New Year – New challenges for Justgiving (and some targets)

Tomorrow (New Years Day) I will be completing (hopefully!) my first challenge of the year to raise money for the school I worked in in Malawi.

I wish to raise money to build a teacher’s house in the village so that there can be another qualified teacher employed in the school.  At the moment there are 7 classes, with only three qualified teachers and 3 volunteer teachers.  These qualified teachers include the head teacher and the deputy head teacher.  The PEA (Education advisor for the area) would also like Gwengwe Primary and one or two others in the area to be extended to have the full 8 stage classes they should have so this is another reason for needing another qualified teacher.  With these schools going up to St8 this would also mean the possibility of a secondary school being built in the area which would be of benefit to many.  I believe then that the building of a teacher’s house would be a sustainable thing to do for the village and surrounding area.  Teachers do not generally like to work in rural areas and female teachers are often tied to what/where their husbands are working but a teacher’s house being available does help to encourage them to rural areas.

Castlefield Primary have just established a link through the organisation Link Community Development that I was in Malawi with and they will be helping with some fundraising but it is a relatively small school and I would neither want, nor expect, that they would make any more than a contribution. 

I am going to try out a couple of new challenges this year to help raise money, and one or two that I have done before!

2009

1st Jan – Edinburgh Triathlon

25th April – Highland Fling (53 mile ultra marathon from Milngavie to Tyndrum on the West Highland Way)

31st May – Edinburgh Marathon

12th August – Devil of the Highlands (42 mile ultramarathon from Tyndrum to Fort William on the WHW)

There will also be an autumn marathon (not decided which one yet), possibly another triathlon and whatever else I can think up.  Ideas welcome – but please not anything that involves heights!  I have never done a triathlon or ultra marathon before so these are brand new things for me – and a bit scary!

I am going back to Malawi to my school and village this summer and would love to go to Tanzania and climb Mount Kiliminjaro afterwards as one of my challenges but I do not know if I will have enough cash to go (a new kitchen in January is going to eat into my travel savings!)

My training for the triathlon has been patchy to say the least, some would say non-existent but I am still determined to do it as it is the first thing I am doing to raise money.  I have got into a bit of a habit of swimming first thing in the morning but have had no practice in a 50 metre pool.  Cycling training in winter has been really hard, as I am never home in daylight so it is only really weekends that I would have had the chance to practice and I was not very good at getting time for that.   And then the bit that should have been easiest could turn into a nightmare!  I have not run in 3 1/2 weeks as I had been having pain behind my right knee and the sports pyhsio at Hampden told me not to run!  I kept quiet about the triathlon.  So hopefully the pain will be gone when I run tomorrow!  I won’t even go into the traumas of what to wear at various points!  Not the best preparation all in all but hopefully it will be a laugh – and not too cold in Edinburgh!

I have set up a justgiving site, follow the links/RSS feed on the right hand side, and I would really appreciate any donations through the year, as I attempt to reach a total of £2000.  I have never tried to raise so much before, although I know there are many people who reguarly raise much more than that.  I am not very good at asking though!

Targets for 2009 (in no particular order)

• Complete 1500 miles in the year
• Get under 46 mins in a 10km (currently 47.05)
• Get under 1hr 45 mins for a half marathon (currently 1.48.15)
• Set any pb for the marathon, although I would love 3.45 or less (currently 3.54)
• Complete one (maybe two) triathlons
• Complete the Highland Fling and Devil of the Highlands (more on those goals later!)

I would like to say more on going to the club regularly and doing cross country etc but hopefully the goal of 1500 miles lets that speak for itself and will make me do it.

Troublesome bike!

I have hardly done anything over xmas – especially since I am still not running.  It’s hard to fit in exercise that you have to go to a gym for when it is closed so much over the holidays!

Sat 21st Dec – 4 1/2 miles bike

I did go out on my bike that Sat, even though pacepusher apparently told John there was no way I would do any exercise.  Unfortunately my chain snapped on my bike at 4 1/2 miles and luckily pacepusher was just home and could come and help me out.  I did try and fix the chain but it was totally stuck and it even took pacepusher a while to fix it. 

