The Wollaton Hall 10k race

I woke with a jolt at 6am "Good morning, welcome to Saturday" my 2 year old seemed to be saying by stamping it out in Morse code on my ribs! This was becoming one of my least favourite ways to wake. Mind you, I'm always grateful to get the chance. Today was Wollaton Hall 10k day. I'd collected my chip, bib number and bright orange race T shirt the day before from the Sytner Mini showroom as recommended in the email. It worked out well as i had a physio session at 4.45 nearby so i could pop in on the way back.

The sad news was Victoria, my brilliant Physio was finishing and moving to Cambridge, she has been amazing in teaching me how to self-treat between sessions by using a foam roller, a tennis ball and I've even had Lisa my partner use a rolling pin when its been that bit too painful and  no matter what i do i just can't bring myself to put all my weight on the area in question. Of course the rehab sessions have been amazing too, I'm not sure i would feel as good as i do now without some pretty intense appointments, I often came away sweating more from 45 minutes laying down than i have from a 5km run. Anyway its Saturday and I'm up now, I feel rough, I'm still getting over my '720 hour thing', its like '24 hour thing' just longer, I'm amazed how long a simple cold can hang about pouring glue in to my face on a nightly basis. I wouldn't normally bother before a run but i need a shower.

I was going to run from home to the start... I didn't.

This is the first organised 10k race I've done since 2010 when i entered the 10k pudding run in Heanor. Its called 'the Pudding Run' because it takes place about a month before Christmas, the route takes you past the 'Matthew Walker' Pudding Factory and you receive a Christmas Pudding at the finish. That run ends in a horrible uphill section and just before that i remember running past the turning for a few minutes before i realised my mistake. I completed that one in 1 hour and 6 mins, today i was hoping for under an hour. It was quite busy and the field near the start was full of people in orange as we were all asked to do so by the organisers, apparently Sytner were making a video of the event. I wasn't wearing mine i had donned my Hospice running vest of course. We were all treated to a safety briefing of which i heard very little of and then herded through 2 small gates, one gate after the other at the top of the field. claxon sounded and we were off.... walked a bit.... and we're off ... walked a bit more.... right that's it, I'm through the timing gates, start the watch timer and look for 5.30 minutes on the pace.

This seemed to take ages as there was reported to be around 500 runners attending. We gathered at the start and i spotted a few people i knew, we had a brief chat, i noted a few nervous bladders in the men as some dashed to the bushes on either side of the track.

Another garbled briefing and then just as we were about to set off they drove a black mini through the centre of the crowd of runners! I set the watch ready to start, I also had the chip strapped to my right shoe on the laces as instructed, The

Wollaton Hall is a fantastic setting for the run, the route involved running 2 laps and wound through the grounds nicely with a few tight sections where you had no choice but to slow down and get in single file. They certainly made good use of the inclines as there seemed more up than down and I'm not sure that's even possible. There was a great down hill section just after a tight rooty bit where the grass opened right out, as usual I threw myself down doing some of best overtaking, downhills are a great way to add speed without any extra effort and if you get it right you can improve your position and get a breather all at the same time. It threatened rain all the way round but luckily it held off, a bit of a drizzle would have been quite refreshing. The second lap I found tougher, being as it was another lot of 5k and with the off-road course and hills my legs were like pieces of string flapping about in the wind. It really made me question my fitness for the Robin Hood half marathon in September. I have got to be running more 10k's and including lots more hill work at least to be able to make it round in one piece.

As is usual with these things my watch recorded the route at less than 10k, it did that during the Erewash 5k run in May and I had to run extra when I arrived home. Luckily I spotted it as I crossed the finish so carried on the extra 0.25km to make up 10k. I may have appeared a bit of a loon as I continued up the hill after everyone else stumbled to a stop straight away and queued to have the chip removed from their shoe. I watched 10 km's click over on my watch and finally stopped running, i walked back to get my chip cut off and then walked back to the car. The mic was open and in the hand of a presenter on a small mobile stage in the next field as i hobbled passed, i unlocked the boot and pulled a full bottle of chocolate flavour recovery drink from my bag as prizes were given out. I don't recall all the winners announced except one, it was the first male over the line, his time was 32 minutes.....32 minutes?! he could have ran almost a half marathon in an hour at that pace! My legs carried me over the line in 53 minutes according to the website.... i am way too old for this crap.

Center Parcs, Rain and the Unbreakable Bruce

Just back from a few days at Center Parcs (the Sherwood Forest site), of course i still had to run and what a place to do it. Its long flat roads carved in to the forest floor with huge tall pines guarding the timber villas made it a fantastic running environment. I'm always ill when we go and this trip was no exception, coming down with a pretty (or no so pretty) bad cold just a few days before was not a surprise as id been feeling a bit run down, having a bit of  stressful time with work, the illness and the  endless running is taking its toll.

Stress seems to show itself in my lower back causing a tightening sensation that stiffens me up quite a bit. The break is over due. Id hoped that i could get a run in with a few of the staff at the Parc but due to our trip coinciding with a grand opening of a new facility elsewhere in the country it was not a good time for them.

