CPR & Defibrillator Training - Wed 5th Dec 2007

Wednesday turned out to be a strange day for me. At 7am, I was packing my gear bag for a run later on Wednesday evening. Little did I know then that eleven hours later at 6pm, I would be sitting down doing a CPR & Difibrillator course! All thanks to an e-mail from John Quigley at lunchtime ;o)

Overall, the course was very good. Took only 4 hours and it was very well run. Some of the local clubs were represented...Eagle AC, St.Finbarrs, Leevale AC, Belgooly AC, Bandon AC, Midleton AC, Cork BHAA and Cork AAI. Full credit to John Quigley of Eagle AC and Terry Higgins of Pfizer for arranging it. I should also mention that Pfizers hosted the event and credit is due to them for doing so.

I understand that another training session is due to happen sometime in the Spring. If you would like to enquire about it then you should contact John Quigley of Eagle AC or send me an e-mail and I'll pass on your details (my e-mail adress is shown on the right hand side of this page).

Cork BHAA announce their calendar of races for 2008 -

Cork BHAA have just finalised their list of races for 2008 and it looks like the eyar will be packed full of races, just like 2007. Of course, the main event in 2008 will be the Cork City Marathon and Relay on the 2nd of June in which they hope to attract around 8,000 runners.

Here is the calendar for 2008...

CORK BHAA 2008 LIST 0F EVENTS

Date Distance Venue

Sunday Morning Races @ 11am

Jan 13th Cross Country Beaumount Park Blackrock

Jan 27th FMC 4 miles Little Island

Feb 10th ESB 5k Blackrock

Mar 16th St Vincents 5k Holyhill

April 6th UCC 10K Mardyke

Evening Races @ 8pm

April 29th Stride by the Tide 4 miles Redbarn

May 7th Pfizers 6 miles Ringaskiddy

May 15th IPS/GARDA Ringaskiddy

June 2th Cork City Marathon 9am start www.corkcitymarathon.com

June 11th Grandons 5 miles Glanmire

June 19st John Buckley Sports 5k Marina

July 2nd Stryker 4 miles Carrigtohill

July 9th EMC 5K Ovens

Aug 6th Novartis 5K Ringaskiddy

Aug 20th Army/Navy 5 miles Naval Base

Sept 3rd PTAA 5K @7-30pm Togher

Sunday Morning Races @ 11am

Oct 5th Cork To Cobh 15mls

Nov 2nd HSE 4 miles Marina

Nov 23rd 4 miles Classic Inniscarra

Dec 7th Cork Simon 4 miles Marina

Entry form for the 2008 Ballycotton 10 mile Road Race -

The entry forms for next year's Ballycotton 10 are now up on their website.
The link is HERE.

See my last post for details on how to enter.

Entries for the 2008 Ballycotton 10 mile road race - (Updated Mon 3rd Dec - 6pm)

This is the final post on the Ballycotton 10 entries. The forms are out next Monday, the 3rd of December so I am putting all the relevant info into one post here.

Quick recap on Entry Conditions

a) The first 2,500 forms that they recieve by post will have automatic entry.

b) Anyone who is a member of a running club (must be AAI registered) OR anyone who did one of the Ballycotton Summer series 5 mile road races (Ballyandreen/Shanagarry/Churchtown South/Ballycotton) have until the 18th of December to enter.

c) Overseas entrants have until the 8th of January to enter.

So basically, if you are not a club runner, you didn't do any of the 2007 Summer series races and you're not an overseas entrant, then you really need to enter ASAP.


Sequence of Events


1) Some people will have sent off a SAE for an entry form during November. These should be posted before the weekend and they should arrive to everyone by post on Monday morning (3rd Dec), at worst Tuesday morning (4th Dec). Anyone who took this option should post the entry form back the same day.

2) The entry forms will be distributed to John Buckley Sports (Cork) and Ger Wyley Sports (Dungarvan) and local shops (Ballycotton/Shanagarry) on the afternoon of Monday, the 4th of December.

3) An entry form will be put up on the Ballycotton website on the evening of the same day, Monday the 4th of December. I'll put a link up here on this blog to the entry form as well that evening/night.

4) If you qualify under the entry conditions b) and c) above, then you can take your time and just make sure you get your entry back before the dates shown. If however, you do not meet any of these entry conditions, you must make sure that your entry is one of the first 2,500 accepted. You really should post your entry as soon as possible. Don't wait for the weekend or the following week!! If you post it on the Tuesday or Wednesday, you should get in ok. Wait any longer....then, who knows!