I was then in Aberdeen from Sun to Wed, first for a wedding and then to spend some time with the kids I used to look after.  I did a couple of things I have not done in about 20 years – crazy golf (now called adventure golf, played indoors and very fancy – and expensive) and the dodgems.  I tried to get away with just watching the kids on the dodgems but they were having none of it!

Wed 24th Dec – 5 1/2 miles bike

Just after I turned round to come back my bike chain broke again and this time I had no phone!  I walked for about a mile before a nice old man on his bike came past and offered to help me.  Again it took us ages and he then put it into an easy gear and I just meandered back as I was too scared to change gear and do it again.

Sun 27th Dec – 2 1/2 walk – Conic Hill and WHW to Millarochy Bay and back

Sun 28th Dec – Body Pump and 20km on stationary bike

Quite enjoyed this and got some hill training done on the bike – mine being in repair shop!  Not  a case of better late than never, just a case of too late I think.

Mental Breakdown….

…… is what I must have had!

There will be no posts from dogs on my blog!!!!  And I hate the smell of dog!  It is definitely pacepusher’s dog, not mine and not ours!

No posts from me recently as I have been advised not to run for a bit.  I had a pain in the back of my knee for a bit that I was trying to ignore but couldn’t anymore.  I went to the sports physio at Hampden and she said I have a weakness in my right glute and hamstring that I need to build up before I run again so she gave me a few exercises with the band and ball and then as many squats and lunges as I can do a day basically – oh joy!

That was Wed, it’s now Sat and I have not done any exercises yet!  Though thas is because I have barely been in the house, in fact I have barely been in the office either so no chance of doing something there either as I have been out and about in schools all week really.    I will have to start today though. 

Trying to get motivation to go for a bike ride just now but a bit tired from a night out with friends last night.

40 min walk (with dog – he needs trained in staying to heel!)  I only did that as pacepusher is doing the WHW run, it is his responsibility normally!

Running and swimming

Thursday 4th Dec

Body Attack

Sunday 7th Dec

14.37 miles – Rowardennan – Inversnaid – Rowardennan  2hrs 57mins 

Mon 8th Dec

400m swim – 13.57 mins

Tues 9th Dec

Body Attack

Wed 10th Dec

400m swim – 11.53 mins

Thanks for everyones comments recently, just because I did better than I, and everyone else, expected last  Sunday does not mean this will always be the case.  I think I did well last week because it was on difficult terrain and so everyone was slower than they would be on open trail.  I will find it hard when it is other parts of the group and I suspect I may find myself in the middle somewhere between slower and faster people as I remember Debs commenting on from the Christmas run last year.

On last Wed’s club run it was not that I felt everyone I was running with did not want me there or anything, rather that I was feeling bad for holding others back and felt I should just not have run – this was as usual in my head and does not mean it was actually happening.  Added to that I felt I was being shouted at by pacepusher but this was not how he saw it and not what he meant by it. 

I have only run once since then, on the WHW on Sunday.  I wanted to do that part of the route as it was the only part of the Fling that I have not run and I am glad I have had a practice on it now.  It was hillier from Rowardennan than I remembered from walking it but had some good bits after that to Inversnaid.  It was hard going on the way back with some really steep parts and seemingly a lot more uphill than on the way there. 

The reason I have not run since is from a bit of a problem with my knees.  To give some background I bashed both knees into a glass revolving door over 6 years ago.  I was living in Canada at the time and travel insurance does not really run to non-emergencies like that.  I also had to continue to work, on my feet all the time, with bruises on my knees like tennis balls.  This stopped me running for months and after that I have always worn knee supports.  I think they have been not bad since and are rarely sore, even with marathon training. 

I have always meant to get them seen though to check things out as I am afraid there is long term damage.  Just in the last few weeks I have had pain, which feels muscular, rather than to do with joints etc behind my knee when running, although it is not sore any other time.  I had been ignoring it but it has steadily got worse and was really sore on Sunday, especially uphill.  I don’t know whether it is to do with my knees, ITB or something else but just going to take it a little easy for a bit.  I went to the doctor and she does not think there is any long term damage and did not think I would need to see an orthopeadic surgeon but suggest physio at the RAH or going privately to Hampden which I think I will do.

