The end...

So, after 365 days of running, I've reached the end of the challenge. Yesterday: 4 laps at Crystal Palace in the drizzle for 7.68 miles; this morning: 4 laps of Dulwich Park bringing my total for the month to 70 miles and for 2009 to

601.35 miles.


So:

• I beat my target by 20%;


• ran more than twice the distance I ran in 2008;


• and, thanks to the generosity of my friends, colleagues and family, have so far raised £580 for Practical Action.

Fantastic !


I just want to say a huge thank you to all of my sponsors, to my wife, Sophie, and to Michaela at Practical Action for your support and encouragement, without which none of this would have been possible.

Thank You !

Alan

Sunshine on Inverleith part 2

At last, a nice sunny day to go running. Still a bit treacherous underfoot but by judicious use of the road, keeping to the white grainy bits and avoiding the black shiny bits I managed to stay upright. Actually walking back from the park at the end was much more hazardous.

I did a big loop of the park for 4.6 miles, a smaller one for 2.25 miles and then ran a little further for a total of 7.37 miles, bringing me up to just under 590 miles for the year.

Back to London tomorrow. A long run on the 30th and a shorter one on Hogmanay should bring me past the 600 miles mark for the year: magic !

A big thank you

First things first - a big thank you to my Mum, brother, sister-in-law and nephew, with whose generous help my fundraising just broke through the £500 barrier. A great Christmas present for me, Practical Action and all the people whose lives it helps to change.

And, happily, the weather has relented a bit and after a week of inactivity I managed to get out for a run today ! The pavements are still pretty icy in places but in general they are good enough to run on, and I ran a 4.5 mile lap from the flat around the park and playing fields opposite. Not that many people out and about, but I did pass a couple of other runners, both of whom looked a bit more hardcore than me.

So another 4.5 miles on to the total and given the direction the weather's taking I should be able to get out tomorrow as well, which should help me move towards 600 for the year (I'm now at 582).

More snow.... no running...

Back to Edinburgh for Christmas.

The weather itself isn't stopping me getting out, it's the icy pavements that are the issue. I don't really want to end the running year by going over on ankle.

Hopefully the temperatures will rise at the weekend and I can get out for a nice long run to catch up on my 600 mile target.

Local run

A couple of laps of Honor Oak / Forest Hill this morning for 4.7 miles. Pavements still pretty icy in places but it's perhaps easier to keep on your feet while running than walking, judging by some of the pedestrians shuffling past.

Nearly 578 miles for the year now.

I'm going back to Edinburgh for Christmas on Tuesday so am hoping to clock up a good few miles during the holidays and reach the 600 mile mark before the 31st.

Back to Dulwich

Too icy underfoot for Greenwich or Dulwich today, so 5 laps of Dulwich instead. Quite strange going back there after a few months away - the "hill" which we used to struggle up 2 years ago is barely noticeable any more, and where once it seemed quite a big park, now after a few laps it starts to get a bit dull and repetitive. But it was still good to get some exercise after a few days off this week, and burn off the pre-Christmas party food and drink.

573 miles for the year now.

White Christmas ?

Snow forecast for overnight so no doubt London will have ground to a halt by tomorrow. If you went by what the media says you'd think it had never snowed in December before.

Christmas shopping and eating have cut down the running opportunities this week so I've only added 3.75 miles to my total for a lunchtime lap around Hyde Park on Tuesday, taking me to 568 miles for the year.

Hopefully I'll get out at the weekend to add a few more and keep me on target for 600 before the end of the year.

Two laps at the Palace

Brrr.... winter's here. Very chilly morning at Crystal Palace. After 10 miles yesterday, just a short run today - a couple of laps around the park. It's a lovely place to run - even in summer it's much less busy than Greenwich, it's a good mixture of flat bits and hills, straights and curves, and there's lots of nice scenery to look at. Plus - it's a shorter drive from the house.

So, four more miles to add to the total, which stands at 33 for December and 564 for the year so far.

Greenwich

Five laps of Greenwich park today on a bright, chilly Saturday morning with the Chinese State Circus tent pitched at the entrance. A glorious day for running - it took a couple of laps to get properly warmed up but after that the miles flowed smoothly past and I could have managed another mile or two.

Winter running can be such a pleasure - no leaves on the trees to block the view, only the "serious" runners brave the cooler temperatures, and the number of what my friend Bill calls "daytime people" - the ones who dawdle and wander all over the road, baulking runners and faster moving pedestrians - is very low.

So just under 10 miles to add to the total - now 560 for the year.

550 miles

4 more miles yesterday lunchtime in Hyde Park. 550 miles for the year now. Tomorrow, more miles at Greenwich.

Mr Hunter, this is for you...

Twenty something years ago, I had my first real experience of running. Just started secondary school and when the PE teachers were lacking ideas, had some paperwork to do or the weather was particularly grim, they'd send us out for a "cross country run". "Cross-country" was a bit of a misnomer, it was basically a run around the playing fields and back to the school.

Back then, mainly due to having had asthma since I was 6 months old, I'd never get a lot of exercise - in those days the thinking around asthma was to avoid situations which might provoke it (rather than getting on with life and using an inhaler when necessary which seems to be the approach these days).

So I was never particularly good at cross-country running, and generally ran/walked the course, trailing in last.

However one day I decided it was time to grit my teeth and at least run all the way around. I teamed up with a fellow asthmatic and another non-athlete, and with a bit of mutual encouragement managed to run the entire route (which I now know to be not much more than 1 mile !). Overjoyed with my first success in athletics I approached the school gates triumphantly in 3rd last position, only to be met by the PE teacher with the words "I need a calendar to time you, not a stopwatch"

So... Mr Hunter - you might not have realised it at the time but your - admittedly quite funny - remark all those years ago planted a seed in my mind which, for a long time, discouraged me from running, then a couple of years ago made me determined to give it a go, and now, as I watch the miles pass by at 7 miles per hour, 20 miles a week, just makes me smile.

Four more miles in Hyde Park yesterday at a decent pace takes me to 546 for the year.

Hangover cure

No running midweek this week due to a business trip. Not only no running but more food than usual and a lot more alcohol, especially on Thursday night. One of the positive benefits of running a lot is that because you tend to feel the effects of alcohol more (a hangover is a lot more obvious when you're out the next day trying to run 10km) you tend to think twice about having a skinful. Which I'm sure has other positive health benefits - less drinking means less disturbed sleep, which means more energy. Also, my impression is that the people I know who drink more than me (and don't get much exercise) tend to catch colds and flu more often. Certainly I've not had a day off work since I started running.

Anyway, as a result of an exercise-free week, and a few beers more than usual, running this weekend was a bit of a struggle. Yesterday I did 6.5 miles around Greenwich park, and today (after a few glasses of wine and quite a big meal) a 4.36 mile plod around Crystal Palace. However the weather this morning was great - one of those mornings when heavy rain had been replaced by dazzling sunshine, almost making up for having to run with a foggy head.

542 miles for the year now - still on target to pass 600 by December 31st. Now I need to do a bit more to try to pass my fundraising target.