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Hero Bear running Stoke 10K

On 20th Sept, Aaron took to the streets of Stoke for the Stoke 10K dressed as Hero Bear!

Here is his run down of the day.....

The race went well, to be honest we were expecting a slow time as I now agree with the lack of visibility through the Hero Bear suit. But looking online I think we managed somewhere around 1:36 which wasn’t bad as the year before I only did 1:19 with no training (Kieron and myself make a point of running these races ‘off the cuff!’ It’s only this one I did slightly more training for so the distance wasn’t that much of an issue this time.)

On race day another colleague joined us, so it turned out to be Kieron Quaile, Simon Owen and myself as a team effort J.

In the 2 days I opened the fundraising page on justgiving.com (linked to the GE@Kidsgrove page), we managed to raise a total of £167 which I thought was pretty good!

I think I spent most of the race just following the guys feet and avoiding lamp posts as far as a guide goes! 

Someone tried to interview me from the local paper, the Sentinel which was rather awkward as I couldn’t speak so she managed to get a picture which was put into the papers online gallery, and there are around 40+ pictures from the race day.

Have a look at MyBibNumber.com and look for the Stoke 10K, I’m number 613 and see what you think. I tried to get us all over the finish line together so I don’t know whether that would be an image that you could use if you’re intending to spread the word with this, locally its being spread on social media which has sparked a lot of interest and congratulations.

I think my defining moment in doing this was at the end of the race, as we made our way back to the car (parked further afield to stop people seeing me getting in and out of the suit), I had photo’s with members of the public and various families, one of which a little boy came up and asked for a high 5 and a hug and donated his own £2 to Help for Heroes in support of the cause – I thought that was a nice take away from the event.

- Aaron Mountford

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2015 miles for 2015

Underestimated a bit there! Just completed over 3000 miles on the bike this year........Woooo Hooooo! Spin happy!

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On the Rocky Road!!!!

On the Rocky Road!

When I started this malarkey with any seriousness back in December, I was just pootling once a week on the bike. Admittedly I was spinning and gyming, and a bit of jogging. Since then my regime has changed somewhat, and my goals back in February were to complete about 4 sportives this year with an average of 15’s in all of them!

I have far surpassed this by taking part in several more than 4, and averaging 16’s and 17’s! One does not compete in a sportive as they are non-competitive events. The only time it has been announced “This is a race” was at the Gran Fondo in June on closed roads. A sportive may be non competitive but I know that I want to know where I stand amongst my fellow cyclists and the odd nemesis, also use my times as a measure of improvement. So it is competitive, I compete with myself, always looking to accomplish better times, better uphill bits, better cornering…….and the list goes on!  Of course I have enjoyed the countryside too, as most of these events encompass pretty villages and open fields.

I am beginning however to feel jaded, the intensity since completing our first sportive of the year back in March has increased with numbers and distance, and waned a little in August due to holidays, although we have still ridden club rides.  Over the last few weeks I seem to have lost a bit of confidence and am not quite feeling the love! Particularly of hills.  A bit end of season bluesy!

How glad I am to ride in a great social group though. On Sunday I whimped on the Rockie Horror Hill, and chose not to partake of that particular monster (I have to say it was one of only 6 or 7 on the hilly route – in my defence…. There is no defence – I whimped). I deviated and waited for the Frank ‘N’ furters to catch up with me. As soon as I got home And opened up the laptop there was the offer of help from one of the group, who actually lives near Rocky! He has put a route together, admittedly made rash promises about QOM’s (Queen of the mountains) , and offered lunch into the bargain!

The other ‘arf needs this hill work too, as he has committed to riding the Wales in a day course in September, so he can suffer too! Not quite sure how I did it, but apparently I volunteered as support!

I digress, the message is: even if you are feeling a tad tired, not quite feeling it, a little bit negative….. riding in a group is a wonderful thing. Help is nearby and there are some very kind people about willing to give time to help. Let’s hope a week on Saturday I can pull myself together and as a result get the Great Gorilla at the beginning of September entered, instead of whining about if I want to do it or not!  

