10/07/2012 - Preparing for "The Big One"

Following the elation of completing the Sandstone Trail and getting a small taste of just what we've taken on with Trailwalker we thought we would update on our preparation for "The Big One".

After managing to stay relatively injury free through training, we've managed to pick up a few niggles. We put this now down to now being such finely tuned athletes after all this training. After suffering pain in the hip that wouldn't go away after the Sandstone Trail, Mark went to see a Physio who diagnosed an issue with a tendon relating to the 'Glute Max' (basically a muscle in the left side of his backside). Stretches and strengthening exercises have been prescribed three times a day as well as physio sessions to try and ease the problem. At the suggestion of walking 100km, the Physio shrugged, shook his head and told him "We'll tape you up but be under no illusion - it's going to hurt". Great - painkillers it is then.

Lee on the other hand has gone downhill since completing the 55km walk and his recurring knee issue has come back on top of which he seems to be getting some sort of cold/flu/bubonic plague so will be readily identifiable by the sign "Unclean" hanging round his neck and his little bell so all can avoid him on the trail - it is only 100m we can be apart isn't it?

Polly is still recovering from blisters and ankle issues and has been practising with zinc-oxide tape with success (though some of the early attempts were somewhat amusing). Only Martin, (the oldest member of the quartet) is injury free, either that or he's just not moaning about the injuries he does have like the rest of us.

We arranged a meet up at The Pheasant the following Sunday after the last walk with full Support Team to have a 'post-mortem' on what worked well, what didn't and what we needed. We've decided to run with three support members, one vehicle for support and one in reserve with stock to be parked/abandoned along the route. This was mainly because the Support Crew don't want to miss any of the action and they feel they can cat nap if they need to when they get tired. We'll probably find out how good this strategy is when we arrive at Checkpoint 7 to find they're all asleep in a lay-by somewhere.

That should do us for Checkpoint 1 then.....

In terms of team actions, Kate was tasked with supplies having collated the team's wish list of goodies and went shopping (something which she has a particular talent for) and came home with an impressive haul of Lucozade, peanuts, Mars, Snickers, Dairy Milk, Curly-Wurlys, tea, coffee, Soreen, soup, plastic cups/plates, Champagne and a bucket - most of which is just for Martin. Simon as Support Team leader has been digesting the Trailwalker info and planning the logistics as well as organising the team T-Shirts (red of course). Mark has programmed each stage into the trusty Garmin that has seen us through all our training walks so far and worked out the team timings for each stage so the Support Team have some sort of idea where they need to be and when.

Sorry, really should've got the brakes checked....

The final bits of kit have been purchased and assembled including a Mobile Field Command Centre (gazebo) to allow the Support Team some dry space at the back of the car and the walkers to shelter during breaks at each Checkpoint. A trial packing of the car has been undertaken to ensure we can get the three support crew members, team clothes boxes, food boxes, gazebo, four folding chairs, folding table, cool box, water containers and all the other bits and pieces in.

When I said "Less than 100m apart....."

In between all of this shopping, tapering, organising, we did manage to take a break and enjoy a bit of rest and relaxation at the British Grand Prix on Sunday. 

Though we did mis-read the itinerary and thought we were down to do some sort of display, but apparently there's some air display team called the Red Arrows - what a coincidence! They weren't bad either.

OK...new game - Spot The Red Harrow

So all that remains really is the weather, which isn't looking too good. The rain just doesn't seem to want to stop at the moment. Just about every Trailwalker team must be logging into the Met Office but as it stands, it looks like Friday will be very wet, Saturday will be drizzle and showers all day into the evening before clearing up overnight and into Sunday morning. With 800 walkers off before we hit the trail, it's likely sections of the trail are going to get muddy and churned up before we even get there. Not what we all hoped for but at least we've trained in these conditions so know what to expect. Hopefully we'll see a welcoming sunrise as we head towards Brighton on Sunday morning.

On a more positive note, we've had a string of donations of late and as of today, we've gone through the £4,000 milestone with a total that now sits at £4,207.14. We had hoped to get past the £4,000 level before the event and this has given us a massive morale boost as we never imagined we'd raise this much!

We would like to thank, David Hall-Matthews, Hannah Jones, Pearl Engineering Services, Polly's Dad, Mette, Shelly Margolan, Margaret Yorke, Peter and Melanie Yorke, Tracey Statham, Mark Smith, Helene, Lucy Hopkins, Stuart McAnulla, Audrey, Eleanor Walker, Tim Noden, Audrey, Derek Edyvane, Lucy Webber, Jonathan Dean, Julia Harper, MGL Demolition, Andreas, pukeko, Hetta, Gordon Crawford, Andy Porter, Kevin Theobold, Chris Haslam (again!), Fellow Trailwalker Team Jon Paul Tom and Olly, Paul C, Martin's Mum and Dad, Jayne, D. Morgan PLC and our Anonymous sponsors for getting us through this major milestone - we can't thank you enough!

