Event 10 - Maverick Inov-8 West Sussex 15km Jan 26th 2019

Fast forward a month to January..... Xmas hadn't been the best as I came down with a throat infection on Xmas day after running around after Amelie with the same illness in the run up to Xmas. I was house bound for a week but was determined to start January positively and embark on my Red January challenge  - to exercise every day of the month to promote good mental health.

Red January went very well but I had cough for a month that quite frankly just irritated me. Luckily I didn't feel ill with it but on long runs the coughing was very annoying! By the end of January Seb and I were feeling super fit and very ready to take on the Maverick Challenge. We went for the middle distance of 15km. A trail run around the beautiful area of Amberley.

I must apologise at this point that I didn't realise until today that this event was even part of my challenge. Not all big events that I have done, are! In addition to this challenge, I've also done Britri Run the Snails (14km), Britri Stamina VI (12.1km), Southdown Orienteers - Coates Common (9.4km), a mad 20km treadmill run in Sofia as there was too much snow on the ground to get outside, numerous Downs training runs of between 12-14km and much more! Its important to keep the fitness up as I have some very daunting events coming up. So I thought Maverick was one of the ones not on the list so I didn't take any photos or videos. Post event, I found one pic taken by the event organisers of Seb's legs and thats it!

I thoroughly enjoyed this event and I'm beginning to realise that trail runs are my favourite. You can't beat getting out there into the English countryside and taking in all of the stunning scenery and getting away from people, traffic and our busy stressful lives! If you are one of those people that sticks to the same road and pavement routes please take my advice and join a local running group that will give you the skills and confidence to run in more remote areas. I've learned to use the app Strava which you can download onto any phone. Prior to your run you can plan your route on their website so easily - the software takes your route along known bridle paths or similar so with just a few clicks...viola! a route is planned even when you don't know the area. The route map is then saved and you can use it to guide you using your phone during your run so you don't get lost.

There are numerous Maverick races throughout the year. The route is marked and its a good place to start your trail run journey - there are three distances, 7km, 15km and 21km. Here is the link to their website, I highly recommend signing up to one....I'm taking part in the Maverick East Sussex at Stanmer Park on 29th June 2019 http://www.maverick-race.com

My next event was supposed to the the Rough Terrain Run 5km mud run with obstacles but due to Seb and I coming down with tonsillitis at the beginning of February, we had to give it a miss.

So the next event is Slindon Slog 2019.......watch this space