Tips on Entering

(This is based on advice recieved from John Walshe of Ballycotton Running Promotions)

Once you get the entry form, take your time and follow the following instructions...

(1) Read the form - especially where to post to, the actual fee, who to make the cheques out to,
(2) Remember your year of birth (surprising the number of people who put down 2007!).
(3) No need for SAE with entry.
(4) To detach the section on the right-hand side, no need to send back the whole form.
(5) Not to staple cheque to form!

John makes the following point..."The last two points may seem trivial but when you are going through 3,000 forms it can be time consuming. Also, it might be no harm to inform the new people to running that we are entirely a voluntary organisation and don't have a full-time staff to deal with matters! "

Just two final points...
1) The Ballycotton 10 will take place on Sunday, the 9th of March 2008.
2) It is the 3rd race of the 4 in the Munster 10 mile Spring Classic series. So, if you want to complete the series, you have to enter Ballycotton now.

So, thats it. Get ready for Monday and good luck!!

Results of the East Cork 3km Road Race (No 3 of 7) - Tues 27th Nov 2007

A crowd of 141 turned out last night in Midleton for the 3rd race in the East Cork 3km series. This was just 3 short of the record of 144 who turned out for the 2nd race. Conditions for the race were ideal, dry and mild with hardly any wind.

This was my first race in the series this Winter. I had forgotten how fast a 3k race was! It's a bit more like a 3k sprint rather than a road race ;o)

Here are the results... (Updated Thurs 29th Nov)