For anyone wishing to follow our progress on the day, we are off at 8am on Saturday morning and Oxfam have a live blog running and you can follow our progress as we pass through the Checkpoints. Alternatively, we will have our Satellite tracker with us which you can see on this web link and it should update every 10-20minutes as we walk along the trail. Please also feel free to follow us on Twitter and tweet us some encouragement which our Support Team will relay to us (if we can't pick it up directly).

Bring on Brighton!

09/06/2012 - Training With The Gurkhas!

After the disappointment of the cancellation of our original planned Gurkha training, the day finally arrived for the rescheduled event. The email from Oxfam indicated the itinerary as Command Tasks - tough team bonding exercises, Training and Preparation - tips and advice, Army Exercise Simulation - walking with kit, Army Medic Advice - dealing with blisters/injuries/heat stroke, History of the QGS and Circuits and Aerobics - the bit I was least looking forward to! Oddly though there were only four teams who had taken up the offer, us, The Vale Venturers, The Bun Lovin Criminals and The Mental Orientals.

Teammate Polly had decided not to run a mountain marathon on Scotland so arriving with Lee collected Mark on the way to meet Martin at Junction 15 of the M6 at 8:30am for the journey to Bramcote Barracks. It transpired that Martin's flight from Amsterdam had been delayed and only arrived at 1am that morning so he was already somewhat jaded.

The journey quickly passed with everyone having a catch up given that Mark hadn't seen his teammates for over two weeks and we arrived at the end of the drive to the Barracks being greeted by the Trailwalker flags and were directed where to park by a solitary Gurkha soldier.

Welcome to the raw recruits

A short walk around the perimeter fence and we found the field tents from where today's operations were to be commanded and banners announcing the 250 Queens Gurkha Signals as we grabbed coffee and soon bumped into the Bun Loving Criminals - a great group of ladies if you get a chance to meet them. We were rounded up into the main tent and welcomed by the Major and provided with the running order for the day which meant the physical activity would be done in the morning in order to ensure our lunch stayed down which was greeted with much nervous laughter.

Everything but the kitchen sink

The first presentation was on Medical Advice, particularly dealing with blisters and prevention. A slide was put up which in their admission was the tamest one they could find of the entire back of the heel of the foot with an exploded blister and red raw skin beneath. It was explained that ideally Compeed should be used on known hotspots before blistering not as treatment afterward. Zinc Oxide tape was also highly recommended though an example of its misuse was provided during a joint operation with the RAF. Apparently after a march, an RAF airman had rubbed up a large blister and then decided to apply zinc oxide tape to ensure he could continue the following day which he did. However, due to the sticky nature of the tape, he managed to remove the tape along with said blister and required hospitalisation for 3 weeks thereafter! We were advised on carbing up the day before, during and after and also drinking plenty of water the day before, during and after. It was interesting to note that caffeine tablets and caffeine based energy drinks were not recommended to be taken because of their diuretic effects.

Bergens full of house bricks maybe?

The room was divided into two groups and we were sent to the far corner of the field with three members of the Vale Venturers for kit familiarisation and 'Tab'-ing (which we found out was walking with kit at no slower than 15 minute mile pace). Arriving in the corner of the field we found two Gurkha soldiers, an array of kit laid out on the ground and a bunch of SA80 rifles. The kit on display included everything they would take and carry on a  two-day training operation in a 'Bergen' - the backpacks they carry. The kit included their sleeping bag, mattress, spare T-shirts, spare boots, shaving kit (they still have to shave daily in the field), boot polish, gore-tex waterproofs, ration packs, their waist webbing which includes water canisters and spare magazines with about 180 rounds of ammunition. All this weighed in at about 15kg. Noting a pile of fully packed Bergens we were quickly offered the opportunity to try them on and handed the optional SA80 rifle adding another 5kg to be carried. On top of this little lot, they would also wear body armour and depending on the plates could easily add another 8-9kg to their load (and I thought my 6kg 30litre daypack was hefty for a days yomp)

Gurkha recruits Mark, Lee and Martin

Once fully loaded we were off in two-abreast formation for a 'Tab' although the Gurkha soldier indicated it was more of a 'walk' and too slow for a 'Tab'. Marching us off around the perimeter of the base we soon got an appreciation of what these guys go through on long march. The straps soon started to be felt in the shoulders and we tried to work out how you could easily fire your rifle if you came under attack, something we found difficult with a pack on. Back at the start point we were relieved of our rifles and Bergens and then taken through a range of stretching exercises, each working different muscle areas as we went through the routine. This was really useful as we discovered some great stretches for the calf - an area I've had particular problems with.

