Serious Hydration

The bus was late this morning, very late. So not a good start to the day but at least I'm tapering. An essential part of the tapering process is, of course, hydration. Which may, or may not, be one of the reasons we’re at the Robin Hood Beer Festival later.

I’m not sure what percentage strength of beer is best for hydrating up for a marathon and what particular fast food is best to have with it. So I will probably need to experiment.

L is at home today waiting for our boiler servicing man. The hot water is doing it’s hot-cold-hot thing at the moment. They’re late as well and I’m worried that L will future injure herself repeatedly chucking MD’s ball.

The chap arrives and promptly tries to sell us a new boiler even though the current one isn’t that old and previously they've told us that a new boiler won’t help. Our pipework is old and knackered but no one is up for the job of replacing it.

No two men ever agree on the solution to our water problems but the best one I’ve heard is to leave it as it and for them to keep coming out once a year to clean it out. It is what we are paying them handsomely for.

After that ordeal I think L needs a beer. I meet her in town, that is after the Red Arrow has gone the wrong way and dropped me in the wrong place.

I enjoy the beer festival, L less so.

My selection :-

1. Grafton Sally Pollard's Ginger Concotion 5.0% 1/2

2. Blue Monkey Chimpagne 10.0% 1/6

3. Dancing Duck Imperial Drake 6.5% 1/3

4. Thornbridge Pollards 5.0% 1/2

5. Grafton Caramel Stout 4.8% 1/2

6. Totally Brewed Biscuit Porter 5.0% 1/2

7. Howard Town Dark Peak 6.0% 1/2

8. Thornbridge Cocoa Wonderland 6.8% 1/3

9. Grafton Chocolate Mint Stout 5.0% 1/2

L’s selection :-

1. Grafton P-Butter 4.8% 1/3

2. Blue Monkey Chimpagne 10.0% 1/6

3. Xtreme Chocolate Cherry Stout 5.6% 1/3

4. Thornbridge Sequoia 4.5% 1/3

5. Frownes King Norvak's Saga 5.4% 1/3

6. Thornbridge Sequoia 4.5% 1/3

(Thursday 12^th October)

Delivery Boys And Girls

Not tapering again, I’m on the bike again and it’s quite windy this morning but at least it's cooler.

Apparently the Tennis Centre has reopened after their tournaments so we get to play a game. They allocate us Court 11, wherever that is. You used to follow the signs... until they removed them all and gave the courts names instead.

L goes to aquarobics again and we change our choice of pubs to the Crown which is nearer to the tram stop to give her a better chance of getting there in good time. The tram itself still takes ages though.

Then we have to play delivery boy and girl as we take Daughter's huge suitcase back to her. It came laden with dirty washing and is returned full of clean washing. Not a bad service. 

(Thursday 22^nd June)

Not Exactly Tapering

It’s my first chance to get on the bike this week although L enquires as to whether I should be tapering instead with the Llandudno Sea Triathlon coming up this weekend. No, I’m not exactly tapering. It’s more like last minute cramming, like a teenager for an exam.

L says she can sympathise as she heads out for a run. It’s just four weeks to the Thunder Run but only three days to her proposed comeback at Conwy Parkrun.

The new football fixtures are out and Derby start on a Friday night, how traditional, but at least it’s away from home.

Dogging later, which finishes early due to the unseasonal heat so I’m at the pub before last orders for once. Its so warm L is sitting outside and without multiple layers on.

(Wednesday 21^st June)

Can’t Knock It, Never Tried It

In the car today, which is sort of tapering but I do have tennis later. This gives me time to walk Doggo as the youngsters have fun on the park.

L is quickly in touch to tell me about her day so far, chocolate for breakfast etc because she’s getting stressed at work and that's after all the time I spent on stress relief first thing this morning.

Hope she doesn’t drown herself at Aquarobics tonight. Yes, I know. Aquarobics? What’s that all about but I can’t knock it, never tried it. She tells me it’s a bit like bobbing up and down at the Outlaw Half swim warm up but without a bunch of over trained nutters and psychos about to mow you down and in nice clean warm water with the added security of a life jacket. 

I could have done with that life jacket myself as we indulge in some comedy tennis in the rain. It is odd that we are the only one’s still playing as the threatened drizzle proves more resilient than expected. When we try and move into the dryness of the empty ‘bubble’ courts we suddenly find them fully booked. Funny that.

We manage two sets then dry out in the Victoria. L is delayed trying to join us when her tram is stopped so that they can arrest someone. I’m on my second pint by the time she arrives, not that this is a problem.