East Cork AC 3Km Winter Series Race 3 27/11/07
1 James Grufferty, Leevale AC, 9.36
2 Noel Curtin, Youghal AC ,9.43
3 Noel Berkley, DSD AC, 9.55
4 Eric Meade, East Cork AC, 9.56
5 Paddy Murphy, Bandon AC, 9.58
6 Frank O'Carroll, East Cork AC, 9.58
7 Lapped runner???,10.03
8 Denis McCarthy, East Cork AC, 10.07
9 David O'Dwyer, East Cork AC, 10.12
10 Tony Lilley, Togher AC, 10.13
11 George Boyle, UCC AC, 10.16
12 Kevin O'Leary, Glenbower AC, 10.18
13 Brian O'Connor, Grange/Fermoy AC, 10.31
14 Shane Maher, Grange/Fermoy AC, 10.33
15 Martin O'Keeffe, Youghal AC ,10.36
16 Padraig O'Dubhgain ,Leevale AC, 10.39
17 Eoin Casey, Glenbower AC, 10.40
18 Norman Kelly, Eagle AC, 10.45
19 John Desmond, Eagle AC, 10.52
20 Fergal English, UCC AC, 10.53
21 Aaron Hurley, UCC AC, 11.01
22 Alan Lane, Glenbower AC, 11.02
23 Alan O'Reilly, Midleton, 11.02
24 Anthony Maguire, Cork, 11.03
25 Frank Cashman, East Cork AC, 11.04
26 James Twohig, Carrignavar, 11.08
27 Tom Cody, Midleton AC, 11.10
28 John O'Callaghan, Rising Sun AC, 11.11
29 Coran Swayne, Midleton GAA, 11.12
30 Daniel Walsh, Glenbower AC, 11.15
31 Laurence Collins ,Mount Uniacke, 11.16
32 Kieran James, Castlemartyr, 11.17
33 Ned Ramsell, Midleton AC, 11.19
34 Phil McGrath, East Cork AC, 11.20
35 Billy O'Sullivan, Midleton AC, 11.22
36 James O'Leary, Midleton CBS, 11.23
37 Kevin Cooney, Midleton AC, 11.25
38 Nick Parkinson, East Cork AC, 11.30
39 Cormac Walsh, Midleton CBS, 11.38
40 Leslie Coughlan, Midleton CBS ,11.40
41 Eoghan Cotter, Aghada, 11.43
42 James Cleary, Whitegate, 11.44
43 Patrick Dunlea, Midleton GAA, 11.45
44 Matthew Boonaert, Cork, 11.46
45 Jennifer Goggin, UCC AC, 11.47
46 Pat Fogarty, ESB, 11.50
47 James Power, Whitegate, 11.54
48 Denis Lyons, Cork, 11.55
49 John Dunphy, Cork, 11.56
50 Kevin MacSweeney, Midleton GAA, 12.01
51 Richard Archer, Aghada, 12.02
52 Brian Healy, Dunboyne AC, 12.03
53 Victor Kiely, Blarney, 12.04
54 Ken Owens, Togher AC, 12.06
55 Sally Drennan, Midleton AC, 12.07
56 John O'Riordan, Rising Sun AC, 12.09
57 Liam Callanan, Whitechurch, 12.11
58 Peter Stanley, Carrigaline, 12.14
59 Dan Horgan, Midleton AC, 12.15
60 Mick Walsh, Midleton AC, 12.22
61 Colin McGregor, Cloyne, 12.25
62 Michael Hanrahan, Midleton AC, 12.29
63 Pat Walsh, Midleton GAA, 12.30
64 Joan Hough, Midleton AC, 12.31
65 Paul Cleary, Whitegate, 12.32
66 Sean O'Sullivan, Midleton AC, 12.33
67 Cathal McCarthy, Midleton AC, 12.34
68 John Walshe, East Cork AC, 12.35
69 Anthony Barry, Glanmire, 12.35
70 Don O'Hanlon, Cork, 12.36
71 Trevor Collins, Naas AC, 12.36
72 Batt Kearney, Leevale AC, 12.37
73 Karen Kenny, Grange/Fermoy AC, 12.37
74 Vince Hurley, Cork, 12.40
75 Adrian Williams, Midleton AC, 12.41
76 Matthew Chojan , Poland, 12.43
77 Kieran Rohan, Midleton AC, 12.46
78 Mark O'Keeffe, Youghal AC, 12.49
79 Niamh Walsh, Youghal AC, 12.51
80 Mark Walsh, Midleton AC, 12.57
81 John O'Halloran, Glounthaune, 12.58
82 Joseph McCarthy, Midleton AC, 12.59
83 Maggie Chojan, Poland, 13.02
84 Adrian Walsh, Midleton AC, 13.03
85 Tom Elliott, Passage West, 13.07
86 Danny McCarthy, Midleton AC, 13.10
87 Megan O'Sadnick, UCC AC, 13.12
88 Caroline Geary, Midleton AC, 13.14
89 Jane Murphy, UCC AC, 13.16
90 Mossie Stack, Ballinacurra, 13.17
91 Denise O'Brien, Midleton AC, 13.20
92 Padraig Nagle, Midleton CBS, 13.25
93 Austin Murphy, St. Finbarr's AC, 13.28
94 John Cotter, Cobh, 13.29
95 Patricia Curtin, Youghal AC, 13.30
96 Liam Walsh, Midleton GAA, 13.33
97 Michael Mellerick, Ladysbridge, 13.39
98 Kieran Brenock, Glanmire, 13.41
99 Aideen White, Ballycotton, 13.43
100 Donie O'Connell, Midleton AC, 13.52
101 Pat Organ, Midleton, 13.53
102 Louise O'Shea, Grange/Fermoy AC, 13.55
103 Frank Cruise, Glanmire, 13.56
104 Willie O'Mahony, Youghal AC, 13.58
105 Maura O'Doherty, Midleton AC, 14.00
106 Donal O'Donoghue, Little Island, 14.00
107 Elga Ryan, Midleton AC, 14.01
108 Tim Geary, Lisgoold, 14.03
109 Finbarr Lyons, Midleton, 14.07
110 Mick McCarthy, West Waterford AC, 14.10
111 Marie Murphy, Youghal AC, 14.13
112 Sinead Fitzgerald, Midleton AC, 14.16
113 Breda Cahill, Midleton AC, 14.17
114 Philip Murphy, Bandon AC, 14.19
115 Patrick O'Regan, Midleton, 14.21
116Jim McMurtry, Midleton AC, 14.33
117 Karen Fitzgerald, Midleton, 14.48
118 Finbarr McCarthy, Cloyne, 14.49
119 Jim Murray, Rising Sun AC , 14.52
120 Vincent Murray, Midleton, 14.58
121 Yvonne Kennedy, Midleton, 15.00
122 Jessica Monaghan, Leevale AC, 15.04
123 Kerry O'Neill, East Cork AC, 15.07
124 Margaret Beausang, Midleton AC, 15.16
125 Gavin Hurley, Midleton CBS, 15.19
126 Mary O'Keeffe, Midleton AC, 15.24
127 Olive Hallihan, Cloyne, 15.25
128 Stefanie Beausang, Midleton, 15.26
129 Carrie Higgins, Carrigtwohill AC, 15.27
130 Gary Geoghegan, Ballinacurra, 15.41
131 Billy Caball, Cork, 16.02
132 Colm Jordan, Midleton AC, 16.10
133 Conor Crowley, Cork, 16.13
134 Linda Hegarty, Midleton AC, 16.23
135 Joan McCarthy, Midleton AC, 17.01
136 Eoin Cashman, Midleton AC, 17.39
137 Dara Healy, Ballycotton, 17.46
138 John Cashman, Midleton AC, 17.48
139 Mary Toher, Midleton AC, 17.59
140 Claire O'Leary, Midleton AC, 18.37
141 Trish Cusack, Cloyne, 19.11

