Tomorrow’s Run: ZNR

October 18, 2013 by TartanJogger ♥ 18 Comments

Happy Friday!

Tomorrow, @TheWelshWookie and I are running the Zombie Night Run UK.

This is our first obstacle race, and I’m both excited and nervous about it!

The run is set in woodland in Helensburgh, and we’ve been told to be prepared for water, bogs and obstacles 😮

It’s an 8K run, and the first 3K is uphill, so I’m not going to even think about, or worry about time. Hills are all relative.

We could choose whether we want to run as ‘survivors’ or ‘zombies’: we’ve signed up as zombies, as I’m not sure I could cope with the thought of being chased through a dark forest at night! The race kicks off at dusk, so around 5.30pm. The survivors set off with a 5 minute head start and us zombies need to chase the survivors, and attempt to cross the finish line with a ‘life tag’ from a survivor.

I’ll be happy just to finish at all! 😉

Fancy dress is encouraged, so I’m running as a zombie doctor, and @TheWelshWookie is running as a zombie chef. My sis-in-law, Janice, is doing our make up for us, otherwise we’d end up looking like a couple of crazy clowns if I did it!

I’ll post pics….. if I dare!

This Weekend’s CowalFest Trail Run

October 10, 2013 by TartanJogger ♥ 16 Comments

So, today I’ve been thinking about our upcoming run this weekend, the inaugural CowalFest trail run.

CowalFest is a 10 day event which celebrates walking and outdoor activities, and it is held every October. This is the first year where a run has been part of the festivities!

We could choose between the 5K and 10K trail run, and we opted for the 5K, for ~~three~~ two reasons:

~~1. I’m lazy~~

2. It’s our first ever, full trail run: we usually do road runs

3. It’s sandwiched between the Great Scottish Run last weekend, and the Zombie Night Run the following weekend.

I’ve visited Benmore Gardens only once before, and it is spectacular. Would you like to see?

Source: https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&docid=A7CfBiBkzCdx9M&tbnid=u52pO5I3-lt7yM:&ved=0CAMQjhw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.flickr.com%2Fphotos%2Fclickandpray%2F8321880937%2F&ei=YJJVUpeRHYO40QWd6YGIBA&bvm=bv.53760139,d.d2k&psig=AFQjCNFgdVYHTn4ECS3zKrdgJLhGeRgIKg&ust=1381426093504143 — Source: https://www.flickr.com

source: http://www.scottishcaravanner.com

source: scottishcaravanner.com — Source: https://www.flickr.com

source: http://www.scottishcaravanner.com

The 5K route is a full run of the perimeter of the gardens, and the 10K route is two circuits 🙂

The gardens are famous for their avenue of giant sequoias:

I’m really looking forward to this event!

Here’s a picture of the website- as you can see it’s very well organised, and great value too.

We had quite a lot of rain yesterday, and pretty cold temps today, but the forecast is for dry weather for the rest of the week: it should lead to ideal trail running conditions, I hope!

Race Report: Great Scottish Run Family Mile

October 7, 2013 by TartanJogger ♥ 10 Comments

I’ll premise this report by saying that I didn’t run this one!

But, @TheWelshWookie ran it, along with two of my brothers, and four of my nephews. From what I saw, they had a blast!

All of the junior events were run on the Saturday, before the main half marathon and 10K which were on the Sunday.

We made our way to George Square with three very excited nephews, and arranged to meet my brother and nephew there. When we arrived, the whole area was filled with excited kids, and fortunately the weather was kind to them!

My nephews were instantly drawn to the sprint track, where the kids were able to queue up, and race against each other. They loved it!

Here’s Kieran and Aidan, running in the middle two lanes:

And here’s Ryan, winning his race!

We then had time for a quick photo, before the boys headed off to the start line, and us girls headed off to find coffee, and a good point to see them run past.

My sis-in-law then met us, and my brother and nephew joined up with the others at the start line. We heard the race begin, and I did my best to be a good supporter: clapping, cheering, shouting ‘you can do it’, ‘you’re almost there’, ‘you’re almost at the finish line’, and I got some really puzzled looks from the kids running past!

