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It’s been almost a fortnight since I ran in the 2009 London Marathon, and it’s long overdue my writing up a few thoughts and notes. I had a great experience, and hit my main target of a sub-4 hour time. Unfortunately I didn’t manage to get close to my secondary target of a 3:45 time, for various reasons.

I was able to get a decent nights sleep. An early night compensated for waking up at various points in the night, paranoid that I’d overslept and missed the last train to Blackheath. Nerves weren’t too prevalent, but it was a bit harder to eat my porridge than usual. A short walk to Charing Cross railway station, and managed to get a seat on a train out to Blackheath.

Certainly a top-tip for future years. The train was busy at Charing Cross, and I felt for people trying to get on trains at Waterloo East and London Bridge. Not a stress I would have wanted, but it seems most people got on eventually.

After a chat with a few fellow passengers, we made our way to the Blue start area. I wasn’t able to hook up with my running club – it’s hard to find people when there are 15,000 other people milling about in similar attire. Main task was to put on some suncream, as it was a lot brighter than the weather forecast had suggested. Sunburn was going to be a serious risk!

It was then time to join the toilet queue. And a heck of a queue it was too. Unfortunately, as I subsequently made my way to the start area to find my ‘pen’, I noticed there were two other men’s urinal areas (which hadn’t been on the maps to my recollection) with tiny queues. Quite why the organisers didn’t see fit to mention this, I don’t know. The start pens are supposed to mean faster runners don’t have to overtake slower runners, and my number was inspected closely. However I’ve heard subsequently that a lot of other pens weren’t being checked very thoroughly, so we had pen 9 runners up in higher pens. Further, we were constantly being moved further forward all the time, ie. in to other pens. Really quite bizarre.

After the start, it took me 5 minutes to cross the start line, and the first mile or so was slow going. 09:57 by my Garmin for mile 1, then 9:00 for mile 2. Much MUCH slower than my target pace of around 8:30 miles. All very stop-start, and overtaking charity chain gangs, walkers and similar drained some of my good will. It’s still very hard to be too annoyed at people doing great things for charity: It’s an immense achievement to even get to the start line. But really, I just wish they’d gone in the right start pen (and been kept there), or given more realistic time estimates for their marathon time.

After that things got back on course, and one of the highlights just after the 3 mile marker was where the ‘blue’ and ‘red’ starts merged. Lots of jovial booing at each other was great fun. Through Woolwich, then into Greenwich along non-descript roads, but plenty of great support. The Cutty Sark was a bit of a non-event given it’s currently deeply under wraps, but it’s still a significant part of the course. Then the few miles up through Southwark and towards Tower Bridge. Support was at times massive, and at other points absolutely deserted. Very strange, and a lot more twisty than I’d expected. Managed to see a colleague from one of my clients enjoying the sun. Not sure sitting on grass near to a hedge was quite the best plan!

Crossing Tower Bridge was quite special. It’s such an iconic part of the course, and so very close to the half-way mark it’s hard not to feel the significance of the moment. I was feeling quite good at this point, and my splits were still roughly on course, but still more variable than I’d hoped. Certainly it was starting to be apparent I wasn’t going to make up any of the time I’d lost at the start, and knew only too well that things get properly tough after the 20 mile mark. I still managed a few 8:37 paces, and even – at mile 19 an 8:35 – much of that as I’d locked on to points where I knew supporters would be. The fetchpoint was a great spot, with wonderful red and yellow balloons and loads of supporters. Great to see them on the way out to Canary Wharf, and on the way back. Just the boost I needed.

The miles through Canary Wharf weren’t too bad. Bar the bits around mile 20, near Billingsgate market, much more support than I think I’d expected. But the course was a lot narrower than I’d expected it to be. Spectators encroaching on to the road was one thing, but even marshalled areas seemed to mean the course was a bit narrower than I’d hoped. Overtaking (which I was doing a fair bit of) just got fiddly and, sadly, time-consuming. I was caught up by fellow club runner Michael around here, but soon lost him behind me as I had a couple of good miles at mile 19 and 20 at 8:35 and 8:21 respectively.

