Dublin City Half Marathon

This was the 3rd race in the Dublin marathon series. It's been less than a week since the Great North run in Newcastle where I had tried to beat the 2 hour barrier for a half marathon but failed. I was going to give this race everything and try to beat 2 hours again.

I started off as I intended to finish with a brisk but reasonable pace of 9 minute miles, consistency being the key to long distance running. I felt really good from start to finish and kept an eye on my pace to make sure I was sticking to it. It paid off and I finished in 1.58, that a shiny new PB!!

Finally I have broken the 2 hour barrier... next challenge will be the 4 hour marathon barrier, that's looking more like a possibility with every race!

Here's my race: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/14823331

Arthur's Day

A pint of the plain is your only man!

Sent from Brogans pub on Arthur's Day, just before the excellent Jerry Fish & the Mudbug Club AND the even more excellent Undertones entertained us for the rest of the night... We should have an Arthur's Day every year!!

Newcastle to Newbridge

The journey from Newcastle to Holyhead was a lot easier than getting to Newcastle a few days earlier, perhaps the first trip provided some essential rear conditioning!

Although I left Newcastle early I stopped off to say cheerio to Paul in his shop and then to sample some excellent cherry crumble in Kerry's equally excellent school... OK it was actually rhubarb crumble but I couldn't resist the linkage. While I found the school alright the only door that I could see turned out to be a locked back or side door, but it had an intercom and it didn't take long for one of the students to open the door for me. He was very helpful and offered to bring me to reception but his teacher opted to give me directions instead. His offer, her overrule and why they were both in the corridor were explained as I walked away when she resumed lecturing the boy on his behaviour, homework, and the list went on.

I was so impressed with the school. At risk of sounding ancient it's literally a world away from the school I went to where we spent the first two years in temporary prefabs that are probably still there and the main school was little better! The facilities for the kids and teachers in this school are magnificent, it's hard to imagine how it could be improved. After a brief tour and a little lunch I had to go, time was ticking and I had to get to West Yorkshire to see Yvonne and James before heading South West to Holyhead for 9pm.

I had only 30 minutes with Y&J but as I hadn't seen them for years that was never going to work so well over an hour later I was back on the bike and up against the clock. As I approached Chester the petrol light flickered on and from previous experience this machine never lies. Luckily I noticed a sign for Services quickly followed by a sign for the next main exit. I assumed they were separate exits and all the evidence point that way as I approached the main exit where there was literally no sign of the Services, but as I whizzed past I noticed a really small Services sign... bugger! I had no option but to carry on to the next exit and either turn around or find a petrol station at that exit. It turned out that latter option was my only one as this exit brought straight onto a motorway bound for Chester. This was not good, the petrol indicator was down to single digits, pretty soon I'd be running on vapour. Taking the next exit brought me into Chester where I was sure I'd find a petrol station nearby but it took several miles by which time the reserve tank was virtually dry.

With a full tank and directions to the A55 I was back in the road but seriously late, that diversion added 30 minutes onto my journey and as I was running late before that comedy moment I was now in danger of an over night stay in Holyhead.

I calculated an ETA every time I passed a road sign, assuming a 100 km/h speed I would arrive at 9.30 and as the ferry was due to leave at 9.30 I was understandably concerned. As I left Chester behind the road opened where I spend a lot of time on the far side of the speed limit up to make up a little time. Somewhere after Holywell the speed limit increased to 70mph or close to 120 km/h which made all the difference, I was gnawing away at the ETA's with each sign I passed. Passing Bangor I was down to a 9.00 ETA but roadworks on Anglesea stole 10 minutes but I made it to the ferry all be it just in time!!

The ferry crossing was very rough and although I was hungry I decided not to eat to avoid a possible repeat viewing. We docked in Dublin 20 minutes late but at that time of night the ride home was quick and I was tucked up in bed by 2am.

