1st run along the canal without my neighbour

I had a light lunch early at 12:00 and texted my neighbour to let him know that I was still on for a run at 3pm. He texted back to say that he had far too much on and would have to give the run a miss.
I got ready for 3pm as usual and drove to Sutton Cheney Wharf to park the car. There were not very many cars there and I thought well it must be down to the weather as it had been raining in the morning and was due to rain again later in the day. I took a windproof/showerproof jacket just in case it did rain.

I walked through the car park and past the café to a gate, where I set the Garmin Forerunner 610 and started off on a slow running pace. The path follows the canal for a short way then disappears in to Ambion wood, the path is not too bad and becomes quite wide while in the wood. After a half a mile I went through a gate across a narrow field and through another one which leads up to the Bosworth Battlefield Centre, which is where I turn left along a path.

The path heads towards Ambion wood again, passing the ‘Richard III well’. Running through the wood is nice and peaceful, all you can hear is the wind blowing through the trees. The path comes to an old disused railway track, I turned left and ran along it to an old railway bridge which crosses the Ashby de la Zouch canal.

I joined the canal and ran North bound watching where the pot holes where, twisting the ankle is the last thing you need! I got into a steady run at 6mph and settled in to a nice breathing pattern. Some parts of the canal footpath get very bumpy which messes up the running rhythm so you have to try and get back in it again.

After about a mile I passed a slowing barge with a couple of people aboard looking at another barge in the middle of the canal. As I ran past the barge I noticed that one end of the barge had come loose which is why it was in the middle of the canal. I thought shall I stop and pull the barge in and continue with the run, I then thought sod it I will leave it for the people in the barge approaching. Knowing me I will pull my back or twist an ankle and that will put me out for some time, I’m sure the people in the approaching barge have more time. I carried on running and didn’t look back to see if the people were shouting or not as I did feel a bit guilty.

The canal winds around through the Leicestershire countryside which is really scenic. It started to rain and I thought ‘oh marvellous, I’m not even at the point of turning around and I am going to get soaked’. Luckily there was a high hedge that I was running past which went the length of a field, the hedge was high enough for me to run close and not get wet. It was only a very short shower so I felt very lucky and relieved.

I reached a bridge which was just over 3 miles away from my starting point, I was fairly tired at this point. I turned back walking along the canal to try and recover a bit. I found it a bit strange not to have my neighbour with me as we have a little chat which makes the time go quicker.
The run back along the canal didn’t seem to take too long, I must have had a lot on my mind to pass the time away. I had to slow down in to a walk on a number of occasions to recover and before I knew it I had reached the disused railway bridge, so I thought should I carry on along the canal and if I do will that make the distance 10k. I decided to take the same route that I had come along knowing that distance would certainly make the 10k.

When I got back to the gate where I started off from I stopped the Garmin and looked at the distance, it was 6.6 miles so I was happy to have coved the 10k distance. I sat on one of the benches at the side of the café (Sutton Cheney Wharf) to recover, my leg muscles were aching.
I aim to do this route again soon.

Garmin Connect - Sutton Cheney Wharf, Ambion Wood, Canal, Bosworth

Sutton Cheney Wharf, Bosworth Battlefield, Shenton

This was another run with my neighbour, we parked just outside the gates of Sutton Cheney Wharf and you now have to pay to park in the car park. The day was quite hot so I decided to change my running gear to shorts and short sleeve t-shirt to try and keep the body temperature down.

We walked across the car park and past the Café building where there is a gate, this is where I set the Garmin and started a slow run while my neighbour decided to walk a bit more to warm up. I thought if I keep the run very slow then he will catch up being that he is fitter than I am.

The path ran alongside the canal and disappears in to Ambion wood for nearly half a mile, I kept up the slow pace and as I got to the other side of the wood I looked back to see him coming along. I carried on slowly towards Bosworth Battlefield Centre and then turn left along a track that goes back in to Ambion wood. After a 5 minutes run the track comes to an old disused railway line which I took a left to go down. I followed the railway track down to an old railway bridge where I took a short breather, my neighbour had now caught up at this point.

