I'm rolling along. Running seems to be going well. I'm happy and enjoying it. My piriformis issue is still there but mild. In all reality I should get seen to fix it which I'll likely do soon. A couple recent canal photos below.

Looking to the future I see time opening up when the little guy goes to preschool full time in September. As always fingers are crossed the kids will slowly start to sleep in more giving me more time in the morning, my preferred time to run. I see what needs to be done but just am not allowed the time. Running comes second to my family. A perfect example is yesterday my wife asked "have you been running?" She had no idea I'd knocked out 30 miles already this week! Out of sight out of mind, just how I like it! 

Next race is likely to be the Wyre Forest Half Marathon which I think is in 10 days. It came up quicker than I expected. I ran the course the other day, I took the day off for our anniversary but the wife worked, so I went for a run. Temperatures have been in the low 80's and the course was bone dry. That can all change but usually it's a hot race. I don't mind either way as long as it's not like the mud fest the other winter half marathon I ran out there was! That was horrible! 

Hoping for 15 road miles today but I feel I'm being roped into going to friggin' church at school. A. I'm not a believer B. I avoid social scenes around school like the plague C. It's all school mums there All, f those are red flags! 

Western Glen Rosa Horseshoe

Had a little bit of a scare Friday morning. For whatever reason my old big toe JKD injury flared. The night before I could hardly walk on it. In the morning it was just as painful. I wasn't going to let it screw up my run though. I had planned a few hours running around the higher peaks on Arran. The one opportunity I get to be in the mountains. I packed up as usual and once moving around it fortunately was fine! Whew. That would've ruined my day!

                             

I ran down to the nearest bus stop in Kildonan, got on board, and headed to Brodick. I had minimal gear, the basics for an ultramarathon I normally am required to carry. Once off the bus at the ferry terminal I ran off towards Glen Rosa. The huge U shaped valley pretty much splits all the higher peaks or Corbetts. Corbetts are anything between 2500 and 3999 feet in height. Anything over 4000 feet is considered a Munro. On the way I made a quick stop at the grocery store to pick up more food and some extra water. I knew I didn't have enough and I'm not sure if the water here needs to be filtered, likely not, but I wasn't going to take that chance! Off I went through the rest of town and on to Glen Rosa.

road to Glen Rosa, Goat Fell in the mist

The "track," as they call it here, starts off a wide gravel road and continues to slowly get narrower. Nice running but the more difficult the terrain the lower quality the track.  They don't consistently do trail work like in the US so it's more like following a route versus a trail. Once I left the main track I was forced to hike due to the steepness of the terrain. They don't do switchbacks here, it usually goes straight up. 

Beginning of Glen Rosa

The views up Glen Rosa are spectacular. The end of the glacial valley surrounded by rugged peaks. Creeks drain down from all over to form Glen Rosa Water, the main creek that leaves the valley to sea.

Looking up Glen Rosa at Cir Mhor

I was doing the Western Glen Rosa Horseshoe. A ridge run that, as the name says, forms a horseshoe around the Glen including a run down the Glen itself. I'd previously ran the Eastern version and was nearly snowed out. The top of Goat Fell, the highest point on the island, was covered in rime ice, and the Glen was half full of snow. It was anything but safe but I made it happen. Ideally I would've liked to have connected both sides today but I didn't have the time or the water. 

Looking at the high peaks you'd think it would take forever but it went rather quick, especially going straight up. Initially breaking off from Glen Rosa Water (the main creek) I followed a drainage of cascading waterfalls straight up. A faint track came and went alongside the creek which was full of granite slabs making it look like a huge water slide. The water looked a murky golden color from the tainted rock slabs, likely stained by the runoff of all the peat bogs. Eventually I came to a ford. Seeing it marked on the map I was expecting a flat watercrossing with a few rocks to hop across. What I got was a 30 foot deep gorge with pretty much vertical rock walls with a steep narrow trail in and out. Pretty cool and very unexpected. The odd rolling terrain hides many features here and until I was at its edge I had no idea! 

hidden gorge, trail on the left

Once I gained the main ridge the terrain was basically low brush and grass surrounded by boulder fields, no more boggy patches. All shapes and sizes of granite were strewn about and the track was decomposed granite. It was very similar to the a Sierra Nevada, just much less maintained other than old man made slab staircases randomly constructed. Some sections required class 3+ scrambling and climbing which made for slow going. Not much of the "high country" was runnable. Going up it was a power hike and the flat sections were short and few. 

hard to believe behind me are a bunch of Corbetts, looking South West

decomposing granite track, this was a 17% grade

Holy Isle in the haze, the low valley is Glen Rosa

gaining the ridge, I eventually followed along all of that

As I worked my way around I considered what I was doing, and as much fun as it was, it wasn't the same alone. Running I'm perfectly happy alone. Out power hiking and picking my way through boulders I'd probably have had more fun with a friend. I likely missed a few ideal cliff top viewpoints and even avoided a couple more technical sections just to be safe since I was alone. It gets extremely exposed in a few spots, even recommending rock protection and roped climbing for the faint of heart. 

