Run Dobie Run :: London to Scotland - August 2009

Day 3

Day 3 started in eventful fashion. Although we were all up on time and on route to the start point, I soon realised I was missing one very important ingredient to a succesful run; my shoes! I had put them outside the previous evening as they were a bit smelly and forgot to put them back in again, probably running them over as I left the car park - poor shoes!

Andrew enjoys a cup of tea now that the gas is working

Once I had my shoes on, I was off and running. The roads this morning were good and had wide cycle paths, which meant there was plenty of space for me! Whilst I was away running, David and Chris made an important discovery; the gas was working! The hire company had failed to tell us that there was a cut-off on the cooker worktop which meant unless it was pushed right back, the gas was automatically cut off. Now that we knew this, I was able to have a lovely sausage sandwich for lunch - the difference a hot lunch can make!

After my next run I met up with the guys and we went to Burton Latimer to do some fundraising at a local Sainsbury’s, which was very succesful again. This run has been great for many reasons, but local shops and communities have been supremely supportive and interested in what I have been doing, which has been lovely; it is those moments that hammer home how important things like this are and how much it can be appreciated by people.

This trend continued in the afternoons fundraising efforts. Even though Asda company policy (and the main manager) said we could not fundraiser, the duty manager allowed us on the understanding that we did not tell anyone. Now, admittedly I am telling you, but i’m not telling you which town it was in! This was another succesful fundraising effort and even the Asda staff donated some money, thanks guys!

The final run of the day took us to Rockingham. David - who was taking on the role of Appolo in Rocky 3 - ran with me and acted as my pace maker, making sure I pushed myself through the pain barrier. It certainly worked and I had one of my best runs of the week, ending in the lovely, quaint village of Rockingham. Chris unkindly pulled up outside a pub and in they went!! They both had beers and I had an orange juice.   The mental strength of a………….strong person.

Bed time.

Day 4

Route for Thursday

As you can see from todays video, poor David struggled all week with his bed, whether he was making it or taking it apart. The video is no act, David was geninely angry and Chris was genuinely laughing like a girl. See what I have to put up with?

The first run of the day was interesting; lots of lovely scenery and lots of hills. Even though running downhill is technically easier, it puts lots more pressure on your knees as they are in part controlling your movement and stopping you freewheeling in to a hedge. Going uphill puts a lot of pressure on my calves, which are now beginning to hurt constantly.  I got up the final hill to meet the boys in Uppingham, where the local Somerfield manager was lovely and let us do some fundraising. On top of that, he offered to bring us tea and check up on us every now and then. Well done Somerfield!

The afternoon run took me from Uppingham to Oakham, which was a good one because a) the ice helped my legs work better and b) the route included wide verges, footpaths (which I eventually spotted!) and the roads were not too busy! I got back to the van to find that Bedford has revoked our parking fine. Well done Bedford. Don’t let it happen again. Yes my tongue is firmly in my cheek.    Again co-op were pleased to let us fundraise even though the manager was running a store based out of a tent. It wasn’t a two man jobby from Argos, but it was a tent all the same! This evenings fundraising went well and David and I headed out for our final run of the day, pleased with the days progress. Even though the video shows me running in to an off-licence, I did not buy anything, I promise.

The final run was my hardest yet. Everything hurt and I felt like I was going to be physically sick many times, this was the first time I really wondered whether my body was going to give up on me! Luckily it didn’t and I made it to the van in the amazing village of Edmonthorpe where the Post Office was run out of the front of someones house, there was no pub and every house was a sight to beyhold.   The boy’s headed off to a pub in a nearby village whilst I showered and settled down for the night, feeling rather ill. Lets hope I feel better in the morning!