Author: Alastair Vance

Posted on

Hot Chocolate 15k Charlotte Pre-Race Update

Disclaimer: I received free entry to Hot Chocolate 15k as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!

I’ve been both excited and nervous about this race. Excited because I love the atmosphere of race day, and nervous because I’ve set a target that at times I’m not sure I can achieve.

I took the day off work today and drove down to Charlotte early (after a short run of course) so I could visit the Expo and chill out a little before tomorrow.

My wife Liz, daughter Katie, and youngest son Xander came with me to cheer me on and take advantage of a wee weekend break in Charlotte.

We booked the Sheraton, the same hotel as the Expo, which had a special rate for race participants.

Continue reading “Hot Chocolate 15k Charlotte Pre-Race Update”

Posted on

Review: Krispy Kreme Challenge 2018

IMG_8576.jpg

Those who complete the Krispy Kreme Challenge, have ran 2.5 miles, consumed 12 Krispy Kreme doughnuts and then ran 2.5 miles more, all inside 1 hour! Oh, and on quite possibly the coldest day of the year in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Well, I tried to eat all 12 doughnuts last year and that was not enjoyable at all. This year I had no intentions of completing the challenge, but just to run and enjoy the atmosphere.

The plan was for the whole family to run it this time — only Nathan and I ran it last year. I was going to push our youngest, Xander, in the stroller and then we’d dump all our unfinished doughnuts underneath the stroller to take home.

Unfortunately my wife Liz was unable to run as she has a stress fracture (she is also a runner). So, we pulled in Vinod from our running club and Liz and Xander stayed at home in the warmth.

Continue reading “Review: Krispy Kreme Challenge 2018”

Posted on

AfterShokz Trekz Air — Shockingly Good Earphones for Running!

Disclaimer: I received a pair of AfterShokz Trekz Airs to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!

IMG_8633.jpg

I’d consider myself a music guy, a musician even — I listen to a lot of music. But look back over the last couple of years of my run selfies on Instagram and you’ll not find many with me wearing earphones.

I think I have funny shaped ear holes or something. I’ve always struggled with finding comfortable earbuds that will a) sit in my ear canals comfortably for an extended period, and b) not fall out or need readjusting during exercise.

For this reason I mostly go without. It just hasn’t been worth the hassle…

Recently I have had the opportunity to try a pair of AfterShokz Trekz Airs — earphones that don’t even go in your ears. That is because they use bone conduction technology!

Continue reading “AfterShokz Trekz Air — Shockingly Good Earphones for Running!”

Posted on

Back On The Trails

IMG_8536.jpg

It was felt so good to get back out on the trails at the weekend. It was my first time trail running since RAD in early December. It is also the first time I have ran the trails (bar the fire roads) over at Umstead State Park.

Saturday was such a beautiful day. The sun was shining, not a cloud in the sky. The temperature was right around 60°F. Perfect running weather.

Only I didn’t run on Saturday, oh no! I ran on Sunday morning in the rain instead! At least it was still 50°F.

Continue reading “Back On The Trails”

Posted on

2017 in Running

In 2017, I logged a total of 1132.5 miles. That’s an average of 94 miles a month, or 22 miles a week, or a 5K every single day!

I ran a total of 226 times. This means every time I left for a run, I ran an average of 5 miles.

It’s weird now as a runner, that being sick is worse because I can’t get out to run. I was out sick and unable to run for 21 days in 2017.

All of that running took 184 hours and 7 mins, which means my average pace was around 9.45/mi — this includes road, trail, stroller runs etc.

Continue reading “2017 in Running”

Posted on

Screw It — Winterize Your Old Running Shoes!

I was listening to a recent BibRave podcast and they were talking about a DIY hack to winterize your (old) running shoes. The trick involves screwing a number of sheet metal screws into the soles of your shoes to provide better traction on hard packed snow and ice. What a neat idea!!

So I did a bit of research online and found the following video which explains what to do.

I couldn’t work out why Liz wasn’t keen on me trying this out over the holidays and winterizing an old pair of Hoka Cliftons. It seemed like a no-brainer to me. I was planning to order the screws on Amazon to have everything I needed.

It all became clear on Christmas morning when I opened a set of YakTrax! She’s the best. I’ll just have to tuck this idea away for another time — like when I wear out the YakTrax.

IMG_8147.jpg

 

Posted on

Tech: Convert Your Strava or GPX routes to Google Street View Hyperlapses

I came across a website that can covert your GPS running data into Google Street View Hyperlapses. I exported a GPX file from my morning run and produced the video above.

The website currently doesn’t support downloading your finished hyperlapse, so I had to perform the following steps to achieve this.

  1. Uploaded my GPX to gpxhyperlapse.com and adjusted the settings until satisfied with the output speed and frames.
  2. Add the Nimbus Screenshot & Screen Video Recorder extension to Chrome.
  3. Started screen recording and downloaded the finished video. It was in .webm format which I’d never heard of.
  4. Used an online video editor to crop the video to the frame size (removing rest of browser window, etc.).
  5. Converted to mp4, and uploaded to YouTube.

In other words, quite an effort really, but interesting all the same.

Posted on

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

free-merry-christmas-clip-art-merry-christmas-script-red.png

I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas weekend and enjoys some quality time with friends and family. Rest, rest and more rest. That’s my plan for the next week. Of course, a little running will be woven in here and there!

Here’s a wee video I recorded over six years ago now! How time flies! Enjoy!

Posted on

Added: Hot Chocolate 15k – Charlotte, NC

“Disclaimer: I received free entry to Hot Chocolate 15k Charlotte as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!”

I just signed up for the Hot Chocolate 15k in Charlotte, NC — my first race as a BibRave Pro! For those not familiar with BibRave, it’s a website where you can find and write race reviews.

As a BibRave Pro (Ambassador), I get to fuel my running passion by participating in races and reviewing running related products and then telling everyone about it!!

The Hot Chocolate race series is hosted in cities all over the country and they offer both 5k and 15k races. I have signed up for the 15k (just under 10 miles) and will be running through the streets of Charlotte on 10th Feb 2018.

Continue reading “Added: Hot Chocolate 15k – Charlotte, NC”

Posted on

Vertigo is Horrible

vertigo.pngI blogged recently about experiencing dizziness during my run last Saturday, while visiting Ireland on business. I thought at the time it was simply related to a combination of jet lag and dehydration.

The dizzy feeling went away on Sunday, and as I blogged then I felt just fine, hopeful I’d get back out for a run on Monday evening.

This wasn’t to be.

On Monday at work the dizziness returned. By lunchtime I had thrown up in the restrooms and had to be taken home by a co-worker.

I could write a whole post on the sole topic of getting an appointment with a doctor in Northern Ireland, but to cut a long story short, I ended up in A&E (ER) on Monday evening.

Continue reading “Vertigo is Horrible”