Caesars Camp 50 mile Report: Crash, Hobble, Crash

Friday morning I got up with a spring in my step, anticipating a pretty exciting weekend. The schedule I had in mind included recce-ing the Windsor to Marlow section of the Thames Path 100 course on Friday, heading to Caesars Camp to help Henk set up on Saturday plus maybe run a few miles, then head down to the Greensands marathon on Sunday to catch up with a few friends and maybe run too. Things turned out very differently...

Things started to go wrong during the TP recce which, given the potential mileage that the weekend held, I attempted to do on a bike rather than on foot. The Thames Path is flat, but unfortunately there are still a lot of stiles/ gates to negotiate and plenty of stretches which ban bikes completely. It took me ages to get the 16 mile route done, particularly as LOCOG have shut off the Dorney Lake path whilst they make changes to the area in preparation for the Olympic rowing events which will be held there. It looks like they will be done before the race so hopefully no re-route will be necessary on the day. 

Anyway by the time I got back to Windsor I was late so I stepped on the bike and gave it some to get back to the car parked a couple of miles away. As I crested a bump in the road I felt the front wheel slip right, underneath the bike and before I knew it had landed on the road with that sickening smack on the outside of my left knee and elbow, before flipping on to my back and sliding along the road with the grinding sound of metal on pavement. At some point during that slide my left leg got trapped inside the frame and with the bike traveling in the opposite direction, my left knee was wrenched out of place. I lay on the ground for about 3 or 4 minutes just trying to breathe. After I did a check I found nothing obviously broken but I was sweating profusely from the pain in my leg and was pretty sure I had done a fair amount of damage to the bike. Typically, people in cars just ignored the fact that a cyclist was laying flat on the ground with the bike in a mangled mess about 15 feet away, so eventually I got up, straightened out the handlebars, took off the brakes and pushed the bike the mile or so back to the car. 

By the time I had got home my leg had seized pretty badly but wasn't too painful.

I woke up on Saturday and drove down to help Henk and the crew set up for the long weekend ahead. In this it's 6th year, Henk again had the 50, 100 and midnight 30 mile courses going and as usual had everything well in hand by the time I arrived with a few extra chairs and a box of food and gels. He even had time to stroll the car park with a coffee admiring the pre race rituals of the 120 odd starters. I had a chance to chat to Paul Navesey who I've helped at a couple of races with before and mentioned to him that the 50 mile record was well within reach if he could stay strong. He almost did....

Just before the 12 noon kick off Robbie Britton, winner of our inaugural NDW100 turned up wearing his finishers shirt (nice) so he and I set off together letting a dozen or so runners get ahead. I had no idea whether I'd be turning around inside a mile and hobbling back to the start but I thought I'd enjoy it while I could. Straight away the downhills hurt but there is enough short sharp elevation change at Caesars that I got away without battering it too long in any one stretch. We cruised around to Dicks aid station at mile 5ish said hi and pushed back on the start finish. Before we came in I saw Paul headed back out 2 miles up inside 11 miles and he looked like he was flying. I couldn't believe even at our benign pace that he'd got that much ground on us but he looked ok so I crossed my fingers for him. Lap 1: 1:33. Lap 2 was uneventful. We continued the pattern and came in around 3:16 so still under 10 mins per mile for the first 20 with around 1500 feet of gain per lap. Slow for a 50, very good for a 100 ie. Robbie. Lap 3 was still plain sailing but my knee began to play up and the ibuprofen from lap 1 had worn off. Rookie error. We got back in around 5:40 and bumped into Drew who had come down to support for a while. I grabbed my headlamp and chatted to him about 'the smart man dropping at this point' but to be honest with 20 miles left to go I figured if nothing else I'd just walk around chatting to people until the end.... which is pretty much what I did. I discovered here that Paul had dropped at 30 after falling earlier in the day. He will be back to take it next year. I let Robbie go after the second steep descent on the open heathland as my knee just couldn't take it any more. Whether the pain was detracting from my muscles, or I genuinely was fine, my legs didn't hurt and I had loads of energy (Gu's every 40 minutes - genius) so I did my bit encouraging other runners I came across to keep moving and stay strong as the light began to fade. I met one guy who was canning it at the next aid station but who eventually finished so good job. Final lap was dark so I sped up as much as I could to get back in half reasonable time and ended up coming across Keith Godden so we ran in the last 4 or 5 miles together which was great. 10:29, 27 minutes slower than the first 50 miles of my 100 there last year!!!

Needless to say by the time I'd hung around and helped and driven home (4am) I wasn't in the mood for Greensands. My knee was shot and actually since then it's been extremely inflamed making it painful to walk. I think the bruising should subside to leave just an inflamed ITB but fingers crossed that's what it is.....

Icing on the cake? I pulled my front tooth out again tearing the top off of a gel pack with my teetch at mile 22. Busted knee, busted bike, missing tooth. Loved every minute of it!!!!

Thames Path 100 Recces

Yesterdays recce took me from Hampton Court Palace (mile 7.47) to Windsor Castle (mile 28.3). I've seen this part of the Thames quite a few times in the past, both in other races (albeit coming from the other direction) and in the previous recces and training runs which led to the creation of the race - but every time I go back the river looks different. It seems to be affected more by the seasons than other trails. It is also absolutely, incredibly pan flat.

