Pleasure and pain

Pleasure and pain was the order of the day today. i was asked if i could photograph an event at Nottinghamshire Hospice this week. It was held today (saturday) and was a chance for people to come and have a look round the new gardens and plant some 'forget me not' seeds in memory of a loved one.

we arrived at 12.30pm to find a great turn out, there were lots of people walking around the house and gardens exploring, some even brought picnic food and made day of it. It was lovely to see kids playing around the huge old tree in the grounds. It was my birthday yesterday and to my surprise the staff at the hospice had bought me a huge cake and all signed a lovely card.

a birthday card full of lovely messages from the hospice team

A cake to feed 20 people just for 5 of us!

I was told that i would be paid for todays job but as usual i refused and offered my services for free. The parking at hospice is sparse at best so its best to park on the road, i usually drive past and then do a 3 point turn on the street just beyond. whilst performing this manoeuvre today i drove in to post! car body damage number 1.

number 1

Car body damage number 2 came as we were driving home, all of a sudden there was a loud metallic thud that seemed to come from the back off the car. i first thought that we had been hit by a fling branch as there were a lot of large old trees hanging over the road, but as i looked in the rear-view mirror i saw a bright orange football in the road. It must have been kicked from the park we had just driven passed. I'm taking solice in the idea that if our car wasn't in the way the ball could well have caused more of an accident.

number 2

Ive been struggling with a hamstring issue for a couple of weeks and because my legs weren't at their best at the last physio session with @sport_victoria she asked me to come along on friday to see how i was getting on. I had put lots of effort in last after the weeks runs as there was no way i was going through another excruciating massage like last time. The extra effort had paid off they were much better, although the hamstring thing was still an issue. After another painful session trying to figure out what was going on in my left leg, the run today was great. The only problem now is that we have to carry on with the same treatment next time! Oh well, its worth it as it seems to be working.

Big News! - The 5k a day Challenge is off to see the FA at St Georges Park!

I can reveal that on Monday 2nd June 2014 i will be taking the 5k a day challenge to The Football Associations St Georges Park!

 

The lovely people at the Nottinghamshire FA have stepped up to help publicise the challenge, They have arranged this event. Thank you to Craig Lee and Jamie Thompson for their great efforts.

Below is the press release by them.

As part of Andy Wallis’s ‘5k a day for a year’ challenge in aid of Nottinghamshire Hospice he will be completing his 5k run on Monday 2^nd June at St George’s Park in Staffordshire, the home of English Football!

Andy is supporting a leadership event for The Nottinghamshire FA, taking images of the session, in return The Nottinghamshire FA and The FA will support Andy in completing his daily run.

Marc Birkett, Nottinghamshire FA Referee Development Officer, and Jenny Morley, The FA’s Senior Tutor Workforce Coordinator, will be taking up the challenge.

Marc recently made history becoming the only English official to officiate in the three major competitions Finals – The World Cup, The European Championships and the European Cup all in football’s smaller version, Futsal.  He has also participated in the world’s biggest mass participation sports events, completing the Marathons in Paris & Rome  “I’m really looking forward to supporting Andy, and helping to raise the profile of Notts Hospice and with the backdrop of the fantastic St George’s Park is the icing on the cake”.

Jenny is also keen to support the run “I’m a keen runner and so am really happy to be involved in such a good local cause. Andy’s commitment to running 5k a day for a year is a great effort, I’m sure all involved will bear that in mind when huffing and puffing round St George’s Park on Monday!”

Andy added "Having worked with The Nottinghamshire FA over the last few years, it’s fantastic to get their help and support with this challenge. Nottinghamshire Hospice is a charity that is close to my heart and the ‘5k a day for a year’ challenge was something I saw as a way I could do something to help them continue to support local people with a life limiting illness and their families. It turns out there are lots of great people out there willing to roll up their sleeves and get involved."

Craig Lee, Football Development Officer of the Nottinghamshire FA has helped to put on the event “We really want to help Andy met the £10k target, if we can help him promote his challenge then that is fantastic, we hope to raise awareness of the work of the Nottinghamshire Hospice at our Annual Awards Event in September, and showcase Andy’s challenge.  The next part of this will then be to arrange a second run with Andy after September where we look to complete a 5k run from one football club to another in Nottinghamshire and hopefully get the support of the two selected clubs.”

