The Mighty Deerstalker report from our very own mighty deertslker

After two or three false starts from home (forgot the race pack and maps) and a few twinges in the back to remind me of my visit to the osteopath the day before I finally made it to Innerleithen mid afternoon in plenty of time for registration and for the pre race nerves to kick in nicely. As the race is planned to start at 5.30pm with a threat of delay should the day prove too bright I was relieved when we started more or less on time. Having been warned that the best way to beat the queues at each discipline was to get on a good start I set with the thousand odd other people up the first hill and over the wall of bales. There was then a nice steady run along roads and through the park...this was going to be an easy run.....The First discipline;- THE PONDS looks like wet grass until you jump in and suddenly you are up to your waist. Immediately refreshed by the icy water I headed off up the first proper hill, I decided from the outset that I would walk the steep bits having been left behind whilst running by a power walker. The relief at the top was soon overtaken by the descent through the trees. Having tried to control my descent I soon realised that it was better to go with the flow....literally and hope that the legs would keep up. Back onto a flat road which felt strange at first but soon I was wading up the middle of a river. After this came the incline to the SCREE SLOPES. I was quite happy to reach this still in the daylight but wishing I had set off in only T shirt and shorts as my now drenched leggings were trying to get down to knee level. The soaked gloves in my jacket pocket gained me a few pounds too. On to the scree slopes, having tried to pass somebody below once I soon re joined the line and waited my turn. Then over the balance poles at the top of the hill followed by one more delightful steep descent on grass with no trees to grab in order to slow the downward motion. A brief run on the flat then another steep down through trees meant the head torch was now a necessity. Then came for me the worst part which was a very short but steep incline from the edge of the river resulting in exploding calves, down into the town where both the calves simultaneously cramped leading to a decision between stopping and stretching or running on my heels. The heel running released the muscle cramp and I continued at a less than fast pace not knowing what was coming up next. This proved to be a disorientating but uneventful run back to the race village. Finally with the end in sight I was spurred into life by someone trying to overtake me under the scrabble net and managed to put an entire 2s between him and me by the finish line. Then the hardest part of all...untying the chip out of my laces....I advise anyone to remove your shoe...not bend. A fantastic ceilidh then began but unfortunately so did my three hour drive home. Next year I will take the tent! I felt great the day after but now calves and bottucks are as tight as a very tight thing.

Time 1:53:18 Position 226/1000 odd registered 833 finishers

Lovely day

After waving Garret off to his Mighty Deerstalker run (he tried to sneak back a few time but we eventually got him away, and Toby off to work the girls and I cycled to the stables (Garret took my car because his..well, that's another story) for a bit of R and R, riding and restoration. Glorious weather and good exercise for the one who had to run along side......

Snowy run

The layers were being stripped off today as Liz and I grossly over dressed for a 7 miler round the roads from here. The Scottish west coast must be the only place with such a small amount of snow in the UK at present but it still makes your legs ache to run in. The weather was better than it looks on the photos, with just a little wind springing up on the way back in. Achey muscles eased by liberal application of hot, bubbly bath saturated water.....Liz had gone home by then.

Out of the mouths (eyes) of babes

I could truly see myself as viewed from a different standpoint last night when I collected the babysitter and prepared to hand over £12 to her in return for an hour of hard torture in the drizzle 22 miles away in Lochgilphead. Despite my jokes her pity was obvious that I should feel the need to do this (she was far too polite to even give away the thought "at your age")...I had the same thoughts myself on the 4th 400m sprint along the dark lochside at Ardrisaig where the pavement obviously doubles as a road for those uninhibited by the road edges. There were plenty of muddy tyre marks clipping and mounting the pavement in a worrying way,there was very little else to focus on apart from the sign that marked the 400m finish line, then turn and jog/stagger back. For light relief we ran back through the town, luckily the drizzle had diminished a bit by then. It must have been a harder workout than intended as once back at base I had the need to sit and contemplate the ground until my heart resumed the more usual rhythm. We like the beat..beat..beat..beat..beat better than the beat..beat..beat........beatbeat. Maybe the babysitter has a point.

