The OMM & "I'll start next week"

As the countdown continous towards May 28th 2010, I have had in my mind that the OMM is the start of it all. We set off for Wales on Friday afternoon and eventually got to registration. Got registered OK, spent some money in the Up and Running shop & then back to B&B for chinese take away, a couple of beers & bed.

The forecast for theElan Valley was quite bad but it never really materialised into the squall that was predicted. Our late start (10.57am) meant that most of the clag had cleared prior to us starting.

Day 1- Moved well with some good Nav taking us direct to our checkpoints without any mistakes. The terrain didnt lend itself to being covered quickly and we were quite pleased with our 231 points haul. This gave us an overnight place of 7th which was way above what we expected.

Day 2 - Unlike the day 1 map, which the route choice was fairly obvious, the Day 2 map offered a choice of direction. we went to the East which gave loads of early points but what we didnt know was that the ground conditions were very poor in this direction compared to the South & West. We gave a good account of ourselves though and ended up finishing 39th out of 300 pairs which was better than my expectations prior to starting.

I am now trying to recover this week, with a couple of gentle jogs with a view to start my new training regime next week.

I hope this feeling of " I'll start next week" doesnt last long.

OMM 2009

Went out for my last pre-BGR specific training run last weekend. Up Helvellyn via Sheffield Pike. Covering about 11 miles & about 5000ft of ascent/descent. A lovely run in sunny conditions with great unhindered views all around. Days like that are what inspires me to keep running. Those people that don't run on the fells are mystified at the attraction of punishing yourself up and down the great lakeland hills. If only they were up there, then they would know and fully understand what its all about.





We are off to Wales to compete in the OMM this coming weekend. This event achieved worldwide recognition last year as 3000 runners were "unaccounted" for. Having a quick look at the long range forecast there seems little chance of a repeat. Nevertheless it will be a good weekend with loads of miles and ascent covered with a pack on my back. All good stuff for the BGR.





My running partner for the weekend, lanxy, introduced me to these events in 2006 and we have so far failed to achieve a good finish compared to what he has achieved pre '06. So fingers crossed for an injury free weekend, complete with good route choices and plenty of luck.





After the OMM the real BGR training kicks in with a steady increase in mileage and weekly ascent through to May. In addition I will throw in some other training such as weights/circuits & cycling. I might even do some Pilates which is good for core stability. Along with the physical side of things I will make an effort to look more carefully at nutrition & hydration levels to get the best out of this old "rugby battered" body of mine.





So on to the Elan Valley this weekend. Let the battle commence.

I dont 100% know why I want to write a blog. Is it cause I like to show off, or is it just that I want to record my training etc leading up to the hardest challenge of my life. I dont know. All I know is that the lads at work took some serious amount of piss out of me when I said I was thinking about writing one.

With "The Bob" attempt etched firmly into next years calendar, I have trained quite hard all summer to get my general level of fitness up and in the process have lost a lot of my "rugby" bulk. I am just teetering under 13st and am down to a size 32 waist. I was probably a teenager the last time I bought trousers in a size 32 waist. The OMM beckons at the end of this month and then the specialist training for the BOB starts. I have also just rejoined the gym in an attempt to balance my training with a few weights and maybe some circuits type training sessions.

As I write this I have now just realised why I am writing this. Its not that I want to show off or that I will look back fondly at my training. The reason I am writing this is to help keep me focused on my training. Now I know why. Next question is why would i want to share it then..........................