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12th May 7105 miles run £198,854 raised

12-5-8 A whole month has passed since the last records, but a very sad and eventful month. Firstly it was another duty week in Durham, so no running over the last weekend in April. Managed a couple of after work runs in Durham itself, and was gearing up to a better weekend. 

Sadly my oldest brother-in-law, John Murphy died suddenly whilst on a charity cycle ride in Mexico. He was riding for an organisation known as the Blazing Saddles. These are a mix of Irish businessmen and blind people. They fundraise and take blind people to ride tandem on exotic but strenuous bike rides in wonderful places. They've cycled across Canada, Argentina for example but this last tour was across Mexico. John had been in fine form, as always, and collapsed at the very end, after they had finished the cycle at the famous cliffs of Acapulco. That was last Wednesday and Colette and I flew over to Ireland on the Thursday night to be with the family. 

I actually went for a run, early the next morning, but didn't feel right. That afternoon, trying to keep some of John's grandchildren amused I felt even worse and by that night was ill with rigors (shivering attacks of fever) and another infection of the urinary tract. No more running for a week!

We came back to England to work until the following Thursday when our whole family traveled to Ireland, meeting in Belfast airport, from Newcastle, Glasgow and Amsterdam.

An Irish wake and funeral are truly wonderful affairs in the real sense of the word. A mix of sadness, grief, laughter and joy. A celebration of a great man's life and legacy. Even managed to get in a couple of runs. The poignancy of these coming from the fact that John had suggested the routes, runs he had taken when training for the Belfast marathon, many years ago. May he rest in peace.

15-4-8 Saturday was extremely tiring. Its easier running 20 miles than keeping 35 children amused for a day! It finished off with a charity fund-raising night organised by Mayor Sarah Iveson. Had intended to run off all the excess eating with a long Sunday run but sometimes things just aren't meant to be. 

Of course it was the morning of the London marathon, turned down again, so that was a bit of a distraction to getting started. Then all my running watches chose to stop working at the same time. Particularly annoyed about the speed and distance monitor failing as I have come to rely on it as a pacing aid, and just letting me know how far I'd run. By the time another watch was found the morning was almost all gone. The glorious sunshine had given way to threatening clouds. 

Not being able to work out the distance of a new route just decided to take a familiar trail instead. Of course it still had to be on the roads and with hail and rain could only motivate to run 11 miles.

No more running since then but was invited to give a lecture on the outcomes of insulin pump therapy at the annual meeting of paediatricians held in York. This really is quite an honour and very special as it is the first time insulin pump use has been given such prominence at a meeting with so many paediatricians. 

11-4-8 Well it would have been a bad thing not to have piled a few miles on this past week as I have had some holiday. As luck would have it the weather has been very poor, the usual April showers, although snow and hail isn't so usual. Just before the holiday hadn't felt so good. Thought the hay fever season had started early with a streaming nose, but then came the fever and aching joints so more like a bad cold or a mild flu. Had actually tried to run after taking some anti-histamines which unsurprising were totally ineffective. Instead of the usual 6 miles in Durham, only managed 5, thinking it was the particularly strong winds affecting my pace. 

At least was feeling better in time for the break and tried to get out most days. The mornings, though very cold at least were reasonably dry, but with so much rain falling it was impossible to run the tracks and had to stick to the roads. A bit more wear and tear on the joints and not much company!

The week was reasonably eventful starting with the Mayor of Sedgefield Borough Council's annual fund-raising ball. It was extremely well attended by dozens of other mayors and council heads wearing their spectacular chains of office. It would be a fascinating project to go around and collect the stories behind all these chains. It would have to be done fairly soon as well. The region is going to become a unitary authority so many of the offices represented by the chains will be disappearing.

The runs themselves were nothing special, though today's was made more interesting by a regular hiss of air from my left trainers with each step. They have an air chamber acting as a shock absorber which must have burst. Must have sounded a bit like a miniature steam engine, chuff, thud, chuff, thud.

