Wandering the World

Guernsey

Several years ago I should have gone to Guernsey for a day trip with family via the ferry. We never made it unfortunately, and it wasn't a place I thought about after that until I saw how much a friend had enjoyed their time there. For my first trip of 2022, postponed from 2020, I was heading to Guernsey for a 36 mile ultra marathon around the island. As with any other trip to a new place, of course I'd try to get in as much tourism as I could whilst there as well. Though this would be one of those rare ocassions where it's possible to do most of your tourism whilst also running. You can view the photo album for this trip on Flickr.

May 3, 2022 to May 17, 2022 | 5 posts

MK Rocket 5K

Today was a (mostly) downhill run in Milton Keynes - the Rocket 5K. I wasn't really sure what to expect going into it after how the last two years have gone, but felt it would be a good indicator of whether what I'm doing now is working.

May 1, 2022

Leicester's Big 10K

Repeating races I've done before always feels like a way to benchmark where I currently am. It's been a long time since I first did this race, and have done it a few times over the years. It was one of my first races back after the start of the pandemic, when they started up again. For that race I did it in 39:20 - not my fastest 10K, but the fastest I'd done this course. So for this race my goal …

April 24, 2022

Phoenix Running The Unbreakable Key

This was a bit of a last minute race entry for the Easter weekend. I did parkrun yesterday, my fastest since the start of the pandemic, and today was for getting some miles in. With shorter races for the next two weeks it'd be my last chance to get some decent miles in before Guernsey, and how better to do that than with a friend. I perhaps hadn't had the best night of sleep, and was having breakf …

April 17, 2022

MK Festival of Running 20 Miles

My last big long run before Manchester Marathon. Last time I did this was just before lockdown in 2020, so would be a good marker for where I now am

March 13, 2022

RunThrough Chase the Moon Battersea Park 10K

My first night race in a few years, and one I'd travelled a long way for.

February 23, 2022

Watford Half Marathon

My first race of 2022 was the Watford Half Marathon. Could it be a return to form, or would those days now be behind me?

February 6, 2022

MK Winter Half Marathon 2021

Not my best half marathon, but not my worst either. Somehow I finished 92nd out of 1,471 runners with a time of 1:28:53. The best bit was getting to see friends again though.

December 12, 2021

Cyprus

This country split into two by conflict is one which my trip would also be divided into two due to the pandemic. For my first part of the trip I would be there sightseeing as 2021 approaches it's end, and would be returning there at the start of 2022 for the race that has now been postponed three times. Sightseeing would no be straight forward though. Some places are temporarily closed, and most tours that I attempted to book were cancelled, including one into North Cyprus. It also didn't help that a major storm was on it's way in, just in time for my arrival… If you'd like to see more photographs from this trip, they're available to view on Flickr.

November 16, 2021 to December 11, 2021 | 10 posts

Leicester Half Marathon 2021

With two more marathons now behind me, was there any chance that a half marathon could be anywhere near what I'd done before the pandemic?

October 31, 2021

Therme Manchester Marathon 2021

Last time I did a marathon in Manchester, it was the Greater Manchester Marathon. Now it's got a new name, a new route, new title sponsors, and it's been over 2 years since the last one in which I failed to get a new PB. Now I was going back there again, hoping my legs had recovered enough to complete this…

October 10, 2021

Germany

Twelve years ago, before the age of the smart phone, I visited Berlin at the start of my adventure spanning three European countries. I was younger then, and less experienced at travelling, and with a friend in tow, we had a tendency to get lost. Now I was returning to run the Berlin Marathon as the first part of a railway journey around Germany in a time when a global pandemic is at the forefront of everyone's minds. How would it affect this adventure, and what would be different? The full photo album for this trip can be found on Flickr.

September 14, 2021 to October 8, 2021 | 14 posts

The Bun Run and Ramble 2021

One last race before Berlin Marathon, this was a 10K on the Welbeck Estate near Worksop. It certainly didn't go the way I thought it would…

September 11, 2021

Amsterdam

I have to mostly agree with Sir Terry - there are so many bikes in Amsterdam with lanes specifically for them. As long as you're alert it's not a problem. It's so different in some ways from other European cities, yet also strangely similar. It's also incredibly flat (if you ignore the bridges) so it sounded like it could be a good place to go PB chasing for a marathon. There was plenty of training; but poor planning meant this would be a challenge… “My experience in Amsterdam is that cyclists ride where the hell they like and aim in a state of rage at all pedestrians while ringing their bell loudly, the concept of avoiding people being foreign to them.” -- Sir Terry Pratchett If you’ve enjoyed these posts you can also view the full photo album on Flickr.

October 18, 2019 to October 8, 2020 | 7 posts

New Zealand

“All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.” -- J. R. R. Tolkien When I first visited New Zealand it was a very short trip, and a very unsuccessful one. Every sight I was hoping to see was fraught with problems caused by the weather. It was like we'd stumbled into Moria and awoken a Balrog that had followed us all the way to Mordor (or Tongariro rather). Nine years later it was time to make that long-expected return to the country that had doubled as Middle Earth. What would we face this time?

January 5, 2019 to February 17, 2019 | 18 posts

United Nations Office of Geneva with flags of member nations on flagpoles in front

Switzerland

A few days spent in Switzerland as 2019 began. I got to see the sights of Geneva and Zurich, and then experienced delay after delay trying to get home: snow, emergency ascents, baggage collection, and tube trains with technical difficulties… If you've enjoyed these posts you can also view the full photo album on Flickr.

December 30, 2018 to January 5, 2019 | 7 posts

Chicago & Ottawa

Once more I travel to the United States on another adventure. This time I was there for the Chicago Marathon - one of the World Majors. This former second city of America is one referred to as the windy city - I knew that didn't mean the weather; yet it didn't mean the weather was going to be okay. There would be thunderstorms. To relax a little afterwards I was then in Canada for a little bit more sightseeing… If you've enjoyed these blog posts, then be sure to check out the full photo albums on flickr for Chicago and Ottawa.

October 1, 2018 to October 12, 2018 | 11 posts

Dalmatian Coast

Thirty six years after our parents had visited Yugoslavia, I was travelling around Croatia and Slovenia with my sister and seeing as many sights as we could along the way. From Dubrovnik up to Bled we explored the Dalmatian Coast and beyond. If you've enjoyed these blog posts, then be sure to check out the full photo album on flickr.

August 14, 2018 to September 2, 2018 | 17 posts

Malawi

A week in the "warm heart of Africa" volunteering on community projects in the Nkope area through Impact Marathon Series. We worked on building a primary school using their traditional building methods, fitted new bins to help tidy up, cleared fields and planted trees, along with putting on a school sports day for the children there. The week ended with one of the toughest marathons I'll ever do…

May 15, 2018 to May 27, 2018 | 8 posts

Morocco

The story of hiking around the High Atlas Mountains of Morocco, staying in a different village each night. To end this adventure I then got to see a very different side to Morocco by exploring two cities that were in themselves very different to each other: Marrakech and Rabat. After ten years of travelling around the world I got to use some of the knowledge gathered; yet still found that there were new lessons to be learned… === If you’ve enjoyed these posts you can also view the full photo album on Flickr.

October 25, 2017 to November 11, 2017 | 11 posts