So, for 10 more days at least, this remains a desert-based
blog. The big move to Amsterdam means that this year’s race season is really
over before it even begun as I’ll be leaving Dubai before any of the local
races kick in, and arriving in Holland a couple of months after the summer
season has ended there. All of which is likely to result in around nine months
between my last race and my next!
So, I’ve been relaxing, putting my feet up and getting fat,
right?
Well, not too much as it happens. Even though I know it’s not really
with any particular goal in mind, I’ve kept up the training just coz I enjoy it
and know that, come 1 November, my training will take on a whole new form
entirely as I juggle a lack of races with cold weather and hitting the gym a
bit more.
It is, I admit, quite hard to keep motivation levels up at
times and there’ve been one or two sessions that I just couldn’t drag my ass
out of bed for; I’m a firm believer in goals and, for me, racing is the goal
that keeps me going.
With that – and a long, cold winter (having not had to put
up with a northern European winter for more than a decade, I’m probably exaggerating
it somewhat but, in my mind, it looks something like Beyond The Wall in Game of
Thrones) – in mind, last week, I went race mad. After the break, time for the
entry… so to speak.
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| Winter run training? |
Having failed to get into the London Marathon through the
ballot, I entered the Rotterdam Marathon which takes place in, well, Rotterdam
(think that’s how the race got its name, but I can’t be sure about that…) on 14
April. As the last two marathons I’ve done have come at the end of 3.8km of
swimming and 180km of cycling, I can’t wait to see what I’m capable of doing in
a straight running race.
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| Liverpool or Rome..? |
A few weeks after that, I’ll be heading to the UK for
something completely different altogether. The Rat Race Dirty Weekend is being
pitched as the world biggest and toughest ever obstacle course – 200 obstacles
in 20 themed zones, with 20 miles of running (five-sixths of a marathon) in
between. Basically, I’ve always wanted to tackle one of those crazy army/game
show assault courses and, when I saw that and the words ‘toughest ever’ I knew
I had to have a crack!
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| Well, if GI Jane could do it... |
Couple more race ideas up in the noggin at the moment but just
going to allow them to soak and brew until I make a firm decision. Even just
those two events have given me some real motivation and helped me to plan my
winter training. It’s a simple but good tip that I find always works: if you’re
having trouble focusing on your training, get yourself entered into a race. Everything becomes far clearer.
