Thought I’d do a post to explain what I’m going to the Alps to do, and what I’ve done on top of all that’s been covered in the blog so far (i.e running races and climbing Mount Toubkal) to prepare.

First of all

By now I hope you all know why I’m doing this (beyond my love of running/climbing); to raise money/awareness for The Stroke Association after losing my Grandad in August 2008 (it’ll be almost a year to the day that he died, when I hope to stand on the summit of Mont Blanc). I’d really appreciate donations, and any messages of support you have, as it’s going to be really tough up there.

Thanks, Ian

So, Mont Blanc and…

At 4810m, Mont Blanc is a big mountain! And a lot of people want to climb it, so options for ascent are numerous. Being my first trip to the Alps and with a few trips I could’ve tagged onto not fitting with when I could get time off, I ended up booking onto a group trip. I’ve avoided trips that focus completely on Mont Blanc, instead spending time over in Switzerland for a week before, to acclimatise and get to know the group who will be attempting to summit too; as struggling to remember the name of someone you’re attached to by rope at 4800m isn’t good!

By acclimatising what I mean is trying to get to the top of as many 4000m peaks as possible around Saas-Fee, whilst having a go at more technical routes (i.e. harder/more dangerous) . So as well as Mont Blanc I’ll hopefully be able to summit some of the following: Weissmies (4,017m), Lagginhorn (4,010m), Allalinhorn (4,027m) and Alphubel (4,206m). So it’s a balancing act between getting used to the thin air, whilst not exhausting myself with all those ascents. After coming down back to Saas-Fee from the mountain huts we’ll be staying in, it’s over to Chamonix early August for Mont Blanc. Summit day is notoriously long and exhausting at around 12hrs, and being up at nearly 5000m in the snow, it’s likely to be pretty cold (my gloves are rated down to -28c).

Days out in the mountains

Since coming back from climbing Mount Toubkal in Morocco, I’ve spent a hell of a lot of time in Wales. To give an idea of the amount of time I’ve put in over there in the past few months, I’ve…

• Spent 5 full days in Snowdonia, 1 in the Brecon Beacons
• Made it to the top of 12 (some more than once) of the 16 mountains higher than 3000ft in Snowdonia.
• Reached the highest point in Southern Britain (Pen y Fan).

So given there’s been 2 half marathons during the past 2.5months since Morocco, that’s a big proportion of my time. But enough of the figures, the highlights are more interesting!

One of the trips I did on my own really early in the morning (I set off from home at 1:30am!) so I could be on the mountain (Tryfan) for sunrise. It was absolutely spectacular…

And finally I got to the top of Snowdon (twice actually) after I’d had to retreat due to poor weather on the two other occasions. Here’s my first time on top, in great weather. The second time it was poor visibility, cold and wet… so what you’d expect from Wales.

Training

My aim over the past few months has been to settle into regular and varied exercise that’ll help with the mountains and also get me into great shape for November when I’ll run the New York Marathon. Training before has been a case of my gut feeling as to how strong I feel, compared to prior other similar events. With so much on, I felt to prepare properly I should add structure and work to a plan. There’s a hell of a lot of options when you look at training, in particular for running a marathon but I wanted something that also focused also on all round strength/endurance to help with the mountains. The best fit? A training plan to climb Denali, one of the highest mountains in the world.

What that has meant, is that each week, I’m trying to do 4 aerobic sessions of 30mins (running, playing squash), 3 strength sessions (circuits of press ups, sit ups, lunges etc), 1 recreational activity (climbing/walking) and 1 rest day. So some days I’ll do aerobic, strength and recreational, just depends when it all fits. But that’s month 1 out of 6… so it’s going to get pretty crazy come the end of the year but I’m feeling good even after just a month of it.

Well, that’s about it for now. As before, I’m feeling strong and focused, ready to give it one hell of a go and very excited. I’ll try to get news back on Facebook and on my Twitter page throughout the trip if you want to keep up to date with it all.

Thanks, Ian

p.s. the running doesnt stop either, I’ll be running 10k on 19th July, flying to the Alps on the 25th to attempt Mont Blanc around 3rd/4th and then flying back 5th, running the Newark Half Marathon on the 9th.

So this week I’ve played squash once, ran a steady 5km in the week and then this morning a quick 10km to stretch my legs properly. Surprised to do the 10km in 51:50 actually, given I’ve not run the distance for around 2 months and that on my own this morning I didn’t have people alongside me to help push me on. The one frustration is my trainers, which have once again given me nasty blisters on my in-step so need to get a new pair ASAP. Guess next week will be much the same, may try to fit 2 5km morning runs in if my feet heal quick or if not go for 15km on the Sunday.

I’ve received some kit from The Stroke Association, including a suitably loud/fluorescent running vest (never discrete these things) so I’ll soon be out sporting that when I train/run races. No doubt photos will soon appear of this!

Also getting closer and closer to long weekend in Wales between 6th-9th Feb, when I’ll be picking up things like ice axe/crampon technique, ropework and some crevasse rescue for good measure.

Before going further and getting excited by what 2009 may bring, there’s a really important reason as to why I’ve planned a gruelling 10 or so months to really push myself. In the Summer of last year my Grandad died after suffering two strokes and spending the last 2 weeks of his life in hospital. And so, all of this is in memory of him, to raise money and awareness of the work done by The Stroke Association.

For more details I’ve setup a page explaining in more detail why I’ll be off here there and everywhere pushing myself physically as well as a page on what I intend on doing. And if you’re feeling generous already then please visit my Justgiving page and make a donation to help get this show on the road.

Cheers,
Ian