Are Runners Respected or laughed at?

Day 3 of Janathon and my quest to run 31 days in a row throughout January and so far so good. Calling it a quest makes it sound like a bit of a journey and a parallel perhaps to Frodo although I am not carrying a ring, just the extra 2 kilos following Christmas.

Today on reading another Janathoners blog post I thought about how runners are viewed by the general populace? Are runners respected or laughed at? I can recall the times when cars have passed by and passengers have wound down the window and shouted or screamed and yeah that can come as a shock and make you stop in your tracks. I have also had car drivers on a wide road deliberately drive through a puddle and lots of laughter and waving from the passengers as they zoom off leaving me soaked with the taste of puddle, not good. I guess we have run past a group of people who feel a need to call out to you 118, hup 2,3,4 , the London marathon was last week mate. More recently since the smoking ban inside pubs I have had one or two challengers from smokers outside pubs - you want fresh air breathe this in mate as one guy said as he exhaled a deep breathe in my direction to gales of laughter.

The other side of the coin might be the silent majority. Most people I suspect don't have an interest in running or taking part in any physical activity at all. This is fine and we all have interests which make us a minority in some form or another. Steve Runner on his podcast Phedippidations often talks about the running community. He often suggests that by lacing up your shoes and getting off the coach of doom that by our actions and being seen we may just sow a seed of thought and  inspire 1-2 people to take up running.  Any of you have any interesting things shouted at you?

These days I often wear my IPOD so I don't hear any shouts of encouragement or abuse!

This morning I listened to the Bravery


My run took me in the Abbey Gardens in Bury St Edmunds. Very quiet this morning, weather overcast but good to see so many runners out and about. The 14th century Abbeygate has been closed since before Christmas following a number of masonry falls brought on by the coldest December for many years. Along with the footfall following a very successful Christmas market and the passing traffic the Abbeygate is suffering from wear and tear.

What to do with your Christmas tree? For many it is a trip to the dump to recycle but clearly for some it is just to throw it out on the path and leave it to some else to clear up!

Six Mile run at Moreton Hall Suffolk

This was day 12 of my Runners World SMART Coach schedule which called for an easy 6 miles at 9.20 mile pace.

The temperature  was up to 4c and the snow is really beginning to go replaced by rain. This was a run in the rain but for larger parts of the run the pavements were clear of snow until I ran up Symonds Road which was still very slushy. This is also an uphill section and I slowed to a 9.36 mile but it couldn't have been too slippery as I came down the hill in 8.21.

Mile splits were 8.31, 8.47, 9.36, 8.21, 8.41 and 9.01 for a total of 53 mins for 6 miles.

On the podcast I listened to the the latest episode of phedippidations talking about Spring Marathons and his acceptance into the Boston Marathon.

Risby Suffolk

The end of my 1st week of the Runners World SMART coach schedule called for a long run of 10 miles at a 9.20 mile pace.

Where to run? With the current snowy conditions  I am happy to run 5 miles up and down the same piece of road or in a park but didn't fancy doing the same for a long run.

Luckily over night there ws no more snow and there had been something of a thaw. It being a Sunday morning and very little traffic I ventured out running on the minor roads to Risby in Suffolk. As can be seen from the photo the roads were partially clear. I was able to run around two thirds of the way on the roads and switched back to the snowy paths and pavements when traffic approached.

I ran out 5 miles to my turning point just beyond the Highwayman's Vineyard.  
This is now a bed and breakfast .

My time for the 10 miles was 1 hr 29 mins 06 seconds mile splits 8.52,8.53,9.18,8.39,8.51,9.04,9.11,8.51,9.00 and 8.27

My pace was fairly consistent throughout and I was able to complete week 1 for a total of 31 miles. For the last mile I put in some extra effort and I switched from the Phedippidations podcast ( Steve Runner talking about his ambition to run a marathon in under 4 hours) to the Lillingtons The Too Late Show which always gives me a boost to run a little quicker.

Having completed Week 1 of my schedule I recognise that on paper that this is the easiest week.  I am reasonably tired so I am going to have draw on reserves of energy. Another way to look at it is that Week 1 of a running schedule is one of the hardest because it is the first step out of the door which is the most mentally difficult especially in the current weather conditions.