We ran Northbound up the canal at a steady pace, I got my breathing sorted out which seemed to keep my heart rate down to around 150 bpm. We eventually came to an aqueduct which is where we came off the canal footpath. There are some steps that lead down to a road, we turned left and headed towards Shenton village.

After a short run on the road there is a gate that we climbed over to continue along through a field full of sheep, this lead us to another gate which crossed a field with cows in. The cows seemed to stop what they were doing and started to looks at us running through their field, with some cows crossing in front of us, I’m sure they were trying to put us off.

We eventually got to the top of the field which was up hill to join a road which we turned left on. This road went over the canal and past a farm. Just past the farm there is a car park to Shenton Station which is part of the Bosworth Battlefield Railway, we went through a couple of gates that crossed the railway line and walked a short way to the side of the station building where there are another couple of gates.

The track goes alongside a field with sheep in and up a short hill which I managed to run. My neighbour had a short stop while I carried along the track to the next short hill, I managed to run up the hill but had to take a breather at the top. While I was waiting for my neighbour to catch up I was trying to take in long slow breaths to bring my heart rate down while enjoying a nice view across the Battlefield.

Once my neighbour got to the top he had a lay down on the grass, he was having a bit of an off day and was feeling very tired. He said that if I wanted to do another circuit around while he was recovering then he would wait.

Off I went through Ambion wood, along the disused railway track and along the canal. I managed to keep to a nice steady pace and keeping the heart rate to 150-160 bmp turned off and the aquaduct and along the road to the gate, across the couple of fields and back up the road to Shenton Station. I didn’t quite manage to run all the way up the short hill, I had to break into a walk just a short way to the top. I carried on running to the next short hill where I did manage to run up back to where my neighbour was waiting for me. I had to have a short break while catching my breath back.

After a short while we set off past Bosworth Battlefield Centre and in to Ambion wood, we only had a half a mile to go so I got in to a nice steady pace. It didn’t take very long to get through the wood and out the other side where the path follows the canal to Sutton Cheney Wharf, I stopped the Garmin at the gate that leads to the car park where we walked through and had a sit down on a bench for a well-deserved break.

 

Garmin Connect - Sutton Cheney Wharf, Bosworth Battlefield, Shenton

Sutton Cheney, Stapleton, Bosworth Battlefield, Sutton Cheney

Today my legs were aching from a mixture of my last run a couple of day ago and possibly a load of gardening I had done yesterday. I planned to go out of a run with my neighbour at 3pm and it was going to be a 4 mile route (the same route that was done on Monday).

As we came to Sutton Cheney Wharf we noticed that the car park looked full, so we decided to do another route. We parked outside the Hercules Pub in Sutton Cheney and got ourselves ready for the run.

We walked down the road and a short way along a footpath until we came to a stile, we hopped over the stile and I set the Garmin (Forerunner 610) and the run began. We ran through a few fields, some of which were ploughed, and then ran through a field with a horse roaming around which lead us to a children’s playing field with swings in. There was a 5-10 minute break in the playground before we backtracked along the route we had just come along and back to the car.

Once we arrived at the car I paused the Garmin and we had a water break while deciding where to go as we had done about 3.5 miles. A decision was made for the next part of the route which was a short 0.5 mile drive to a couple of fields away from Bosworth Battlefield Centre. I unpaused the Garmin and created a split and then decided that I would run the 0.5 mile to the next start point along a path.

Once I arrived to the start point where my neighbour had parked, I created another split on the Garmin and then had a small sip of water before we started the next part of our run.

We ran across a few fields to the Bosworth Battlefield Centre and then on towards an old unused railway track via Ambion wood. When we exited the woods we turned left and headed towards an old railway bridge that spans across a canal.

We took a short path from the bridge down to the canal where we turned left and continued up the canal. I seemed to feel okay at this point as I got into a nice slow run and controlling my breathing, until we reached a bridge with a road going over it. We took the road which leads to Shenton station which is a part of the Bosworth Battlefield Railway Line.

We crossed the line by going through a couple of gates and through another couple of gates at the side of the station building. The track went up a little hill and alongside a field that leads to another small hill. We had a small rest to get our breath back and a small drink of water while soaking up the fantastic view across Bosworth Battlefield.

