Cycle ride to Gt Barton Suffolk

A typical bank holiday Monday the weather being cool and overcast with some rain. My cycle ride this morning was 15 miles and took me on a loop out to Gt Barton past the Holy Inocents Church. On to Thurston, Rougham, Rushbrooke and home.

All ready for tomorrows Juneathon though I wish I was running!

12 miles to Rougham Suffolk

My longest run of the year and my biggest mileage week of the year. Lots of positivies from the run today which was a 6 mile out and back to Rougham in Suffolk. My time was slow 1.49.16 for the 12 miles which is a 9.06 pace.

The main thing to take from the run was my improving stamina as I have  gradually increased my long run from 10 to 12 miles this year. This is filling me with confidence that I will at leat complete the half marathon at the end of March.

Looking at my diary this was my first 12 mile run since 25 May 2009 nine months ago! This is the biggest reason for my lack of speed and stamina as I just don't have a good base of training. Back in May 2009 I ran 1.44.22 in training so I have lost some 5 minutes in pace since then.

I heard on Marathon Talk that the effects of sciatica can take some time to work through and recover from with tight glutes being a particular problem. If you listen to running podcasts then I really recommend Marathon Talk as being one of the very best to listen to at the moment. I had no problems with any aches or pains today so I am currently injury free another big plus.

My splits today showed I set of very slowly but improved in the 2nd half of the run 9.09,9.18,9.05,9.22,9.37,9.04,8.38,8.24,8.40,9.05,9.31,9.18.

My run today took me along Rushbrooke Lane  and Blackthorpe before reaching Rougham. My turn around half way point was just beyond St Mary's Church at Rougham.

On this run I was able to get off road to follow a pathway to the church at Rougham. I also came across this phone box which had plenty of ventilation with seemingly no glass left in the frame of the box. Red phone boxes which were once a common site in every English village are now beginning to become a rarity as they are removed. You can understand why since the arrival of the mobile phone when was the last time you used one? I honestly don't remember and I wouldn't know what coins you should now use in a phone box. I guess this one will be gone before too long.

Any run to Rushbrooke passes fields with hundreds of pigs. If blogs could have smellovision then you would have had a treat and could have shared that piggy/muddy smell that came off the fields!

Today I continued to listen the serialisation of the book I am listening to on podiobooks called Dreaming of Deliverance worth downloading for free if you are out on a long run. Listening to a book on a run really helps you to switch of and the miles fly by.

So I have successfully completed week 5 of my half marathon training and I ran 41 miles. The most I have run since the week of 26th March 2007.

Looking at my parrott predictor time for the marathon I again had a slight improvement in my fastest 26.2 miles of the week.

My times show Jan 11th 3.53.07;Jan 18th 3.50.36, Jan 25th  3.49.50 and Feb 1st 3.49.1112

Rushbrooke and Rougham Suffolk

This week I am on holiday from work and I have decided to put in put in some extra miles and aim to run 40 in total. This is something I haven't done for a long time possibly years.

So today Bank Holiday Monday started well as I decided to put in a long run to begin the week and I ran 12 miles on an out and back course to Rougham from Bury St Edmunds. I ran this in 1hr 44 mins 22 seconds. Still slow but happy with this for a long training run.

My route was out along Cullum Road and then Rushbrooke Lane. Up to the Little Spinney turn left along the North Hill Covert and follow the by road around the sewage treatment plant to Blackthorpe.

As a chicken keeper myself It is always interesting to see other chickens. We have six this owner clearly has more and has them well fenced in against threat of foxes.

At Blackthorpe there is a pathway through Gorse Wood past Blackthorpe Barn. By following this pathway you eventually pick up the old A45 road which is now just a concrete pathway which you can follow over the A14 and into Home farm Rougham.

With 6 miles completed I retraced my steps home.

Bury St Edmunds, Rougham Hill and Rushbrooke Suffolk

1pm 9 miles in 1 hr 13 mins 56 seconds

Week to date mileage 9 miles

Month to date mileage 42

Average weekly rate 30.1 miles

Average monthly rate 131

Year to date 42

Lifetime 9635

I was quite indecisive when I set out for this run setting of in one direction and then having a complete change of mind. I ran down Beetons Way thinking I would do one of my regular runs around Fornham but on a day off from work something in my mind suggested I should do something different from the norm.

The weather was again fairly mild but the wet drizzle was persistent. This winter has been mild and it makes you wonder if we will get any snow at all.

So at the bottom of Beetons Way I turned right to follow one of the paths that leads behinds King Edwards School. Emerging near Springfield Road I decided I would head out towards Rushbrooke and look for a footpath some one had mentioned to me that runs parallel to Rushbrooke Lane.

On the way I ran past Cine World and on to the market place to see how the development works are progressing. I was half expecting the old Duke of Wellington to have been pulled down but saw it still standing there with its many tales and about to be just a memory.

