mill I will take out my phone and wallet from my bumbag cos it's too heavy and needs to go into the backpack. I turn left after the so-called "mile long wall" and then i'm at the River Test and onto Sadlers Mill. This is a lovely place with a fast flowing stream and some nice wildlife. Not far from hear is Romsey Abbey which is worth a visit if you haven't already seen it.
I take off my backpack, take some pics and drink some water. 6 miles done already!

                               (A female Grey Wagtail on the wall by the Mill)

      The first time I tried to find Squabb wood I got lost and just walked around in circles. In fact, it took me ages to find the path to the left behind the houses. Typical of the Testway, not signposted. On the way to Squabb wood there is a big field to walk across. This happened to be water-logged, which I wasn't expecting. Just over 6 miles in, finally on the Testway and I have wet feet already.

                      (To the right, Romsey Abbey. To the Left, Burnt wood and Squabb wood)

I get to Squabb wood and there is so much mud. As I am tip-toeing around the bog I check out all the wildlife. Great tits, Blue tits, Woodpeckers etc.. My white trainers which were wet are now also muddy. I still continue slowly. I am trying my best to choose the best paths with less mud when this (proper) runner comes along and just runs through all the mud at a good pace and just shouts a good morning at which I reply accordingly. What a hero. I felt like a right girl now..lol. So, I manned up a bit and trudged through the mud. Would have lost trainer if my laces weren't tied so tightly.
All is well as I take a right turning instead of the left turning I took last time and came to a field with pigs everywhere. I also get startled when a deer gets startled. We startle each other but she jumps high into the woodland as I just stand there watching. Straight on or Right? I ponder on this and get my instructions out. Finally I see a testway sign but wasn't easy to spot. I head straight on past the pigs and come out on the Old Salisbury road.

                        (The second field just before Squabb wood. Head north west)

         There are two more fields when you cross the road. Not much to see in these. On the second field you have to turn right and onto a track that leads to a farm. This is where I saw two more deer in a field but they had already seen me, so the pic I got wasn't too good. I tried to run after the deer but of course they were too fast for me. It was nice to be running again as this was the first dry, even ground since leaving the Mill.
        I came out to a cottage and a road. It was another case of just crossing the road and following a path behind some houses. The path was narrow and my legs weren't enjoying the warmth of the stinging nettles too much. Ouch! I got a good one right on the calf muscle. I rubbed a Dock leaf on it even though I know for a fact that they don't work. It was something to do anyway and made me feel like Bear Grylls or something. Using my survival skills in the wilderness..lol   Then there was a beautiful lake to the left and a scenic path with bluebells covering the whole area on both sides. It was amazing to see under the trees. The pictures do not show its true beauty. You really need to go there.

                              (The wonderful Bluebell woods near Awbridge)

    I then come to another road where I turn right and run for about a mile. This is Awbridge (pronounced A-Bridge) What a great place and I didn't even go to the main part of it. I just continued on to Kimbridge which I never really got to see either as I turned left before the railway track and back into the woods. On my way to Mottisfont now and I get to a footbridge which has the river Dun flowing under it. I meet my second person of the day and have covered 11 miles roughly? You hardly see anyone on the Testway, it really baffles me!
I chat to the dogwalker who is local to the area. We spot a Buzzard and watch it hover and circle around in the sky. He tells me the type of Buzzard it is but I can't remember. I keep thinking "Light-headed Buzzard" but that would just be a drunk one wouldn't it? I tell him i'm running to Salisbury and that I want to get from the Testway to the Clarendon way. I haven't really worked out a route for this. I just knew that I wanted to head for Broughton. I get my map out and he explains in detail to turn left at Mottisfont church and not right and then to Broughton that way. He confuses me a bit with his over elaborations but I nod and take in the basics that I think I need to know.

