Training Log Archive: Mark3

Needed some more distance; this was basically punishment for yday. Wanted somewhere easy so I could listen to an audio book whilst getting it done. Audiobook (Ulysses) is dire, which didn't help the boredom.

Pace fairly even and felt ok.

Met my 96km weekly target (=5000km/yr).

This was supposed to be an awesome loop in the snow...started well, emerging from the fog to beautiful sunshine and a totally white landscape. Then hit the Pennine way (which I assumed would be good running due to volume of traffic) and no-one had used it since the last (heavy) snowfall - there was a single set of footprints. Half the time the footprints stayed on the path...half the time not so much. The PW to snake pass is a line of slabs, and the landscape surrounding them is bracken and wet ditches. Under a foot of snow, that all looks very similar. So really really slow running, even when on the path the snow was at least ankle deep, off the path at least knee.

Crossed the snake road with exactly zero cars parked - they must be stopping traffic at either end, just letting lorries and emergency vehicles through. Then it became more and more difficult to follow the path, which is largely in winding deep gully but sometimes not, and I haven't memorized it! The snow off the path was waist deep in places and the path was now impossible to find with no footprints at all (even with a gpx and a map/compass). After falling over for the 5 or 6th time with vis pretty poor I used my smj to turn back :(

Had a quick look at the Kinder plateau on the way back to see if it was out of the fog - it wasn't. The terrain was much easier going though since apparently kinder is much more popular than bleaklow.

Saw a group of people on touring skis and skins, and also a track left by snowboard. Lots of walkers out nearer Kinder (including a trio looking for the B52 crashsite; good luck with that today) but no other runners.

Will defo go back and have another go at that route, maybe next weekend when there's less snow (probably). Could have coped with snow or fog individually but not both!

In the snow - would've been nicer in daylight but failed to drag myself out of the house at lunch as 'it looked a bit drizzly' fml.

It was lovely even in the dark, quite a lot of snow coming off Sponds although enjoyment marred by fog for the first few hundred metres. Great after that though. Felt strong up the hills, probably because it's been a very easy week (and all weekdays likely to remain so for the next few months until group training results). Hopefully I can make up the distance at the weekends.

Too lazy for the harder loop today.

Same loop as yday but opposite direction. Surprised to be 2.5mins faster for equivalent effort (ie not much); the steeper hill in the other direction must have a big effect.

Keep setting off thinking it's going to be cold (fooled by the snow on the ground...) and then having to remove a layer after ten mins.

Not as much of a fun birthday run as last year - when some women assaulted me for running away from the club's rendition of happy birthday to you, and then managed to trick me somehow into dating her for the last year. But those were simpler times.

This is the hilliest reasonable lunchtime road loop I can find. Will try and do at least once a week.

In the evening as busy at work. Must try and go in the day.