New and old practicals

The students who do the trip to Lleiniog do a practical afterwards, and I have never been a part of that. But last year, Mike thought he could improve on how this module was run, and suggested changes. We thought they were amazing, so they were implemented. And that involved a practical session on our Ocean Sciences campus, where the students describe a core that was taken as a part of his PhD project some 20 years ago. And given that I have done core description exhaustively, it would make sense to have me involved in that. So on the Monday after the beach trip, that kicked off.

The core is beautiful! And there is enough to see. Unfortunately, Mike, who doesn't have an awful lot of teaching experience, just told the students to go and describe it. If you've never done it before, you don't quite know how to start! So I found it quite tiring to look over their shoulders and check if they were doing everything the logical way. Apparently, it doesn't speak for itself that the top of the core should also be the top of the core log. Or that a core log has a linear depth scale. I think Mike is open to providing a bit more guidance next year.

The core. Pic by Mike

That same week I also had my own practical, that I have been doing for years. That was a lot more relaxed! I suppose all the difficulties have been ironed out over the years. But it did mean quite many hours with pretty much the same students in the same teaching lab in one week. But that's it now for this academic year! 

Eryri Harriers presentation night

After a lot of preparation from the committee, it all came together on the actual night! And you should see "night" here in a wide sense. Activities started at 4 pm, with a run we had tagged onto the night in an attempt to attract more people. I'm not quite sure if it worked. There were seven of us (and a dog) lining up in our fell running gear. I think all of us would probably have attended as well without the run. But at least we would get a nice run out of it!

The idea was to run the route of a new race in the Tuesday Evening Series. That's a series of short fell  races. This one will be quite long in that context. The furthest point would be Gyrn Wigau. 

In spite of the predictions, it was dry when we started, and we happily headed for the first public footpath into the hills. Mary, who was leading this run but not the race, was keeping an eye on the map. Where would the checkpoints be?

Soon we started to cross the valley. We were on the western range, and had to move to the next one along. The ridges are quite dry, but the valley is not. It was inevitable we would be coming out with soaking socks and shoes. Doesn't matter! We had dry clothes waiting for us.

View during the run

I was glad to reach the other side. Then it would just be a long ascent. That is what I am best at. But at some point I heard Mary shouting behind me. I waited for her to find out what that meant. We were running out of time! We had to cut the route short. So we did not actually reach Gyrn Wigau. It meant downhill pretty much the rest of the way. I am slow at that! But so be it.

We both got back in time for dinner, and before the rain started. Success! And it turned out that the cricket club, which was our venue for the night, had showers available to us. So I grabbed my dry clothes and headed for them. The first changing room was full of men, so I headed for the second one. That one turned out to have urinals! So I figured the men were actually in the wrong place. I went to go and tell them that before they were all in the showers.

Most of them left. One was reluctant as he was already far in his preparations. He politely asked if I was ok with him just staying. That was not very British of him! But I am not British at all, so I was fine with it. And there were two shower cabins so plenty of space for both of us.

When we were clean again we went into the room where the event took place. Time for some socialising and a drink. There were lots of lovely people! Neil had come too. We settled on a table with Borders League veteran Tony and his partner Lesley. 

Soon there was food. I was peckish! And then there were the awards. And handing them out was done, in my opinion, with a lovely balance between attention for the individual winners, but not dragging it out for the audience.

They started with the juniors. I don't know these, but it looks like we have some smashing kids in the club. And then we went onto the adults. And they were awards for the third, second and first finisher in the road, cross country and fell championships. I'm only competing in the first. And I had come second! So I got a little memento. In a way, the road championship was the most exciting, as all winners were actually there. Quite unlike the cross country and fell awardees!

Road championships winners

We also have special prizes: special achievement of a woman in fell running, most improved male, special contribution to the club, and outstanding athlete. The lady who had won the fell prize was away, but her mum was there to pick it up. Tony had Juan most improved male. I knew he knew he was up for an award, but also that he didn't know which one. It turned out to be this one I could see he got emotional. I thought that was sweet. He deserves it! But I could imagine that he had imagined that award would go to some young up and coming runner, while Tony is almost 60. But he has been in great form in spite of big medical problems. A worthy winner!

Special contribution to the club went to Helen, who has been our cross country chief for years. And he is also a Borders League stalwart. 

Outstanding athlete this year was Tinka, the superfast Dutch lady wins races like there is no tomorrow. A big one she won for instance was the She Ultra. She had been nominated a lot!

After the awards, our guest speaker took this stage. This was David "Jacko" Jackson, who turns out to be a former professional rugby player and now leading coach in breathing for runners. But in my circles, he is more well known for being my former colleague Suzie's brother. He did a great talk! And he was quite convincing saying that breathing is an under-emphasised aspect of running, and a lot of improvement can be made via that route. He also asked for a volunteer at some point, and I stepped up. It turned out he wanted the volunteer to shove a cotton tip into his nose. Well, if he's sure?

The club has arranged with him that he will do some sessions for us at mate’s rates. I sure will try to get a place on one of them! And I also bought his book.

That was the program of the evening over. There was a bit of time for socialising, but then everyone went home. It was a Sunday evening, after all.

I had greatly enjoyed myself, and fortunately, so had Neil. I know a lot more people, and I even got an award! So then it's easy to enjoy yourself. But it has been so well organised that it was for the likes of him as well. Success! And I will try and get first place in The road running championship next year. With Anna being pregnant, this would be the year to do it!

