Track running goes autumnal

I run on the track every week if I can! But I don’t generally blog about it. I suppose it would be a bit dull for readers. Do they really care whether we run 800 m eight times, or a mile twice, 800 m twice, and 200 m four times? As these are the sort of exercises we do there. But this week, the trainers were taking pictures, and I thought that would be a nice prompt to write about it again. One might forget I do this!

I still quite enjoy the track running. I dislike the 200 meter distance, but all other distances I'm happy with. And I like trying to decide what speed I should be running at, and then keeping that speed. And I have built up a bit of a reputation of being able to keep a speed. It is really nice to be complimented on my pacing!

This time we indeed did 800 m eight times. And although it was a big group, quite some of the regulars were not there. But there was one of the ladies who has enjoyed my pacing before, and she was recommending someone who was there for the first time to do the same. So they lined up behind me. And there must have been a few more people there. It is always difficult to see who is behind you when you run! And when you rest between the 800 meter intervals, you do get to catch up with the people who were behind you, but sometimes you find you lost people, or people had tagged on that you hadn't been aware of.

Only very recently it had been very hot on the track. I remember being grateful for the shadows on the track being a bit longer with every lap. But these times are probably over! I did my warmup laps with a T-shirt over my vest, which I have done before. And highly unusually, I also did the drills we always do before the main event with that T-shirt on. And then I kept it on the entire time. That was the first! Autumn is here!

It was a good session! I enjoyed it. Not just the running, but also the appreciation of the people I have been pacing. I always like it when that goes well. And this will just go on all through winter!

Me pacing in my t-shirt

Evening light over the track

Annual knotweed round

Unless something unexpected happens, I have an attack on the knotweed on the river bank every year. And this year I didn’t want to skip. So one Sunday I headed for the river bank for an inspection. And my (and the neighbour’s) efforts are paying off. There wasn’t much there! No big clumps like in the beginning. Just spindly shoots that had managed to grow in spite of our repeated attacks. So fortunately, it wasn’t much work! And it would be lovely if next year there is even less. Or, dare I say it, maybe none? I will have to be vigilant, as of course even if we exterminate it, it can just travel back from upstream. But one tries! Stay tuned! 

Spotted a bit of knotweed! 

IT band straps

When it became clear that what had bothered me during the 2024 Snowdonia half marathon was my IT bands, I made sure to Google whether knee supports can help you with that. It would only be fighting symptoms, but if that gets you over the line then I will take it. I have those because of my penchant for spraining my knees. If you just put a support on, you can put weight on the knee again. Bending is difficult, but you can’t have it all. 

Google said that yes knee supports help. So I spent some races carrying them with me. Sometimes they stayed in the vest, and once they came out. And they did the job, but it was very uncomfortable. 

As my IT bands still don’t much like flat half marathons, but I don’t quite want to give up on these, I figured it would be worth it finding out if you can have supports that help your IT bands, but don’t stop your knee from bending. And it seems that there are! So I bought two different ones. 

They have arrived. I have not yet tried them out. But they are ready! And they are so small you can shove them in the front of a running vest, so it would be really quick to whip them out and put them on. 

I hope I’ll never need them, but I will sure bring them on my next long race! And who knows, maybe they’ll help me run a new PB on the half marathon next year…

Trying two different models 

Post field trip beer

The group of students that came with me to go surface sampling on Wednesday (the ones on the picture) were really enthusiastic. They were a nice team! And they decided that they should go and celebrate the end of the field work on the Saturday after. And they created a WhatsApp group to organise that. And put me on it as well. That was sweet of them! And they made sure I knew I was explicitly welcome with them in the pub.

I know that during the day, I would be on a hilltop, probably freezing my bum off. But I could join them afterwards. 

It had been horrible weather on the hill, it was horrible weather in the valley. I drove. I had had enough time getting soaked!

I only found four of the students: two of the little groups, minus one student who had had to work. And no other staff. We still had a nice evening! And it is quite funny that they chose the exact same pub and the exact same card game as a similar bunch of students from the same fieldwork had done two years ago. Last year, no pub night was organised. 

Soon we will all be in the grind of the new academic year. But now it was nice to just relax a bit over a pint! 

From the Blue Sky website

Cold damp marshalling

I am not going to sugar-coat it. This was quite a miserable day of marshalling. It was for the Pedol Peris race; a fell race over 4 hills of  >900m high, and several lower ones. Last year I had marshalled it as well. That had been a long day; I had been stationed both near the start and the finish. But at least, both stations were at low altitude, and the weather was alright. I was quite comfortable. And I knew the conditions had been a lot bleaker at higher altitude, with low visibility, and rain and wind and cold. And this year, the weather forecast was awful, and this year, I was stationed at higher altitude.

I would be at the summit of Moel Cynghorion; a 674m high hill, and the last hill in the race. The runners would get there from yr Wyddfa, and from there, bushwhack down the hillside, ford a river, scramble up the side of the valley on the other side, get onto a well-trodden path, and follow that until it turns into a road and gets you to the finish. We would be the last marshalling station, and therefore the last ones to have to be in position.

I was teamed up with a guy called Paul. When I got to race HQ the race was just starting, so there was hardly anyone there. Two ladies of registration, a little dog, and Paul. We got ourselves the marshalling pack with clipboard, pencil, clicker, cowbell, vests, radio, and a group shelter. We were expected to register the individual runners coming past. We also had an app for that. I had uploaded that already, and put in the code that told the software which race this was, and which marshalling station. The organisation had made sure we all had a waterproof case for our phone, and a power bank. So we should be okay!

