Catching Up

After tweaking my left backside slipping about in the dunes on the 12th I was hobbling the next day. The "next day" was the Mid Lancs XC at Hyndburn. The Chorley Harrier ladies were hoping for promotion and to get as many out as possible to help, I had said I would run (help make up some numbers rather than actually count for the team). On Saturday morning I did lots of stretching but it didn't help, a bit annoyed as the Hyndburn course is really enjoyable.

At about noon when it wasn't getting any better I did the sensible thing and necked a load of ibuprofen and went anyway. Once I warmed up a bit it only bothered me when my left leg slid sideways...which happened a lot on the stodgy course. I was over two minutes quicker than the year before but getting out of my car at home was not very dignified! I wouldn't have done it for a longer race (probably).

It seemed fine for cycling thankfully so got some road miles in on the Sunday....for some reason decided to go chevron bagging around Belmont way and got my backside kicked, even with a 30 * 27 lowest gear. I found the hills mentally hard too which wasn't good, I'm no climber but I normally just get on and grind them out without too much thought. 44 miles, 3800 ft of up and an embarrassing average speed of 13.9....more work needed.

I did some short runs in the week as bum was still tight, it started to ease off after a trip to the climbing wall meant some serious stretching of various tight muscles.

On Saturday I headed out to check out snow conditions around the moors. I was only intending to do about six miles but it was so lovely I ended up doing over 9. Lots of snow:

I ended up on the turbo on Sunday afternoon but probably should have gotten the MTB out really.

This week I've managed to get back to some better running, a quick 4 miles after work on Monday saw me set off with leaden turbo legs. Last time I did that after about two miles my legs were fine and sure enough I managed to up the pace each mile, really enjoyed it and no problems the next day.

Tuesday was some turbo intervals, hard but bearable now I have invested in a fan. It meant I was able to work harder without boiling myself or having to open the door and freeze the house out.

Yesterday was another set of intervals, running this time. Possibly not the most sensible decision but I wondered how my legs would cope. A little leaden at the start but changed into running mode after about a mile. I did 3 x 1200 metres as slowly building the interval distance back up to three miles. They went well, not having fresh legs meant I paced things more evenly and didn't tear off at the start though on the last interval I had to push hard to keep the pace as I got stopped at the one road crossing. First and second interval had the same time, third was two seconds slower which I thought wasn't too bad. Run back to work was fine after the first half mile.

Yesterday was finished off with a trip to the wall again, which was really good fun.

Today I'm taking it very easy, I did think of cycling into work but couldn't get myself out of bed. The cycling gods punished me for my laziness by having me sit on the M6 for ages, eventually took 1 3/4 hours to get to work as opposed to 30 minutes.

Red Rose XC Bury

I picked a good week weather wise to be taking it easy, though the rain meant I didn't get any cycling in at all. Saturday I headed over to Bury to do another XC race. I somehow managed to get myself there without ending up lost in Bury centre but once again I found myself thinking a Sat Nav may be useful.

The course was laps around a sodden field, no real climbs or downs just constant shoe sucking mud and standing water. My feet were freezing from my short warm up and didn't warm up until I got in a hot shower at home.

Considering my legs had had most of the week off they didn't feel as sprightly as I thought they should, maybe the answer is to do a long MTB ride the day before? On the first lap I started suffering from a stitch, then I realised for reasons best known to myself that I had been practically holding my breath up the incline. Whoops.

3.5 miles in 31.01. I was totally covered in mud, I was less muddy the last time I fell in a bog.


The next XC is on the 21st of this month, however I have just realised I have races planned on the next three weekends which isn't going to leave me much time to do some miles, either bike or run. Depending on the weather I may not do the XC on the 21st.

Red Rose XC Womens Race - Blackburn

My first XC race this season was at Witton Park on the 3rd of October. I drove over in heavy rain and strong winds though the rain stopped before I got there thankfully. A bit of faff with parking before heading to the Chorley tent to pick up my number.

Conditions were not as stodgy as last year but still soft. I expected to have heavy legs after the wet 30 miler on the MTB the day before but they were actually fine. I had a good run and managed to keep working hard til the end and was a bit quicker than last year. Really enjoyed it even though the saucer was a much longer hill than I remembered. I finished the just over 5k in 28:34, 8:36 mm pace. A minute a mile faster than the year before.

Mid Lancs XC - Hyndburn

XC today at Hyndburn - no idea where that was so had to check out map, near Accrington (and I only barely know where Accrington is!). It looked simple enough to get there, on the M65 til Jct 7 then a couple of fairly major roads but close to the motorway.

