Monday 31 October 2011

Damp feet and ice cream (otherwise known as "sailing and sore muscles")

Another weekend, another road trip. This time to Chichester (South coast), to a newly refurbished ship at CYE. We arrived at night, so it was a bit of a surprise in the morning to find out it was green!


Our sailing group (known affectionately as Pteraductyls) meets twice a year for a weekend of sailing, relaxing and catching up. Most of the people I have known for more than ten years, so it's a bit like meeting up with family.

So, mostly, we sailed. Please excuse the quality of the pics as I was taking them whilst sailing! And I got the camera wet during a slightly accidental capsize...


Saturday 29 October 2011

Thoughts about Alicante

What a lovely city! Sea, sun, boats, beach, castles and a really gentle pace of life. I'm sure it's busier during the main tourist season, but in October it was pretty calm. Maybe I'm just still on a holiday-high, but I liked it. A lot.


Thursday 27 October 2011

Becoming Speedy Gonzales

This is probably a bit of a premature post - I've been back running about a month (and only once/twice a week), and yet I'm worrying about speeding up.



The thing is, I've always been a slow, ploddy runner. That's why I was soooo surprised with my accidental PB at parkrun the other week. And I know I want to get a bit faster. However, what's pushed me into thinking about it this week was a post on FaceBook by my friend (and new running partner):
Average Pace: 8:37 min/mi
Distance: 2.10 miles
Duration: 18m:05s
Hmmm... I can't run that fast! I checked my parkrun pacing on my trusty garmin, and I managed that pace for the last 0.1mile only! And I was really pushing myself. I get the feeling he's going to be really bored on runs with me...
 
So, my question is, do I make working on my speed a priority? And if so, how do I go about doing it?! I've heard of people running intervals fast, then jogging lightly to recover - is that what I should be doing? 

Wednesday 26 October 2011

A couple of days in paradise

We got away from cold, rainy October in the UK. Granted, it was only for two and a half days, but it was definitely worth it!

And what did we do in Alicante? Well, mostly, we ate...






I love Spanish food!

We also enjoyed the sea and sunshine:

I am officially relaxed! Long may it last...

Friday 21 October 2011

I have never...

Radio 4 has a comedy/chat program called "I have never seen Star Wars". The other day I was listening to it on the way home from work - Ian Hislop trying four things he's never done before: - buying and wearing jeans (!) - playing Grand Theft Auto 4 - meditating - baking a cake It was pretty funny, but more importantly got me wondering about things I have never done before... ... played a team sport (well, not since school so I think that counts). ... sung in front of an audience (eeeek!). ... spent a night (or evening) star gazing. ... worn dungarees. ... erm ... that's all I've thought of so far! Now, I'm not considering these activities to be must-tries (especially the singing one!), but I guess it doesn't hurt to try new things. Does it?! :S

Thursday 20 October 2011

The making of wow fireworks!

Here's the "making of" video from the massive display I worked on last month. I'm in there somewhere (hiding behind a fountain) - enjoy! :)


Monday 17 October 2011

ParkRun and an accidental PB!

ParkRun is a growing phenomenon in the UK (and starting to spread across the world). The idea is that they organise free, weekly 5K runs that are free to enter and open to everyone. They're run by volunteers and are very cool.

This Saturday, I dragged myself out of bed (after a very long week) and along to Thames Valley Park, where the Reading ParkRun takes place. It was my second appearance (the first, rather embarrasingly, being back in January!) and I wasn't expecting too much from myself - the furthest I've run since restarting is 2.2 miles, so I was just hoping to get to the end of the 3ish miles in one piece.


Friday 14 October 2011

What a whirlwind

I've had this blog over a year! Where did the time go?


Loads of people have popped by over the last twelve months. Thank you :)


Stay tuned for more...

Wednesday 12 October 2011

Dealing with tiredness

Without really thinking about it, in the last two weeks I've really upped the amount of sport I do - restarting running and "long-distance" skating, as well as my regular karate lessons. And with a more-than-full-time job, it's really hit me.


Tuesday 11 October 2011

What I've been up to...

Another weekend, another trip into London. This time to the Meeting of Styles graffiti festival in Islington:



It was pretty cool :)

You can check out some better photos from krycis.

Saturday 8 October 2011

A day at Ascot

I've never been to the races before so last Saturday was a real treat. It was also the Ascot Beer Festival (if only I liked beer!).

Basically, there was enough going on to keep everyone happy. There was a wide range of beer and ale, including some ciders and perries. Outside, there was a hog roast, a burger van, ice creams and a Pimms bar (which I regret not getting to!). Then there was the parading ring where you could watch to horses being walked around, and the race track, including a big video screen to watch the events.

Even without laying any bets, the racing was pretty exciting and it was a really fun day out. Definitely best to do with a handful of friends, and we chose a good weekend with plenty of sunshine. It was lovely...

Did someone say "relax in the sunshine"?!

Thursday 6 October 2011

headspace for running

How do you motivate yourself to get out the door and run?

What do you think about when you're running?

What keeps you going?

Given my dodgy (and somewhat lazy) running history, I'm trying to organise my brain better. I'm a bit of a wimp - much better at creating running plan spreadsheets and listening to episodes of the Marathon Talk podcast than actually putting in the miles.

Whoa, this brings back memories!

Tuesday 4 October 2011

London on 8 wheels

Sunday is stroll night for the London Friday Night Skaters (who also skate on Friday evenings, as the name might suggest). We met them in Hyde Park on one of the hottest October days ever (almost 30 deg C!), and joined the hoards on a skate around London.

It was a massive event: there must have been at least 150 people there! Most were on in-lines but a few quads like myself - the old skool club :)


Sunday 2 October 2011

What I've been up to...

It's been a lovely weekend. Amazing weather for October - almost 30degC both days! So we made sure we made the most of it:
Saturday - a day at the races (Ascot Beer Festival)
Sunday - an 8 mile roller skate through London (otherwise known as the Sunday Stroll)
Am suitably exhausted and ready for an early night!