THE VIRTUAL SPINE RACE

Virtual Spine Day 13

Distance Covered Today – 10.82 miles

Total Distance covered – 136.89 miles

Virtual

Very cold with snow showers most of the day turning heavy snow by evening

Is it heartening that today finally marks the halfway point of the Pennine Way? Its also a day of trudging over endless, often squelchy moorland and with snow around and falling late in the day it’s another tough one. Highlights along the way, include verdant valleys, a Bronze Age burial site – traders from that era used the Stainmore Gap as they did the Aire Gap, Romans too – and a castle (sort of). There is also a lot of wall following feeling like a rehearsal for the stretch on Hadrian’s Wall which I plan to do in June this year. And finally, there is the A66 to navigate which is most definitely not a highlight.

Reality

 Cold Icy start turning to light rain and becoming heavy by evening

Walk 5.52 miles – The boring route again this morning as I bring up the halfway point after only 12.5 days. The walk this morning is treacherous with black ice everywhere. Several close escapes nearly slipping into the road but thankfully I made it in one piece.

Walk 5.30 miles – The boring route home again and today, including this mornings walk, I decided to ditch the music for an audiobook. The choice for this week is ‘Madness – Before We Was We’ which is the story of the band from teenage years at school through until their breakthrough in 1979 with One Step Beyond. Made interesting as its done documentary style with each of them narrating their own story on and off throughout the book. Got to Chapter 7, about 40% in 3 hours walking. Definitely made the walk interesting.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE consider sponsoring me for this mammoth challenge, it’s for an incredible cause and inspired by an incredible person in Laura Nuttall 🙂

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/gd20in20

My motivation for this has come from a very special person called Laura Nuttall who in late 2018, was diagnosed with terminal multiple brain tumours at the young age of 18. Her determination and positive attitude to not only live her life to the full but also to help others as an ambassador for the charity is just incredible and I’m proud to join the fight in whatever way I can. You can read Laura’s story at the following link. Please be generous and help this great charity to raise much-needed funds for researching a cure.

https://www.facebook.com/DoingItForLaura/

The Brain Tumour Charity is the world’s leading brain tumour charity and the largest dedicated funder of research into brain tumours globally. Committed to saving and improving lives, we’re moving further, faster to help every single person affected by a brain tumour. We’re set on finding new treatments, offering the highest level of support and driving urgent change. And were doing it right now. Because we understand that when you, or someone you love, is diagnosed with a brain tumour a cure really can’t wait.

Virtual Spine Day 11

Distance Covered Today – 8.55 miles

Total Distance covered – 120.61 miles

Virtual

Heavy rain most of the day with strong winds and a cool feel

Tough weather conditions today as I leave Hardraw Force behind and head uphill for a while onto the moors and over Great Shunner Fell, the highest point on the walk so far. In a rare moment of good humour, the late great Alfred Wainwright said he could climb Great Shunner ‘nonstop despite being ‘senile and getting as fat as a pig’. Up here, more than ever before, it can feel like you’re walking along the backbone of England. No time to hang around today in this rain and the Way now leads down to cute little Thwaite and along Swaledale and to Keld, via some waterfalls, where the Pennine Way crosses its rival, the Coast to Coast Walk. Another familiar spot having done the Coast to Coast in 2014, a truly epic walk that I hope to do again one day soon. The end of proceedings for today and im hoping for a kick of energy from somewhere tomorrow.

Reality

 Torrential rain and heavy winds

Run 8.55 miles – Feeling so tired today and when I came to run the heavens had opened so it was tough getting out the door. When I did the rain stopped for a while and with the wind on my back I started feeling ok. But then when I turned up Emmott Lane the rain came and the wind was now blowing me sideways. The streetlights stopped and it was just me and my headtorch for the rest of the run into a ferocious wind, especially on the tops, and torrential rain. Really unpleasant, I could have used other words but I wont 🙂 So its another 8,5 miles done and thats what matters.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE consider sponsoring me for this mammoth challenge, it’s for an incredible cause and inspired by an incredible person in Laura Nuttall 🙂

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/gd20in20

My motivation for this has come from a very special person called Laura Nuttall who in late 2018, was diagnosed with terminal multiple brain tumours at the young age of 18. Her determination and positive attitude to not only live her life to the full but also to help others as an ambassador for the charity is just incredible and I’m proud to join the fight in whatever way I can. You can read Laura’s story at the following link. Please be generous and help this great charity to raise much-needed funds for researching a cure.

https://www.facebook.com/DoingItForLaura/

The Brain Tumour Charity is the world’s leading brain tumour charity and the largest dedicated funder of research into brain tumours globally. Committed to saving and improving lives, we’re moving further, faster to help every single person affected by a brain tumour. We’re set on finding new treatments, offering the highest level of support and driving urgent change. And were doing it right now. Because we understand that when you, or someone you love, is diagnosed with a brain tumour a cure really can’t wait.