Well, its been over 12 months since the last re-occurrence of my back. In that time I have cycled all over Leicester, commenced regular running again, moved a pool table, and played Aussie Rules football (cricket still scares me; for those that don't know that was one of the major reasons for re-occurrence). I am feeling pretty good, and, apart from a few twinges down my right hamstring, pretty much back to normal. So I've decided to attempt a return to ultra marathon trail running.
When I left Aus, I got rid of all my old bags except for the camelbak MULE. It while it was a superb beast that I thoroughly recommend it to anyone, after 7 years of service the chest strap recently snapped on me. Essentially, it was time to replace all the expensive stuff that comes with these events and so I went shopping. This is the result.
I first started hunting for new trail running shoes. For years a stuck by the Salomon XT wings series so I decided to look no further again. I lashed out and bought the latest - the Wings Pro. Admittedly I was trying to find some of the old XT Wings 3 but surprisingly, the price difference was not too much. Funnily I seemed to have dropped a size - I really hope I don't find these shoes are too small after smashing out Kms!
Next I searched for an 'IB' style bag - something I would happily take on an Inward Bound if I ever find myself in the vicinity of Canberra again. My main focus was a large day bag. I ended up with a Jack Wolfskin Rocksurfer 25.5. Technically its a cycling bag, so it will suit my upcoming bicycle tour to Edinburgh, as well as being a running bag for when I want to train with a bit of weight, or run to Gemma's place and take a change of clothes. The bag has lots of cool (if, strictly speaking, unnecessary) features and seems nearly over defined for usefulness...
Admittedly, its pretty hard to hurt your back warming the bench.
When I left Aus, I got rid of all my old bags except for the camelbak MULE. It while it was a superb beast that I thoroughly recommend it to anyone, after 7 years of service the chest strap recently snapped on me. Essentially, it was time to replace all the expensive stuff that comes with these events and so I went shopping. This is the result.
I first started hunting for new trail running shoes. For years a stuck by the Salomon XT wings series so I decided to look no further again. I lashed out and bought the latest - the Wings Pro. Admittedly I was trying to find some of the old XT Wings 3 but surprisingly, the price difference was not too much. Funnily I seemed to have dropped a size - I really hope I don't find these shoes are too small after smashing out Kms!
Next I searched for an 'IB' style bag - something I would happily take on an Inward Bound if I ever find myself in the vicinity of Canberra again. My main focus was a large day bag. I ended up with a Jack Wolfskin Rocksurfer 25.5. Technically its a cycling bag, so it will suit my upcoming bicycle tour to Edinburgh, as well as being a running bag for when I want to train with a bit of weight, or run to Gemma's place and take a change of clothes. The bag has lots of cool (if, strictly speaking, unnecessary) features and seems nearly over defined for usefulness...
key clip, tool organsier, elasticized helmet strap, a pocket to protect the hydration tube from mud, it has everything!
...except, the hip strap is waaaaay too big. I'm talking 2 inches too big. It uses a velcro connecting mechanism and this dramatically limits the 'adjustability' (I love making up words) of the hip strap. I am a pretty small guy, but so are lots of people into exercise and running and this bag will only suit a small range of waist sizes. That said, a bit of creativivity, some YouTube videos on sewing later, and viola! I found a solution.
Gattastic! It still retails most of its stretchiness although I think I'll need to elastic sheath to make sure any uncovered Velcro does not rub.
The final item on my list was a racing bag, something to replace me ol' faithful MULE. As Camelbak had treated me well in the past I returned to their range, and, in a halo of shining light, was what I believe to be one of their newest bags - the Ultra 10. Designed specifically for the types of events I like (the MULE was developed as a mountain bike bag even though it was favoured by many runners when I was racing in Aus). 10 litre bag with a 2 litre bladder included, easy access pockets for food, compass, phone, etc. and apparently, just big enough for all the extra compulsory equipment and clothing.
Doing laps of my REFURBISHED snooker table - more on that later!!!!
I do hope I get to test it out on a race this summer!
No comments:
Post a Comment