Meet The Happy Cows!

Today was the first run of The Happy Cows - our team of four for the Mud Runner Oblivion on 29th April. Gulp - just 7 weeks away! Our merry (and very clean at the start) team is, from left, Ice Cream Sian wearing her Mud Runner Classic T shirt, me (now known as Slow Sarah) wearing my Oblivion T shirt from last year, Beagle Nic and Wee Gill. I think the front-runners had better watch out as the four of us are a force to be reckoned with... Having said that, Beagle Nic has only run off-road twice, Wee Gill has never run off road or gone further than 5k, I have two dodgy knees and Ice Cream Sian hasn't trained for, ooh, months...

It's a shame you can't see our feet in this photo as Wee Gill had supernew trainers and BOY, where they white! [Memo to trainer makers: Why make trail runners in white, they're only going to get filthy?] Actually, that's just jealousy - all the other Cows have pretty trainers and mine are butch purple and black. Sigh.

We'd agreed to do a 'gentle 5k' for our first run and so we did a hilly muddy 6k. I'm not as good at working out distances as Fit Mark. Actually, I'm completely rubbish at working out distances and actually have to go and run them to find out how long they are. Anyway, 6k it was, mostly 3 up and 3 down. And muddy, lots of lovely mud. Beagle Nic was elegant as ever, Ice Cream Sian and I panted a bit, and Wee Gill avoided the puddles. Hmm, have to do something about that next week...

This is a picture of three Happy Cows admiring the stunning scenery towards Machen. We are really lucky to have such brilliant countryside to run in, and it was the most glorious Spring day. I've got in on the picture too - that's my thumb in the top right...

As we approached the end of our run somebody (I'm still trying to work out who, but my suspicions are falling on Ice Cream Sian) yelled "Sprint finish?" and they all set off like rockets, beating me to the finish gate by a good 30m. My legs still only do one pace. Slow.

When we got back we had sort of christened Wee Gill's sparkly white trainers - they're not quite so dazzling any more. Another couple of weeks should see them a suitable shade of grey...

And then to the post-run team talk. With ice cream cake, hot chocolate, coffee, tea and another ice cream at the parlour. Funnily enough, all our training runs are going to start and finish at the parlour. Well, it's got a nice car park... Nothing at all to do with the ice cream, honestly.

And then we posed for our Team Picture.

I'm the short one at the bottom...