I’ve just eaten my first KFC in two years. I get a yearning for it once in a while because I have this childhood memory – probably a false one – that it was a tasty treat of a meal. When I was a kid, we used to have the occasional takeaway – pizza, fish… Continue reading Sandringham Half – and Fried Chicken
Author: theleadlesspencil
I started blogging to practise using that writing 'muscle'. And it's made me realise that I keep banging on about the same subjects: mainly 'running', sometimes about what I'm reading, and, even more occasionally, where I'm going.
Shirley Jackson – The Lottery
This morning, I read a short story by Shirley Jackson. She’s famous for The Haunting of Hill House. Today’s story was called The Lottery. It apparently elicited the biggest post bag the New Yorker magazine had seen for a piece of fiction. Jackson said, later, that there were only a few positive ones, and they… Continue reading Shirley Jackson – The Lottery
Sunny Southport and Other Sundries
I have just stuck a load of autumn/winter clothes into the attic. I swap my clothes around every six months or so, in order to make a bit of space in my small wardrobe and to make the ‘in season’ clothes feel new and fresh because I haven’t seen them for ages. It works for… Continue reading Sunny Southport and Other Sundries
Fasted But Not Fast
Today marks four weeks after my Spring marathon in Manchester and I think this is the time to get back into some sort of structured (ish) training. I would have begun a little sooner, but I had my big two-day cycle ride last Thursday and Friday, so I needed to inverse taper on the bike.… Continue reading Fasted But Not Fast
There And Back Again – Shrewsbury
Day 1 Gary asked me if I wanted to ride with him to the Harp Inn, or get Anne to drop me off. That would have taken eight miles off the route. It was very tempting. But after conquering the Ponderosa ride (kind of) last week, and seeing that the weather was looking okay, I… Continue reading There And Back Again – Shrewsbury
Cycling to Ponderosa
Having given up the cycling in the latter part of my marathon training I realised, post Manchester, that I’d not been in the saddle for probably nearly six weeks, and looming very close was the expedition to Shrewsbury. With life getting in the way, there was only one last ride with PROBs (Pensby Runners On… Continue reading Cycling to Ponderosa
Borders League and London Marathon
I’ve been tracking a number of people on the London Marathon app. My good friend Salena is looking pretty consistent for the first two 5K markers. There are a whole bunch of Pensby Runners in the field too, with a range of times and expected times between 2:36 to around 6 hours, and this is… Continue reading Borders League and London Marathon
Manchester Marathon 2023
Surprisingly, I managed to sleep for most of the night before the race. A family wedding in Knutsford the previous day had had a free bar and a superb band on, and I was a little bit gutted that I couldn’t partake of either, other than having the odd bottle of Peroni 0.0. Instead, I… Continue reading Manchester Marathon 2023
Maranoia
Last night I dreamt I went to Manchester (again). I got there too late, I couldn’t find the bag collection, and then suddenly I was running in what felt like gloop and my limbs wouldn’t really move. What a nightmare! I’m not prone to anxiety, but since yesterday, I have suffered all the classic pre-race… Continue reading Maranoia
Taper Time: Marathon Training – Week 13
And rest. Actually, it’s probably not wise to be entirely sedentary for the taper period but it has been known for people to do exactly that and I’m currently tempted. A lot of the training plans start from three weeks out from your race date, and get you to cut your weekly mileage by twenty… Continue reading Taper Time: Marathon Training – Week 13
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