                                           (The crossing of the River Dun)

     I come out at the Church and take a look around. I eat a cereal bar and take on more fluids. There are a few rabbits in the grounds of the church and some more birds. Turning right would have taken me to Mottisfont Abbey and I know it's lovely but I don't want to end up on the Stockbridge road. I take the left as suggested and I get to the testway path again but instead of turning right this time, I go straight on like the man suggested. I was now able to run at a decent pace for the next two or three miles. It was just a country road and so isolated and quiet with great views of fields afar. I couldn't even see the Stockbridge road even though I was probably running parallel to it.

                                                 (On my way to Houghton)

        I get to Houghton (pronouced Hoe-ton and not How-ton). I look lost and smile at some dog walkers as I run by. I find an entrance to the Clarendon way. I stop and think though. I think to myself that this is probably the wrong way for Salisbury and will probably take me to Winchester. Luckily I get the map back out before deciding to not to run down there as it's the wrong way. There should be another way on the otherside of the road and i've already passed it somehow.
I run back but can only find a dead end road with something about an estate on it. I ask a local old lady. She says it's the right way but doesn't seem too sure and her dialect wasn't very decipherable. I ran up there anyway where I got talking a to a man and a lady who were coming from the opposite direction. I tell them about my journey and they tell me I have 14 miles to go to Salisbury. I thought it would be further than that to be honest. I thought it would be about 30-35 miles when I got there. I had already done just over 14 miles. They said they walked the Clarendon way regularly but had never done the whole 28 miles as they said. They congratulated me on my efforts so far and the guy made a joke about me running the 14 miles. I said goodbye and started running and he shouts "Should only take you an hour". We all laugh and I continue along the bumpy gravel track.

                                   (Finally on the Clarendon way at mile 14)

                     I walk up the hill and can feel the sun beating down upon me. Better drink more water and eat some flapjack. I'm not hungry though and only manage two small bites of the flapjack. I know I must eat though and will try again within the next few miles to eat some more.
I walk down some steps and cross a road from one field to another. I had been on the Clarendon way for about three miles and this was my first time on here. I thought to myself that it's really not that interesting in comparison with the testway. What it lacks in mud though, it makes up for in hills! It just didn't seem as picturesque as the testway. Just lots of fields with obvious paths. There were more people on the Clarendon way but maybe this is because it's more accessible and person friendly. Maybe it will get better though.

                                 (Just after the big hill of Broughton woods)

         I made it to Broughton (pronounced Brow-ton) I walked up a very big hill and chatted to an old lady who said there was a bigger hill nearby if I fancied walking up that one. She had a great sense of humour for an Octogenarian. Once at the top of the hill I took in the views and started running again. As I found my rhythm, I started chanting to myself "Those octogenarians have a great sense of humour, those octogenarians have a great sense of humour...". Don't ask me why, cos I don't know..lol I'm not mad, honest!

                                            (More woodland on my way to Buckholt)

           I get to Buckholt farm and then can't make up my mind if I go Left or straight on. Straight on didn't look right to me as it was just a big downhill road. I got the map out and it looked like a straight line to me. Straight on it was. I let a tractor pass me and zoomed down the hill. Nice to open up the stride and stretch the legs a bit. I passed two walkers and said hello and then another uphill section of course. The stretches of road were so rare that it was so nice to run when you got on one of them. Still, I was loving this adventure and was having the best time of my life.
         Next up was Winterslow. There was Middle Winterslow and West Winterslow. I had actually found a shop in Winterslow at mile 22. I was hungry but didn't fancy any sweet stuff. It was then I found the ultimate running fuel... A giant porkpie. I devoured it quickly and drank a ribenna. I was feeling refreshed after that and ran on happily.

