Jo has been a bit lapse with her updates, so I thought I better help her out a little!

I am Charlie-Dog, I do most of the training with Jo, so I am probably in the best position to update you on her progress …! I am the one sniffing the poppies – don’t smell of much do they?

Jo has been getting lots of miles under her belt, building up good stamina (I should know, I’ve done most of them with her!) I thought you might like a few stats (Feb-June 2010):

• Mileage: 1000
• Steps: 2,325,018
• Minuets continuous walking: 13,790 – that is equivalent to 19, twelve hour days of walking!!
• Fat burned: 3,810g – no wonder she can eat all those maltesers.

That is the straight forward training which Jo is now quite good at, a 26 mile walk is a relative stroll in the park!  …. But she recently started her strength work and isn’t a patch on her two young boys! When asked to do some press ups, she barely managed two! The boys can do about 50, with claps in between and other advanced stuff! She also has a lot of work to do building up the strength in her knees, particularly the dodgy one that she had reconstructed 2 years ago. She is busy doing squats, trying to get the weight through her heels, and not tipping forward. After her first session (75% of which was taken up doing paper work!) Jo could barely lift her arms above her head for 3 days!

Jo has also started pulling a tyre! I promise to try and get photographic evidence, although at the moment she is sneaking out very early. It has certainly slowed down her walking, which is a good thing, as it gives me lots more time to sniff around and chase deer. I know that Jo is finding it quite challenging, I haven’t dared tell her she is only pulling 10kg. Out in the arctic, she will be pulling around 50kg. Hope to ‘chat’ again soon. C-D x

Sunday 6th June dawned a beautiful sunny day – great. I had 26 miles to walk along the Clarendon Way for Naomi House and I didn’t fancy doing it in the rain. I had a busy schedule. Up at 5am to get son no. 2 to school for 6.00am; he had an exciting week in France on a PGL outward bound course with various opportunities to practise his French. My schedule allowed me 30 mins on my return to have breakie, and sort my stuff out before a 7.10am pick up. It did not allow for Jenny my ginger Queen to go into labour …. arghh. This was her third litter, so I was reasonably relaxed to leave her with daughter and son no.1 as proxy midwives! I got regular updates via text and phone. She did really well producing 5 beautiful kittens.

It was a beautiful walk, from Winchester Cathedral, along rolling countryside. I walked with a group of friends for the first 7 miles, but despite trying to use the event to get time under my belt, got itchy feet, so Paula and I picked up the pace and left a merry band of 5 to potter along. We got to the lunch point in Broughton at about 1.00pm. This was the 1/2 way point for people wanting to start or finish the half marathon event. It was a busy venue with people signing in and out, groups picnicking on the lawns, and folk having limbs massaged! Paula and I had a quick loo stop, then pushed on; we climbed the only real hill of the walk, up through lovely shaded woodland up to Farley Mount.

At 16 miles, I got the urge to pick up the pace again. Paula, was quite happy for me to push on. I didn’t worry about leaving Paula, she is much more sociable than me, and will talk to everyone. We were well supported on the way with local fruit juice, energy bars and fruit, as well as regular water stops. As I strode out I bumped into other friends, who had started at Broughton at mid-day. It was a well attended event, with over 1000 walkers.

It was lovely to walk out of Beechy Dean Copse and see Salisbury Cathedral spire beckoning in the distance. From here it was a steady walk through the outskirts of Salisbury to the finish in the Cathedral grounds. I enjoyed sitting in the sunshine with a hot cup of tea waiting for Paula and John (our taxi home) to arrive. The atmosphere was great, with people being clapped in, and champagne corks being popped.  Twenty Six miles is a great achievement. It was my most comfortable walk; but I am still rather daunted by the thought of the Nijimegen Marches in a month. Four days of 50km will be very challenging!

Jessica Brinton wrote an article recently in the Sunday Times supplement about female adventurers. Brave women, great women, women with fortitude running through their veins –  warrior women who don’t do fear! I am not sure that is really me … well not yet! I have talked to a few of these warrior women, Rona Cant, who sailed as a crew member in the BT Global Challenge Round the World Yacht Race 2000-2001; Rachel Smith, who rowed across the Atlantic. They have both generously given up time to pass on their learning’s from their great adventures. I still have lots of fears; fears that I won’t raise all the money to enable me to take part, fears that I won’t raise all the money I want to for my charity, fears that I don’t do cold, so how will I get my mind round temperatures of minus forty, fears that I am going to let down all the family, and friends who have all got behind me, even if they think I am having a major mid life crisis!

I’ve done research on pictures of warrior women (as I am still only a trainee) and found that actually I am not that far away! (see MoonWalk Blog)  Once I have conquered a few more of these fears (which I am facing head on), I too will be a qualified Warrior Women! I have  embarked on this Polar project to push myself harder (life had got too cosy)  and to make sure I am making the most of what life has to offer. I hope you are enjoying the sunshine and having some fun with the kids over half term! x

Female Warrior