Hitting 20 miles was psychologically significant. Only 6.2 miles left, and almost all of it in a straight line right through London. Easy to focus on, and tick off the miles. I only once had a difficult moment around mile 23. I was starting to feel tired. Not the “wall” by any stretch – I’d been taking gels and energy drinks. I just needed to gather up my thoughts, so I resolved to use the very brief break to gather myself up set off to the end. 20 seconds or so later (and a very stiff few strides), and I was on my way again. Still much slower at this point, closer to 9 minute miling, but doing a fair bit of overtaking (At this point so many other runners seemed to be walking), and the runners were starting to thin out a bit more, so felt a lot easier to make progress.

My determination carried me along the Embankment, and started to really feel the building sense of accomplishment. Large numbers of supporters shouting just moves you in quite a way! I knew there were some club supporters around here, and I’d not hear the end of it if I took another walking break! I stuck to my resolve and on I went. Somehow I picked out my club’s Ladies captain Carla in the crowd screaming something encouraging at me. Marvellous, and a further boost. My average pace indicator on my watch suggested a sub-4 hour was very much achievable, and that kept me going.

Hitting Birdcage walk – the last mile – was something else. The end is almost in sight, and whilst I’d perhaps distanced myself more than I’d expected from the crowds and the support along the way, I was lapping it up now. The last few hundred metres were much easier than I’d thought – the finish line is a motivator like no other – but the crowd and distinct sense of achievement as you round the corner in front of Buckingham palace to see the finish line in front of you just pulls you along like nothing else.

Crossing the line and the emotion really washes over. I’d made sub-4 hours (3:56:35), but the time didn’t really matter. I’d seen it so many times on the television, to cross the famous finish having completed the worlds biggest marathon was really quite a moment. The finish area just passed in a blur. Up on the ramp to get the chip cut off. Collect medal. Pose for photograph. Collect goody bag. Collect bags (how’d they know it was me!?). Then I just found the “L” section in the reunion area and waited for Frances. No way I was leaving my iPhone in my bag, so no mobile telephony assistance in reunions!

I’d missed out on my other goal of getting a 3:45 time, and I’ll put that down to a poor start position, the weather, but also perhaps being a bit optimistic. A marathon really is a distance that tests you like no other running event. All said I enjoyed the experience, and the distance, and I will almost certainly do another marathon. But I know I won’t be rushing back to enter London – I think I’d prefer to try a smaller event (with less congestion), and see how I do there. I’ll also be a lot more aware of the amount of time required to train. The race itself is almost the easy bit. The hard bit is finding time to train for three hours on a weekend, when there are so many other demands on my time. Having a life. Glasgow parkrun. My business. My friends. Just having time off.

In short, I thoroughly enjoyed London from start to finish. Sure, I’ve a few gripes, but they’re relatively minor in the grand scheme. I know I could run faster, and I intend to prove that someday. London’s not an easy place to get a PB, and it’s so much more than a 26.2 mile run. I know a lot of people had problems on the day, so I feel very pleased that things came together for me on the day and I achieved my primary goal, and had a big smile on my face when I crossed the line less than 4 hours after starting, and to think three years I’d have laughed at the prospect of such an achievement.

Definitely recommended. Just looking at the medal (it’s just by my desk) brings back so many memories.

I’m chuffed a lot of people are saying they’ll be coming along on Sunday morning (or watching on TV), so I thought it’d be worth saying a bit about my rough plans for the day, and point folk in the direction of a few websites that might be useful.

I’m hoping to get somewhere around a 3:45-4:00 marathon time. Whilst I hope I may be able to manage a bit faster than that (based on race predictor times), I’m conscious this is my first ever marathon. It’s so much more than a double half marathon: I also don’t know how I’ll feel after 23 miles, given I’ve never run more than that before. If I do find myself going a bit faster, I’m hoping I’ll have the presence of mind to back off and save my energy for the final 6 miles. But best laid plans have a habit of falling by the wayside, and I’ve also something of a history of underestimating my own race ability.

A sub-3:45 marathon time has me doing miles at a pace of about 8:30 (over a minute slower than my half-marathon pace). A sub-4:00 marathon time has splits of 9:10. If I’m careless, splits of 8:00 put me close to 3:30 – 30 seconds a mile difference roughly equates to fifteen minute time, which is quite easy to remember.