Tomorrow there will be no run as it is a family day organised by Diabetes UK, at which I'll be helping to keep a bunch of 8 to 11 year olds amused as well as hosting a question and answer session with the parents, follwed by a charity evening, again hosted by the mayor of Aycliffe, busy times!

30-3-8 A better week for running. Managed to fit in 6 miles on the Monday night, but finished too late the rest of the week to do anything, so it had to wait until Friday morning. The weather remained unsettled with wind and rain but managed to miss the worst of the showers. With so little running overall went for a good workout, running up to Westerton via the Coundon bypass. Then rather than returning via the usual route headed through Binchester village towards the bottom end of the town. It was actually quite a wide detour and took in lots more hills so my legs knew they'd been used alright. According to the GPS system I'd climbed a total of 1300 feet.

With the weather still unsettled it seemed more sensible to take shorter runs on the Saturday and a moderate run on the Sunday but even that meant a total climb of almost a thousand feet. All that running in 3 days will mean a few sore joints to come, but it was worth it.

4-3-8 This has been a busy week at work. Every month we spend a week dealing with emergencies on the ward, starting on a Friday through to the next Thursday night. Well this holiday weekend was my turn at the emergency cover. It is of course impossible to run when you are on call as you have to be ready to come into the hospital at a moment's notice, and to be honest over the weekend, are in most of the time anyway. The week also started off badly with having to be on call for the Monday and Tuesday nights, so the first opportunity for a run was Wednesday evening. Thank goodness for the later sunsets as it was possible to run off on the old track to Spennymoor.

Yes it was windy and the track still very damp and muddy but the chance of stretching the legs was good, especially knowing there wouldn't be another chance until today. As weekends on call go it wasn't too bad. Although I was in for at least 12 hours a day there weren't any calls through the night so sleep was OK. On the Saturday we admitted a little four year old with a new diagnosis of diabetes. Thank goodness for insulin pumps. It is an awful thing for a family to have to cope with. One minute they have a child who has only recently become unwell, the next they are faced with a lifetime of having to do at least 4 blood tests a day, inject 4 or more times a day with insulin, calculate the carbohydrate content of their meals and cope with high and low blood sugars. It must be overwhelming. At least with an insulin pump they only have to give one injection every 2 to 3 days, and can lead a much more normal life.

As a result of my experience over these past 5 years it just seemed so logical to start them with an insulin pump, and that's what happened. Awful though the diagnosis has been at least the family were able to return home the same day and try and get back to normal.

As today was a bank holiday it meant a day off and a chance to run. It was bitterly cold, slow in blizzards at times and a very cold northerly wind. Was well wrapped up and only went for a 10 mile run to Spennymoor again. It should be possible, with a little luck, to get some shorter runs in at Durham after work for the rest of the week.

16-3-8 There are moments when life feels more like wading through a lake of treacle than flowing smoothly along, and this past week has been one of those times. Its hard to put a finger on precisely what isn't right, but even the running has felt laboured. Today's long run was no exception. The weather forecast was for a cold, strong, northerly wind, with occasional showers. Spot on. Should have been happy with that as headed off towards Brandon, but the legs were like lead and just couldn't build up any enthusiasm. So much so that just after running 5 miles at Willington, the weather turned nasty with the rain getting heavier and heavier. I wasn't dressed for rain and just turned back.

It felt a bit like cheating, not going for a very long Sunday run, and this weekend there were plenty of people out and about, runners, walkers and cyclists. On the way back stopped to chat to a cyclist who remembered me from previous runs. He was in training for a triathlon and had already cycled 70 miles. Good luck to him for his race but it didn't seem to spur me on at all. Getting back to Bishop I was determined not to settle for 10 miles, so went back out towards Etherley and ended up finishing 14 in total. Pathetic really.

Perhaps it was the after effects of Friday's run to Spennymoor, which was particularly fast? Perhaps it is the thought of the next week of on call duty and the prospect of be working 5 out of the next 7 nights. Hopefully this tired mode will evaporate away soon.

