Adam in Runderland

A year of two halves. It started with me recovering from illness and ended with me in the same situation. Rewind to January. I had been ill throughout the Christmas period and it took me a while to get back up to speed. My first long run was with Matt B along the Thames Down Link in the thick mud. The fifteen mile run ended at Box Hill and it felt great to be back on the trails again. In February, with the weather still poor, Matt S and I did a marathon loop linking the green spaces around Bromley. As spring sprang I had a spring in my step too. A return to the Lulworth Cove Ultra with both Matts in March resulted in a meeting with Magdalena who continued to inspire me throughout the year with her ultra running achievements. Oh, and she summited Everest in between.  March included a fantastic run in the Chiltern Hills, a snowy adventure in the Peak District and a weekend on the Pennine Way conquering the Yorkshire Three Peaks. Into April and a visit to the Lake District where Matt ...

It has been six months since my last post. After a great start to the year, circumstances impacted my running from the summer onwards. As usual the heat meant that any big runs were out. I continued to keep up my mileage, but it wasn't until September that I was able to enjoy some proper trail running with a weekend in Wales. During that time some personal issues affected me and my mental health suffered. As a result I didn't write anything about the trip and the year tailed off with illness and injury. So here is a short summary of that Welsh adventure just for the record. Following a busy and exciting first six months of running including visits to Dorset, the Peak and Lake Districts, Cairngorm mountains in Scotland, and Bannau Brychainiog I stayed close to home over the summer. I struggle with the heat and, apart from some forays into the North Downs, stuck to London. I did have a trip in the diary for September though. A North Wales adventure with running pal Matt Shimwell....