Isle of Wet

Our third and final week on the Isle of Wight and the rain is never-ending. Typical English summer! But we are still having a great time despite the weather, enjoying outdoor swimming, walks, hot-tub, archery, trampolining, music, games, and… waffles! (Alvin’s Waffle House in Shanklin has become our second home - absolutely delicious!)

This week has also been busy: I have hosted a Facebook Workshop for the other guests, which was great fun; I have had time to try out sheet music on my iPad, playing the lovely piano at East Dene; and then there has been the marathon of trying to pack up a seemingly infinite amount of STUFF that was needed for our 3 week stay (Zac alone gets through at least 3 changes of clothes per day, then there’s his wheelchair, nappies, all kinds of equipment, plus all the baby supplies for Lily-Rose, etc, etc.)

But, somehow, I managed to find space for two runs this week (but really would have liked to have done three):

Monday 23rd August

An unbelievably windy day, but the rain seems to be easing off a little so I venture out for a 5 mile run along the coastal path starting at Bonchurch. The wind is coming at me sideways, directly off the sea, and at times it is a battle to stay upright. At best it is slowing me down, and I feel like I’m running in slow-motion. In addition, the sea is flinging spray at me the whole time and (just wearing shorts and a little vest) my skin is soon covered in salt, sand, grit and probably a whole marine micro-ecosystem!

It is tempting to give up and turn back but something (pride? insanity?) keeps me going and I manage the 5 miles in 51 minutes 25 seconds. Could be worse.

Never has a hot shower been more welcome than after this run!

Wednesday 25th August

It has been raining ALL day and now, at 8pm, the sky is dark and the wind has picked up, and the rain looks like it’s here to stay for the night. This is the last possible chance I will get to run on this holiday, and I just don’t want to do it.

But all the excuses I make to myself (too cold, too wet, too dark, too tired, etc) sound pretty lame, so I pull on my only waterproof item (a high viz Karrimor running jacket I picked up in the sales 2 days ago for £7!) over my shorts and vest, and head out into the darkness.

Just the walk down the hill through the trees to the coastal path is hazardous as I can hardly see my feet, and the ground is full of tree-roots, stones and rocks. But once I get to the path and the open sea, there is a little light leftover from the fading sunset, and I set off, aiming for 5 miles again.

There is absolutely no-one around.

The rain is torrential, the wind just as strong as before, and as far as my running shoes are concerned, I quickly discover that “breathable” also means “not waterproof” – my feet are soaked within seconds! However, my high viz jacket is warm and dry and I think to myself that if I collapse in a heap somewhere, I will at least be easy to spot!

The last of the light is fading rapidly and after 2 miles I realise that I will soon be running in complete and utter darkness and it just doesn’t feel safe, especially with the sheer drop from the path down to the rocks and the sea. I loop round and call it a day at 2.5 miles. I suppose it was better than nothing, but I can’t help feeling a little disappointed that I never got to do a final long run on my holiday. And that I have only run 7.5 miles this week. I will definitely have to make up for it next week.

Distance run (in miles): Monday 5, Wednesday 2.5
Total mileage this week: 7.5
Total mileage for August: 55.2
Total since starting blog (21/6/10): 187.3

Steep

Week 2 of our holiday on the Isle of Wight. The weather has been see-sawing between torrential rain and blazing sunshine, which has limited my running opportunities a little! However, I have managed two runs this week:

Monday 16th August

Following a beautiful blue-sky day, the evening is cool and clear, and I have a chance for a longish run. My 10K fundraiser at Bedgebury is less than 4 weeks away, so I decide to try to run that distance in less than 60 minutes - something I haven’t managed to do yet.

The plan is to run to Ventnor and back three times, which will be 7.5 miles, but to time the first 6.2 miles (10k), which I have measured out on Google Maps… I need to press Stop on my stopwatch when I reach the post-box in Ventor for the 3rd time!

Speedy music on my iPod helps my pace, and the gorgeous sunset on water soothes my soul. I push myself, keeping an eye on the stopwatch, and am so happy to reach the post-box in 57 minutes and 25 seconds - my first sub-60 10K! I jog the last mile or so home at a relaxed pace, watching the final streaks of red sky give way to midnight blue and crescent moon on water.

Thursday 19th August

A challenge.

I have been eyeing up the huge hills between Bonchurch and Shanklin - a route that we drive most days and which looks ridiculously steep and twisty, but with amazingly dramatic views over the cliffs and sea. A careful measure on Google Maps shows the route (there and back) to be 7.3 miles, but I’m guessing it would feel more like 10 with those hills!