It’s fun to put my pace up against the elite runners. But when I quote these figures, I sometimes sense incredulity – even amongst runners – at just how fast marathon pace is. They’re running almost twice as fast as me. Faster than I can run even in short race, running flat out! And they’re running that for 26.2 miles! To put the world-records into perspective, the men are running with 4:44 splits (2:03:59 world record) and women in 5:09 (2:15:25 world record). I can’t even run a mile at that speed! The best I’ve managed is 6:09, about a year ago. Impressive stuff, so give them a cheer if you see them. They’re world class athletes.

Anyway, what does this mean for “Richard spotting”, if you’re thinking of coming along on the day. Remember that there are over 35,000 other runners, and it’s incredibly hard for runners and supporters to spot people in crowds, even when you’re expecting them! And that’s before the hours of running that may well have preceded my morning!

So drop me a note if you plan to be along, and roughly where. The course map is here, but best of all there’s also a spectator guide. If you see me, shout loudly. Even if I don’t see you (which is quite likely), the support still means a huge amount for me and every other runner, and really does make a huge difference. There are times when things will be really tough. A cheer can change that in an instant. Lots of support for other runners from my running club appreciated too (’Go Bella!’ works).

Start is at 9:45, and I’m on the ‘Blue’ start on Blackheath. I’ll post my number in due course. I’ll probably be looking something like this, although the size of my smile will be inversely proportional to the distance run, until I cross the line at least

Cutty Sark (~6.5 miles): 10:40am
Tower Bridge (~12.5 miles): 11.40am
Canary Wharf (~19 miles): 12.30pm
Tower of London (~22.5 miles): 12.55pm
Embankment (~24 miles): 1.10pm
Finish: (26.2 miles): 1.30pm

All this of course presumes I cross the line on time, which is unlikely, and also presumes a steady pace, which will be difficult given congestion on the course, especially at the start. The theory is similarly paced runners start at the same time, in pulses, with faster runners at the front, and slower runners to the back. Unfortunately, it doesn’t always work like that

After the event, my goal is to go and meet up with Frances and fellow club runners, and then collapse in my very convenient hotel, for a few hours. I hope to go out for a celebratory drink or three later in the afternoon/evening, if you’re in town. Frances will, hopefully, be contactable on her mobile. I’ll probably be reunited with my iPhone on Monday morning

Tracking runners

Well, after 15 weeks of training, I finished my last long run on Saturday. Best of all, I bumped in to Frances who’s just starting training for the Race For Life she’s doing in June, and got an extra two miles with her. A great way to top off my training, and pleased to report Frances did very well too for her first run in almost a year.

The training has gone very well. My previous post summarised a few niggles I’d had, but all the issues have been put to bed. I’m only left with a bit of a sock and blister problem – something I’ve not experienced before – and one that I’ve not had a chance to properly sort out. So I’m going to have to take a tiny bit of a gamble with a pair of socks I think have been ok, and hope things work out ok.

My longest run was 23 miles, which I was very pleased with, particularly when compared to how I felt after a 20 mile run a couple of weeks before. The difference between the two was nutrition, and I’ve got that licked. I’ve also discovered that whilst I don’t have an adverse reaction to Gels, they’re not exactly nice, particularly if you get it on your fingers, and the sweetness is just icky. I really begin to crave solid food! So I’ll definitely be putting some food in my gear bag, something I can get my teeth into when I finish!

I’ve thankfully been injury free, which has meant I’ve followed my coaches training programme quite closely. The best thing about it having done that is I’m as certain as I can be that I’ll get around the course, and I’m told the atmosphere in London is something special, so should hopefully help pull me along when the going gets tough, after, I suspect, the 20 mile mark. It’s carb loading over the next week to ensure I’m as properly prepared as I can be.

The taper is certainly proving to be quite difficult. I had to stop myself running to pick up our car from the garage yesterday (a 30 minute jog away), conscious I need to be taking it easy and reducing my mileage and effort. It’s also confirmation to me that running is very much part of me these days. Certainly if I’m trying to find excuses to run places, and convincing myself not to!

I’ve also had so many great words of advice from fellow club runners, and park runners. Whilst I know it’s my own race, and I need to run it to my plan, I’ve absorbed as much from people as I can. It’s the only way a new-marathoner can really get an idea about what’s involved. I’m determined to enjoy it – I’ve heard a good few horror stories of setting off too fast, changing plan too early, or struggling through injuries. Finishing, I hope, with a smile on my face is my primary goal. Faster times can wait. I settled on a sub-4 hour time as my primary goal, with 3:45 as my ideal. Anything better than that would be delightful, but I’m not going to push myself too hard, at a distance that is such a serious test over the complete distance. I’ve never run more than 23 miles, and those last 3.2 miles will surly be the hardest.