Great North Run

Last night Paul had warned us that the forecast was sunny with a high of 20 degrees C, useful info to have before a long run but only useful if remembered and as my memory is marginally better than that of a gold fish it was no surprise that I forgot to slap on some sunscreen this morning which ensured that we had some extra comedy moment later that evening.

Getting to the start line we uneventful, which is always a good start! There were over 56,000 runners converging on the starting area which ran between two exits and used both carriageways of an urban motorway. Every runner had their own colour coded number that corresponded to a baggage bus which would meet us at the finish and a pen (not to write with but to wait in), each pen was separated from the next by an 8 foot fence so once you were in you were staying in! I left Kerry at her baggage bus and we agreed to meet at the finish, however we forgot to suggest a meeting place or time, how hard could it be to pick someone out of a crowd of 56000?

Having deposited my bag I headed for my pen which was about mid way along the queue so not a bad spot! Once inside I had a 20 minute wait for the official start time but our MC was doing a good job keeping us entertained with music, warm up leotard guy and the occasional amusing story. With 5 minutes to go I felt what I thought was someone behind me playing with my hair, when I turned around there was no one there... then I felt it again so I thought it might be a fly and tried to brush it away. Ouch!! It suddenly crossed my mind that it could be a wasp or bee as I realised that I had been stung in the palm of my hand. Getting to the start line may have been uneventful but being here was quite a different story.

The sharp pain of the sting slowly eased as numbness spread across my hand. I had never been stung before and had no idea what reaction I could expect. Would it just hurt for a while? Perhaps my hand would swell up, people might think I was running in fancy dress - like a carpenter, they're handy aren't they? Or maybe people might think I was running for a little known "massive hand" disease? What if it affected me else where?? I could have a heart attack? That would be a bummer, I hope I'd have time to tell the paramedics that it was a bee sting induced heart attack and not an unfit fat git induced attack!!

Just as these terrifying scenarios were racing through my head the MC announced that the lead singer with the Police, STING, was going to fire the starting pistol to start the race. You couldn't make it up and I had to laugh, and out loud much to the bemusement of the people around me. I thought about explaining myself but it would have sounded daft...

As promised, Sting started the race and we were off. I quickly forgot about the other sting and quickly got into the 6.55 mph pace set by my Garmins' virtual partner which, if I stuck to it, would mean a sub 2 hour half marathon. It took us about 15 minutes to reach the Tyne bridge and as we approached there was no sign of the Red Arrows, they usually do a fly past and I felt a little disappointed but I needn't have been because half way across the bridge they came screaming across the sky right over our heads... wow!! For the first few miles all went really well even though it was hot and the sun shone constantly. I took full advantage of shower tunnels to cool down even though they only lasted for a few seconds, any relief from the heat was welcome.

At about mile 10 my virtual partner abandoned me and left me behind but I did my level best to keep up. I crossed the line in 2.03, while not my best it was still a great time!

The comedy continued as I realised that I had no way to find Kerry, our "see you at the finish line" arrangement was beginning to show it's flaws as thousands of runners crossed the finish line behind me and there were thousands ahead of me. The phone networks were jammed and text messages were taking an age to get through, you could forget about getting a call through. I made straight for the baggage bus, got my bag and changed while the Red Arrows performed their amazing display overhead. I was awestruck, and amazed that everyone else wasn't as amazed as I was... some people were wandering around oblivious to the awesomeness that was happening right over their heads!! After the display the networks seemed to clear and I got through the the others and all was well!!

Here's my race: http://connect.garmin.com/activity/13866599

Newbridge to Newcastle

This was to be the first trip overseas with my motorcycle and would involve a few major hurdles! The first was particularly difficult: packing the night before and getting up at the unbelievably early time of 6am to catch the first ferry of the day which, to my complete surprise, I managed to do without any tears, bruises or accidents... well there was one little accident but it was unrelated and probably would have happened anyway!