Away to Stirling tomorrow for two days training on the virtual learning environment within Glow and they have a 50m swimming pool which I will be using for the triathlon so going to have a go in that.

Dedicated or stupid?

7 miles, 1.05.36, 9.23m/m ave pace

9.01, 9.17, 9.39, 9.01, 10.16, 9.04, 9.14

I really had to drag myself out tonight as I was feeling really crampy and tired.  Also I was not sure how easy it was going to be to run on icy pavements.  At no point did I think there would only be 5 of us, only one of whom was from my group (and faster than me) and I would be the only female!  My heart sank as I realised the nice easy run I had thought I might get because of the ice and cold was going down the drain as I had no choice but to go out with the fast guys!

When I started I felt a bit leg weary still from Sunday and knew it was going to be a tough run.  It also was longer than I planned with a couple of big hills.  The annoying thing is that I was running faster than the splits would suggest but had some bits of walking when the ice was really bad and I could not go on the road. 

I felt really bad that I must have been holding the other guys up, especially when pacepusher got really annoyed with me for walking over the ice.  If he was annoyed then the others must have been and I got a bit fed up at this point but there was no quicker way back anyway, especially not that I would have gone myself.

Still, glad that I did it now thats it over but I feel a bit physically and emotionally bruised by it!

Definitely suffering now!

Saturday 29th Nov

2 miles – pulled out of East Kilbride 10km, can’t even be bothered to explain as would rather talk about Sunday.  Although I will just say it is the first time I have ever pulled out of a race and it seems ridiculous to do so but there were reasons and I was not the only one!

Sunday 30th Nov

20.5 miles, 4.48mins Drovers Inn - Inversnaid - Beinglas - Derrydarroch - Drovers Inn

I think it is clear from everyone elses blogs that I enjoyed myself and had a good run on Sunday!  I have never seen my name mentioned on so many blogs!

I absolutely loved it!!!!  Athough I was tired going from Beinglas to Derrydarroch and as I was by myself had to force myself on a bit there.  I found it really hard work to Inversnaid in terms of the ice but managed not to fall – as Davie said I spent a lot of time on the way out behind him and doing exactly the opposite of what he was doing so that I did not fall!  I was shocked to find myself get to Inversnaid in a group with Thomas and various others that I would not have thought I would be running with.  And even more so on the way back to spend a lot of the time at the front of a group with Thomas and John among others.  I did not like being at the front much as I felt a bit of pressure to keep the pace up and more so, especially after seeing the photos, the thought of everyone behind me having the view of my big, fat a*** in leggings. 

Anyway once we got onto faster ground, away from the loch I had to slow down a bit and Tim caught me after a while which then kept me going and there was a good bit of downhill at the end.  I started off running to Derrydarroch with John but I was not strong enough on the hills and he went on.  I was tired going to Derrydarroch and had to keep forcing myself on but I wanted to get far enough to make it to 20 miles by the end.  The way back was a lot easier at first and then Thomas caught me on the way back. Now I was sure he would just say hi and go on but he stuck with me which made it harder work for me and I am sure far too easy for him but it was really nice to have the company after a bit on my own and it did push me on to finish quicker than I would have.

I was shattered though on Sunday night, made worse by the fact I had to do work before then collapsing into bed at 9pm.  My legs were sore Monday and today whenever I sat for too long and I am definitely feeling the effects not just of the much faster pace than I thought I would be doing but also the fact that since Chicago the longest run I had done was 7 miles.  So I have now not done any running since Sunday although I would have but work things have got in the way.

Ironically after almost a year of blogging on this blog, my work blog and organising my class having a blog last year I totally ballsed up (I feel) a course I ran at work on Monday on blogging and wiki’s!  I assumed far too much knowledge and did not let them (teachers that is) have enough time to just look around blogs and get an idea of what they would want to use it for before launching right in there and getting them all started.  Luckily I have them again on Thursday for the wiki part and can readjust my practice (which I am just about to self-evaluate about on my other blog(!)) to hopefully improve the session.  So just because I know how to blog obviously does not mean I can automatically teach it well to others!