Not such a good conclusion

The audio for the 10km run video has been blocked. I haven't got time to find a suitable alternative from my collection and I have chosen one of YouTube's royalty free tracks. Actually I think it is one of their better ones although it will be a few minutes before the muting is removed.

I can't imagine anyone else has done this

I had run a marathon in training by 9 am this morning. That was a first for me anyone.

It was all part of my plan to cover as much as possible of the Ascot Hotel Manx Harriers Open Meeting on film and video.

Even without any of the family at home this weekend it has been a struggle and an hour or so ago I almost slumped onto my keyboard as I couldn't stay awake whilst doing the video editing.

But it has been worth it. A great day. Now I'm going to treat myself to a pint. I didn't have one of them at 10 am like I did in Germany three weeks ago. Maybe I could have kept going better today if I had done.

Whereas I can I go for it but the Ascot Hotel!

Negative thoughts

Since Christmas I've been working on a major project with my photos that I want to complete in the next 5 weeks. Searching through for photos of the old 20km walkers tonight made me realise how far I have  to go because there were plenty that I couldn't find.

Having drawn a line at two hours on the 20km walk feature tonight I sat back to watch David's film of the National Cross Country. Fantastic to watch but I am sure glad that I wasn't in that mud. On doing the washing.

There is a special person I want to put on the website on Friday.

Baldwin

The BBC report of the Baldwin Fell Race is online:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/athletics/9405554.stm

Video the easy way

I had three household chores to do whilst listening to Michael and Irene George on Manx Radio tonight. Then I planned to go out by 6.30.

The Welbeck Hotel owners did a great job of explaining how hard it is to run a successful hotel - the award winning hotel of 2010 no less.

I haven't done such a good job because I am still here but I am ahead on one of my late evening jobs. David Griffiths has edited just under 12 minutes of his film from the National Cross Country. Although I have not had time to watch it all the atmosphere seems to good that I have decided to dispense with music this time and I've just added some credits and am producing the more condensed file required for YouTube.

It should be ready for uploading shortly so (particularly as there will be no copyright issues) it should be available in about 20 minutes.

Check out www.youtube.com/murraylambden

I'm planning quite a bit feature on another matter later this evening.

Just browsing

I'm a big fan of Google Chrome even though it doesn't display the manxathletics.com website as well as internet explorer.

But it seems that more than 50% of visitors to the site still use IE in its various guises.

Perc.	Browser Name	Version
37.80%	IE	8.0
13.00%	Firefox	3.6
12.00%	IE	6.0
12.00%	IE	7.0
11.60%	Chrome	9.0
3.60%	Safari	5.0
2.00%	Safari	iPad
1.80%	Safari	4.0
1.40%	Firefox	3.5
1.00%	Chrome	10.0
1.00%	Opera	11.0
0.80%	iPhone	0
0.60%	Chrome	7.0
0.40%	Safari	4.1
0.20%	Default Browser	0
0.20%	iPod Touch	0
0.20%	Google Webmaster Tools	0
0.20%	Firefox	2.0
0.20%	Firefox	3.0

I think you will see a few extra typos, whichever browser you use, because I have just put plasters on my peeling fingers, or has is blasters in by stealing blingers.    

Harry Hill supports race walking publicity

Harry Hill would presumably take the micky of race walking as he does with everything else.

But its only because Marie is watching him from our Sky+ tonight that has enabled me to creep back to my computer and snatch the statistics about the under 20 race walkers from the power of 10 website.

What a great performance from Lauren Whelan. Thank goodness for Harry Hill that I have been able to profile it a bit more.

Hopefully she will go on to bigger and better things. Unlike half of the all timers listed who set their personal bests while still under 20.

The majority of those listed have competed in the Isle of Man. Every Tom, Dick and Harry knows about race walking over here.

Crocus time

I was down in Kirk Michael this afternoon having a walk with Robbie and it was good to see the crocus lawn at our old family house, Erinville, coming into bloom.

The photo above with my parents appeared in Manx Life in (I think) spring 1978. They used have "Crocus teas" in aid of the Methodist Church. They weren't quite as novel as they sounded - they served ordinary tea and biscuits but with a chance to review the flowers.

Digital thumbnails

I promised somebody that I would publish some digital thumbnails from the fell race.

My PB in wellies

Fell running can be the most enjoyable branch of the sport to cover for the website. And the worst.

I told people that if I got drenched doing my long road run this morning I probably wouldn't go to the fell race, particularly if the conditions were not good. I did get soaked and I knew it would be tough on the hills but I still went.

