Borders League: Ellesmere Port

I wasn’t quite sure what a Borders League was, but I saw mention of it at the various places where the Eryri Harriers put their information. The races tend to be quite far away! But also, it became clear it was a club thing, and I tend to be attracted to competing for something that is bigger than me. I hoped to do the first one of 2025, which was conveniently nearby, but it got cancelled because of awful weather. So then it would be the second, in the metropole of Capenhurst, near Ellesmere Port, just over an hour away. 

I had asked on the appropriate website whether anyone wanted to car share, but I only got a request for a ride back from the race. There were 13 Harriers signed up! So that response was not much. But more than nothing. I drove up alone and marvelled at the crowds of runners already flocking to race HQ. There were so many! Even though this was only open to clubs! 

I parked up and started walking to HQ. Along the way I met Anna, who was the club contact person for this race, and Sam, who would be my passenger on the way back. At HQ I first went to the loo, and then socialised a bit with the other Harriers. I found out a bit more how it all works. And I stripped down to shorts and my club vest. It was too warm to wear more! And soon after that we all went to the start. 

Blurry club pic

With this stellar turnout I was not going to start at the front. So when the starting signal was given, I was in a crowd. That was okay! It wasn't a slow crowd. And I quickly could go at my own pace. And I had imagined things to be very competitive, but, of course, like everywhere else you end up running with people who run at the same speed as you. It's just that everybody is wearing a club shirt!

The first lap went quite fast. And when I got to the last 2 miles I was wondering who I could still overtake. There were women in sight! And I managed to get past several of them. When I got quite close to the finish I overtook a lady from Chester Triathlon Club. And then saw a Deeside lady I might just about pass before the path would get narrow near the finish. And I did get past her as well! But while I was doing that, the Chester lady came sprinting past. She left us in her dust. And that is how we finished.

Entering the second lap

I seem to have a canine admirer

Approaching the finish just ahead of the Deeside lady

I got my finishing token, and had a small chat with other finishers. Then I went to have my results documented. And did a bit more chatting with fellow Harriers. And then it was time to put on another layer and head home. Sam agreed. 

We chatted the whole way to Llanfairfechan. And then I was almost home. 

I had enjoyed that! And I had met my expectations. I had figured I’d need 35 minutes, and that was indeed the case. And my Strava said I had set a new PB on the 5K of 21:14. I clearly hadn’t done a Parkrun in years! But I had to wait for the official results to know more. I had done 34:39, and finished as 38th woman out of 125. Not bad! And the Eryri Women had a chance of promotion; had we got closer to that? I think so! Our result had been the best of the season. And I figured I should do the next Borders League race as well…

Another promo event on the Thursday Night

One of my first Thursday Night Hill trainings was a Hoka promo event. We got to try out some Hoka’s on the local trails. I quite liked them! And I have a pair now myself. And there would be another event like that; this time with both trail shoes (from Altra) and head torches (from Silva), again in Crib Goch in Llanberis. 

In the shop we got our shoes and torches. They both felt good. And then we were off. We hadn’t been on the trails for ages! But I had opted for the brighter of the two torches on offer, so I could see where I was going really well. And since Moel Eilio and its aftermath I was a bit apprehensive about nighttime trail running, but we headed for pretty decent trails, north of the lake.

It was a stunning evening! We first had some last twilight, and later on an almost-full moon. And the trails were beautiful. 

My snazzy shoes

Purple evening light

Last twilight

The moon (and my Silva) taking over 

Night over Llanberis 

Moon has the hills to itself 

We didn’t run anywhere as far as we normally do, but that was ok. We got some good ascent in for an only 8km run! And then we went back to the shop. And there were even pizza’s and drinks waiting for us. I didn't have a drink, as the beer had alcohol in it and I wasn't up for a sugary soft drink, but I did help myself to some pizza. It was quite nice!

So what did I think of shoes and torch? The shoes were alright, but I am probably not due another pair in years. And the torch was lovely, but also cost an arm and a leg. So if I would make running in the dark a serious hobby I would probably go for it, but for now I pretty much only run in the dark on the Thursday night. And the head torches I already have will do for that. But it was a nice night!

Another BU IWD event - this time with Ukrainians

The week before, there had been an International Women's Day event at the university about women in sports. But there was another one, about resilience in wartime. I read the program. It was a bit of a hotchpotch! There would be a delegation from a Ukrainian university we seem to have some sort of connection with, and one of the guys in natural sciences would talk of having spent a week in Ukraine taking soil samples. And then things would turn Welsh, and there would be several speakers talking about a lady who had instigated a big petition for peace in Wales in the 1920s, and whose portrait would be revealed. And there would be Ukrainian refreshments.

