Monday, June 22, 2009

One final blog...

The Silver Surfer rides for one last time...

For some strange reason Ed wanted a final final blog from the Silver Surfer. For those of you who had the misfortune to meet me in person on the run I probably represent your worse nightmare i.e. the Dr from hell! When I got my current job in Grimsby a certain Dr Harold Shipman had applied for the same post, and according to one of my work colleagues he reckons they would have been better with Harold.

I think I’m over the worst recovery wise now, though oddly I’ve just lost a toe nail at this late stage. I did make my swimming session the Tuesday after the run finished, this despite arriving home at 3am on Monday. I had hoped for a greeting like Pegasus Bridge but they were all asleep and the Labrador barely stirred. Fat lot of good she would be as a guard dog! Still very full of it so did my evening surgery on Monday in the t-shirt. Barely a whimper from the patients, however, a few have started asking after the newspaper articles.

The swimming session was brilliant, the masters group clapped as I walked pool side. That was the high point as I was still in “la-la” land and did massive 0 out of 10 belly flop as my first dive, then functioned as a mobile chicane in my lane for the next hour. I tried to keep with the IM sets but the “butterfly swims” finally screwed me. I hauled myself out and then thought a good rest for a few days was sensible. I did my first duathlon last night and was fairly respectable, I did have a slight help on the tougher second run as I followed Sarah’s buttocks closely for the last 2 miles. From a purely medical point of view they fitted the Lycra in all the right places and wiggled nicely.

Finally I have to thank everyone involved for a fabulous fun time and all the memories, far too many to fill a short article with, and as I wondered in my last blog it does all now fit into place and I understand why 65 miles can be so much fun. I have also moved into the 21st century and added my selected photographs to the Flickr site. I do however have 2 final questions:

1) What exact distance is measured by a Project 65 mile? It obviously isn’t a mile if you get my drift!!!
2) Were the Gendarmes called out on Saturday night especially around 3am when someone tried to get into the tent via a non-existent door?

And if anyone ever ventures to the wilds of Great Grimsby and North East Lincolnshire feel free to look me up.

Best wishes to you all!!

The Silver Surfer - aka Doc Iain Chalmers.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Project 65 Photos

All -

It has taken a while, for which I apologise, but I currently hold over 700 shots. Some are good, some not so good, but I've put the best 50 photos up on a Flickr group which can be found by clicking here.

Please feel free to join the group and upload your own photos, but please apply a modicum of quality control! If you can name anyone, then that would be fantastic!

I'm also going to put these 50 up on the Facebook website. I know that the new 'Project 65 community' will spread the word so please let all your co-runners know about where they can find the shots.

I'm going to work through the other 650 in slow time and get them up somewhere so if you subscribe to the RSS feed on the Flickr group you won't miss any!

The gallery on the website is being overhauled currently so we have avoided that for the time being. In due course, the VERY best of the Project 65 shots will go up there, so if you catch the selectors eye then we will publish them there. The Flickr group will be become the public library.

In the meantime, keep the word going, and once again, VERY MANY congratualtions for some supreme efforts.

Yours, as ever,

Ed Lloyd Owen.

Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Tell Everyone...!!

This is the last blog I'll post before we start... I'll be keeping the world update on Twitter hereafter but will try to get something up tomorrow night.

In the meantime, we coming to close of play of the night before and I'm pleased to tell you all that the media are crawling all over Project 65 and what we are doing. We will probably be relegated to a footnote when put up against the like of the Prince of Wales, Obama, and Sarkozy but that is still better than nothing!

What I'd like to ask you all finally at this late stage is to ring every media outlet, every radio station and newspaper that you can think of and just ask them if they are coming to Tarrant Rushton. If they say no, ask them if they will get people out onto the streets to come and cheer their support for the hardy souls that are taking on the challenge. If they say yes, point them in my direction!!!

Just make two phone calls (more if you want) and hopefully we'll make the difference.

Well done and enjoy the party!!

Ed LO
07790021367
elloydowen@mac.com

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

The last one!

Jonathon Ross signs off:

I did my last run on Sunday evening. A mere 4 miles through the woods. It was a bit slow mainly due to the weather and the fact that I had spent 2 days solid working in the garden. Made a visit to our local Up & Running shop to buy all the necessary gels, bars etc. Everything is now in place; it’s just got to be packed. I must remember to get some Euros!

Sponsorship has been excellent. I have managed to pass the £1000 mark. My British Legion is having a D-Day dance on Saturday night and all proceeds will go towards Project 65. So that will boost the kitty somewhat. So many people have been very generous. I have felt very humbled at the interest, encouragement and generosity given.

One last note on teenagers. My youngest son, Jake (18) has seen me come in and go out of the house in my running kit a hundred times in the last 6 months. He’s heard me discuss the run and what it’s for. He’s heard me moaning about the pain in my knees. He’s heard me talk about the distances involved. Then at the weekend I said ‘Its only a couple of days to the run and I’m getting a bit nervous’ to which he replied ‘What run is that then, Dad?!’

Look forward to seeing you all on the day. I know there is a lot of local interest here in Dorset for the event. Hopefully we should get quite a few people out cheering us on.

Stay fit.

It’s D Day -4!

Rob Smart:

I've been trying to make the most of my 'taper time' and have just attended my second sports ‘massage’. I had my first one last Thursday in an attempt to loosen up my thighs which have been quite tight. I’m told there are women who have shown greater dignity during childbirth than I managed in front of the masseuse. I disagreed as I thought I stifled most of the screams myself, but in any case my legs do feel a lot easier.

One unexpected side effect of visits to the sports physio has been the Latin that I've picked up over the last few months. Going from zero knowledge, I now know my gluteas medius from my plantar fascitis, and my rectus abdominus from my pubic symphysis. I wish I didn't...

I've definitely found the fund raising the biggest challenge of all, and as part of my latest push for money I'm about to hold another cake sale at work. Today it's Mars Bar cakes with a secret ingredient (apricot jam - so not that secret anymore? -Ed). Tomorrow I'm bringing back the Project 65 Gingerbread Men which have proved quite popular (pictures attached).

As part of the Latin I seem to have picked up I worked out that Project 65 in Roman numerals is PLXV. I thought I’d drop that bit in to explain why in the pictures the Gingerbread men have the letters iced onto them! I’m terrible at icing and previous attempts to write out ‘Project 65’ defeated me. Perhaps professional icing competitions will be my challenge after ‘PLXV’. I hope not though – running’s much more straightforward!

Good luck again, everyone. See you all on the 4th!

Best wishes,

Rob

The route...

Matt Barker's final blog:

Just checkin' in.

Visited Tarrant Rushton t'other day. What an amazingly atmospheric place! Then dragged the family on a hot drive along the route (pretty much) to the New Forest Hotel. Nice country lanes and changes in landscape. No major hills - shame!

Hot and grumpy family but happier now I have my bearings.

Looking forward to meeting everyone.

Good luck.

Ham and Bloody Jam!

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Project 65 on Twitter

Moving with the times as we do, Project 65 now has Twitter account and will be tweeting to its heart's content!

Please go and have a look at the account page and follow us for all the latest coverage, news, updates, and status reports during the run itself... http://twitter.com/Project65

This will be a 36 hour Twitter-fest and you can be part of it...

Please re-tweet everything that we put up!

Thank you in advance for you indulgence and more importantly, your CASH!!!