Well there we are. I finished the Bath half-marathon with sunburn and a provisional time of 1 hour and 57 minutes, which I will keep, thanks very much. Was much harder at the end than I expected and I’d begun to reconcile myself to finishing over the 2-hour mark, so I was pretty happy. Will have to see what the final chip time is when they get the results up on the site. [update: turned out to be 1:56:18 in the end]

More importantly, I raised over £400 for Mind. Thank you very much indeed to those of you who were kind enough to support me. I really appreciate it: it helped get me round the course, and it’ll help Mind to provide support to more people with mental distress. Well done us.

Other notes from the day. People dressed as Kiss (three members, makeup running on second lap), teletubby Po (not seen after the start, may have wisely discarded his felt outfit), a rhino (armoured), a man wearing nothing but pink lamé hotpants called Matt, fairies, flourescent tutu-wearing fairies, a fruit-bowl, Robin Hood, “I’m A Lady” man from that show on BBC, a cow, tigers and a whoopee cushion. And some people dressed as soldiers who turned out actually to be soldiers, running with full marine packs. There were live bands (a samba band in Queen Square, Irish flute and guitar somewhere on Lower Bristol Road) and speakers in front gardens, and lots of people cheering on their friends. There were lots of ambulances and St Johns staff to look after the people who collapsed from dehydration. I got given a bag with a medal and a tshirt and lots of free samples of things. And my teeth still hurt from all the Lucozade I gulped down after the finish.

Time for a sit-down.

(I’m training for the Bath Half Marathon in March, which I’m running to raise funds for Mind: if you’d like to sponsor me you can do so at http://www.justgiving.com/richardsandford/)

Last long training run today, about 18k along the flooded towpath to Pill and back via Ashton Park: felt sort of reflective, trying to imagine how each stage will feel next week. Am looking forward to next week, think under two hours is going to be ambitious but confident I can make it round. Especially without having to dodge bikers or slog uphill in a headwind through puddles. I’m going to miss the excuse to get out and see the birds surfing the gusts of wind over the river to Sea Mills though.

Looking forward to giving running a bit of a break, to be honest: routine is getting a bit stale and I’m going to be glad to go running when it seems fun rather than when my plan says so. Nearly there! Couple of gentle 5ks and a 15-minute stretch run on Saturday, and then it’s the race. Am counting on adrenaline, atmosphere and a week of sleeping and eating right to get me round. That or a taxi.

(I’m training for the Bath Half Marathon in March, which I’m running to raise funds for Mind: if you’d like to sponsor me you can do so at http://www.justgiving.com/richardsandford/)

Kept it up this week, though I didn’t go to the gym as I thought I ought to have a proper rest day. 8 miles today, out along the cycle path to Pill: ground was muddy after the hailstorm but the storm clouds cleared to leave a perfect winter sun and hazy woods. Came back filthy but pleased to have been able to at least make it halfway towards the half-marathon.

And I bought some new trainers, with proper support, from Easy Runner, who were really helpful and had me running up and down St Michael’s Hill in about six different models (along with the rest of Bristol’s runners: got quite congested in the end). Ended up with the Nike Structure 12s, which I was sort of trying to avoid in favour of something a bit less fashion, but they were the best for the money. They come with a little hole in them for a pedometer/transmitter as part of the Nike+ kit, but I don’t have an iPod and the Sportband looks not so great so I’m going to claim it as a weight advantage instead.

More longer runs next week and back to the gym as my back’s feeling the strain a little. Hope the weather stays nice, been pretty lucky not to hit the storms so far.

(I’m training for the Bath Half Marathon in March, which I’m running to raise funds for Mind: if you’d like to sponsor me you can do so at http://www.justgiving.com/richardsandford/)

First full week done and everything’s going ok so far. Ran a bit over 6 miles this lunchtime, trying to pay attention to pace and not just end up running as fast as I can, like I normally do. And good job too, because otherwise I would have had to hitch a lift back on somebody’s child seat. 6 miles was kind of a psychological barrier for me, was quite nervous beforehand as for some stupid reason I kept thinking it was the furthest I’d ever run as an adult and I’d not be able to do it, so it was nice to prove myself wrong. And to see a bit more of the gorge. It all reminds me of the Box of Delights down there, a strange mix of carefully-set ivy-covered walls walls and neolithic magic hills.

So next week it’s more of the same, gym tomorrow (though will give my legs a rest I reckon), then shorter speedy distances in the week and a bit further next Sunday.

(I’m training for the Bath Half Marathon in March, which I’m running to raise funds for Mind: if you’d like to sponsor me you can do so at http://www.justgiving.com/richardsandford/)

So far, things seem to going pretty well: gentle 8k on New Year’s Day to say goodbye to my hangover, followed by an even gentler 3k the following evening to try and shake out a bit of a dodgy right knee. I was a little worried about the knee, to be honest, thought it might be karma for feeling so smug when I signed up, but gave it a rest yesterday and (touch wood) it seems ok after today’s 8k. Which is more than I was when I realised 8k isn’t even halfway round the full distance. Will be trying to convert fear into motivation this week.

Gym tomorrow, for a change of scenery, then some shorter distances at speed before a longer run at the weekend.