Coast to Coast

(Dual post on travel blog @ Wordpress )

Cycling for some, but driving for me (with a bit of running , sightseeing in between!)

777 miles for the car, 164.18 miles on the bike - completed from our home in Surrey, up north, staying in Preston for the night, to make a fresh start on Walney Island on the West of the Lake District on a Saturday morning.

5.5 hours + of driving , to the working class island on the west side of the British mainland. Boring buildings, but a coastal walk near Sandy Gap marks the start of the route.



Seeing the boys off ( europe's biggest offshore wind farm to the right of this picture)...

I had 4 hours before lunch. What else but a run along the coastal path, and a walk amongst the pebbles to touch the water on the west coast.


Now that I live miles away from the sea, I always think about when was the last time I was this close to the water. Perhaps in Perth Australia , last November?

The wind in my face, a glorious morning with dog walkers on the coast, it was lovely being there. To compensate for the poor pace I have been maintaining , some intervals between bench and rubbish bins were done.


A coastal drive via ulverston got me to our lunch spot at l'enclume, a 2 Michelin star restaurant in the little village of cartmel.

The 6 course lunch + cheese was the loveliest one could experience on a long distance bike ride - and a quick pop in to the home of the lovely sticky toffee pudding we got from waitrose a while ago, so nice that I had to sketch the cover..and then I found out we were coming here... Surreal



After lunch, the cyclists headed east - Dean with the luxury of arriving at the coast in 5 days and Seng by the next day (to catch the BonWagen home) - and I set off along windshadowed mountains , saying goodbye to the lakes and into the Penines.
Checked into the B&b with an hours snooze, then I was called to pick up the cyclist at Kirkby Stephens for dinner and a rest overnight.



These w2w (Walney to Wearmouth/Whitby) routes were very well signposted!

The next morning after the good ole English breakfast, I requested for a late checkout from the B&b and went for what usually would be a walk for most, but I had miles to catch, so it was a run instead. 4 mile return to smardale gill viaduct via a disused railway path and crossing few gates - no chance of getting lost, and fond memories of the Farnham pilgrim trail half last September



Not easy running back into the wind!

Returned in light drizzle, packed up and headed to the next stop, Barnard castle, expecting to miss my cyclist (as I gave him 2.5 hours head start!)
He took a wrong turn, so had a bit more of a journey to catch up climbing to the highest point on the track, so more time for me to head down near the water for some panoramic shots


We eventually had lunch in a little gallery off the high street at around 1pm, and with few hours of daylight to go, and working on Monday - we decided to head to wearmouth (Sunderland ) rather than scenic Whitby.

Which means another hours drive to Durham - a bit of peace and quiet for me visiting the cathedral during evensong.



No free wifi in close proximity and a text from the cyclist saying he will press on - at 5ish I made my last descent towards the coast.

Not far at all, a lovely feeling reaching the mouth of the wear river


The end of the coast to coast route was unspectacular and typical of sleepy English seaside



I touched the water on the east. Connected. Peace. And waited near the beach in the car..



At around 7ish pm, Seng had reached the coast . Final mileage as below.


Photo to proof it


Then it was the drive down south...home just after 1am.

What a weekend! Now what next of the amazing British cycle routes?


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Fast and Slow

Highs and lows.
The power of losing few kilos!
An amazing 6.63 miles on Saturday along my old training path from staines to chertsey bridge (aka my meadow)..it was great seeing the Thames after a long absence (the inability to start last time, a week before the Shakespeare run!) ..and a long run, relatively ..I reassessed after 2 miles, and thought we should make it worthwhile, having to drive to the start now that we have moved!



Slow starts on both ends, after a brief midway break..and then not an easy finish at all. 10:48/ 10:25 negative split on the long forgotten Penton Hook (Lock) Challenge!


It wasn't hard to be emotional on a sentimental return to the old neighborhood....but I had more of that to come later..

Monday night, shocked to see the breaking news on Boston. At 4:09, 2 hours after the winners came in ...the bombs went off. That would be a time for the average (fast in my eyes) qualifier would finish. If my other half or I would be running...the other could be nearby, waiting at the finish. Or the slower version (likely someone like me), hitting the wall or down to whatever mind tricks can get one through mile 25.. No energy to run away from bombs. Or having the race halted...DNF for a years training due to this mindless act. I feel for those who were there and have been impacted, and hope justice will be done. One shouldn't have to fear for this kind of security threat in a major road race, or any other race, like this.