9-3-8 An interesting week for running. Last Sunday took the option of only running a short 10 miles with the intention of another 10 on the Monday, rather than 15 or so and being too tired for anything. So went via Spennymoor, the first Sunday run there for a long time. It was a glorious day, a bit windy but fabulous sunshine. Couldn't believe it but didn't pass a single person until almost at Spennymoor itself. Even then there were very few about, and nobody else on the way back. Perhaps it was a later than usual start, but what were people doing? 

On the Monday finished work early (well at the normal time) and so chanced another run to Spennymoor, hoping it wouldn't get too dark on the way back. Again very windy, even a few spots of rain but overall a great run. The way the track goes and the prevailing winds mean that it is normal to run out with the wind behind you, and back into the wind. Of course it would be so much better to return with the wind at your back. Although the sun had set there was more than enough light to have a safe run back.

Then through the week it was the annual professional meeting of Diabetes UK www.diabetes.org.uk  and as it is being held in Glasgow, a chance to catch up with our eldest daughter who lives and works in Glasgow. We always meet up for a meal together and this time it was at a restaurant called Two Fat Ladies, after the address, not the staff (88 Dunbarton Road). I've always had great food there, they specialise in fish, and the desserts are also something very special. It was just as well I'd been for a 5 mile run first! This was from the hotel on Sauchiehall street, past the Kelvingrove museum, the university and along the Great Western Road. It hardly rained at all.

Finally the last run of the week was a 16 miler towards Brandon. Again bright and breezy, with a lot more people out, walking, lots of cyclists and even a couple of horse riders. Nothing else special to report.

2-3-8 The first entry of a new month. As always a struggle to get out and run with work encroaching ever more on what little free time available. At least the first 2 days of March are not at work! The wind of course makes the runs more exciting. There is a certain excitement from just being in strong winds, an exhilaration, a recognition that you are alive and everything around you is in motion. Perhaps I am just a strange person but winds make me smile. Then of course there is the excitement of running next to traffic when a gust of wind knocks you sideways. Its not so good running into a headwind when you can be driven to running on the spot, but the most exciting time is to have a gale behind you when each step is like wearing seven league boots and you are almost literally flying along. Now wind and rain are another matter altogether.

Last night Colette and I went to the Coundon Conservative Club 'Stars In Their Eyes' night. This was arranged to raise funds for the charity appeal and give the local talent a showcase to display on. Everybody was good and some of the acts were startlingly good. Abba, Amy Winehouse, Shirley Bassy, Neil Diamond just to name a few. It was a late night and so a late start to running today. 

This week is the Diabetes UK annual Scientific meeting so opportunities to run may be tricky. Decided to just take a short 10 miles instead of the usual Sunday epic and run again tomorrow. It was windy but gloriously sunny and amazingly didn't see another person out from Bishop Auckland till almost at Spennymoor. Perhaps it was just the time, but even on more miserable days there are usually some people out.

24-2-8 Well this has certainly been a month of extremes. A week of severe frosts when the landscape was so white with frost it looked as if it had been snowing. A real effort to get the trainers pulled on! Then it started to blow gales and whilst it is exhilarating to run in the wind, it can also be very cold. Today was a good example. With mildish weather, didn't bother to wrap up too warm to prevent later overheating. Set a reasonable pace and decided to go for an 18 mile stretch. Well the wind was behind me for most of the way out, a bad thing because you really want the wind to blow you back home. Got to Brancepeth but the hit a very wet section. As said before I'm a cat and hate to get my feet wet. After plishing through ever deepening puddles and getting very wet I'd had enough and turned back, heading up into the hills instead. Turning back was into a near gale and although the temperature said 9 C, the wind chill factor meant it was nearer to freezing and not such a comfortable journey back. Unlike the last long run, when it was frosty but blue sky and calm, there were very few people on the tracks, and only one other runner who was overtaken on the way back.

10-2-8 February has started out a little better. No illness at least. The last week has also been so much drier but that hasn't led to the tracks drying out much. Have had two long weekend runs towards Brandon. Last weekend was freezing cold and so the puddles were all frozen over. There was one particular stretch after Brancepeth which is always wet but after rains a small lake runs across the track. It was treacherous and the ice not thick enough to stop wet feet. I am like a cat with wet feet, hate it!

