Three sunrises

The alarm (Lumie lightbox) was set for 4.55am, and I had no reason to get up so early, so Graeme reset if for 6am for me. I'll be honest, I didn't sleep much in that extra hour because I was, in effect, already awake! So, by the time my second sunrise came, I was already out of bed.

I potted around this morning getting last bits of packing done before I went to work, ready for travelling to Scotland tonight. I really couldn't have planned this any worse with respect to the weather... it's going to 25 degrees and sunny here, but 17 degrees and pouring down in Scotland for my 30 mile jaunt! Typical!

So, my backpack is packed and feels relatively heavy (which I wasn't expecting... no wonder William told me not to wear my XL vest too). I'm using a Platypus bladder for the first time (which I bought especially for this backpack... saves me swapping them from one backpack to another). And speaking of backpacks, my new Salomon one came yesterday. This is the one that I'll try out in Amsterdam and then use in India if all goes well. It is a very smart bit of kit... you can even have warm drinks in there if you want and it keeps it at its temperature for quite a long time. There was even tips about opening the valve and letting air into the tube so your drink goes back in the resevoir and keeps the liquid cool/hot without that first awful mouthful that is in the tube! Very clever. It's very small too... I'd asked Graeme did he want one and he scrunched his nose up at the thought, however now that it has come I think he's regretting saying no. The thing is, it also is bought for your size... very unlike other backpacks I've seen. (there again, I'm not exactly experienced in this sort of purchase!).

And then there's my shoes! Oh how depressed do I feel that the whole shoe saga is going to start again. My road shoes (Kinsei's) are just not the same since they brought the latest version out... in fact, I hate them. They actually feel too small, however my last pair of Kinsei's felt too small and I gave them away. Have I gone up in size again? I think I might have! So, I wear a size 5.5 - 6 in a normal shoe and it's looking like I'm going up to a size 7.5 in a trainer! With this in mind, I wonder if this is behind the Kandidas ripping my feet to bits. Although the new Salomon ones are a 7, they have loads more room in them. I need to consider that after X amount of miles my feet will become slightly swollen anyway... I have to say I love the new trail shoes though.

So, I came into work this morning and saw my third sunrise for the day. I feel really good today and wonder if it is because I have had more to drink than normal... although a small headache is threatening with the lack of caffeine. I had my only "allowed" cup of cappuccino on the way into work, so it's detox all the way now!

I didn't get on well with the injinji socks so have ordered more X-Socks. I'm trying a new style which are the evo pair... a sock within a sock to prevent blistering over long distances. And I've had to buy a size bigger than normal as even my socks are feeling too tight! How can someone with so much help, growing knowledge of things and good equipment be such a rubbish runner? I defy the odds, I tell you!