                      (The pathway was covered in little cute Lambies just past Winterslow)

      The Lambs were adorable. Most were a bit weary of me but some didn't mind at all. I had to walk across this field as I didn't want to scare them all off. Just after this I had to run behind a skatepark, through a muddy cutway and then through to some more fields of yellow stuff. This is where I got properly lost and choose the wrong pathway towards Pitton. Instead I ended up on a main road but there was a sign for Pitton. This gave me another excuse to run some more comfortable road miles into Pitton. I got some weird looks from the locals as they had probably never seen anyone running down this middle-of-nowhere road before.
I made it to Pitton safely anyway and got chatting to a rambler. He was a Hypnotherapist who had been to see his daughter near Clarendon but he lived in Romsey. We exchanged quite a few stories about our adventures from the past and we even talked about ultra-runners. I thanked him for the much needed break, he directed me the right way and we shook hands and said goodbye. What a really nice guy he was.

(Just before I went the wrong way. Think I should have turned left instead of right here)

              I entered Clarendon woods and there were a few crossroads but the Clarendon way was well signposted here. It was straight on all the way and then I got to the Llamas that the Hypnotherapist was telling me about. Sounds a bit like Alice in Wonderland here doesn't it?
Anyway, here I was at Clarendon palace, in Clarendon woods. This place has a lot of history and was built by the Saxons. Henry II has also been hanging out there etc.. I have read a lot about the history of the Testway and Clarendon way and it fascinates me. However, despite all the history the Clarendon way has, there really isn't all that much to see. I was having a great journey regardless. What was I expecting? A bloody theme park? It was nice to see the Llamas looking very relaxed without a care in the world. Some of them were rolling around on their backs, whilst others grazed in the shade under a tree.

                                         (Clarendon Palace. No Thorpe park is it?)

        Right, I must be close to Salisbury now right? But I still can't see any sign of the cathedral. Salisbury cathedral is massive, if you didn't know. I kept on going and finally there was a viewing point when I came out of the woods and down a dirt track. I could see it. I was confident that I would make it easily now. I was feeling stronger and full of self belief. Not that I had much doubt but it's nice to be reassured.
I ran down the track and onto a field with the Cathedral still in sight. 27 miles done. I'm nearly there... and then I get a beep from my Garmin watch. Low Battery. Right, I want to achieve one of two things if I can but both would be better. I want to either make it to Salisbury with the watch still running or I want to record 30 miles before the battery dies on me. This actually made me speed up but I was still happy to take pictures on my compact camera.

                (A beautiful moment. Salisbury not faraway and a bit of downhill running)

        I head onto the main road, turn right after some indecision and run through Millford. There are now lots of people around and it feels weird as i've been surrounded by peaceful countryside for the majority of 7 hours. It's busy here and getting busier as I head into Salisbury town centre. Kind of reminded me of the 50k race I did on the Salisbury 5-4-3-2-1. You've run 30 miles and then you have to try and dodge all the shoppers which is tough as your concentration levels are so bad at this point. I found it easier to run down the middle of the road and dodge the traffic instead. I'm not even sure if i'm on the Clarendon way anymore. I'm just heading for the Cathedral now. The city is built up though so the cathedral is not visible from here. There will be signposts though, there has to be. I see a sign, run through an archway and I am almost in the cathedral grounds. 29.5 miles. I've made it! I run past the cathedral though as I want to finish at 30 miles. I turn left, hit the 30 mile mark and stop my watch. I get my breath, look up and see a signpost for the "Avon Valley Path". Ha. Maybe next time I think to myself.

                                       (Salisbury Cathedral. An amazing sight indeed!)

                        I get changed and look around the Cathedral. My running shorts are wet from sitting on the grass though so I need the toilets to change. There's only 2 cubicles and both are full. I can't be bothered to wait though. There's no-one else around and it's only gonna take me 2 seconds to take off my running shorts and put on my other shorts. But of course as soon as I take my running shorts off, the door flies open and then walks in a little boy with his dad and  his mum stood outside who also got an eyeful. It was all there to see! I felt so embarrassed and got those shorts on so quickly but the damage had been done..lol. They looked embarrassed too and I walked out of there and headed for the pub for a much deserved Chicken burger and a pint, followed by a train home. Lovely day out and cheap too. I still want to do the whole of the testway this summer. Let me know if you're interested :)

(Where I finished my 30 miles. This path goes from Salisbury to Christchurch and is also 30 miles. Watch this space!)