(Thursday 18^th May)

Terribly Unpopular

On the bike but tapering, sort of. I take it so gently that pedestrians are overtaking me.

L swims with the aid of a pull buoy, this lessens the pain threshold apparently. As does backstroke but obviously this makes you terribly unpopular if there’s anyone else in your lane.

Then I go dog training but L goes socialising with Daughter, so no pub tonight.

(Tuesday 16^th May)

Out For A Duck

So a whole day in, tapering.

I had toyed with the idea of doing a run as the Bosworth Half Marathon were taking entries on the day but perhaps something shorter than a half marathon might have been better but entries had closed for the Sinfin 10k. The Holymoorside 10k was a bit too far to go and then there was the Wymeswold Waddle. Five miles and a red t-shirt with ducks on it... what’s not to like? Plenty. Even if there is usually a homemade cake stall for the supporters.

Track cycling was my backup plan but it turns out that the track is closed for essential lighting maintenance.

(Sunday 14^th May)

Distinct Lack Of Bike

Bus again, obviously with being wheel-less.

Castle Rock Brewery are begging for apples in order to brew a cider. Damn, perhaps we should have kept our apple tree. We do still have a few manky apples lying around in the garden if they want them.

 

Still no bike, the wheel apparently wasn’t ordered on Wednesday when they said it would be and still isn’t in but it’ll definitely definitely be all sorted over the weekend. I tell them I’ll collect on Monday.

I wish I’d brought my running shoes in now. I had originally planned a run this evening but scrapped the idea as I planned to collect my bike. Again circumstances are conspiring against my training, I didn't even get a full game of squash last night and I really hadn’t intended to start tapering for Leicester this early.

Meanwhile L is at the gym getting a quickie in which is more than I’m managing at the moment.

(Friday 16^th October)

Ms Armitstead, Ms Simmonds and Ms Obsessed

A parkrun today, of course, as one of us is obsessed. The question is which one...

In the end the first one off the wishlist tumbles, Gedling. This is just for Ms Obsessed, of course, as I’m still bloody tapering. It’s easily the hilliest parkrun we’ve seen yet, well worth a go and only one loop too, which is a rarity.

I then drop L off at Pilates while I meet the tree man who finishes off the job. We now have room for a full set of agility equipment. No excuse now MD.

Cycling's World Championship Road Races are this weekend from Richmond, USA. It’s the women’s road race today and Lizzie Armitstead wins an enthralling race for GB.

Everyone is also intrigued by the new girl on the GB bike, HayleySimmonds. As current GB Time Trial Champion she rode the Time Trial in the week and today makes her début in the road race.

She’s a former rower, who then quit rowing, put on a ton of weight, then took up cycling and shed it all. A huge 45kg worth. As I keep telling L, cycling’s the way to go for everything, whether its weight you want to lose or orgasms you wish to gain.

 

(Saturday 26^th September)

Good Morning Fellow Cyclist

It’s not often I greet L with ‘good morning fellow cyclist’, in fact I can’t actually recall when the last time was but today I do.

Yes, it's true. She mounted her trusty steed this morning and went to Harvey Hadden for a swim. I’m not sure when this will be repeated as it has since been described as a faff.

The swims up at Harvey’s are apparently just as quiet as the ones at John Carroll. Not surprising really, as it must be harder for most to get to in the morning. I need to give it a go myself though, particularly as there are still no evening sessions there. As L would say, I must sort myself out.

Not today though, at the moment I’m still tapering, feeling totally undertrained and beginning to wonder what I’m going to do with all this excess energy I’m building up.

The tree men are back and we are now (almost) a one tree family from being a five tree one. They haven’t quite finished, so the boss man will pop back tomorrow. It all looks OK, a good job really as I’d hate to have to ask them to put them back up.

L meanwhile has sneaked off to Waterstones, with her hands tied firmly behind her back I hope. Although she says I’d be amazed at what she can do with her hands tied behind her back. Sounds like something worth finding out.

(Friday 25^th September)

Saving Myself

I am on the bus today, tapering again and saving myself (well, my legs) for squash. Then after a pub lunch, I’m ready for anything, even squash.

The tree men aren’t here today which gives Doggo a chance to have a last wee up the trees before they go. He’s also helpfully working his way through the off cuts, gradually disposing of them by munching his way through them.

Squash is better again and I win a game this week as opponent regrets insisting on one more game when his legs are clearly saying the opposite. I win that one.

(Thursday 24^th September)