Yes, it’s Friday already ( well almost!) and my heading for this post, borrowed from the Bard, is the nearest our brave racers are going to get to anything which could be described as “As You Like It” this weekend. Lowering the literary tone, the best word I can find to describe the weather predicted for this weekend is “pants”. It feels like a repeat of the Great South Run weekend; that time Storm Ashley intervened. This weekend we have Bert, complete with Yellow Warnings here and there! I still bear the scars from GSR cancellation, necessary though it was. Maybe I should have gone for “To Be Or Not To Be” as my heading on reflection…!
So, the declared runners for this weekend are:
🌟 Shake-and-run , the inspiration for my Shakespeare outbreak, Sandie1961 making a welcome return to the UK race scene, both accompanied by HU Champion Sausage Muncher and Berlin Marathon star TailChaser . They are all planning to line up on Saturday for the annual Draycote 10k run around the Draycote Reservoir. The latest forecast I have seen shows gales of mid twenties mph with gusts of 50 mph plus and rain to boot! The only positive note is that the temperature is predicted to hit 9C by noon!
On Sunday, the scene shifts to Cleethorpes where we have:
🌟 misswobble who has her suitcase packed and is all set to head out for Cleethorpes for her annual autumn marathon (The Maravan). Similar weather outlook to Draycote. The temperature is forecasts to be in the teens, but again we have winds gusting to 50 mph plus. We know that missw will take on the elements and beat them if it is safe to run; but we also know that she has her head screwed on, as we say up here, and she won’t take unnecessary risks.
For all of our runners, having this late spanner in the works is really frustrating after all the training, but I guess the only thing to do is keep your eyes on the weather and the race websites and, above all, stay safe.
So, Pom Pom shakers, a special morale lifting cheer for our fabulous four please; whether in the end they are able/allowed to run or not, they absolutely need you.
As usual, if anyone with a race this weekend missed the November Pom Pom Post, just sing out and we will add you to the list.
I’d like to think I’m battled hardened by now BC but I am getting a little fed up with this weather! Mind you, it is a circuit so hopefully it’ll be pushing us along for a little of the route. And it might be shorts rather than the triple layers I’ve been wearing this week 😂
Nice to reply to Pom Poms a bit early for once! I’ll try to hold on to them whilst I’m shaking them about whilst battling Bert’s blowing, especially for misswobble on Sunday. Hopefully it will have died down by then. Big cheers for my running partners Shake-and-run and Sandie1961 . We have to think of the post run treats, there must be a decent pub nearby for afterwards 😋🥳🥳🥳
I am sure that you are battled hardened TC. It was the organisers, no doubt advised by various authorities, who decided to pull the plug on the GSR. It does look pretty rough this weekend though, except for some welcome warmth. I never lost my paternal streak 🙂. You are all experienced enough to make your own decisions. Hope you find a pub with sausages!
Looking at Dexy5 ’s photos from that Sunday, I think they made the right decision. We’ll just see how it goes. If we have to abandon and spend the day in the pub, well that’s just a sacrifice we’ll have to make 😁
Good luck everyone 😀👍🌪💦☔️🌊 I hope conditions aren’t as bad as forecast🤨🤞. I think temperatures and visibility are pretty good. That’s ok then 🙂. I’m hoping not to get blown into the sea 🙏😀
I’ve not packed my bag yet BC. I’m saving that job til I can’t put it off any longer ☺️
I hate packing as much as running in windy weather 😀. I always forget something. I got a new travel bag for my birthday , with lots of storage and cubbies all over the place, so that should encourage me to get organised 😀
🙂 I open up my case about a week in advance and add items as I go along. Good job we all have the right gear. I am hoping to go for my second comeback run today before the gales arrive. I won’t be running in the forest over the weekend; trees and branches tend to crash down around my ears in significant storms. Running in a hard hat would look a bit odd! 👷♂️
Thanks you!! Looking at the weather outside my bedroom window, here to day , it really does seem so pertinent! White over... frozen ground underneath, sleet and a strengthening wind! I am glad I am still in bed!
Enough of Mother Nature sticking her oar in on race weekends. 🙄 I hope you fabulous folk are able to run and get your bling. I’m keeping my fingers firmly crossed for you all, whilst at the same time clutching my pom poms. Extra clutching might be required in Bert’s wind and rain. 💨 💦
I’m also hoping Bert allows us to land safely in Bristol as we’re returning from our little trip to Spain tomorrow afternoon. I’ve watched enough planes come in sideways over Felton Common and have always felt relieved not to have been on one of those flights! 😳
Good luck to you all for these races this weekend 🎉. Hope the weather arrives after you’ve run and after cheekychipmunks lands safely from her hols! Pom poms waving for you and everyone running this weekend 🎉🎉🎉
This is certainly not ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ as ‘The Tempest’ is coming.
As TailChaser remarked last evening, who would name a storm Bert? I think of Bert being sat at home reading a newspaper by the fire in comfy slippers.
Yes, this is very much like the GSR lead up, with the will they, won’t they run the race? As UpTheStanley is RD at parkrun tomorrow, he has pre-warned runners that if the forecast does not improve here, it will be cancelled- for the sake of the volunteers who would be out in it 90 mins at least.
So good luck to TailChaser, Sandie1961 and Shake-and-run - I know you were so looking forward to this running buddy run, but no doubt you will enjoy each others company (and the pub) whatever the weather! Best wishes also to misswobble in the Maravan on the east coast!
Pom poms will be tethered down and blowing in the wind.
Good morning Dexy5. I am sure that UpTheStanley will have things organised and well under control . Bert? As you will know, it was the Irish Met Office who named the storm; we may have lots of very athletic Berts writing in to grumble about your mental picture! 🫣 I think that your mental Bert probably has the right idea!
Good luck to you all. Let's just hope it's not quite as bad as predicted at race time. Battle hardened or not... it would be nice to be able to enjoy it!!!Pompoms will be waving in the wind for you!
I’ll be honest, I don’t miss this aspect of long distance running 😂 Well done for even contemplating going out in that. Best of British luck and weather to you all. 👍🙏
Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.
Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.