Woke up feeling a little tired, pottered around in the garden most of the morning then got kit ready and set off. I had heard this was a good XC course (i.e not flat running around football pitches), but I was feeling tired and stomach crampy so it wasn't boding well for a good race, but hey, I was looking forward to doing something completely different from road running.

Off the M65, going ok til I ended up in Accrington, its supposed to be near Accrington, not in it. After a while I drove back to the motorway junction as I realised I'd gone wrong as soon as I came off (think I should get a Sat Nav?). Found it eventually and parked up at the bottom of a bit of a hill, walking up it my legs felt tired, this will be hard work then.

Total stodge conditions again. Got ready to warm up, argued with my mud encrusted Walshes for a bit, the laces were solid and took a bit of bashing to get them to tie up. I set off for a warm up round the edge of a football pitch with another of the Harrier ladies, easiest way to stay out of the way of the runners on the course. I felt heavy, and was sliding around a bit in the mud. Once round then she headed back and I carried on round again in an attempt to be sensible and was joined by two other Harrier ladies, so we had a full team out (3 for a ladies team but more the better).

After second lap I decided to head back (could/should have fitted in another really), took fleece off and headed to start line. Usual fast start, I had my Garmin on and was expecting close to four miles so was definitely gong to keep it steady for about two miles. Straight into proper stodge then up a bit of a bank, people sliding everywhere even in spikes. Hard work keeping a stride up but superb fun as everyone streamed past me!

Off into some woods where it firmed up a little, bit of a descent where I overtook a few people but reined myself in as it took a bit of effort to power past and it was a bit early. Carried on up another couple of slippy banks then off into some woods. Lots of twists and turns and I got completely disorientated (as usual, doesn't take much). It was a good course, lots of varieties of mud: ankle deep slop, slippy stodge that the Walsh's struggled with, peanut butter stuff that clogged up shoes and added about a kilo in weight (felt like it) and lovely squidgy but on a firm base (not enough of that).

I was in a nice group of ladies, enjoying the run and I thought I maybe should try to pass as it was feeling comfortable and I didn't think I should be feeling comfortable in a short race but I decided against it. Being so close to the other ladies meant I couldn't really see the track clearly and I went over a little on my right ankle, then a proper turn of my left as I didn't see a tree stump. I swore and limped a few steps but shook it off then thought that next opportunity I get to pass I will so I can have some clear track for a bit.

We came back into the firm woods section where I had passed before. It was a good place to pass, on a bit of a rise so I just put in a few strides...then my legs were off. They motored up the rise, which was a bit of a surprise as my legs generally don't motor anywhere but I decided to go with it. I was out on my own which was a very weird feeling, had to keep reminding myself to keep the red and white tape on my left as there were a few twists in the course.

Back down the descent I enjoyed earlier then up the slippy bank (lot easier when I could take my own line) and back out into the open field. I had a look to see where the other ladies had gone then realised it was off to the finish so I got a move on.

My Garmin read 3.2 miles rather than the close to 4 I was expecting so I could really have done with pushing on a lot earlier. My time was 32.18 so actually on the slow side really but this is probably the first race I have done where I thought I could have gone faster a lot earlier so I'm pleased with that.

I think I got too comfortable in the group I was in and should have pushed on and tried to get on the back of some faster ladies but as that's never happened to me before I didn't realise that's what was going on until too late.

The next XC race in Blackburn should be interesting as I've done the course before so know what's coming and assuming everything else is ok I might try to get on the back of a group which is going at a pace I find hard, there is quite a bit of space to get past people and a bit of a hill (which I was strong on last time) so we'll see.

Watch me die on my arse!

Weekend Activities

On Saturday I raced in the Midlancs XC Leyland race (well it was local). I decided to cycle over there rather than worry about parking the car. The wind was pretty strong and in my face on the way over, but I bimbled along in the sunshine. I made exactly the same mistake as I did last time I tried to get to Worden park and continued on round past Tesco. D'oh. Being on the bike meant it was just a case of cutting through Tesco's bedlam car park to get back on track. Only 4.5 miles of bimbling.


The park was pretty busy, not just with runners and I located the tent area and started cycling across the field a bit to get there. Ground conditions were very wet, stodgy and heavy going, being on a bike with road slick tyres on meant no traction what so ever, after the third time the rear wheel tried to break out on its own I decided it may be prudent to get off and push.


