Its been a while...

I miss boxing so much - here I am with Amy of Smurfitness, I have learned such a lot from this lady.

*Warning* this is not going to be short! I like to think of my blog as an online diary which documents the active side of my life - my last blog entry was in December 2018 - what a slacker!  

So, here is a round-up of whats been happening in the life of theladyfellrunner since then...

My sister and I with Ricky Hatton

In a nutshell highlights of 2019 include - moving house and beginning the mass renovation and restoration of our (hopefully) forever home, learning to box, training my RunTogether group for a half marathon, running with the dog, a canicross leaders course in Scotland, learning to helm a monohull boat, learning to stand up paddleboard, starting open water swimming - both with and without the dog, volunteering to be the hare for a school cross country competition,

 riding the old boys (our two retired horses) with Scarlet, avoiding the town being washed away on 1st August when the dam was breached and damaged making headline global news, running a few fell races, doing a couple of parkruns and keeping up with pilates and HIIT classes, competing in the Dart 18 Nationals in Bridlington, and riding my road and MTB a bit (and introducing it to the dog).  Phew, quite a substantial nutshell!

But 2019 hadn't seen anything yet because then came 2020! It started well with a brilliant Ricky Hatton boxing course and I started the running year off with a Marple parkrun as part of the new Goyt Valley Striders championship.  All was going well until we started to hear chinese whispers about someone eating a contaminated bat and by March we were brawling in the supermarkets over toilet rolls and pasta...

Life was so different, it was like living in an alternative, impossible dreamworld where freedom was suddenly revoked.  People became paranoid, in some it brought out the worst but in many it brought back community spirit and hope. Coronavirus changed everything.  People stopped and the world stood still apart from checking social media constantly to see what was happening and what was to come.  Reports of Italy having a massive outbreak made it seem a bit closer to home than Wuhan and after all the Italians don't eat bats so it was suddenly becoming a bit of a worry.

Fast forward 12 odd weeks of lockdown and people were socialising on zoom, kids were spasmodically jerking away to tiktok moves, running clubs were doing virtual events and many exercise classes were held outside in small groups of 6.  My COVID highlights include getting aftershokz headphones for my birthday in April, staying in our caravan on the drive at Easter for 4 nights, running laps of my own (very undulating) fields, camping in the field, bonfires, home workouts, press-up challenges, running with William being towed by the dog, meeting one other person to run with, getting chickens!, going into tier 2, going into tier 3, back into lockdown and tier 5!

Aggie in lockdown

We did manage a summer holiday to South Wales (not the originally planned South of France!) and the kids really enjoyed spending time at home, during hot weather they walked 1 km to our nearest river and had a splash about and enjoyed a bit of independence.  

I never in a million years thought I would end up back at square one homeschooling the kids, almost a year later, which is where we are now - January 2021.  My primary teaching days seem a long time ago, certain skills are helping although teaching two of my own children is definitely 10 times harder than teaching a class full...

Running is now just something I have to try and fit in - ideally 2 or 3 times a week but sometimes more like once, mornings are now schooling, I do one pilates zoom class per week and try to do a few other online exercise classes, to keep my core and arms strong.  

Aggie modelling her K9 Trailsports Medal

Races are all virtual, I try to do a monthly medal race with K9 Trailtime which are canicross based and help various charities and I am trying to do a walk with the kids every afternoon.  The Goyt Valley Striders new championship requires members to run a mile as fast they can in January, 5km as fast as they can in February and 10km offroad as fast as possible in March.  These challenges are great as they give us a focus and an opportunity to train for something.  

Wearing the Freetrain vest

I have become a bit despondent about running on the whole over the last couple of years.  I am slower than I used to be and heavier although not unfit - on the contrary, doing boxing and all round body workouts has made me stronger than ever.   I had been trying to think of a way to improve my running mojo before lockdown, I had been considering joining a club with access to a track, thinking that might inspire me a bit but everything is now on pause, a sort of continual groundhog day.  For now just getting out is a victory!