I will be moaning about the weather and lack of light soon enough….time to make the most of the last of summer!

-Lesley Bishop

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Out site Health Ahead campaign encouraged us to support Help for Heroes charity with a number of events. This past weekend was Run or Dye at Stansted Park, Portsmouth. The Run or Dye event team visited the site during our Health Ahead day promoting and getting people signed up.

The past weekend we were blessed with glorious weather, encouraging 20 of us to complete the event, some of us even running to the end! All had a great time, getting absolutely covered in paint dye, enjoying the fun of the after party and the final Tie Dye Sky finale. This posted picture shows some of us before the run… while you can still recognize some of us :P

Next weekend: London South Tough Mudder. I think our current weather will help prepare the challenge - bring it on!

- Martyn Philo

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Tough Mudder

22nd Aug a team from Nailsea, ran, walked, climbed, jumped, swam, crawled and got electric shocked all in the name of fun and raising money for Help for Heroes.  The course was 11miles, with 410K litres of mud and 23 obstacles with names such as – Cry Baby, Artic Enema, Hold your Wood and Mud Mile.

Team – Graham Marshall, Luke Kenny, Gordon Wareham, Simon Pearcey, Maz Stacey, Jamie Cranfield & Stella Guilding and Ade Woodhouse from Aztec West

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Help for Heroes - Ride to Catterick Challenge

OVERVIEW:

3 long days, 250 miles, 8400m of ascent and 8 very sore saddles - we made it! It was an individual challenge to each of us in our own way, but in combination a great team effort for a very worthy cause. We hope to have raised over £2000 for the charity.

DAY 1

On Friday a mixed group of nine cyclists, ranging from novices to seasoned pedal pushers ,  set off from GE Aviation, Cheltenham.  Our destination,  the Help for Heroes recovery centre in Catterick 250 miles away.  Nervous about the challenge ahead and how the group would cope with the hills in the Peak District and North Yorkshire Moors we pointed North.

The early pace was kept deliberately slow but the northerly headwind soon took its toll.  As we bypassed Birmingham, John looked like he was struggling, Alan had knee pains and Ian falls off but is ok.  After nearly 7 hours we arrived at the YHA, Swadlincote.

That evening Ian learnt there's to be a wedding in the family, as his daughter is getting engaged and a round of celebration drinks is called for.   Most retire to bed early but Ian and a few celebrate on.

DAY2

After a hearty breakfast at the hostel we are off. But not before John has decided he can't continue.  A Hard decision to make, as yesterday has left him feeling nauseous, but the right one.   Today was the big one with 100miles and very hilly.  

It’s a cold start but the long climb to Ashbourne soon had us warmed up. There's a very welcome coffee stop and van rendezvous before the long hill out of town.

Alan is slow on the hills with his knees and creaking bike.  We silently bet which will break first, the man or the machine. Steve, Ian and I take turns to keep him company.  Martin has had a gear cable snap and returns to Ashbourne to repair at the bike shop.  Good job he is strong enough to be able to catch us up later.  

We turn off the main A road with the mad traffic and the steep hills start. The scenery is excellent as we cross over the Peaks but always pushing against the headwind.

The nine pressed on to Bakewell where Chris and Dean are feasting on ice cream.  It's Peak pasties for the rest of us.  I loaded up Ian's bike bag with Bakewell Bricks, the heavy local cake speciality.  Hopefully that weight will slow him down.

Loaded with tarts and bricks we enjoyed the beauty of the Derwent valley.  Then at the Ladybower Reservoir we met with the van crew and notice Ian's wheel has lost two spokes.  Good job the van is carrying spare wheels as the rim is damaged too.

We bypassed Sheffield and Leeds when the hills become steep, frequent and brutal.  But the 25% gradient didn’t deter us.  Alan shows huge mental stamina to keep going despite his obvious suffering.

