The November Nightmare was the first of my three big test weeks. This one consisted of running the same route, seven times in as many days. To make this an even more dizzying proposition, the course consisted of three laps, so in total 21 laps of an 8.7 mile course over the week.
It was a very relaxed set-up with the start & finish at the Unicorn Inn run by Gina & Denzil. Each lap featured climbing over a couple of stiles and an old railway line before joining the loop course down to the Ironbridge, climb up past Blists Hill, then over the same stiles and railway line to complete the lap. Underfoot it was a combination of trails and tarmac, but generally good and most days I ran in road shoes.
The area is rich in historical interest with Thomas Telford's Ironbridge being the subject of many a high-school history lesson. There is a chap whose job it is to stand on the Ironbridge and tell tourists all about
it. By the Thursday he had taken to just laughing at me each time I ran past.
The event ran for 8 days in total, with a varying number of folk each day. I "only" ran the first 7 days, which was always the plan. I think I was the only one who made it past 4 consecutive days - probably because most folk had better things to do (like jobs) than run round in circles for a week.
My accommodation for the week was my parent's old house, which I had cleared for sale, but hadn't sold yet. I was basically staying in an empty house which was a bit strange but a good test of living out of a holdall for a week.
- It was a good control environment for testing kit permutations.
- Eating well matters. You can't run marathons day after day if you are living off ready meals.
- I normed to eating porridge for breakfast, a sandwich after each lap, a cup of tea straight after I finished, followed by a pastie and sandwich. I then tried to get a wholesome evening meal. And repeat.
- It was encouraging quite how quickly the body can recover & I tried to take a short walk each evening to ease any stiffness.
- Road shoes are remarkably versatile in dry conditions.
- A good playlist helps when boredom kicks in.
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