Brighton Marathon

      Originally I was gonna run a 50 mile race to raise money for Thomas Hayes and the JDRF charity. Thomas has type 1 diabetes and children as young a 5 years old are now getting diagnosed with it. The JDRF support children with type 1 diabetes. Not only do they support and help but they are not into the idea of a "quick fix" cure. They are after long term cures to help the suffers and it sounds like they are well onto their way with all the research and discoveries that they are making. I read quite a lot about the condition myself so that I could try and relate to people like Thomas and what he is going through everyday. Sounds like you really need to listen to your body and take control of it and you need to test your blood sugar levels quite a lot.

     Anyway, I wasn't sure I could run the 50 miler so tried to get into London marathon for the JDRF but it was too late, but they got back to me straight away and asked if I wanted to run Brighton marathon instead. I gave it some thought and said "Yes". They phoned me and we had a chat. Very nice, friendly people indeed. We emailed from time to time and they sent out my running pack with vest, sponsor forms, magazines, badges and balloons etc..

That was back in January. I seemed to start my training off with that 50 mile race on the 1st of February. You know, that race I wasn't going to do.. I got round in one piece but needed a fair bit of recovery time before I could resume my training. An ultra-marathon is much harder than a marathon surely? Wrong. I did not plan on racing 50 miles but I did plan on racing Brighton marathon. Distance is not what hurts, it's pace! And the faster I run, the more recovery time I seem to need.

      Despite the 50 mile race, I seemed to be behind on my training runs. I was running okay distances but the pace seemed pretty slow. I didn't want to rush or over-train.
Not long after the 50 miler I got an ingrown toenail in my big toe. I managed 3 weeks of long runs with that ingrown toenail and had to squeeze pus out of it as it had also became infected. I went to the Podiatrist where a lady was able to pull out the "Spike" and file down the nail.
She then says to me "Seems to mostly ingrown toenails lately". I felt bad for her and said I had something else to show her. I then showed her my other foot and explained how I had to snap my big toe back into place during Beaujolais marathon. Now i'd got her excited! below is what she wrote for my surgical assessment.

      The training continued with much relief from the ingrown toenail but not long afterwards, I would fall off a curb after one too may ciders, whilst out celebrating a mate's 40th birthday. This really hurt and would swell up pretty badly. There was just over a week to go until Eastleigh 10k and I ran it despite the pain and the foot would swell again after the race. I was beginning to wonder if I would even make it to the start line of Brighton. I felt I had trained to the best of my ability. In fact, I had felt that this was the best I had ever trained for a marathon but I also knew that there was plenty of room for improvement.


    Race day soon come around and Di was ready to drive me to Brighton. It was early, dark and pouring with rain. Mikey decided to stay in bed and who can blame him! Thank you Di, what an amazing person you are and all that you did for me that day. A true saint :) There wasn't much traffic until we got into Brighton and Di was cutting everyone up and driving in all the wrong lanes. We even did that bit from the National Lampoons film where you keep driving around the roundabout..lol
Di parked up and I walked to the start on my own, it was quite a walk and I was yet to put my bag in and get ready to race. I had left my gels and vaseline in the boot of Di's car. Not a good start at all! I saw Paul Lacey and then Steve and Becky Cleeves. Thankfully Becky had some Aloe Vera vaseline so that my nipples would smell extra nice. (Thanks again Becky) At least it wasn't raining now. I got to the starting pen and pushed quite near to the front. There were a few announcements and the runners were getting hyped. Then came the sound of the Chemical brothers from the speakers. "Setting sun" was the song I think. The hairs stood up on the back of my neck and I felt an amazing rush of energy. This was incredible. People started jumping up and down. It was time to run a marathon. A big marathon and my first flat-ish road marathon. I really wanted to go Sub 3 hours 30 and would have to average 8 minutes per mile to achieve this.