This weekend, despite being cold the weather was otherwise perfect for running. Not a breath of wind and glorious if a little wan sunshine. It certainly brought out the cyclists and walkers. At one point was joined by another runner, taking a shorter route. He had obviously been a very good runner in his day. He'd live in South Africa and completed the Comrades Marathon, a 52 mile run from Durban to Cape Town (I think). It was good to have company even if it was only for a couple of miles.

There are some compensations for winter running. At certain times of the day the light is fantastic. One early morning, just as the sun was rising it reflected off the windows of the houses banked up on the hillsides. It looked as if the whole hill was ablaze in this amazing red-orange glow.

Soon the evenings will be light enough to run more safely. It is hard to motivate when it is pitch black with a howling gale outside. The light just makes it all so much easier. 

20-1-8  The first running commentary for 2008. Cannot believe it has been so long since the last posting! Not that much has happened apart from lots and lots of work. The running got off to a dreadful start as picked up a very unpleasant virus over the Christmas period. For 2 weeks was far too ill to run and then attempted, rather foolishly, an early outing before making a full recovery. At this point my cough was so bad that it was almost impossible to run for more than a dozen yards at a time.

Trouble with illness at this age (mid 50's) is that you lose fitness very quickly, so that when the chance to run did return it felt very hard. The first was a trot around the town, the slowest for 3 years. Then a longer hilly run. It didn't feel too bad to start off with but by the end of 11 miles was barely able to jog slowly. Then came a very busy week at work with a weekend on duty, so no chance to run until last Monday. It was really stupid to run back from Durham. Firstly it is a very hilly and strenuous run at the best of times. After a busy weekend duty it wasn't the best of times. The of course was the inevitable cycle in the following morning.

Well did make the run home eventually and prepared the bike for the next morning. The weather forecast was for damp conditions, I wish! In fact it was varying from a light drizzle to a brisk rain. Bad enough in daylight, but when it is pitch dark, you have only a cycle lamp and wear glasses it was a recipe for disaster. I was effectively blind and only knowing the track so well allowed me to make any progress at all. There were times I was in real danger of coming off the track.

Then to rub salt into the wounds, just as I was heading into Willington there was a loud hiss from the front wheel. A huge puncture!

Picture the scene, raining, pitch black, wet and bedraggled with an irreparable puncture and an absolute need to get into work for 8-30 to give a lecture. It was enough to make a grown man cry. Of course as always it could have been worse. The Willington Co-op was open, so parked the bike outside and having the works mobile, asked if anybody knew of a local taxi firm. The manager, bless him, was very busy but did come up with a couple of numbers, no answer. Phoned the hospital switchboard to book a taxi through them, but it had to be ordered from Darlington. So eventually waited an hour and a half, desperately trying to keep warm, waiting for the taxi to arrive.

One of the assistants was very friendly and said it was probably all happening for a reason and she was probably right. Firstly there had been accidents on the A1M so that all the staff who were coming in for the lecture were delayed, so if I'd arrived for 8-30 it would have been to an empty venue. Then the conditions were so atrocious that there was a real danger of my getting badly hurt. Then there was the state of unfitness. Despite only cycling 5 miles my legs felt dreadful for the next few days, so all in all it could have been much worse. The nice Co-op manager allowed me to store my bike in his shop and eventually I arrived safe and late for work.

After this it was obvious that another run back from Durham was out of the question. So after finishing work on the Thursday night went for a run around Durham before coming home. It was a good idea, allowing for a run before it was too late in reasonable conditions. Had another short run on the Friday, taking it easy to regain fitness. The weather forecast for Sunday was dreadful so had a relatively long run on Saturday instead. It was glorious, sunshine, calm and cool. Still struggling with fitness but managed an effective half marathon in a reasonable time given that the route was fairly hilly. Ran up to Etherley, then down the back way to West Auckland with a detour to Ramshaw.