The Circuit of Death

Our stretches done, it was time to swap with the other group and head for the Circuits and Aerobics area or 'The Circuit of Death' as it should be renamed. Our PT instructor and two eager Gurkha assistants took us round the circuit to demonstrate the exercises to be done at each station bearing names like Supermans, Thrusts, Bungees, Plank, Weighted Sit-Up, Sprints, Medicine Ball, Alternative Medicine Ball, Press-Ups, Squat Thrust, Squats, Lunges - names filling me with dread and designed to work different areas of the body or in my case inflict pain.

After the demonstration, we were off for the warm-up, a gentle walk around the circuit - so far so good I thought. This soon progressed to jogging and the need to touch the ground with various parts of the body as instructed along with direction changes on the instruction of the Gurkha PT instructor. By the end of the warm up I was already feeling like I'd had a good workout but the real pain was yet to come. We would have an initial 10 seconds at each station to familiarise ourselves with the activity before being told to move to the next exercise. After completing the next exercise this was increased to 40 seconds at each, then 15 seconds then 5 seconds - each one requiring we move to the next one as rapidly as possible. Towards the end I was finding it was taking at least 5 seconds to get off the ground! With the torture session over it was time for more stretching and a demonstration of the use of a foam roller.

Gurkha curry - you'll want more!

Leaving the Circuit Area we were off to the Mess Tent as the Gurkha Chefs removed the covers from the most amazing display and we were greeted by the welcoming smell of curry. Naturally we had to try everything on offer and we agreed it was as good if not better than anything we had tasted in a restaurant. As we were joined by the hungry Gurkha soldiers we got the chance to chat with them as most had done Trailwalker in the past and they explained that for them to have the fastest time gave them the bragging rights over other areas of the military so they are pretty keen on who gets selected to do it each year. Fortunately there was plenty of curry leftover so after the mornings activity we justified second helpings but it still left us wanting a doggy-bag.

After lunch it was back into the tent for a presentation on the history of the QGS, their formation and areas of operation. It was interesting to learn about the selection process for the Gukhas that there are 30 applicants for every position such is the demand in Nepal to become a Gurkha soldier in the British Army and they would then normally serve 22 years though sadly with military cuts, a number of them will have their careers cut short.

Not sure I'd want to spend the night in it

Following the presentation on Training and Preparation, we were off for the final task of the day which was the Command Task. Separated into our two groups as before, we were presented with two taped off squares an array of tent poles, spikes and tent canvas all laid out on the ground. The rules were that we would have to erect the array of tent paraphernalia into a 9' x 9' tent but two people would remain outside the square providing instruction and 6 members inside the square who were not permitted to talk. Sounded straightforward enough and our Red Team were quickly in the lead with the frame up only to find that one of the horizontals was shorter than the rest. In error, a shorter pole had been matched with a longer pole requiring the frame to be dismantled to find the problem. 

A quick re-erection had the frame back up and us still ahead of the Blue Team and ready for the canvas. At this point a member of the team (who shall remain nameless) gestured that the canvas was upside down, so quickly flipping it over it was soon over the frame only for it to be realised it was now inside-out requiring it to be removed and flipped over again costing us time and allowing the Blue team to marginally snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.

This simple exercise was explained to us as an example of working as a team to achieve a goal. For Trailwalker we're going to spend a long time in each others company, for a chunk of the distance we will get by on conversation and banter but this will dry up, we will get irritated by annoying habits of our team mates, we will have low points and will need our other team members to pick us up to get us through it. It is as much a mental as a physical challenge.

With time left for some group photographs at the end, we said our thanks and goodbyes to our amazing Gurkha hosts and if you are reading this with a view to doing Trailwalker in the future we would strongly recommend you do this if you get offered the opportunity - it's inspirational and motivational (and the aches and pains will soon be forgotten)

Thank you 250 Gurkha Signals for a great day

05/05/2012 - Trailwalker Prep Session and Training on The South Downs - Pt1

This Saturday was the Oxfam Trailwalker Preparation Session at Queen Elizabeth Country Park. We had decided to book the 9.30am session to allow us time to get training for the first time on the South Downs Way afterward.

