Busy Foxes - All the Sporty Stuff
As previously mentioned, we have been incredibly busy since the start of the year. Part of that busy-ness has been down to taking part in a number of sports events - both competitive (well, competitive in the sense of trying to score a new PB) and for fun.
And being the mad people we are, we decided that having a wedding at the start of the year was not enough hard work so Andy and I both signed up for marathons! Andy was lucky enough to get a ballot place for London. Sadly I couldn't get a place in London so I signed up to Brighton again.
But we haven't stopped there. We have done quite a bit so far this year.
Park Run
In January I joined Andy in taking part in our local Park Run in Southwark Park as part of our marathon training. I enjoyed the atmosphere every week and got quite competitive with myself to keep running faster.
I have to admit that neither of us have been lately due to super busy schedules but we are hoping to get back to it soon.
Hampton Court Half Marathon
Back in March and in the midst of marathon training we took part in the Hampton Court Half Marathon. My training was slightly hampered at this point due to two bouts of tonsillitis and a number of weeks off training.
It was a pretty course, running along the river and the surrounding area. I was feeling it towards the end but eventually made it to the finish. Andy and I both scored PB's and awesome medals!
Brighton Marathon
So once again in April this year I found myself pounding the streets on Brighton and Hove. This time I knew what to expect but thanks to some fantastic training with Andy I knew I could run 20 miles without stopping and given that I had got to the same point last time and then managed to run the last 6.2 miles I knew I could do it again. So this time I ran the entire 26.2 miles! I was dead proud as you can see from the picture.
I didn't quite get the time I wanted though. I could run a 4hrs 30 time if I put the training in, didn't get sick and lost a few kilos but I was still happy setting a new PB of 5 hours 2 minutes (admittedly those 2 minutes are really annoying as I really wanted to get under 5 hours this time - oh well. Might just have to run another marathon!).
London Marathon
Next up on the marathon front was Andy. He trained really hard for the marathon running long runs at weekends and run to and from work a couple of times a week. I was a very proud wife. Unfortunately when Andy applied for the marathon he had no idea how fast he could run and had put a time of 4hrs 30 down. This meant he was fairly near the back. During training he figured he could achieve 3hrs 30 possibly quicker.
Despite the hassle of trying to get past people for the first half of the run, he made it to the end in an impressive 3hrs 39. Very proud wife!
As you can see Andy and I both ran for the Stroke Association. We managed to raise £1,391.20 which far exceeded our expectations.
Thames Bridges Bike Ride
Next up was a cycling challenge. I have no photos sadly from the 52 mile course and I have to say that I was not a massive fan of the course this year. It took us on to too many busy roads that were fine for us to navigate but would have been really hard for those who were a little more cautious on the roads.
The event this year started and finished at the Olympic park and the food post race was terrible. So we headed home and to the pub for drinks and then grabbed a takeaway. Walking back to the flat it started to rain so we started running back. I have now learnt that running after cycling best part of 70 miles, drinking a few beers and wearing ripped jeans is a recipe for disaster. I tripped and fell grazing my knee so badly I had to work from home the following day as I couldn't walk! It took a couple of weeks to heal.
Great Newham Run
Back to the running. This time a 10k. Not a blistering time for me as it was insanely hot on the day and dehydration and sun stroke were considerations so I took this one easy. Glad I did as I saw a few people on the course who had gone to hard and collapsed. Running + hot sunny weather is not a good mix!
Bloodwise Bike Ride
I can officially confirm that I am useless at taking pictures post race. I really enjoyed this 52 mile bike ride starting and finishing at Southwark Park. A great course and clearly designed by someone who cycles. We went all over London for a rather pleasant ride. It was nice to finish back near home and a great preparation ride for the Surrey 100 the following weekend.
Rounders
Andy's (and my old) work decided to have a midweek game of rounders which I tagged along for. It's been a while since I've played. We had a really good laugh with Andy's team and followed up the session with a few beers in a part of London I have not been in before. Stunned that I have never been up Primrose hill before!
Prudential Ride London
And the last installment of our sporty stuff - the Surrey 100. We really enjoyed the ride last year so were really happy we both got ballot places again this year. Annoyingly we were starting apart again - Andy starting later this time. We met up at the same stop and carried on to the first hub stop at 26 miles. We then came to a stop at mile 40. No one was quite sure what was happening but a bit of twitter investigation revealed that someone had crashed quite badly and they had stopped the ride.
We were stuck in a picturesque little village in Surrey for an hour and a half before setting off again. Unfortunately due to the delay we had missed the cut off time to cycle up Leith Hill (that's twice now we haven't done it!) but we were lucky to get to do box hill as friends further back had their course cut very dramatically short. We at least managed 92 miles whereas they only cycled 70.
We did have a lovely time though and have already signed up again for next year!
We are already looking for some more challenges for this year and looking at what we can do next year. I feel there are some PB's to be broken!