It was quite congested at the start as you can imagine. I had put down a time of 3 hours 29 mins thinking that I would be in a group of 3hr 15 to 3hr 30 pen but it was 3hr15 to 4hrs so you can imagine how big our starting group was! The first mile was also uphill despite being a flat course ;) I managed just over 8 mins and told myself not to panic and speed up just to make up the deficit like I usually do in shorter races. This was all about pace. I noticed that I was running some of my miles close to 7.30's but I felt so comfortable and relaxed so I didn't let it bother me. I just kept on running but there were concerns as my ankle was still hurting and I didn't have any gels.

   The ankle pain had subsided after 6 miles. I was feeling better and still relaxed. There were some pretty big hills for a "flat course". I guess they weren't really steep but you were climbing for a while. It was great to see the likes of Simon McCarthy, Paul lacey and Steve Cleeves flying past in the other direction. I was keeping an eye out for all my club runners but not all of us were wearing club vests. Tamsyn had spotted me and I also said hello to Laura. Everyone looked like they were doing really well and this made me even happier than I already was.
The good thing was that we got to run down the hills that we had run up. This was nice as it was close to the coast and there was a nice cooling head wind.

A big thanks to Emily Smith for the photos and support. This was me waving to Stuart. Obviously he gave me the abuse I needed and told me I was too relaxed and needed to run faster. I think this was at the halfway point. So 13 miles in and I was still pacing better than I thought I would and feeling good. This wouldn't last though..
I was now getting worried as I still hadn't got my hands on any food or gels. I had had some Gatorade on the course but that was it. I think I managed to pick up a couple of gels at mile 15. Di did try to hand me my gels earlier on when I saw her but I hesitated and decided against it. The support was amazing. There were faces popping up all over the place and faces I knew and didn't expect to see there. That's our awesome running club for you.

      18 miles in and I was starting to slow. I could feel it and see it on my garmin. I was now battling to stay under the 8 minute mile mark. I had now had 2 gels and a little girl had given me some jelly babies but I think the damage was done or I just hadn't trained well enough. I had told myself that 8.15's would have to do but in the end I settled for pushing hard and settling for sub 8.30's instead. As long as I beat my previous marathon PB of 3.39 what did it matter?
The most annoying thing about mile 18 was that I was stuck with a Batman. I was tired and feeling it but wearing me down even more was Batman running beside me and getting all the cheers and support. He was happily waving and looking all fresh while I was all sweaty and in bad form. About a mile and a half later, I wanted to punch him. It wasn't his fault, I was just struggling with my tolerance levels. I dug deeper and pushed on. Either that or he stopped for the crowds and did interviews.

   

    

     Thanks again to Emily Smith for this photo. Not so smiley now am I?? 

       I took some watermelon from a lady and said thank you. She told me that I was welcome and to carry on running and not stop. That watermelon was the best thing I had eaten in a while. I remember running a downhill bit before we got back onto the seafront. This really helped me get back into the marathon I think. My legs were achy and tired and this allowed me to open up my stride, stretch my legs and get a big of fast downhill running in. It felt pretty good and the change of pace was refreshing.  Mile 20 was soon upon us and I was under the 2hrs 40 that I wanted to be at. All was good. This part of the race was quite tough mentally though as it is a long road into a powerstation and back. It just looked like your average industrial estate to me. Those were some hard miles but it was good to see the Speedy Steve and Simon fly past in the other direction. 