The run started again and headed off into Ambion wood towards the disused railway line, once we got to the disused railway line we turned left and ran down towards to old railway bridge once again. When we arrived at the railway bridge we took to the canal but this time we turned right that leads to Sutton Cheney Wharf. I found I had to try and get into slow run and concentrate on the breathing again. I was very surprised that the run along the canal went by very quickly and that I managed to continue without stopping, I was really tired at this stage.

There is a bridge that crosses the canal to the Sutton Cheney Wharf car park which we just walked across to give us a little break. Once in the car park we carried on through the car park and along a path that runs alongside the canal and once again into Ambion wood. I really don’t know how I managed to carry on but I did, I suppose it was the thought that we were not far from where the run was going to come to an end. I found running on the side of the track on the pine needles were softer to run on and more comfortable, it wasn’t that long before we came out of Ambion wood through a couple of gates and a short distance to Bosworth Battlefield Centre where we turned down the side of the building to a gate where the run came to a stop. At this point I looked at the Garmin and notice the mileage was reading just over 8 miles. We walked across a couple of fields using this as a cool down towards the location where the car was parked.

This run is the furthest I have ever run and is a personal record for me, I really don’t know how I managed to cover the 8 miles plus. I feel great having achieved today’s run but I can’t help thinking that I will be suffering for it during the evening and the next day.

Garmin Connect - Sutton Cheney, Stapleton, Bosworth Battlefield, Sutton Cheney

Bosworth Battlefield, Canal and Bosworth

This was a route my neighbour knew, so it was a case of following the leader. We parked a couple of fields away from Bosworth Battlefield Centre and go ourselves ready. We walked across a couple of fields as a warm up and then I started the Garmin (Forerunner 610) for the run when we were alongside Bosworth Battlefield Centre.

We headed into Ambion wood along a track that headed towards a disused railway line. Once we arrived at the disused railway line we turned left and ran towards an old railway bridge. Running through the woods is a really nice and peaceful experience and I feel very fortunate to be able to do it.

Once we arrived at the old railway bridge we dropped down to the canal and turn left heading North bound along the canal, again this is really peaceful. I found it a bit difficult to get in to a steady run as well as watching out for tree roots, bumps and pot holes. We ran a fair way along the canal until we came off the canal.

We joined a road that went over the bridge and up a long hill heading towards Bosworth. I felt so tired by this stage and just walked up the hill. As soon as we got to top of the hill I started off running into Bosworth and through the square passed a monument. Just out of the square there is a narrow road leading south through a gate, this road seemed to go on forever as I had to keep stopping due to my heart rate not recovering quick enough and staying low. I was glad to get back to the car and have a sit down, even though it was quite an achievement for me.

For some strange reason when I uploaded the data from the Garmin Forerunner 610 to Garmin Connect the map part of it don’t work but the rest of the data is there.

Garmin Connect - Bosworth Battlefield, Canal and Bosworth

Another route at Sutton Cheney Wharf

It’s been a nice change going for a run with my neighbour, generally the pace has been slower and with more stops than I am used to but the distance has been further. I have found so far my legs are not so achy the next day.

The route used parts of the route I have used for the past 4 runs, so I was reasonably familiar with it. We started off with a little walk for a warm up and then once we got to the other side of a gate I set the Garmin to record the route. I started the run at the pace I normally do but this was too quick, I found it hard to keep to a slower pace to start with, but after 5 minutes I settled in to the run.

The run took us alongside the canal and into Ambion woods. After a while the path comes out of the woods and heads towards Bosworth Battlefield Centre. We turned left next to Bosworth Battlefield Centre and headed off along the track in to the woods. This track comes out on an old disused railway line which we turn left and followed down to an old railway bridge.

When we go to the railway bridge we could follow the path alongside the canal, I found this a little hard going as the path was a bit uneven and had pot holes to watch out for. We ran as far as the next bridge which is where we left the canal and joined a road. The road went over the bridge and past a farm (which smelled due to muck spreading), after a little while we entered a car park for the Battlefield Railway Station at Shenton.

We picked up the track which was just across the car park and over the railway line. This lead us through a couple of gates and headed towards Bosworth Battlefield. The path goes up a couple of small hills but enough to tire us both out as we stopped at the top of each hill to catch our breath back.

