Wednesday 4 August 2010: My first taste of the Sahara and Garmin is back!

Mileage: 12.5 miles

AM: 3.75 miles; PM: 8.75 miles

Running today was the same as Monday in terms of route and distance, however, I was tired and a little niggley in places. I guess that's the downside of running plenty of miles, but also a sign of how hard last night's track session was. Thankfully by the time I had finished my 9 miles this evening everything felt good and I certainly feel as though I can do a hard session tomorrow. I am now feeling pretty confident that I will be able to do a second consecutive 100 mile week, which will be a first for me. 

Yesterday I got my first taste of the Sahara Desert, quite literally. My brother, who works in the oil industry, has been out in Lybia in the desert for the last 3 weeks. In duty free on his way home he picked up a couple of bottles of gin for himself and Gail, but as I am off the booze he kindly brought me back a bottle of something non-alcoholic. He brought me a bottle of sand from the Sahara! He reckons my training will improve if I pour some of the sand into my socks before every run. I have to admit I really like it. I reckon it's going to become some kind of motivational icon, that I'll I look at everyday to remind me what's coming, so thanks Stephen!

In other exciting news Garmin sent me my new Forerunner 405 today. It's all shiny and working, which is great and a step up from the last one. I have to admit Garmin were pretty good about it. I rang their helpline and explained that my old watch had died and asked them if there was anything they could do about it. It was out of warranty, nearly 3 years old and had over 4000 miles on it, so I was not expecting too much. A friend of Colin's had suffered a similar fate and Garmin had offered to replace his watch with a refurbished one for £75. I was given the same offer, which I gladly took, as £75 for a watch as good as new that normally costs as much as £250 and one I would have ended up re-buying, is a good deal.

Finally today, I bought a running magazine that I hadn't read before, Running Fitness. Have any of you seen it?  This edition was perfect for me as it included an article about James Cracknell and how he took on the MDS and finished highest ever Brit. It was full of loads of great tips and advice on preparation for the race, which I have taken note of. There were also several other interesting articles too and I have to admit it made a refreshing change to Runners World.