This last week is busy on the work front, but I will find myself in London at the end of the week, and should be able to get registered with plenty of time to spare. An early start on Saturday to get out to see the Bushy parkrun so I can check out what a properly busy ‘funnel’ looks like, to take some tips away to Glasgow parkrun, where we’re experiencing phenomenal growth and, given we’re so far away from other parkruns, having to learn a lot through experience. Sunday morning I’m close enough to the railway station that will take me out to Blackheath it shouldn’t be too bad. My goal then is to get up, scoff my porridge, stuff a few things in my bag, and just get out there. I’d really rather be there very early, than stressing about not getting there at all. I’m a rotten traveller when there’s time pressure.

If you’re going to come along on Sunday to watch (and I’d highly recommend it even if I wasn’t running, it’s a great atmosphere), be sure to allow plenty of time to get around. It’s a bit busy, and crossing the course is very difficult. Drop me an e-mail, or a comment, if you’re planning on looking out for me. It’s hard for runners and spectators to see each other, given it’s so busy (and the runners can be a bit preoccupied!). I’ll post some rough times for key points if my race goes according to plan, but could be some way either side of that.

All that really remains is for everybody to keep their fingers crossed for cool and overcast weather. Sunny is not good. Rain is not good. But cheer everybody taking part, even if you don’t see me. The amount of training most people will (should!) have put in is, I can say from experience now, huge. The marathon is just the icing on the cake, and I can certainly say it makes a huge difference on short distances, it’ll be something else on a marathon course!

I try to make a point of writing up all experiences where I feel strongly positive, or negative about something, for restaurants, shops, service, software and so on. Recent comments on a thread, and search engine hits I’ve been getting on another, have focused my attention on some of my previous negative posts, so I thought I’d cheer myself up and highlight a few positive experiences I’ve had (see here, and hopefully a few more to come following our wedding).

So, set the clock back a few weeks back at my Stag do – organised very successfully by my best man Stew. I’d originally expressed an interest in ‘shooting and eating small creatures‘ (I know, I know), perhaps as part of a hunting lodge getaway somewhere up here in Scotland. Practicalities, including distance, travel, costs, time required and so on, but mostly the relentless forward march of time (it does do that, I’ve noticed), so we settled on Clay pigeon shooting. I’d get the shooting part, the eating part would come later. It was going to be an entirely new experience, and one I’ve always wanted to do, and it transpired a lot of my friends did too, so good all around

Stew did some research and came up with a few companies, and finally settled on Lee Leisure. They were based near Luton, so easy for everybody to get to (whether driving, flying or by train). Whilst finding the facility was a bit of an experience (the drive from the gate was somewhat longer, and bumpier, than we’d anticipated!), we found ourselves in what looked like a former quarry with the two instructors.

They were at pains to explain that they weren’t going to just give us a gun, fire up some clays, and let us get on with it. They wanted to teach us what to do, so we’d get the most from it. And they lived up to their word. After working out about dominant eyes, explaining safety proceedings, ear protectors, how the gun recoiled, and how to minimise the recoil, we got on with the shooting, and had a great time.

One of the biggest surprises to me, having never done this before, was that there was more to it than just a clay being flung into the air. There were three different types of clay shoot, to mimic the different hunting experiences. A clay being fired up as if a bird was flying out of a bush (the only one I’d heard of); A clay being fired more towards us (and further away) to mimic a bird in flight; A clay being fired along the ground. Like what a rabbit does. Which was great fun, and the hardest.

They offered a money back guarantee – should you not hit any targets – but it was entirely unnecessary. They’d done a great job of coaching, and advised us as we went along. I think everybody got a few 6 hits from 6 successive shots. We each had about 20 shots on each type, and my shoulder certainly felt that that was more than enough!

There was a tie-break for the prize, and Alis won that, but I don’t think anybody begrudged him that after a spectacular first-shot hit that I think surprised the instructor, who’d taken 5 shots!

