I run, so you dont have to
I have been here in the UK for seven years. These are very hard days. After seven years, I still never know what is going to happen. I have nothing to do. There’s no life. No life. No plan.
I worry constantly. I try to bring positives into my life. I listen to music. I go for a run. If it wasn’t for running I would not be here today. It helps me pass the time. Helps my mental health.
I am still trying to nail all my 2022 goals (see further below) but am also adding the following:
I reach Rhosydd quarry, fifty miles and sixteen hours in, it is the dead of night. A scary enough place in daylight, where young men worked and died, deep in the hillside tunnels. Slate ruins loom silently around me. The moon shadows play tricks on my eyes, ghosts are closing in from all around.
I’ve reached a crossroads. If I turn right, down the hill, towards my home town of Blaenau Ffestiniog, I could get in my warm, safe bed, and make all this end.
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This week I set myself the challenge of nailing my long run. When you’re training for the marathon, the long run is the most important session of the week. Zooming round the track or parkrun is fine, but if you are too tired to get in a solid long run, your training is not as relevant as it could be. I got out of the habit of prioritising the long run the last few months. I needed to get back on it.
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Then, the final race of the day was called, the Dads Race. I had totally forgot this was a thing. I was called over by some of the other dads. My kids started chanting for me to race. I did the bravest thing I could do in that situation.
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Snowdon Twilight is an uphill only race on Snowdon. It starts on a Friday night to avoid the crowds. When I arrived, more than a few people talked to me like I had already won. I wasn’t so sure. Gavin Roberts was on the start line, he has been running very well recently and is a member of the current Welsh team. I knew he would be my main competition.
I was not feeling confident in my mountain ascent. It is a tricky skill to get the hang of, where the line between fine and f**ked is very thin. I let Gavin lead the way with the game plan of kicking on when we entered the final km…
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