Martin had already decided it was too far to drive down and decided he'd rather stay and watch the footie. Lee knowing his issues with timekeeping had driven down the night before with Polly and Simon had stayed overnight in Banbury. Mark decided to drive the 200miles on the morning and arrived bright and early at the Visitor Centre at 8.30am and was shortly joined by Simon. No sign of Red Leader and Polly but theres was still plenty of time for him to make an entrance, though we weren't expecting it to be at 10:15am due to breakfast being served late and a 'navigational time issue'. Lets hope things are smoother the next time we come here!

The running order was Tom from Oxfam, followed by Gurkha Gopal and then Tony, Mark and Jo from the Brixham Badgers.

Tom is doing Trailwaker with a team himself and has been training on the course. He ran through training schedules, team roles and the support team role and then it was over to Gurkha Gopal .

There he was stood in combat gear, a little guy with a great smile and sense of humour but obviously as hard as nails. He explained that he'd done Trailwalker four times, three times in the UK and once in Australia. His fastest time was just over 11 hours and his slowest around 14hours though this year he doesn't have a team - yet.

He went on to explain how the Gurkha's approach this 'run' (a term he continued to use much to our amusement). He explained that they spend no more than 2 minutes at a checkpoint enough to charge themselves with fuel and change socks though he confessed he wears the same pair throughout often wearing a hole through them! This F1 style of pitstop was made more interesting when he added that their Support Team have to point their vehicle in the direction of the exit to ensure they make it to the next checkpoint before them! By all accounts they don't drink a great deal as he indicated the team go through about 30litres of water between them. For salt replacement, they use sliced apple sprinkled with salt.

He ran through the timings of the starts and the need to register on the Friday evening and that the Gurkha Cultural Event is a must attend to get into the spirit of Trailwalker. He did also say that while camping is available at the start this may not result in a decent nights sleep which is why the Gurkhas stay away. Interesting to note was that camping is available at Brighton Race Course from Saturday evening so the Support Team can set themselves a base.
 
Water is available at checkpoints to top up bottles and camelbaks though this may mean queueing so perhaps sticking with Plan A and carrying our own water is best advised. Sometimes food or chocolate bar treats are available at intermediate checkpoints along with hot/cold drinks and at checkpoint 7 there is a hot meal though he cautioned that a lot of people drop out here. This he put down to a combination of it being night, tiredness and then taking on board a meal so perhaps caution advised not to eat too much or linger too long. The Gurkhas will be there to applaud us in at each checkpoint and motivate us with the sound of the pipes at the finish line.

Next up were Tony, Mark and Jo of the Brixham Badgers. Like us they had lost a teammate in training and had to replace him and they stressed the importance of training on hills to prepare for Trailwalker. Their training adopted the '10% Rule' gradually increasing the distance each week in the run up to the event. Their plan was to build in time in the second half of the walk and gain encouragement from beating their plan which included blitzing the hill in the final stages.

The support team were very well organised. Each walker had their own box of clothing and gear. At each checkpoint, the walkers were greeted by the support team and lead to the vehicle where 4 chairs were arranged around a square blanket with their stuff infront. Pit stops were kept to a minimum 20-25mins with the exception of one afforded half way of nearly an hour because the team were well ahead of schedule. The Support Team used a flag mounted above the vehicle so it could easily be found at each checkpoint and this was handed to the team at the last checkpoint so the support team could see them coming and cheer them in at Brighton.

It was also interesting to note that Support Team members can walk down the trail to meet the walkers, take instructions and run back to the Support Team. They can also walk with the team up the trail from the checkpoint as a boost before turning round and coming back.

Last year they explained it rained for the first 10 hours and suggested that 'waterproof' is a relative term. Beyond the halfway stage two of their teammates started to suffer with knee and foot problems including monumental blisters and continued the rest of Trailwalker in pain which apparently was only eased with the use of walking poles. On the same subject, they recommended anticipating pain management and alternate between nurofen and paracetamol over the duration of the walk. Despite the adversity of injuries and bad weather, they managed to complete the walk in 27hours 53minutes raising £2,770.50 for Oxfam and The Gurkha Welfare Trust. To read their blog in full you can find it here.

The Prep Session ended and we agreed it had been a useful experience especially to listen to those who had been there and done it. One thing that doesn't really come out in blogs is the mental and emotional side of doing this as everyone expects physical pain. The Brixham Badgers managed to reduce a few members of the audience to tears as they described their highs and lows - we need to prepare for that. Thanks to Mark, Tony and Jo for putting it together and getting up at 5am to be there.

We headed for the cars for the next phase of the day - training on the Trailwalker Route at last.