We had seen various posts about Allington Lock and we had a rare kid free day we took full advantage and headed straight here after the school run, I have decided to put a few blog posts together with the various what three word locations etc. Louise (my wife) first got me into paddle boarding we picked up one board from Lidl £199 and literally had everything including a dry bag to get you going, it wasn’t long till we headed back and picked up another one here is some more information on our board while a basic board we can not fault it at all and have been more than impressed especially the kayak seat and additional paddle.
Getting back to Allington to get to the lock keeper you need to follow what three words location https://w3w.co/belt.etchings.mouth this will take you to the lock keepers window when you get near the road looks a little narrow but just keep going ahead and your get there
Road to the lock keeper
Once there park up and head to the window
Press the ring door bell 🔔 and the friendly lock keeper will appear
If you have a river licence you just need to pay for parking and then have access to the slip if like us you don’t have a river licence you fill out a form and for £7 your get a day licence and parking and access to shower and toilet for the day.
Once booked in the lock keeper will give you access to the car park and slipway
The car park is gravel but the slip way is concrete so we set up and headed in or in my case literally slipped in (school boy error) slip way what three words is https://w3w.co/belonged.cardinal.joys
SlipwayPost paddle
Once in the water head right and we went two miles up and stopped at the boat house cafe where you can paddle up and place your tea/coffee order. It is just under the bridge the what three words is https://w3w.co/parade.straw.focus
Just under here to the boat house cafeSausage rolls were amazing
After our coffee stop we headed back and it was a lovely paddle very peaceful and hardly anyone else on the water but those we did see were all friendly and said hello. The Maidstone parkrun route that I have done many times runs along the river it was fantastic to get a different perspective of it
I recorded the paddle on strava and it works out approx 4 miles to the boat cafe and back for us the is the furthest we have gone to date but we are so happy to have found something we both love to do as a couple which is relaxing and enjoyable as well as being active (I tried to get Louise into running many times without success lol)
Leisurely paddle pace
Once back at the Lock we had another coffee and a scone this time another lovely little spot
We had a chat to the lock keeper afterwards and asked about the glamping huts he said there closed this year but hope to be open next year the last time they were open it was £40 a night let’s hope the prices remain the same we’re definitely be back and would love to stay the night here
Glamping huts
All in all we had a great day and would highly recommend it for £14 including licence for the day and parking for the both of us we didn’t think that was too bad hope to see you on the next adventure
Now we are in lockdown number 2 sadly marathon events have had to stop, I must say I have felt safer at these events than any supermarket I have been in due to being outside and socially distanced. I have also seen the effects of the events not being around on people’s mental health.
Our little Libby at parkrun last year she misses it as well but we all need to support each other and come together just be finding different means of doing so
I have now found myself stuck on marathon 91 and no clue of when the 100th will be but it will come and I will complete this journey.
That 100 shirt shall be mine yeah baby yeah
So for the time being marathon blogs are on hold but I have a couple of new bits of kit to share
Firstly for my birthday my wife got me a massage gun. A strange looking contraption that until a few weeks ago I hadn’t even heard of. A lady I follow on Instagram posted a video of her using one and I thought what a great idea. It works on various areas of your body (I intend mostly on my tired legs) having starting to do a few more running miles my legs can feel tight. I decided to ask my wife Louise for one for my birthday. Some of them are very expensive and some very cheap. I am pleased to say she went mid range (I haven’t asked the price) I know it is from Amazon and although it doesn’t have a digital display it does have a speed indicator comes in a handy zip holder and has 6 attachments.
The entire kitSpeed settings and what the various attachments are for
I have used it a good few times so far and building up the speed and intensity of it but I am very pleased with it and highly recommend. Very easy to use and work muscles on legs and calves it really does help to ease mine and relax my legs
Slow motion video of the gun in action you can see how it works the muscles and does it’s magic
If you want to know the exact model and cost please PM my wife and she will send you any links she has 🙂
BOOT BUDDY
I had booked an event with Phoenix running and hadn’t really had a read of the final race instructions but photos had come in from people running there and it was muddy very muddy so I had to go out and buy cheap pair of trails as I couldn’t find mine (I have since found them so now have two pairs)
Nice and new
After one lap of the event they no longer looked like this and by the end were totally trashed
After the marathon
From past experience putting trainers in washing A machine shrinks them and isn’t great but letting the mud stay on them I have found dries them out and cracks them. Being as I don’t use trails often I want to try and keep them as clean as possible and someone recommended the boot buddy. There was a special offer so decided to order one and wasn’t expecting much but I thought it was worth a try.
Before and afterAmazing easy results
As you can see the results are pretty impressive the brush with flow of water really makes it easy and I was amazed at how clean these came up especially as I had to wait a few days for it to arrive so the mud had dried out by the time I used it.
I would really recommend this simple yet effective solution have a watch of this
Having seen some photos and posts about trail shoes I decided I needed to find mine and at least take them with me. I couldn’t find them anywhere so set out to find some new ones but didn’t want to spend loads of money on them being as I don’t use trail trainers very often. Someone was selling a new pair on facebook but was taking ages to respond so off I went on the hunt. I actually found a pair of karrimor (not a fan of the brand) but they only had 8 or 12 in stock. I popped in decathlon and found a couple of options but decided to go into lakeside grab some food and see what I could find.