At some point when waiting around the weather changed a little, sky darkened and wind picked up. It was really cold, I did a brief warmup to get my legs used to running again before heading off to the start line. Brief faffing around and we were off. I settled into a pace quite early and just kind of stuck at it, my legs did feel a little heavy but not completely leaden as I'd worried. The course started off running round some flattish fields and football pitches, which were heavy and occasionally even the Walsh's couldn't cope with the mud.


The next section was superb, out into a wooded area, lots of singletrack and a couple of stream crossings. At the end there was a steep bank that the women in front of me were walking up. I had a go at running it, which went well until the mud was so thick it clogged my shoes and I nearly ended up on my knees. I stepped into the leaves at the side to get some traction and even used a handy tree trunk to pull myself up a bit. After that it was back into the park and back round the football pitches which seemed to go on forever and ever.


I crossed the line in 36:40 for 6.4 km 9.13mm pace, not exactly blistering but the longest course yet I think. Really enjoyed it though due to the woodsy section. It was too cold to hang around for much after racing, enough to see the lead men steaming past but I headed back off on my bike doing some errands on the way home.




On Sunday I headed out to West Yorkshire for a 20 mile or so mileage building ride. I wasn't sure how my legs would be after racing so I was taking the slow and steady approach, particularly as the ride sets off straight uphill. Fortunately for me neither Jez or Ed are particularly fit at the moment so I didn't have the problem of them riding out ahead of me making me speed up, it was mainly the other way around actually which I must say is a bit of a novelty for me.

We had some debate about an actual route but ended up forgoing the climb up the Gorple Road to head up to the Long Causeway instead on the Pennine Bridleway. The track was really stodgy in places so had to remember how to ride a bike in soft conditions. The ford we crossed before climbing up to the Long Causeway was a bit deeper than normal, both feet got a proper dunking and eventually the water would work its way down inside my boots. For once I decided not to wear my merino sealskins on a winter ride and I ended up with a cold left foot.

We rode along the rode for a bit as my legs got more into it, they never got particularly full of beans but they were very happy to just keep going which I was pleased about. We dropped off the road onto some bridleway heading towards Tod. There was some proper stodge along this way, its been a while since I've had to wrestle the bike through that kind of stuff. There were a few moments where the pedals were going round but the wheels were only moving about an inch, luckily they managed to find some traction before I was forced to unclip or topple over sideways. Average speed: about 2mph! Excellent fun - mountain biking as a whole body workout.

We then rode across some pack horse trail whose name now completely escapes me but there are old slabs laid across that have been worn over centuries. I have cleaned this section loads of times but not today, in fact none of us did due to the fact that the track was often submerged under water hiding all the cheeky pointy rocks and other things to catch the unwary. This is prime over the bars territory for me but I made it through with only a couple of dabs (of my foot rather than my face). Its amazing how much the rideability of trails can change from one ride to the next.

We decided to head down to the golf course then up along the excellent piece of singletrack bridleway which was made slightly more difficult by virtue of being a stream and hiding rocks. A couple of dabs but ok and good fun then we had to climb this very long, steep road hill. I just plugged away (actually in middle ring as that actually kept my heart rate down better than trying to spin) and my legs actually didn't die at the end of it as I expected. We then headed up through Colden and picked the PB back up to head over to the Gorple Reservoirs. All that was left was the always delightful climb up from Widdop and the last descent back to the car.

I was feeling pretty cold by then, I had good layers on but my left foot was cold and having cold feet makes the rest of me feel cold. The wind was also pretty strong and cold and it was really, really strong setting off up the climb. I don't think I've had that before, normally the hill blocks it out but not today. I just continued plugging away making not bad progress until I got caught out on the last loose section. Its always a bugger after cleaning the rest of the climb there is one section of rubble to get over which needs a big push and I don't think I've managed to attack it in anything more than my granny gear. I had actually ridden all the difficult bit but my front wheel pinged off a rock as I had almost cleaned it and I couldn't get it back. Its always a problem riding in such a low gear and trying to keep the front under control.

The descent down the Gorple road needed a lot more pedalling than seemed fair and the cold wind was giving me a headache by the end but its still an ace descent. A quick post ride pint then home, the rain started as we hit the M65. We were quite lucky with the weather as it looked black and awful on the Bowland fells on the way over but was sunny for all of our ride.

In the end it was about 19 miles with 850m or so of ascent. Considering I was doing slow and steady I average about 7.5 mph which is my normal pace round this way anyway.

