I give in - lets try cycling!!

I can't rid myself of the curse of plantar fascitiis and several others have told me that I am doing myself no good by trying to run every few days.

Its because I love my running that I don't want to give it up but at present it is just not working for me. Even after a break of a week, if I run I am ok over a short run of a few miles but the next day I am hobbling and limping. The Scholl orthotic inserts will help but I was deluded if I felt this would provide a major wand cure. The spring is here and summer dawns and with it a great selection of road races but my winter training will now count for nowt. The 12th of April was my last proper week  of training and a month on from this my level of fitness will have slipped. I will have to start all over again from scratch when I eventually get over this injury.


So for now I am taking up cycling. This has the great advantage of not causing me any further damage to my foot.I have a road bike this was given to me and is very much an ordinary bike and definitely not one of those fancy Dan £2,000 jobs More's the pity!

Several folks have suggested to me why don;t you try cycling including Revrunner, Darren Baker and finally my better half said to get out there and do it
I am going to stop running for 1 month and then see if I am ok to run again. I think I will know if this is the case. Like a lot of people with plantar fascitiis I find my foot can be painful first thing in the morning when I stand up on it. Hopefully in a month perhaps this will have healed and I can run again but there are no guarantees with this and I know this can linger for many months .

So today I switched my garmin forerunner to the cycling function, got a back pack ready with a spare waterproof jacket , a map and a drink. Pumped up the tyres and set off.

Cycling isn't something I have actively tried before. I have of course used a bike to get from a to b , pop into town but as a form of exercise no apart from the stationary cycle machines in a gym. I have also been a bit wary of traffic and know that bikes always come off second best in a fight with a car, I am therefore a real novice - totally green so this makes this a bit of an adventure and something exciting to do as a temporary replacement for running.

I put on my ipod and listened to Mark Kemode and Simon Mayo's Film Review podcast.  The episode I listened to included a review of the latest Iron man 2 film. As a boy I was a fan of all of the Marvel Comics including Ironman, Spiderman, The Fantastic Four and the Silver Surfer to name a few  and this latest offering is definitely a precursor to the launch of the Avengers as a film.  The film introduced the Black Widow character played by Scarlet Johansson. The film is worth a watch if you like comic book character films.

The miles passed by on the bike fairly easily but at no great pace. My route took me through the villages of Fornham All Saints, Fornham St Genevieve, West Stow, Ingham and Timworth  all to the north of Bury St Edmunds. Obviously you can get a lot further afield on a bike and travel further than on a run. I stopped a couple of times for a quick drink but other than that I just kept going. I wasn't sure what I could do and how far to go and I wasn't prepared if I had of got a puncture.

But I did 14 miles in 1 hr 20 Min's for an average speed of 11 miles an hour.From what I can see this is very much an average speed for a complete beginner. Club cyclists spin the wheel at around 18 miles an hour.

Road-bike.co.UK indicates the following as a guide with all of the provisos concerning weather , hills equipment, traffic etc

• Beginner, short distance (say 10-15 miles): average speed 12 mph. Most cyclists can achieve 10-12 mph average very quickly with limited training
• More experienced, short-medium distance (say 20-30 miles): average speed 15-16 mph
• Reasonable experience, medium (say 40 miles): average speed 16-19 mph
• Quite competent club rider, some regular training likely, medium-long distances (say 50-60 miles): 20-24 mph

I forgot to take my camera so along with a puncture kit and a phone I will be better prepared next time. Did I enjoy it? Yes as a substitute for running it wasn't bad and I will want to make it competitive and give my self some challenges and improve my speed and the distance I cover.

Did I get bum ache? Yes my backside just isn't used to sitting on a bike.

The only other problem today was the amount of green fly in the air. There must be some outbreak of the pests at the moment and cycling meant keeping the mouth closed and wiping away the green fly every so often.

Kings Forest West Stow Suffolk

Five miles North of Bury St Edmunds in  Suffolk is the village of West Stow which is known further afield for its Anglo Saxon Village. If you want to experience what it might have been like to be an Anglo Saxon then make a visit to West Stow. There are generally events on most of the year details at the friends of West Stow site.The village has been created on the site where a major archaeological dig in the 1960's revealed a well preserved Anglo-Saxon site saved beneath the sands of the Breckland.

As this was closed for Christmas I parked further up the road at the picnic site known as Ramparts Field. This as the signboard indicates is a reminder of how much of the brecklands once were but after the 2nd world war much was put to forestry.

Ramparts Field survived as it was an  ancient gravel working site and is now used as a  good starting point for walks around the gorse and sandy lanes nearby.

 For my run on an overcast morning I wore layers to keep out the damp cold temperature it being just above freezing at 1 C. A sweat shirt and a techical t shirt over the top along with tracksters , gloves and hat kept me warm enough.

A short distance along the road from Ramparts Field towards the Anglo Saxon Vilage you can pick up the ancient Icknield Way which is said to be the oldest pathway in Great Britain predating the Roman invasion of 43AD.

What immeadiately strikes you when running this pathway is just how sandy the soil is around here with large numbers of flints everywhere. The name Breck derives from broken land and hints at how this area was never considered a great one for agriculture.

This morning there was a heavy frost and the ground even though being sandy was hard. The pathway I followed has been heavily used by forestry vechicles and hence is heavily rutted in places. At times I was running within the ridge formed by the car wheels and going up and down so although running I could imagine how bumpy a drive along here would be.

There are over 200 varieties of trees in the area known as Thetford Forest. My run took me on an out and back 4 miles to the King George the 5th monumnet in the King's Forest. Most of the trees that I could see that predominate are pines, oaks and conifers but there were also birch to be seen.

This certainly wouldn't be every ones cup of tea this run as it lonely and isolated. I say one mountain biker apart from that I was alone in the forest with the odd squirrel and a million rabbits for company.