I parked on the west side of the Millennium Way as I thought it was too dangerous to park on the roadside so it took me a while even to get onto the Millennium Way. I had under estimated how long it would take me to get to the turn off and missed the first few runners.

I then headed back towards the car but decided to see if I could find the course again and was lucky to pick up Tom and Simon. I had no idea that I was anywhere near the top of Ben-y-Phot until I got there! My camera was not keen on working in those conditions so again I missed a few.

I think I had walked and jogged about 5 miles in my wellies by the time i got back to the car.

Didn't mean to be here

I've made a good start with the list of London Marathon runners today with 23 accounted for already. Thanks to those who contacted me.

I linked the clubs and charities but then I couldn't resist trying to link the runners to Kevin Deake's www.sportsdesk.im site which in itself is liked to the Power of 10. I've done it with most of them but I am about half an hour late going to do what I have do do now!

Marathon year

I've spent the evening preparing a feature with the above title and I am delighted to confirm that my good friend Paul Curphey will be on the start line of the Virgin London Marathon for the 18th year in a row.

The Isle of Man Veteran Athletes Club came to his rescue when for the first time he was left without an entry.

The day after he originally called me to tell me that he would have to miss it. I received a phone call from Ian Callister who has 20 finishes to his name asking me where we were staying. There has been a lot of banter between Ian and Paul in recent years as they both want to achieve a record number of finishers. Ian will be there too for the 21st time.

Ian and Paul outside the Strand Palace Hotel in 2007


Top photo by Margaid Gosschalk; bottom photo by a passing tourist.

Winter Hill

Further to the coverage on the main page, here are photos of Rich Sille and Paul Quine. As always, double click the photos to see larger versions.

Egyptian reggae

Believe it or not, I do put quite a bit of thought into the music that I chose for the video soundtracks.

I always follow international news and with developments in Egypt at the end of last week I thought I should use Jonathan Richman's "Egyptian Reggae" yesterday.

But it was fairly short and my first cut of the video came to over 7 minutes and I had a real battle against time to get everything done yesterday and couldn't dither. One of the problems with multiple tracks is that if one of them is blocked for copyright reasons by YouTube you are not always aware which one it is and the whole audio is dubbed.

I watched Jonathan Richman at the refectory at North Staffordshire Polytechnic in the later 70s. I've just checked and that tune got to number 5 in 1977 but after playing it early in his set the show was going downhill and people were leaving. In an attempt to lift the audience he played it a second time. Those that were left shouted for an encore and guess what he played! So it didn't seem unreasonable to play the tune three times over the soundtrack.

He had another hit with "Roadrunner". I wonder how many times I would have to repeat that for a marathon?

Keith's 5000 metres

Thanks to Chris Quine for reporting on Keith Gerrard's great run at the weekend (on the forum) and for going me the link to the video of the race.

For some technical reason I couldn't embed the video but you can watch the race in full if you follow the link that I did provide you can select Heat 4 of the 5000 metres on the left hand side navigation bar to watch the race.

A square Pegg

I didn't think I would find anything in common with one of the best bass players around, Dave Pegg,  when he  posed for a photo with the new Fairport Convention CD. The former Jethro Tull, Fairport, Dylan Project and session bass player was unable to get the shrink wrapping off the CD to sign it as was I. My excuse was that my fingers are still recovering from frost bite. I guess his excuse is playing bass guitar for about 50 years.

An adventorous set tonight playing the whole of an album recorded 40 years ago in the first set and then only three previously recorded songs in the second. But its a bit like a top football team. They can leave out some of their best players and still be better than the average teams.

Gory detail

I was told my Margaid (who telephoned tonight) that I had missed out part of the gory detail - the blood from her her shoes had soaked up into her jeans!

Not as gory as one of the photos I used in the photo book!

Margaid rivalled Dudley

I think that everyone who visits this site has seen photos of Dudley Butt's feet after the Parish Walk. I can only remember one person with anything as bad as that was my sister in her one and only competitive event, the 1980  TT Relay Walk where she walked the last eg.

Margaid  is pictured above just before Windy Corner in her white tennis shoes. A couple of miles down the road at Creg-ny-Baa she complained that her feet were in agony. "That's normal. Just try harder" or something similar were the encouraging words from her brother.

As she approached the finish line I noticed her RED shoes which were covered in blood. She was due to start her second year at university at Royal Hollaway (just south of London) a couple of days later and when she emerged from A & E with crutches I realised that I had little option but to drive her back - this was long before it became the norm for parents to drive students to the student digs, you were expected to go "boat and train" in those days. She was told to get the dressings changed every day in the UK and when she told a nurse she thought that she was making a fuss "just for blisters". Then she saw her feet.