Slop Slop Sloppity Slop

That's what I was running in today, interspersed with a lot of puddle infested hardpack trail for an XC race. I made it along to the Blackpool round of the MidLancs XC series this afternoon. I took both trail shoes and walsh fell shoes as I'd heard there was a lot of track at this one but when I turned up and saw the mudbath that was the field it was the Walsh's that were put on. It was very wet, lots of standing water on the car park I abandoned the car in.

I managed to get covered in mud just walking around, looking at the kids running round they were as filthy as they would be if they'd tried to cycle on it without mudguards, mud just flying everywhere.

A very short warm up, no where near enough but it was cold and I was sliding around a lot anyway rather than running. It was raining again byt the time the ladies race was ready to go. Another fast start but I held back a little as it was hard running all the soft mud but I managed to stay in touch with a few other ladies running which always helps. There was a lot of hardpack (with deep puddles) which was quite fast and didn't feel too bad running in the Walsh's though there was a short section of tarmac that was quite odd due to studs squirming (I went back onto the sopping grass quickly).

The course was around Marton Mere and also passed around the edge of a static caravan park which I wasn't expecting. I was glad to finish and felt a little better this time round though I was quite hungry for the last mile which wasn't ideal. The last section back to the finish was really hard work, it reminded me of Coniston trail race it was that wet and sludgy.

3.6 miles in 30:51, I was 50th out of 78 ladies so a bit of an improvement. I didn't bother putting my trousers back on, no point as my tights were so covered in mud (I realised the benefits of wearing shorts, baltic or not). I watched the men's race for a while until I started to shiver then headed home, heating on full blast in the car.

When I got home I very carefully took my muddy boots off and out them near the radiator to start drying out and managed not to get any mud anywhere. I walked upstairs but hadn't realised exactly how thick the crust of mud was on my tights and proceeded to scatter mud all over our biege bedroom carpet. I then compounded the error by not leaving it to dry and getting the hoover on it, which just succeeded in rolling it into the carpet or streaking the mud, sigh.

Had to have a go at it with the carpet cleaning foam, will need another go shortly.

Chuffing Car - Part Two

I didn't get to the Burnley XC race yesterday, I completely forgot my car had broken down on Thursday night. I didn't have to drive anywhere on Friday as I was working at home and I walked the couple of errands I had to do. I decided against cycling as they were both only a mile each way and I wanted to kick through all the fallen leaves like a five year old, twas fun.


I set off to the race a little later than planned anyway as we are in the process of redoing the lounge. I did feel a little guilty driving off leaving Jez to get on with painting the new plaster. Anyway, a couple of minutes after hitting the M65 the car starts to misbehave, hard to describe but feels like it wants to stall and at motorway speeds that isn't good. I turned around at Jct 3 and headed home while it still sputtered quite a few times. I managed to get home without it completely conking out. Jez had nipped out in his car so I resigned myself to getting my painting jeans on and getting stuck in.

I did ride to the farmshop later in the afternoon, I was glad I did as it was nice to get out for 10 easy miles but I only put my front light on as an afterthought, which is just as well as I really needed it on the way home.

I knew I wouldn't get much done today except housey stuff but I rode into Preston to do some shopping (start of my Christmas shopping too), it's only 6.5 miles round trip or so. I took a different exit out of Avenham park as I wanted to check out the bike parking at the station, it was just as steep as the other way I go but they've thoughfully put some speedbumps in made of cobbles which my tyres don't grip well if I'm stood up. The bike parking at the station is on a quiet covered platform and there were a few other bikes there and passengers milling about on the other platforms.

I felt happier leaving my bike there rather than in the middle of the street and faffed about in town for about an hour and a half. I was glad the platform was covered as it was throwing it down when I made my way back to the bike, it allowed me to pack up the pannier properly and sort myself out without getting wet. Thumbs up for parking in the station.

I got absolutely soaked on the way home, the rain was icy cold and I had a headwind which meant it was in my face for most of the way home. I had my waterproof jacket on top so I was ok there but I only had thin trousers on the bottom and they were dripping by the time I got home. My legs and fingers were freezing so it was another hot shower to the rescue. The mudguards do work really well but my feet still got wet from the water running down my legs.

I dug out a pair of waterproof trousers I bought when I first started MTBing, they are too warm for serious biking but should be ok for that kind of easy pedalling, I will chuck them in the bottom of the pannier from now on!

Cross Country Results

The official results are out. My time was 31:04 and I came 56th out of the 71 women running, there were more people behind me than I realised.

The first woman over the line was in 21:21 - how fast is that! I'm surprised I didn't get lapped!

I will try to improve my times over the course of the season but the courses aren't identical for direct comparison.