I decided to go. I sat down in a room that wasn't very busy. After a while I saw a lady from the school of Computer Science and Engineering come in. I beckoned her and she sat with me. We know each other from lots of online meetings. I think this was the first time we spoke in person!

Then it started. Again, Morag opened the proceedings. And the first speaker was the VC of Khmelnytskyi University. He spoke in Ukrainian! And his colleague was translating. If he didn't speak English then I suppose this whole event must have been very dull for him. He just gave some facts about the university. The next speaker was the translating lady, who spoke about all sorts of things: what the state of the gender gap in higher education in Ukraine was like, what sort of EDI policies the government had issued, what the extent was of the damage to particular universities in the country, how various female VCs had dealt with this, and more. It was a whole lot! And it was very interesting. 

The VC of the Ukrainian university doing his thing

The next speaker was local: Christian Dunn, the bloke of the soil samples. He knows how to tell a story. And I was glad to hear that his preliminary conclusion was that the amount of pollution all the bombardments had caused was not so much you couldn't do agriculture there anymore. But he stressed he needs to do more work before he has robust findings.

Then we made the switch to Charlotte Price White. She was a leading suffragist, a local counsellor, and one of the members of the Women's Institute from the very beginning. And she was one of the people who organised the big peace petition by the women of Wales. They gathered almost 400,000 signatures, in 1923! The population wasn't even that much smaller back then, but it was a lot of work to get the signatures. The women gathering them generally would just walk from door to door.

The pro-VC spoke of his initiative to try to get more diversity in the university portraits, and there were several recent additions on display. And then Charlotte Price White was revealed. She looked good!

The new painting being revealed by the painter herself, watched by the pro-VC

There was also a short lecture in Welsh from a lady from the National archive in Aberystwyth about this peace petition. And then the event was over. There was 25 minutes to spare.

The peace petition talk

The next things should have been Welsh and Ukrainian refreshments, but these had been booked for the official end of the event, so we weren't there yet. I decided to leave. It had been a bit of a confusing event with 2.5 hours of talking without a break, and with wildly differing topics, although war was in all of them. So a bit weird, but well worth it!

Red Wharf Bay with new crew

We go to Red Wharf Bay every year. It is routine! But this year would be a bit different. Katrien had let me know she couldn’t make it this time, so I recruited Kate instead. Later, Lynda said she was unavailable as well. This was an exodus! But I managed to also recruit Finley. And we would have Mike, who is increasing his teaching load. It would only be Jaco and me as the regulars! 

The weather was sunny but cold. Good enough! And whether it was the cold or not, when our first coach arrived, the student s immediately started boarding it. Works for me! I had told everyone to be there 15 minutes beforehand, so when all were inside 5 minutes before scheduled departure, I thought we could go. In just one coach! The 72-seater fitted everyone. Then a flustered-looking student appeared by the door, and we let him in too. Then we were off! 

The coach didn’t bring us all the way, as it might not be able to turn in the cramped parking lot, but it’s not a far walk. By the sea front we met the staff that had travelled directly. And then we could divide into groups and go. 

I think it went well! I had a responsive group. And we got through the trip smoothly. So smoothly, even, that my group had a bit of time to spare. And there is a cafe in the bay. Five students joined me there for a hot chocolate. That was nice! 

Sunny beach

Then it was time to get everyone on the coach again, and go home. Finley travelled on the coach as well; all the others were using their own transport. So I didn't really get to do a debriefing with anybody other than her. She felt she had been thrown in the deep end but she had come out on top! And I think in general it had been a success. And the next week we were scheduled to do the other trip. I hope that goes equally well!

No job losses in SOS

Bangor university, like many universities, is in financial trouble, and I feared a rerun of the financial trouble caused by the pandemic. Then we had to fight to keep our jobs! But this time there wasn’t an invitation to an ominous meeting. The talk going around was less pessimistic. And then one day, The Dean of the College came over to present the situation to us with the Head of School.

In the meeting, they explained that we as a School were doing so well we should have more staff, not less. And the university wasn't going to salami-slice all the schools this time. The big cuts were going to fall elsewhere, for instance in the School of Psychology and Sports Science. That is really bad news for them, but it really looks like this time, SOS is escaping the guillotine. So quite unexpectedly, I am not fearing for my job.

