Last week I blogged about how I'd damaged my ankle and was praying it wouldn't hinder my training. Well it did in so much as that it was impossible for me to run on Wednesday. I was still in considerable pain and as you can see from this photo it was a good decision not to force it.
Wayne was good about it and we decided we'd do back to back long runs at the weekend instead if my ankle was better. The plan was to try and cover the full 50km route over two back to back runs on Saturday and Sunday. This made me very nervous but it had to be done as its only four weeks away until we attempt the challenge.
I woke up Saturday morning and believed that my ankle would cope with the demands of a 13mile run. Getting ready for a run makes me laugh now as I have to do so much prep before I even leave the door. I'll spare you the details of my pre-race routine for another day. I picked Wayne up and we set off on our Witton Weavers Hobbiton double loop. The weather was pretty warm for a change and after about a mile of initial discomfort with my ankle I felt really good. There was no niggles in the calves for the entire run and I'm so pleased that we both got through it relatively unscathed in a run time of 2hrs 4mins. I say relatively unscathed because Wayne actually forgot to wear his compression shorts which were nursing his hamstring and this was going to come back to haunt us on Sunday's run. I only took a few photos as we have done this route before.
The plan for the rest of Saturday was to get complete rest and try to load up on water and carbs for the 20mile run we had hoped to do on Sunday. My muscles were aching and my feet and ankles were seriously killing me. It was a case of having to man up though as I had family things to do and in a sadistic sort of way I was looking forward to seeing if I could push my body hard enough to complete the run on Sunday. You have to remember that I am a complete novice at ultra distances and have yet to run beyond 20 miles in one go.
Getting up on Sunday morning was an absolute killer. I slept through the alarm three times and felt completely exhausted. This wasn't good and I had to do something about it quick!! One cold shower later and a copious amount of carb loaded fruit juice and I was ready to go. Ben was going to join us today which only mans one thing and that is our pace would be a hell of a lot quicker than normal. Ben is mr marathon and when he's not there Wayne and I are guilty of going a little bit easier. The plan was to start at Tockholes and run around Turton back to Darwen moors and the tower and then finally back to the car. A small matter of 20miles. Easy! Ha ha ha if only!!
The weather was hotter than Saturday and we set off at a pace that wasn't good for my heavy legs. I was beginning to wonder if it was a bad idea going back to back. However, the picture and quote about voices in your head that I have posted before always comes back and makes me grit my teeth. I wasn't going to give up without a fight. Eventually, my body settled down and got into a good rhythm which made the run quite pleasant for the first 8 miles. I had to purposely slow the pace down and at times Ben would run off into the distance but he didn't mind this which was great. Wayne was struggling though after about 5 miles. Now I whine about aches and pains but if Wayne is hurting then its serious.
I mentioned earlier that on Saturday's run he had forgotten his compression shorts. This meant he overworked his hamstring and it was feeling it on Sundays run. The decision not to go back and pick his shorts up had come back to haunt us. After about 13 miles we were having to make decisions about what to do. We hit a point on the route that forced us to make a decision, turn right and head to the tower as originally planned and complete the 20 miles or turn left and head back to the car which would make the run 16 miles. Wayne wasn't in a good way and we made the right decision to head back to the car. After all the challenge is in four weeks and if Wayne's hamstring doesn't recover then its all over for us until next year. We eventually got back to the car and completed the 16 miles in a time of 2hours and 34mins with a pace of 9mins 45secs a mile. This was pretty good going all things considered. Plus I had covered over a marathon distance in 24hours, a major milestone for me. It's fingers crossed now that Wayne is ok for this week's training.
Wayne and Ben running off into the distance
My standard half marathon moment photo
However, I was to face disaster just after the run which has left me completely gutted. When we finished the run we were completely exhausted and when I opened the car I left my phone, an iPhone 5, on the roof. I set off and needless to say as soon as the car picked up speed I saw it in my rear mirror fly off the roof and bounce a couple of times on the road. Slamming on the brakes I got out of the car and went to pick it up. As you can see from the pic it doesn't look in a good way. The screen is cracked but amazingly it's still in full working order. I got a quote for it to be repaired and its looking like my wallet is going to be about £180 lighter. My car has just cost me a fortune in repairs so this was the last thing I and my wallet needed to happen. One thing is for sure the devastation of how much its going to cost me to fix phone has took my mind off the fact my body is shattered from running nearly 30miles in 24 hours. This just about sums my luck up at the moment!
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