Michael the punk

I've moved this photo from the front page to the blog. What was so surprising was that so many people recognised a teenage Michael George of the Welbeck Hotel (leather jacket in centre) as the "top walker". Punk rockoing to race walking. You couldn't plan that!

My type of McDonald

The Isle of Man Examiner is offering a free bacon roll for every one bought at McDonalds this week. Surely one McDonald is enough for any person.

My McDonald delight this weekend came from reacquainting myself with three times Irish Olympic walker Jimmy McDonald. The 6th place finisher from the Barcelona Olympics was expressing his admiration for our Parish Walkers having seen the coverage on Sky the year that Sean Hands broke the record. He was really pleased when I said that Sean would be meeting me in a couple of minutes and I would be able to introduce him.  Who better to borrow a pair of gloves from Sean Hands?

I should have taken a photo so it will have to be an old one.

Jimmy McDonald (centre) after winning in 1989. On his left are Sean Martindale and Mark Easton and on his right Les Morton and Steve Partington. Result below.

1	Jimmy	McDonald	SDS Eire	1:23:55
2	Mark	Easton	Surrey Walking Club	1:24:04
3	Sean	Martindale	York Postal	1:27:16
3	Les	Morton	Sheffield United	1:27:16
5	Steve	Partington	Boundary Harriers	1:28:04
6	Gordon	Vale	Boundary Harriers	1:33:12
7	Allan	Callow	Boundary Harriers	1:42:00
8	Steve	Taylor	Boundary Harriers	1:45:04
9	John	Cannell	Boundary Harriers	1:47:22
10	Frank	Huntley	Boundary Harriers	1:48:33
11	Bill	Johnson	Boundary Harriers	1:56:05
12	Mark	Byrne	Sheffield United	1:58:55
14	Dave	Tasker	Boundary Harriers	2:02:23
13	Ralph	Martin	Boundary Harriers	2:10:59

Saturday coverage

I've not commented yet on an excellent day at the Ascot Hotel Manx Harriers Walks on Saturday. There has been so much on. I have further film to edit yet. Will try tonight.

3 contrasts

I mentioned that I trained with Mike Garrett and Paul Curphey on Wednesday night. It was the first time for several years that we had all taken part in the same session but we go back quite some time. Our races today were quite contrasting.

I firs trained with Paul in the winter of 1991 and Mike first joined us in 1996. He then had one of the longest breaks through injury that I can recall not returning for 6 years! He has had a shed load of disappointments but after taking a break from the marathon for a couple of years and training with Andy Fox's group he is all the better for it. So good to see him execute his race plan so successfully today for a win and a big personal best in the Leinster Management 20 Miles.

If I told you that Paul's time was pretty average you might be surprised because he ran 17 minutes faster than any of his times for the past three years.

His time today was 2:09:46 but his average for the past 18 years (yes this was his 19th in a row) was 2:09:02!

2:01:02	1994
1:59:00	1995
1:58:31	1996
1:58:38	1997
2:02:57	1998
2:02:14	1999
2:07:19	2000
2:02:27	2001
2:04:49	2002
2:06:11	2003
2:04:35	2004
2:08:48	2005
2:14:45	2006
2:13:38	2007
2:17:28	2008
2:26:16	2009
2:27:41	2010
2:26:15	2011

Really thrilled for Paul. If only I had  told people that I was just pacing Paul for 15 miles my day would have seemed fairly successful. But the truth was that my legs went at 16 miles even though I was only running at a pace I am used to running nearly every week and clearly I had not fully recovered from my illness the previous week. "Don't rush your comeback" were the words of advice of another old friend, Chris Quine, earlier in the week, But I did and I didn't (finish).

Radio and nostalgia

When you drive a car that's 14 years old and the radio breaks its not worth spending too much on a replacement. But even the second model up from the bottom came with a USB socket so I'm going to have a lot more in car entertainment - and I won't have to listen to all the rattles any more.

I wonder how long before we have internet radio in the car? Its internet radio that got a smile back on my face tonight. We have invested in the wonderful Pure Sounds radios for our holiday properties as well as our house and tonight I have been cleaning the apartment, a thorough spring clean, and it was Radio Caroline that revived me after I was flagging earlier in the day.

Older people will remember the old Radio Caroline when it broadcast off Ramsey Bay in the sixties. Forgot about the nostalgia, this version is much better. 24 hours a day with no adverts, I don't know how they do it.

http://www.radiocarolinegold.eu/

But of course, you only listen to this sort of station of you are nostalgic.

There is plenty to look back on tomorrow with the visit of Paul Nihill, the 1964 Olympic 50km walking silver medalist. It was Paul who made the NSC roadway what it is today.

I'll be filming a good part of the day. I've also got some photos from Stan Hall from the Ramsey Fireman's runs.

Keith part 1

Part 1 of the video is finally available. I'll leave Part 2 uploading while I go zzzz.

Two 28 minute men in half an hour

Its been one of those long days for me today. It started at 5.30 as I was too tired to return to the cottage to finish off the cleaning (which had to be finished by tonight) so I had to fit in an hour on the way to work. After work, I was moving our long stay tenant from one holiday property to the other (he is fitting around short stay booking in each play) before heading to Peel to interview Keith Gerrard.

I made it within five minutes of the appointed hour at 7 and after the interview and some chat headed for Shoprite and who do I meet but our other 28 minute 10,000 metre runner - Yorkshireman Colin Moore who has a best of 28.13.

Marie has been away for the past couple of days and so I have inherited some extra duties with her puppy. A quick dash to the bottom of Bray Hill and around Thorny Road and and Somerset Road in about the time Keith or Colin would take to run three or four laps.

Finally I got something to eat before doing some editing of the video. Keith spoke well it was my mistakes I had to edit out! The film will be available shortly and where Keith is seen laughing is just after I managed to describe the Liverpool football captain wining the National Cross Country.

Whilst it is uploading I am just going to put some dog food on the kitchen table. Its the only way I can sure that I will remember to feed the dog in the morning.