unironedman

So the snow is back. Not quite the Beast from the East. More like ‘Son of Beast’, and even then, a relatively benign offspring. Well, I say that from a Leixlip perspective where we got about two inches of soft, fluffy snow which is already starting to thaw.

Being a rock ‘ard Hardman and all that, I did get out into the snow earlier for a run, coz that is how we roll here at unironedman. It was nice to run in, bar the section along the canal where it was hard to judge where the tracks and ruts were, so there was a risk of landing the wrong way and turning one’s ankle.

Happy to report that overall the stats look healthier in terms of running and distance covered. In a small numerical coincidence, the total recorded distance for this week is 42.17k, which is as close as dammit to a full marathon. That’s made up in four runs, ten being the standard distance for me these days.

And The Great Barrow Run is definitely on. In case you are new to this lark, there is no such thing as The Great Barrow Run, per se, though I note (from a quick Google) that there is an ultra event in Suffolk in the UK called the Great Barrow Challenge. And there is something called the Stone Mad Ultra. That is indeed along the Barrow River in Ireland, and is 60k. The run I am planning is double that, though I do intend on taking two days. So, yes. I made up the name. And I made up the race. And no, it’s not a race. It’s a journey.

S is going to ride shotgun on the bike, and carry the essentials. She will be there to take some pics, throw me a sandwich and a drink, and if it all gets too much, gently roll my prone and inert body quietly into the river when no-one’s watching. On the plus side, I’ll still make it to the end. And beyond, quite likely…

Anyway, we’ve officially booked a hotel in Carlow town at the end of Day One, and a B&B in St. Mullins for Day Two. It all kicks off in Lowtown in Co. Kildare in May. Here’s hoping for some fine weather.

You’re going to run for HOW LONG?

Tamsyn and Dallan, with Holly

Holly dreaming of… food, probably…

The pics above will expand if you click on them. The nice and serendipitous thing about the one with the kids is that there is a pic in the background from when they were really young, with some of their cousins.

And so to wrap up, Ireland beat England in the Six Nations Rugby to claim a Grand Slam (which you achieve by beating the other five teams; in this case, England, Wales, Scotland, Italy and France). No mean achievement. We have only done that three times in our history. It’s a big deal. And of course, we had to beat England in the official home of English rugby – Twickenham – and on St. Patrick’s Day to boot. So it was a rather special day yesterday, and a lot of Irish people where rather pleased with themselves. I received the following pic quite a few times on my phone, needless to say…