A couple of weeks later the first whisperings of "marathon" could be heard... the inaugural MK Marathon, in our home town and well we're half way through training already, having done the Benidorm Half and well, it would be a shame not to, wouldn't it? So before we knew it four names were in the frame for the gig... and marathon training started in earnest from January. It's been quite a journey adjusting to the long training runs - even the "short" weekday runs have crept up to 9 or 10 miles. The MK Half Marathon in March was an experience in itself - battling through constant driving rain, sleet and even snow made it a test beyond anything experienced before. There have been the inevitable injuries along the way and unfortunately Annette had to drop out of the training programme, to be replaced by Kealey who had already started training separately. The "longest" run of 20 miles was achieved last week - that's as far as the training goes before race day, so now the distances start to taper off and cross-training kicks in.
It's been a while since writing our last blog post - too long! Since October - oops! Since then four of our members ran the Benidorm Half Marathon, which was an unforgettable experience for our runners (great goody bags !) and for our supporters. It seems like a lifetime ago now, but a great weekend was had by all.
A couple of weeks later the first whisperings of "marathon" could be heard... the inaugural MK Marathon, in our home town and well we're half way through training already, having done the Benidorm Half and well, it would be a shame not to, wouldn't it? So before we knew it four names were in the frame for the gig... and marathon training started in earnest from January. It's been quite a journey adjusting to the long training runs - even the "short" weekday runs have crept up to 9 or 10 miles. The MK Half Marathon in March was an experience in itself - battling through constant driving rain, sleet and even snow made it a test beyond anything experienced before. There have been the inevitable injuries along the way and unfortunately Annette had to drop out of the training programme, to be replaced by Kealey who had already started training separately. The "longest" run of 20 miles was achieved last week - that's as far as the training goes before race day, so now the distances start to taper off and cross-training kicks in. It's now time to think about charity fundraising - three of the runners, Wendy, Juliet and Amanda have organised a fundraising social evening on Friday 20th April at MK Pavilion, with the theme of Jubilee Street Party. Tickets are priced at £20 which includes the price of your raffle ticket and the evening will include a street party buffet, 2 live singers, dancing music and "much much more"! If you're interested in joining in the fun, drop a message via the Contact page to book your ticket. A word about our non-marathon runners, walkers and supporters, who have continued to work towards their personal goals over the past few months, whatever they may be. It's a great privilege to be a part of this amazing group of people who are all taking positive steps on their personal journeys, no matter what distance they have chosen to travel.
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It's crept up on us... in four weeks time the Benidorm Half Marathon will all be over and we'll be on our way back home. Eleven of our members are going... four to run and seven to support - all intend to have a GREAT TIME! The four half-runners have been steadily increasing their long runs on Sunday and today is 11.5 mile day! It sounds so simple doesn't it? The reality is that it's tough going and everyone's really pushing themselves to their limit now. Sore feet, ankles, knees, backs - blisters, lungs pushed to the max - generally exhausting stuff. The Milton Keynes Millennium Route is getting a pounding every week by Rock Bottom(s) and it's great when cyclists and fellow runners notice our names on our backs and cheer us on! As none of us have run this far before we're all researching hints and tips - sports drinks, gels (or Jelly Babies!!), chocolate milk shakes (or recovery protein drinks). What is certain is that this is one challenge that won't beat us! Go Rock Bottom(s)!!
If you would like to sponsor one (or all) of our members who are running the Benidorm Half Marathon, please visit our Sponsor Us page. Thank you! We've hardly been able to contain our excitement since we found out, but now it's OFFICIAL!! We came third in the New Balance Women's Running Group 2011 Awards. What an achievement after only a few months! Wow... a big well done and thank you to all our runners and walkers - we done good!
To see the amazing news for yourself, visit: http://www.womensrunninguk.co.uk/newbalance.obyx OK then... what happened to September? And we're already half-way through October... plus today we actually started to plan our Christmas party. Where did 2011 go? Well, of course the answer is that apart from taking late holidays we've been very busy walking, running, hiking, running, cross-training, running, at the gym, running... did I mention running?