First to fly past us was Ryan:

He was the followed by Liam and my brother Ants:

Next, we saw Kieran and my brother Joe (He’s Ryan’s dad, but Kieran was obviously running more at his pace;) ):

And then we saw Aidan, and TheWelshWookie. Aidan was pretty overawed by the whole event: the minimum age was 3, and Aidan only turned three on Wednesday!

We met up with the successful runners after they had collected their race packs and medals. They had Belvita biscuits, an organic strawberry leather and a bottle of water in their bags, along with their medal- which is the same one given across all races this weekend.

We then spent some more time at the sprint track.

Liam and Kieran are running in this one:

And Ryan here:

They had a few more goes; including Ryan racing one of the staff!

We then headed for some well-deserved ice creams!

The organisation for the kids runs was great, and they all certainly had a ball!

GSR Family Milers

October 5, 2013 by TartanJogger ♥ 4 Comments

The boys did it!

Tarbert Music Festival

September 19, 2013 by TartanJogger ♥ 6 Comments

I know I’ve said before that I’m lucky to live in a small village that has lots of events, which benefit locals and tourists, too. Well, this weekend is no different, as it is the Tarbert Music Festival!

Although we have lived in the village for almost six years, we have always been away for this weekend, except for the 2011 event, when we were able to stay home, and go to the music festival. We had a great time! Each of the pubs and hotels had different bands on during the day and evening, and there was a large marquee at the pier, with live music and a bar. It was fantastic!

This weekend, we’re also home and so we’re hoping to see some of the bands this year.

Here’s the schedule, as it stands at the moment:

And you can find the festival website here

I’m not sure how much running I’ll be doing- but there will be plenty of toe tapping and, dare I say it? Dancing?

Today’s Stats:

Run: 5K, easy run

Time: 31:33

Trainers: Lunar Fly GTX

Weather: drizzly. Cool, but not cold

First Running Track of the Day:

Today’s Life Lesson: not everyone appreciates Christmas scented plug-ins in September…

Do you have any weekend plans?

The Beatson Challenge

September 11, 2013September 11, 2013 by TartanJogger ♥ 5 Comments

Tomorrow, two fantastic local runners, Carolyn and Dougie, are taking on a huge challenge, which they have called the Beatson Challenge. They are running an ultra marathon, over three days: running from the Beatson Oncology Unit in Glasgow to Tarbert, raising funds for the Friends of the Beatson. They’ll be running 100 miles, over three days.

Wow.

They have been keeping all of their supporters up to date on their facebook page, which you can find here. I’m hoping that you’ll pay their site a little visit, to offer support to them in their amazing challenge.

They are raising funds for a fantastic cause, and if you are interested in supporting them, you can do so here.

I’m wishing Carolyn and Dougie the very best of luck and support over the next three days: you can do this!

August Round Up

August 28, 2013 by TartanJogger ♥ 4 Comments

As we reach the end of another month, and because ~~I’m lazy~~ having a rest day, I thought I’d give a race recap for August.

I’ve done three ‘races’ this month.

1. Dublin RnR Half:

2. Perth Kilt Run 5K:

3. Tarbert TT10K:

I’ve had ~~three~~ four fantastic medals:

And some great swag:

Here’s my run routes:

And the highlight of my month was the Super Six becoming the Magnificent Seven!

I have no runs planned for September, it’s all about focusing on training this month.

Today’s Life Lesson: My brain can only retain so much information at one time….

What’s been the highlight of the month for you?

A Terrific TT10K

August 17, 2013 by TartanJogger ♥ 6 Comments

I did it! I ran the TT10K, and I loved it!

I survived my third run in 12 days!

The weather was very kind to us: it did, unexpectedly, involve some sunshine.

Yes, I found both off-road sections pretty tough, as they were both uphill, but what an amazing sense of achievement!

I’m pretty pleased with my time, considering the course, and I was definitely helped along by the really positive marshals and fantastic support.