Our villa was only a couple of minutes walk from the Village Square and that's always a bonus as it means we don't need to hire bikes. I had the map in the welcome pack so was intending to sort out a route for the runs but i didn't get to look at it until a few minutes before i set off on the Friday evening for the first run i soon decided just to go out and see where i end up after all its well signposted and i knew the basics having been  few times before.

The worst part about Friday evenings is the amount of vehicles there are on the roads as everyone gets to drive to their respective villas so they can off load, they must return to the central car park that evening and anyone that doesn't gets stickers on the windscreens asking them to move it So dodging all the guests on the roads queueing to get back to the car park wasn't fun. Its surprising how much their presence irritates  as you do get the feeling as someone from the land of Pedestra that you have the right of way.

The most notable run during the break was the one I completed on Sunday evening. The eldest 2 kids had just been collected by my mum and dad as they both had school on the Monday and keeping them out of school for a day now carried similar punishment to armed robbery, the weather looked kind, the sun was cooling off a touch and there was no wind to speak of, so as we arrived back at our villa now was deemed to be a good time to get the run out the way. I emerged from the bedroom having changed to find different weather all together, the sun was gone, the clouds had muscled in  and it was starting to rain. Well there was no way I’m hanging around until it brightens up, so off I went, I had yet to run In a proper storm and today I was going to get the chance.

Deciding to run passed the tree houses so I could ogle at how the other half ‘mini-break’ was todays plan. These places are fantastic looking made completely of wood with a sloping bridge leading around the structure appearing to literally be built around a tree. After the that I think I took a wrong turn. I've always been terrible at following my nose and I need to travel the same route 5 or 6 times before I can do it without prompts so it was no surprise that I now found myself in an area of the parc I’d never seen before, I didn’t mind, in fact that was the point of not looking at the map. Running through the trees I felt as if I’d really found Sherwood Forest which sounds odd being as the parc is built within it. And I suppose that’s the right word ‘built’ as even though the forest is clearly all around and the buildings are sympathetic to it, it does seem heavily built up. It was raining pretty hard by now as I broke out on to the road and thunder and lightning was now in session, for some reason I found the forest canopy quite a comfort as without it I imagined my skeleton flashing bright white through my skin after a lightning strike.

I ran towards another runner covered in a large black waterproof coat that remained me of the one worn by Bruce Willis in the film ‘Unbreakable’. The coat was so big that I didn’t notice that he was also pushing a guy in a wheelchair, he too was wrapped in a very similar coat with just his face showing. I recall spotting the two of them in the pool earlier the man in the chair was being carried around the pool by the other and I remember thinking he was a bit of a hero at the time. Bruce Willis played a reluctant super hero in the film, how apt. “race you!” shouted running man I said something like “I think you would win” as the rain had washed my get up and go away by then. “all this for a Sunday dinner” he replied. For a few seconds I ran alongside them but when they slowed I carried on at my pace and we slowly separated until the gap was too big to converse. I took a few photos and videos before I arrived back at the villa, my shoes were buckets of water and my clothes couldn’t be any wetter if I had fallen in the lake. I had no choice but to strip off outside and leave a soggy pile of garments in the porch, a quick shower, dry clothes and a takeaway there surely is no finer end. The guy that delivered the Indian suggested he probably saw me running in the rain, no doubt wondering who the nutter was. I had intended to run around the parc again the next day before we left but the trainers were still too wet I almost brought both pairs along but went with just the one pair as after a short discussion with myself it was agreed that you can prepare just a little too much… not so in this case.

Focus on Hospice services - Where your money is going - Day Therapy

I'm sure a lot of people have heard about the 5k a day challenge now and that it is all about raising money for Nottinghamshire Hospice, thank you all for putting up with the constant digital cattle prodding to get you all the donate.

Sunday 27th July will mark the half way point and over the next few weeks leading up to it I'm going to be focussing on the individual services offered by the hospice to patients and their families to give you some information about what your money is helping to pay for. 

Nottinghamshire Hospice is committed to ensuring the best possible palliative care for adults with a life limiting illness, and to giving respite and support to their carers.

Thank you to anyone who has been kind enough to donate to the Justgiving page or who is planning to.

Please donate at www.justgiving.com/5kaday

This week the spot light is on the Day Therapy services.

The following text is taken from the hospice website - www.nottshospice.org

A dedicated team of very experienced health care professionals, supported by volunteers, provide individualised holistic care encompassing the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of people attending Day Therapy, in comfortable and relaxing surroundings.

Everyone is treated with dignity and respect and new ideas are always welcomed. Day Therapy is provided free of charge to people in the Nottingham area. A Day Therapy Nurse assesses every new referral at home, and consent from GPs and consultants will then be obtained.

Referrals for Day Therapy are welcomed from any health or social care professional for anyone with a life limiting illness who is in need of palliative care and thought to be in their last year of life.

What to expect in Day Therapy

Day Therapy provides a wide range of services in order to support the range of people who come to Nottinghamshire Hospice.

 

Professional Services Provided

As well as offering a comfortable, superbly equipped non-hospitalised environment, our Day Therapy facility provides a range of services.

