2016 Races 1. 2016 DNSs 2

And what was an infection then became the cause of an unplanned surgery...

The procedure to the shoulder was minor and things could have been a lot worse.  Unfortunately, the recovery is going to rule out a 50 mile run in a week's time.  It has also put paid to the daily run for the present time.

So, without even leaving Jaunary that is two races I'm manging to DNS and pretty much all of the running "resolutions" I had down the pan.  Bother.  On the upside, my training in January had been pretty good on the whole and I'm expecting to get a few little runs in during the couple of weeks I need to let the wound heal.  With a bit of luck, many of the other racing plans for the year are still doable.

Now, with idle time on my hands, how do I stop myself from sitting here signing up for countless races later in the year?

2016 Races 1. 2016 DNSs 1.

As hundreds of fellow ultrarunners head for a frozen Wendover, I am instead sitting on my comfy and warm sofa with my packed bags still piled up in the hallway.

Walked through the pros and cons of skipping the race:

• Con – I’m a runner.  Not turning up to an event that I have committed to, which is also part of a series I’m planning to race through the year, directly conflicts with this.
• Pro – I am actually sick.  I had a doctor’s note and drugs and everything.  The combination is causing some dehydration, poor quality sleep and stomach distress.
• Con – Dehydration, poor quality sleep and stomach distress are pretty a pretty usual combination for the period of a taper and race.
• Pro – This is supposed to be a race for me, not the usual long run in the beautiful wilds.  If I cannot confidently push myself, I’m better off playing safe.
• Can – It means I can tell the people who know about the race how well I did.  Most of them will have no idea what would be a good result.
• Pro – There is a small chance that I might not complete the race.  It is a point to point a couple of hours away and getting back from one of the checkpoints is likely to be a pain in the arse.
• Con – Even if I jog the thing, it would be a result for the race series and might be useful if I have to pull out of one of the later races unexpectedly.
• Pro – I would get the whole day back to do something more useful with my time.
• Con – I will actually spend most of that time mulling over sacking off this race and generally feeling sorry for myself.
• Con – I still have to run today anyway.  Not having this long run does somewhat interfere with the training plan for the next.
• Pro – I won’t have to clean all of my kit?
• Con – I do have quite a lot of unwatched stuff on my TiVo.

 Anyway.  I’m 90% sure that it was the right decision to not race today.  I shall be spending the next few days thinking mainly about that 10%.

Time to let the race organiser know that he has a spare slot that he will not have time to utilise.

2016 - Two weeks in

14th of January and most things are running smoothly.  Sitting here on Thursday night, other than a slight snag, all systems would be go for Saturday's first race of the year.  Sadly, that fly in the ointment is an infection which has today required a course of antibiotics.  Bother.  So I'll be seeing how I take to those over the next 24 hours before deciding whether to toe the line.  With the plan being to race reasonably hard, a drug which unsettles my stomach or causes me to be constantly dehydrated is going to be a real problem.  But do I cross my fingers for a good Friday or a free weekend?

Other plans for the year have gone well.  No injuries.  A cool but gentle winter has recently snapped cold but a pile of good technical equipment has proved its worth and there have been no excuses to park on the sofa, thus running plans have been maintained and the target of the daily mile run is being met.  As for the 2016 distance challenge with Mr P, he is currently sitting at 189.8 km while I am at
167.3 km.  A half marathon between us.  It could seem daunting so early in the year but it is just a two hour jog in the hills.

Or the first 40% of the first race of the year...