(...with thanks to Liam O'Brien for providing the results)

Ballycotton 10 entries out next week...

Just a quick reminder, the entry forms for the 2008 Ballycotton 10 will be out next Monday evening, the 3rd of December.

At this late stage, there is probably no point sending off a SAE for entry forms. I'll put some info up here on this blog about the entries on Thursday / Friday.

Results of the Cork BHAA 4 mile race in Inniscarra - 25th Nov 2007

Yip...it WAS hilly!! I had forgotten that the climb started before we got even to the first corner. But overall, it was a lovely morning. Nice and quiet, mild with hardly any wind worth talking about.

The numbers were well up on last year with 249 runners taking part, an increase of 60 over the 2006 figure. Only 2 years ago, they got 155 so you can see from that, the numbers are increasing all the time.

The full results are now up on the Cork BHAA website. The link is HERE.

Preview of the East Cork AC 3km Road Race - Tuesday 27th of November (7:30pm).

Intro...
The 3rd race of 7 in the East Cork AC 3k series takes place in Midleton on Tuesday, the 27th of Nov at 7:30 pm. It is open to all club and non-club athletes. If you do 5 out of the 7 races in the series, you will recieve a special T-Shirt. Note that if you did not do the first 2 races, this is your last chance to qualify for the T-shirt.

Directions...
See the image on the left. The circle shown at the top is the roundabout that is on the Midleton Bypass.So, if you are coming from Cork, you need to take the 3rd exit and take the road South towards Whitegate. Almost immediately, you will pass a SHELL garage on the right. What you are looking for then is the 2nd turn right. The 1st one is a housing estate. Take the 2nd one and it will bring you down onto the 'Dark Road' which ends in a T-junction. Registration will be near here.Course description - The course is basically 3 laps of a 1 km course. See the map...the start point, the 1km, 2km and finish points are shown. It can be a bit crowded at the start but it thins out after about 500 metres. By the way, you need to be carefull when you join the main road (bottom right hand corner on map). Even though you are running inside the hard shoulder, it is narrow at this point and it is easy to end up out on the main road.Overall, the course is pretty flat. There is a short little uphill section when you join the main road (bottom right on map) but otherwise there's nothing.

Reasons to do it...
a) It's a good speed session and should help you improve your breathing, fitness levels and speed.
b) Good excuse to get in a run on a dark Winter evening!!
c) It is a very good way to test your fitness level. As the course is identical every 3 weeks, you can see how your training is going. For example, if you are training for the Ballycotton 10 in March, then you should see your times improve by the time of the last one in February.

Additional info...
a) Entry fee is €3
b) If you are still not sure of where it is, then try this link and zoom in and out to get your bearings.
c) If you did this race last year then you might be interested in the following. I have put together a chart showing the finishing times for everyone in alphabethical order. The link is HERE.
d) Last year, 240 runners took part in the series with 11 people doing all 7 races. I'd expect the numbers this year to be up a good bit.
e) You can see the results from the 1st race in the series at this link...http://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2007/10/results-of-1st-east-cork-3km-winter.html
The results of the 2nd race can be seen at this link...http://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2007/11/east-cork-ac-3km-winter-series-race-2.html
f) Don't forget to wear a reflective bib/vest, it's compulsory!!

and finally g) And this is in large letters because it's important!

Please remember that the race organisers depend on the goodwill of local residents so that this race can be held here. There was an incident at the last race which did a lot of damage to this goodwill. Remember when parking not to cause an obstruction and don't do anything that would cause an offence to them.