A sunny afternoon, and the children are sleeping, swimming and learning survival skills, respectively, so with a little trepidation (and no music - I need to focus!), I set off for Shanklin, hitting the first hill almost immediately. There is no level ground on this route - it is all uphill and downhill and STEEP. It makes Rochester seem like Holland! I physically cannot run on some of the uphills and am forced to power walk. I can’t even enjoy the long downhills, because I know that I will have to run up them on the return journey!

I make it to The Crab - a pub in Shanklin that I’ve chosen as my turning-round point - any further into town and I’d be battling with tourists for pavement space. The return journey is equally tiring, but at least it ends on a huge downhill. My time is pretty poor: 1 hour 23 minutes, but I don’t care - I’m just glad to have made it at all! (And the views were fantastic.)


Distance run (in miles): Monday 7.5, Thursday 7.3
Total mileage this week: 14.8
Total mileage for August: 47.7
Total since starting blog: 179.8

Isle

So, here I am on the beautiful Isle of Wight, at Freedom Families: a holiday for children with Autism and their families. This is the only kind of holiday we can do with our severely autistic son, Zac, as “normal” forms of travel and new environments are very difficult for him to cope with. Here at East Dene (a converted stately home overlooking a dramatic seascape, in the tiny village of Bonchurch), he is in a completely secure environment and can roam unsupervised in the enclosed field and woods - something he just can’t do anywhere else, and which he absolutely loves - and can swim to his heart’s content in the pool or the sea.

He is calm and happy. All the autistic children seem to love it here, and the same families return year after year because, well, frankly there is nowhere else we can go that caters so well for our special kids.

We have been here for a week already and, with the help of an au pair, we have actually been able to relax a bit and read books and just chill! I’m not quite sure what to do with this newfound state of relaxation - it’s been so long…

Well, one thing I have been able to do, to an extent, is run! I have managed four runs in the first week, but am struggling to find suitable routes or a big enough block of time to devote to a really long run. This part of the island is super-hilly too, and my regular readers will know my dread of hills! But anyway, this is what I have achieved so far: (Next week, must try harder!)

Sunday 8th August 2010

A very hot afternoon. Baby Lily-Rose is asleep, "Katie 2" (our lovely au pair) is watching Zac, and Luca is doing archery with his daddy… I have time for a very quick run. The nearest and most obvious route is along the seafront from Bonchurch to the other end of Ventnor which, according to Google Maps, is exactly 2.5 miles there and back.

Most of the route to Ventnor is deserted and beautiful - huge open sky and sea to my left and steep chalky cliffs to my right. It gets busy towards the end… a large public paddling pool in the shape of the Isle of Wight, and several beach front shops, cafes and arcades, so I am forced to dodge around the tourists.

(The above photo shows Zac in the Isle of Wight shaped paddling pool - he has his fingers in his ears to block out the sounds (he has Sensory Processing Disorder, and all kinds of noises hurt his ears), and his high viz vest on, with “I have Autism” and my mobile phone number on the back, in case he runs off, which he is prone to do… he is very fast and has no sense of danger and would be unable to ask for help. But he is having a great time in the pool!)

Anyway, I complete my short 2.5 mile run, pushing myself to go as fast as possible, hoping that speed will compensate for lack of distance, but it is still quite a struggle in the heat.

Tuesday 10th August 2010

What a contrast to Sunday… freezing cold and pouring rain all day! I am determined to run nonetheless and head along the coast to Ventnor again - aiming to run there and back twice - exactly 5 miles. This is definitely a challenge, battling against the strong icy wind all the way to Ventnor… but it's much nicer on the return route to Bonchurch when the wind is behind me - probably helping my speed a little bit! Definitely not my favourite run, but am glad to have clocked up a few more miles.

Wednesday 11th August 2010

Children in bed, and it’s the perfect evening for a run: cool and clear, with the skies promising a beautiful red sunset. I still haven’t worked out a better route, so just went for the 5 mile double trip to Ventnor and back. What a mistake! I hadn’t realised it was the annual Ventnor Carnival this evening, and as the sun went down, the glow-sticks came out, and I spent the whole time weaving in and out of (very slow-moving) tourists clutching glasses of beer and Spongebob Squarepants balloons!

Saturday 14th August 2010

Again, a beautiful evening, and this time I’m determined to have a proper run, with no tourists, no rain and no balloons! I have fab speedy songs on my iPod and the red sunset is incredible. A great run and a new 5 mile personal best time of 44 minutes and 29 seconds!

Distance run (in miles): Sunday 2.5, Tuesday 5, Wednesday 5 and Saturday 5
Total mileage this week: 17.5
Total mileage for August: 32.9
Total since starting blog: 165

Zoom

Friday 6th August 2010

Today has been a day of frantic packing for my holiday to the Isle of Wight. I can't believe how much stuff is needed for a family of five, especially when one of them is a baby, and another is an autistic child who gets through at least 3 changes of clothes per day! And we need enough stuff for three weeks!