Paul and I walked up. Initially, that was quite civilised. It rained, but not catastrophically so, and in the valley the wind was not so bad. But when we got higher up on the ridge, the wind picked up. And by 1 pm we were on our summit. It is just a flat grassy top with a fence on. That's it! Not even the wind shelter made of stones. I was glad we had the emergency shelter. We didn't waste any time and got it out of the bag. Paul was already shivering on arrival! It turned out we had a really big shelter, for 8 to 12 people. That was too much for us! But we got in anyway. And we added some layers to our outfit. This would be cold! 

Walking up. The half-seen hill in the distance is Moel Cynghorion 

I kept an eye on the race WhatsApp chat. We also radioed through that we were in position, but we did not receive a response. So we relied on WhatsApp. That told us where the first runners were. And these were only at Pen-y-Pass, so there would be a bit of time. I decided to have lunch. Paul didn't seem to want lunch this early.

Some 40 minutes later, the first runner came through the highest point they would reach on yr Wyddfa. Normally, the runners have to go over the summit, but because of the weather, that point had been cut out. And 20 minutes later, I saw a vague figure appear in the mist. He didn't seem to be running, but in this weather you don't expect any walkers. It seemed they were wondering if they had to cross a stile where they were. We rang our cowbell and yelled. Then he came our way. It was indeed our first runner! So I logged his arrival in the app, and on a piece of paper. 

Soon there were more. The field was not really that spread out. Often it would only be a minute or two before we saw another vague figure appear in the distance. I tended to spot them first, and would shout "runner!" upon which Paul would start frantically to wave the cow bell. We heard later that several were indeed lured in by the sound. Some clearly weren’t; quite some of those approached us on what technically was the wrong side of the fence. That didn't matter! They would just have to shout their number at us, and we could log them anyway.

Paul had said he was a technophobe, so he didn't want to work the app, and he said his hands were too cold to write anything down, so both of that was my job. He manned the cowbell, and advised runners on the route if they were in doubt. He had run this race several times himself.

It was cold and wet and miserable, but as long as we regularly saw runners coming it was okay. Sometimes there were several appearing at the same time. And initially, the longest lull between runners was only 11 minutes.

We also had some time to chat. I found out he had been running the old Caffi Siabod! I had liked that café. But I had heard that the landlord had become unpleasant, after which he had decided to go elsewhere. They had restarted the café a lot further west now, near Criccieth. I hadn't been there since they opened there.

We also talked about our racing and marshalling  experiences, and suchlike. It was nice to have a chat to divert attention away from being wet and cold! I was a bit worried about him. He had been shivering from the beginning, and he clearly had no intention to stop. How long would we have to be here? At least we knew how many runners were in the race. WhatsApp told us if someone bailed out halfway, or was sent down because they had missed the cutoff. There were some! And I can imagine. And there was one runner who had missed the cutoff, seemed to have continued anyway to help someone, but then vanished into a cloud of ambiguity.

We were counting down the runners. Only five more to pass us. Then four, then three. Then two. Or one. The assisting person seemed to really be out of the race. And then nothing happened.

We were sitting there in our shelter, with only some grass and the fence vanishing into the distance to look at. I kept staring at where the runners would appear. There was not much to focus on! At some point I decided it was becoming downright hallucinogenic. If your brain has so little to process, it will start filling in some details itself.

Still smiling…

I might also have been in my best waterproofs, plus a shelter, but if you get several hours of such strong wind and rain, you get wet anyway. It was rather unpleasant.

We knew there was a sweep: Trevor, of the Thursday crew. If we would see him, we would know we would have seen the last person, and we would be allowed (advised!) to leave. And then at some point the wind picked up even more, visibility became a bit better, and I decided to see if I could see him and the last runner coming. I got up on my stiff legs, and staggered to the corner. I looked down the path. Nothing! And only by starting to properly descend would I be able to see more. I was not going to do that. For now, I was still within Paul’s sight. I started walking back.

Then I looked over my shoulder. And I saw two little heads appearing! That must be our last runner plus sweep! And I quickly saw that the tallest of the two indeed looked  like Trevor. So I hobbled towards them and gave them a hug. I was so glad to see them! It had been 25 minutes since the previous runner. It felt like forever. 

Even though I was hiking boots, a down jacket underneath my waterproofs, and a civilian bra, when they reached the flatter bit and started running towards Paul I joined them. He was probably even happier to see them than I was. And we would not waste any time! We started packing our bags. Trevor helped with taming the unruly shelter in the strong wind. Trevor and the runner then vanished over the stile and down the hill towards the river, while Paul and I preferred to go over the path.

It is a fine path, but it follows the ridge. And the wind had picked up so much that it was difficult to stay upright. We also couldn't really walk on the path; we kept being blown sideways. But we made progress. And quite quickly, at least my muscles warmed up again, and I felt a bit more human. I suspected Paul was feeling the same way. We couldn’t talk in this wind. And with the strong wind having blown away some of the clouds, we even had some views. I didn't stop to photograph them as I just wanted to get off the mountain, but it was nice they were there. And after a while, we got to the big path through Maesgwm.

From there it is still 3 miles, so quite some distance, to get back to headquarters, but it is a lot more sheltered. Staying upright is a doddle! And the rain wasn't heavy. We made good progress. The worst was over. I let HQ know we were on our way. 