After 11 hours in the saddle we have climbed our last hill today and cruised happily but wearily into Hebden Bridge for our overnight stop.  A pub meal and Elvis impersonator ends the day on good note!

DAY3

An early start and light breakfast saw us start the 8km ascent towards Keighley.  The mood is good as we know we are going to make it to Catterick today. The sun lifts the temperature and the spirits rise higher.  

The scenery around Bolton Abbey and Kettlewell is outstanding.  We have Ian to thank for this excellent route planning he has mapped out for us.  We are now riding along the 2012 Tour de France route up the Cote de Cray, not quite matching their speeds but still putting plenty of effort into the climb in our own way.

A tail wind developed and we finally make it into Catterick.  A warm welcome awaited us at the Help for Heroes recovery Centre at Phoenix House. The memory of pain is replaced by the real reason why we did it, ie to raise over £2000 for the cause.   Three long days, 250 miles, 8400m of ascent and 9 very sore saddles!  An individual challenge to each of us in our own way but in combination a great team effort for a very worthy cause.

- Adrian Pearce, Cheltenham

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AJ Bell London Triathlon 2015

It was a great experience to participate in the biggest triathlon in the world. Great atmosphere with  participants of all levels. My time was 1:07 in my second super sprint triathlon and I realised how much I can improve by practicing the transitions more. The swimming was a bit crowded. It was good to receive the advice of an experienced athlete who I met just before the event, who recommended me to start the swimming at the back to avoid the kicks and punches. I avoided using my hybrid bike and borrowed a road bike, but I didn’t have the chance to get used to the gears, adjust the saddle, etc. Still I managed to overtake few participants, but more overtook me. My best part was definitively the running where I managed to improve significantly my position. Events like this are really good to motivate you to carry on with the training and good incentive to keep working on your technique as well as taking care of your overall health.

- Erick Saldana

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London Triathlon 2015

On 8th August I took part in the london Triathlon, one of the best triathlon event, with 13,000 competitors. I have been training all year for this great event. When I received my entry I was please to see I had a 14:00 start time, as in other years its been a early 07:00 start. As the date started to get near, I was on weather watch, is it going to rain, is the sun going to come out or just normal cloudy weather. to my surprize or horra the weather was a very hot and sunny 25 dec, not the best to be cycling and running in, but at least the swim would be nice and warm.

On race day I just managed to make it on time due to traffic congestion (London traffic) I made it to the excel with 60min to go, I rushed and racked my bike, got all my equipment sorted then back in time for swim briefing at 13:40. As the swim wave was so large (450) they had to split it into two waves. I went in the first wave, down the stairs, no time to stop for pictures and into the docks. I tried to find a clear space, no no chance, to many people. I positioned my self on the right of the course to get the shortest line to the first buoy. As the gun went off the mass field went off in a wild crazy frenzy, lots of kicking and hitting as everyone was like a pack of wild salmon trying to swim upstream. The fighting went on for ever as we turned the first buoy then all the way back round to start the next lap.On the second lap it started to calm down. with the constant taste of gasoline in the water I finished the swim leg, out of the water up two flights of stairs and back into transition (T1).

The bike leg started strong, heading into the wind, head down pedaling as hard as I could, I made good progress, as I turned to finish my first lap of 4 the wind was behind be. As they say make hay while the sun shines. I gave it all I had. On my last lap I saw the most awful accident, with pack roads it was bound to happen at some stage. Back into transition (T2) onto the run.

This was the part I was not looking forward to. Charring a achilles injury I wasn’t sure if I would be bale to run, as I hadn’t done any running for a number of weeks, I was right the running wasn’t going well at all. with every step my right achilles was pulling me back, I wasn’t going to give up with the chance to complete this wonderful event people and charities relying on me to finish I pressed on. 4 laps of 2.5km, every time passing the smell of the chinese takeway bins that made me feel sick everytime I went past. The support was impressive everyone from different charities clapping and cheering me (us) on. As I crossed the finish line in 2h:34min I found somewhere to lay down and have a cold bottle of water. My day was done relaxed of the rest of the weekend. I would like to congratulate everyone who took part. and for GE me my site and tri. What a wonderful day out. I look forward to it next year.    

