Happy New Year

Happy New Year !

Since my last post of 2017 I have finally got rid of the nasty bug I picked up before Christmas.  I started the year well  with 19 miles run and 90 miles cycled, including a lovely ride over to Ottery St Mary, visiting Branscombe and Honiton on the way round, 40 miles covered and some big hills both up and down , a good lunch in the ‘peek a boo’ café in Honiton, weather was good for a change with bright sunshine.

I also did the Seaton Park run last Saturday with my daughter who achieved a PB with 31 minutes. My Planter Faciitis is still niggling in the background and is somewhat painful after the event. I have now decided to visit a podiatrist in Axminster who may be able to advise me on the best course of action to address it, or at least sort me out some orthotics, I fear however that the advice will be to stop running again, I have now entered the 10 mile ‘Exmoor Run’ in early March a good off road run round Symondsbath two weeks before the Grizzly. 

I do need to order some new road running shoes as my new ones are clearly too big, so hope to pass to my son, they just don’t feel right, but can I justify new shoes after having to spend over a hundred pounds on my bike! I have also signed up for the Trail Running Magazine #1000 which you challenge to run 1000 miles over the year, I did enter last year but the several months off in the middle for France and my injury meant I only covered less than 600 miles, but! I hope this year if more successful !!

The weather continues to be changeable warm then freezing with the roads now being very wet, muddy and full of pot holes. After cleaning my bike last weekend I was shocked at the state of the transmission, I have now ordered a new rear derailleur, cassette, chain and two new chain rings, all badly worn and likely to let me down, I also had to change the rear tyre as it was in a poor state, the winter this year is taking a toll on my equipment as its wet each time I go out, roll on spring!!

We have managed a couple of visits to the coast for coffee in the van over the past couple of weeks, keeping the van aired and running, I am looking forward to getting out for a few days sometime.

We have not had any more viewings on our house, up for sale since October last, we hope the spring will bring more interest.

Finally , I start my fifth year of my blog, going since 2014, last year I only managed less than 50 posts unlike my first year when I did 69! many thanks to anyone who reads this, I don't have any followers but notice I have views from all over the world. I still see this as a personal diary, and it is nice to check back previous years what I did when, what the weather was like and how I was going in my training etc.