Cross Country - Blackburn

Well, I ran my first XC race today and it was very hard work but I have to say it was much more fun than running on the road. It was a very well attended meet with lots of very fast club runners around, including lots of very fast children.


I got to Witton Park in what seemed like no time at all so made a mental note to not take the M65 on the way home and zero the trip counter on my car to see how far it was on the A roads on the way home. I didn't think it was sensible to cycle to the first race as I had no idea what to expect but for future races...


I picked up my number and wandered around a bit watching some of the kids run then got readyto do a bit of a warmup myself before my race at 1.20pm. It would be the first time the Walsh's had been worn so I thought I better try them out. The ground was pretty stodgy and I was squirming around on it in my normal shoes but the Walsh's were very grippy and comfortable.


Parts of the course were apparently very boggy so I tightened my shoes up a lot before the race as I didn't fancy losing one of them. I wandered over to the start line with the other Harriers. I knew there would be a fast start and I didn't want to get too carried away by it, if that meant absolutely everyone passed me then so be it.


The race was started with a starter pistol. I think the last time I did anything that was started by a starter pistol was at school (and only because one of our PE teachers was a bit trigger happy) and the thought amused me for a while as everyone sprinted off at warp speed. I tried not to get swept along and kept a hard but sustainable effort level for me. I could still feel the remnants of my cold as well and it was making things a little more difficult for me.


The fist part of the course was mainly flat but the ground conditions were what a horse racing commentator would describe as "Heavy Going", it was quite strength sapping but I had been warned about that.


The course then headed out of the park into a field, I believe this section is called the saucer ? This was a fair climb and was actually my favourite part of the course. I ran it all the first time round, the last section of the climb was very boggy, ankle deep mud but I managed to get a good line through it and not slip. I really enjoyed that bit. Then there was a bit of a downhill section that had been trampled by cows so had lots of hoofprints in it. It was also deep mud and I found myself over my ankles quite a few times. I was glad I had really tightened my shoes up as I could feel the suction of the mud quite a few times.


I made good use of the downhill to get my heart rate down and actually picked a good line through it (all that bog hopping around Great Hill). It was back onto the flat section for another lap. I took it steady on this section to leave something for the climb later.


I didn't manage to run the climb as smoothly the second time round as I had a little slip in the top boggy section which stopped me briefly but I managed to get running again within about a metre so it wasn't that bad. I also didn't quite end up on as good a line on the descent this time either as I seemed to find a lot of very deep mud this time but I still managed to run it all and not slip.


The last flat section to the finish line seemed to take ages! I'm glad the ladies race was only 5.2K, I think that was quite enough for me today - the senior men have to run 10K, ouch!


I waited around a while to watch the men run but had to head off to try to get my phone fixed but it's always interesting watching good runners run, they make it look so effortless!


The Walsh's felt really good to run in, I don't think the Mizuno's would've coped as well on the really gloopy stuff, very slipper like. I am tempted to try them on shorter off road runs now. They are now at least respectably muddy:

I'm not sure of time but I stopped my watch at 31:09 but I'll update with official results later.

I ran the race at an average HR of 177 which is quite high for me I think, even racing (will look at my old race results as it may well be normal). The drive home on the A roads was around 8.5 miles, I always thought Blackburn was really far away, thre will be another XC race here in March next year so I may cycle to that one.

New Shoes

They are so red, it's untrue. They also look like go faster shoes. Still not sure I would want to do more than a short run in them but they should be ok for running round a muddy field:

I do need to get them muddy quick!

Thursday 19th Sept: Club Run

Yay, got out to run with the club again. It wasn't a long run but it was nice to be moving faster again, I don't think I've lost that much fitness either (for short runs anyway) though having well rested legs will certainly have helped. Things were a little tight but not sore so hopefully I'll be able to get back out running offroad at the weekend, hoping for 6 miles from Tockholes up to Darwen Tower and back.

It was dark by the time we'd finished which was a real shame, autumn's really here. I checked where I could leave my bike and they seemed to say the men's changing room entrance would be best, it gets locked when we are out running.

I have also decided to do some cross country races this autumn/winter, I haven't done CC since school! I was informed that the ladies races are only about 5K and nice and muddy. They are on Saturdays which hopefully means I'll be able to get a long bike ride or run in on the Sunday too. It also means an excuse to buy some new shoes, a pair of Walsh fell shoes has been recommended and the "Walsh Man" is coming to the club next Thursday so I can maybe get a hold of some then. Must remember to get there for 18:45, take some cash and probably the Spesh for the pannier to bring shoes back.