I was at my folks’ house for 9am yesterday, ready to run, despite the fact that I had not yet decided which way I was headed.
For those of you without the benefit of a map, or even a vague sense for the world around Woodingdean, I went for a run of downs and prolonged ups, in the countryside.
For the very small number of people not fitting into this group, my route was as follows: up Falmer Road, Drove Road, Newmarket Hill, Juggs Road, Swanborough Hill, down to the pretty village of Iford, Northese, up, up the long White Way, down into Breaky Bottom (nice farm!), up, up and then down into Standean Bottom, around Cross Dyke, up, up, up Bullock Hill, Norton Drive, down Falmer Road.
It was a windy day, but otherwise bright and warm, and the running was a pleasant following of my nose on some paths that I’d not previously discovered.
On the hill above Breaky Bottom, I decided to try the gel that Kim’s sister Linda had given me from her leftover London Marathon stash. I didn’t really feel the need, but felt that I should at least try one.
It was about as disgusting as I had expected it to be, but nothing had prepared me for how sticky! Maybe the manufacturers expect you to throw the package straight away (seems unlikely) but even before I had rolled it up to go back into my pocket I had coated my fingers in the stuff… and my phone… and my water bottle… which contained Powerade so no, I couldn’t use that to wash my hands!
Maybe there’s a trick… if so, please DO tell! I’ve got a small bag full of these things to get through!
I was finding the running easy anyway, but whether the subsequent long uphills were equally as easy due to the gel, my current level of fitness, or the distracting effect of my sticky little fingers, is difficult to determine
Overall, 11.4 miles in 2 hours, 5.7mph and washing my hands has seldom been such a relief!