- Elliott Dickenson

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Back to back race report

Thought I’d blog about two days back to back time trials I done a few weeks ago. These two were especially important as if I won either of these id win the overall in Northumberland and Durham Best All Round – a season long league to find the best time triallist in the area. The competition is based on points with 120 for 1st, 119 2nd, 118 3rd  etc. riders have to complete a 2 short distances (9-12m), 3 medium distances (18-27m) and one long distance (40-100m). At the time I had maximum points and 6 120’s in hand – so a total of 12 120’s. If I reached 13 120’s there wasn’t enough races remaining for it to be bettered.

Race 1 – Tuesday 21st 7:00pm Houghton CC M9

I hate this course! It’s what you would call a ‘roadmans’ course, lots of turns, very technical and constant accelerations – me being a pure diesel engine it really doesn’t suit me. Thought I’d give it a go anyway

I punctured while warming up – not a big deal but I didn’t have a latex tube as a spare so had to use a standard inner tube.

Got warmed up – put my speedsuit on and bust the zip! Luckily I had a spare but I wasn’t using my fastest suit – anything not 100% optimal drives me crazy, inner tubes, clothing etc. I was borderline not starting.

Got to the start line and raced – felt really good, took the corners well, not sure I could have went any faster, I really wanted to win, more to seal the BAR.

On the night I was good enough for 2nd!

1st – 20:09

Me -20:12

3rd – 20:15

4th – 20:18

It’s worth looking at every little detail – a latex tube would have probably bought me a few seconds. Anyways I had come second and felt a bit wounded but had to shift focus to recovering for the next day. Straight away I had a protein shake with amino acids and a sports drink to spike my insulin levels to increase the rate my body can absorb the protein and carbohydrate.

Got to bed around 9:30 – WIDE awake from having large amounts of caffeine just before the race and my metabolism being through the roof from the race. I had a protein shake at my bedside to have if I woke through the night to get extra protein while I rested. Ended up getting to sleep around 1am I think.

Race 2 Wednesday 22nd 7:00pm Barnesbury C10

Jumped on the turbo for a 30 minute easy spin pre work, felt pretty good, and it stopped my legs from shutting down to recover. I also wore compression socks all day to increase blood flow through my legs.

I also managed to borrow a speed suit and a latex tube which prevented me from having a meltdown knowing I wasn’t using the fastest gear I could get my hands on.

Luckily tonights race is local to me, which meant I could warm up in my garage and ride the 5 miles to the event – got there nice and relaxed, felt great despite last night efforts. The M102b is two laps and isn’t a particularly fast course but I was pretty sure a sub 20 minute ride could seal it (I think only one person has been under 20 minutes) so sub 20 it had to be! There are quite a lot of roundabouts on the course that kill the speed a bit so I figured I had to be doing 35mph+ between the roundabouts to make up for the 25mph I’d be doing around the roundabouts.

1st lap - my power was good – felt composed – ave speed 29.7….

2nd lap – I knew I could bash out more and had to make up 0.3 mph (not easy when you’re flat out!) turned myself inside out to get to the line – 19:55 with a 30.1mph average. Which I thought could be enough to win (and more importantly win the overall BAR).

Rode straight home as I couldn’t bear to hang around as my main rival was still to race (last night’s winner! And a dangerously close rival for the BAR) once I got home, my wife asked me my time and how I’ve done etc. I told her my time and she turned me round and insisted I went back to the race HQ’s since she was sure I’d won – and to pick up a celebratory bottle of Rioja on my way home! (it’s becoming a bit of a tradition I get a bottle of Rioja after a race win)

Sure enough when I got back to the HQ my closest rival was 35 seconds adrift – which is a fair margin at those speeds. I was over the moon, I still am! Not only to get another race win but as that meant I was unbeatable in the N&DCA BAR – something I have been targeting for nearly a year now.