When we walked in we got quite some looks of sympathy. And I was glad to peel off all my waterproofs. We dug out all the materials we had borrowed and gave them back. Suzie, who had organised this, was not there. Quickly I found out why: she had driven up the track to pick us up! That was very sweet of her. But we had taken a shortcut you can't do by car. I Whatsapped her to tell her that. And after a while, she appeared. She was very appreciative of our efforts. And she made sure we had got some chocolate as thanks.

I was keen to get home, and get out of my wet clothes. So I said goodbye to everyone and left. It was lovely have a shower and put dry clothes on. And then have dinner.

This was by quite some distance the most unpleasant marshalling I had ever done. Towards the end I was really starting to worry about our own health. I was glad the last runner appeared! I think one thing that should happen is that were we to do this again, we should make sure we have a smaller emergency shelter. And I also would just hope for better weather.

We also have the annual Swamphike coming up. I have now tested my best waterproofs, and they were insufficient! That is a bit disconcerting. But not something I would spend much time worrying about that day. It was now more important to get comfortable!

Bridge progress

It is not just the supermarket where building work is going on. There is also the matter of the footbridge over the river. I was curious how that was progressing. The bicycle path has already been closed for quite a while! So when I was done early enough to go for a post field run one day, I went that way, and had a look. Clear progress is being made! But it is also clear that there is still a long way to go. I will have to deal with a blocked bicycle path for quite a while still…

Full panorama

The eastern bank

Local shop closed

I start sounding like the local newspaper! But this matters to me. I do most of my shopping in the local Londis. It is not a big shop, so it has a limited range, but it normally sorts me out. If I want something they don't have there, I generally buy that in either Bangor or Menai Bridge when I'm there for work anyway.

What I like about the shop is that it sells a lot of local produce, and sells most of it fruit and vegetables without plastic. I also quite like the people working in it. I know that ultimately, they are owned by Tesco, so your money goes into the exact same pocket if you go to the actual Tesco up the street. But I like that shop a lot less, as it doesn't have the advantages of Londis. 

At some point I heard the rumour that they would close for two weeks, in order to be refurbished, and re-emerge as a Spar. So I asked in the shop, and heard it from the horse’s mouth. Indeed it would. They would close the Saturday before our fieldwork, and it should only take two weeks. And they said the range wouldn't change, nor the employees. I hoped that was indeed true.

They indeed closed when they were supposed to. And the entire building was gutted! I knew it was an old garage, but the Londis branding came off the facade, and then that became obvious again. And you could look through the window; everything was ripped out. How would they manage to sort this place out in only two weeks?

I don't know if they manage to stay within their own deadline. But I miss them a bit! So I hope they will. And then I can get back into my old routine. Buying leeks in plastic from the Tesco on the other side of the village is not my cup of tea!

Part garage, part local supermarket, but currently mostly building site

Pic taken through the window 

Field trip: surveying and end

For the past few years, we have surveyed in the beach at Newborough on the Friday of the field trip. Natural Resources Wales wants to know what is happening with the beach, and if you survey it every year, you find out. Is the sand accumulating, is it vanishing? Last year we had the strong impression it was vanishing, as a lot of our benchmarks that had been in the dunes only the year before had ended up in the sea now. But still, hard data is the way forward.

This year, Martin had assigned me the same survey line as two years previously. No problem! And I got a rather switched-on group. And that was good; this year, there was not going to be a demonstration of how to do surveying, to remind the students. I figured we would work it out. I could walk directly to our transact as I knew where it was, and the top was in the dunes, so I knew we would have some shelter from the wind if we wanted to look into the documentation.

We did need that documentation. The survey forms you need to fill out are not intuitive, and even if someone has done it before, it is initially a bit of a puzzle. So we started slow, but then the students had largely worked out themselves what to do and how. The best way! With a few hints. And then we were on a roll.

The weather wasn't very good; it was windy and a bit rainy. Not catastrophically so, but it does complicate things. And in the distance we could see Martin with his group. They seemed to be working fast.

Surveying on a rainy beach with Llanddwyn in the background 

We surveyed out to the sea, and then back. We had a  rather big closing error! That reeked to me of a calculation having gone wrong somewhere, rather than just inaccuracy. But we knew that most groups were already finished. We had the measurements; I suggested we just go to headquarters, and see if we could work it out there, under a roof, and with a nice hot beverage in our hand. The students agreed.

It turned out we were really the last group to finish, but two of the groups had only survived out, not back. They had no idea what their closing error would have been. So we may have been slow but a lot more thorough than these.

Once back at headquarters, there was a lot of scrutiny of our calculations. And, of course, some tidying up and loading kit into vehicles. And then, without much occasion, the field trip came to an end! No final speech or anything. We just piled into the vehicles and went back to campus.The field trip episode 2025 was over! 

Field trip: surface sampling

On our field trip, after the coring is done, we need to take surface samples, with which we check what environments we have found in the core. When we describe the core, we hypothesise about what environments the various units we find represent. We then check these units for foraminifera content. If these foraminifera match those found in these environments, we accept our hypothesis. If they don't, we can come up with an alternative, if other environments fit better.

With the students, I first let them think about what environments they wanted to sample. And where they wanted to do it. Then we had some lunch. And then we went into the field.

For some students, this would be a very long day. On this field trip, there is one activity that requires high water. As this time we tended to have low water in the afternoon, high water was quite early. Some students had been picked up at 6 am from main campus. It had also been horrendous weather. And now they would be in the field with me. But they weren't disheartened.