I know that sounds pretty obvious, but to put it in perspective, here is yesterdays Garmin readout. You'd have to be on a track to get any flatter. The website lists 2500 feet of climb for the 100 miles, in actual fact it is considerably less than that.

Definitely becoming better at the recce routine - train in to one destination - set up with a front pack armed with camera, gels, water, pen all at the ready and map in hand - train out the other end. It takes a whole day to do a stage like yesterday because of traveling time and stopping so often to take pictures and record distances/ potential aid station locations, but intricate course knowledge is so important for those phone calls in the middle of the night during race weekend asking how to get back on course. 

Walton on Thames

Chertsey

Laleham

Three Ducks and a Chicken

Week in Training 9th October

Monday 5 miles 0:45: Slow local run after bigger week last week

Tuesday 14 miles 2:45: Recce of Hollingbourne to Wye - The last 14 miles of the 2012 NDW100 course before meeting with local parish to agree on a finishing point.

Wednesday off: Rested shin

Thursday 14 miles 1:54 : Felt no pain so pushed the pace a little more around my now regular 14 mile loop. Having a regular run where I can monitor my splits is really paying off. No significant pain and averaged just over 8 minute miles. Awful compared to a year ago but a significant improvement on where I'm coming from.

Friday 4 miles 0:32: Got my Hoka One One Bondi Bs from Ian Corless and tested them out a little with Lisa, who has entered her first half marathon for December. Excitement.

Saturday 4.5 miles 0:37: Short local loop as shin sore.

Sunday 21 miles 3:12: Easy warm up for a few miles with Lisa and then out on to the 14 mile loop again. Died after 7/ 8 miles of the loop (15 total) and had to put back three Gu Gels before I could resume running. Awful awful run, my first longer one in the Hokas which were great. Definitely cushioning my shin better although I hate the huge sole dragging on ground where I have been used to NB minimus with almost no drop recently. These things are going to take a long time to get used too, I can't see myself wearing them on shorter runs but anything 14 and up and the benefits of extra cushion on a sorry shin are going to pay dividends.

Total 62.5 miles 9:55(+5000ft)

Overall it was a pretty poor week of running apart from a good loop on Thursday. It felt pretty easy to keep an 8 minute pace despite hills and quite a few miles in my legs from increased mileage.

One stat that really stands out is how my running mileage for the year breaks down ignoring the only races I have done this year which all happened to be 100 milers. Scary reading....

1/1 - 1/2: 216 miles. Injured for much of it in the run up to RR100.
6/2 - 18/9: 160 miles (so in 7.5 months I ran 160 miles in training and 257 miles in 3 races)
Last 2 weeks: 145 miles

I might be tempting fate here, but I think I am turning a corner away from these persistent shin issues. The Hokas, running 99% of the time on trails and a more sensible approach with loads of icing and physio is  going to come good. I have a ton of 'races' coming up but plan to 'race' precisely none of them. Each will be an exercise in getting a longer weekend run in, all are local between marathon and 50km and I am just looking forward to getting back out and socialising a little more. The only racing I've done since last July has been: Badwater, CC100, Gatliff 50km (which I ended up running alone), C2C45 (very good and enjoyable run with loads of great people), RR100, WS100, V100 and LT100. Too many crazy 100 milers and not enough trotting around having a good old chat. I love both but I'm looking forward to giving the former a break for a while.

NDW/ Volunteer/ TP links

Lots of updates to the Centurion Site tonight:

2012 NDW50/100 mile races are now open for registrations, limited to first 150 entrants in each distance: Click here for link. These were a long time in the making as we have revised the 100 mile course for 2012, building it as a point to point as discussed in recent entries. No marathon for next year though as it just didn't work with timings and aid station set ups. There are already some great marathon distance events on the NDW, however so I don't think it will be too sorely missed.

I got around to updating the Location, Transport and Accommodation tabs as well as lots of FAQs on the Thames Path 100. Click here for links.

Finally we launched a volunteer area with a place to sign up officially to help out in the future which can be found if you click here. 

It's been a long week what with work and doing all of the above plus a little running thrown in but it will hopefully pay off.

Final NDW100 2012 recce and conf. of course/ date

It's official. In 2012 the NDW100 will run 100 miles point to point from Farnham in the West to the village of Wye in the East. The NDW50 course will remain the same as 2011 but there will be no marathon distance run in 2012. The date for the races is the 11th/ 12th August 2012. Once again the courses will be marked, aid stations fully stocked and medical support extremely prevalent.

In one other change the 50/ 100 mile will have one additional checkpoint in 2012, in Mersham between the 31.8 mile Reigate Hill aid and the 43 mile Botley Hill aid. This has been put in to break up the 11.2 mile stretch which is just a little too far in the August heat for a race designed with an emphasis on supporting runners.

The total number of aid stations will be 7 for the 50 including the finish and 14 for the 100 again including the finish, with both therefore averaging around 7 miles between each aid station. That is getting closer to my magic number of 16 aid stations for our 100s.