In one section a local farmer has obviously filled one of the larger ruts in the pathway with broken bricks this provided a different challenge to run across.

At the end of the King's Forest the path meets the B1106 in a clearing, is a stone monument, with the following inscription: "This tone commemorates the silver jubilee of King George the Fifth. The Forestry Commissioners began in 1936 to afforest the King's Forest and to plant with Beeches Queen Mary's Avenue, which follows the course of the Icknield Way. P.L. Robinson, Chairman, W.L. Taylor, Assistant Commissioner."

I ran fairly slowly today but I was happy with my stamina on this run not feeling the urge to stop until around 6 miles. But by this point I was feeling a little cold and picked up the pace to complete my run back at the car. It was at this point that I realised that I had forgotten to use my jelly beans that I took with me to give me a little boost!

Anglo Saxon Village at West Stow Country Park

Although I have visited West Stow Country park I have never been inside the Anglo Saxon Village. So today was a first and a really interesting visit.

Around this area and Lackford much gravel extraction has taken place and back in the 1960's the discovery of West Stow was made. Following excavations an Anglo Saxon settlement dating to the fifth century was uncovered with sufficient rotting timbers to enable some experimental archeology to take place. The experiments are to try and recreate Anglo Saxon life and the type of houses that were built.

In recent years the village is lived in by resident Anglo Saxon villagers in period clothing though not to the extent of somewhere like Kentwall hall as i saw an Anglo Saxon with a Tesco's bag!

You can see some Gloucester shire Old Spot Pigs living a life of absolutely luxury in a big pig home besides some well tended crops of veg that would have been cultivated at this time.

There is also an Anglo Saxon centre with displays illustrating life during the fifth, sixth and seventh centuries.

As a bonus there was a small food market with a range of local food products with some good local honey.

West Stow and Culford Suffolk

9am 7.2 miles in 58 mins 17 seconds

Week to date mileage 27 miles

Month to date mileage 36

Year to date 428

Lifetime 10021

Stowlangtoft,Westley,West Stow and Thurston

New photo links added on the left hand side to photos I have taken at the following Suffolk villages of Stowlangtoft,Westley,West Stow and Thurston

West Stow Suffolk

9.45am 13 miles in 1 hour 46 minutes

Week to Date mileage 31

Month to date mileage 75

Average Monthly rate 152

Weather: Dry cool

I found my camera batteries were flat so that was a big disappointment before I set of for my run. I decided to change my route and just run an out and back route along the Icklingham Belt which soon merges with the Icknield Way.

Before doing so I had a run around the West Stow Country Park and a lap around the Ramparts Field. This is a great picnic spot a good place for a game of rounders. The site was once a gravel pit site and is now full of bright yellow gorse which I can still feel the scratches on my ankles.

The pathway is Breckland sand but a light one and easy to run on. The pathway is fairly straight and runs through belts of old old pine and oak as well as lots of newly planted conifers

When the Icknield Way reaches the B1106 known as Shelterhouse Corner the pathway is marked to continue over to Barrow Clump Buildings but there is some dispute here as you cannot follow the ancient right of way which is sad. Instead you are directed along the road side and take the next right to pick up the pathway known as Old Barnham Slip. This was the point I turned and retraced my steps. Just as well really the pathway suddenly reaches an area which is fenced and the only way through was a roadway which is either flooded or is some kind of foot and mouth chemical cleaning area. I shall return but might have to go over the fence rather than wade up to the knee. I wonder what is going on here, this is the oldest road in Britain, a marked ancient right of way- perhaps it is just flooded.

24th July West Stow & the Brecks

9.30 am 9.5 miles in 1 hour 20 mins.

Year to date mileage 646 miles , Month to date 110 miles. Average miles per week for this year is now 22 and average monthly mileage is now 96.

Weather overcast threatening rain but managed to avoid it on my run.

Course: West Stow Country Park is about 4 miles from Bury St Edmunds on the Mildenhall Road. Follow the way marked signs for the Lark Valley Pathway. This takes you past the reconstructed Anglo Saxon Village around the lake and then along by the River Lark. Parts of the Lark Valley Pathway are in fact better known as the Icknield way.

The Icknield Way is one of the oldest roads in Britain said to be over 4,000 years old. It is one of the few long-distance trackways to have existed before the Romans occupied the country. It stretches from Ivinghoe Beacon in Buckinghamshire to Knettishall Heath in Norfolk approx 128 miles . If you fancy walking it it can be done in about 7 days more details see this link. www.walkingpages.co.uk - 7k

I ran out for 40 minutes into a landscape that is known as the Brecklands. This is an area of Scottish pine trees and sandy heathlands. Surprisingly East Anglia does have some areas of wilderness. The picture top right shows the path I followed which is a very open heathland. I saw nobody on this run. The only sounds were the noise of grass hoppers and the wind through the trees. The Brecklands are a specially protected area due to the unique landscape which provides a home to a number of rare birds and wildflowers.

The one thing that isn't rare in the brecks is Rabbits I saw some large rabbit warrens on this run. Rabbits were introduced apparently to Britain after the Romans arrived in 43AD. In the early days rabbit farming was highly protected by landowners because of their meat and fur. In 1813, one rabbit poacher was sentenced to seven years transportation to Australia for stealing a single rabbit. I gave up counting rabbits today after a hundred or so!

Anglo Saxon Village at West Stow

Stow means special place. West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village lets you explore the way our ancestors lived. The early Anglo-Saxon village (c.420-650AD) has been carefully reconstructed where it was excavated. During this time East Anglia rose to become the Dominant kingdom of England, under King Redwald. www.geocities.com - 31k This site is well woth a visit 'Angelcynn - At West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village'