I ran down Cullum Road and then out towards the A14. Instead of running down Rushbrooke Lane this time I carried on past the Recycling Centre and up Rougham Hill. I believe this used to be where cars parked in the early days of the Bury 20? I think this might be the last time I have been up Rougham Hill. Not being a lorry driver I would have no cause to venture up here for at the top there is a cafe and a lorry park. Very busy it was too as lorries retreated into the sanctuary of the Hill top cafe.

Past the cafe there is a pathway on the right hand side which I took It takes you behind a large golfing range where you can here the ping of golf balls sometimes reaching as far as the high metal fence at 250 metres. If I was a golfer I could have scooped up half a dozen balls which had some how escaped the fence and were on my path.

The going along this pathway is a little wet in places especially when the path emerges into open fields. There were great waves of black crows feeding on something on the ploughed fields and they rose into flight as I got closer before ignoring me and carrying on feeding.

At the end of the footpath there is a new diversion to the original path and being unsure where the pathway leads I returned back into Bury. Before running home I decided to take a peek at the now disbanded Travellers Site. This was a purpose built set of homes and I don't recall the history as to why they are now all destroyed, each property has had its roof cut off like the top of an egg.

Rougham and Hessett Suffolk

8.30am 10 miles in 1hr 21 mins 59 seconds

Week to date mileage 10 miles

Month to date mileage 129

Average weekly rate 30.2 miles

Average monthly rate 131

Year to date 1556

Lifetime 9576

On a damp, dark and dreary morning I drove out to Blackthorpe a small hamlet near Rougham. I traveled along the A14 from Bury St Edmunds to Ipswich road. After about 4 miles there is a new turning which enables you to reach Blackthorpe. I parked up and ran through Blackthorpe Farm. There is always a seasonal Christmas sale here in the Barn of all the usual Christmas type paraphernalia. A lot of people also buy there Christmas trees from here or at Rougham Nurseries.

The early part of my run was along a cemented off road track through large fields of trees being prepared for future Christmas years. Eventually you emerge from Blackthorpe Farm at the edge of the A14. Home Farm is on the other side of the A14 on the edge of this very busy road which has constant noise day and night. This must effect the owners as there farm house must pick up the noise. There was a lovely reminder of former days when this road was much quieter and was then called the A45 a sign directing you to this road.

The pathway along by the A14 is short and you turn right at Rougham Nursery. Past a few houses and I was then on to the fields. The pathway takes directly to St Mary's church at Rougham. The pathway is called Church Plantation Walk.

From here I followed the road past the rectory and along to the New road, turned right and after a quarter mile arrived in the village of Rougham. Arriving from this direction as you approach the Bennets Arms Pub absoultely dominates like a brick wall at the end of New Road.

I turned left here and ran out to a small hamlet by the name of Nether Street, there is a lovely farm here and some good thatched houses. The outlaying area of Hessett is known as the Heath and just when you wonder where the main village is you arrive at Hessett Green.

Hessett is a wonderful village the Church of St Ethlebert sitting nearly opposite the local pub the Five Bells.


Beyond Hessett to the north is Beyton , Rushbrooke lies to the east , Rougham to the west and Bradfield St George to the south all very tempting to continue on my run but beaten for time again I retraced my steps back to Blackthorpe.

At Blackthorpe I was tempted to go on any another short run as I had spotted a path I think near Piegeon Lane. This takes you through Newthorpe a small hamlet. Looking at the ordnance survey map 211 the path takes you through to Eastlowhill Rd an old roman road at Rushbrooke. This is a must do for another day .

Rushbrooke Rougham and Hessett Suffolk

2pm 8.4 miles

in 1hour 10min 46 seconds.

Year to date mileage 892

Month to date 83 miles

Average miles per month 106

Average weekly rate 24.3

Weather: Sunny bright blue sky.

Course: From Rushbrooke Home Farm I ran down to Eastlowhill Road which is an old Roman Road and the site of a Tumulus and a roman building. I ran through the woods around Rushbrooke Lake and then on to footpaths over fields which took me to Rougham Green out on to fields over Kingshall Street and along to Nether Street and Hessett. I returned on the same path.

This was a very enjoyable run I think I only saw 3 farmers and a lady on a bike during the whole run. The farmers were using the good dry weather to plough over the corn stubble.

The pictures using my very cheap digital camera less than a megapixel don't do the scenery justice though I hope show the big Suffolk skies. As Suffolk is flat it has always been famed for its big skies and many landscape artists have lived and painted here for this reason.

The photo of the church is that of St Nicholas at Rushbrooke. It is said to be one of the most unusual church interiors in Suffolk. When I first went inside I was surprised to see the seats face inwards a bit like the seats at the houses of parliament.

The thatched houses are seemingly farmworkers houses on the Home Farm. This seems to be a thatched 'model ' farm and also organic. It is a beautiful site and well worth a visit for the peace and quietness.

The photo on the bottom right shows St Nicholas Church in the distance over the fields. If anything this picture captures the very essence of Suffolk for me.