WAAD, Stok Kangri, Gorillas and more!

I feel like got a lot to write about!

Stok Kangri

I've had a ton of ideas I've wanted to put in motion.  But first, I thought it best to announce that officially I am going to climb Stok Kangri in the Summer.  I've held back, but as Eddie Izzaard says, 'Sometimes you just have to go for it.'  Stok Kangri is a 6,137m high Himalayan peak in Northern India.  It 'll mean a lot of saving from me for the next six months, but it'll be worth it.  I'll get to realise an ambition, to climb a high altitude peak!  It seemed like the time was write to change to challenge to 'Running 1000 miles and Climbing Stok Kangri'.

The mountain will take a week to climb to the top with a couple of days to descend.  At just over 6,000m high, it's taller than Kilimanjaro.  To climb it in August, I've set my running goal to get to 600 miles by the end of June, have July and August 'off' for c
limbing, then resume running the last 400 of the year in September, October, November and December.  The challenge is definitely on!

I'm set now to run the Liverpool Half Marathon on Sunday in the gorilla costume, and have done about 13 sweaty training miles in the thing.  I feel like I can do it now.  I'm also gonna drop a few flyers in my neighbours' houses to explain why they may have spotted me in a gorilla costume!  It's gonna be fun on Sunday.  The last three miles of the run are along the exact same route as my marathon on New Years' Eve as well.

World Autism Awareness Day is on Saturday, 2nd April 2011.  I've been thinking hard about how to mark the day, and I'm going to be hosting a one mile Fun Run at my school which I teach at.  I'm pretty excited about it because I'll get to raise awareness of the cause and also my running.  My nephew Peter will be able to come as well which I'm pretty psyched about!  In addition, I aim to run to my church and back on the Sunday.  Not 100% on that yet!

Running has been slow and steady.  For the past 5 or so weeks, the emphasis really has been on races.  And with the Liverpool Half this Sunday and the Coniston14 less than 2 weeks after, it's set to continue.

Next race, Liverpool Half Marathon in the gorilla costume, Sunday 27th March www.justgiving.com/runclimbmather