Recently I was sent a V1 running vest from Freetrain to try out.  I usually wear my Ultimate Direction vest but tried this out as an alternative.  I really like the look of the vest, it feels comfortable to wear and has lots of handy features like reflective graphics on the back, a brilliant flip down phone holder which even fits my massive iphone 8+, a key pocket and a flattering shape.  

Sarah wearing the vest 

I had Sarah - one of my RunTogether members (and great friend!) in mind to try it out as she runs with headphones and has to carry her phone in her hand - this is not ideal as it unbalances the runner and isn't comfortable or practical.  Her review of the product was "I use it all the time, I can't tell I'm wearing it, its reflective and light, doesn't move or slip round, the design is great especially the flip down, you can still use your phone through the plastic.  Sarah's only negative was not having a key pocket - I pointed out it does actually have one! So its a solid 10/10 from us - highly recommended!

Sarah looking fresh in the vest

As I said earlier, I have been focusing on sorting out our home and it has been and continues to be a massive team effort.  Anyone interested can follow my home account on Instagram - slatersbank_farm and photos of my running etc. are still on my theladyfellrunner account.  

Rear view of vest

Sorry for the biblical nature of this post but I am going to try and keep updating regularly again from now on! 

So take care, stay safe and remember - you will never regret going for a run!

Happy running,

TLF x

Summer Update...

What a busy summer - but not exactly in a sporting way! I have had a lovely break with my family, my best laid plans of swimming everyday were curtailed by my youngest having bronchitis and not being able to tolerate any cold water! We did compete at the Dart 18 National Championships (read on for report) and I have done a little bit of cycling but I have to confess to mainly exercising my arm whilst lifting a glass to my lips...oops!

My first event of the summer was the Manchester to Blackpool 60 mile cycle ride in July.  Chris and I were raising money to help send a friends child to Disneyland - Harrison is 8 years old and has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy - a life-limiting condition which means he is losing mobility as he ages as his muscles weaken.  

After the sprint finish!  Still smiling! Pigtails flying!

Some of #TeamSkoda!

Here is a report of the day...

Well, what an experience!  I can categorically say that the organisation of getting 18 people plus bikes to and from Manchester/Blackpool was more exhausting than the ride itself!  For us regular Peak District cyclists it was totally different from the drags and drops we are used to.   

Caz and I leading the legend that is Fred Salmon! (And some random guy!)

The route was mainly flat and for us hillbillies it was not too challenging a ride, even though most of us had never covered the distance.  The scenery improved from about halfway and the roads were mainly quiet.  I would advise a novice rider to try a closed road type sportive ideally, as with the volume of cyclists - some of the cars encountered were getting quite frustrated (for good reason!).  Some of the worst obstacles were the other riders as some people were obviously not regular riders and some were downright dangerous wobbling about the road.  

Fitness was not a problem for most of our team, everyone took it at their own pace and had a group to ride with, next time I would definitely like to set off earlier to avoid the slower riders and I would only ride with one or two others - agreed beforehand.  It is very difficult waiting for people and a long day if you feel you're not progressing, in fact physically it is the time in the saddle which is the biggest hurdle for most people.  Our team worked well as we ended up in comfortable groups, but in hindsight this should probably have been agreed before the day as I personally spent about 20 miles trying (but not succeeding!) not to lose anyone and making sure nobody was on their own.  

Chris 

Once I settled into a group I found the ride really enjoyable - you feel like you are really making progress flying past people - I don't think that there was one part of the route where I lost sight of another rider! Stupidly, I made a huge mistake about 15 miles from Blackpool at one of the excellent food stops.  I obviously hadn't eaten enough en-route and was starving.  I wolfed down a chicken salad sandwich and a bakewell flapjack washed down with some tea (I know, rookie error!), this was great until I started to push for the finish, resulting in stomach cramp!  I should definitely have known better but one of my downfalls is my big appetite! 

Overall I really enjoyed the day, and I will definitely do it again, it whet my appetite for big sportives for sure.  Big thanks to Skoda for the jerseys, my Dad Alan, Chris' Dad Jim, my Mum Angela, Fred from the Bike Factory, Simon Twigg and the Whytes for driving the various vehicles and giving lifts and everyone who came and made it a really fun day!  