Happy memories Margaid? Happy 50th birthday.

I wonder why she never did another event?

Email trimming

Marie has just reminded me about someone she worked with once who used to delete everything from his mail from time to time if there was too much on the basis that if there was anything important they would contact him again!

I am afraid I could never do that which is probably why I have emails as far back as 2004 to reply to!

If you received a reply tonight and it appeared a bit short - I am sorry but at least I have reduced my backlog to 110. And if you are one of those 110 I'm sure you are next on the list - until I receive another batch on Friday.

Friday is a horrible day for junk mail.

I'm going to try and find something for a front page to finish even though I was vowed I was going to leave my computer by 10 tonight.

I'm going to get told off again

Every time I am struggling to do all the things I want to do on the website it is the people who give me positive feedback who make it worthwhile.

Teresa Hands, mother of Parish Walk record holder Sean, always comments on the website when I see her - and used to say nice things.

I took the above photo of her at the walk at the NSC in October and accidentally published with the photos of the walkers. She told me off!

I didn't mean to publish it there. I was going to write about her here sometime. I think I am going to be told off again!

YouTube you won't view

Anyone who follows this site won't be surprised that I took a number of photos and made a video of my business trip to Germany last week.

I've just been editing and uploading the video tonight but it will be "unlisted" - a little bit like "ex-directory" for telephone numbers.

Cross country news for you to view in the morning.

Even the young are 50

You know that you are getting on when even your little sister is 50 on Friday.

I've been digging out some old photos tonight at the expense of the website. If you see this Margaid, you didn't think I would buy a card did you?

Nothing like training to peak

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12375646

Them scousers

We've been to see them Beatles at the Centenary Hall in Peel tonight.

What a good show from the scousers today - its the second time this winter that I have had to admit to them being better than my favourites.

Boring breakfast

I went straight back to training this morning with a pleasing 20 miles at the NSC and came back for breakfast at home.

Quite a contrast to yesterday when we were visiting a German factory and were treated to a traditional Bavarian breakfast (see photo above).

Just been reviewing my email and the forum and hadn't seen the video link to Harriet Pryke before so put that on the website.

I have to prepare our holiday apartment  this afternoon and have a bit of work to do at home but I should get some organisation back into the site soon.

Normal service will be back soon

I've just got back from three days in Munich and don't really have the time to do much tonight.

I came back with bigger fingers than when I left after getting frost bite yesterday. Totally my own fault.

I also came back with a bigger waistline and the photo of my pudding in a Bavarian pub last night shows that that was totally my ow fault too.

Best YouTube I've seen for a while

Frost bite

In all my 54 years I don't think I have ever trained at -10C before and I don't I ever will again.

I set off for a 40 minute run at 6.30 am, got lost and only got back to the hotel at 7.50 and I was due to be collected at 8 am. It was bad enough to realise that I was going to miss breakfast but although I have always suffered in the cold I have never had so much pain in my fingers. I wore a pair of woolen mits, as I usually do but my hands feel as if they have been slammed between a door and the doorpost!

And where was the taxi taking me? To a company called MIT. I can't point a finger at them.

Not where I am staying

Had a business meeting on one of the poshest hotels in Munich this afternoon (above) but now transferred to the Holiday Inn.

Not looking good for running tomorrow morning with lots of snow.

Not looking good for website updates later due to scheduled beer.

Baldwin fell race

There is a real buzz about the fell running scene at the moment and in some ways I wish I could join the crowd in the next event in the Baldwin as it is one of my (many) favourite spots on the Island.

And to prove it I have evidence that I was checking out the course in 1958! My dad may have taken photos rather more sparingly than I am able to but his photo collection contains some gems. And I didn't even have to scan his slides  - brother Mike did that a few years ago.  

Breakfast before bed

An old story of mine flashed through my mind again a few days ago.

As a youngster in Kirk Michael I was quite impressionable and used to love hearing the stories from the older people in the village. Crikey you could actually talk to people in the community without child protection.

An elderly builder used to tell me how he had his breakfast before he went to bed in case he was late getting up in the morning.

I'm on the "red-eye" in the morning so I did tomorrow's training tonight! It was the first time I had trained or raced after mid-day since the Heritage Trail way back in mid-August. My first session was at 6 am.

I'm looking forward to a big breakfast at Manchester airport tomorrow as my reward for training twice today.

I've now announced this on the front page of the MA site, twitter, facebook and the Parish Walk blog so hopefully most of you have already found your way to the Parish Walk feature on Vinny Lynch..

http://www.parishwalk.co.uk/Current%20Features.htm