So, I highly recommend Lee Leisure for your clay pigeon shooting needs. Far more than “here’s a gun, there are the clays, shoot them”. It was an entertaining and enjoyable experience, showing us all how it’s done, and giving all of us an experience, I think, we’ll remember for a long time.

URL: www.lee-leisure.co.uk

All go at the moment, so only time for a brief update:

• Wedding plans are proceeding well. We’re being cautioned by friends to stay calm as the day approaches, and I think we are managing that quite well. Got quite excited picking up the rings, as well as getting to see the finished product for something we’ve arranged. More on that after the big day

• Jury service. I’ve received a “you are on the shortlist” letter last week. Inevitable really given all of Frances’ family have had similar, so it was only a matter of time before I got one. I’m in two minds. On the one hand I’m fascinated by the process, and obliged to ‘do my civic duty’, but on the other it will stomp all over my business. Being self-employed has some big draw backs at times. More on this later, no doubt.

• Anime: Last year I hired “Spirted Away“, and absolutely loved it (Frances wasn’t quite as struck). Whilst poking about HMV last week, I figured it’d be fun to watch some more, so have “Laputa, Castle in the Sky”, and “My neighbour Totoro“. This last one has intrigued me as it’s frequently on muted loop at Ichiban. The blurb reads “Conceived as a family film devoid of conflict and suffused with the carefree pleasures of the summertime”. How can you not like the sound of that? Can’t wait.

• Comments (1): My advert music post passed 800 comments recently. Quite scary, but fascinating to watch, and I’ve discovered some great music. With Sigur Ros’s new album due, maybe we’ll start to get some new background music for adverts and documentaries

• Music: R.E.M. released their new album “Accelerate” on Monday. I “pre-ordered” it from the iTunes Music Store (as I had a birthday voucher to use), but winded up having to cancel my pre-order and order it again. Doubt I’ll use that service again as “you may not be able to download it when it’s made available” strikes me as undermining what pre-ordering is about. Surely I should get it first? As to the music, whilst the album is good, it didn’t really jump out at me on first few listens on the train through to Edinburgh yesterday. To be honest, I quite like where REM has been going (in particular I liked ‘New adventures in HiFi’ when it came out, which isn’t viewed as one of their best by critics), so this “return to form” leaves me in a funny place.

• Comments (2): It seems a comment from a friend on an old (2006) post about the misery of our kitchen/downstairs update, has attracted the attention of the company he was referring to. I take great care in what I post, and what I allow through in the way of comments, so this thread is exercising me right now. Thoughts appreciated.

• Work. I’m in the midst of great change. A new contract with an existing client, and finishing up with an old long-term client for a number of reasons (not least that work is coming at me thick and fast right now, so I decided to go with the challenge rather than the easy option). Plus this new arrangement, whilst featuring less working from home, does give me a bit more time to work on some longer term projects and clients. All good.

• Comments (3). A new plugin. In the hope of showing that there’s stuff going on here even when I’m not posting, take a look at the (tidied up) sidebar for the most recent comments to my various posts.

• Aching muscles. Went for a ‘trail/route familiarisation’ run in Pollok park with the club on Monday night. Oscar, one of the group B coaches, led proceedings. I discovered more paths I didn’t know existed in the park, and had a great time running through muddy puddles (much to Frances’ disapproval when she saw my shoes). But trail running seems to use different muscles, so came back quite achy and muddy. But great fun. Can’t wait for the next couple of seasons in the park.

So, bar the Jury service, things aren’t too bad.

As I was down in London over the weekend, I thought it only made sense that I try and get along to one of the growing number of UK Time Trial events, and as my friends Dave and Sharon were helping out with the 3rd ever Richmond Park Time Trial, that seemed the place to go. They were taking part in a club “mob match” later in the day.

We had booked a hotel right next to the Richmond Gate entrance, so it was easy to get to the start first thing in the morning. Of course, a few beers and a hurried meal the night before didn’t exactly mean it was what you’d call ideal race preparation! Plus I’d been warned it’s a slower and tougher course than the Bushy Park Time Trial I’d run in September. No matter, I was feeling quite good, and even had a bit of hope I’d be able to improve my previous 5k personal best time of 00:23:41: My recent training sessions with my club have been hard, but productive, and I thought I had a good chance of getting a good time out of it.

