Karl's Ultra Ramblings

Preamble  (a copy of my on-the-train-there facebook post so spare yourself the time if you've read it already!) In the back of my mind there is a room. There was a lock on the door for a while but it broke and I never got round to replacing it. I keep all sorts of things in there, and during some long races I get chance to go in and have a rummage around. I occasionally tidy up in there but not that often. In the room there is a shelf, its a bit wonky as I put it up myself on a previous attempt to tidy up, and on the shelf lives a metal tin (battered old style metal tea caddy if you a re interested). That's where I keep my silliest ideas. The ideas get restless and the tin jumps around on the shelf quiet a lot, and occasionally falls off letting them loose.  Last time this happened I signed up for the Lon Las Ultra. It's long, its road, its just over 20 days after King Offa's Dyke, its Wales. There were many reasons not to be interested, but it clawed...

King Offas Dyke Ultra 2017 Warning, proceed with caution. This is an ultra race report. It contains subject matter essential to the plot that may be unpleasant to normal folks.  Ultra runners are fanatically concerned with what goes in and how and when it comes out…. You have been warned.  It's also ultra long, as befits a 185 mile run, so decide how much you want it, put the kettle on, and start where we left off….. King Offa’s Dyke Ultra II ….. this time it’s personal. Last year I DNF’d this race having stubbornly started it with an ankle injury when I probably shouldn’t, pressed on through the non-ankle friendly course oscillating between pain and drug numbed stupor, burst into tears when talking to Harriet on the phone, and called it a day at mile 120. A justifiable DNF but no less easy to pallet. This time it was Prestatyn Or Bust, and as a result as start day came closer my usual pre-match nerves were pretty bad. To add to this Offspring#1, Tom, was accompanying...