Bargain£27.99
I remembered a shop inside lakeside weird name and found it deichmann and found some for £27.99 felt quite comfortable so just went for it and paid £2.99 for a protection spray (they place shoes in a machine and blast with this spray that helps waterproof them)
When I arrived at denbies it was evident I made a good choice and trails were a must after one mile my nice new shoes were wrecked. Overall it is silly to do a marathon in new shoes but only picked on a small blister on top of little toe. While my feet stayed completely dry so I think spray did work. Comfort wise they are ok they done the job but if I stepped on big stones I could feel it and while I will at some point get a better pair of trails these done the job perfectly fine and as I won’t know when I will use them again a great money saver. It just proves you don’t always need to spend hundreds of pounds on trainers.
They have got a little trashed but I’ve ordered a boot buddy (update on that soon)
Phoenix running have done fantastic with covid restrictions and social distancing and staggered starts I feel totally Safe at the events and only contact as such is when your given your medal to which is in a sealed bag. No race numbers you write your number on your forearm. I had a fairly early start 7:50am which I prefer to get it done. Each start has up to 6 people all spaced out and once we are set off the next start lines up and sent off 5 mins later. It all works very well thanks Rik for adapting so well and keeping us safe.
I remembered that there is a parkrun at denbies and asking Rik once I finished he explained the course we done was pretty much the same apart from one section at the end we done as we didn’t do field at the start. Now there is no getting away from the fact it is a hilly course with some amazing views
The hills
It was the normal 5k loop lap and 8 making a marathon. As I started it was raining and stayed raining for couple of hours this made it difficult and more muddy
It was pointless trying to avoid some of the mud just embrace it and have fun. That being said it takes its toll on your legs and finish times reflect that quickest being just under sub 4 which I must say is super impressive.
The photo doesn’t do the hill justice it deserves it was a beast
Elevation gain 2700ft overall so a tough course and I must admit I got to lap 5 and was seriously considering stopping my legs were really hurting as I have done a lot of miles last couple of months and with the mud it was sapping my energy and rather stupidly of me I hadn’t brought enough supplies of food so drinking lots of water was only thing keeping me going. I had chat with someone on course who was also struggling a bit as I thought I had took a wrong turn and said I think I might stop. I got back into the aid station and had a word with myself checked in for my lap and headed back out. This was marathon 90 and with lockdown approaching I was getting this done it was only 3 laps and in my head when I am out and on lap 6 even when I have just started it I say to myself just 2 laps left after this one and the last lap is always a victory lap.
The long stretch
For my last lap Laura Watts caught me up and it was her last lap as well (she started later than me so was finishing in around 5:40 a lot quicker than my 6:26 but staggered starts means others catch up etc. We had a nice chat about 20in20 and marathons in general and she didn’t realise but really helped me push on I couldn’t quite manage to stay with her for last mile but it really helped as I was really struggling thanks Laura. I also need to thank Laura for the photos as I forgot to grab my phone for the last lap so the course photos are credit to Laura thank you.
Mud Where have my new trainers goneThe course Amazing medal
Thanks again Rik at Phoenix running and to the marshals it was not great weather and I really appreciate it and as for the medal it is epic thanks
If you show your medal in the shop in the estate you get 10% discount but if you show them this one they make think your attempting to rob them 🤣
Stephen and Zoe set up Zig Zag running this year on what turned out to be a rather challenging year so once they had announced some events I had to get along to support them. Sadly I couldn’t make the 1st one on the Saturday but I could get along to day 2 on the Sunday. Louise also booked us into a hotel (it’s my birthday weekend) so we traveled up Saturday afternoon so there was no rushing around Sunday morning being 8 miles from the start. Louise dropped me off and went back to the hotel with little two till check out at 12pm which worked out quite well.
Lots of great signage
On arrival and while still in the car the runners are given a temperature check and issued with race numbers.
Number 54 for me
We then headed for the rather cool start sign and you may notice on my number is an additional number (3) we were lined up separately and in rows of 3/4 and set off 30 seconds apart all safe and covid secure. Before we were set off Stephen appeared with a bag of balls, bingo so he pulled one out and the number pulled out that matches there race number gets a free race credit (how cool is that). It must be challenging for all events at the moment but it must of been very daunting for a new event to have to make sure everyone was kept extra safe great work guys.
The Start
It started at 9am and the field spread out very quickly, the course itself was a mixture of crushed stone style path, some grass and trail and a little mud. I enjoyed the course which is 5k laps (not out and backs actual loops). The views were fantastic although rather silly of me I didn’t get many photos of the course.
Love the fact the marshal when he left his post got creative just to make sure we didn’t run off the wrong wayThe mud or bog as it was described Lots of signs A little inclineLove this photo
There was a few ups (nothing major and a good few downs as well). I found I walked a few ups and sped up on the downs and also some laps ran some of the ups. I felt quite good and done a half in about 2:10 and pushed on nearly getting sub 5 in the end it was about 5:04:57 which I am really pleased about and fastest time this year. I only had road shoes and although a little muddy I didn’t slip over and we’re fine to run in. You may want to take trail shoes as well and change into them if you need.