We’ve been to the Village Hall, to take part in the Tarbert Harbour Authority Centenary Celebrations, and partied with free beer and BBQ! I wish all races ended like this!

I’ll post a full race report soon, but for now, the hot tub is calling; and I actually have a mud-related blister to tend to (there’s a new experience for me!).

Who’s up for next year? You’d be crazy to miss this one from your calendar!

Today’s Stats:

Run: 10K race: hilly, part road and part trail

Time: 1:06:00 or so. Forgot to end my run on my Nike+ SportWatch GPS at the finish line!

Weather: Cloudy with sunny spells, warm and humid

Trainers: LunarFly +3 GTX

Motivating running track today: This track played just as I got onto the Castle Loop- it’s one of my Power Songs. I LOVE it. And I needed it!

Today’s Life Lesson: Even older trainers and socks can still cause blisters, especially when caked in mud!

What was your first off-road run?

TT10K Tomorrow!

August 16, 2013 by TartanJogger ♥ 2 Comments

It’s the night before is the inaugural Tarbert 10k run, the TT10k.

It’s also Friday.

It’s also sunny, which wasn’t forecast.

Woop Woop!

@TheWelshWookie and I went for a short run, mainly ~~to look like runners when we visited the registration marquee~~ because it was such a lovely evening, and I wanted to have a wee stretch/limber before tomorrow.

I took some pictures, just to show how gorgeous it is tonight. The forecast for tomorrow is torrential rain and high winds, so I wanted something to compare with my photos tomorrow!

We then went to the registration marquee, and I collected my bib for tomorrow:

It was lovely, being greeted by the ‘caution, runners’ signs on my way home!

I’m now organised, and ready for tomorrow.

Bring it on!

Today’s Stats:

Run: 2.5 miles, slow and steady

Time: 27:32

Weather: Glorious sunshine

Trainers: Lunarglides

First running track today: this will get stuck in your brain!

Today’s Life Lesson: if you see me standing in a queue at the supermarket, join a different queue. I’m likely to be in the slow moving one.

What’s the weather forecast for you tomorrow?

Rockin’ and Rollin’ into 2014

August 15, 2013 by TartanJogger ♥ 0 Leave a Comment

Evening, all!

Are you fed up with me titling my blogs with words ending in -in’ this week? I promise this will be the last. Ok, at least I think it will, so I’d better retract that promise, just in case!

After signing up for the Zombie Night Run UK event this morning, as a Zombie, I’ve been excited all day, thinking about it. Now that I know where it is (it’s still a secret, except for those who have entered early 😉 ) and I’ve decided to be a chaser rather than be chased, I’m looking forward to it! It also comes at the end of a week’s holiday for me, so it’ll be something to look forward to.

And when I arrived home from work tonight, I found that another amazing run has been announced.

Drum roll please………………………………………………..

2014 will be the inaugural Rock and Roll Liverpool Marathon and Half! Woop! Woop!

@TheWelshWookie and I have already been ~~considering~~ dreaming about the possibility of doing the RnR Madrid run next year. I’ll more than likely do Edinburgh, and I’d love to go back to Dublin, too!

Does this mean a possible 3 or 4 RnR events might be on the cards for us?

Ooooh, decisions, decisions! Whatever I decide, I’ll be looking to add another of these to my collection:

Today’s stats

Run: ANOTHER run-less day…. I need to get that sorted soon! Stretching (and eating) instead 😉

Favourite Stretching Track today: an old Coldplay fave

Today’s life lesson: think before you speak. That’s all.

Have you planned any runs for 2014 yet?

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Adventures in living well, quotes and very slow running

Category: Events

Tomorrow’s Run: ZNR

This Weekend’s CowalFest Trail Run

Race Report: Great Scottish Run Family Mile

GSR Family Milers

Tarbert Music Festival

The Beatson Challenge

August Round Up

A Terrific TT10K

TT10K Tomorrow!

Rockin’ and Rollin’ into 2014

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