Race to the King is a 53 mile challenge from Slindon to Winchester and it’s only 5 weeks away !!!! On Saturday I mapped out virtually a marathon for us and more importantly our final 13 miles would mimic the 40 to 53 of RTTK. If you follow the link above it plays a short video that finishes around Winchester Cathedral and into its grounds. The final half marathon was what I wanted us to experience today. The photo above is Winchester with the rain falling but our spirits lifted after a great run 🙂

Paul and I had the pleasure of running with Del Roberts for the first time and part of the route with our friend Ros. Del is an experienced ultra runner and co founder of On the Whistle , a local running events company.

In our preparation for RTTK we use every run to try something new, for me today was suntan lotion and a cap 🙂 I’ve just got a feeling that June 24th will be a scorcher !!

As we ran out of Fareham from the train station it was interesting to hear more about Del’s running background and as we hadn’t seen Ros for a while it was good to catch up. Del talked about an interesting evening in June with the adventurer Ranulph Fiennes , so already he’d broadened our horizons.

The first 5 miles brought us to Wickham were the annual horse fair was starting to take shape so we skirted around it and joined the old railway line. By 7 miles it was time to wish Ros well as she was turning back and we pressed on, up the gradual incline, for another 5 miles. The changeable weather replaced our sunshine with dark menacing clouds but even at our steady pace we seemed to be out running the rain.

12 miles in and it was time for our scheduled pit stop at Meonstoke Village Store . This Aladins cave of treasures has numerous locally sourced offerings and if you live in the area it’s well worth popping into so as to support the local producers. Today we really only needed water but it came at just the right time, along with friendly service from the young lady behind the counter. Follow the link above to their website.

In many ways this was the real start of our run because we had some mles in our legs and we were joining the RTTK route. I’d avoided too many photos up to this point as I wanted to give other RTTK runners an insight into the last 13 miles !!

First up is Beacon hill that climbs out of Exton. It’s about 450 feet of elevation and is the last big test. However, saying that there’s quite a few undulations along the way.

Beacon Hill Lane gives way to the steeper White Way that Del and Paul are running here. Why do people run up great big hills I hear you say, well the answer is the view at the top. On this occasion it is Winchester Hill across the valley which is also part of RTTK.

Our trusty South Downs Way signs with the blue acorn point you on your way but at times can blend into the hedges once the wood is weathered, but that’s the point of a recce run 🙂

We continued on our way past farms and barns and Milbury pub. One point we’d all noticed was that the cyclists and walkers that came towards us all had jackets on so there was still the prospect of the black clouds catching us. What we hadn’t reckoned on was hail !! Yes, hail in May. Luckily we only saw it in the hedgerows and Pauls photo.

As we approached Cheeseford Head our mileage was now up to 20 and this was where we’d missed a left hand turn a couple of weeks ago. This gradual hilly section will be at about 47 ish miles on RTTK. We ran it today but I suspect it will need walking in June. The wide track changes to a narrow trail through the trees with lots of tree roots so beware “on the day”. This is also near the Boomtown festival site.

Emerging from the woods we crossed the A272 and after a few fields we were rewarded with our first sight of Winchester and Intec if you know the area. So with about 3 miles left the end was literally in sight.

You can’t beat a downhill section after 22 miles and even the light rain was refreshing. As we weaved our way down the hill and onto narrow county lanes we did have one pause for thought where there were two SDW signs but as Del pointed out one said riders and one walkers. The hedge line that we ran next to looked familiar from a run I did in the opposite direction a couple of years ago so we were closing in on the motorway bridge and Winchester city centre.

Yes, I took more photos than I realised but I think they’ll be useful for anyone who runs this, especially as a point of reference when you are tired. The motorway bridge had a rewarding sign that we just had to take a photo of ……………

All that was left was to find our way through the streets of Winchester, past the Black Boy pub, around Winchester college and the flint walls of the Cathedral (see the RTTK link and their video). Entering the Cathedral was actually quite emotional after 25.5 miles knowing that the next time we do this will be at the end of the race. Unknown to us Winchester’s Mayfest was today. This festival centres mainly around Morris Dancers, some traditional and some very colourful, however, we needed to sit down … ha ha !!

We’d had a great run and Del is now another member of the growing Thomason Tours club i.e. runners that have come on routes that I’ve planned 🙂 We had a well earned Starbucks coffee, made our way to the station and still had time for another train(ing)coffee to warm/ hydrate us.