We first did saltmarsh and mudflat. That took us a while! I had encouraged the students to figure out what vegetation we had on the marsh. I had brought vegetation guides. This takes time.

When that was done, we went further into the estuary to do the sand flat samples. The sand flat was quite scenic with a lot of sand blowing around. And it was eventful, because some of the sand was quite good for sinking into. And the mood was good. At some point we were even trying to take selfies with the GPS. But even so; we were glad when we were done, and we could return to headquarters. And then go home.

Fun on the marsh

The day after, I picked up the same group of students to go to the lab, so they could sieve out their samples. I was processing the samples from the sediment core. And when they were done with their own samples, the students helped me with those. That was lovely!

After the lab session I brought the students back to headquarters, where I picked up the other group. With them I did the same as I had done the previous day with the first group; we first had a discussion about sampling strategy. And I suppose there is one most obvious strategy to follow, so this group ended up doing the same as the previous group. I just had the impression they were enjoying it a lot less. But it did so happen that they were faster. Maybe because they weren't spending time on having fun.

On the sandflat

The day after that I had a lab session with this group, after which I brought them to headquarters. There was only one fieldwork activity left now! This was making progress. Once the field trip properly starts, it flies by. And then we quickly switch back to campus mode. Time for field notebook marking, and lectures about how to turn all the data into a coherent report…

Field trip: coring

On the Tuesday of the field trip, the day after the one that was cancelled because of the weather, I was going to take the students coring. It would be the day with the best weather of the whole field trip. We would do two rounds: the morning and the afternoon shift. Whoever was not coring would be doing geophysics with Dei. 

I figured we would just go to where we had been the year before. We had the coordinates. I would be able to find it unaided, but I wanted the students to practice with GPS. While we were still trying to get the GPSs to give us the coordinates in the right format, Jaco suggested we go somewhere he knew would be good. I was up for that, even though there was a bit of a risk; he took us to where I had been doing a recce with Martin, so I knew how discontinuous the stratigraphy was there. But he accidentally immediately hit a location where indeed you quickly hit recognisably different layers. So we stuck with it.  

We did the talking as usual: I set the scene, and I explain how core logging works, and then Jaco gets up close and personal with the sediments to describe them, and gets the students to do the same. It takes quite a while to do a core description of even a rather short core. But I thought the results were looking good. And I took samples.

When the first group was done we went back to the vehicles, and then to where the geophysics was taking place. They were just done as well, so we had lunch together, on the sunny beach. It was very pleasant! And then we did the switch-over.

I wanted to take the same core twice with the two groups of students, and it pretty much worked out that way. That saves them some time! The students get a lot on their plate for this fieldwork, so I thought one short core is more than enough.

When we were done we brought the materials back to our headquarters, and then we could go home. It had been a fairly long day. Not that long that I in theory couldn't have gone to the track, but I hadn't had dinner yet, and I hadn't brought my running gear. So home it was! Probably for the better. This was going to be a busy and tiring week!

PDR

A busy week was made busier! The one morning I didn’t have to be in the field, my personal development review was scheduled. I had made sure to fill out the form. It turned out to have been last year’s version. It didn’t look different from the new one, but apparently, close scrutiny would reveal relevant details. Oh well. 

I have my meetings with the Head of School (John) and the Director of Teaching and Learning (Dei). That leads to some meandering conversations! Staying on topic isn’t always Dei’s strongest point. But this time, we had a curfew. I needed to pick students up from Bangor not much later! 

We did the usual talking about teaching and teaching management and other roles, and we got a bit sidetracked by the initiative to change the teaching on the non-biological side. It turned out that John didn’t know what was going on. Informing him wasn’t really the aim of the PDR, but that’s the sort of usual derailment. 

Another thing that derailed a bit was academic integrity. I mentioned before that I had been lenient on a student, after which she filed a complaint for non-adherence to the regulations. Even though it had been to her advancement. I suppose she might have figured she could effectively be acquitted on the basis of a technicality. A risky assumption! But it may have paid off. If so, that means we send student into the world with good Bangor University degrees, even if they admit to having let AI write their dissertations. I think that’s wrong. But I don’t have the final say here. 

Since that incident I have been a veritable stickler for the rules. This resulted in me referring three students to the University’s academic integrity panel this summer. These students are now all three still in limbo. No panel meeting has yet taken place, and these students don’t know their fate, even though term is already starting. John knows this. So he knows I have agreed to become a jobsworth, and he has cold hard evidence for that actually happening. He still told me at least three times during the meeting I should be that jobsworth. Yes I know! And you know I know! And you know it’s actually happening. Now shut up about it. 

This will have been my last PDR with John, as he is retiring. I have no idea who his successor will be! PDRs might be quite different with someone else…

Welsh course 25/26 starts

I'm in Welsh class again. Online, as it has been since lockdown started. And this time, the course is provided by the north east Wales provider. All the major regions have their own. When courses are run locally, this is obviously crucial, but with online courses it matters that the vocabulary differs quite a lot between the regions. The biggest difference is the north vs south Wales divide. So having a slightly eastern provider doesn't matter much. And I saw a few familiar faces!

Last year I really really liked the class. It really dived deep into grammar. All sorts of things I had been unsure of now became clear. I loved it! But if you register for a course you have to do that on the basis of very little information. You don't know who the tutor is, you don't know what their focus will be. It's a bit of a guess every time.