St George’s Park is a world-class facility set in 330 acres of countryside and is the home to all 24 national football teams.  It has 11 outdoor pitches including a replica of the Wembley surface, a full size indoor 3G pitch, an indoor Futsal sports hall and two onsite hotels.

You can follow Andy’s ‘5k a day for a year’ challenge on Twitter or read his blog and if you would like to, then please DONATE it would be greatly appreciated!

17th May - Beeston park run

Last Saturday 17^th May was going to be the hottest day of 2014 so far according Wincey Willis or whatever her name was and often on a weekend I might fit a run in during the middle of the day as a bit of a novelty. There was no chance I was doing that today, Boil in the bag springs to mind! I woke at 8am to find the bed had an extra person in it as usual. I never wake when Arlo our 2 year old arrives so I’m never sure what time he shows up. I get the impression it’s not that long after I nod off though. We were out at a party the night before so we were in late, I didn't drink, I’m not doing much of that just lately but I woke feeling as if I had. I hate that, I wish I had now. I’m getting old, I’d rather not drink and be able to drive home these days. As I’m a wake I might as well go and complete the Beeston parkrun. By the time I arrived I had to run from the car to join the starting herd of running folk. The car was miles back as I was one of the last of 220 that morning obviously the good weather had brought them out,

so I had to run to the start. It reminded me of the episode of the Simpsons where Homer sat in traffic for an eternity trying to get to work only to then be seen pulling in to a car parking space at the plant just the other side of his own garden fence. I hung around at the back of the group waiting for the starting horn with a couple of minutes to spare. During this time I should perhaps have set my watch hunting for satellites. I failed to do this until the we were off so it was a little way down the first straight before it registered and I could start the timer. It’s always a bit messy at the back of the pack at these events as there is such a diverse range of running abilities that it’s hard to find a gap to run in, not to mention the first straight being littered with pot holes and stones (a glass ankled runners nightmare). I usually know how I’m going to attempt each run I do, but because today was such a rush I was just happy to have made the start, I decided to get it done as quick as I could and get home. So as we turned the first tight corner after ‘sprained ankle straight’ I started to weave through each runner that wasn’t running at my pace, I chose to run somewhere between 4.30 and 5 minutes per Km because that should get me across the line in under 25 minutes. The course at Beeston is deceiving as it takes you on a rectangular journey around the weir field  and you can see the start/finish line from pretty much every part of the track and it never looks that far away.

It broaches a feeling that this is going to be a walk in the park, or ‘run’, that is until I reach the 3^rd kilometre and my false sense of security and ability come crashing down and instead of feeling like Mo Farah of distance running fame, I’m transformed in to Mo Harris or EastEnders fame! The first time I ever ran this route was the very first Beeston parkrun ever held and because I didn’t look at the route before I started and the fact that I could see the finish nearly all way round, I pushed on until the I crossed the finish line only to discover that the course continued on beyond the finish line! I thought last Km looked short. I arrived at the true finish as if id free-fallen from space. I completed this particular run in 24 mins 34 seconds. The course here is actually slightly longer than 5km so even though my watch started after a short delay i didn't have to run on to complete my distance.

What a morning for a run

The weather during today’s morning run was amazing.  I woke feeling groggy as usual, but as I peeped out of the curtains I was greeted by the clearest and bluest sky id seen in ages. I rushed to get ready, for some reason I was a couple of pairs of shorts down, but no matter I did eventually find something. I stepped out the door feeling old as I often do on a morning run, but by the time I was at the end of the street all felt well. This had to have something to do with the weather, but physiological or not I wasn’t about to question it. As the first junction approached so did the questions; left or right, hills or flat, trail or road, long, short, fast or slow? 

Within a few seconds I had a plan; left, hills, trail, short, slow. The temperature felt perfect, there was no breeze and above all hardly anyone around except the odd dog walker. A brilliant day for a run. I have been thinking that as I’m now going to be running the  Ikano Robin Hood half Marathon on 28^th September I need to add more hill work in on a regular basis. 

