It’s now roughly seven weeks until the Cork City Marathon, and time seems to be passing pretty quickly. I’ve been out running a few times this week and got myself a new pair of trainers which have been broken in without too much bother. I tend to value comfort above all else when deciding on attire, but I haven’t always been so slovenly. As a much younger man I had a penchant for leather boots, though this was comprehensively beaten out of me when I wore a box-fresh pair to a concert in Slane Castle many years ago. Though I thought I looked quite stylish when I arrived in Henry Mountcharles’ Garden, my blistered and bloody feet barely got me back to the bus headed for Ennis after the show. The value of a pair of comfortable shoes has never since been lost on me.
So I’ve no complaints about the new shoes, but the increased distances I have been running are definitely being felt around my creaking body. As I’ve written before, I’m an advocate of the whispered mantra as a way to distract oneself from the discomfort of the exertion. The longer I run, however, the less effective I find them to be. I’ve had to put in place a Plan B and so have armed myself with a playlist to help me when I’m sick of listening to myself.
I’ve tried to keep the tempo of the songs as steady as possible and, just as my primary concern when choosing clothing is not how I’ll look, these song selections have not been made with any notion of ‘coolness’ in mind. They are simply some songs that I enjoy listening to that are a good fit with the pace of running I can manage. Young Irish folk acts Junior Brother and the Mary Wallopers get the blood flowing, and I’d usually hope to be hitting my stride by the time ‘Rasputin’ comes on. After that it’s a mix of ska, pop, classic rock and whatever you’re having yourself to help me navigate the various little triumphs and crises one encounters on a training run. If you have any songs you think would fit into the playlist, or there are any in there you reckon I should jettison, please let me know in the comments below. There’ll be another update next week. See you then!
