Such a destructively windy day in Scotland, yet strangely not the cause of most of what you’re about to read…
[Seconds after writing that, the power cut affecting the south side of the village hits the north side too!]
Took the van to the garage two weeks ago to get the exhaust checked out because of a developing (but unfamiliar) ‘throaty’ note, then back last week for new exhaust after finding the expected hole in the old one. Then back again today after (coincidentally necessary) new exhaust failed to cure said note because I’m also needing a new wheel bearing. Had also been expecting trouble with the windscreen wipers (a bit quirky from new in tangling with each other or randomly inverting once in a blue moon!) since getting a nice new windscreen last month to replace the one broken near Dalwhinnie and, sure enough, my nearside wiper flipped last week to lightly scratch the glass (it’s the thought as much as the ‘damage’) just 20 days into its life. So took a good look at the wipers this morning, found hopeless play in the offside one, spotted marking to the trim and paintwork where they’ve been failing to stop within their designed arcs and thought I’d better get these seen to as well. At which point one (the nearside) breaks right off when we inspect them at the garage, I’m needing new arms and linkages and strongly suspecting they’ve been faulty from new (NB van’s now booked in for Thursday)!
[Power just came back on.]
Heading out for another wet and windy run yesterday, I pick up my almost new OMM Cypher Smock (worn just a handful of times this sodden May since a first quick test in April, but rapidly becoming a favourite piece of running gear) to discover that the front’s badly delaminating. So email the supplier to say I’m looking for a refund (might have got a rogue sample, but couldn’t trust the eVent fabric in any like-for-like replacement) and think they might also want to pass this on to OMM… to be told today that OMM have requested the garment be sent to them for inspection before any refund, credit or replacement is issued. So not totally happy about that when it’s clearly not fit for purpose and IMHO I should have got a straight refund, but now have to play ball and send it on with a ‘detailed letter of explanation and outline of how I’ve cared for the garment’ (just worn it a few times over the past fortnight, right)! Then, to keep up the running theme, why (oh why) am I suddenly a good 2kg heavier (been working to lose weight and monitoring it daily since 1 January) after 90+ miles of trail running in a week when there’s no way I’ve taken on the calories to do that? (Thought I had a pretty good handle on all the issues but clearly don’t, although I’ve noted almost cyclic ‘blips’ in an otherwise downward trend before and hope it’s just one of those because I’ve otherwise taken a month’s step backwards!)
And finally (to get back to the weather that’s destroyed so much today for other folk but not really for me), I’ve been outside trying to tie down what’s left of Fly’s cover before it self-destructs, the chimney sweep’s sensibly postponed because I was needing him to go on the roof and I’ve still no prospect of testing the new mower that arrived a fortnight ago so long as this May stays true to form. So of course it could all be worse (house could have blown down/away), but that doesn’t mean it’s all great! :-/
PS Forgot to say I found the Co-op closed this afternoon because of the power cut, so am going to run out of milk…
Quote (email just sent to supplier)
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While I welcome OMM’s involvement in wishing to inspect the garment, my understanding is that it’s your responsibility as the retailer to take it back, issue the refund then take it up with the manufacturer as you see fit, so am requesting now that you do so, sending you the requested information and awaiting further instructions about returning to you…
It was ordered from you on 27 March 2011 (for the Highlander Mountain Marathon in April, but not used there in fine weather), tested once briefly on 2 April then not used again till 10 May. Since then it’s been used another six times (four of them in conjunction with an almost empty OMM Adventure Light 20 sack) for trail/hill running in this wet May weather, totaling max. 16 hours wear, so not washed yet but simply hung up to dry after each run.
The delamination (photographs attached) to the front panel was discovered yesterday and assumed to be fresh because I’d have noticed it before. While it has occurred to me that this could be in the area of the rucksack belt, both smock and sack are of OMM manufacture, intended to be used together for adventure racing etc. and there are no comparable marks in the areas of shoulder or sternum straps. So quite clearly this garment (sorry to be saying this when it’s been treated carefully and I was quickly growing to love it) as supplied to me is faulty, I believe (as stated above) it’s your responsibility to deal with it and am asking (nicely) that you do so.
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Unquote
Comment by admin — 23 May 2011 @ 10:12 pm
Having a bad day then?! :-)
You should stop weighing yourself daily I think. Weekly will be best to monitor your progress. I keep telling Thomas this as he drives me crazy with this too, but he does not listen. Maybe you will? See you soon. Hope the rest of your training is going well. Silke
Comment by Silke — 24 May 2011 @ 9:00 am
Have to disagree about the weighing, Silke… since I can go up and down by kilos a day depending on hydration/what I’m doing, weekly weighing’s just not going to work except for monitoring much longer term trends when random daily blips (normally obvious amongst the daily readings) can’t get confused with more sustained ones. So it might take months of weekly results to separate the daily sort from the ‘cyclic’ type (multi- rather than single-day reversals) I’m talking about in the blog post, and that’s no good to me when I’m working towards the race and need to know the difference now!
Co-op shelves bare of milk and most other refrigerated/frozen goods long before I got there today…
Comment by admin — 24 May 2011 @ 5:01 pm
Hmm. But is it not more about having a target weight in mind for the race and working towards it? So the weekly weight would show your progression towards it (or not) rather than obsessing about it? – and then the last 2 days carboloading will put on a few pounds anyway! :-) Silke
Comment by Silke — 24 May 2011 @ 5:35 pm
Nope, still saying weekly weights can be too skewed by daily blips (which could just be on your weekly weighing day) over the short to medium term. And maybe also that I need the regular feedback to keep me on my toes!
Comment by admin — 24 May 2011 @ 6:27 pm
I have to agree with Peter on that. Weight fluctuates extremely quickly. In particular when you do a lot of sports and therefore carry a huge appetite with you ALL THE TIME. Certainly in my case. Hence weekly monitoring is not appropriate.
There may be cases where someone has a more solid and less calorie intense lifestyle with less weight fluctuation.
But again that does not apply to me. And probably not to Peter. And Silke, it may not apply to your husband too. Who is a very nice guy btw I have heard ;-)
Make sure you lock the kitchen door for him after 7pm!
anonumous
Comment by anonymous random german guy — 24 May 2011 @ 9:10 pm
Well my local Co-op burned down a couple of weeks back, so no sympathy there! The early pace tactic you mentioned in your previous post sounds good – go for it! The worst that can happen is you’ll finish fresher.
Comment by Billy — 24 May 2011 @ 9:29 pm
Sorry Peter. Just been told off that it is not obsessive at all but detailed and important data collection for someone preparing for a race such as the WHW… I give in. Maybe I should lock the scales in the kitchen too?! Silke
Comment by Silke — 24 May 2011 @ 9:41 pm
Funny thing about that pacing plan is that almost exactly a year ago (27 May 2010) I commented on John Kynaston’s blog that ‘I can probably run 19:30 off 3:45 to Balmaha, but know it’s ultimately all riding on the day and reserve the right to be embarrassingly wrong!’ So a case of ‘plus ça change’ or will I really keep things even slower for longer this time? (Think I can probably go to 11:something average at the start but no quicker, and mustn’t start enjoying myself too much up Conic Hill and Loch Lomondside!)
Comment by admin — 24 May 2011 @ 9:50 pm