It is difficult to see where this is going in a larger context. Not a day goes by or another university is in the news, announcing job cuts. And the government doesn't have any money either, so they won't support us. This could be quite a pivotal time for universities in the UK! We'll see what the situation is 10 years for now. But probably, Ocean Sciences will still exist…

Colwyn Bay 10 mile

10 Miles used to be my favourite distance! Back in the days. It's long enough to really give you an idea you've done something, but it's not quite as demanding as a half marathon. So when there was a 10 mile race on offer, I registered for it. And I was lucky; this should have been the Rhyl 10 mile, but there seems to be a problem with the route in Rhyl so the race has moved to Colwyn Bay, which is nicer, and also closer by.

I also thought it would be a nice way of testing out my knees! Normally it is either the 10k, which my knees don't have a problem with, or the half marathon, which has led to me desperately needing knee supports at my last two attempts last year. So a 16k route might be an excellent way of testing the water. Could the physiotherapy I still do, plus the advice from my impromptu running coach, keep me going this time?

Marjan would come and support me, so slightly too early we met up so we could drive to the venue together. There was still be plenty of parking space! And plenty of time to go to the loo, and then get my race number. And then go to the loo again. And some 10 minutes before the start I made sure to be somewhere near the front. There were three distances: 5, 10 and 20 miles, and everybody started at the same time. Some 600 runners in all!

At the start. Pic by Run Wales

It was an absolutely gorgeous day! It was sunny, and there wasn't much wind. We would run East from the start, so I made sure to wear my sunglasses. I was wearing a T-shirt under my club shirt. And I had two knee supports in my running vest. I was hoping I would not need them! 

At the start I made sure to run at a decent base, but not too fast. I wasn't chasing anything. This was guaranteed to be a PB on the distance, given that I hadn't done a 10 miler since 2012, and these had been off-road. And it was a big race; I didn't expect to have a chance of having a podium position anyway. So I could just run in ways that I thought it would be good for my knees.

The route was straightforward: just follow the coastline until the turnaround point, and then follow the coastline back. And it was nice! People were in a good mood. I had a nice chat with several other competitors along the way.

I fairly soon realised I was wearing a bit much. Maybe these people in tank tops were on to something! But too late now.

My knees were feeling OK. I was trying to do everything my coach had suggested today. And it seemed to work! When I hit 10k, I knew there was only 6k left, and these knee problems arise slowly. No sign of them yet! And 11k was still good, as was 12 and 13. It was going to be fine!

When I knew there was only 5k left to go I wondered if I could still overtake any women, but I didn't see any that seemed within reach. But in the last mile I spotted one. I thought I could take her on! I had no idea if she was running the 10 mile or 20 miles; those doing the latter were just doing the course of the former twice. But it was worth a try. And I managed! I still had fuel in the tank and got past her. And from the colour of her race number I saw she was indeed also doing 10 miles.

My estimate for my time had been 75 minutes (well, rounded off from 79). I wasn't far off! I was just over 76. Well within the error margin. And behind the finish I spotted Marjan again. 

At the finish. Pic by Marjan

Afterwards

I drank some water, got my medal and T-shirt, and asked how I had done. I had come second in my category. So no additional medals. Fair enough! The winning lady in my category had only needed 69 minutes. Not something I could do. 

I should stick with my coach’s advice as it seems to pay off, so Marjan and I went back to the car, where I drank my recovery shake. And then we went for a coffee at the seafront. A nice way of finishing things off!

In the end it became clear I had done it in 1:16:13 and come in as 7th woman (of 101), 36th person overall (of 206). Excellent results! And what was more important: I had faith I might be able to do a half marathon again…

Dual chairs

I like comfortable chairs. Who doesn’t? The cat does too. But I especially like comfortable chairs that fit through my narrow doors. 

I had imagined a comfortable chair in the upstairs bedroom. And one day, Neuadd Ogwen was chucking away some chairs, that looked both fairly comfortable and fairly small. I thought ‘this is a sign from providence’ and nicked one. And I temporarily put it in the conservatory. And as things happen, then I didn’t get around to moving it. 

Then we had some stunning spring days. The cat considered the conservatory again. She loves snoozing in the sun on the resident chair there! And then I realised that maybe, the new chair is exactly where it should be. She can have the original comfy chair, and then I can have the other one, and stroke her while doing whatever else it is I want to do there. Drink coffee and read the newspaper, for instance. Perfect! That chair stays…