At the finish!

My top tips for anyone considering the Manchester to Blackpool ride would be 

• Train properly!
• Arrange as much as you can beforehand - particularly transport to and from the event
• Have your bike serviced before the day and carry spare tubes/pump
• Find a friend who is the same fitness/ability level as you to ride with
• Wear correct clothing - padded shorts are a must!
• Eat small amounts often - I regretted not following this advice!
• Watch out for other riders - inexperienced riders are unpredictable!
• Drink sips of water every 20 minutes 
• Encourage others and enjoy the atmosphere

Running Update...
Well there is good and bad news on this, as my 6 weeks rest period was drawing nearer I tried a couple of short 2.5km runs before we went away.  I wore cushioned shoes and didn't push it, wow my running fitness had disappeared!  I felt so unfit and slightly panicked at my (reduced) lung capacity!

I am not the most patient person when to comes to running, I just like going fast, but I realised I needed to be steady and take it slow.  On the Isle of Wight for our summer holiday I tried another few runs, the first was a 5km trail run, it felt ok and the highlight was encountering a lady who shouted "week 3, couch to 5k!" as we crossed paths, it was lovely!  I shouted "Well done, keep going!" and it hit me how much I have missed it.  

I did a 6 km off roader, after that and it felt great to be back on grass!  My hip didn't seem to complain too much, so I tried another, slightly quicker 4km but this was a step too far and my hip was sore for days afterwards.  I then waited 5 days and tried running home - less than 2km from the Bike Factory and it hurt again.  To say I am frustrated with it is an understatement.  I feel slow and like I may never be the same runner again, I am going to ask my physio if there is anything else I can do.  

Back in July I was approached by Runderwear to review their running briefs - I jumped at the chance and was hoping to have fully tested them by now!  I will be writing a full review of them in due course but in a nutshell, I love them!  I have cycled and run in them and find them flattering and comfortable.  Watch this space for more info on them soon!


Dart 18 National Sailing Championships 
August Bank Holiday saw the national Championships at Dee Sailing Club on the Wirral.  Chris and I have been sailing the Dart (an 18 foot catamaran) together for 18 years - Chris introduced me to the sailing circuit - both National and International - when I was just 16! We work very well as a team and have had some good results over the years including numerous club wins when we sailed at Carsington Water (we have an impressive trophy cabinet!) and then later successes at Dee sailing Club on the Wirral - our home club.  We have competed in France and Italy and had good results at the Anglesey Offshore.

When the children came along the sailing reduced massively, as happens with lots of people.  My parents have always been great and we always try to support our club where we can, the Nationals were no exception!

There were 70 boats entered and we had a mixed bag weatherwise.  On shore the wind felt strong but we had mainly light airs over the competition with the exception of one great race where it blew up to around a force 4.  

We improved over the course of the races and by race 10 we were really getting into it!  Our best results were a 17th and a 21st and we had the best time!  

Dee Sailing Club were amazing hosts as always, with highlights including a beer and a pasty after racing from the Dee Galley Gals (literally on the beach!), live music at a hilltop bar created for the event featuring local talent (and fellow Dart 18 sailor) Lucy Mayhew,  Wirral Gin!, the live band on Saturday night playing from 10pm - 1.30am non stop!, the nicest people you could ever meet, Wirral Gin! and some great sailing!

Full results here.



What's next?
I have been given the opportunity to take part in the Velo Birmingham - a 100 mile sportive, and to write about my experience for Totally Active Magazine - I am nervous but excited to take part, I just hope my holiday depleted fitness levels can make it round - watch this space!

I hope my next blog will be full of the joys of running again, but if not I am always thankful for being able to do any form of exercise so cycling and swimming and not to forget pilates will definitely be back on the menu once school recommences! 

In the meantime, happy running, sailing, cycling...

TLF x

OMG or should that be OMM?!

Walking back from the Dee party rocking my Proviz jacket!