I took a while to find the start as I hadn’t brought a map with me, and the event is still quite small compared to BPTT, so no obviously large numbers of runners. But got talking to a runner who was waiting for something, and turned out he was a regular. So I was in the right place. After a warmup, and the numbers grew, we were given an overview of the circuit, and sent on our way on what was a glorious autumnal morning.

The first half was fast – felt slightly downhill – which was deceptive. My splits were even in the low 4 minutes (4:30, 4:07 and 4:37), until the 3k-4k distance, when the course returned towards the start and got more of an incline: Ouch. Splits then of 5:03 and 4:57. Got to the end and my watch said 24:20, and I’ll confess I felt tired and disappointed. I’d run hard, but (seemingly) not come close to my PB of 23:41. Clearly the beers had a lot to answer for!

Dave – out on photographer duty – managed to capture me along the way. You can see his highlight photos at rowephoto.co.uk, and all of them at the RPTT site: Some stunning pictures in there that showed what a lovely day it was. Sharon had been helping with the timing with a very impressive looking timing device. Very neat it looked too.

So whilst the seeming lack of a PB was a bit of a downer (remember, it’s the journey, not the destination!), Frances and I then had a thoroughly enjoyable catchup with Dave and Sharon, and some of the other runners and volunteers in the Pembroke Lodge Cafe (a wonderful ‘discovery’!), before everybody went on their way.

On returning to Glasgow the good news about my race time came through: I was delighted to discover that my official time was much better than I’d thought! 00:23:18 – A PB of 23 seconds! The reason for the discrepancy was simply that I’d mucked up with my Garmin whilst warming up, and not reset it. Doh!

So a new PB to my name on a harder course than my other 5k runs. That should hopefully mean I stand a decent chance of breaking 23 minutes in the not too distant future

Great stuff, and a big thank you to everybody who took part and helped organise the event.

I imagine many runners who take part in races, or read any of the regular running magazines, will have heard about the growing phenomenon that is the Bushy Park Time Trial. A small, regular and most interestingly of all, free, 5km timed trial. Since it’s inaugural race in October 2004 (with only 13 participants) it’s grown, such that last Saturday when I turned up, 439 other runners were taking part. They’ve also expanded with three other events, and there’s talk of a time trial starting up in Leeds soon. More details at the UK Time Trials website.

My friends David and Sharon Rowe are regular participants (Their most recent write-up here). David is currently 2nd in this years points competition, and Sharon is currently knocking chunks off her Personal Best times almost every week. So it was inevitable really that as I’m currently in London, and was attending a wedding reception on Saturday evening, that I try and make the effort to go and see for myself what all the fuss was about. So I was up bright and early, and rattling on a train out to Teddington arriving in enough time to get a good warmup run in for the 158th Bushy Park Time Trial.

The race itself was great fun, and it’s a great course – delightfully flat too, so in the end I was just four seconds off my own 5km Personal Best (I finished 188th out of 439, so completed it in 23:45, against my PB of 23:41 at The Bella 5k), which I don’t think was too shabby on an unfamiliar course with a lot of congestion at the start – especially at the first corner (well, tree!). My first 1km was somewhat slower than my other splits, so think there’s definite potential to knock a my time down further before too long. I’m running the inaugural Barrhead 10k race next Sunday, and am even wondering if a sub-50min 10km might even just be within my reach.

Afterwards it was off to Cafe Nero for a coffee and chat with Dave and Sharon and some of the regulars, before heading back into London Waterloo. I figured it would be fun to run back to our hotel near Tower Bridge, so ran the 4.5km along the South Bank. Despite the wonderful city vista, it proved tough going given it’s concrete and paving slabs most of the way, and quite slow because it was full of tourists and Londoners enjoying the nice weather, as well as having a clunky and uncomfortable backpack on! It enabled me to get a bit more mileage in this week: I often struggle to get as much running done as I’d like when I’m London given I’ve a lot of work (and the inevitable socialising) I have to squeeze in, as well as limited space for all the extra gear I need.