I made it to Dublin Port with about 20 minutes spare, so that's early for me. I checked in and boarded the ship without queueing, and joined 4 other motorcycles at the rear of the car deck. Although I had worked on ferries during my time at University, for something like 5 years, and knew what to expect this was my first time on a ferry with a motorcycle and I wasn't completely confident that all would be well. But all was well; the deckhands helped me get the motorcycle into the right position and lashed it safely to the deck for the journey. They parked me beside another 1200GS, but this other one was the adventure model with all the extras making my motorcycle look like a poorer cousin, a handsome but poorer cousin... It even had the GPS system that I really want but can't justify the outrageous price tag.

I made straight for the information desk to get a WiFi card where behind the desk was a colleague from the HSS ferry that I spent most of my "ferry" time on. It was great to catch up on all the news from Holyhead, who's doing what and where they are now. We were chatting for the best part of two hours and I had just enough time to check my email before we docked in Holyhead.

Getting back to the car deck the owner of the 1200GS Adventure was powering up his fancy GPS. Not only did the bike have all the extras but he was wearing all the best gear too, I was starting to feel like the poorer cousin... Getting off the ferry was a big tricky; the deck was very wet, very smooth and consequently very slippy. I had a few "moments" where both front and back wheels lost traction, the kind of moments where you could instantly lose weight! I managed to make it off the deck keeping the rubber side down and quickly made it out of the port and on the old road to Bangor.

From what I saw of Holyhead it hadn't changed much apart from the new A55 dual carriageway that crosses the island of Anglesea and Holy Island into the heart of Holyhead. I was on the old A5 for a nostalgic ride across Anglesea, a road the I must have travelled hundreds if not a thousand times during my time in Bangor.

I took the road to Menai Bridge and the back road to Bangor passing what used to be one of my favourite pubs - the Vaults, today is has a giant shamrock bolted to it's walls with a dancing leprechaun surrounded by the words "Paddy's Irish Pub" or something like that. I was going to stop to take a photo but it was too sad a sight. With a tear in my eye I took a left at the thankfully unchanged Belle Vue pub towards the main University buildings before snaking down hill to the city centre.

After a little pottering around town I headed east towards Llandudno to call in on a former class mate and then continued east to Chester. I had planned on visiting more people but time ran out and I really had to get out of Wales and get to Newcastle for 7pm.

From this point on I was travelling on dull motorways, passing Manchester and around Leeds before heading north. It was already rush hour and I was a long long way from Newcastle but ever the optimist I was convinced that I'd be there no later than 7.30pm, maybe 8pm at a push... what could possibly go wrong?

Eventually I began to see signs for Newcastle but it was already 8pm and I had something like 50 miles to go. With something like 20 miles to go the road split, one on the right led to the Tyne tunnel and the other to the left was the A1 to the airport. I took the latter which was, of course, the wrong one. I should be heading for Whitely Bay on the east coast but the A1 brought me to the west side of the city, it was only when I passed the point of no return that I pictured a map in my head and worked it out. But, ever the optimist, I reckon that it would be easy to find my way through the city and find signs to the east coast.

I found signs, lots of signs, but none going my way. There were many moments when I had absolutely no idea where I was or which direction I was going, then I'd see a sign for something the I recognised and there was hope before I fell off the map again, wandering aimlessly until the next sign.

I had a feeling I was moving eastward the long way around but it was just a guess as I really had no idea where I actually was. Then, out of the blue, I passed a "Welcome to Whitley Bay" sign... I was so relieved. I felt I had crisscrossed the city so many times that it was only a matter of time before I came across Whitley Bay, and here I was! The next challenge was to find Kerry's street, that took another 30 minutes!! It turned out that I had passed close by several times but eventually I arrived, some two hours later than advertised!

The entire 620Km journey too a massive 8 hours 25 minutes, I reckon the next big purchase for the motorcycle will be a GPS... it may just save what little is left of my sanity!!


View Newbridge to Newcastle in a larger map

Rantastic...