     I was in agony now and the last 5 miles were a real mental battle. I felt like I wanted to walk now. There was a conflicting battle going on in my head. I kept going. It would hurt more to walk than probably run anyway. Not far ahead I saw Paul Lacey walking. This really surprised me as he's a fast runner. I caught up with him and tried to encourage him to run with me. I wanted to walk with him but that encouragement and the words I gave him were also echoing in my brain. Keep running Dean. I carried on and the last few miles were back on the seafront. There were lots of spectators now and they were cheering us on. "Well done Dean Jones, keep going". Lots of people were saying my name as it was printed on my vest. 

The last 2 miles my name was said a lot but I found it really hard to focus on getting to the finish with everyone calling out my name. My concentration was at its limit. My hearing was coming and going which was a bit scary. I then saw Matt White from our club. He was also now walking. I put my arm around him and tried to encourage him too but to no avail. I was obviously not very good at the encouragement thing by the looks of it. 

         On the last mile my toes were cramping and crossing over. This had never happened before either. Didn't look like I was going to make the 3 hr 30 mark as the two 3hr 30 pacers had just passed me. One of them stuck with me for a while which helped me push as hard as I could. Despite this, my pace wasn't fast enough to keep up with him so off he went over the line and I could see that the clock had already passed 3 hrs 30. 

I got to the finish line and the time read 3 hrs 31 mins 30 secs. Luckily I got my sub 3hr 30 on chip timing as it took me nearly a minute to cross the chip timing mat. My official time was 3 hours 29 minutes and 30 seconds. I had done it! 

   It sure was a great race and I am so happy with the time that I achieved. I managed to raise £529.02 plus £124.05 of gift aid, so the total I raised was £653.07. I wanted to raise at least £500 even though I only needed a target of £300. The JDRF support on the day was fantastic. I also got to meet the team and got a great post race massage and a bag with lunch in it. The XL t-shirt from the race actually is Xl and fits me and a great medal too. I would recommend this race if you are going for a fast time but it's very expensive to enter if you're not entering via a charity. 

   A massive thanks to all who sponsored me, the people who cheered me on, the well wishers, the JDRF charity and Di for looking after me and keeping me sane :) 

Southwick Country parkrun

          Graham and 2nd Lordshiller home Mr. Neil Garton. Photo stolen from parkrun page.

   
        So Neil says, "Do you fancy running Southwick parkrun on Saturday? It's my mate's 50th parkrun". The first thing I do is go onto the parkrun website and try and locate the place. Where the hell is Southwick? Turns out it's just by Trowbridge in Wiltshire. "Yes Neil, I would love to, but I have to get to a photography course in Fratton/Southsea by 2pm". "No problem he says".

      He picks me up at 7.15 and isn't late! I'm so used to the Mattingly's picking me up, I thought it meant 7.30. Anyways, off we went past Salisbury and beyond. We get there, park in the carpark and walk over to the starting area. I had obviously done my research into the course and watched a youtube video too. Nearly three loops anti-clockwise on a gravel trail path and dirt/mud track around the beautiful Southwick country park. Today was different though. When the clocks are due to change on the Sunday, the course on the Saturday is ran Clockwise instead of anti-clockwise.
I spoke to many people about this. Some said this way was an easier PB course and others said it was tougher. I had no way of knowing as I had never ran it. We met up with Neil's mate Jon who was running his 50th parkrun. We were also meeting a Graham but he was busy getting in the miles before parkrun for the London marathon. Eventually we were all standing on the grass surround by worms at our feet and chatting away. Mostly making parkrun jacket jokes at Neil's expense.

 
                        Jon who was running his 50th parkrun. Another stolen parkrun pic.

      We got in line and were briefed about the course. The ankle was still sore, so I wasn't racing hard today. I started near the back and when we started, it was an uphill gravel track. We shuffled forward slowly as it was quite congested and narrow. I didn't care as I wasn't going for a fast time.
Half a mile in and i'm pretty much clear to run at any pace I wish. I was starting to pass quite a few people now and there were some tight slippery bends in some places which made it fun. The support was great as you came to the mile point and near the finish line and you get to run past a nice pond and over a little bridge. I ran a 7.36 mile but was now pain free in the ankle and wanting to push a bit harder, so off I shot on this lovely undulating course which seemed to be pedestrian and dog walker free. I ran my second mile in 6.40 and still felt I could push. I was really enjoying this.