Big congratulations first of all to our regular parkrun runners who have consistently achieved PBs... including two sub-30 minute PBs by Juliet and Amanda. The flapjack prize tasted very good apparently! Amanda was also voted Milton Keynes parkrunner of the month in October and has ordered her prize from Sweatshop - a brand spanking new pair of running shoes! Well done to our walkers (or should we say "runners-in-waiting"?) who continue to make good progress around Willen Lake on Saturday mornings. And thank you to all our supporters, particularly Jeff and Joan, who have been there cheering us on and joined us for coffee after our runs. Training has been going well for the four members who are running the Benidorm Half Marathon at the end of November... they're now up to 11 miles non-stop and have no fear (not half!!). There's a new-found respect for everyone who trains for a half or full marathon as the time commitment to training is far greater than any non-runner can ever imagine. Our members have taken part in two 10k runs in the past few weeks as well. Firstly, the Bananaman Chase, raising funds for Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research, which saw Annette, Wendy, Juliet and Amanda gain 10k PBs... and MEDALS! It was a very enjoyable day and unbelievably hot for October with temperatures in the late 20s. This was good training though for Amanda and Annette as on 16 October they ran another 10k race... this time in Palma, Mallorca which was organised by TUI. The highlight of the day was the free doughnut given to runners at the end of the race - an excellent idea that could catch on, maybe? Oh, and did I forget to say... they both received MEDALS!! Last but not least, Rock Bottom(s) has been featured in the MK Citizen newspaper, featuring all our achievements including our recognition as a registered club with Run England. Amanda and Annette are now qualified group leaders and Wendy will be attending the Run England coaching course in the coming weeks. Time to catch our breath? Going on recent experiences.... not a chance! It's been more a month since our last blog post, but that 's not because we've been inactive. We've been participating in a relay race of a different kind... handing the holiday baton between us week to week! Those left behind have been blasting PBs and the half-marathon trainees have steadily been increasing their long Sunday runs... 7.5 miles last week! Well done everyone. Today we had three parkrun runners and two Willen walkers, then everyone met up with Andrew (parkrun volunteer photographer) and JeffandJoan for celebratory coffees. Congratulations to Annette and Amanda for setting new PBs today and a belated congratulations to Juliet for her sub-30min 5k last week - you're owed a flapjack when you get back from your holiday!! A big well done to Pauline and Catherine who cut 30 seconds off their walking lap time - great stuff! The Rock Bottom(s) trip to Benidorm is all booked up - in November, eleven of us are going to either run in or support at the half-marathon, which will be celebrated in style afterwards for certain!!
Well it had to happen sometime and we have been incredibly lucky so far this year, but today was the day when we finally had to brave WET WEATHER at MK parkrun! And boy was it wet! Five runners braved the elements and big congratulations go to Jo, Juliet and Amanda for smashing their PBs!! Well done everyone - including Annette and Wendy whose times were decent enough given the conditions!! Our three walkers very sensibly decided to cut straight to coffee (the runners probably would have too given half a chance!!). It was obviously a good coffee session though as goals have been set and a training plan is now in place to transform walkers into runners by the end of the year!! Go girls!! A reminder that anyone wanting to join us for a run, jog-walk, or power walk around Willen on a Saturday morning is more than welcome - and if you'd prefer to cut straight to coffee for a chin-wag it would be great to see you too!
Once again we were blessed with dry weather for this morning's parkrun, albeit a bit too warm and definitely too windy! The runners must have lost precious seconds running into the wind on the last 2k back to base, I'm sure. Saying that, the Rock Bottom(s) walkers (nearly equal in numbers to the runners this morning!!) no doubt found the conditions perfect for them as they strolled around with Bisto (Alison's dog). There's talk of power-walking next week, so hopefully Bisto will get some time on the doggy treadmill in the next few days to keep up with everyone. A special mention must go to April, Jo's 7-year old daughter and their dog Buffy who did very well walk-running around Willen, despite getting lost half-way round. Well done!! Finally, congratulations to Juliet who achieved her PB this week. Good job everyone - keep up the good work - let's aim for more PBs next week!!
After all the excitement leading up to June's 10k runs it's all gone a bit quiet on the Rock Bottom(s) front. Not that we're NOT training of course... just that we're all doing our own and different things for a couple of weeks. Normal service will resume shortly for sure! Congratulations to Annette and Amanda who successfully climbed Mount Snowdon and rock-scrambled down!! Lots of fun was had and new friends have been made!! An official welcome to Juliet who has become a fully fledged member of Rock Bottom(s) this week - you can now see her super speedy results via our Results page!! And good luck to all our Rock Bottom(s) running in this week's Milton Keynes parkrun. Have fun!!
It's hard to believe that it's less than 3 months since Rock Bottom(s) was formed and in that time we have set ourselves (sometimes crazy) challenges; most Saturdays we've had a good turnout at the MK parkrun 5k and we've all achieved amazing things, on many levels!! Now is a good time to reflect. In that time it's not all been easy - there have been injuries, breathing difficulties (thank goodness for inhalers!!), aching muscles and the odd blister here and there, but the best thing about our group is the friendship and support we give each other to push ourselves to the next level. We also have a budding group of walkers and our brilliant supporters do a great motivational job!! Our 5k time results have steadily increased with PB after PB next to our names, which is great to see. And now 6 of our group have run 10k races in the past couple of weeks - Tess ran the 10k BUPA run in London a couple of weeks ago and Amanda, Annette, Wendy, Jo and Juliet have successfully run the 10k Race for Life today! Well done everyone, we've raised pots of money for charity and have been an inspiration to each other and to many other people who have keenly watched our progress! Bring on the next challenge - Rock Bottom(s) you rock!!
A quieter parkrun for the Rock Bottom(s) today due to holidays and injury, but lovely to see our walkers cheering on the runners before, during and afterwards. Once again, we were very lucky to avoid running in the rain - truly amazing!! Well done to Karen and Tess for their PBs and to Amanda for her volunteering effort on the parkrun team (whilst multi-tasking on her conference call!). The highlight of our morning has to be the coffee and chat afterwards!! What a wide-ranging discussion we had, from the Palma 10k's anthem and the amazing "massage man" right through to a fancy dress brainstorm in preparation for next week's family parkrun. We even shared the songs that we'd like to have played at our funerals!! Oh happy day!!
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