Slip Of A Girl

By Friday L is germ ridden. We’re pretty sure it’s just a cold and not Coronavirus but am I going to have to take someone else to Berlin next weekend? They might not even let her into the country.

A cruise ship called the Diamond Princess has been quarantined off the coast of Yokohama in Japan after hundreds on board are infected. It is the largest outbreak of the virus outside of China.

On Friday evening I have a match as Derby play Fulham and then on Saturday it’s Parkrun. It will be my 99^th and the plan is... well firstly to find one that is still on by permission of Storm Dennis (or actually I think we might be on to Ellen now, not that I noticed a gap). There is a new Parkrun at Lichfield called Beacon but that seems to be off. Wollaton isn’t on because they are hosting the National Cross Country Championships, so we decide to play safe and go to Alvaston. 

After parkrun we do head to Wollaton Park to have a look at the Cross Country. This is hugely entertaining because the park is so waterlogged and muddy. Sections of the course are knee deep in water\mud and it makes for great spectating.

On Sunday I return to Prestwold Hall for RunThrough's Leicestershire Half Marathon. This is of course purely out of necessity and L joins me in the race as well, out of necessity. To be honest it doesn't seem quite as dull after doing it last year probably because I mow know what is coming and can mentally prepare for it.

The one thing that wasn’t quite so bad last year was the wind, which is really hard to run against this year but it’s very nice when it’s behind you and pushing you along. The effect of the wind is probably reflected in my time of almost 1:49, four minutes slower than last year.

Then we head to my Brother’s lad’s 18^th bithday meal at the Joiner's Arms in Quarndon. I don’t think I’ve been before but L says she’s been to a disco there when she was just a mere slip of a girl. Which is not that long ago obviously. It’s all food now, and they do have some decent beer, but sadly they don’t do a Sunday Lunch. The foods ok though. Everyone has massive ice cream sundaes for dessert and can’t manage them which means I end up trying to eat about four of them.

( Sunday 23^rd February)

A Chilled Glass Of Pinot

Today I do my 8^th Nottingham Robin Hood Half Marathon, L is doing it too. I’m not sure how many times that is now for her but it’s way more than eight. It’s L’s sister’s second time and we meet her at Nottingham University before getting the tram to the start which involves changing lines at the railway station. Oh, and it’s raining.

Thankfully the weather does improve and the rain largely holds off for the race but soaks us afterwards.

This year the course has been tweaked slightly and the start moved further back but I’m not too sure what this is to accommodate. I line up in the ‘red’ zone as usual, hoping for something around about 1:45. My fastest Nottingham Half was my first one back in 2010 when I ran 1:36:22. This is actually also my overall half marathon PB that I have little or no chance of getting near these days.

I fix my eye on the 1:45 pacer and then off we go. Unfortunately he turns out to be a nutter, setting out way too fast over the hilly first few miles. On my reckoning he is up on his pace by a couple of minutes after three miles when he should probably be slightly down at this point and intending to make it up on the flatter parts of the course.

At the first drinks station somebody hands me a bottle of water and I’m like ‘YES, it’s in  a bottle’. It is so good to finally see the back of the dreaded water pouches.

Despite the breakneck pace set by my pacer I just about cling onto his shirt tails until I start to lose touch as he fleetfootedly, and inexplicably, skips through the congestion caused by the narrow sections in Wollaton Park. It's as if he’s trying to lose his flock. Perhaps he is.

Coming out of Wollaton Park I see Daughter at the 7 mile point and inflict a sweaty hug on her before renewing my pursuit of my pacer before finally giving up the chase a few miles further down the road.

As we get to the last mile the excellent Race Angels, provided by Notts Womens Runners, are on hand to help you get through that final mile but they seem to show no inclination in helping an old man break 1:45. I gather I am not their target audience.

Rumours of them handing out chilled glasses of Pinot as part of the service also appear not to be true. Which is a shame, as it would be one up on the Great North Run Beer Stop.

Then I’m at the 13 mile marker and into the last few hundred metres which is on the grass and was a bit like cross-country running. I slither across the line in 1:47:14. It would have been oh so different if I'd had that Pinot.

Sadly after two years of handing out t-shirt to all finishers the organisers have again reverted to not having one which is very poor. The post-race snacks, in common with other big races, were also very poor.

What is good at Nottingham are the massages. Once again Sheffield Hallam University provide a girl for each leg (or a guy if you prefer). Great North Run take note of that and also that they have a least double the number of massage tables you did for a field about an eighth of the size.

In the evening we go for a night in the Crafty Crow, where we haven’t been for quite a while, but they have no dark cask ales but plenty of Pinot. So we adjourn to the Borlase.

(Sunday 29^th September)

Not Exactly Warming

This morning L, Daughter and myself are all running the Nottingham Winter Warmer Run at Wollaton Park. It’s a 10k but there’s also a 5k option. As ever with Wollaton Park it’s a one lap or two lap choice.

Daughter is joined by two of her men. A +1 I suppose and a +2. They all park at ours and walk across while I, although I know it’s not really the done thing, drive over so that we can take the dogs with us. I manage to park them nice and close to the start, so then it’s easy to give them a run around both before and after the race.

I initially try to stay with Daughter’s +1 or was it the +2, the one that regularly does the parkruns with us, but he’s far too fleet footed (e.g. young) for me to keep pace with but I will blame the somewhat slippery conditions.

I slither around in a mind bogglingly bad 49:02 but given that the whole thing is miserably wet, cold and very muddy, I was just pleased to get around without getting injured. If ever the phrase 'Winter Warmer' had been misused, this was it. The only thing warming about it was the hot shower back at home afterwards.

Anyhow. Training run ticked. Naturally, L loved the conditions.

Then after a chilled afternoon, we go for a late Sunday Lunch at the Wollaton pub. 

(Sunday 10^th February)

One Last Trip To The Park

L and I don’t parkrun on Saturday although Daughter does. We rest up after the Hairy Helmet and all three of us do the Ripley 10k on Sunday, which goes well.

In the afternoon we take Doggo to Wollaton Park for one last time and belatedly scatter his ashes on his favourite stretch of grass. It’s been freaking me out having him watching me from the kitchen windowsill for the last three months.

In to the new work week and I manage three bike rides this week, which is better. While the World Cup is now in full flow and I skip dog training to watch England narrowly beat Tunisia in their opening game.

On Thursday the football fixtures come out for the new season and TV immediately start moving them around. Thursday is also tennis and on Friday I head over the Bingham for a night out with the old crowd of university.

The Deventio Brewery who sponsored last week’s Hairy Helmet make good on their beer tokens by inviting me to pick up some bottles from the brewery. Which of course I do.

(Friday 22^nd June)