      The last mile was tough though and I was feeling it now. On the last bend of the course, right near the finish, the wind had now picked up. There was no wind on the first two laps but now it was very strong. I had run my third mile in 6.32 but the 0.1 mile remaining was so hard against a very strong. I pushed on and finished in a time of 21.40. I was really happy with this. Neil and co were still running so I thought i'd go back a support with one of the marshals.

    We cheered and clapped as the runners went round, shouting words of encouragement. The thing is that you couldn't tell how many laps someone had run so you couldn't really say "Well done, the finish is just around the corner" because it might not have been! Neil comes over the bridge and is running pretty well I think, but obviously I don't tell him this. "Come on Neil, put some effort into it" I holler. He tells me i'm walking home as he runs past. I laugh nervously. I hope he's joking.

                               Me trying to look all mean and serious for the cameraman

    I forget that Neil has past me despite trying to mock him and continue cheering on the other runners. I was really enjoying the smiles and thank yous that people give you when you support. I then remembered that Neil had finished and headed back to the finish line where Neil and I ate Jelly babies and Jelly beans. There was also free chocolate on the stall but it was only 9.30ish. Too early even by my standards.

   We congratulated Jon on his 50th parkrun and walked up to the Squirrel's cafe. I chatted to Graham about running and various races. He runs for Frome running club and told me about a few of the local races.
Squirrel's cafe is a charity based cafe and does amazingly tasty and cheap food and most importantly of all... Coffee!

   As we ate bacon sandwiches I got to hear so many funny stories. Most of them were about Jon. Now, I never wanted to play golf in my life until I heard half of Jon's stories. It sure was a great event with great people. Every five minutes though, Jon would threaten to apologise to a woman in a black top who he swore was the woman who he had spat in the face of on today's parkrun. It must have slipped his mind eventually because we left without approaching her.
The only other memory I have is being in the queue for more coffee and this woman telling me about her mushroom allergy. "Can you smell them?" she would say. "Disgusting things". I didn't have the heart to tell her that I loved mushrooms. "Bring me out in a rash they do and my face all swells up". Hurry up serving lady, I just want a coffee..lol.

    I would love to come back to this course and do it again. Apparently it gets quite muddy in the winter though. Very friendly people and a great way to spend a Saturday morning. Beats playing golf anyway ;)

                               Graham and Neil leading the pack on a lovely course

Eastleigh 10K 2014

Thanks to Paul A Hammond for this photo. Exchanging a few words with Stuart Smith just after 4 miles?


   The Eastleigh B&Q 10k race is a very popular race. Not only is it a Hampshire League race but it is also known as a fast, flat PB course! I had been wanting to run this race for three years now. The first year I entered I had torn my soleus muscle very badly at the Salisbury 10 mile race a few weeks before. In fact, I had torn it way before that but kept on running on it until I could run no more and was losing the feeling in my leg from time to time so it was time to finally rest for recovery and this was very slow. It took about 5-6 months again before I ran and even then I could only run about twice a week because of the aching afterwards. I now run 3-4 times a week and no more as it will still cause pain from time to time.
    Anyway, the following year I eagerly entered again, but again, I got injured at the Salisbury 10 mile race. This time it was shin splints. I was in agony straight after the race. I even went for an x-ray as I thought I had a fracture because the pain was so bad. This was due to me thinking I hadn't trained enough for the race and ran a speedy 10 miler two days before the race. This was obviously too much strain for my poor legs. Both times at Salisbury I got injuries and both times I PB'd. Next year (2014) I vowed not to run the Salisbury 10 race and just run the Eastleigh 10k. This nearly never happened though as I had fallen off a curb and twisted my ankle when I was out celebrating a mate's 40th birthday. I'm not accident prone... honestly!