These last couple of weeks have certainly been eventful!  Sailing-wise we had a bit of a non-event at the Dee Dart 18 Open meeting, with a drifter (no wind) on Good Friday so no races sailed, and then far too much wind on the Saturday and Sunday, resulting in only one race being completed by 10 boats out of the fleet of 30 entered.  

Unfortunately, (or fortunately if you were me) we were not one of the brave ten as it was just too windy with gusts touching 29 knots - there were 5 capsizes and one chap even snapped his mast! The evening parties were, as always, fabulous with live bands and great friends. Fingers crossed for better weather next year!

Mrs H telling the hikers we are not mad - honest!

Collecting evidence of the madness!

After the sailing weekend we headed up to Coniston in the Lake District for our annual Easter holiday with our caravan.  We had a really active week with our great friends the Harrison's - with running or biking most days (both some days!).

I think I'm on my phone here looking for directions!

Beautiful views make all the climbing worthwhile!

Notable rides were a MTB ride up Walna Scar road and back down into Torver with Mrs H.  A ride which became apparent very quickly wasn't going to be the "quick hour ride" we had in mind!  It was awesome though with skiing down peat bogs and hike-a-biking it up rocky crags!  We were a good way up the Old Man at one point!  We felt very proud of our efforts afterwards, after negotiating sheer drops into disused quarries and Mrs H braving sheer slate drop offs (I wimped out!).

Into the unknown...

Loving it!

We also did a ride which I could have done on Ladybird (my roadbike) and wished I had brought her with me! A circumnavigation of the lake with Mr A - it was really good even in pouring rain and gusting winds!  Mr H made us look very slow completing the circuit in 49 minutes on his crossbike, we thought we had been quick doing the 23k in 1 hour 17 minutes!

I said in an earlier blog post that I was planning on running up the Old Man of Coniston again, which I duly did... I have to say I learned a few lessons though - don't go just before dark, don't rely on mobile phone battery and don't forget your fell shoes!  I ran with Skye the collie (my holiday running companion) and wore a Canicross belt, which enabled me to have both arms to run and scramble up rocky crags with.  

Selfie of the ascent up Goat's Water

I followed a similar route to last year, running up the same way as we biked up Walna Scar Road then turning right onto the path leading to Goat's Water.  I love this part of the route, gaining height and looking back at the lake getting smaller and smaller.  

Looking back at Coniston Water 

Looking back at Goat's Water

As we negotiated Goat's Water - a really amazing place, I was thinking how tough and unforgiving the mountains can be, even relatively close to the civilization of Coniston, it is still a very remote and lonely place to be if you were unprepared and/or lost.  I felt fine even though my thighs were burning a bit after all the steps to the summit of Goat's Water and confident I would find the quicker way to the trig at the top of the Old Man.  

Trail panorama

I cross checked my map and continued on the path I took the year before - determined to find the right hand turn off to the top.  Alas I couldn't find it again and ended up cutting the corner and heading back in the direction we had just come, but this time negotiating quite deep snow to boot!  I found this hard and slippery going in my trail shoes (I had left my Roclites in the boot of the truck which was at Grizedale with Mr A!) and the light was going as the sun was disappearing before my eyes.  I have to say I was getting cold and a bit worried that I still had the down bit to tackle yet and thoughts of mountain rescue were creeping into my mind!  

The Trig with the sun going down

Looking down on Low Water from the top

It was 18:55 when I reached the cairn.  Needless to say I didn't hang about at the top for long!  I really struggled down the first half of the decent, climbing down the sharp rocks with Skye eager to get home too and no grip in my shoes was bloody hard.  I didn't enjoy it.  When I saw the carpark at the lower section of Big Hill I was relieved and went to ring Mrs H to let her know I was OK - my phone battery died so I knew I had to push hard to get home.  We legged it to the carpark, passing a family who had cut it fine too, and then headed down the exceptionally steep category 2 road into Coniston.  I was really pleased with my pace back to the site, I really pushed it and the Canicross belt helped as Skye was eager too!

I was pleased to have tackled the route again, but like I said, lessons learned this time.  