In this first session, the main feature was a quiz in three parts. We were all teamed up with one partner and were encouraged to discuss the questions. Clearly a way to have us get to know each other, and talk about quite a wide variety of topics. I was teamed up with a bloke I had already been in an online class with before, so the getting to know people aspect didn't quite work.

The first part of the quiz of questions about Wales. And I have lived here for a long time, but I didn't know many of the answers. Things such as: how many cities are there in Wales? Where is the national film archive? What is the name of the headquarters of Welsh language TV channel S4C? I learned a lot.

The second part was general knowledge questions, but some were pretty difficult. What is the nickname of all the first nations for the North American continent? No idea! 

The third one was Welsh place names in emojis. I did quite well with that, if I can say so myself. The only ones I didn't get were of places I didn't know existed, like Caersws. 

We then talked a bit more about some of the topics. Huw, the tutor, took us to the website of the National film archive, and warmly recommended it. He also said that place names would be the theme of the next session, so if we could think of something on that topic, we were encouraged to let him know.

Then we got to the end. It had been pleasant! Not anywhere as spectacular as last year, but I am aware that that must have been a bit of an anomaly, I still have the course material, so I can go back to it! And maybe I am going to be sneaky and in spring, contact last year's tutor to see if she does anything up my street next year… 

From the National Film Archive website 

 

The field trip starts

The summer is officially over! The field trip has started. And it was properly autumnal. 

On the first day, which traditionally unfortunately falls in the weekend, we always do an introduction. The students don't actually take any samples or deploy any instruments; we just take them through the fieldwork area and talk to them. And this year, quite like last year, it looked like we would have to deal with challenging weather. There was a lot of rain forecast, and later in the day there would be a weather warning for wind.

For the fieldwork, we have a base in Newborough. We've had that for the last two years. It is lovely! And normally, we take the students there first. But this time we figured that the least bad weather would be in the morning, so we went straight from campus into the field. Martin did his first station in the rain. At least it wasn't very windy yet.

The landward end of the estuary 

The second location we normally visit is where I do most of the talking. And it was actually as good as dry! That was bonus.

We decided to go straight to the end of the estuary after that. It was still dry, but the wind was surely picking up. And that is cold, and tiring, and difficult to shout over. So we had a look at the beach and the dunes west of Llanddwyn, and the same east of Llanddwyn, and then we decided to retreat to our base. There we would have lunch. That meant we skipped quite a lot of locations! But sometimes you have to be pragmatic.

View over the open sea

We showed the students the base, and the tea and coffee making facilities. And after lunch we changed the ballroom into a working room. We let them finalise their notes for the first day; making notes in rain or strong wind is difficult, so they had to do some of it afterwards. And while they were doing that, the window outside picked up. We were glad we were indoors! 

Martin had decided that the next day, when the weather warning was still enforced, he will cancel all fieldwork activities. He would be able to manage to either slot things in later in the week, or think of an alternative. I was a bit disappointed that the day that got cancelled towards the only day I wasn't scheduled. I am by far the person with the most time input, for reasons of micropalaeontology being a slow discipline. But now the only people getting a break were those who had a rather light load anyway! But well, that’s how it worked out. 

I would have that day for normal office work. And then it would be three days from early to late for me! I just hoped the weather wouldn't be too atrocious…

Marshalling the British and Irish Junior mountain running Championship

Arwel had asked for help with a youth race, and Neil and I were available. And it was in y Fron, where Neil had never been. I like that area! I figured he would too.

I made a point of driving there the touristic route. And we managed to find a parking spot. Soon I was reporting for duty. 

Arwel asked us to stand in a bend in the path, making sure the runners would go right and up the hill. It was the only logical way to go, but still, it’s best if it’s very obvious. We went there, and had some time to kill before the runners would appear. Neil went on a recce. 

On our way to the marshalling stations

Looking down on the bend where my marshal station was

Then I heard whooping and cheering. They were on their way! First the under 17s came past. Most were in nation shirts: Wales, England, Scotland, Ireland and Nothern Ireland. Some were in club shirts. They looked serious! And in no time they had all passed. 

Here they come! 

Neil and I started our way back down. The next race, of the under 20s, wouldn’t start for a while. But we ended up chatting with other people, and then saw the runners come back. We stayed to cheer them on again. And then went back to our post. Repeat! 

There was one incident with a girl rolling her ankle. That’s bad enough as it is, but her dad had found out that it had happened, without seemingly knowing where she was, or how exactly she was cared for. He got quite agitated and took it out on Ann, who was marshalling too. And in touch with Arwel, who happens to be her husband. I’m glad he calmed down and apologised. I’m sure the girl was ok in the end. 

When it was all done, Neil and I went on a little walk, checking out Moel Tryfan with its amazing conglomerates, and the nearby quarries. And we caught up with Arwel who had retrieved the last signage from the course. And then went back home. A nice day with duty and pleasure combined! 

Dark industrial ruins in the distance 

Volcanic dyke in a slate quarry 

Extensions: no more?

I had only started to man the extension request centre in July. And that's a quiet time. I was getting mentally ready to this is becoming very hectic when term started. But before term even did that, I got a message. Administrative staff were going  to take over this task. Before I had even properly started! I thought it was fab. I could think of nicer things than getting into the office and having to deal with 100 extension requests before you can start on your ‘normal’ work. So I got away so lightly! 

