So one of my character “traits” is that I cannot resist a bargain. I am an Ebay addict and consequently cannot resist buying things that “I need” on a regular basis from there. The other day I saw a pair of Inov8 Roclite 295’s on there, there was 20 mins left on them, they were brand new never worn and I thought I would bid on them. I was lucky enough to get them for £35 including p&p which for a pair of trail running shoes worth £85 is a good deal in my opinion.
I wore them last Friday on my usual Friday night trail run with my colleague Spencer and found them to be really nice to run in. Compared to the Roclite 315’s they were lighter, better fitting and seemed even grippier. We set a fair pace, covering 6 miles on undulating paths and tracks ranging from little ups and downs to steep gradient hills. I recommend getting a pair of these trainers as I found in road shoes running downhill on the tracks to be a risky affair with the likelihood of slipping or turning your ankle quite high. Whilst wearing the 295’s I had the confidence to run freely down the tracks knowing that my feet would find grip and that they would support me.
I have noticed that trail running as a whole has really affected my running in a positive way, I am stronger, able to accelerate quicker up hills and have built up more stamina. I ran 10km’s on the flat last Wednesday and felt considerably faster. I heartily recommend trail running for all the above reasons as well as the fact that it is fun..
Round the Rock training is going well, I have managed to recce alot of the route so far, I am out on Weds night to cover another 8 miles of it. The whole course is split into 13 miles of road section to start, 25 miles of cliffpaths and some more flat to finish off.. It is going to be a challenge, and whilst I am looking forward to pushing my limits once more, I wonder if I have done sufficient training to really give this a good go and to complete it within the 12 hour cutoff? I guess the next few weeks are critical and as long as I can get some good long run/walks in I will be fine..
Ebay Bargains
Trail Monkey Running Jersey