 

Daycare FAQs

Here are responses to some of the questions we are asked most frequently about Daycare at Nottinghamshire Hospice.

To read more about the sections above click here to be directed to the hospice page.

Comments from patients

“We have so much fun and the laughter hardly ever stops. If I wasn’t here, I would be at home just sitting in my chair and wishing my days away. Here, I have made new friends and the care given by the staff is wonderful - my days may be numbered but my time is full to the brim”

"The love here has brought about a complete transformation in me"

“It’s like having a second family"

“Marvellous staff, great food and good company!”

“What would I change about the Hospice? Absolutely nothing!”

“I’m proud to tell my friends I come to the Hospice; it’s a wonderful place.”

Cameras and Kalenji's at The FA Headquarters

Running and photographing with the FA at St Georges Park was today's task and waking with what felt like hayfever coming on that was not going to be an easy task. I don't get hayfever, why am i getting it this year? Stupid pollen!

cameras and Kalenji's

I'd kitted up the night before so i would be rushing about this morning but inevitably i still ran out of time and i was rushing. This was the first time I'd needed camera gear and running kit for the same venue on the same day and there seemed to be way too many bags. A quick check... Fuji kit bag? check... Canon body - lens - extender?... check. Monopod?... check. trainers?... check. shower gel, towel?... check. T-shirt for signing? ... yes yes check. That's everything, oh hang on running gear... where has that gone... ah, I'm wearing it! in that case i need a change of clothes..... right that's everything i think. I arrived at the park in Burton on Trent at about 11.30am and considering all the signage on the way and the satnav the entrance came as a surprise to me and i nearly missed the turn. Standard.

driving the long drive up to the car park at SGP

Parking in the 'additional parking area' was about as far away from the entrance to the Football Centre as i could get it turned out, so getting over to reception wearing all the bags was an interesting walk. i signed in and watched people arrive outside wearing running gear while i drained the water cooler, more and more arrived until there was at least 10 runners warming up outside the entrance to the centre. Wow! that's a great turn out. Unbeknown to me the FA staff are an enthusiastic bunch and Jenny Morley (Senior FA Tutor Workforce Coordinator) was one of the best organisers, she is the girl you contact first if you want something sorting, so it looks as if we had struck gold. 

Kalenji and me waiting in reception

Waiting for runners to arrive

Jenny briefing us on the route

My involvement with the FA started a few years ago when Craig Lee (Football Development Officer at the Nottinghamshire FA) came along to one of my beginners photography workshops. We had a chat about what he was hoping to achieve with his new knowledge after the session had finished,  but just before he left he suggested that there may well be opportunities for me to help out with projects from time to time. As he left i felt quite positive about the chance meeting until i realised i called him 'Lee' not Craig as he left! Great now i look like a prat, that's the last time i hear from him. Well as it turned out that wasn't the case and since then i have spent quite a bit of time working with them on various projects, one of my favourites being the Notts FA annual Awards.

the last FA awards

When planning who to get on side for help with the 5k a day challenge the Notts FA we always top of my list but to my surprise they contacted me first, I arranged a meeting with them at the hospice one Friday afternoon at the end of January, just a few days after the challenge began. A potential run at St Georges park was one of the things to come out of the meeting, Craig was confident he could reach the right person to help us organise something and that person was Jenny Morley. Jenny had left no stone unturned and had been able to persuade about 18 people to give up a lunch break and run a 5k. As well as that she had organised a small road block, marshals at critical points on the route, a golf buggy or two and she had even run the route that morning to make sure she measured it out correctly.

Road block

We were about to set off when i realised my watch hadn't found its satellite signal so i asked for a slight pause while it 'had a think'.

still talking routes.... I'm lost!

After way to long it was suggested that the building was perhaps sheltering the device and once we were clear of the structure it would find me and sure enough it did. i settled in to quite a fast pace so after a while we were in 3 groups with quite a gap between us all, feeling a twang of guilt, i hung back with the trailing few and helped them along and then sprinted up to the middle group. It was my fault these people were running today, the least i could do was chat to them. after a while i tried a go at getting back up to the leaders, no chance, I'll stick to the middle now, I'd gone the wrong way once already. We were cheered and applauded to the finish by the leaders but unfortunately my watch read 4.2k so i had to continue on, i didn't want to have to run later like i did after the Erewash 5k just to make 5km. The guy running with me offered to keep me company for the 'extra' bit and we ended up running 5.5km. See the route. 

i have to say i was extremely pleased and impressed with everything i saw and was involved with today and i really couldn't believe the effort that had gone in to it. I showered and changed and i was ready to be photography Andy instead. 

outside the football centre

top advice

The FA toilets... heads will roll!

Loved this, was outside the centre on the wall

I will be photographing this years Notts FA awards evening as usual. but i will be donating all of my fee to the challenge. We are also hoping to get a bit of publicity on the night as well as organising another run later in the year, but his time somewhere more local. 

Thank you to Craig and Jenny and  everyone involved in the run at SGP and whatever is to come.

Have a look at why I'm doing this challenge on the hospice website

Please donate at www.justgiving.com/5kaday

Thank you