Preview of the Cork BHAA 4 mile road race in Inniscarra - Sun 25th Nov 2007 (11:30am)

This is the 2nd last race on the Cork BHAA 2007 calendar and it's the last one in which there are category and team prizes.

How to get there...
Let's say you are coming out from Cork on the Straight Road /Carrigrohane Straight. Take the right at the end of the road and cross the bridge over the Lee and go past the Angler's Rest pub (Shown as A above). By the way, if you are coming out via the Ballincollig Bypass, follow the signs for Kanturk / Blarney and you'll arrive at the same spot.
After the Angler's Rest, you have a choice of 2 routes...
1) - At the junction just after the Angler's Rest, take the Right past the Garage. Stay on this road (R579) for several kms, go past the junction and Church in Cloghroe and look for the turn off left about 2 kms later.
2) - At the junction just after the Angler's Rest, stay left on the main road and you will bypass Ballincollig which is to your South. Carry on past the junction with the turn off for Ballincolling and the Inniscarra Bar on the corner (Shown as B on the map above). Take the right at the next major junction (If you go as far as the Inniscarra dam, you've gone too far). There should be a sign at the junction for Cloghroe. At the next T-junction, turn left and then look out for the turn off left. Look for race directions on the day.
Proceed up this road and park in the GAA grounds in Ballyanly.

Course Description...

This is a hilly 4 mile course. You can forget about fast times, there are too many hills for that. However, despite the hills, the course is run on nice quiet country roads and it's a nice spot for a race.

The race itself starts down the road from the GAA grounds. Initially, you run downhill but soon, you turn off left and then there is a nasty drag uphill. Soon it eases off and then you are running on nice quiet roads.

Around the 2 mile mark, you come to the small village of Berrings. You turn left here at the church and you have another uphill section. It's not so severe but enough to put you into oxygen debt if you push too hard. After that, you're on flat or downhill sections.

Just in case you thought you were getting off lightly, the 3rd hill of note comes at the finish. In the last few hundred metres, you drop downhill and then you have to run about 200m up to the finish line which is just outside the GAA grounds.

Overall...

As I said, forget about fast times but don't let the hills put you off. It's a nice area for a race and the country roads are quiet at that time on a Sunday morning. Refreshments are available in the GAA clubhouse after the race. After all those hills, you'll deserve it ;o)

I have put a map of the course up on the MapMyRun website in case you want to check out other ways to get there. The link is http://www.mapmyrun.com/run/ireland/cork/1129301821

Update on Entry forms for the 2008 Ballycotton 10....
First of all, it's 2 weeks before the entry forms come out so there is no panic at the moment. I am just putting up this short post to remind anyone who was thinking of sending off a SAE (Stamped Addressed Envelope) to get an entry form.

Just a quick reminder about the entry conditions.

1) The entry forms come out on Monday, the 3rd of December. The first 2,500 entries that are returned by post will be entered automatically.

2) Club runners or anyone who did one of the Ballycotton Summer series 5 mile races have up until the 18th of December to enter.

3) Overseas entrants have until the 8th of January to enter.

So, if you would prefer to have an entry form returned to you by post, you might consider sending them a SAE this week so that they will get it in plenty of time.

Chances are that if you go the SAE route, you'll probably get the entry form in the post on the morning of Monday the 3rd and you can post it that afternoon. Otherwise, you can wait (like me ;o) until the evening of the 3rd and download it off the Ballycotton website and post it on the 4th, 1 day behind the SAE gang. I think if you post it on the 4th, you should get in ok. Anyone that did it last year was ok. It's your call.

Remember, if you qualify for conditions 2) and 3) above, there is no panic. Otherwise, panic!!! ;o)

For more info on the entry procedure, see my earlier post...http://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2007/10/ballycotton-running-promotions-announce.html

One last thing!! The entry form is A4 size. Make sure your SAE is large enough and there is sufficient return postage. Here is their address...Ballycotton Running Promotions, Ballycotton, Co. Cork.

Looking for results of Kinsale 5 mile - 2006

Does anyone have the results of the Kinsale 5 mile road race from last year, 2006??? I just got an e-mail from Denis Kelleher of Midleton A.C. and he is looking for a copy.
He wrote "I am looking for results of Kinsale 5 mile road race 2006. I have been asking around and nobody appears to have them. If you put this on your website, somebody out there may have them."