On the course In the distance coming in to finish lap 7
There was an aid station at HQ which had hand sanitizer and water and sealed bags of sweets etc as well as a water station (bottled water for now same at most events for the time being) so we were well looked after.
Zoe even gave the little two cake while they waited for me to finish
My face at seeing the size of the cake
Zoe came out and done my last lap with me which was nice and really helped me to push on. So much so that Louise who had gone back to the car didn’t get back in time to see me finish. I must say it was a tad chilly so thank you to awesome marshals that were out in the cold all day it is much appreciated by all of us.
Did someone say cake
Once I crossed the finish line I collected my medal and was given a sealed cake and a hot chocolate which I thought was a really nice touch it was so nice to have a hot drink straight away
The medals are really nice as well as the merchandise some great colour tee shirts and vests all very well priced
Superhero’s challenge The Wrangler ‘Twas the run before Christmas Miles in a month challenge medalsMiles in Month Medal
They also do miles in a month challenges which I have done 300 miles in month and working toward 150 this month so even if you can’t make the events you can keep motivated check out the facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/Zigzagrunning/?ref=share
I will definitely be back for more events and had a great time well done Stephen and Zoe and all the best for the future with Zig Zag running
Tattoo I got a few years ago Desire Determination Dedication
This challenge would certainly need these three things even with a lot of training, due to covid we wasn’t sure if the event would go ahead and originally I had planned and got a number of events booked to complete my 100th marathon on day 20. Sadly that wasn’t to be and my training suffered as during the height of lockdown I didn’t feel comfortable going far. Traviss then announced it was going ahead albeit with some changes due to covid. SVN events put this on check them out here such great events
I had already been out and done 10k and up to half and week before I entered one of Phoenix running events but only managed 20 miles which knocked me for six how on earth was this challenge going to pan out. Well I am pleased to say much better than expected and this experience has changed my life it’s been so uplifting and each day was for someone special some in memory and some to those who are just awesome the names on the back on the shirt (which I must let you know was washed daily ) are very special
Jon Ward Chris Rowlands grandad and my Nan were also added in the blanks
I got the shirt from personalise your vest, very easy to design your own design with the simple website cost was £25.10p which includes postage https://personaliseyourvest.co.uk
Before I go on to the daily updates which I done every evening so you would get a feel for where my brain was at never underestimate what the human body is capable of I set out to get to 11/12 marathons beating my 10 in 10 and then if needed was going to drop to half marathons but somehow once I got to the start line I got it done.
A big thank you to the following
Total sprint who I work for who believed in me and payed the entrance fee (I think they thought I was crazy and would get rid of me for three weeks as well as use up a chunk of holiday lol) http://www.totalsprint.co.uk
Sargeant partnership who sponsored me by getting me a pair of trainers and I ran partly for there charity Alzheimer’s society https://www.sargeantpartnership.com
McDonald’s greenhithe who sponsored me directly into my charity page and also supplied me with some food when I asked which was awesome
Crafty fox creations who supplied the finishers key rings and although I was originally paying for these they donated them for free as they knew how hard all the finishers had worked and that others were also doing charity work
Flanci active wear who I am already an ambassador for who really believed in me supplied couple extra pairs of much needed shorts and also as a celebration gave me 15% code for everyone. My normal code for 10% is IAN (you can use this anytime) https://www.flanciactivewear.co.uk
The fire flanci shorts
Thank you to everyone that has sponsored current total with cash I need to pay from people is £1585.20p which I am stoked about I honestly didn’t expect to get to £1000 but I think after the radio interview strangers also donated and people I know runners and non runners could tell how hard it was to complete thank you all so much as charities have really suffered during covid and Kent and Sussex air ambulance and the Alzheimer’s society will be extremely great full as am I. You can still donate up till December if you have forgotten https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/fundraiser-display/showROFundraiserPage?userUrl=IanPullen20in20&pageUrl=4
Thank you to everyone that came along to support me I can’t mention by name simply too many people and I would not want to forget anyone but rest assured the support you gave me was amazing and really did help me. Some cheered on the cycle path some done a lap or two with me it was very humbling. Some even came along on odd days and took part and ran half marathons, marathons and ultras. Thank you all so much.
Also a big thank you to Paul and Alex who got me a fantastic card but also gave me a personal donation for me to spend on something for me which was nice thanks
My family have been amazing the support they have showed is incredible but one special lady my wife Louise needs a mention. Every day for 20 days she helped me and in some cases pushed me out the door when I wasn’t feeling it and had every confidence that I would somehow get around another marathon. She taped my blisters up daily done dinner went shopping the list is endless. I love you and can’t thank you enough for the support you show me on this challenges I have taken on the last few years and I know this one was even more of a test on our marriage. She even came and done a cool down lap with me the day after I finished.
Wifey
I now have my sights on 52 marathons in 52 weeks and being I have done 20 in 3 it seems the perfect chance to try and get this done as well as now being on 84 total marathons so getting near to the magic 100……
Here is the daily updates
20 in 20
Day 1
Each day is based at the cyclopark and today start was between 9-10am staggered keeping to social distancing. It was fantastic to see so many familiar faces, I set up my own aid station (no official aid station due to covid 19) I collected my number which is my name which I now keep for the duration and off I set approx 9:15am.