I ran the final stretch of the NDW100 course today, from Hollingbourne to Wye, before meeting with the parish clerk to go over our finish line details. At the moment we have two possible finish areas under discussion for the 100, both within 500 yards of one another in the centre of Wye and the exact location will be announced following the Ashford Borough Councils decision.

I was delighted to find the last 14 miles of the 100 mile, very much easier going than the preceeding 86. There are sections of single track trail, paths carving through open fields, through woods and even orchards/ strawberry fields plus a few short stretches of road. But the over-riding fact is that the majority of the climb and descent is over by the time you hit Hollingbourne at mile 86.

In my honest opinion? I think the 2012 course will be a little faster than the 2011 course. The difficult stretch from Otford to Hollingbourne, especially in the heat, will be a lot for some to take, but make it to the mid 80s and you are (relatively) home and dry.... Final stats on total climb will be published with registration.

There is one final permission we are awaiting from Knockholt Pound Parish Council tomorrow, to be able to use the Common once again for a 50 mile aid station and finish point, but otherwise registrations will go live by Friday 7th October.

My apologies to those marathon runners disappointed in that particular event being dropped, however logistically it tied my hands as a race director too tight this year. It also stretched our medical team and aid station crews who were static for a very long time during the race, indeed Henk and his crew at Puttenham were in situ for 31 hours in the end. It will mean we are able to focus our efforts entirely on the 50 and 100 mile runners and that has always been my main intention. That is not to say the marathon will not be back in the future, but for now it is taking a leave of absence. There are many other excellent marathon distance choices on the NDW at other times throughout the year for those hungry for more.

Questions about the course, timings etc can be sent to me but all should be answered on the new webpages that will go live with registrations this week. Hopefully see you on the NDW in 2012!

Some of todays shots:

Climb out of Detling Mile 82

A reminder of how far runners have come

Flat and Fast. A nice way to finish the last 14 miles

Typical English Countryside Views along the course

Week in Training 2nd October

A couple of weeks ago I started running again for the first time after Leadville, breaking out with three 8 milers in the space of a week or so. A week later I increased a couple of those runs to 10 miles. My shin felt ok but my fitness, did not. It is amazing how quickly you can lose some of the hard work you have put in if you don't maintain it but there is definitely a balance to be struck between having a good rest period, allowing your body to fully recover and not letting your fitness drop too low. I feel like I have a  figurative mountain to climb to get back to anywhere near my best.

I took four whole weeks off and then two bringing it back slowly. This past week I needed to get out and recce the North Downs Way 2012 100 mile course. My intention has always been to put on point to point races where possible and whilst the 2011 course made sense in our first year, out and back is going to inevitably become slightly less of an attraction than point to point in the long term. My plan is therefore to leave our starting point where it is, in Farnham at the western origin of the NDW trail, but send runners on to a finishing point another 50 miles further east. I needed to see for myself that the NDW continued to be as varied and scenic as that first 50 miles and I am happy to report that in every way, it is. 

On Tuesday I ran the stretch from Knockholt to Cuxton and was amazed at a couple of the short sharp climbs back out of villages, where the trail drops in to say hello before exiting back into solid English countryside. The climb out of Oxted in particular lasts only a mile or so but will be enough to get runners breathing hard. The stretch around Holly Hill is simply beautiful. Thursday I went back and ran from Cuxton across the Medway Bridge and on to Hollingbourne. The stretch I had been most concerned about from Cuxton across the Medway Bridge turned out to be a relatively uninteresting but very fast and flat 2 mile stretch. It is somewhat offset by the 4 mile steady climb back up the other side however.

NDW100 2012 ridge miles 60 - 69 as seen from mile 73

The scenery and terrain around Detling and beyond is superb, the views out across to the South and West are truly stunning but in 30 degree heat, it was seriously hard work for someone lacking a little in the fitness department. I power hiked long stretches and took my time marking off the maps and taking photos. 

Past Detling Village mile 83 NDW100 2012

My shin has felt shaky this last couple of days but the pain is from shin splints down around the ankle area which a physio session and sports massage will help with tomorrow. As long as the fracture area remains strong and the bone doesn't start with the dull ache again then I'll continue with the mileage. 

Monday: 8 miles 1:05

Tuesday: 17.2 miles 3:17

Wednesday: 5 miles 0:45

Thursday: 18.3 miles 3:31

Friday: 15.9 miles 2:41

Saturday: 5 miles 0:55

Sunday: 14.2 miles 2:03

Total: 83.6 miles 14:18 +9000ft 

I have entered a bunch of late season marathons and short ultras starting in late October to try to keep things ticking along but I doubt at any point my mileage will grow beyond that of this week. They are all very slow miles on trails but I can already feel the small benefits creeping in. I would like to think I have time now for a consistent 2 hour daily run exactly like tonight's, covering off about 14/ 15 miles. As winter sets in, some of the trails are going to get harder to negotiate but right now they are a joy to run.

Very excited about finally getting my hands on a pair of Hoka One One Bondi B's later this week. They should give my shin the break and the active recovery period it still needs.