Today I completed the 3rd Stage of the 2009/2010 Endurance life Coastal Trail Series, in Portland! I finished in 5hrs 27mins, about 40 minutes faster than The Gower, although that doesn't properly reflect the intensity of the pain this race required me to push through, once again. The course lapped the Island of Portland twice, navigating our way from the Sailing Academy, Naval base, rising the first 400ft to the top of the island and around the prison before hitting the east coast, through ankle twisting rock strewn paths, cliff edges, through abandoned quarries, leg scratching brush and across miles of punishing pebble beaches... my ever loyal wife was joined by my parents, sister and her boyfriend forming a truly awesome support crew who navigated back and forth across the island to cheer encouragement, louder and more positively the more pain I put myself through. And there certainly was pain! ... the first lap was actually pretty good, i paced myself and felt good at the first quarter, which was the toughest... except for the pebble beach at the halfway point... first time round I ran across at a steady pace, second time around, after 23 miles and more than 1,600ft in total assent, plus decent... the beach beat me, and I, like everyone around me put my head down, and walked! Just as my race in The Gower, miles 20-23 were the most intensely painful... lack of salts this time caused massive muscle cramps through my thighs, quads and hamstrings cramped up so tightly i could not bend either leg at all. I took my time and squatted slowly to stretch out the muscles enough to be able start running again, i had hoped to finish in 5hrs, it seems each of these races will teach me something about setting expectations, and like always i learn a lot about myself too... about what I'm capable of, and how strong my resolve is to finish what i begin. While my finish times will never likely compare to those of the winners, that doesn't concern me, completing even one event such as this in a lifetime would be a major achievement for most people, each new challenge I set and complete makes me feel more complete, a periodic test of my mental and physical strength, which I come away from with renewed confidence. I'd recommend it to anyone, find something that makes you think "i could never do that" then commit to it, train, practise, rehearse, study and you WILL surprise yourself... my next "i could never do that" moment is April 23rd... come back and see how i got on. [26.2m - 05:27:00 - 12:28/m]
[West Coast of the Island, muddy paths and vertical cliffs]
[The decent to Chesil Beach, the easiest footingfollowed by the most challenging]
[The awe inspriing view ahead]
[part of the reason for debilitating muscle cramps][Rock strewn paths just waiting to brake my ankles]
[So often no other runners or supporters in sight,
time to focus and push through ]
[The infamous Chesil beach I hated so much, which i finally beat]
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