Today's Training

[Mossdog]

Swarth Fell and Wildboar today. Start: Bullgill, to the Tommy road, Little Fell, High Dolphinsty, cairns east side of Wildboar (High White), down to the saddle, then the cairns on Swarth Fell. Back via the trig and shelter on Wildboar, and then I took the 'pony route' to Dolphinsty, and return to Bullgill. 12.93 miles, 2,558 ft of ascent, 3 hrs 12 mins.

It was light and sunny on the drive over to Kirkby, but as I approached Bullgill, the rain started. Low cloud covering Wildboar, and once I got to the Tommy road, the heavens opened, accompanying the headwind. Same conditions all the way to Swarth, with low visibility, and a waterproof needed. The BBC weather app suggested a possibility of thunder and lightning. Not a spark noted, but the possibility added the frisson of jeopardy and a flattering of nose-thumbing intrepidness. Once back at the Tommy Road, the sun burst out. The temperature soared, and I was peeling layers off, just in time for a post run flask of coffee on the primrose peppered grassy verge. Not a soul seen on route. Sometimes a dodgy forecast can be a friend of those who appreciate a bit of solitude occasionally.

[Travs]

First treadmill hill rep session away from the club tonight...

5 x 5mins @ 10% gradient, with 5mins steady flat run between each rep.

Went pretty well, worked hard but still felt strong enough at the end to raise the pace a little.

11 miles including a mile warmup, a mile harder to raise the pulse, the meat of the session approx 6 miles, and three easy miles warm down.

I'm intending to keep the treadmill hill reps quite stress-free.... still working very hard, but not overly worrying about times and paces, and will likely keep the durations and gradients varied so i don't start comparing times....

All my other rep sessions are measured.... my continuous hill session, i know my exact pace at my limit. Hill reps on the Mynd, i know exactly how long they should take... club track sessions, i know my rep times to the second.... so intend to take a bit of mental strain off and just "enjoy" working hard.

Thursday night i believe its a track session of 8 x 400mtrs.

[Mossdog]

Crossfell.. From Kirkland to the trig via the bridleway, cutting off to the boulders at the west end, then down to Teeshead, Wildboar Scar, Littledale, Wythwaite to Kirklands. 8.45 miles. 2606 ascent, 1 hr 36 mins.

Very wet underfoot, especially from Tees Head to the scar. Glad I was shod in mudclaws.

[Travs]

Club night and a track session.

8 x 400mtrs off 2 minute rests.

I was set the highly ambitious target of 70secs, but told if i'm not hitting that then just be consistent.

I knew 70secs was out of the question, but could i finally knock out a session at around 72secs.....?

73,72,72,72,72,72.... luckily i was set off with a very experienced guy who was hitting 70's consistently, so it was just a case of keeping in touch with him as best as possible.

Called it a day after 6.... although was feeling like i could maintain 72/73 for another couple.... however i'm wearing an orthotic sole to help correct a minor ankle/foot issue, and it was the first time i've ran at such pace (well under 5min/mile) with the insole... after 4 reps i started to feel a bit of pain... told the coach that i wouldn't make excuses and if i lined up for the rep i'd run it hard, but i didn't know how many more i could do.

I think it was wise to stop at 6, as i could really feel it in the warm-down, which i also cut short. But otherwise i was very pleased to run at such pace and consistency. Easily the best fist i've ever made of a 400mtr session.

We had Dave Moorcroft casting his eyes over the session today (our coach trained and ran with him regularly in Godiva colours XC and on the roads/track in the 80s)..... i doubt he was too impressed with my 72 second laps, given that he knocked out a full 5km at 62.5secs/lap.

8 miles for the session on top of 3 easy miles this morning.

[Llani Boy]

Last Thursdays RATRun was from the newly and very expensively refurbished Ashford Arms in Ashford in the Water.
After inquiring as to when the cut off time for chips was and being told 21.30 the six of us set off up Pennyunk Lane to Monsal Head. It was a cool, breezy evening with a bit of mizzle on the wind but not enough to don a waterproof jacket. On to the Open Access land above Monsal Dale before we had to take a detour due to barbed wire, across a couple of fields to the road. Across the road to Cherpit Plantation where we picked up the Great Longstone FR route to the tumulus and on to the moor. Down to the cattle grid and then the muddiest cowshitful stretch of bridleway I have ever encountered. Calf deep in slurry for 400 yds before we picked up the bridleway to Dale Farm. Just short of Dale Farm a right took us back up fields to Cherpit Plantation,again, and then down through more fields to Little Longstone.

The next set of fields had a lot of standing water which cleaned our legs and shoes nicely before we crossed the Monsal Trail and across more saturated fields back to Ashford. A very steady 9 miles, 1,312 feet in 1hr 26 mins.

It was absolutely heaving in the Ashford Arms. Ordering chips for a number of people can be a lottery, especially at a new venue. Portion sizes and prices vary enormously. For example, at The Waterloo in Biggin a portion is £3.50 and there is enough for 3 people whilst at the Blind Bull in Little Hucklow a portion that is not really enough for one is £4. Unfortunately the Ashford Arms was more Blind Bull than Waterloo at £4.50! Before committing, I asked the youth behind the bar to show me the size of the vessel that they would be served in and on seeing it I laughed and declined to purchase, to which he replied " I don't blame you mate". One of our more affluent runners called me a "tight Welsh git" If we were in Scotland I'd have reported him to the Police

I suspect these so called "higher end" places don't really want the likes of us there for beer and chips, especially now Easter has passed and the tourists are about. We shall not be returning, even in November when they are empty, but having said that they did serve a good pint of Farmers Blonde 4% from Bradfield Brewery albeit at a pricey £4.80.