The 27 minute ride on comfy seats was just what we needed and naturally talk was of future runs and races between Paul, Del and myself.

What about the other 0.7 miles to make the training run a marathon I hear you ask ?? Well I live 3/4’s of a mile from Fareham train station so I bagged my marathon before I got home. Thanks for reading and thanks to Ros, Del and Paul for the company / banter that is essential on long runs.

There maybe some video footage to follow so log in again in the coming days 🙂

Race to the King’s 53 miles are now 7 weeks away so Paul and I decided to catch up on some homework by running a section towards the end of the route. We started in the bottom right hand corner of the map at Meonstoke and joined the RTTK route at about 40.5 just off the old railway line and under the bridge that’s no longer there !! (That link and the remaining links are from Google Maps street view). We followed the undulating South Downs Way path to the A31 which will be about 49.5 miles on the day and was our 9 mile turn around point.

On arrival it was a cold and windy morning so we both started with a long sleeve and short sleeve tops plus jacket. This might sound excessive but kit choice will be key on the day due to the fact that we could be out there for twelve hours, the weather on top of the Downs can be markedly different to the bottom of the valleys and our British Summer time is so unpredictable.

Running through sleepy Exton we soon approached the narrow lanes that take you to the top of Beacon Hill and its trig point. On the RTTK day this will be at about 41.5 miles so the 1.5 mile tarmac lane with its 450 feet elevation will be the last “big” climb to test your physical and mental fortitude. The Beacon itself can be seen just before you take a right hand turn onto the narrow track up to the trig. If you are brave enough to look, here , is the google maps street view as you leave Beacon Hill Lane and start to ascent.

The view back towards Old Winchester Hill where you will have come from is amazing and well worth savouring, I say that because the vast majority of us will be walking towards the trig !!

The trail takes you through a farmyard and along a tree lined section which may be useful if it’s windy but we were lucky today as the wind had dropped and the sun had come out. Now, as we’ve all experienced your mind can play tricks on you when you are running because I mentioned to Paul we must be near Milbury pub about a mile later on, “there’s no pubs around here” was Paul’s reply, just as the path opened out onto the car park and pub. So the Milbury’s pub is now affectionately called the invisible pub.

With the sun getting stronger we stopped for a quick food and drink break in the shade.

Our next noticeable point of reference was Holden Farm but before that we were presented with a classic South Downs photo opportunity with trees, crops, a hill and a trail. This beautiful view is only spoiled be me being in the way !!

As I’m writing this my friend Alison has posted a photo of exactly this location with the caption, “stole your route” which made me laugh !! The South Downs Way ought to be a compulsory trip for everyone to take in the sights.

Did I mention the undulations, well there isn’t anything huge but they do come quite regularly and at this point when we are in the 40 odd miles done stage then I’m sure they will all seem bigger. We crossed the A272, ran around the edge of a field, past yet another barn and then we could see in the distance the A31 traffic at the bottom of the wonderfully named Cheesefoot head. By now we’d clocked 9 miles and the sign that I was next to showed a reassuring 3 miles to Winchester so this will be about 50 of the 53 Race to the King miles. What we also noticed here, were in a couple of tanks in the nearby fields. This turned out to be Juniper Leisure Tank driving  !! How cool is that 🙂

**Update**, after another look at the map we should have turned left instead of heading down towards the A31 where the Winchester sign was. So that’s at about the “V” of Temple Valley on the map at the top of my blog, “ha ho”, the live and learn !!

 As you can see behind me our return leg would start with a hill so Paul played his trump card, a pepperoni pizza pasty. Easy to digest, lots of salt and quite tasty (he let me have some). Our return 9 miles were spent discussing RTTK strategy and all in all the 18 miles were the furthest I’ve run the weekend following a marathon so I was very pleased.

 We leant some valuable course knowledge today as I’m sure that the last 13 miles of our 53 will be much more mental that physical, preparation is the key !! I hope this has helped to give other RTTK runners a flavour (not the pepperoni one) of what’s in store (not Sainsburys) 🙂 We returned to Meonstoke village hall were my request to the lady at the desk of “can we borrow some water on a long term basis please” was met with a “yes certainly”, the hot day had meant we’d both run out.

I will end my blog here but as we speak I am working on a video of snippets that Paul took on our way so watch this space for the final instalment.