I also can’t help but wonder if the Time Trial format/idea will make it’s way up to Glasgow before too long: There’s certainly a lot to be said for more ‘free’ races using their clever timekeeping mechanisms, marvellous volunteers, and an informal atmosphere. I know there’s a big Glasgow running community, as a result of Jog Scotland and the many existing running clubs, and there are certainly plenty of super locations in which it could take place. On the strength of the fun I had at BPTT, I’d certainly be amongst the first to sign up

I’ve been genuinely taken aback by the generosity of everybody who has sponsored me for my forthcoming half-marathon run, in aid of The Prostate Cancer Charity. It’s really quite something to receive so many notes of encouragement from so many people. A heart-felt ‘Thank You!’ to everybody so far!

My initial target had been £500. That, I figured, was quite a useful sum to aim for. But I seem to have wizzed past that in no time, and I’ve not even started following up on verbal assurances of support yet! So after some careful consideration, I thought I should revise it up a bit more and set it to an even higher target of £1,500, given I’m quite close to £1,000 already.

I’ve also a shiny new Facebook application for anybody who uses that, which is quite neat. It’s only just been released onto Facebook, so bleeding edge stuff! Alternatively, see the brand new widget in the sidebar, or just click to visit justgiving.com

The training is going really well. I’ve run the half-marathon distance now, and on Tuesday this week went for a lunch-time run in Hyde Park with a friend who works at one of my clients. That was actually the first time I’ve ever run with somebody, and we chatted all the way. Not sure of my exact time or distance (not helped by Garmin-sluggishness to locate satellites at the start), but we ran safely in my usual pace zone of 5-6 minutes/km and it was approximately 10km.

Depending how I feel this Sunday, I’m hoping to do another long half-marathon distance training run, as the race is now only just over a month away, so my training plan shows that I really need to be getting the mileage under my belt!

We popped along to The Burrell Collection in Pollok Park yesterday with a view to seeing The Emperor’s Terrapin.

I have to confess I was rather disappointed. This exhibition has been advertised around Pollok park quite extensively. Somehow, I’d imagined that it was a collection of exhibits. So when we turned up and found out that the exhibit was very much in the singular, I had one of those moments where you have to adjust your expectations quite dramatically.

Don’t get me wrong: the terrapin in itself was remarkable. Really a beautiful piece of work, but I really thought the Burrell and British Museum could have done better. It was in the open seating area just past the shop – we almost missed it but for two ladies who walked over to it as we walked passed – and the explanation next to the terrapin struck me as rather hurried (a bending, laminated printout), and was not written particularly clearly: Both Frances and I didn’t really leave much the wiser for why this particular terrapin was so revered (other than it’s size and beauty, which anybody could tell you). In fact, there’s more detail on the Burrell and British Museum exhibition website than next to the terrapin!

The Burrell collection is remarkable, and I was really excited that the British Museum (which is probably my favourite museum) was going to be exhibiting something up here close to home. Unfortunately, it was a tiny exhibition, not put together particularly clearly, that didn’t quite live up to my (admittedly incorrect) expectations.

We took a walk through the rest of the collection (not having been in for a while), and I left feeling a bit frustrated that such a beautiful setting doesn’t make more of it and show more items from outside the main Burrell collection: Which doesn’t really have the breadth for repeated regular visits. There are thousands of exhibits gathering dust in museums all around the country. It’s a real shame more tours aren’t organised, where (of course) it’s safe to do, to encourage repeated visitors to one of this countries most impressive Museum buildings.

I’ve previously written about my experiences with the west coast mainline, and that it was now my preferred way of travelling to London. It seems I’m not the only person who’s impressed with the new service, as the BBC has been covering it’s success (you need to read past the “upgrade warning” headline) – it’s ahead of it’s passenger growth targets, but may actually reach capacity within 10 years.

It’s all good news for the anti-airport lobby. People are returning to the trains, when they provide a good service. Unfortunately, it costs a lot of money to build and maintain a rail system like this, and it’s still incredibly frustrating when the trains slow down due to interference on the tracks, delayed trains and other problems.

Here in Scotland, with elections next year, all the major parties are talking about upgrading the Edinburgh/Glasgow railway link, which is appallingly slow, and somewhat unreliable. Took their time, but can they really invest what is needed?

But the west-coast mainline is proving a real success story. I hope they can get the occasional delays worked out of the system, and find ways to resolve the capacity problems (and get a decent weekend service, please?), because otherwise we’ll all find ourselves forced to use the airports more and more, and I don’t honestly think anybody really wants that.