I got out for my first lap and who was standing across the road shouting come on dig deep the awesome Patrick one of our regular volunteers at parkrun it was so good to see him and he stuck around for about 3 Laps thanks Patrick. I also bumped into marathon and parkrun legend Les Pullen (no relation) we shouted hi and he waved me on, great to see you Mr Pullen.
The course is 8 laps for a marathon which is my aim. I didn’t want to set off too fast but also wanted to have a time cushion so I pushed on and done half in 2:30mins.
The laps ticked by and I put my music on and got in the zone thanks to Darren Harvey who downloaded his podcasts on the iPod you can find him on an app called twitch DJDarrenHarvey. I also shared some miles with Rob who is attempting 10 50k’s in 10 days he was trying to get me out to do a mini ultra so an extra mile loop but if I tried this every day that’s another 20 miles on the total and I know I am already pushing my fitness as it is. So I politely declined and stopped at 8 laps 6 hours. Happy with that and now to try and rest up for day 2. A massive thank you to Mrs H who chucked her lucky £5 at me to put in my charity pot. I am so lucky to know so many awesome people.
Patrick with Sarah and Evie
Day 2
The awesome Patrick returned this morning cheering us all on, my feet felt on fire today been advised low iron which I had already started taking tablets for but on way home picked up a couple of cans of Guinness went down a treat. Managed to get a blister today struggling a little with footwear and pair I have new I hadn’t managed to break them in much but I got it done and only about 7 mins slower than day 1. Thanks to Paul Commons who gave me some words of wisdom and got me running all way down back towards cyclopark and got me moving again :-). Back again tomorrow for day 3
This was the remains of boxes of plasters needed in the end to get me through
Day 3
Blister was ok till about lap 5 when it really started to hurt so I made sure I was in the cut off then really slowed it down. The SVN community is very much like parkrun community, a few people asked how I was one offered me blister plaster and another lady said she had given Traviss £15 if I do all 20 marathons it’s for my charity if not she gets it for her charity (no pressure then) she said the blanks on my tee shirt were bugging her. What an awesome thing to do. Lots of nods and smiles from the field in what was another warm day. Patrick made another appearance walking up to his daughters then Fleur joined me for couple laps and then as I came in from completing a lap I saw Richard, Joanne and Claire who had all done a half marathon and I hadn’t seen them. Gutted to not see them (staggered starts sadly means this can happen) but awesome to say hi. Now to try sort this blister ready for day 4
TWITS
Day 4
Blister was very painful in morning but Louise kicked me in the butt and made sure I got to the start to find it windy raining and I could of easily sat in car and not got out. I did and I got it done. Wife also joined me for last lap and done approx 2 miles and even jogged super proud and we went for lovely coffee at cyclopark afterwards. I am hoping she will do the same in few days it really helped. Great to see more familiar faces today from the marathon circuit
Day 5
Blister was like a big red bruise and Louise got up and helped me dress it and off I went. A nice surprise message from Karl and Jo night before they were all signed up and would come along and see how far they got. Once out we also saw Fleur who joined us for a lap the support has been amazing. Karl managed 6 laps so 20 odd miles and Jo pushed on for the marathon amazing efforts from both as neither of them have done much distance. Lots of other friendly faces on the course which really helps and was nice to see Craig slow up to help another lady who was struggling he is a sub 4:00 marathon runner (faster when he wants) but he stuck with her and got her to the finish. I have now noticed a small blister on my other foot omg what’s going on
Stats update taking from my garmin, 131 miles covered, 40 laps of the course, 80 🐇 bridge crossing (both ways) 248,818 steps and 25,173 calories burned
Day 6
Bit of a blur but Renee came along and done couple laps which was awesome and Chris also done lap and a bit the Louise came along with little two and gave out some ice lollies to a lot of great full runners
Renee
Day 7
A mixed day weather wise drenched one minute cold the next then over heating the next. Managed to share some miles with Rob Justine and Justin and then in evening shared a few pints with Craig Justin and the wife in The George no food as they had a leak but a burger at 10:30pm is fuel yes 🙂
With Rob at the cone of Doom
Day 8
Ben , Jo and Henry came out and supported today and I witnessed Colin complete his first Marathon well I say witness he finished before me but I got to run a little with him which was brilliant. I always love to see people achieve amazing things and it happens all the time at SVN. For me I felt good after couple laps and I knew at 4 1/2 hours I was about a mile ahead of where I had been and managed about 5:55 so nearly ten mins quicker than any other day. Maybe the 3 pints of Guinness helped last night. Enjoying this so far just trying to relax as much as possible in between as time between events seems to be getting shorter lol
The Awsome Sowdens with me and Riley
Day 9
A number of people came along today some running some doing a lap which is great it broke the day up. I struggled today after yesterday my legs at half way we’re gone it was a tough slog today but I got my head down and got it done. A few off road bikes on the grass part of the course was interesting and some cyclists seemed to be going a little too fast. Overall an enjoyable day but I am extremely tired and not had best of sleeps last couple of nights hopefully tonight will be better and I will feel more refreshed.
