Running and running

This blog started as a travel blog, then it was all about cycling, but now it would be accurate to call it my running blog considering all my recent running activities.

Yes in recent months, in part thanks to my lovely colleague Alejandro, I have turned my attention to running in a big way.



I recently did the Run to the Beat half marathon which was my first proper signed up race.

I have just finished doing the slightly loopy Nike Grid which involved running from phonebox to phonebox across London's 48 postcodes in 15 days. I was never going to compete with some of the large teams of students who collectively managed to win the 'Crowns' in each postcode, but I managed to come 164th out of nearly 3000 runners and scored 9 'badges'.



Today I completed a 10km 'MoRun' in Greenwich Park for Movember, the men's health charity. There were some hilarious Mo's and fancy dress outfits. The hills in the park were punishing so it felt a lot further than 10km! My new ASICS GEL Kayano 17 trainers are proving pretty comfortable and supportive and I'd recommend them to any women with low arches and wide feet who do a lot of running. The synthetic fabrics on these are made from recycled materials, ensuring a more ecologically friendly direction, which is a big bonus.


As well as this, I've been running to and from work whenever I can using the RunKeeper iPhone app. It's only stopped on me once so far!

Does this all sound a bit smug? I hope not. I've always been a runner but now it feels like I've had my eyes opened up to a whole new world of running. I'm still cycling everywhere but there's nothing like a run to ease those stresses and strains and to release endorphins!

Baby Elephants

baby elephants

I've had so much fun this weekend cycling around central London taking photos of these gorgeous baby elephants.

They are part of a conservation campaign to save the endangered Asian elephant - http://www.elephantparadelondon.org/ - and 258 of the beauties will be making an appearance around London until July.

Tassie

Tassie - my baby, my love, my dearest friend, my confidante, my beautiful loving dog - died today.

After two nightmarish weeks of worry followed by hope, despair followed by relief, today the illness in her body, which we'll never fully know, got the better of her. And as she drifted away in my arms, I really felt something went out in me too.

My mother and I are totally heartbroken and cannot imagine life without her. How unfair that we must now talk of her in the past, that she is no longer in our present with her delicious smelling paws, her warm soft ears, her beautiful golden coat, always waggy tail and those huge sad brown eyes which could warm the coldest heart.

Everybody loved Tassie. A dog but a person, a family member.

Each day from now will be painful for a while.

Rest In Peace my darling.