My long steady runs aren’t usually in the evening but with the changing of the hour I thought I’d mix things up a bit by running later and taking my head torch too. A 6pm start meant a rethink on what to have for tea. Porridge was the obvious slow burning energy answer. This evening I was also trying a 100g bar of Bakewell flapjack as a complement to my usual gels. This energy boost of carbohydrate is another product on my list of “what to eat on an ultra”. I chose 3 from Holland and Barrett after helpful advice from a member of staff, last week I also picking up cod liver oil tablets for a general “oiling” of my joints, from them too 🙂

The evening sun was a joy to run in as I left the streets and houses behind and made my way along the deviation line, under the motorway and out towards Knowle woods. The detour to the woods was to see if the bluebells were out yet because once in full bloom they carpet the woods with a beautiful vivid purple blue display. It maybe needs another week or two yet as they are traditionally at there best around London Marathon week. Even three miles into my run the sun was starting to lower in the sky so I was glad I’d brought my head torch as insurance !! Naturally being in amongst the trees it blocked out the sun’s rays.

Once out onto Mayes Lane the sun returned and as I ran through Wickham at 5 miles there were more signs of bluebells. I had my first mouthful of flapjack at 45 minutes and even though running and eating isn’t necessarily that easy it wasn’t an effort to swallow. Out onto the Meon Valley trail the tall trees and bushes that line it cast unusual sized shapes and shadows and with nothing better to do I looked for shadows that resembled animals and faces, like you do with clouds 🙂

By the eight mile half way stage the sun definitely was dropping in the sky and with the gradual incline now in my favour on the return leg I attempted to increase my pace. You know the evening is approaching when you get mouthfuls of insects and a small drop in temperature. The sun was now dropping rapidly and I stopped briefly to take the photo at the start of my blog. The golden circle of light was trying in vain to keep my attention as it disappeared. The return to Wickham meant another 1/3 of flapjack, 11 miles and the onset of darkness. As dusk took over I swung my waistband around and finished off the last of my flapjack along with my second gel.

With the two hour mark passing by I now had a decision to make, should I run through the woods or take the road. I’m pleased to say my choice was rewarded with this photo. I love the fact that the moon can been seen just above the trees line.

By now the temperature had fallen further and as I joined the deviation line trail I needed my head torch to see the tree roots. Care was needed at this stage because you have to concentrate on branches as well as roots but it only lasted for a mile or so. Finally I came back out onto the streets and enjoyed a mile downhill along Gudge Heath Lane where I was pleased to pick up the pace. So, 16 miles and 27 for the week. As I’m writing this I aim to add 5 miles around the local roads to meet my 32 mile target for the week. Double runs over the weekend will now be a feature of my preparations.

The lighter evenings give us all much more scope to get out on longer training runs so I intend to use them again. The flapjack was defiantly a winner so I will be adding it to my list.  Happy running 🙂

The 3 Forts marathon is on April 30th and it’s a great addition to my RTTK preparation. The race is 27.2 miles and has 3,450 feet elevation. Starting north of Worthing it has all the classic South Downs Way features ….. hills & views.

My trail running buddy Paul and I will be joined by numerous other runners as this race is one of the classic trail running events of the year.

Really looking forward to a great day out. Taxing, but great training !!

With my first marathon of the year completed last Sunday I’ve been using my cycle commute to work as “therapy” for my legs. Each day has brought “looser legs” after all the hills and the 26.6 (as it turned out) miles. We were told there’d be on extra charge, so those 0.4 miles were free !!

Today’s plan was quite simply 4.5 miles down to the coast and back. A beautiful sunny morning welcomed me back into the world of running and as the initial couple of miles passed by I felt it had been the right decision to take a week off running.

Once I reached the sleepy village of Titchfield the sun was casting its shadows and even though April has only just arrived I’d used sun block on my forehead. The village was quiet as I ran through and without any car in sight you could almost imagine yourself transported back in time.

The canal isn’t very wide but it does make an interesting and scenic route as it winds its way toward the sea. The initial track has been flattened and compressed so as to give an all year round surface, however, mud and tree roots add an element of interest the further you travel away from the village. I was in the company of walkers, cyclists and nature watchers what with Titchfield Haven being a nature reserve. The grasslands, lakes and open spaces mean photographers with huge lenses are also a feature of this area.