panorama

The sun was hot despite being obscured by clouds and remnants of fog, mist filled in the distant bays. From one direction it's sheer cliffs pouring into Glen Rosa, the other it's open rolling hills into valleys filled with lochs and creeks. Very surreal, inhospitable, and likely a nightmare to travel through. Despite looking like an easy walk, underfoot can be inconsistent hidden bogs and grass. Far off in distance you could see the ocean and Holy Isle beyond Brodick in the sea-haze. 

looking back at the ridge line

looking at A'chir, Cir Mhor behind it

I worked my way through the technical ridges, then ducked down a saddle back into Glen Rosa where a more runnable track was. It was nice to run gradually downhill alongside the beginnings of Glen Rosa Water. The valley is deceivingly long with Glen Rosa Water growing in size the further you get, varying from open and flat to a deeply carved out gorge.

much steeper than it  looks, the track went down through the rocks

looking back at the ridge line

down into Glen Rosa, the left ridge line leads to Goat Fell

Looking up at Goat Fell I regretted not continuing on however got over it once I realized I was out of water and I had still another 5 miles until Brodick just by taking the easy way out! The further down I got the wider the track became and more hikers were seen. 

down Glen Rosa

Soon I was back on pavement and working my way to the bus station at the ferry terminal. I was in a rush as I knew if I missed the bus I'd be stuck for a couple hours. I raced through Brodick in time, I had twenty minutes! So, I ran to the grocery store to get some food and water. Blueberries, watermelon, and a couscous curry concoction. It was so nice to have fresh fruit! I bumped into a couple of Minnesotans I had met the day prior. This was a whole story in it's own as they had known a close friend of mine, Britta, basically all her life! It was great to see them before they caught the ferry as day day before the even smaller world connection hadn't been made.

At the bus stop it arrived and I got on. I turned my phone on to let the wife know where I was at, turns out she'd come to town with the kids! I jumped to get off the bus before it left and headed to the other end of town to meet them. Overall a really fun run, but as I mentioned, I think I'd have preferred to do it with someone since it had all the more non-runnable sections. 

The photos turned out ok. The light wasn't that great and all the selfies I took looked gray, I think my lens was dirty. I didn't mention the corbett names because they're in Gaelic and also with kids going nuts I didn't have the patience to! Sorry! This goes for the large format photos too. 

A lot of the steepness and distance is hard to grasp. Below is the Strava data. If you look at it on my Strava page you can change the map settings and see the profiles and obviously a more in depth map. 

I'm back after a hiatus I guess.

                     

And I'm truckin' along. Been running more for a while which has been enjoyable, mostly because the weather has been warmer and the days longer. Super easy miles with no pressure to start. My piriformis seems alright but I'm continuing with the strength routine just in case. I've also added some other prehab exercises as preventative maintenance as well. Something we all should be doing but never do! I officially dropped out of any ultras this past spring and kind of started from scratch. The only ultra I have planned is Autumn 100 in October outside of London. It's nothing special but will get me in the Western States lottery again so the goal will be to finish.

overlooking Whiting Bay and Holy Isle                     

After a few weeks of easy miles I incorporated some informal speed work which has taken effect as I'm comfortably running faster now. I actually ran a 5:09 mile a couple weeks ago! My best being 4:50 from high school. Piriformis is ok so far with the different stresses. I'm slowly becoming less concerned about it but that worry will return as I increase my mileage.

Glenashdale Falls trail

I think my current focus is to get faster. A sub 5 minute mile would be super cool at the age of 41! I think with specific speed work I can do it. Other than that probably the Wyre Forest Half Marathon in July and I'd like to do a shorter ultra before fall but we shall see. I really enjoy the community around these races but unfortunately with family it's difficult to be a part of it other than racing.

Runnng has been very enjoyable lately. Likely due to the longer days, you just can't beat running very early in the morning before everyone is awake. It's so peaceful and meditative. 

                                    

   

We're currently in Scotland as I type this visiting my wife's family. I've gotten in a couple really good runs so far and am hoping for more before we leave on Saturday. The terrain is very hilly and the scenery very nice. I'm hoping for a day in the bigger mountains here too. I feel at home out away from it all. It makes me really happy. All the photos are from mainly running. I'd caption them like in the past but my iPad app won't allow me to. 

The selfie above I laugh at. I'm not a selfie person but always wanted to get a fun photo of myself running but hate stopping! Yep. I did it. Set up my phone with the timer and ran back and forth! I feel stupid for doing it. All so people can look at me running. Ha ha ha! 