I think there's a little more to riding a motorcycle than getting to the top of traffic queues... I think we all have an awesome responsibility regardless of which mode we use; bikes, cars, horses or feet. There are gobshites in every category: some pedestrians don't look, observe traffic signals or use crossings; most cyclists don't observe traffic signals; some motorcyclists have appalling lane discipline, fail to signal and have little regard for other road users; most motorists fail to look properly at junctions, when opening doors and changing lanes.

BUT I do believe most people care, they just don’t understand how their actions can affect others until something happens, but by then it’s too late. It’s not all the peoples fault, our (Irish) attitude to road safety is terrible but it has become the social norm and as such it’s perfectly acceptable, here. Everyone else is doing it so why shouldn't I?

I have witnessed countless situations where a cyclist has stopped at a red like only to be passed by other cyclist breaking the red light and you can almost see thought process “why have I stopped, nobody else bothers...” and they carry on through the light... it’s wrong but it’s hard to blame them!

We have to change the way we think as a society, we have to remember that we’re surrounded by people just like us, we have to think that we’re all important and we have to accept that if you’re late you’re late, don’t ruin someone’s day because you can’t organise yours.

I have been riding a motorcycle for years and ride it everywhere but I am far from an expert. Every time I do a safety course I’m am reminded of how deadly travelling can be but I’m pretty sure the vast majority of people don’t get that, we don’t do road training here. Once you pass your test you’re finished! Stats show that 92% of those involved in motorcycle crashes never had formal training... NEVER!! That is shocking!!

How many cyclists or pedestrians have done a safety course? Good question... but a better question is where can a cyclist or pedestrian do a safety course???

OK, rant over; I need to do some work...

Midweek Run #2

All day yesterday my feet felt a little uncomfortable and when I got home last night I realised that I had several blisters as a result of that morning's run. I was wearing the same trainers that I used for Gael Force 6 and I was fine then so I guess something had changed between then and now, perhaps they had shrunk or lost some flexibility as a result of the thorough soaking in sea, bog and river water during that event. They were only little blisters but perfectly positioned for maximum discomfort... bless them.

This morning I was up early and eager to get a long run in but had to consider the risk of exacerbating my blister condition! Risk considered and I was off, running a total of 8.59 miles in 1 hour 22, that's a pace of 9:28 min/miles or 6.33mph and a lot slower than yesterday!

My poor little tootsies were feeling the pain and I think the best thing to do is rest until the race on Sunday to give them a fighting chance of recovery and hopefully beat the 2 hour barrier this time!!

Midweek Run #1

This should have been a 5 miler but as I have been seriously slacking recently I upped (real word, honest) it to a little over 7 miles. Like all of my best decisions it wasn't a conscious one... I had a bit of a Forrest Gump moment and just kept going. Just before setting off I did have the impending Great North Run in mind and set my trusty Garmin virtual partner to 6.55 mph, at that speed I'd finish the GNR in 2 hours.

This morning I ran the 7.32 miles in 1:03:12, that's a thoroughly respectable pace of 8:38 min/miles or 6.95 mph. According to the ever optimistic fetcheveryone predictor thingy that pace would see me run the GNR in 1:57:07 and a full marathon in 4:04:12... I don't think so!

On tomorrow's list is an 8 mile race pace run but considering how little I've been doing recently I'll try to push that out to 10, maybe more.

Great North Trip...

I have just booked ferry tickets for my trip to Newcastle and as I'll be taking the 1200GS I'll have to think carefully about what to pack... hopefully I can get away with just the two side panniers, I'd rather not take the top box!

I'll be landing in Holyhead on Friday morning. It's been a few years since I've been to North Wales and it'll be great to be back. I'm especially looking forward to travelling through Snowdonia on the bike... that will be a real treat!!

Malahide 5K

This new race worked through the grounds of Malahide castle, see http://connect.garmin.com/activity/12692223 for location and route. Based on my lack of training during the week it came as a complete surprise that I would run well and it can as an even bigger surprise that I crossed that line with a new 5K PB of 25.03!!