I’m no expert but the mornings bird song certainly came in a variety of different tunes !! As I approached the coast I could see fellow runners heading towards me and within a brief moment Dave, Ed and Kate from our running club passed by with smiles and a “morning Rog” as they progressed on their 16 miler.

The tide was out as I reached the sea and the Isle of White beckoned in the distance. Quick questions, what’s missing from this photo ? Clouds !! There was hardly one in sight 🙂 April the 2nd and 15 degrees …. the first sight of Summer !!

Retracing my steps back along the canal it was also evident that work has be done on fencing off both the water and the fields were sheep and cows occasionally graze. Ultimately fencing has to be practical but it was great to see some more traditional features with the weaved look that had been used to the right hand side. With the bright sun and the dappled effect this was giving through the shade of the trees you did have to be mindful of the tree roots on the sections of the path which weren’t as compressed.

 That said, who wants a path with no variation, it’s always good to be thinking and having to choose your line of direction. Running this path does take me back a couple of years when Mark Greenfield and I ran it in February with head torches and ice in the puddles. I thought I could see a wide stretch of ice ahead of us that night but the river had overflown the banks and our reward was to run through freezing cold water 🙂

These kind of quirks are what make running off road unpredictable and enjoyable. All that remained was to join the tarmac pavements for a couple of miles and that was my recovery run done.

The plan now is to ramp up the miles, run both days at the weekend and generally move up a notch for Race to the Kings double marathon in twelve weeks time.

I had some really unexpected and exciting news on Monday. This twitter post seemed too good to be true but sure enough, after replying, I found I’d won 4 pairs of Asics trainers. I’m not gloating, in fact I’m still in shock but tomorrow I’m off to Gosport to try on a selection of road and trail Asics running shoes at Absolute Running .

The random thing is that all I had to do was follow Asics (8,000 twitter followers) and retweet that they were celebrating their 1,000th tweet.

The moral of the story is, “you have to be in it to win it”, don’t delay, enter a competition today 🙂

I will post again as the story unfolds ……. Needless to say, thank you very much to Asics

#tobecontinued #luckylad

Gel-FujiTrabuco on the left (road/trail) good for the Spring Summer with firmer trails.

Gel- Kayano on the right, road shoe

Look forward to testing them 🙂

With the Second Wind Running QE marathon a week away I chose a 10 miler down to the coast and back for my taper run. Generally speaking I try to avoid tarmac pavements but today it was worth it to witness the sight of the swell on a windy day. The combination of running against the wind for the first half and watching the kite surfers made for an interesting change in scenery.

Today, I also made the decision not to run with a watch. It’s funny how liberating this experience can be, no pace guide, no mileage guide. Naturally I had a fair idea of the miles I was running but it certainly added to the taper mentality by running how I felt and just listening to my breathing. I’d recommend this now and then because you relax into your run and find your natural rhythm.

The outward miles were against the wind which suited me perfectly knowing I would get the benefit on the way home. I ran past an old friend, Andy Rogers, on the way out. He was running in his Southampton FC top and no doubt had a few comments from passing Pompey supporting car drivers !!

The wind was certainly getting amongst the road side daffodils which meant they looked like they were dancing from side to side, all they needed was some music. Also the tall trees on the outskirts of Stubbington looked like the wind was trying to shake the very last of the leaves that Autumn & Winter hadn’t dislodged.

Once down at the coast I ran along Hill Head to try and get some photos of the kite surfers who were revelling in the windy conditions. In a way they were a little too far out to sea to get a good photo but at the same time they looked like colourful seagulls flying to ad fro. I ran down onto the beach and could taste the salt water that in the air.

I’ve always lived near the coast and days like today make you feel privileged to have it only 5 miles away.

 Heading down Lee On Solent seafront there were numerous runners, cyclists and simply people out enjoying a mornings walk in the “fresh” air. I reached the half way point and noticed an immediate difference when running with the wind behind me. These seaweed covered boulders help with the beach erosion but also make a great contrast photo wise !! The Absolute Running breakfast club runners would have passed this way at 8am today, I was closer to lunch time 🙂

The second half of my run was pleasant with the supporting wind and my mind turned to the coming week. I’ll be keeping up my liquid intake up (no cider) stretching whenever possible and then hitting the pasta towards the end of the week. Am I prepared for 26.2 miles, probably not, am I going to let it worry me, probably not. I’ll start at a steady pace and use my local knowledge to spread out my efforts. I’m really looking forward to both the race and the challenge. The thousand metres elevation will be #hilltastic 🙂

I was very pleased to be asked to write an introduction to Trail Running for our local magazine. The links in a blog that I’d written were what the editor had seen so I was only too happy to put together a piece. The final result came out really well due to the layout that the magazines used.

