Pre race

The nerves.The heart pumping, stomach-churning anxiety.And yet, hand-shaking excitement and anticipation. The smell of muscle heat in the air.Hubbub of voices all around.Especially,of course,in the queues for the loos! Never enough.Timing is everything,as I’ve seen people just going into a cubicleto hear the start gun go off… Another check of the gear;final fiddle with the […]

Storm Force

The world roarsand shakesin a ferocious wind.People leaning in to the tempestteeth grittedeye half closedumbrellas long gone. Wheelie bins break speed limitsand trampolines fly up to Oz. Not a bird fliesall hunkered downin the waving treesand shaking hedgerows. Tiny flotsam laden tornadoesleafnadoesspin and whirlalong the roadjoined by our shame;litter and refusedroppedby a broken society. The […]

Run in to Dawn

My feet movepropelling me forwardthrough the darknessand cooling mist. The blackest of silencesother than my own breathingand the squelch of the mudsucking at my shoes. I runfollowing the light ahead.Never catchingthe beam from my head torch. A left turnthen a right and now I’m joined by the building chorusof the feathered denizenswho’ve been sleeping above […]

Racing Eve

It’s the morning before the day after It’s the eve prior A day of nerves And tremors Of preparation And anticipation Yes that’s right It’s pre-marathon day A day a swirling thoughts I’m ready to roll And enjoy every mile. I’ll never manage it I should just cancel. Why do I do this to myself? […]

The battle

Exhaustion Runs through my veins Fatigue so chronic It feels at a cellular level Ingrained Never to improve As I sit looking out At the grey skies And cold winds and the battle rages Between The bone sapping weariness Fuelled with fatigue filled tears And the want The need To go outside and run To […]

Tyred

In the silence of the dark On the criss crossing paths Across meadow and field I lean forward In to the tension Of the chain And rope Behind me. And I’m followed Through the blackness By the tyre. Glutes on fire Lungs gasping Belt tight on my hips Push forward As if up a steep […]

Runny Canvas

Every runis like a blank canvasready for youto show your artto express the timethrough paint and textureand eachhas it’s own styleits own artistnever two the same. Some runscan be a masterpiecewhere coloursand time flowsfluid motioneffortlessa pictureof efficiencyand life. Some runsare chaosevery stepa strugglethrough a paletteever changingOils and pastelsmixed togethernot making senseYet still an endEven thoughit’s […]

Mountain Running

Up the Mountain Gear on,shoes laced up,anticipation buildingas you look up at the peak;the mountain ahead,almost too much to consider,running the grand massif. Yet I am going to.I will.Not to conquer,not to beat,but to be with,be part of. Setting off slowly,as the incline increases.Blood pumping already,breath gasping,hands on thighs:pushing,joining in with the legs:quads and glutes […]

Beaming in the Dark

A dark subdued world. A woodland at night. Feet falling along the path. Breath heavy, but not laboured. An owl hoots, rustles in the blackness. Muffled sounds only the night can form. I run into the tunnel. The beam of light from my head torch a narrow world of vision, an avenue of quiet life rolling toward me like a conveyer belt, ever moving. Ghosts of […]