And being the mad people we are, we decided that having a wedding at the start of the year was not enough hard work so Andy and I both signed up for marathons! Andy was lucky enough to get a ballot place for London. Sadly I couldn't get a place in London so I signed up to Brighton again.
But we haven't stopped there. We have done quite a bit so far this year.
Park Run
In January I joined Andy in taking part in our local Park Run in Southwark Park as part of our marathon training. I enjoyed the atmosphere every week and got quite competitive with myself to keep running faster.
I have to admit that neither of us have been lately due to super busy schedules but we are hoping to get back to it soon.
Hampton Court Half Marathon
Back in March and in the midst of marathon training we took part in the Hampton Court Half Marathon. My training was slightly hampered at this point due to two bouts of tonsillitis and a number of weeks off training.
It was a pretty course, running along the river and the surrounding area. I was feeling it towards the end but eventually made it to the finish. Andy and I both scored PB's and awesome medals!
 |
| Pretty awesome medal! |
 |
| In Katzenjammers awaiting celebratory beers. |
Brighton Marathon
So once again in April this year I found myself pounding the streets on Brighton and Hove. This time I knew what to expect but thanks to some fantastic training with Andy I knew I could run 20 miles without stopping and given that I had got to the same point last time and then managed to run the last 6.2 miles I knew I could do it again. So this time I ran the entire 26.2 miles! I was dead proud as you can see from the picture.
I didn't quite get the time I wanted though. I could run a 4hrs 30 time if I put the training in, didn't get sick and lost a few kilos but I was still happy setting a new PB of 5 hours 2 minutes (admittedly those 2 minutes are really annoying as I really wanted to get under 5 hours this time - oh well. Might just have to run another marathon!).
 |
| Post run celebration - photo courtesy of @Tadders |
London Marathon
Next up on the marathon front was Andy. He trained really hard for the marathon running long runs at weekends and run to and from work a couple of times a week. I was a very proud wife. Unfortunately when Andy applied for the marathon he had no idea how fast he could run and had put a time of 4hrs 30 down. This meant he was fairly near the back. During training he figured he could achieve 3hrs 30 possibly quicker.
Despite the hassle of trying to get past people for the first half of the run, he made it to the end in an impressive 3hrs 39. Very proud wife!
 |
| Andy with medal and beer! |
As you can see Andy and I both ran for the Stroke Association. We managed to raise £1,391.20 which far exceeded our expectations.
Thames Bridges Bike Ride
Next up was a cycling challenge. I have no photos sadly from the 52 mile course and I have to say that I was not a massive fan of the course this year. It took us on to too many busy roads that were fine for us to navigate but would have been really hard for those who were a little more cautious on the roads.
The event this year started and finished at the Olympic park and the food post race was terrible. So we headed home and to the pub for drinks and then grabbed a takeaway. Walking back to the flat it started to rain so we started running back. I have now learnt that running after cycling best part of 70 miles, drinking a few beers and wearing ripped jeans is a recipe for disaster. I tripped and fell grazing my knee so badly I had to work from home the following day as I couldn't walk! It took a couple of weeks to heal.
 |
| OUCH! |
Great Newham Run
Back to the running. This time a 10k. Not a blistering time for me as it was insanely hot on the day and dehydration and sun stroke were considerations so I took this one easy. Glad I did as I saw a few people on the course who had gone to hard and collapsed. Running + hot sunny weather is not a good mix!
 |
| Post run selfie with the orbit tower |
Bloodwise Bike Ride
I can officially confirm that I am useless at taking pictures post race. I really enjoyed this 52 mile bike ride starting and finishing at Southwark Park. A great course and clearly designed by someone who cycles. We went all over London for a rather pleasant ride. It was nice to finish back near home and a great preparation ride for the Surrey 100 the following weekend.
 |
| Photo courtesy of @Tadders |
Rounders
Andy's (and my old) work decided to have a midweek game of rounders which I tagged along for. It's been a while since I've played. We had a really good laugh with Andy's team and followed up the session with a few beers in a part of London I have not been in before. Stunned that I have never been up Primrose hill before!
 |
| Rounders in Primrose hill with moody skies |
Prudential Ride London
 |
| Start line selfie |
And the last installment of our sporty stuff - the Surrey 100. We really enjoyed the ride last year so were really happy we both got ballot places again this year. Annoyingly we were starting apart again - Andy starting later this time. We met up at the same stop and carried on to the first hub stop at 26 miles. We then came to a stop at mile 40. No one was quite sure what was happening but a bit of twitter investigation revealed that someone had crashed quite badly and they had stopped the ride.
We were stuck in a picturesque little village in Surrey for an hour and a half before setting off again. Unfortunately due to the delay we had missed the cut off time to cycle up Leith Hill (that's twice now we haven't done it!) but we were lucky to get to do box hill as friends further back had their course cut very dramatically short. We at least managed 92 miles whereas they only cycled 70.
We did have a lovely time though and have already signed up again for next year!
 |
| Medals - front and back |
We are already looking for some more challenges for this year and looking at what we can do next year. I feel there are some PB's to be broken!
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