Meeting Neil's sister

Neil has a sister he really gets on well with, and as it so happens, she was going to be in the area for a few days. Obviously they met up. And he hadn't yet told her about me. But when they met in person, he did tell her, and she immediately became keen on  meeting me. And so it happens that two days later, I went to his place to meet her and her husband, after which we would all go to a nearby pub for a meal.

Neil had warned me that while he talks a lot, the only person in the world who talks even more is his sister. It is a bit of a word tornado to meet them both at the same time! But she is lovely. And the sister's husband even sometimes gets a word in edgeways. He is lovely too.

We had a great time! I was really pleased to meet her, and I had the impression it was reciprocal. I've been introduced to the family! Quite a big step…

Talwrn to Llanbedrgoch race

I thought the season of Wednesday night races was over! What with the evenings drawing in. But I was wrong. And when I saw 5K race I had never heard of, on Anglesey, I couldn't resist the temptation. It would be a few days after the Caernarfon Half marathon, which was long enough a break, as far as I was concerned.

The race went from Talwrn to Llanbedrgoch. That's a bit unusual; normally the start and finish are at the same location. This created a bit of a logistic question. Would I park at the start, and just run back after the race? Or would I park at the finish and run the course in reverse as a warming up? Or would I make things easier on myself? I went for the last option. I decided to drive to the finish with my bicycle in the back of the car, bike to the start, run the race, then drive back to the start to retrieve my bike, and then go home. That sounded fine to me.

I also realised, looking at the map of where the race might actually go, that it came past Jenny's house. I dropped her an email. Maybe she was home and wanted to wave? But she was away. She did point out that her husband was running it.

The weather forecast wasn't too bad, but I wasn't taking chances so I did wear my waterproof jacket and helmet cover when I biked to the start. And that was not futile! Within minutes, it absolutely came down in buckets. And there was nowhere to shelter. I was soaking in my shoes before I had even reached the start.

On the way to the start, after the deluge

It didn't take me long to park up, register, and go to the loo. Then I had to wait a bit. Initially I just kept my jacket on and my bag with me. There was a bag drop; your stuff would be transported to the finish in a van. That's handy, but it did mean you couldn't lose your extra clothes at last minute. And it was still raining. And I found Jenny's husband and had a nice chat with him.

When there was noise coming from the start and I figured they were doing the race briefing, I stripped down to what I was going to wear in the race, handed in my bag, and went to the start, where it turned out there was a warmup going. And now I was rather scantily dressed for the temperature, so I enthusiastically participated. 

Finally it was time to actually lineup. It was Kevin, one of the trainers of Track Tuesday, who was sounding the starting horn. Even though he was running the race himself! That must have been a bit slapstick. But I was too busy starting to pay attention.

Kevin about to start us off

I knew we would start uphill. I had a pace in mind for the whole race, but I knew that it would be futile to try to run it from the start. I was running at some pace that felt good. And I was keeping an eye on a few people. In the beginning I was leapfrogging with old rival Arwel, and I could see in the distance Richie, who I had beaten a number of times recently, including on Sunday, but he had remarked then that one day he would be the one beating me. Which I had confirmed. This might be the day! I also saw Laura, who also runs Track Tuesday, and who I normally leave behind.

It was dry now. The kilometres ticked by, and things were going ok, but I figured there were still a lot of women in front of me. And it was likely to stay that way. Emma was there, and I figured she would win (like she did with e.g. the Caernarfon half and the Breakwater 5 mile) but there were a lot of other fast women.

When we only had one kilometre to go I realised I was not too far from Laura. I decided to make a concerted effort to overtake her before the finish. And it worked! I could hear she was straining a bit, and I still had some more in the bag. So I got past. And then I finished.

Laura and me near the finish

It wasn't a really good time but I was okay with that. I just went to have a nice chat with some other Eryri Harriers, including Ian, who had won in the male category. And Emma had obviously won in the female category. And I went to congratulate Richie, and confess to Laura I felt a bit self-conscious about overtaking her so close to the finish. She thought that that was exactly what you are supposed to try to do in a race, and she did have a point. I also had another chat with Jenny's husband.

I’d done it in 21:59. A lot slower than my PB on the 5k! But you can't have your day every time. And I was 6th woman, which is good, but only 3rd in my category, which by my standards is pretty bad. And I had almost been 4th in my category if I wouldn't have overtaken Laura.

Then they did the presentation. Except Ian and Emma I didn't know any winners. The fastest under 18 was a 12-year-old boy! It's quite amazing if he can outrun any 16- and 17-year-olds out there. And Arwel had missed out on a category win by one second.

Emma receiving her prize

Then it was time to go home. Arwel wanted a lift back to the start, which I was happy to give him. I had to go there anyway! And we had a nice chat (in Welsh) on the way there. I didn't realise he had worked for the university as well! Before he retired. And he tried to recruit me as a marshal for a race on Saturday.

When we got back to Talwrn I put the bike back in the car, and could go home. It had been a nice race! And I suppose it now is the season for getting seriously rained on on race day. I might as well get used to it!

Getting a professional massage

When I went to the Netherlands, I obviously didn’t sleep in my own bed. And something about that didn’t agree with me. I sleep in my mum’s spare bed every time I travel back to the Netherlands, and it's always fine, but this time I must have been lying in a funny position, and I woke up with a loudly complaining muscle in my neck. It was rather unpleasant.

This sort of thing just goes away by itself in a few days. Normally, anyway. Not this time. The rest of my time in the Netherlands I was still be bothered by it, and even when I got back. I got fed up with it.