Once at the top of the 2^nd hill we decided to follow the path down the hill and turn right back in to Ambion Woods and headed off towards the old disused railway. Once we got to the old disused railway track we turned right this time which took us back up to the Battlefield Railway Station at Shenton again.

Once we reached the Battlefield Railway Station we once again headed along the track and up both of the small hills, taking a small break at the top of each hill. At the top of the 2^nd hill the views are just fantastic, it is so peaceful up there taking in the view which you can see for miles across the green fields.

After a short break we headed off along the track, past the Bosworth Battlefield Centre and headed off back in to Ambion Woods. We only had a half of a mile left and at this point I was glad in a way that was not going to take us too long. We settled in to a slow steady pace and ran through the woods and finally alongside the canal to Sutton Cheney Wharf where I stopped the Garmin at the gate we started the run at.

We walked from the gate to the edge of the woods and back again as a cool down, then finally sat down on a bench watching the world go by as we recovered.

I’m glad I did the run and enjoyed the route, but it really shows I have a long way to go until I am fit enough to be able to run the route without small breaks. We have agreed to take a days rest and do the same route the following day.

 

Garmin Connect - 4 Miles from Sutton Cheney Wharf

More running around the Sutton Cheney Wharf route

Since the last post, I have had a further 3 runs around the Sutton Cheney Wharf route. I have slightly modified the route to bring the mileage up from 2.4 miles to 2.5 miles, it is just a case of not cutting the corners which has made the difference.

I have found it fairly had going still, but been soldiering on with it. I have been keeping an average pace of 5-6mph throughout the run, but I have been finding the uneven surface on the track quite difficult to cope with.

I am still enjoying the route, looking at the scenery and running through the forest.

After a bit of reading on several running forums I have found the general consensus of running on a track is known to be more difficult than road running. I am going to keep at it for a bit longer and see if I improve as well as looking at the stats on Garmin Connect.


Garmin Connect - Sutton Cheney Wharf (Run 2)

Garmin Connect - Sutton Cheney Wharf (Run 3)

Garmin Connect - Sutton Cheney Wharf (Run 4)

A new route at Sutton Cheney Wharf

After a tough time running through the winter and lacking a lot of motivation, I have put on weight and not really improved running without stopping.

After speaking to my neighbour about one of the routes he takes I decided to wait until a nice dry day and give the new route a try.

I arrived at Sutton Cheney Wharf a bit apprehensive of the route and where I was going. Having a blister on the back on my left foot made me wonder if I was doing the right thing before it has healed up. I just thought ‘sod it, I am here now’.

I walked from the car park to the start of the trail that follows alongside the canal and set the Garmin. After a short time the path went in to Ambion Woods, the path is a wide stony path leading off into the distance. After a while of running through the woods I came to a gate which leads to the Bosworth Battlefield Centre, I took an immediate left which runs along the edge of the woods.

The path once again disappears in to the woods and finally comes out on a path that runs alongside the old disused Battlefield Railway line, this is a slight incline but nothing too much to worry about. Eventually after this long path then you veer right (next to where the Battlefield Railway line track starts, there is also a railway station there) and through a couple of gates.

There is a hill that does not last that long, but I found myself going up this very slowly and once at the top I had to walk to get my breath back. I started to run again and came to another hill which again just took it out of me, so I had to walk once at the top.

Right in front of you there is a garden feature which is a sundial with a big sword and a king’s crown on the end. All around the sundial there are roses, which makes the whole feature look really nice. The sundial was just a quick look as I ran past and started the descent towards the Bosworth Battlefield Centre.

Just in front of the Bosworth Battlefield Centre you turn right and head towards Ambion Woods (there are a couple of gates to go through before you enter Ambion Woods). I thought to myself that this is now the home straight back towards the car park. The path felt like it was going on forever at this point but I kept going on without stopping.

I finally came out of the woods and followed the path alongside the canal which is only a short distance to Sutton Cheney Wharf car park which is where I stopped the Garmin. I felt absolutely knackered at this point but also felt that I have done better on this route than my normal route around the block.

Note - If you decide to do the route then be aware that there are dog walkers around with their dogs off the lead. All the dogs I ran past were absolutely fine and well behaved.

Garmin Connect - Sutton Cheney Wharf (Run 1)