Red trail

Today I went to Hamsterley Forest and ran part of the red trail. Not knowing where it started I asked the man in the shop and he seemed very surprised that I was going to run it.
It really was quite a lovely run, although it was really hilly with an ascent of 554 feet in 4 miles (220 foot of that in just half a mile!). I admit that I walked that really steep hill... and I didn't see another soul on it apart from people biking down it at ridiculously high speeds.

The 3:1 run/walk was OK, but I felt a little disjointed (probably because of the elevation) and I was ready for every walk break. However, that aside, I am pleased to say that this is the first time I have ever attempted anything like this. I began the run trying to dodge puddles and mud, and ended up running through them all. I attacked a few of the inclines and tried to learn how to 'go with the flow' on the downhills. That was easier said than done, but I enjoyed the fact that you had to keep your eye on where you were running and had to try to work out in advance where to plant your feet. Having said that, the run was overall very slow... 8.4 miles averaging an 11.18mm pace overall. But, I'm glad I went there, as it was fun to do.

I came home and after sorting the dog out (we gave him a bath after his little ventures around the yellow and green trails with Graeme) I went up and did my 10 minutes on the rebounder. My calves were quite achy during it, but they seem fine now.

I have ordered a Gymbos, which William recommended. This gives an alarm when you set it for a given time for running the intervals during the long run. It will be good not to have to constantly look at my Garmin, which I had to do today.
Unfortunately I also have to buy some new sunglasses at some point, as I lost mine during my run today. I'm gutted as I absolutely loved them! :-(