"Don't knock the weather; nine-tenths of the people couldn't start a conversation if it didn't change once in a while". Kin Hubbard

As the weather is plainly not going to change at all Liz and I arranged to meet today (as one must in Argyll) and had a not unpleasant run from the Quarry at Furnace along the shore, then heading upwards before looping back eventually returning on the same shore road...wet, cold but satisfying.....1hr25 7.7m

Mud, Mud ,Glorious mud

Waved off another happy band of holiday makers this am...actually I sort of raised a muddy hand in their direction as they watched me floundering across the mud to feed Mrs Pig and the three little pigs. I could tell which was mud and which was pig because the pig shaped bits of mud were rushing towards me and my bucket oinking their opinion on the 12hrly feeding regime. So, the first Connectors arrive tonight and more tomorrow. The supermarkets in Inveraray seem to have become exclusive alcohol emporiums, mainly beer and vodka so some good deals to be had next week then, alas that they are the two kinds of demon drink that I cannot take to. Quick impromptu run this afternoon after my cycle training came to an abrupt end with an inappropriate gear change whilst on the trainer. I can put the kids chains back on but after 10 minutes of achieving nothing more that an oil hand pack I decided to leave it for those more skilled in the area of bike maintenance than myself.
Running total creeping up 13miles

"Nowt much 'as 'appened "as they say in Yorkshire.

A wee bit wet today..actually it is more than a wee bit,I did manage to grab the only semi dry 38 minutes of the day to get a run with the dogs and now it is coming down again. Quiet sort of day, I feel like a mother-in-waiting for the summer holidays.....

Run total 13.8 miles

Sunday

All hands to help today despite the tiredness lingering on from:-
1. Busy week away and too many late nights (girls)
2. Too many late nights watching TV cop shows (Toby)
3. Coping with 1. and 2. (me)
It took less than two hours to move the stones, re edge the area, re cover with a (hopefully) more robust weed mat and then regravel with chippings from Grandad's drive which is so thick with chippings that the coal lorry nearly sank last week.
Pig news flash. Mr Pig was tempted into the next field away from Mrs Pig and the three little pigs on Saturday as we do not wish the pitter patter of more tiny trotters just yet. He is not surprisingly not all that delighted with this arrangement but is settling down and likes his new sleeping quarters. I cannot believe how much time they all spend snoring away in their lovely straw beds! They retire before I do and there is not a nose on sight before about 8-8.30.
Poppy is also quite outraged at the new occupant of her field and seems to be petitioning the others in a frankly speciesist way against poor Mr Pig, plus she nicks his pig nuts out of his trough when he is not looking. Ahhhh, the fickle memory of goats, she forgets that she was once the scary new comer.
Little run speeded along by the thought that the school bus may beat me home as I left it a bit late in the day. 2.8 miles

Snuffles, Daisy and Snowy Go Forth

A big adventure today for the rodents who were released into the Wide World.. this is relatively speaking, It was actually a space far larger than their hutch and with soooo much more grass. Wall to wall grass as far as they are concerned with dog security officers to boot (don’t turn your back on Lucy though, Snowy Rabbit). Whilst this was going on I was tending veggies. Freya planted out her courgettes and I hoed round the peas, sweet peas, carrots and oh so minute parsnips. We had some very baby spinach with tea, plus some lettuce. I hear it is now very trendy to grow your own, and for the first time vegetable seeds have overtaken flowers. In our own very modest way we are trying to do a bit of Good Life stuff with salad stuff, the inevitable tomatoes, the aforementioned, potatoes, nasturtiums for salads, basil, parsley and cucumbers, asparagus (which is lovely)radishes (for Peter) and strawberries from Garret’s Granddad’s allotment. An ex miner, Alf had an allotment for many, many years and cut quite a figure cycling up every day to tend a host of gorgeous veggies and chrysanthemums. He supplied local shops when such a thing was permissible without H and S and Uncle Tom Cobbley poking their noses in. He was well into his 70’s when I first knew him and was very tolerant of my reckless enthusiasm for picking his precious crops when small (and hence delicious) “Eeh lass, what a waste, tha should wait for ‘em to grow ta proper size” he would be revolving nineteen to the dozen six feet under had he known that his carefully tended bolt hole and second career is now under the A1/M1 link round Leeds.

Run Rabbit Run

All panic stations are clanging their klaxons and banging their metaphorical sauce pans as the 1/2 marathon approaches and insufficient miles have been pounded under trainers, hmmm, no change there then. Managed a 7-8 miler today with Liz (not too sure of the route to map and get the exact distance.) Wasn't very fast though and although I could blame Liz this would not be very honest as I was just feeling slower! We did see this little church like building just by the track past Minard Castle, I have never heard tell of it before.
Another lovely day for the happy tourists and those who have to wash copious amounts of bedding...