The first time I tried a half marathon in 2010 I failed, because in my eyes some of the hills were draining my legs way too early. The organisers have made it a flatter course now but there is nothing like a few good hills here and there to put you in good stead for a long distance run. This run around The Hemlock Stone and up in the heights of Bramcote Hills Park was perfect as not only was it littered with hilliness it was off road and took in various flights of steps too.

 I stopped to get a few photos as I went along as I just couldn’t resist the lovely blues and greens of my surroundings. I took on this challenge for Nottinghamshire Hospice because I felt that when I donate my time as an event photographer, I enjoy it so much, it always feels like cheating. Of course there have been rough times and difficult runs up to now, however on days like this I was in my element. Here’s to more days like this as we drift in to summer. Great weather days really lift our mood, I can only imagine what a day like today would do for me if i were in the last 12 months of  life like patients using the hospice facilities. Our time here is short, with or without life limiting illness. Nottinghamshire hospice are currently renovating their gardens to make the area more patient friendly, so more people with less time can enjoy what they have.

The Erewash 5K Race

Today's Erewash 5km race was held at West Park in Long Eaton. It was due to start at 9.30am. the emails i received said you could register from 8.10am and to get there early. I arrived at 8.10 and i was the first competitor on site, they weren't quite ready and in my true enigmatic style i moaned at them "I'm here its ten past eight, the emails said be here early to register from ten past eight, this is not good enough. Get on with it!"

first one here

No one took me seriously though and quite right too. It actually turned out to be an advantage in more ways than one, as i was able to talk about my challenge to the organisers and the photographer. I had some shots taken and the lovely people from Jog Derbyshire took some details. Thank you to all the people i met this morning, both for your time and enthusiasm.

"Any runners going to do it in under 22 minutes, please take your place on the start" 10 people moved forward. "Anyone feel they can do it in under 25 minutes?... you're next" i turned to the person next to me. "Now do i go up, because i have run in under 25...?" she suggested i should go for it. I agreed.

safety brief

9.27 and i realised i hadn't set the watch, if I'm not careful it won't have got a satellite signal by the time the race starts. i quickly pressed go and and watched the screens time bar tick up...... Beep! just in time! We set off quick, i checked my pace at the first corner and i was way too fast, running at nearly 4 minutes per Km. I'm used to running between 5 and 5.30 minutes per Km. Ive got to slow down or I'm going be burnt out way to early. by the first km i was dead on my legs to quite honest, i was finding it hard to breath correctly and my legs felt like feathers blowing about in the wind! i did my best to pace myself to around 5 minutes and forget about my legs, think about something else while my legs run. As i got to the 3 km point i felt somewhat better, i had the chance to chat to few people as i ran past them. they all said the same thing, they all went off too quick. There was a guy i knew taking part in the run and i knew he was going to be completing in under 22 minutes. I spoke to him before the race and he told me he didn't really want to be there and was only doing it because his wife had registered him along with herself. He said he wanted to get it over with and get home. I think he was the reason we all set off too fast, he set a blistering pace from the start just because he wanted to be at home watching Saturday kitchen or something!

I crossed the line in 46th place with a time of 24.17 (chip time) i was extremely pleased with that. Close behind me was Sally Hull, an old school friend, she was over the moon with coming in 48th in under 25 minutes and thanked me for being her unofficial pacer. we all received a medal for competing too. 

Sally Hull and I at the finish

I uploaded my run data from my watch to endomondo when i got back. It was then that i noticed that i had recorded a shorter distance than the advertised 5km at only 4.88km. What? I'm supposed to be completing 5k a day! True to my word i popped out straight away and added an extra half a km run to the days total. It turns out that if a course is particularly bendy a GPS device might chop corners off, so i will have physically covered the distance it just didn't show correctly. 

Here is the link to the results

All in all, a good mornings run, a nice event run by nice people. The moral of this story is, don't follow the bloke who would rather be watching James Martin!

Below is a few photos from the official photographer, as competitors we are able to download the files for free.

Fancy joining me on a half way 5k? Get scribbling on that coat!

Get your diary out then, or if you haven't got them to hand and you're reading this on the bus, get a pen and write this date on the coat of the person in front. Just make sure you cut that section from the coat before they get off the bus.

The date is Sunday 27th July 2014.