Day 10
A great day I think my best so far not only time wise my quickest but just the enjoyment of the day saw Sarah and Evie as well as Patrick , Alex and Paul. Being a bank holiday lots of usual suspects out on the course which also added to the atmosphere. John done his 100th marathon and many people became TITs (ten in ten) for the first time. Ruth got a photo of my on my favourite bridge and I have ordered dominos pizza life is good. Not going to lie nervous now as I am about to embark on the unknown never having done more than 10 marathons in 10 days but I am going to give it my best shot
The Bunny Bridge
Day 11
A bit of a come down as the field has shrunk some what with all the ten in ten people finished and I didn’t enjoy the first few laps nor did my legs they just didn’t want to play today. I caught up with Karen and stuck with her for our final two laps which was nice firstly she walks extremely fast which gave me kick up the butt and secondly was nice to chat about parkrun and all things running. It was quite a warm day in the end but another one done ✅
Karen in Purple
Day 12
Woke up a little late as sleeping is proving difficult legs keep twitching. Louise and Libby massaged my legs night before with a massage bar from lush which supposed to help with tired muscles. It seemed to work my legs felt great on starting today a few people commented on how strong I looked. 5 laps and I was doing well I am normally around 19 miles at 4:30 but today I was at 21 however the wheels fell off and I slowed down but it was mainly as I felt a blister on my little toe. I have also now got a blister in a blister both seem to have there own pulse. Little nervous about tomorrow but going to get some sleep tape them all up (well the wife will) and drag my butt to the start line
Both feet were being taped up
Day 13
I woke up and could feel the pain in my little toe I took pain killers straight away and had food and drink and started to get ready clueless on how I was going to get a marathon done. I got to the start and hobbled over and I do mean literally hobbled. Off I went and started first last which took 45 mins normally I am around 35 so I was already behind. My mind played tricks on me and I started to panic that in wouldn’t reach the cut off time. I done lap with David and the Fleur arrived which was a nice surprise and she got me caught back up with Karen who is speed walking due to her injury. I knew if I could keep up with Karen I would make the cut off and be ok which I did (thanks Karen) I am as I type this have my feet in ice cold water hoping it eases the pain slightly I just hope when I type this tomorrow evening it has worked and I have somehow got round another marathon. This is without a doubt the hardest thing I have ever done both mentally and physically much tougher than 100 miler and I never thought I would say that. (Update I managed my feet in 15 mins ice cold water
The odd ice bath helped
Day 14
As expected my toe was hurting and one of those days where I didn’t even see the point of going I could hardly walk down the stairs how on earth would I do 26.2 miles. Louise pushed me out the door taped up and held together and probably laughed as I hobbled down the front path. I got to the start some how got moving and managed to do a strange run / shuffle which got me comfortably in the cut off and to a sub 6 hour time I not sure how and my shin is feeling it where I had a strange style but I got it done and looking forward to day 15 and a radio Kent interview as well as people popping along and a slightly bigger field being the weekend
I had an awesome day today albeit slow I got it done and feel sore but day 15 done and for Rory Sowden which meant a lot let’s hope tomorrow I am not as sore
Lindsey behind me Sarah next to me and Ben pushes us on behind usSome of the B2R
Day 16
managed to go a bit quicker today foot is sore but manageable today, thanks to Clare Driscoll and Benjamin Edward Sowden who done a lap and to Sarah Poynter who done a lap and then went on and smashed out a impressive half marathon also saw many others on the course thanks all – close to £1000 in sponsorship now as well which is great. Early night tonight much needed
Fi fellow flanci ambassador done my last lap of the day
Day 17
Foot is going to be sore for the duration I just have to suck it up and take tablets and get it down albeit slower than I know I could go. I tend to run most of 4-5 laps then have to run/walk to ease the pain the best I can. Still managed a sub 6 pretty much thanks to David Brett who done a couple of laps with me and kept me running. A nice scotch egg off Paul at the end and felt good. The routine is to get home Epsom bath salts and relax as much as possible resting feet ready for the following day
Day 18
A real struggle today changed my shoes 3 times and blisters just keep being painful nothing I can do but grin and bear it. Dave Reid came along today shared two slow laps with me and I just couldn’t get going. Thankfully another friend arrived and kept me upright and moving and I made sure Dave set off on his quest to 50k and so pleased that he smashed it even with the two slow laps with me. He then came and done my last lap which I really appreciated so good of him. Today has helped me remember how awesome running community is and how lucky I am to have great friends. Now to suck it up get some rest and get back for day 19
Day 19
Never underestimate the body and what your mind and body is capable of. I felt battered when I woke up but Louise taped me together and off I went. Slight issue on course a body was found in bushes not sure circumstances all a bit sad but it didn’t stop play and I got round first couple laps in around 1:10 I then spent time with Andrew who really got me moving and knows a lot of tricks (not tricks but experience so I listened and get up ) he helped me get done in 5:43 matching my quickest at day 10 now I have a lot of miles in my legs so to say I am pleased is an understatement bring on day 20
Day 20
The big day had arrived and although I was battered and my left foot just looked like a giant plaster I was getting this done there was no way I wasn’t finishing this. I set off and managed a fairly quick couple of laps infact my first was I think my quickest over the entire 20 days the adrenaline was pumping and done my 2nd and managed half in 2:45 I started to slow a bit I think the body started to shut down. Craig practically chucked a tenner in my hand for the charity which was great and sums up the support between the runners and even Tom blasted out proclaimers walk 500 miles as he went past. A few friends came out on last lap and Louise was there with little two as well as my boss and his wife. The finish was amazing I held it together but I don’t mind admitting Sarah messaged me in the morning and said good luck and to think of all the names on the shirt and all money you have raised and I did have some tears in my eyes as well as on lap 7 it just starts to dawn on you what you have achieved and how special it is a real once in a lifetime experience. 20 marathons in 20 days completed it mate 😉
The final lap
Finished
Total Stats
524 miles, 160 laps of the course with 320 bunny bridge crossings. 988,573 steps 90,355 calories burned which is the same as 1505 babybel, 602 Creme eggs, 398 pints of stella or 951 freddo bars. Weight lost approx 9lb
Having moved nearly 4 years ago it was apparent that there area had a litter problem.