[Travs]

Treadmill hill session this morning.... another notch up on the pace.

Surprisingly i found it the easiest (easy being a very relative term in this case) i've ever managed this 40 minute continuous session.... even after 10mins, despite being drenched in sweat, my legs felt good and fresh, and i just kept on top of things, breathing relaxed, rhythm/posture/stride consistent all the way through.

It is a very mentally tough session to get through... for me its a case of keeping relaxed and not worrying about the fatigue creeping up and how much longer i've got to go.... just knowing i've done it before and i can do it again... an attitude i'm trying to replicate in my increasingly tougher and quicker club sessions as well.

I'm definitely fitter aerobically than i've ever been... hopefully it gets proven in race results... although only really got the Welsh 1000 Metres short course in about 6 weeks which i've done before to compare times.

Currently on 74 miles for the week, although might go out for a short easy run this evening.

Next week.... will do the club grass session on tuesday, and thats all the hard work done until the Skiddaw Uphill GB Trial on friday afternoon... got no expectations of this one as i'll be right at the weaker end of the field, so just hoping to have a solid run and try to keep a few people behind me.

Sunday i'm still reserve for the inter-counties so fingers crossed that remains, and i can then also enjoy a long run out on the saturday, and spectate the inter-counties on sunday.

[Graham Breeze]

Last Thursdays RATRun was from the newly and very expensively refurbished Ashford Arms in Ashford in the Water.
After inquiring as to when the cut off time for chips was and being told 21.30 the six of us set off up Pennyunk Lane to Monsal Head.
It was absolutely heaving in the Ashford Arms. Ordering chips for a number of people can be a lottery, especially at a new venue. Portion sizes and prices vary enormously. For example, at The Waterloo in Biggin a portion is £3.50 and there is enough for 3 people whilst at the Blind Bull in Little Hucklow a portion that is not really enough for one is £4. Unfortunately the Ashford Arms was more Blind Bull than Waterloo at £4.50! Before committing, I asked the youth behind the bar to show me the size of the vessel that they would be served in and on seeing it I laughed and declined to purchase, to which he replied " I don't blame you mate". One of our more affluent runners called me a "tight Welsh git" If we were in Scotland I'd have reported him to the Police

I suspect these so called "higher end" places don't really want the likes of us there for beer and chips, especially now Easter has passed and the tourists are about. We shall not be returning, even in November when they are empty, but having said that they did serve a good pint of Farmers Blonde 4% from Bradfield Brewery albeit at a pricey £4.80.

For over 25 years (since I retired) I have been having lunch every month in Ribble Valley or Yorkshire "pubs" with different people I worked with. With some I go to Wetherspoons where we never pay more than £2 for a pint. With others lunch for two has been £200+ - without any alcohol. It's always lunch.

Over that time I have seen dozens of country "pubs" close, reopen, close, reopen, etc and it seems to me a pub has to either be imbedded into the local community so locals will support it loyally during the bleak mid-winter or go all out to become a "destination" to which people will drive and be willing to spend, some may say, a ridiculous amount of money on food and drink.

In my experience it is tricky to satisfy both groups.

Interestingly a very old pub a couple of miles from here (The Hermit in the hamlet of Burley Woodhead) closed and the owners tried to convert it into a private dwelling. The local community - those who had not bothered to support it - were outraged, opposed the planning proposal and a group of locals eventually bought it and spent a lot of money refurbishing it.

I do not know whether it is now a gastronomic paradise or the consciences of the local residents are still smarting; but I do know that the car park always seems to be full.

Perhaps I should ask about the price of their chips?

[PeteS]

Clent Hills today. 10k and 550m ascent, the most I have managed on a training run since last September. Hip is sore but easier after some gentle exercises this evening

[Mossdog]

Back to Orton doing the fellrace route plus.

10.72 miles 1558 ft ascent, 2 hrs 2 mins.

From Orton square, to the Church, and join the fellrace route, sloshing through various sodden, muddy pastures, past the stone-circle, up onto the 'open' fell, to the trig, down to the reservoir, and up to the Monument. Then detoured off, North-East, following the intake wall to Linglow Hill, back across Gaythorn Plain, meandering through and following various green trods and bridleways back to the Monument to rejoin the race route, and then back down to the village on a great, runnable descent, joining the coast-to-coast route path, detouring to ford through a few becks in order to wash the mudclaws off.

As the last time I ran this route, there was a stiff, trouser flapping breeze for half the route, and an accompaniment of hail, near sleety rain showers, followed by beaming, skylark basking, plentiful sunshine.

A couple of walkers seen in the distance, on the coast-to-coast route, otherwise I had it all to myself, as usual.

A boost of self-righteousness, ascetic satisfaction, at NOT visiting the Orton Kennedy's Chocolate making shop...

[Travs]

Club night and 8 x 1 minute efforts. With 45 seconds being hard, and the final 15 seconds being a further acceleration.

Made a good fist of that one, considering the shortness of the reps. 9.5 miles plus 3 very easy miles this morning.

I've been called up into the Warwickshire team for the inter-counties on sunday. So now got two races in 48hrs. This has made the weekend a much more daunting prospect, but for a runner of my level, making the county team is the highest level i'm going to manage, so its very pleasing.