The link to the magazine is here.

Have a read 🙂 This is my first published article so I thought I’d share it with my blogging friends.

PS remember it’s not too late to vote for irunoffroad in the Running Awards Shortlist here

Many thanks, Roger.

The aim for today’s run was simply to get a descent amount of miles and hills done as preparation for the Second Wind Running (SWR) QE Spring marathon. Seeing as SWR’s Phil & Teresa had organised a 13 mile guided tour of the half marathon route for 10am Paul Coates and I decided the 9am QE Parkrun  would be an ideal addition to our day. The Queen Elizabeth Country Park (QECP) is one of my favourite places to run what with it being in the South Downs National Park and only 13 miles from home. The Forestry Commission people had been logging recently so as well as the mud, hills and chalky paths we also had to keep an eye out for where their machinery had churned up the soil.

Park run wise there were 69 runners (I checked the results) taking on the two laps that make up the 5K. Temperature wise we started with misty fog that lingered between the trees giving us quite a spooky atmosphere. I bumped into Phil Prophett from Fareham Crusaders and found he was also running both the parkrun and recce.

Well done to Race Director Katie from Liss Runners and James at the 3K marshal point who was volunteering for the 100th time. It’s both a challenging and beautiful 5K route through the forest but today I limited myself to 9 minute miles. Paul’s 23.01 was good enough for 10th place on the day.

Meeting up with Phil and Teresa at the QECP centre there must have been about 15 of us for the 13 mile loop that makes up half of the March 26th marathon. I was pleased to see Mark Lee who had come up from the New Forest and who we know from previous runs. The banter between Phil, Paul & I started almost immediately as we haven’t seen each other for a while.

I knew from previous experience that the first 2 miles are quite steep so we made a steady start, climbing in elevation, and running into the hanging mist. It was apparent fairly early on that regrouping would be the order of the day but that’s what running with a group is all about. No one should ever apologise or say “sorry for slowing you down” because all miles are good miles, regardless of the speed. Conditions underfoot were reasonable with sections of mud rather than it all being muddy !! There was a great atmosphere with everyone chatting when the terrain allowed it 🙂

Dropping down through the park we reached where the first water station would be at about 4.5 miles. This water station is of note because after it there’s about a mile climb back up through the trees which tested us all. Those that knew about it could afford a smile and some light hearted comments, the rest realised it was a test when the chat quickly turned to silence as we got going. Once regrouped over the other side we encountered our first real mud.

As we re-joined the South Downs Way we bumped into Aaron from Fareham Crusaders out on a Saturday morning walk. Pressing on there was a pleasant downhill section which would only mean one thing, yes, another uphill section which by now was taking some prisoners, from a walking point of view, but again this is inevitable as well as understandable. We took a quick drinks pit stop and all agreed what a beautiful location we were running through. It was also noticeable the sun was trying to shine through too.

Setting off again we were making our way towards Chalton were one of the ladies needed to rehydrate at the Red Lion pub. A pint of squash seemed to do the trick and the rumour was that some alcohol was consumed, as well, but I couldn’t comment because I wasn’t there 🙂 The Staunton Way took us back towards QECP. This is a good mile long and the style that takes you back into the park can be seen from quite some distance away.

Tersea took great pleasure in commenting that she was way ahead of Phil on a hill which is a comment that few of us have ever been able to make !! That’s Phil in the distance with the orange top making sure everyone was being looked after. Or had he been in the pub ?

We were within 1.5 miles of the finish now and allowed ourselves a group photo. Sorry I snapped you with your eyes shut Teresa. Judging by all the smiles even though it had been a challenging run everyone had really enjoyed themselves. Paul and I agreed that SWR put on great running events, whether its a race or a recce. I enjoyed meeting Phil from the Crusaders who I didn’t know before, as well as Mark. The added bonus was lots of new runners I’d never met before. Caroline, Nick, Emma & Co. I hope to see you on the  trails again.

In total today was 16.5 miles “logged” with great company !!