Not quite missing in action

I may not have been writing but I have been running. And the following is a fair checklist to some of the best places to run in the UK and further afield.

April - Norfolk coastline. A gorgeous jaunt from Gresham through Sheringham Park to the coast and along the beach to Overstrand. Ice cream never tasted so good.




Easter - Putting Mike Atter through his paces running the Gower coastal path from Llanmadoc round to Oxwich Bay.




May - In the Lake District introducing another Aussie, Gerard, to the delights of Leg 1: the long slog up Skiddaw, the hidden trenches in the heather on Great Calva and the majestic views from the top of Blencathra looking down Leg 2 to Helvellyn before the sharp descent to Threlkeld (first pic below).




On the second day he flew round most of Leg 3 from Dunmail raise to Bowfell and down to the pint of Old Speckled Hen at Old Dungeon Ghyll.

July - Some proper mountain running with Nick Williams in the form of the Parque Nacional de Ordesa y Monte Perdido (nearest town Bielsa).

And December - A half marathon round the end of the Gower with (from left to right: Ian, me, Kev, Sarah, Nathan) on a crystal clear day which began with ice on the ground and ended with flames in the sky.

The lack of shorts was a regrettable, if liberating, experience. The red socks were a moment of genius. Ideal for staying warm, lowered to cool off, provided a red rag target for Ian and gave me my first real understanding of how compression can help squeeze a few more miles out of tired muscles to place a credible 17th.

And they had Match of the Day on in the bar.