This will mark my 182nd run out of 365. Hopefully you have just worked out on that persons coat (always show your working out on the sleeve) that this is .... EXACTLY HALF WAY (said loudly in a Brian Blessed type way).

Well, it will be half way at 2.5km in. the reason I'm telling you all this now is because i would love to see loads of runners out with me seeing the half way point in and out properly. It is likely to be an evening run and will be somewhere in the Nottingham area. I'm hoping that anyone turning up will feel up for a small donation too if you haven't already done so.

I have no other details to share yet but if you want to come along and watch/help me drag my knackered knees around the half way point, please let me know.

If you want to get a team together from work or come along on your own (saddo!) then that's entirely your choice. Don't worry about speed or ability, i don't have either and I'm doing it EVERYDAY!! Alright clear off now Brian.

So come on what are you waiting for? except the day to arrive, get in touch and let me know, donate a few quid to Nottinghamshire hospice at the same time. You will get a warm fuzzy feeling, it will be brief and will quickly be taken over by aching legs and an inability to talk in full sentences, but what the heck... its good for you!

info@andywallisphotography.co.uk
www.nottshospice.org
www.justgiving.com/5kaday

or tweet me @aw_photo_nottm use the hashtag #5kadaynh

Cheers everyone!

I'm popping up all over!

I made it in to the Topper.

Here is a screen shot of the digital copy that contains the article.

To read it online, use the following link http://www.toppernewspapers.co.uk/latestissue.htm

Decathlon surprise me with an amazing donation.

Last week after running over 300 miles on my newest trainers i was surprised to find out that Decathlon in Nottingham are going to be supplying kit for the rest of my 5k a day challenge. I was so amazed by this i made a short video to thank them. 

Whitby Run - Bank Holiday

True to my word, I'm running everyday. here are a few photos taken on a morning run in Whitby from the bank holiday. It was a last minute decision to take a quick trip over there. we arrived late evening on the Sunday and i ran a couple of hours before travelling up. I completed my run on the Monday morning before breakfast. 

Here is the link to the run stats http://www.endomondo.com/workouts/335023763/13040505

a long downhill to the sea

Sandsend

Sandsend

a view towards Whitby

Steep or what?

yes IT IS

Not bad digs

end of the run

 

100 runs, Cake, Radio and TV

It was an exciting day on Tuesday 6th May as i reached the first 100 runs. The day started well with my better half Lisa donating a bit more to the just giving page which took my total to £1110. Later that morning i was informed that i was mentioned on Local TV news as well as being

due on the morning show on BBC Radio Nottingham, hosted by Mark Dennison to talk 5k a day. I've been on his show before to talk about photography but this time he conducted the interview outside. It made me feel a little less nervous as we weren't in the studio and at the end of the interview i had to run away from mic. This wasn't rehearsed but i found by self sort of scuffing my feet as i ran so it would be heard better as i ran away. I'm obviously a natural. I took a Nottinghamshire Hospice tee shirt with me for Mark to sign too.

I have decided to get signatures on the shirt from all those who have helped me or donated along the way. The hospice staff had a brilliant cake made with what looked like a marzipan me running on the top to mark the 100 runs too. 

A couple of days before i had put a status on Facebook asking for volunteers to run with me to mark the 100th run on Tuesday evening. It was short notice but we had 8 runners turn up. we arranged to meet at 7.30pm at Bramcote Hills Park, Lisa bought us all water and i took a camera and my signing tee-shirt. I lead us off and Adam Patrick was the trailing runner, he called it 'taking one for the team'.

We ended up in 3 smaller groups with my eldest son Joshua leading us. He stayed up front all the way round the 5.6km. Thank you to (left to right) Gary Robertson, Paul Massey, Peter McConnochie, Joshua Wallis, Me, Adam Patrick, Tony Perry, Wendy Marriot and Lisa Tandy for helping me mark the occasion. If you would like to join one of these runs look out for the half way event at run 182.5! Another surprise from The Clarkson Family recently was this amazing Lego 5kaday model called the 'Wallis-Running-Man-Totaliser-5000 complete with Lego man runners. Lauren Clarkson (aged 7 ½) and Alex (aged 10).

Thank you