       

    

A big bonus was my parents were touring Scotland and fortunately were able to stop by my mother in law's house for a super short visit.  I hadn't seen them since last summer, sure wish we lived in the US and closer to family. Even with cool places nearby where we live, travel is difficult with little kids, and family has seemed to take priority as I've gotten older. 

So anyway. I'm back. Hopefully blogging more. Running. I fucking love it. No one will take it from me. 

This past week I began running after a solid week off. Only easy running and low low miles. It's surprising though how fast my easy pace is. I guess it's reassuring after time off and a lot of easy low mileage weeks. The piriformis is ok. It's noticeable so I'm hesitant but I can easily run low miles with little repercussions. My strength work continues. I am on the fence about going to the PT to get it checked out for peace of mind but is it worth the cost?

I officially dropped out of Thames Path 100. The refund cutoff was getting close and I gave in to any hope I'd be able to race it. It's flat but probably best to cut my losses and refocus.

It was an odd week not running. I was definitely more awake and likely in a better mood. Pre-dawn running is great but it definitely wears on me. It's really the only available time I have though so I'll take it. Night has always been an option but then I have to deal with traffic, heckling, and of course the wife. I also am all wired up and rarely sleep well. Some days I just want to stop and give in, become like everyone else. Why do I even care about my health, no one else really does, and they sure seem a lot happier than me? I slashed my cholesterol by a fucking third by changing my diet and no one really gives a shit. They just find it funny I'm a "vegan." Well if you listened to what I say I'm actually NOT a vegan. I eat a plant based whole foods diet. I guess everything needs a label though these days doesn't it?   

Running is seemingly the only aspect of me personally that still exists since moving here. The list of things I used to do that defined me is long, most of those things people here have no idea about. My secret past I guess. I find it amusing when people boast about skiing and anything pertaining to winter or the outdoors here. I just keep my mouth shut and agree, "that sounds great, yep!" I miss being among my tribe of like minded individuals. People who appreciate the sunrise and sunset, see the beauty of the outdoor world. 

Anyway, on to yet another shitty Sunday. Hopefully I can escape tonight for a little peace of mind.

Well the reset button has been set. I've officially withdrawn from the Ultra Trail Snowdonia 100. I now have no races planned until October, Autumn 100, which is outside of  London.

With the time change and longer days my enthusiasm has been renewed however I'm still harboring the piriformis injury. I'm running very little, have put my bike up on the trainer in the garage, and am doing all sorts of strengthening and stretching to make running pain free again.

Why is it that all the great ideas and motivation come up when you're injured? I've never understood that. One of these ideas is to actually get fast again. I have a long time before Autumn 100 so why not get fast, run a few shorter races, win the Wyre Forest Half for once, maybe go for a fast marathon? It's not hard to interject a couple speed work days in. Maybe that's what this injury is all about. A total reset. Stop focusing on long slow miles. Add in those hard, short workouts. I can always run long and slow, why not see if I can still break 5 minutes for the mile? I bet with the right training I can, and it won't take hours of training. Once that speed is back, add in the long miles. I just need to get injury free. 

The one thing that really keeps me going is the hope that I'll get into Tor des Geants in the future. There are a lot of races out there I'd like to do but the reality is most will be very difficult to do with a family. The majority of the US races on my bucket list fill that category, such as Western States. Obviously the cost but also US school times are different from the UK so it's nearly impossible to line up a family vacation with a race. I will get into the Tor eventually. It's in Italy, so close to where I stay here in the UK. I just need to always keep it at the back of my mind and be preparing no matter how far off that entry may be.

Sorry if this blog goes stale for a bit. Not much to post really when all I'm doing is riding a bike in the garage and doing strength work! 

"There is no such thing as work-life balance. Everything worth fighting for unbalances your life."

-Alain de Botton

And we're all sick again. I used to love winter, now it's just months of colds, dark and rain. I had been consistently hitting 40 mile weeks until last week, I ended up about 32. I just lost all willpower managing injury, sickness, tiredness, and grumpiness throughout the family.

I'm back running nights again which sucks. Kids are all over the place with their sleeping. 

Times like these I wonder why I put so much effort into running these odd events. I'd get the same benefits from short races and probably even not racing at all. Maybe it's the hope I get some attention for something. Otherwise I'm really just like everyone else, or less possibly since I'm not sucessful. There goes that winter depression talking again, I love living here. 

I've began aggressively acting on this piriformis issue, strengthening and rolling a few times per day. It flares around 10 miles usually, and is tolerable but not ideal. I'm ready to pay someone to help. It always seems that when motivation is high I'm hurt or sick. I'm ready for speed work, for longer miles, but physically not there. 

This week will be tough. Kids are off school and the wife took some time off so less time to do anything, no Friday long run. I try to tell myself time off is good but just get antsy. I try to fill the gaps with calisthenics to clear my mind and of course an odd elbow issue pops up from no where, even before I start anything! I just can't win in the winter. 

Ok, my bitch session is over.