If you’re racing look for any tiny detail, 1 tiny detail might only find you 30 seconds over 10 miles – but find 10 details and you have 30 seconds.

- Danny Grieves 

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Outlaw Triathlon 26 July 2015 - Nottingham UK

After racing Ironman Germany in 2014, I thought a return to Outlaw Nottingham would be a bit better on the bank balance. Leading in to the race I felt I was in good shape to finally get under 11 hours. As the weekend approached, I and 1300 other competitors become OCD about hygiene and avid weather forecast watchers! It looked like it would be a wet one (two years ago it was 30degC)

Morning was dry, ironic for the swim. Race started at 6am, and without much fanfare, the race started. Thankfully, no biff at the beginning, but I did get a glancing blow from a swan! Out of the water in 1h5 and through T1 in 4m30s.

Quickly settled into my bike. Still dry. Snacking on Chia Charge flapjacks and bananas at the feed. I was aiming for a 5h20 time and felt very good throughout. All on track until 4hours in and my rear tyre went flat. Checked it and decided to try the Hutchins tyre sealant. After two attempts and a top up with Co2, I was back on my way. Lost 5 minutes according to my Garmin, so pushed a little to catch up some time. The promised rain appeared with about 20 miles to go. Got to T2 in 5h30. It was raining quite hard so I kept my cycle jersey (Castelli Gabba2 Jersey - fantastic!!) and was off on the run in just under 4m30T2.

It was wet and windy but went through half way in a comfortable 1h55. The support from spectators was fantastic in the conditions. In the second half of the marathon the eventual fatigue kicked in and in hind-site I probably pushed to hard to make up time on the bike. I eventually finished in a frustrating 11h01m35s! A bit disappointed but my moving time on my watch was 10h57 and with a new overall PB and my fastest marathon time of 4h16….OK

This was my 4th and probably last Outlaw event. Really recommend this race, WTC standard of organisation but without the Ironman Price.

- Phil Scott

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Lack of facilities

AJ’s Sportive Sunday 26th July

We are now mid-way through a summer of cycling. We had a good spring and early summer of sunshine and quite a bit of wind, but more recently we have experienced weather conditions that Swithin would be proud of. Apparently the pestulance appears to have arrived in the country too in the form of MERS – the new Ebola!  

I digress a little! Back in February my aim this year was to hit 15mph as an average on sportive rides, whatever the distance. At the time I was riding 14’s as an average.

I thought this was a realistic target! Every sportive or event is different! Different routes, different weather conditions, sometimes you feel really good and sometimes you had a late night before and one glass of wine too many!

I also live with, and ride with someone who gets a little carried away at times with ambitions, and I duck out of a few of his suggestions. Sometimes I get carried away with what seems like absurd ideas at the time… like riding Surrey hills, a most challenging route, but I did it! Others, like his idea to ride Wales North to South in a day and get back in time to take the dog for a walk in Northamptonshire I do tend to think impossible!

I have to admit though my ambition to ride 15’s as an average I have surpassed mostly due to his encouragement and belief! 16’s and 17’s have been attained with relative ease, over hilly and flat courses, and helped along by riding with groups of riders we know.

On Sunday we took part in our local bike shop’s inaugural sportive! A small event with a 200 entry limit.  We entered the 80 mile event, to find it was nearer 85 miles. The weather forecast certainly Noah like from 10:00 in the morning, and a lot of the route revisited that we had covered 2 weeks ago from Titchmarsh. We turned up early in the hope that they would let us start early, but nope this was not going to be an option.  08:30 the first group was allowed to start.