My ankle on the Wednesday. 4 days before the race.

       It was doubtful that I would make it to the startline or even finish the race. I was not too confident as the ankle was still sore and a little swollen. I was long overdue a PB on a 10K race as I hadn't run a 10K race in 15 months and was hitting 41+ minutes in 10 mile and half marathon races. My current 10K PB was 42.12 from Stubbington in 2012. 41.12 was also my first 5 mile time at the Braishfield 5 mile beer race where I was beaten by Derek Goodchild.

     I didn't know what I was going to run like today. I was excited about running but not hyper enough to believe I was going to run well. I stood with Mike Mattingly in the starting grid and off we went. Mike shot off and I had trouble keeping up with him! He was weaving in and out of the congestion and I simply couldn't be bothered. It took me about 30 seconds to cross the chip timing mat and I was still walking when I crossed it. The ankle was sore and I just wanted to make sure that I didn't turn it over again, so was very cautious about every step I took and knew I had to be focused on this even in the last miles when I would be tiring and the ankle would weaken and become vulnerable.

    After 3 quarters of a mile, I was feeling good and the ankle had warmed up nicely and had now felt pain-free. I had run my first mile in over 7 minutes but wasn't too bothered. Time to give this race what I had! I dangerously cut across in front of a runner and felt bad about it even though he swore at me. In my defence, I don't think you should be in the "Sub 40" section at the start if you're going to run a 7 minute mile. Later I would also get told off by marshals for running on the wrong side of the road. I was in the zone now though and nothing was going to stop me... apart from the ankle maybe.

    There was a slight hill on the third mile. I had already passed Rodolfo but as you may know, uphill is a big weakness of mine and he passed me. This didn't last long though as after this, there was a delightful downhill where I passed him for the second time. I was flying past runners on the opposite side of the road but was still getting breathless and tired. I had hit the 5k mark dead on 21 minutes. A PB was possible at this point.
    I had decided that at 4 miles, I would ease off the pace a bit and as long as I ran the remaining 2 miles at an average pace of 6.45 each, I would PB easily. I was quite confident now. This is when I saw Stuart Smith and he was yelling abuse and telling me I looked too relaxed. Was great to see him, Rob Kelly and the other supporters from our club. I could only hear some of the supporters shout my name but weren't sure who they were. I don't really remember much about this course, it just seemed a blur as I was just focused on the race.
  I then caught Laure at about 5 mile and told her to get running. I shouldn't be able to catch her as she is super speedy. We ran together anyway, and she was now my motivation. These last miles weren't as easy as I had hoped. We were running hard and I managed my 6.45 at mile 5. I saw Dan Campion who stood out cheering as I approached. Just the sight of seeing Dan made me run faster as he is one of my running heroes and an inspirational figure :) We pushed to the end but the wind was strong against us. The last stretch seemed to last for ages. Where's the finish line? There was a lot of support at the end which always makes me want to run faster but I was struggling for a sprint finish. I told Laure to run ahead and she did and then Rodolfo flew past me with an amazing sprint that I was in awe of. I had finished with a sub 42 on my garmin and got a chip time of 41.28. That's a PB of 44 seconds :) This also happened to be my 50th race!

A great day was had with the club and it was so good to see my fellow runners who I hadn't seen for ages. This was the shortest race I had run in 15 months and it felt weird that a race could be over so soon and to be eating cake at the finish of a 10K..lol. The guilt! I also got a T-shirt but they only do Large t-shirts, so sadly I don't really have a memento from the race apart from my race number... Oh, and a PB ;)

A big thanks to Stu Smith, Dan Campion, Kathy Annals, Rob Kelly and Emily Brent for the support and the others that I forget. Now resting my ankle and hoping to make the start of the Brighton marathon.