What a lovely event - small, friendly, well-organised and doggie friendly 😀🐶🐾. We arrived about an hour before the start, plenty of parking, short queue for the loo, no queue to collect my number - so all very relaxed. Driving to Dulverton the hills were covered in atmospheric mist but by the start the sun was shining and no rain 👍 (unlike last year’s thunder storm - I decided not to run!).
The route goes up hill from the start, one particular track was very steep - walked that part 😉 The terrain was varied and included road, wooded tracks, muddy lanes, long grass, stony foot paths and steps near the end. Most of the runners disappeared into the distance quite quickly so it was just Squiggy and me plodding along, with the occasional burst of speed on the flatter parts. Wonderful views, beautiful weather, quiet (except for my heavy breathing 😂) - I really enjoyed it. After passing a ‘trig’ point it was then all down hill. A steep, rough track back down to the village, along the high street and back to the start. Squiggy loved the run, especially looking for pheasants and a paddle in the river at the end 🐶. A lovely wooden medal (see photo of Squiggy) then yummy roast dinner in village pub! Great day.
Written by
skysue16
Half Marathon
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Oh my 🥰 those pics of Squiggy have just made my day, he's gorgeous. He looks very proud of his medal too! What a beautiful place to run, and a roast dinner afterwards. Days don't get better than that, do they? 😊 🐶
Aww look at Squiggy skysue16 , he’s so proud of his medal! That sounds like such fun, and I’m so glad the weather cooperated for you both this year! Hope you enjoyed your roast (bet it didn’t touch the sides!), and I expect Squiggy got a nice treat too. 🐶❤️
Nawh, Squiggy was having a ball too! Sounds wonderful, although I'd be terrified of being pulled down into the mud (Squiggy must be a lot better behaved than our Molly was) 😍
Definitely! Molly twice smashed into my knee when she was much younger and friskier. Ended up at A&E….about a week before we were due to fly to Canada. Love her though ❤️.
Eek! My Molly was the nail in the coffin for my knee; I suspect the cartilage had been damaged for years but she tore it good and proper by suddenly deciding to turn left one day!!! She kind of did me a favour though - the resulting knee surgery left my knee in better shape than it had been for a very long time!
If Jedi sees a biscuit he'll sit and give his paw. Ideal in normal circumstances, not so much when running attached to a canicross lead!
In fairness to him he's pretty good at responding to commands. It's just that his size and potential speed make it too risky for me to run with him anywhere other than on quiet routes with reasonable surfaces and gentler gradients (no double figure %s.)
Probably Border Collie - Bernese Mountain Dog cross. Mother definitely BC, father who knows?!
Photo taken yesterday during a walk. Please do click on it as he looks a really weird shape in the preview, even taking into account scruffy windblown fur!
Black and white Border Collie - Bernese Mountain Dog cross in French countryside
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Pics of Barnstaple Half and Marathon Trail
Bewl Water Half 
Ran my first half marathon and first trail run!