Some of my colleagues had alerted me to the existence of some health clinic on the Menai Strait high street, close to my office: Leaf Health. Both Chris and Susan had gone for a massage, and spoke highly of the experience. That sounded like a good place to start! So I booked me a remedial massage.

The masseur started with asking me why I was there, which was easily explained. Then he set to work. He first did some general back mobility things, and then focused on the problem area. I didn’t take him long to find it! And he went for it with his entire body weight. It was good.

After a while he said that if he would do any further manipulation it would become too much, so did I have any other ailments? And I mentioned my IT band. And he used the rest of the time to work on that. That was painful but it felt good. And at the end he gave me a few exercises, for both neck and IT band. He said I should work on the strength in the particular muscles that has been sore in my neck, and the flexibility of my IT bands and associated structures. Then he demonstrated them there and then, but he said he would send me recordings of the exercises in an app.

I went back to the office, feeling a whole lot better. And the days after I still felt a lot better. That was all due to the massage, and not the exercises; I did receive a message later that day about them, and I did manage to install the app, but I was a bit frustrated he had sent me 16 exercises, for my neck only. That's too much! Am I supposed to choose myself? That's his expertise!

Things didn't improve when it turned out that for some reason, I couldn't actually see the videos of the exercises. And just the thumbnail and name wasn't enough. I think I'll stick with what he demonstrated live, and hope I remember it correctly.

I hope I will get neither neck problems nor IT band problems any time soon! But if I do, I know where to go. And in the meantime I'll try to improve myself with the few exercises he demonstrated there and then…

Eight of the sixteen neck-related exercises he sent me

Project Strava terminated

I wanted to have a picture with all my Strava activities. I suppose my main motivation was to keep anyone following my account entertained. But then I became a bit too aware of the environmental cost of data. Every picture you take, that ends up in the cloud, requires some server somewhere whirring away in a big water-cooled data centre. Not good! So I stopped. If it is a big exciting hike or a very beautiful run I still do it, but I have stopped taking pictures of every commute. I must say that trying to find something photogenic in every commute made me appreciate the route even more than I already did. But I can appreciate it just with my eyes from now on. And if any Strava followers are bored, then so be it. Maybe those who never uploaded pictures anyway were just very environmentally friendly!

The last commute picture I took

Infrared update

Three weeks after the installers of my infrared panels left mid-task, I finally got a message from the company about the way forward. They said they would come back and finish the work when the small panels, that fit between the ceiling joists, would be available again. The installer had said that would probably be December! So it will be well into heating season that I might get these panels wired in and functioning. That’s a bit of a bummer. It also means I can’t really remediate the damage done until then. And there are no guarantees, of course, that it actually will be December. Oh well. I will have to wait. So be it! 

The bedroom ceiling after I had tidied up 

Wires terminating in the little cupboard with my consumer unit 

Caernarfon half marathon

The time had come to improve my relationship with the Caernarfon half marathon. Last year I had run it, but about halfway along the course I had felt the need to put on two knee supports. My IT bands were playing up! They had done that for the first time that May, and I had hoped a whole summer of physiotherapy exercises would have meant that by September, I would be okay again. I was not. I really struggled with the second half. These knee supports restrict movement in your knees. It was uncomfortable, and I felt like I was running like a scarecrow. And the good thing is that I still ran a personal best, and a category win, but it nevertheless felt like a disappointment. All that physiotherapy, and still this!

This year I had run the Snowdonia half marathon without problems, so I had faith I could do the same in Caernarfon. I didn't even bring knee supports. 

At the start I saw some familiar faces. And I made sure to start near the front, but not too much so. My aim was run just under 1:40. The previous year I had done 1:40: 20. Surely I could do better now? And that, aiming at 1:39, required a pace of 4:41. And, of course, you're not going to run that at all times, as there are some undulations in the route. But it is a good number to hold onto. Soon I more or less settled into that pace.

The weather forecast has been horrible, but reality was so much milder! It barely rained. It was actually quite good running weather. I hadn't brought any water as I figured more than enough of it would be falling out of the sky, so when that didn't happen I accepted a bottle at the first water station. I had a pocket for it in my running vest.

I made sure to think about the advice from my running coach. And the physiotherapist as well. Run wide-legged, and when in doubt, make big strides! I was glad to run past a particular junction where I knew I had already started to feel knee problems the previous time. And I ran past the 7 mile marker, in the vicinity of which I had felt the need to put my knee supports on the previous time. So far so good! Unfortunately, it did not last. By the time I reached the 9 mile marker (I had missed the 8 mile one) my left knee was definitely protesting.

I hoped I would just manage to keep running until the finish. I did think it was likely. It was not that far anymore. And I also soon got some encouragement: a bloke on the side said I was in seventh position. That was so much better than I thought I would be! That cheered me up.

I did keep an eye on whether any women would be trying to overtake me, but I saw none. I did get overtaken by a few blokes in the last few miles, but I was okay with that. I wasn't very fast anymore, with that struggling knee! I was just trying to keep going, hoping no women would come running past. One guy overtook me towards the end of the bicycle path, and asked if we would have to run around the castle again. I confirmed that. He sounded like he wanted it over with by now!

When I was already in town, a race official on a bicycle came zipping past. He said I was undoubtedly on my way to a category win, again. How does he know that? Last year I didn't show up for the presentation. But I suppose he must be from Run Wales, and it's true I get a lot of category wins in their races.