I searched for posts on local groups and found various litter picks from the past but nothing that had happened for a while.
I contacted another local group Dartford Litter Pickers and got some advice and how I went about setting something up. I contacted local council and and they supplied me with some equipment and SEGS was formed (Swanscombe,Ebbsfleet, Greenhithe,Stone) Litter pickers.
We started doing monthly group picks and as I only have Sundays free we arranged them on Sundays once a month and tried getting local businesses to supply some snacks / refreshments.
Picture from one of our group picks.
Although the group picks were great and we were collecting 15-20 full blacks sacks of litter every time we noticed that a month between some litter was appearing back.
I applied to become a keep Britain litter ambassador and was selected and joined the facebook group. It was here that I saw a post from someone called Commit To Your Street. The idea being people commit to keep a road or roads litter free and do so as and when they can during the week or weekend. This has a big benefit as not everyone can make group picks.
We had a massive response and lots of roads are now looked after by people and the council have supplied litter pickers and high viz and we hand them out. We then log how much we collect and I am amazed that so far we have collected.
To date 252 black sacks worth of litter have been collected that’s 1170kg achieved by 198 volunteer hours. Awesome work everyone
I am proud of what everyone has achieved and even the town major phoned me personally to thank me and offer support. We have just been awarded £540 funding which we will use on promotional items and equipment.
As well as group picks and the commit to your street campaign I have started plogging.
This is picking up litter while jogging. This combines two things that I am quite passionate about. I have done a few of these and gradually getting more people on board. I was out running and hated running past the litter so decided I would take out the litter picker and bag holder and see what I could do.
I managed a full bag on my normal 5k route. It is a slow jog as you end up stop starting but your getting out keeping fit and helping the local community.
The plogging is a work in progress as obviously not everyone that litter picks runs/jogs. But gradually I hope to get more people involved. The feedback from the locals is encouraging and we have over 200 people that have liked our page and we have a closed group for those signed up to the commit to your street campaign.
If anyone wants any advice or help on setting up a group then email us on
segslitterpickers@gmail.com
I have also had a lot of interest in my shorts these are by a new company called flanci these are fantastic perfect for running or gym on any another activity check them out here and use my code for a discount
I started this blog years ago and have found it in my drafts so I have left it as it was and carried on the story…..
So the date is 21.06.15 (Father’s Day) I have been considering being an event director for parkrun for just over a year now and having seen the success of Dartford and now Lullingstone I must say I have been inspired. I have been involved in Lullingstone from the test event and have done various volunteer roles and have watched it grow and even been lucky enough to win a monthly prize award something that I am quite proud of and indeed something that has fuelled my fire to really get this up and running. My first question and thought was to my wife is this something to big of a responsibility with four kids (two younger ones 1 and 3 and two teenagers) well after my wife Louise has herself now volunteered a number of occasions she appears to have also got the bug for parkrun as she has got behind me and told me to go for it and will fully support me. So my next thought then firstly goes to the local parkruns Dartford and Lullingstone my aim is to get other people involved in parkrun not to take runners away from other established parkruns and after reading various blogs online the general feeling is that this isn’t the case although some people that live closer to swanley may naturally come along to swanley instead however I must take this as a positive so that rather than them drive to a parkrun they may well have the option to jog to one. Secondly is there a need for another Kent parkrun ? Well I believe so and the stats of the local longer established parkruns would seem so these are the numbers from the most recent event results
Dartford – 163 finishers
Lullingstone (only in week 11) – 53
Bromley – 483
Orpington – 256
Shornewoods – 177
Bexley – 271
So that’s 1403 people over 6 fairly local events now if I manage to get Swanley up and running I figure say 30 people may drift from other parkruns to Swanley as it could be closer for them but I could also get say 50-100 extra people to parkrun that currently do not run it so we could combine locally over 1500 people a week between 7 events all getting up out running a 5k now that’s really inspiring and by working out these figures (approximate as they are ) it is enough to confirm to myself that it is something I definitely want to explore.
So why Swanley – well I have always thought it has the potential for a fantastic event parking, toilets, cafe, play park, pathways, amazing views and a unique boating lake. All of which added together has the potential to be quite something.