More ceiling work

This is actually a summary of two weeks’ worth of work. I didn't get around to blogging about it after one week. And then these two weeks, a fair amount of progress has been made making the downstairs bedroom ceiling look like a ceiling again, and less like a building site. We're leaving the little hall by the front door for now, as in the long run I also want an electric shower fitted, and the plumbing and wiring for that might have to go through the ceiling as well. No use putting a lot of effort in a ceiling that will be destroyed in a few months’ time again!

This round was basically entirely done by Neil. I did other chores while he worked on the ceiling. I didn't want to get in his way, or compete with him for things such as pallet knives and filler. I'm not even sure what I did the first weekend when he attacked the ceiling, but the second weekend I attacked the big gap in the wall in the living room, where you looked right at the repaired water pipe in the wall. Neil had suggested I first pack it with food or plywood or something, and then put filler over the top. So I started doing that. And I got quite far with it!

There is still a heck of a lot of work to do, but it's nice to see progress. And the ceilings will never look the way they looked in the beginning, but I'm sure we'll get them looking acceptable in the end!

The big work in the bedroom

Small holes getting inconspicuous 

Gash in living room wall having been packed

Parkrun on a whim

With a scarcity of races in March, I was feeling an itch. There had been the Borders League in Birkenhead on the 1st. There should have been a 10 miler in the 8th but it wasn’t run this year. The Borders League organised by the Wallasey Athletic Club on the 22th was hanging in the balance, as the local council was reluctant to approve it. And then there would only be the 10 miler on the 29th. 

I decided that, given the weather forecast was lovely, I should bike to Penrhyn Castle, do the Parkrun, and bike back. And I did! I had done something similar last year.

 

 

. 

It was sunny but not warm. Perfect! And I saw many familiar faces, like two Eryri Harriers brothers, who do every race under the sun, including the Borders Leagues. 

The running went fine. I wasn’t feeling very fast, but well, there was little at stake. It wasn’t too crowded for comfort, in spite of the great weather. 

I finished in 22:42. Quite slow! But that’s ok. And then I went home again. I still hope there will be a race on the 22nd. But if not, I just made the cold turkey less bad! 

Hedge halved

There is a beech hedge between my garden and that of the neighbour. It can’t be older than some 40 years, as that is how long these gardens have been associated with these houses. But that hedge is sizeable! Keeping it tidy, which I aim to do every year but clearly don't, it's quite some work. I have to deploy ladders or platforms, and then I still can't reach the top. So that grows out, in a rather disorganised way.

Before: seen from the house

Before: seen from the garden

One day I spoke with the neighbour and he suggested we find someone who is willing to cut it down to approximately half its size. That would still provide privacy, but make maintenance a lot easier. I loved it! So he organised it, and we split the bill.

It happened while I was at work, and when I came back the result was spectacular. I am quite glad we did this! I think I can know trim the whole hedge standing on the ground. That means I really don't have an excuse anymore to not do it every year…

After, seen from the house

After, seen from the garden

Annual Lleiniog field day

Field days in early spring are a bit of a gamble! It can be atrocious weather. But you can also be lucky. We have had both during our annual trip on the beach where the students log glacier and proglacial sediments. I've been doing that since 2018…

This year it looked like we would be lucky (unlike the previous time I had done it, in 2024; in 2025 I had missed it for reasons of timetabling). The forecast was ok and even the tide was on our side. And as usual, I was the first one on the beach. I make sure there are specific sections of the cliff demarcated; these are what the students describe. I can just pick whatever I find interesting! As long as the cliff above it looks stable.

In order to get onto the beach you need to squeeze past the stream

Atmospheric light in the morning

Look at those sediments 

When Lynda and the students arrived at quickly became clear that this was quite a switched-on group. Great! They went about it with little guidance. And before we knew it, we were rounding off, and put the students back on the coach they had come in. They would go to Bangor to do surveying, and the goal to bring the students back to us who had done that in the morning. The coach leaving was our cue to rush to Beaumaris and get some lunch. We managed that in good time!

Lynda explains things under a dramatic sky

Little groups of students by the cliff

Lynda is impressed by the sediments

Fossil corals on the beach

The second group is generally struggling a bit as they have already been battered by whatever the weather throws at them in the morning. It seemed that the surveying has taken place with much less shelter from the wind than we had had! But they were still quite on the ball.

By 4pm we were done and could leave the beach. A successful day, I would say! And we will see the same students again the Monday after, for a session in the lab. This was the first time I will be involved in that! Mike, with whom I have started to collaborate, had been re-organising this part of the module (but he had left the sediment logging on the beach the same). I think he's doing interesting stuff with it. I look forward to see how is next step will pan out! 

Bike path reopened

Work on the bicycle path started yonks ago! And as long as the work was going on, the part of the path leading out of the village was closed. And that meant biking on the main road. Not my favourite! 

First they removed all the gates and replaced them with a cattle tunnel. Then the path was open for a month, but then they started replacing a pedestrian bridge. That work took a long time! 

Now the work on the bridge is still not quite finished. The new bridge is still closed. They are connecting it to the road on the other side of the river. But on this side of the river, the path is now finished! And open! 

No fence anymore! You can just bike on! 

New bridge still closed, but now you can bike past

Will this last? I struggle a bit to imagine they won’t have to close it again when they in the end remove the old bridge. But let’s cross that bridge when we get to it. 

For now it’s lovely to not have to be on the road. For most of that stretch, the speed limit is 40mph, and especially when you are going uphill, that means a big speed difference. And the path is also a lot prettier. 

I will enjoy this for now! And I trust removing an old bridge is a quicker process than building a new one…