Rob had announced the day before that we were not going to stop at any feed stations. If it was going to rain he wanted to spend as little time in it as possible! Quite a good tactic unless you need the loo with only 20 miles gone and start looking at hedgerows longingly wondering if they would disguise any derriere that should park behind them! No chance this man was on a mission to try and get at least halfway around before the rain starts! I must admit I can see the logic in this as mentally it is a lot easier to cope with rain nearer the end than the beginning.

This weekend I spent a lot of time at the front, and it was a tad breezy in places. The rain forecast at 10:00 threatened at 10:05 with the odd drop, by the time we reached Kings Cliffe an hour later it turned heavy – we were not quite half way! At Southwick I could not see through my glasses it was so heavy, and after following a route with hills of varying piquancy the route threw down challenges of long drags uphill. Leg drainers in sunshine – in rain they were more of a mental challenge.

Dig in we did! Still overtaking more than overtook, using the cyclist in front as a mini target and on to the next! I had to dig deep, but was surprised by the number of people around us that also seemed to be struggling, we would be overtaken by those appearing stronger, for them to wain on the next rise, and they found themselves behind us once again. We played cat and mouse like this with a few.

This game did manage to detract from needing the loo until it was forgotten and the need to finish came to the fore! I have never ridden 80 odd miles without a feed station before, or a toilet for that matter! Finish we did, and I managed 4th lady home! I had an insight into bladder incontinence but from nothing more than rain – I was soaked through!

- Lesley Bishop

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Eating Cake!

I’m not a blogger but thought I’d have a go -  I’m a regular runner, twice a week but I’m certainly not fast and I don’t go far! I began running 4 years ago when my son started school, mainly to keep fit but also achieve my ambition of eating cake and having a glass of wine without impacting my waistline :-). I run alone or with a bunch of friends but for the last 18 months I’ve been getting slower & was exhausted even after a short run, I assumed it was just age!!

Back in March, as part of the Digital Energy Software Solutions Cambridge sites’ Health Ahead initiative, we had our annual health screening, my results showed borderline bloods and I was recommended to visit the GP. I duly made the appointment and discovered that my iron levels weren’t borderline, they were seriously low and I received a large packet of iron tablets for my trouble! The difference has been incredible, my running times are back to my best - a total result.

To put my new found energy to good use, last weekend I took part in Cancer Research UK’s RaceForLife along with colleagues and friends and even roped in the children! If you feel the need to sponsor a great cause, click here  

Below you’ll see some of the GE team, keen and eager to participate ahead of the race. It was a warm day and we certainly looked far worse at the end but had that fantastic feeling of achievement that comes with these events. So through GE’s Health Ahead & MeMyself&Tri initiative– it’s encouraged me and many others to improve our fitness, track our health, fundraise, socialise and provided plenty of opportunity for eating cake - thanks GE!

L-R: Chris, Helen, Karen, Kim, Campbell, Lexi

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Great North 10k run.

This was a great event, it was hard work as I am not really a runner. However I really enjoyed the day. I bumped into other GE runners on the way around who gave great encouragement showing fantastic team spirit in this event. Highly recommend doing this kind of thing to anyone even if your not a runner you will find it hard but very rewarding.

- David Castro

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Red Devils Skydive

The Red Devils skydive on 09 July 2015 at Old Sarum Airfield, Salisbury was undertaken by Senior HR and Finance Managers at GE Healthcare, They are based at Pollards Wood in Amersham Buckinghamshire and some, currently on overseas secondment are coming back for this monumental event.

The team of 6 - Mike Hanley, Derek O’Sullivan, Matt Silva, Susan Graham-Bryce, Barbra Tamagno and Celine Levy - set themselves an ambitious target of raising £6k for H4H and have smashed this currently at £7.4k or perhaps more by the time you read this. The team were keen to undertake a significant personal challenge and also show by example that initiatives like the H4H campaign are for all staff and that everyone’s combined efforts will make a huge difference. Wishing then all a happy and safe touchdown.

