Day 5 #juneathon

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 8 Comments

I was greeted by a woman at work today in the following way…

“Your blog was a bit crappy yesterday!”

Now I am the first to admit that yesterday's blog was actually a bit “crappy”, therefore may I present…

The Runner's Guide to Bourne Woods

Bourne Woods is one of my regular places to run (often with the dog), so I have pretty much become immune to the sights the woods have to offer. But in attempt to keep the fans readers reader of my blog happy today's post is packed to the rafts with pictures.

Bourne Woods is full of sculptures and works of art to keep the visitors entertained as they stroll around. From the welcoming 'Weird Willow Tree Clinging Thingy'….

The beautiful 'Carved Bird Bath Wotsit'…..

The lovingly carved 'Wooden Mushrooms'….

Through to the more abstract 'Pile of Concrete with Scaffold Pole Inserted'….

Don't be worried about getting lost as you run round, the Forestry Commission have erected rather useful signposts about, although maybe they should just be called 'posts' as the signs have been stolen….

As well as the fantastic variety of trees, shrubs and flowers, the woods offer an abundance of wildlife from deer through to the tiniest flies that are chuffing everywhere! If you've never tried runner with your mouth closed and holding your nose, then Bourne Woods is for you. The pools of stagnant water lying around are the perfect breeding ground….

Today I swallowed around about 1000s flies and at one stage a fly flew up my nose and began boring into my brain, causing an extreme reaction and a number of strange looks from visitors…

Bourne Woods also has its very own maze, although it may not be that difficult to find the middle (you can see it in the picture)…

And at this point….

….I lost control of the dog.

So you can see that if ever you are in the area and fancy a walk or even a run then Bourne Woods is the place to be.

Finally, to the lovely woman who called my blog “crappy” I need to point out that maybe this is not the best place for you to visit….

Today's mileage = 5.72

Total Juneathon mileage = 22.97

Mojo level = very high

 

Juneathon Day 3 plus Billy Bragg

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 3 Comments

Last night….

The fantastic Billy Bragg, The Bard of Barking, at The Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon. Great gig, great venue…overall a great night. I did manage to take a few pictures before the grumpy old bag told me not to – apparently pictures are not allowed in the home of Shakespeare. I'm not entirely sure what they thought I was going to do with pictures….sell them for £millions?

NB. The empty seats you can see behind Billy were the only empty seats in the theatre.

Today….

Day 3 of Juneathon. This was intended to be a nice gentle couple of miles around the woods with the dog, but because of this…..

….it ended up as over 5 miles because a run to the ponds was required to let the boy wash himself off.

Today's mileage = 5.24

Total Juneathon mileage = 14.05

Mojo level = very high (still?)

 

Post-Party Juneathon Day 2

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 7 Comments

Last night was Mum's 70th Birthday Party, a fantastic evening of singing, dancing and chatting. So when I woke in a slightly delicate condition Juneathon was under threat because of far too many pints of Guinness and a late night sleeping on Mum's sofa.

Today's run was therefore a nice gentle jog in the sun at around lunchtime. A circular route of 4ish miles taking in some of the sights of the area. The Tarn was a favourite place to visit as kids to feed the ducks and run around the lake….

Today's mileage = 4.12

Total Juneathon mileage = 8.81

Mojo level = very high (despite a slightly hungover start to the day)

 

Juneathon Day One

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 2 Comments

We're off! Day 1 of Juneathon is well and truly complete!

If you are an avid reader of this amazing mediocre tedious blog you'll be aware that I'm in London for a few days to celebrate my Mum's 70th Birthday. Which began with yesterday's fabulous helicopter ride over London, read more here.

So as May came to a close the focus turned to Juneathon. Early thoughts were to begin Juneathon with a parkrun, this did not materialise because I woke up slightly too late. Therefore, the first day of Juneathon was to be completed pounding the streets of London. This has many pros and cons:

Pros

  • Concrete is everywhere – no problem with underfoot conditions
  • Roads are all massive – no single tracks to risk your life on
  • Houses everywhere – no problem with choosing a route
  • People everywhere – lots of people to say 'morning' too

Cons

  • Concrete everywhere – can make it a bit hard on your feet
  • Roads are all massive – therefore loads of cars, vans, buses, lorries, etc. making crossing roads a risky business
  • Houses everywhere – very easy to get lost – on more than one occasion I would 'nip down here' only to come out not quite where I had expected
  • People everywhere – the people I did say 'morning' too just looked at me with a blank expression

But it was quite enjoyable to be running somewhere slightly different, and I even managed the odd picture along the way in a bid to liven up the post.

This I couldn't resist….taking advantage of the green space and extending your garden, there are so many plastic ride on thingys that it looked like a branch of Toys R Us, although not sure what they would do if the council insisted that the trampoline be stored in the garden…

Also, as I was running along the 'Green Chain Walk' for a bit I crossed the railway line, this involved bounding up the steps in a 'Rocky' style and punching the air. No trains about, although I think engineering works were in 'progress' as I did spot a couple of fellas in fluorescent jackets leaning against the fence having a smoke….

Day 1 mileage = 4.69

Mojo level = very high