Tag: rain

Day 3 #janathon #project365

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 2 Comments

Janathon Day 3

I woke up to a miserable morning in Lincolnshire. I had plans to attend a parkrun, but that never happened, due to the fact that I didn't actually wake-up until 9.30am. But with parkrun in mind I decided to get straight out and do a fast few miles. And that is exactly what I did; I hit the streets of Bourne.

The dog was disappointed that I didn't take him to the woods with me for the run – but I wanted to avoid the rain that was on its way – he didn't speak to me for the rest of the day.

Today's mileage = 2.92

Total Janathon mileage = 12.48

 

Project365 #3

Today's photo is pipe work. Not just any old pipe work, but the sort that leaks, the sort that has leaked in the past, the sort that ends up taking over your life. Argh!!! The day has been punctuated with calls to various plumbers in an attempt to get it sorted. The lovely Shaun will be round on Monday to take a look.

In other news….back to work on Monday.

 

#juneathon day 23

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 5 Comments

It had been a beautiful day and the plan was to do a couple of miles in the evening sunshine. That plan soon changed when the time came to actually get on with it. At that point the wind picked up, the clouds gathered and the rain started.

Plan B: go to the gym. Jumped on the treadmill for 30mins of hill reps.

Today's mileage = 3.36

Total Juneathon mileage = 104.37

 

Lately things have changed….

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 14 Comments

This was me a couple of years ago, all shiny and new:

I couldn't wait to be taken off the shelf and have someone take care of me, love me and be number one in their life. This happened. A lovely man came along, he looked at me, he tried me on and took me home. He welcomed me into his life; I was so happy. Our relationship blossomed. We went everywhere together: club training; loads of races; we sometimes even went shopping together. I was at the centre of his life; always left by the door ready to be slipped on.

I'd always known I wasn't the only one in his life, there was someone else. But it was me that he choose most of the time. Only when the weather was bad, rain and mud, was I left indoors. I was happy with the situation: I didn't want to get ruined. I was the special one. It was me that got him through Juneathon, it was me that got him PBs, it was me that never got thrown in THE cupboard.

But days turned into weeks, weeks turned into months, months turned into years and eventually something changed; I was no longer number one. Someone new entered his life. I was now the one that came out when it was raining. I was the one that had to endure the mud at the woods. I was the one that was thrown in THE cupboard.

This is me now, dirty, smelly and knackered:

I know my place, and whilst I'm not entirely happy with it, I know I am still loved. With the help of Janathon, we are building that relationship again. With the help of lots of rain and mud we're together more often. I've heard him talk about chucking me out, but he hasn't yet. I know he can't live without me. So for now, thanks to Janathon, I'm loving life. Bring on the rain!

Total Janathon mileage = 6.03

 

It was a tad wet…..

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 4 Comments

Last Sunday, the wettest since records began*, saw the annual Great Eastern Run. A half-marathon set in the picturesque** surroundings of Peterborough city centre.

Now to say the morning was wet and windy would be an understatement: it was frickin' very wet and frickin' very windy***. I'm not a great fan of running in the rain, so my first thought when I drew back the curtains was: f###ing hell. In fact it was probably not even I thought, I may have actually said it out loud, and probably loud enough it wake up most of my neighbours.

But, having said all that, I'd put in quite a few miles in training for the sodding event so I gathered my stuff**** together and set off for the proxy place. Initially I was planning to post a new half-marathon PB, but after arriving at the start I quickly decided today was not a day for PBs….

This race has been a mainstay on my race calendar for the last five or six years, so I knew exactly what to expect. Although I didn't expect to have to clamber over a fence, which a marshall wasn't amazingly impressed with*****, just to get somewhere near the start. I must admit it seemed a particularly disorganised start, although the weather and everyone rushing to the start at the last minute probably didn't help.

Now plodding the streets of Peterborough on a wet and windy Sunday morning isn't everybody's cup of tea, although I did spot some slightly amusing happenings:

  • Before we had even crossed the start line a fella, too busy waving to friends in the crowd, ran through a MASSISVE puddle.
  • Overtook a particularly knackered looking Batfink, his sponge 'wings of steel' probably not helping, they seemed to have soaked up quite a bit of water.
  • I ran most of the way in the vincinity of a bloke called 'Simon'. Not entirely sure who he was, but he was getting a lot of support along the way from the crowds. He must have been some sort of local superstar. 13.1 miles is along way to run wondering if Peterborough has any famous Simons. One did come to mind, Simon Bamford, him of Hellraiser fame, although I quickly dismissed this possibility…have you seen Butterball******?
  • Darren Ferguson, Peterborough FC's manager started the event, it was quite amusing to see how many people were avoiding the high-five.

Well suffice to say, I completed the race in a time of 1.37, a minute or so off a PB, pretty pleased with that. My reward:

* this is a lie

** this is also a lie

*** this is another understatement

**** flippers, snorkel, etc.

***** sorry Marshall, needs must and all that

****** obscure film reference

 

Rain. Rain. Rain. #juneathon

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 3 Comments

Day 20….

The other day I posted about why I take part in Juneathon, one of the reasons was for the challenge. Tonight was definitely a challenge.

Left work and drove home in the rain, light rain, but rain all the same. Amazingly this was the first night that the chances of running in the rain looked on the cards. I wasn't too concerned, it actually looked like it was brightening up as I pulled up at home. How wrong could I be?

By 8pm, when I was ready for the run, rain was in the air, but it was still very light. In fact, I arrived at the woods and things didn't look too bad….

Half a mile into the run things changed….the heavens opened and it chucked it down. I don't quite know what it is, but running in the rain is really hard work. Tonight was just over 3 miles but it felt like 30. Either it is the fact that your t-shirt suddenly becomes a sponge and seems to absorb 5000 pints of water, or the mind begins to play tricks on you and every step seems to feel like you've just completed a marathon.

Made it back to the car absolutely soaked and well and truly ready for a hot shower, cup of tea, sit down and relax…..

Today's mileage = 3.29

Total Juneathon mileage = 95.95

Mojo level = low

And how about a map of the route……just because I can….

 

Two weeks down…day 14 #juneathon

~ Phil Lengthorn ~ 1 Comment

Today's run, because of one reason or another, had to wait until after 10pm. So when I ran out of the house I was greeted with the first run in the dark of Juneathon. As well as that it started raining after 100 yards….

Therefore, a quick short run was the order of the day. After all the running around the woods during the day I've been doing, it felt a bit strange pounding the streets of Bourne in the dark. Although I did run past the bus garage….

…..it always make me smile….reminds me of classic 'Only Fools and Horses'…

“I look like a traffic warden that ain't been well!”

Today's mileage = 2.70

Total Juneathon mileage = 68.14

Mojo level = high (despite almost forgetting to run)