Before packing my running shoes I managed to squeeze in a final 5K run... and fear of not finishing the packing on time made me extra-speedy. As I whizzed round Rochester, I said a silent farewell to my favourite sights... the beautiful river views, the cobblestone high street, the castle and cathedral. (Have I mentioned before that I love Rochester? Well, I do!) I will miss home, but am glad to be leaving the house in very safe hands.

I'm feeling slightly anxious that I won't be able to keep up my training on holiday. The Isle of Wight has some fantastic scenery and there are many places to run, but it will be difficult to arrange as Zac needs one-to-one care 24/7 and there are the two smaller children to look after as well. We'll just have to see how it goes, but I'm hoping there will be lots of running news to write about.

So watch this space!

Distance run (in miles): 3.2
Total mileage this week: 15.4
Total mileage for August: 15.4
Total since starting blog (21/6/10): 147.5

It’s All Relative…

Sunday 1st August 2010

Since my last blog entry, my fundraising pack has arrived for my 10K race on September 11th in aid of Marie Curie Cancer Care. I have my yellow charity running vest, and have set up my Just Giving sponsorship page, with a modest target of raising £200. After all, this is my first ever charity race, and I have no idea whether people will sponsor me or not, but hopefully this is an achievable target. (There is a link to my Just Giving page on the bottom right-hand corner of this blog, or you can click on www.justgiving.com/KatieBarrettRuns, to donate or just view my progress. Any donations would be extremely gratefully received. And thank you so much to all those who have sponsored me so far.)

Anyway, on with today’s post… Having survived Week 1 of the school holidays, Week 2 begins with a traditional Sunday evening run with my best pal Anna, who has returned, bronzed and relaxed, from Mallorca (yes, I’m still jealous…). By the way, I am counting Sundays as Day 1 of each week, in terms of my running – you may disagree with me (Anna does!), but that’s just the way it is…

It’s great to run with Anna again, and we have lots to catch up on, having not seen each other for a couple of weeks, but she is tired and still a little jet-lagged and so we just plump for a 5K circuit of Rochester, taking in the beautiful riverside and castle views.

This happens to be the same route I ran last Sunday evening with my super-speedy friend Hannah (see blog post: Speed), when I struggled and was reminded of just how much a beginner I am at this running lark.

But this week I was the speedy one!

Two weeks of training on my part, and two weeks of dining out and relaxation on Anna’s part, have resulted in a small but noticeable difference in our fitness levels (hopefully temporary) and, whilst Anna struggled up the mile-long Hill-of-Doom towards my house at the end of our run (just like I did last week), I was able to manage a sprint finish!


Tuesday 3rd August 2010

Zac, Luca and Lily-Rose are at Day Respite, Holiday Club and Grandma’s house respectively, and this is my one and only opportunity of the week for my Long Run. Following on from my 8+ mile achievement last week, I set my sights on 9 miles. Gulp.

The previous night I used Google Maps Pedometer to plot out a 9 mile circuit route, which is basically a figure-of-eight. The largest loop is the 5 mile “viaduct” route which I often run (and which seemed like such huge distance the first time I ran it! See blog post: Viaduct), and the smaller loop is a 4 mile countryside route taking in the village of Wouldham. I plan to do the smallest loop first, which gets most of the steep hills out of the way in the beginning of the run… apart from the inevitable uphill mile home of course!

It is a very hot and humid morning and I know the route offers little shade, so I smother myself in yet another potentially allergy-producing sunscreen (see blog post: Russian Roulette), and grab my new teeny-tiny purple iPod (donated by the lovely Anna), filled with a fresh playlist of speedy tunes, and a bottle of water, and off I go…

The first two and a half miles are almost entirely uphill and I am so tempted to slow to a walk and sip my water, but I manage to keep going, and the relief of the downhill run into Wouldham village is fantastic.

After 5 miles I am high up on the viaduct, running super-speedily, enjoying cool breezes and smiling along to “Ours” by The Bravery – the perfect tempo and mood for running – 3.48 minutes worth of motivation!

The last 4 miles are up and down (literally) and I have to slow down 4 times to take a 30 second walking break and sip water. I would love to be able to say I ran the whole 9 miles without slowing, but I’m just not there yet.

The last mile uphill to my house is a real killer, but I manage it without slowing, and collapse in a heap of victory when I reach home! I can’t believe I ran so far… I could never have done it two months ago. (And my time? Exactly 90 minutes, to the second!)

But then I think… if I were to do a marathon one day (and I have to admit, the “M” word keeps playing at the edges of my mind), I would have to run 3 times as far!

Distance run (in miles): Sunday 3.2 and Tuesday 9.0
Total mileage this week: 12.2
Total mileage for August: 12.2
Total since starting blog (21/6/10): 144.3