The start of spring?

I ended March with a very wet Park Run. I almost didn't go but was meant to be collecting a digital slide converter and felt bad about not turning up having arranged to borrow it.  We parked nearby and sheltered in the car and then the barn. No sign of the friends but nevermind. With about 10 minutes to go I felt we should brave the elements and get acclimatised. We bumped into several friends and stood on the start line in the rain. It is always worst waiting. Once I am running I don't seem to notice the rain. I tried to start conservatively but got pulled along as usual. It meant walking a couple of short steep sections and Andy soon pulled ahead. Even the descents seemed to be hurting my quads today  although I enjoyed the few bits of mud more than some. A young boy almost went wrong and as I corrected him we ran together. It urged me on and suddenly I realised I could get a race day PB. I knocked almost a minute off my previous official time with 25.26  OK, so this may not seem fast but Cuerden does have the fame of hilliest in NW and I have done it slightly faster on my own using my garmin. I then drove to get the slide converter and spent the rest of the weekend addicted to viewing old slides. What memories.
Monday was indoor climbing again and I don't know what I did but somehow I damaged the muscles/cartiledge in my ribs below my left arm pit. Strangely it is fine most of the time but is sore when I lie down, cough or breath deeply running. I just hope it settles down before the Calderdale Hike and Fellsman. It was not bad enough to stop me joining Bob on a final recee over in Yorkshire. We drove across the M62 in rain that got steadily worse. By the time we parked up Rishworth Moor it was grim so we sat reading for a while. Eventually the rain abated and we donned full waterproofs before heading up onto the Pennine Way. I knew that for me running over Blackstone Edge would be slow through all the rocks and peat. I found a trod and route that dropped me to the drain to the north. It was much better running and takes you directly to the White House. I measured it with my garmin and then ran the top route on the way back. The drain is longer but only by about 600m and for me I think it will be worth it. Running backwards and forewards I managed to clock up about 8 miles which wasn't too bad for an evening jaunt.

The next morning dawned brighter and drier. We moved the van and tested out ideas for the section from Sladen Fold across to Limers Gate. The wind turbines are growing and the track is getting firmer.

 If it is dry it might even be the way to run. After the Stepping Stones, which are actually a bridge, we tested several routes before deciding on the optimum line.

 It didn't take that long and the sun came out so we slowed down and headed down into Todmorden. Surprise surprise we hit the main road exactly opposite the famous Fish and Chip shop.

 It would have been rude to ignore this so we sat in their garden with a small pack of chips each. I should hate to see the large portion!

 A gentle jog along the canal tow path took us back to the van. Hopefully we now both knw the route and Bob is prepared for his second ultra race in the Runfurther series.