3PC - Update 3

The countdown continues ... we set off 6 weeks from today.

And meanwhile the training is paying off: in the last week I have walked with Nick, Ben, Arthur, Simon, Rob and Dave, and there are no signs of stragglers within this group (although Simon's choice of shirt raised a few eyebrows). I hear that Lisa and Matt are training hard too, which leaves Mark as the unknown quantity. Now that Mark is back from California, I'm sure he'll be getting up to speed.

Caroline and Tristan have bravely volunteered to be the lead drivers. Welcome to the team.

There may be a practice walk again this weekend (sorry I can't join you), and after the success of our evening stroll on Tuesday, I propose another evening stroll on Thursday April 30th. I shall be at the intersection of the Wayfarers Way and the Kingsclere-Overton Road at White Hill at 7.30pm that evening. Let me know if you can join me for some steep hill training.

Have a great weekend

Graham

3PC - Update 2

7 weeks from now we'll be on our first mountain climb/descent, so only 6 weeks of hard (!) training to go. I know that some of the team is putting in some decent effort (I joined Arthur and Ben for a 12 mile walk up and down the slopes of Watership Down on Good Friday), and I am hopeful that everyone has managed to make some progress in the last two weeks.

I have now booked our accommodation for the night of Friday June 5th at Oswestry Travelodge. Yes, I know it sounds glamorous and extravagant, but I got a reasonable price for the twelve* of us.

In terms of other preparation, each person should make sure they have all the necessary kit:

• walking boots and several pairs of walking socks
• small backpack (a camelback packs are great as they make it easier to drink as you are walking along)
• wet weather protection (ideally lightweight top and trousers)
• hat (easiest way to regulate body temperature)

On evening of Tuesday 21st, I shall do a fast walk. Starting from my house at 6.30pm, passing through Overton at about 7.15pm. Let me know if you will be joining me and whether it will be from start or from Overton.

Graham

* we're currently still at 10 walkers plus 0 drivers, so it's time to find our supprt team! Happily we now seem to be sorted for cars.

Three Peaks Challenge: Update

Here's a quick update, along with some comments on preparation:

Logistics:

• we still need to find drivers and cars: any further ideas?
• I will book overnight accommodation for Friday June 5th this week (ie please shout now if you're not certain about joining in)
• you will need to have your walking boots and small rucksack soon so that you can get used to wearing them well ahead of the event

Training:

• by the end of this week, we have only 7 weeks available for training (excluding last few days when we should be resting up)
• essentially, there are three aspects to this (1) fitness/endurance, (2) being used to walking up and down hills, (3) being used to your walking boots; people fail the challenge because of lack of preparation in any one of these areas, so it's worth paying particular attention to each:

1. Fitness/endurance: this will come from putting the hours in: fast walking, jogging and cycling are all great for building up core stamina. Your body does improve quite quickly if you train properly, but 7 weeks is not long. Aim for at least 3 exercise sessions a week. For the 3PC, we need to be able to exercise for 5 hours and then sit in a car for 5 hours ... and then repeat twice, so bear this in mind when training. Practise exercising twice in a day to prove to yourself that you can recover quick enough.
2. Walking up and down hills: the best way to prepare for this is, funnily enough, walking up and down hills. If at all possible, get your legs used to working on gradients. If there are no hills nearby and you happen to work on the 25th floor of a tall building, then at least you can use the stairs as a form of practice. You also need to get your cardiovascular system used to the work rate of hauling your weight upwards which is why jogging is useful in the training routine (rather than just walking on the flat).
3. Wear yor walking boots whenever you are out walking. Please don't leave this to the last week.

I've marked the following dates in my diary to do a fast evening walk, probably in the Overton area. Let me know if you'd like to join in with any of them:

• April 21, 28 and 30.
• May 6, 12, 14 and 20.

Happy training.

Graham