My biggest news is that back in February I entered a competition using my blog post "Why not Tri a Duathlon".  The OMM (Original Mountain Marathon) is a technical clothing company who run events aimed at runners and bikers from elite to amateurs where wild camping and navigational skills feature.  The competition was to find ambassadors of the brand for the 2016 season who would post monthly blogs featuring training, race reports and product reviews.  Basically, the sort of thing I am already doing.  

I put a lot of thought and time into my entry but didn't hold my breath that I would get anywhere.  It was a long wait to the 31st March when the winners would be announced.   On the day before the announcement date I was contacted by OMM to say they had been overwhelmed with 1000 plus entries,  as I read the email my heart sank, until I came to the part when it said I had made the top 10 and they loved my blog!  I read on with heightened anticipation, thinking what the... anyway, in a nutshell I have been chosen as one of 4 other amateur ambassadors (I think it should be OMMbassadors!) and will receive kit, products to test and entry into any OMM event free of charge!  

In return, I will produce monthly blog posts to let the OMM community see what I am doing and I guess to represent the average runners out there.  The aim is to inspire others to get out into the outdoors and start enjoying our amazing landscapes.  You can read the article announcing the new ambassadors here. To say I am thrilled is an understatement so watch this space for OMM blogs (I will still use my Lady Fellrunner blog in the same way - just with monthly OMM specific blogs too).  

I have entered the OMM Bike Peak District event on the 23rd-24th April which I will do with Caz.  We are very excited!

I have been sent some new overshoes courtesy of the Bike Factory (apparently my baggy Aldi ones do not cut it ;-) ) from the Manchester based DexShell rep to review. So I will get to test these at the OMM event too.  

It really is all go at the moment as Womens Running UK Magazine have contacted me to do an article on PBs - I contacted them with my story when I first wrote my blog, and they now want to feature my latest PB at Woodbank parkrun on their "My PB Story" section.  So look out for me in the magazine next month!! 

Hilariously today, Ava, my niece (after I was telling her about my article and OMM stuff etc. said "Aunty - you're trending!" 

Events coming up this week - the Thomas Theyer fell race - an 11k fell run around Combs, Derbyshire on Sunday 10th April.  You can sponsor me at https://www.justgiving.com/theladyfellrunner - its for a fabulous cause and the race should be a great boost to the charity.  I'm really looking forward to it!

Well done if you've read all that!

Happy Running!!! :-)

Neighathlon - is that a thing?

The view from Taxal Edge

Well it's over a week since my last post so I thought an update was in order!

This week I have done quite well for mixing running and biking, with a 10k fell run on Tuesday, to test my new trail shoes, a short MTB Wednesday where I discovered my front brake wasn't working (oh the irony, one bikes brakes are too good, the others are knackered! - fortunately this time it didn't end in disaster as I realised very soon into my ride! Plus, my rear brakes are pretty much new, which helped) so I had to detour once again to The Bike Factory! Surely I'm their best customer by now!

Still a bit of snow on the tops

Thursday saw the "big ride" with Caz and Katie to build confidence on Ladybird (my road bike) which was eventful in a good way with cattle grids - yikes! - More braking problems (change the record Anna) and Friday was a proper multi-discipline day where I rode a horse, a bike and did a run - maybe a new event opportunity - neighathlon anyone?

This weekend, I managed a little tempo run after helping at Whaley Bridge junior parkrun, but I didn't feel up to much as I have a sore throat brewing again.

Here is the Amarok rocking my girls...

March has seen the arrival of a long -awaited VW Amarok, our new caravan tow car - we have been saving and researching and bought some new bike carriers as our old eBay ones were about fifteen quid each and have done thousands of miles so are totally knackered! 

We settled on the Thule 598 Proride, as they are really solid and have handy features such as matched locks for all 4 carriers.  We did learn something new too - Thule is pronounced Ta-Hoo-Ley - who knew?! Its like the Ikea advert all over again! 

Fab foot care range from Mavala

I have been really lucky to have been sent the Mavala foot care range, after I emailed asking about sports products, and shoe care.  I am really looking forward to trying the products - especially the tired leg gel, which I am hoping will ease my bruised leg (which is much better but still a bit lumpy), and the foot bath treatment.  Mavala is an established Swiss company who specialise in nailcare predominantly but have a great range of skincare for eyes, feet, face and hands.  

