running blog

Clive Whaley


Costume Ready

Day 107 - Marathon Training - Rest & Kit Preparation

Laid out my marathon race kit, double checked accommodation and train times and half packed a bag of stuff I need for Sunday.

My kit looks quite comical when laid out on the floor like this. It's very light and minimal - you would think a really tough challenge would require something more. When our ancestors took on their most demanding physical tests they probably wore half a ton of armour and carried a large sword and a heavy bottle of dragon poison. I am hoping to get by with:
  • Faded Bridport Runner's vest - to be worn with pride;
  • Ron Hill shorts - light as tissue paper;
  • Hilly Socks - labelled with Left and Right of course, so that I know which foot to put them on;
  • Saucony running shoes - a size bigger than they used to be.

Regarding the latter, I was most excited to discover the real reason why I needed to purchase shoes that were half a size bigger than I have done before. In Runners World (April 2017) I found this, "If you're over 40 and feel like your running shoes don't fit like they used to, it's not your mind playing tricks - they don't. Your feet widen with age … some runners will need shoes two sizes bigger at 60 than they did at 40."

This information is both reassuring and worrying in equal measure. It's good to know that my mind is not playing tricks and this 'growth spurt' happens to many older runners. However, what happens if the rate of growth is such that I need a larger pair of shoes at the end of the marathon than at the start? My minimal kit approach goes out the window if I have to carry an extra pair of running shoes to change into at mile 14!

If I had considered running in more elaborate kit i.e. a superhero costume, gigantic pair of nappies or rhino suit (as you do) I could have gained the additional motivation of going for a world record. Inside the booklet supplied to all marathon competitors, one of the most informative sections is the article which outlines the Guiness World Record breakers in the marathon. Apparently 32 world records were set last year in London, in some truly breathtaking 'costume' and 'speed' combinations. I am full of admiration for Greg Trevelyan who holds the record for Fastest Marathon dressed as a Crustacean - he finished in a very tidy 3 hours and 17 minutes. I am equally impressed with Dave Cooke (although he finished nearly 2 and a half hours after Greg) who crossed the line in 5 hours 45 minutes and is the World's Fastest Marathon runner wearing Chainmail. I would be delighted to finish in a time that would have been somewhere between the two of them in 2016. I have to say one of the best ways to help me speed up in the later stages of the 2017 event, would be to respond to the sound of rapidly approaching chainmail from behind me.

No, I'm going to keep the costume simple. Guinness World Record adjudicators please note, I am going for …

World Record for 56 year old male from Bridport, who gets round the course on his second attempt (31 years after the first), with ever growing feet - wearing faded club vest, 'left' and 'right' labelled socks and an expression of hope.

Left Sock Right Sock

Day 89 Marathon Training - Gym session

Just a gym session today, no running. I have increased most of the weights I use now and it seems like I've come a long way since it felt like my gym sessions were injuring me rather than helping me. Now that they've become a bit more routine and I've adapted to them, I think they are doing what they are supposed to i.e. building up my strength (especially in my legs) and developing my core. I think I'm a stronger and more balanced runner as a result - Hey, there's a boast!

But, as usual, there is something more important to talk about today …
I LOVE the fact that you can now buy running socks that have 'Left' and 'Right' markers on them, to ensure that you put them on the correct foot. I even have some that have "Running" written on them. Believe me, when you reach your 50s this is so useful. When I get to that moment when I've gone out the door and think, as I often do, "what the hell did I come out here for?" - it's great, I can take my shoes off, read the word 'running' on my socks and I instantly know what I'm meant to be doing.

I have been doing some research into this whole 'left sock/ right sock' thing and I have discovered the fascinating origins of this labelling. I highly recommend the book, "Born to Move Forwards (most of the time): How Humans discovered that hopping on one leg and crawling backwards were ineffective hunting strategies", by Heinrich Manhoover. He explains how our earliest ancestors were in danger of extinction until they discovered running forwards using both legs was the best way to survive.

But the most amazing part of the study was his discovery of some ancient cave paintings which prove once and for all, that early human beings had detachable feet. They could literally swap one foot for another. It wasn't long after they had discovered that two feet were better than one, that they also learned that there was a 'best foot' with 'best leg' combination and if they got this wrong it spelled disaster.

If they emerged from the cave with the natural 'left foot' attached to the right leg and vice versa, then it was only a matter of time before they provided the local tyrannosaurus rex with a very tasty meal. But on the other hand (that expression seems out of place) if they got the 'foot/leg' combo correct, they could run for 30 days and 30 nights without stopping. Many of them did and got hopelessly lost. But the ones that turned round and found their way home emerged to provide the vital ancestral link from that time to the elite marathon runners and parkrun volunteers of today.

It is of course sad, but inevitable, that the commercial marketing types have exploited this natural feature of the human body for their own gain. We can't resist buying these 'L' and 'R' socks because it's in our DNA. I know that when I put them on, I feel like I'm back in the cave, just about to pounce out, dodge a dinosaur and catch a fleet footed antelope before breakfast. We're suckers for anything that reminds us of our glorious natural history.

At times I feel like wearing nothing but my L & R socks and running around the local town, making a hunting cry and trying to catch whatever animals I find there. It is annoying that my attempts to recapture the spirit of what it was like all those years ago, has resulted in an anti-social behaviour order and I've been banned from most shops and pubs. However, they do still let me into the sports shop, to buy running socks.