I plodded my way to the actual finish. The last marshal I saw was Ian from the Thursday sessions. We enthusiastically yelled at each other. And then I was in. I wasn't really out of breath; I had spent some six kilometres not being able to run as fast as my lungs could carry me. And I went to collect my race T-shirt and medal, and then my bag. And I chatted with some other finishers. Then I made my way to where the presentation would be. This time I would stay!

Finishing pic

The official results were not publicised, but it became clear I had indeed run a category win. In a time of 1: 38:57. For that you need a pace of 4:41. Crikey! That was rather precise. And Emma, the Dutch lady who wins lots, had also won this race! That was fab.

Me with my loot! Pic by fellow runner 

As this race was in the Welsh Championships (like e.g. the Breakwater race), there was another presentation afterwards, where I obviously also had a category win, so I ended up with three medals around my neck. But then it was time to go to the toilet and head for my car. Time to go home, and shower!

Another thing I did was order knee supports that are, as far as I can tell, better suited to IT band problems than the ones I have. They should not limit your movement so much. So they should be a lot more comfortable. And hopefully, at least as effective. Next year I want to run this race again, and preferably faster than this time. I might need some strappy aids to help me do that!

Marshalling the youth fell running championships

At the end of the Caernarfon 10k, one of the Eryri Harriers legends spotted me, and asked if I perhaps available to marshal some youth races on the Great Orme in early September. And I said I was. And when I phoned him about the details, after returning to the Netherlands, he asked me to be at the Great Orme summit café at 10 am. I could do that. And even better; Neil, who lives nearby, was happy to come with me. 

The races were the North Wales Junior Mountain Running Championships, under the umbrella of the Welsh Fell Runners Association. There were six age categories, from under 9 to under 19.

We rocked up and immediately found Mike, who was the one who had roped me in. He told me where he wanted me to be stationed. It was really close by. I had to point the kids down the hill. And the first race, starting at 10:30, had only six runners. So that was over in no time!

We went back to race HQ as Mike had said we weren't needed now until the races that started 11:50. He changed his mind, though, so we were also put to use in some races in between. This time we were on the other side of the summit. That was actually a better position! Better views, and a better shelter from the wind. And the course looked quite nice. And something I would consider running! The short races, that didn't go past where we were initially stationed, didn't seem to have any steep downhill in them. But that was an academic question, of course, as these were youth championships. Still nice to appreciate the routes!

The scene: Bishop’s Quarry on the Great Orme, for the shorter races. In full screen you can see a race going on in the distance, on the left. Mike (in hi viz ) is walking past the tape indicating the funnel to the finish.

When even the longest races, for the oldest kids, had gone past we were told we could stand down. We took some route markers with us and went back to hand in my bib and radio. Then we decide to actually take down all the other markers on ‘our’ side of the summit as well. And lastly, Neil wanted to have a little look at how the repair of the broken cable was going. One has an interest in electricity or one doesn't! And then we could return home. We may have watched the future of North Wales off-road running! 

Neil official

Even slightly less observant readers will have noticed a certain enthusiasm for Neil om this blog recently. He made his first appearance in late July, when we started exploring the Penmaenmawr quarries. From then on, we saw each other regularly, and a fair few of our meetings were reported here. 

By now we have decided to officially be a couple. And Neil is quite private, so I will be conservative in what I say here about him. I have, by the way, permission for this post. 

I hope he will maintain a long and enjoyable (be it restricted) presence here on the blog. And a more unrestricted one in my life. Time will tell! 

Neil and me on our camping trip

Back home

All went well with my travels back to the Netherlands so I was home on time! That was great. I popped into the shop on my way to my car. And soon I was snuggling the cat again. 

Back home! 

I had happened before, the house was cleaner when I got back then when I had left. I suppose I wasn't the only one who wanted to make a good impression. The cat sitter would also benefit from a good review on the house sitter website, and she sure deserved to get one. (The day after I came back I wrote one.) And the cat was relaxed. I couldn't ask for more!

She had also left some foodstuffs in my house. A full box of eggs, and a bottle of milk with a tiny bit left in it. I don't normally buy eggs, nor milk (although I have oat milk), and I saw my chance. The first evening I was home I just cooked something very quick, but the second one I decided to make pancakes. You can have these with spinach and cheese and then it's a meal! And if you end up with more pancakes than you can eat, you have leftovers for lunch. What's not to like.

The most important thing is a happy cat, of course, but it's also nice to find your beloved house in good shape when you come back from a trip. And if it ends in pancakes it's even better!

Heading home

I had booked a rather early train from Amsterdam back to the UK. And by chance, I would wake up in Amsterdam, so that was convenient. I would spend my last night at Viking’s, and sleep there. In the morning, I could just quietly do what needed doing, and slip out of the house. And that worked out. I spent a short but nice night in the guest room, even joined for a while by Simba the cat, and woke up at 6:15. I had a brief shower, I filled my hot and cold water bottles, and had a bit of time left for a small breakfast. Then I snuck out the door. 

It was a beautiful morning. I walked to the quay where the ferry departs, and had a lovely sunrise trip over ‘t IJ to Central station. There I brushed my teeth. The Eurostar would depart from a regular platform. I think only the one directly to London departs from the Eurostar terminal. 

View from the ferry 

Travel to Brussels went well, and getting through customs and security as well. The train to London departed on time. And in London I caught the earliest possible train to the northwest. All went well! There wasn’t even any issue with the train from Chester to Bangor. I think this may have been a record! Only 9.5 hours from Amsterdam to Bangor. Better than I could have hoped!