- Congratulations all, what an incredible achievement! 

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Looking for Noah

Looking for Noah!

It has been a busy few weeks and has been hard to balance work and life! I do have a habit of trying to squeeze every last minute out of every hour sometimes. June was a month of Sportives, with some good achievements. Progress and improvements made. However, I needto start increasing my repertoire to include more skills than bull headed determination, force and power! I now need to start working on skill and tactics. You think when you get a bike you just get on it and ride it! Not necessarily! Of course this little eureka moment has eureked at the wrong time of year! Winter is the time to work on Froome like stylie, not really the middle of July! So currently I look like a confused schizophrenic on a bike surging ahead with power and dying on the spin!

This weekend we had already planned to do a local Sportive, but had planned to do the 50 mile option, but last weekend at our sunday club ride, it was decided, as most others in our gorup were doing the 80 mile option, we would too! Mileage training needed for the London 100 that some of our friends are riding.

We entered and then checked out the weather forecast! Over the week the forecast did not look good and did not improve, but we did have the option of downgrading to the 50 if it was really bad!

Wind and rain - not a great combination!

On the day, it was very blustery but the rain was not forecast to fall until 14:00. So just the wind to contend with and our fate was sealed - 80 it was! With an 08:00 start this would be fine, we should be back and avoid any downpours! WRONG!

The first 40 miles seemed to be directly into head wind! Nice! Mile 42 was where the feed station was and 2 flapjacks and a banana later we were back spinning the wheels. The sky got darker and darker and by mile 50 the rain had started....how very dare it, it was not even noon!

Then the heavens opened and the rain fell in biblical proportions! Our good pace from earlier was lost as none of us could see clearly. Within minutes the lanes became streams and drains overflowed! 18 mph, became 12 mph!

Every so often the rain eased slightly, but just to increase again a few minutes later! We did make it back in one piece! That was the worst rain I have ever ridden in! We really could have done with an ark!

The big bonus was I had a "guess my time" at work! I charged a pound a guess. 50% of the pot was prize money and 50% went to H4H!

2nd longest ride of the year ........DONE! 

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Chiltern Challenge Ultra Marathon

At the start of this year I set myself the target of running an off-road ultra marathon, and the Chiltern Challenge provided the perfect event. It was 50km in length, off-road through the Chiltern Hills and only 10 minutes from home!

Saturday 11th July was the day, the sun was shining and unfortunately it was pretty hot (normally I wouldn’t mind, but running that far I wanted overcast skies!), the run started at a school in Princess Risborough and followed a route that wound its way up and down the paths and trails of the Chilterns.

Being 50km in length and aimed at the first time ultra runner the route was very well marked out and checkpoints appeared pretty much every 10km, all well stocked with food and liquids.

For me the run started pretty well, I had a good steady pace and was moving nicely, enjoying the scenery and the company of some simply amazing other runners. One of them was telling me he was on his 89th marathon and another lady ran a 100 miler 4 weeks earlier and was saying she wasn’t fully recovered!

Everything for me went according to plan until around the 35km mark, when my IT band became really stiff and forced me to alter my running style, which as time went on caused a large amount of pain in my ankles, to the point where going downhill was super painful.

However, I didn’t let this stop me, and after 7 hours and 23 minutes crossed the finish line to be able to call myself an ultra runner.

Would I do it again, yes probably the experience was fantastic and the event organised brilliantly with the best volunteers ever.

If you would like to read a more detailed version of this, then please have a look at my personal blog at www.3xte.com

- Steve Morriss

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Just wanted to say thanks to the Me, My Site and Tri team for the entry to British 10k London

Matt Rigby, Yimika Onabiyi and I participated in British 10K on Sunday 12th July. It was the first 10K for both Yimika and myself and we were so pleased with the results.

It was a lovely day in London and really enjoyed the energy and colourful presentations by different charities.

- Raheel Gayyum