So having my wife on board and answered some of my own questions it is time to meet with Kents parkrun ambassador Jonathan which I plan to do this coming week just to answer some more questions and to see how to get the ball rolling. I have also spoken to two friends and they have show interest in at least supporting me on getting this up an running and I am sure I will get the support of my second claim club Swanley AC who are based in the park so I am confident I could get support with volunteers and maybe some equipment storage area. I have even worked out a very rough route being 3 laps using most of the pathways (so hopefully never needed to cancel due to bad weather) and only taking in one hill 3 times but with one off path section so a little mixture.
I wonder if this gets the local backing and we get the green light how much the finished course will look like this hopefully we get to find out. Next stop meet with Jonathan will update soon…..
As of yet not managed to meet with Jonathan but I have been reading various parkrun documents and it hasn’t put me off, I done another route around the park today (02/07/15) this one is two laps and flatter but not too sure if it is too tight in places with a cross over part which would need some cones and a definite marshal however it has potential and with some tweaking to start finish it could work ……
11/8/19 so fast forward a few years and look what happens lol – In the end I met with Jonathan and we had a nice chat but in the end I decided as much as I wanted to do a parkrun our younger children were just a little too young. I carried on running various parkruns and volunteering along the way and pushed the idea of setting a new one up to the back of my mind but never really forgot and knew that one day I would make it happen.
January of 2019 New Year Day I decided I really want to set a parkrun up and give something back to the community. Louise was still behind me and supportive and Riley and Libby we’re now that much older they were doing junior parkrun and like coming along to Saturday parkrun and watching me. We moved address further from Swanley so decided this would no longer be an option so I spent a few days / evenings on google maps scanning local parks and areas trying to find a potential course. We now live in Swanscombe so I started to look here, a lot more Kent parkruns had been set up and the numbers they were getting were fantastic so I want concerned on the need for another one it was clear there was room. In fact Dartford has managed to set up two very close together with success.
I found a park in Swanscombe and worked out an approx course and contacted parkrun. In mean time I had some meetings with people but for a number of reasons this didn’t go any further. I then started looking at other locations and was advised on a couple. I didn’t personally like them and gravitated to Cyclopark. I contacted Jonathan at Shornewoods first before speaking to anyone else as I was keen to work with Shornewoods being that was my home run and the team there couldn’t of been any more supportive. The numbers there had grown over the years and a new one approx 3 miles away was seen as a positive step and a way to get more people involved in running / walking parkrun.
So with Shornewoods blessing I started the process of meeting with Cyclopark and trying to work out a course. I didn’t want to go on the track firstly because A track event is offered on a Sunday and secondly the track would need to then be closed to cyclists till parkrun had finished and we would end up having to cancel when they had events going on. Cyclopark agreed and they agreed to work with me on a course and would allow use of all the facilities inside so toilets/ showers/ cafe and the carpark. I then met with Gravesham council and started talks on obtaining some funding. You need to find £3,000 of local funding and then parkrun sponsors supply the other half. This is for equipment and background website costs etc which is to keep the event free. You also need a defibrillator but as Cyclopark have one and it is less than 5 mins from start/finish areas we were allowed use of this so it was one less thing to get funding for.
I was speechless when I received a phone call from Gravesham council that they were going to give us all the funding. So I had the venue the funding and an approx course but the challenge was trying to obtain permission. The highways agency used to be in charge of the land but it was given to the council when cyclopark was built. The route we decided on is all on national cycle path which is managed by Sustrans. I had to get written permission from in the end council, Cyclopark and Sustrans. Everyone wanted to support this and finally after lots of meetings and emails back and forth it was really happening. Jo our ambassador came with her Wife to look at the course I had worked out and between us a few things were changed mainly the start and finish areas. We then measured the course with the wheel and discussed marshal points and I had already been working on a core team of volunteers whom without this wouldn’t be possible. We’re truly blessed with a fantastic bunch of volunteers and more people are volunteering all the time.
We held a small test event and we were given our start date. We now had to keep it secret and only tell local runners. The idea being a slow steady first event so all volunteers are confident in what there doing and not swamped with too many people.
Our first event on 20/7/19 was amazing but sadly very wet but we still had 172 people turn up and we are now 4 events in and the last event we had 184 (it was windy and a few other events cancelled)
Selfie from our first event
For me the numbers aren’t important it is the fact we’re now offering Cyclopark parkrun to the local community every Saturday for free and not just for runners it is for those that want to walk and for those that want to volunteer.
The entire process of setting up a new parkrun has been extremely rewarding and being event and run Director is a great feeling. Louise my wife ended up being CO event director with me which is even better. We work well as a team and I am looking forward to seeing her be run director soon.
Please pay us a visit soon and don’t forget your barcode
There is also talk on Swanley parkrun happening and I believe it’s in the early stages of finding volunteers and funding, so you never know that may even still happen one day and I would love to go and run it with a smile that it finally happened.
