"I was born in sixty-seven, the year of Sergeant Pepper, And Are You Experienced..." (© Porcupine Tree). I've decided to do an Iron Man race before I turn fifty. Not so much a rage against the dying of the light, as being slightly miffed at the brevity of the sunset. That, and I've noticed I'm holding jars at arm's length in order to read the labels.
So eight years ago, I set up this blog. On this very date. Just had a look at the first post I published, and it’s mercifully short. Indeed, I am sure many of you would prefer if I could embrace that brevity once more. Not going to happen 🙂 The eagle-eyed amongst you might also … More Happy Anniversary to me
“The true meaning of life, Wesley, is to plant trees under whose shade you do not expect to sit.”Nelson Henderson According to the internet – our modern-day oracle – the Henderson family left Ireland during the Great Famine (1845-52). One of the offspring, Wes, wrote a book about his life, and you can find a … More Meetings with remarkable people
The weather continues to taunt and tease. I don’t mind the teasing so much, but the taunting seems unnecessary. May is my favourite month. We gamely soldier on through the Spring, patiently waiting for the rains to cease and the winds to run out of steam. It seems like it will never end. And then, … More Ne’er cast a clout till May is out
They say you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take, which is also true of photographs, it turns out. I snuck in a quick 10k during the week, before work, and as soon as I reached the top of the hill, I could sense some regret about not bringing the phone. It had been … More Schrödinger’s photos
I followed up the Djouce summit last Saturday with a more traditional unironedman route on Sunday, heading out through the local park, and then around by the state labs via Tubber Lane. This road was closed to all traffic including pedestrians, while the new link road was being built, but I’m happy to see now … More A floral tribute
Today’s early run/hike was from Crone Woods car park to the summit of Djouce and back. It was certainly less ambitious than last week’s instalment of the ‘Wicklow Way Recce Sessions’ with Gary, but that’s because Gary had better things to be doing today, and I was on my tod. But that’s fine, because it’s … More Crone to Djouce
I had a less than gentle reminder of the vagaries of hill-running as regards just how long it can take. Or perhaps just how hard it can be to judge timings; either way, a useful lesson for the upcoming venture along the Wicklow Way. This was last weekend, when a number of family members met … More A scattering
Gary and I have just stepped off the road. It’s good to be away from the tar and traffic and back on the trails. We are retracing our steps, so we know there is a steep climb up out of the valley. We both stop, literally, in our tracks. Just up ahead, to our left, … More Misty Mountain Hop
We stop at the junction of the Dublin Way and the Wicklow Way. Jarlath points up towards a little cairn of rocks. He lets me know this is Fairy Castle, and beyond, Three Rock. Here might be an option for me to deviate from the Way this June. The narrow path follows a low stone … More Imagine, if you will, a game of two halves…
Most of you won’t have heard of IMRA. It stands for the Irish Mountain Running Association. You can find them online here. I joined up recently, and last week, I had my first race, and yesterday was my second. It’s a great organisation. Membership is ten quid a year (yes, ten quid*), and each race … More Welcome to IMRA
unironedman 