Not the best photo!

With flash!

Proviz - I have been living in my Reflect 360 outdoor jacket since it arrived in its beautifully wrapped packaging!  I love it. 


I have had loads of interest in it and think its a brilliant product.  I have done everything from the school run to a bike ride to the sailing club and it has performed really well!  

The fit is just right for me, it is fitted enough to be smart and look like a ladies jacket, but not so small that it is tight.  I went for a size 10 and find I can wear a vest top and thick jumper underneath it comfortably.  For running, I would wear a long sleeved base layer only underneath to stop overheating.  

The jacket isn't breathable but is very well vented with pockets and mesh lining.  It is exceptionally wind proof and waterproof with taped seams and zips and comfortable "zip garages" to stop them rubbing.  At night the jacket comes into its own, I think the white glow it takes on is actually a really cool look!  It is a great safety jacket for dog walking, going out to the pub or just about anything really!  

The run range from Proviz looks excellent too, with contoured panels and run-specific features.  I would recommend this jacket and the Proviz brand to anyone - the attention to detail is second to none in my opinion.  

Whey to go!

I mentioned in my last blog post that I have been sent the Diet whey from Natures Best - which I am yet to try (need to up the exertion levels first!) but I must mention another Aldi bargain which I have bought to go with it  - a pink shaker bottle complete with little metal shaker ball and mesh strainer top.  I think for £2.99 I will not hold my breath but I do love a bargain!

Very clean Rocites

I tested my new Inov-8 Roclite 280 (AW 15's) as I said above, by running the Whaley Waltz route in them - a varied terrain with a bit of everything, road, fell, trail and river (I didn't do that section funnily enough!).  I have been a fan of Inov-8 since getting some Mudclaws last Easter, and these don't disappoint either.  The upper seems much thinner in comparison to the Mudclaws which helps with the breathability and weight of the shoe - they are so light! but I'm not sure how long they will last, so time will tell.  As far as fit is concerned they are very roomy in the toe box, which caused a bit of a rub on my big toe, I will need a thick sock and vaseline in them until my feet get used to them.  I think they are much more cushioned on the harder surfaces but need to try an extended run along the canal or similar to really test them.  

Roclites and HH tights

I also bought the Inov-8 Base Elite top in black for the bargain price of £14.99 from sportshoes.com - I found the small is a size 8, so a bit snug for me but passable for an undergarment.  Both times I have worn it I have been really warm, the only downside being the cuffs are tight so I can't roll my sleeves up which is a bit annoying as I always roll my sleeves up in my Helly Hansen baselayer top.

My friend Caz (my running Oracle) supplies the Goyt Valley Striders Kit through her (and her husband Tony's) company- a&c workwear and she has been kind enough to give me a hoodie to wear - its gorgeous!  So soft and warm, I have had lots of non runners say they like it - another ploy to get people to start running - join the Striders and buy a hoodie! I am going to test out a new race vest for them and hopefully get some kit with my blog address on the back so anyone who sees me at races can see the race reviews from a midfield perspective!  Check out the a&c workwear facebook page for all your team embroidery needs!


Looking forward, this week will be all about doing whatever training I can, as we are going away for Easter so there's much to do and the children break up on Thursday so my week is thrown out of kilter.

Over the Easter weekend Team Aspinall will be competing in the Dee Sailing Club UKIDA GP1 Open meeting.  Mr A and I will be dusting off our drysuits and (with my current form - trying not to drown) battling it out on the Dee estuary to get a half decent result in the event.  I will report on our progress after our Easter holiday in the Lakes!

I'm planning on running up the Old Man of Coniston again, which I am looking forward to.

When we return home there will be a week left of school holidays so I am hoping to try a turbo trainer out.  I will update on progress with that on my return.

In the meantime, I hope everyone has a fabulously active Easter (to work off the eggs) and look forward to seeing what everyone has been up to!

Happy Easter and Happy Running!