If you have a copy, then send an e-mail to my address which is shown in the right hand column.

Thanks

John Desmond

Be Safe, Be Seen - Wearing reflectors at night

Now that the clocks have changed and the dark evenings have arrived, it's hard to get out running in the daylight anymore, especially during the week. If you are running under street lights or when it's nearly dark, then it's vital that you wear the correct gear.

While I was out running during the week, it was good to see that some of the other runners that I came accross during my route were wearing some form of reflective jacket. However, there are always some who don't which is a pity. Reflective clothing is cheap and can make a huge difference to whether you are seen or not.

Here are facts that I found on the net...

17 metres...If you are wearing dark Blue clothing, this is how close that a car must be before the driver can see you in the headlights.

24 metres...As above but this time it is for Red clothing.

37 metres...Distance for Yellow clothing.

55 metres...Distance for White clothing.

150 metres...Distance for a reflective vest.

Car - Stopping distance.

For a car doing 35 mph (55 kph), which is a typical speed around a city, the time it takes for a driver to react and for the car to stop is 41 metres. See the colours above, unless you were wearing White, you'd be in trouble.

For a car doing 45 mph (72 kph), which is typical for a careful driver on a country road, the time it takes to react and stop is 60 metres. So, on country roads, you really need a reflective vest to be seen.

For a car doing 60 mph (100 kph), the stopping distance is 93 metres. Way beyond the limits of bright clothing but still well within the visibility limits of a reflective jacket.

Now that these type of vests are compulsory on building sites, they seem to be everywhere and are pretty cheap. They are loose fitting so you don't sweat inside them and they are very light. You can also get running versions which are a bit thinner but basically do the same thing.

So do yourself a favour...be safe, be seen.

Entry details for the 2008 Cork City Marathon & Relay are announced...

The entry details for the 2008 Cork City Marathon & Relay have just gone up on their website. The costs are the same as they were for the 2007 event except that this time, they will have a staggered entry system whereby you pay more if you leave it too late.

So, some details...

2008 Marathon...If you enter before the 31st of March, the entry fee is €50, which is the same as it was in 2007. After that, you will have to pay extra. Enter between the 1st of April and the 28th of April and you will have to pay €60. Enter between the 29th of April and the 9th of May and it will cost you €70.

Relay Event...As with the 2007 event, there will be 5 stages and a relay team can be made up of 2 to 5 members. It will cost €80 to enter a relay team before the 31st of March. Entries between the 1st of April and the 28th of April will cost €90 and entries between the 29th of April and the 9th of May will cost €100.

The Cork Marathon and Relay takes place on Monday, the 2nd of June 2008. They have yet to confirm that the course will be the same as it was in 2007 but I'd be suprised if it changed much. If you are really eager ;o) , you can enter online now at this LINK. Note that all online entries cost 10% extra.

Seeing as how this event is still over 6 months away, there is still plenty of time. I'd guess that a lot people will want to do the Ballycotton 10 first at the start of March and then make up their mind if they are going to do it.

Getting ready for the Mallow 10 mile road race and the Munster 10 mile Classic series...

A few weeks back, I mentioned that it might be an idea to start thinking ahead to 2008 and planning what you want to do next year. Maybe you are thinking of doing the Cork Marathon in June? An excellent way to prepare for it, are the 4 Munster 10 mile Classic series races. There is a 10 mile race at the start of every month, from January to April. By the last race, you should have an excellent base from which to increase your milage and get a good time in the Marathon.

So, with that in mind, it just so happens that the first of those races, the Mallow 10 mile Road Race (6th Jan 2008), is on 7 weeks from next Sunday. So, including this week, that makes 8 weeks which is the same as most training schedules for a 10 mile race. If you go to the following link, http://www.runnersworld.co.uk/news/article.asp?UAN=94 , you will find some training schedules. Have a look and see which one suits you. The 1st week is usually pretty relaxed anyway so it's not too late to start.

By the way, the golden rule for increasing your milage is that you should increase it by 10% per week. So, don't go from 10 miles per week to 40 !! You'll only get injured. Increase your milage slowly and let your body get used to the increased demand put upon it.

New Poll - How many full Marathons have you done?

I have just put up a new poll in the sidebar to the right. The question is..."How many full Marathons have you done?" with a selection of answers from 'None' to '10+'. I thought it might be interesting to see what others are up to.