The Very Long Run: Row and Run

The day after tomorrow I will be facing my first real test of the year – the North Downs Way 50. That’s 50 miles, not kilometres. I’ve never run so far in a single day before and I’m currently feeling a mix of excitement and fear. It’s exciting to be taking on a new challenge, and on the whole I feel fairly confident that I will complete the distance. However, there is still an underlying fear of failure. There is also a fear that I could pick up an injury that may well wipe out the rest of my year. If I don’t complete the NDW50 how will I cope with the 24 hour Thunder Run, or the 50 miles running in the Swiss Alps in August?

I am also worried that I still haven’t quite found the right kit. I have two running jackets that are suppose to be waterproof, but I know neither will survive the wet if it rains for a significant portion of the 8 to 9 hours I think it will take me to cover 50 miles. Why, oh why haven’t I bought a better running coat already? I also know that I haven’t quite found the right shoes for me. My Inno8 trail shoes will crucify my feet over 50 miles if the trails are firm, as they have minimal cushioning. My Brooks trail shoes are good on a mix of trail and road and would make an ideal choice, except I always end up with blisters after about 10 to 15 miles. That leaves me with running in my new road shoes, which will be great if the trails aren’t wet. Decisions, decisions.

Since the Neolithic marathon I have done very little running. Last Friday I found myself testing my fitness in an unexpected way. I have been training a group of eight women to row the Channel. They will also be taking on their challenge next week. Last Friday they had their last 4 hour training row at Hayling Island. I had intend to go along to video them from the support boat so we could then make last minute corrections after watching the video footage. But on the day one of the girls was ill, so the remaining crew members asked if I would take her place in the boat. I gladly jumped in and took up my oar. I rowed the Channel last October and it felt great to be back in the boat and rowing out to sea. After about 4 hours of rowing I realised that there is a reason why you do specific training for a particular event. I might be marathon fit, but I am not rowing fit. I have never felt so exhausted after 4 hours of exercise before. By 9pm I was well and truly ready for bed.

About to go for a paddle

The girls rowing hard

Because I was down south with the girls last Friday I spent the weekend visiting my mum in Winchester. This meant I had the opportunity to run somewhere different on Saturday morning. St Catherine’s Hill, which overlooks Winchester, looked very appealing. The Hill was an Iron Age hill fort with a defensive ditch worked into its upper slope. I covered a total of 8 miles running up and down and around the Hill, trying to get as much hill training as possible. Once again I managed to wipe myself out and I realised I’d need to do a lot more hill training before going to

Switzerland

in the summer.

I’ve only run twice since the weekend of about 5 and 8 miles. There’s not much to report on, except for almost being mauled by an unruly dog on one run. If dog owners know their dogs have a tendency to run and jump at runners why, oh why, don’t they put them on a lead? I would have been seriously annoyed if I’d either been tripped or bitten by a dog just days before my 50 mile run. The most annoying thing is that the dog owners in question never seem apologetic, as if it isn’t their fault.

I didn’t take my camera with me for the run up and around St Catherine’s Hill, so here are few shots appropriated from Google images.