2005 - October

[Sweder]

Re-creating Jurassic Park eh Andy?
Good luck with your Dino-food hunt.

Of course no luck required this afternoon, as the Canaries found the Rangers a little too hot to handle.
Sadly Lewes crashed out of the 4th qualifying round of the FA Cup, 2-1 away to Cambridge City.
Just Europe to go for now . . .

[Sweder]

Just noticed the 'new' Alméria photos - link on the main page.
Some cracking memories there - thanks for sharing.

[Sweder]

Hmm, I detect a trace of self-doubt in your latest post. I must say I shared your feelings up to a week or so ago. Sp's the same, bemoaning the lack of wild horses required to drag him from his comfy sofa.

Desparate for an omen, for guidance to help slay the twin beasts of lethargy and sloth, I trawled some recent posts here on RC. The Spanish contingent shamed me with their commitment to warm weather racing, so I sought more subtle solace in your writing.

And there I found words written by a wise man of running, something about putting runs together, 3 or 4 in the space of a week or so, to stoke the embers of enthusiasm. I put this into practice, struggling to get out on even the finest of autumnal days, but out I went. And d'you know, it bloody well works. I've renewed my passion for running, and all it took was a few evenly paced plods. Sure, the first couple were unconvincing, but I've stuck grimly to my task, grinding out consecutive lumbers across the Downs, loping across the skyline like a wounded escapee from Lewes Nick.

Now I'm sitting here tapping away to distract myself, stop myself from belting out the door and rattling off a swift 3 or 4 miles in the windswept, rainy night. The Bitch is back, and she's hotter than hell.

With the rush that good running brings comes the urge to write.
It's no coincidence that these pages have been somewhat sleepy, certainly in the Northern European quarter, at a time when so few of us have kept the faith. I'll wager that should the heal hold and the miles build up, the pearls of wisdom so enjoyed by we RC followers will flow.

Run to the hills
Run for your life
Iron maiden

[El Gordo]

Thanks Sweder, but the entry was supposed to dispel my admitted recent self-doubt rather than express it ... It's not been real self-doubt. It's partly a hangover from a lazy summer, but the recent dip has more to do with the nagging worry about my heel than anything. That said, JP's recent post about how good running is in times of crisis (http://www.runningcommentary.co.uk/forum....php?t=779) reminded me of a few things. Sometimes you just forget how much better running makes you feel, even if does so in a very clever way -- by hiding it behind all that ugly stuff: the effort, the time, the feared derision, the pain of it all. It's always worth it. I'm rambling. It's 6:30 a.m., it's cold and black out there (i know this as I just dropped M off at the station) and I'm just off out for my 3rd run in 3 days, so I hope it won't be long now till I break through that wall you refer to.

[Nigel]

Very good to see you back running again, Andy.

And inspiring to see how the FT is underpinning your new liquidity.

[Sweder]

Sorry mate, didn't mean to emphasise the negative.
But I did want to support what you said recently about the power of back-to-back runs, or, as Mr Dowie would have it bouncebackability.

I did get your drift - I was on a bit of an endorphin overload after the weekend It's good to see you embracing the faith. 3 in 3 days? That shaft of righteous sunlight should be bursting through the clouds any time now

[Bierzo Baggie]

I managed a run this morning. This year I've had more comeback attempts than Joe Bugner (remember him?). Let's see if I can follow your example with 3 in a row!

[El Gordo]

Thanks. The best news of all is that I've not had any serious heel/calf soreness which -- sorry to go on about this -- was the main reason I've been taking it very easy recently.Good to see you back on the road, BB.