Thanks to our fantastic core team and also to Shornewoods parkrun and Lullingstone for the inspiration and to Maidstone for the training and especially Donna and Jo and Lastly my amazing wife Louise we done it 👍 🌳 🏃♀️ 🏃🏼♂️ 💜
The clue here is in the title, part of my 100 marathon journey I have decided to do some unique things that sometimes people do after they get to 100 marathons. I just want to make them part of my journey. So far I have done 10in10 marathons, 50 miler and 100 miler. One thing I have wanted to do is a track marathon so when Rik at phoenix running announced they were doing one at a newly built track it was a no brainier.
I was nervous leading up to the event as my mileage this year hadn’t been great but would somehow get it done. I gave Theresa (one of the lovely twins) a lift there and back which made the dreaded m25 journey much better. We arrived early which was nice as we had chance to catch up with a few others. It would be chip timing for this event so we collected our numbers and chip timers.
It would be 106 laps for marathon distance and you needed to stay as close to the inside lane as possible or risk adding on a lot more distance.
Just before the start a giant willy appeared and I obviously had to get a selfie
I also wore my ten in ten global marathon top for the first time at one A Phoenix event and it was fantastic to be part of the team there were many more shirts on display.
We had the brief which was a simple one and then we were off. Adam Holland was there and I had thought of sprinting one lap but so glad I didn’t as I would never have kept up even for one lap he really is an incredible runner and was zooming round and around in around the 2:40min mark fantastic. He also waited around for ages after he had finished to support other runners. https://www.facebook.com/adamtangoholland/
I felt ok up to around 16 miles and hadn’t started to think about the laps it was more like a party atmosphere and not boring at all. I didn’t even listen to music it was great to share the experience with some awesome people a fantastic day out. I managed 5:28 so slowed up towards the end but still sub 5:30 which is good for me.
Theresa managed just over 4 hours amazing work.
Another fantastic medal from Rik and another great event see you again soon
Phoenix Running has been planning this one for ages and the medal design had been a closely guarded secret. Everyone was looking forward to this one 400 odd runners I believe there biggest ever event. A 2 min race freeze at 11am was planned and it was also there 100th organised event as well as a number of people celebrating there own personal milestones.
Louise helped out at the event and was very busy at registration. It wasn’t till the race brief that you got a sense of how big this event was going to be
With the brief done it was time for a stroll to the start line where the race village came into view wow 4 gazebos and chip timing.
Rik blew the whistle (I have taken this from Phoenix run chat Facebook group
“Absolutely beautiful – a limited edition brass replica, ‘the peace whistle’, Flanders Field, which will be used to signal the start of the Remembrance Day Marathon on 11/11.
This was the type of whistle used to ‘send them over the top’.
Thanks Gareth Allen for recommending and J Hudson & Co at specialist whistles since 1870.”
Another touch that made this event simply amazing.
The route itself was 4 out and backs and due to the recent weather it was quite water logged and muddy in places but still a great day overall and the rain held off for most of it
There was also an aid station at the turn point
I settled in a good pace for first half taking approx 2 hours 20 which wasn’t too bad based on my recent times. However I had rolled my ankle the week before and rather stupidly at parkrun the day before had nearly fell over and landed on my other ankle. I started to suffer with both around 14-15 miles.
At 11am we all stood still and silent for two mins and I just happened to be at turn round point which has a memorial next to it and a lot of members of the public were there we all paid our respects and then carried on it was very emotional.
I made an effort not to look at the medal as I wanted it to be a surprise at the finish. The last lap I was really struggling but got scoped up by Zoe, Hayley and Helen which really helped and we were walk running which made the last few miles go much quicker and faster.
We crossed the line together which Louise managed to capture
It was then that we were presented (me by louise and kids who were giving out medals) with the long awaited medal it really captures the spirit of the day and is one of my favourite medals.(it also weighs 1kg)
We also had an extra medal celebrating Phoenix 100th event
Rik then called me over to one side and presented me with a shirt that I had wanted for some time. Louise had arranged a belated birthday gift
Thanks Louise I love it and long sleeves 🙂
Hayley was also presented with challenge awards it was the perfect end to a perfect day
Thanks to Louise for helping out today and to Luke for looking after the little two at the event. Thank you to all the other marshals and to Rik of Phoenix Running for putting on this event great work oh and the cake was as epic as the medal
The last two events I have done are with a fairly new events company, Saturn Running they were in different locations but the same set up. They have slightly longer cut off times and are challenge events, so run one lap and claim A medal or carry on and see how far you get. Both events I have done are 4 laps for a half marathon or 8 for a full and they also have a 50km option.
The first event I done was based around trolls and being as Libby loves trolls I had to do it. The scenery was brilliant and the course enjoyable.
My support crew came along for this one and they had great time on scooters and in the play park. I also won charity draw and they kindly donated £19 to my charity page from money raised which was awesome and a nice touch. Libby loves the medal.
The second event I done was called Runger Games a different location but again a nice course with the same set up. The aid station is great they even make sure your cup is filled up ready for your return with your drink of choice. They use reusable cups you can either hire one or buy one. I already have one which is totally fine. They have lots to choose from at aid station sweets, chocolate, fruit, crisps pretty much everything you could wish for.
In struggled today I haven’t been feeling to great and it knocked it out of me but I got it done and had a great day. I also noticed a future medal which looked awesome and Riley will love this one so I will have to check it out. I will definitely be back and would recommend these events.
ianprunning 