Or rather, the analogy of the finishing line is near..unfortunately, one can never be sure. It hurts to hear that amputations have had to happen at the scene..not what one would imagine.

Another bit of news..on my last post I said I was overtaken by a mother with a crying baby on a pram. And an elite runner too. I found out tonight that I was also overtaken by a pregnant lady... my suspicions (see last post - I wonder why?) ring true....Liz Yelling just announced she is expecting twins! Wow!






Must catch another wink...and find the time, for another chance to get out there before the week is done! The less overtakers, the better!

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Oh Dear! Old Deer (Park)run again!

Driven by marketing, a commitment on Twitter and an urge to stretch my legs and 'run with the elites and see records broken', I got myself to Old Deer Parkrun last Saturday.
Learnt from my mistakes at bedfont lakes last weekend, I had a reasonably early night and kicked myself out of the door promptly to get to the carpark early.
I wasn't the only one, and from a distance this looked like a proper paid race, tents, promos and all.

With only £1.60 in my pocket, I had to look like those afraid of the cold and stayed til 10 mins before the start - to check out the Adidas boost tent, enter a draw to win a trip to Parkrun Sydney (or just Sydney - where I started fun running!)
Many donned marathon talk 26.2 tshirts and of course the 50 and 100 Parkrun tech shirts too - I also donned an orange royal parks half top (2010), with a few of my lilac counterparts (2009) - this wasn't the normal old deer Parkrun. In fact this was my second visit, my first being shortly after it started and I was bored of 'running around the park' per se, and rarely thought about coming back. (According to Marathon Talk podcast , it was one of the lowest attendance Parkruns, I wonder why ;))

A bit of intro by marathon talk hosts Martin and Tom, and the race director, introducing us to the elite athletes - in yellow, and all sub-3 marathoners (for those who were!) , it was good to see them doing this - probably a walk in the park! Double Olympian Liz Yelling was there, and she was going to do about 25 minutes...really?
this parkrun (very well marked and Marshalled) an anti clockwise loop with the inward lap into the wind, painful to endure... And along with me at the starting line, Bushy Park runners, other non-normal ODP runners...ladies runners with a pram with a crying baby...she didn't stop to comfort...(time is everything ! ) . It just wasn't easy. I was breathing hard - wanted to stop but couldn't do it..of course not, it would look stupid...and that second lap itself...I saw a slim girl in a yellow top passing me...yes, it was her! The famous Liz Yelling has just overtaken me! Wow...I'm here running with the elites! I tried to keep up, but it really wasn't my day...the long hours, lack of sleep and poor diet over quarter-end, meant that the only thing I could hope for, is to beat last week's time at bedfont lakes (the unknown #76)...and naturally, I did. 28:28. And within the top 500. An Old Deer Parkrun PB.




I love those emails from Parkrun HQ..and if I had more time on my hands..I would chart it.heres the excerpt:
Congratulations on completing your 14th parkrun and your 2nd at Old Deer Park today. You finished in 421st place and were the 84th lady out of a field of 553 parkrunners and you came 9th in your age category VW(ed: yes a veteran!)..... Congratulations on setting a new Personal Best by 56 seconds at Old Deer Park parkrun! Congratulations on setting a new Years Best time today.
Out of curiosity, I spent a good Sunday morning in bed exploring the stats..looked at my page. Only 14 recorded runs to date. And lacking consistency...
I also clicked on Liz's page..she again, was not so much a frequent park runner and times ranged from 17 to 35 minutes! But this goes to prove that she can run fast, or slow, as she wishes...
I didn't stay for the last person to finish or to be in the lucky draw..it was good to get out and to prove that I'm out of shape...
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Monday felt like the only fine day of the week and I had grand plans of freedom parkrunning at old deer park, on the way home. Kinda expected that to happen..a late finish meant that I did a bit of run- walk part commute to twickenham carrying very little...a nice sunset run across the Thames, twice, and capturing this lovely sunset.




Towards the end of the 4.4 miler...my legs feel activated again. One day, I will make this a 7 miler with a freedom run and a good ole warmup!
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A visit to the gym yesterday saw me visualizing my 2013 goal #1. With my inov8s and a start stop strategy after each kilometre or less..I saw the magical 26:59 at 5.00km with a 1.0% incline. I just need to get outdoors, and keep at it...with a recent weight drop..if I watch my diet and sleep well, and pick a Saturday when I'm in and hit Richmond Park...I would achieve it!
It rained hard outside when I left...am glad I made myself do the detour before heading home to a nice dinner of smoked meats, lentils and rice. :)
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