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August 31st, 2009, 07:46
Originally Posted by magerette View Post
I freely admit I can't stand him so I'm prejudiced, but also it seems every time I've seen him he's playing some cocky pretty-boy hero with an attitude. I never caught Interview with a Vampire simply because he was in it and I assumed that would be his approach to LeStat, who to my mind is a much too complex character for the likes of Cruise. You need brooding for LeStat—serious brooding and no spunkiness.

Could be that it's just me, D'Artagnan.
I think you should watch Interview with the Vampire and experience him for yourself.

That is, if you want to actually have some basis for your opinions

If I'm not mistaken, Anne Rice had a similar reaction when she heard he'd star as Lestat - but she apparently changed her mind upon seeing it…
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May 3rd, 2012, 22:52
I really like Jeff Vogal. He's articulate and has a hillarious sense of dry and sarcastic humor. His games are fun and I enjoy them. I hope he continues to be successful and even moreso given the new platforms.

If I'm right but there is no wife around to acknowledge it, am I still right?
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February 3rd, 2007, 01:10
Originally Posted by Kharn View Post
These and many more predictable recycled arguments to be debunked in the coming week!

Yeah, we totally never had good dev interaction! Did you even read the article the newspost linked to or did you just decide to comment out of the blue?

Your shock that a Fallout fansite would put other games below the game they are dedicated to is understandeable, though. Jeesh, talk about peripheral vision.
I apologize you are correct I hadn't actually read the article. I was commenting on how annoyed I had become with this particular niche.

The reason I didn't read the article is too often I have gone to the NMA site only to wish I hadn't. Those stupid cartoons of yours for instance.

So, I just finished reading the article now however, and after re-reading my own comments I still stand by them.

The lack of dev interaction I was referring to to was the comments from some of the devs themselves saying they stopped reading their own forums. That wasn't everyone of course.

I'm a fan of Fallout and enjoyed it immensely. These are hardly "myths" as you say. It might make you feel better to say that and if that's what you want, be my guest.

These are my observations as I've followed the game and the reactions over the years. I'm sorry to say they've earned reputation as its perceived. That's the way I see it. If I'm wrong why is this "mini-flame war" even going on?

To tell you the truth it was the hijacking of the top RPG list over at the .dot that I discovered this community in the first place. Either DaC or your NMA linked to it and it was the first time I saw the place.

It's not impossible to create a good roleplaying experience with a first-person real-time game, nobody's made that claim. The problem is that fans don't want a Fallout sequel that isn't isometric and turn-based.
you forgot the word some before the word fans there.

if you change that part of the formula it doesn't feel like a Fallout game anymore.
so you say. the fact that Fallout was so different from Wasteland did that stop it from keeping the same spirit? I said before the shots from Fo3 looked like they were recycling. Let's get this game up to the times. I tried playing FO2 again last year..its tedius and out of date.

That's all I'm going to say for now. And me without my Stimpack. would a "History of the RPGDot/RPGWatch Regulars" article go over?
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May 10th, 2008, 20:29
I think from today on we can just take it as fact that this will be rocky launch. If a company is not even able to provide a possibility to download at a certain point in time, and it not even able to communicate why… well… this will be a Deja Vue for everyone who witenessed the start of AO.

Mein Warhammer Online Review auf
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RPGWatch Forums » Comments » News Comments » RuneScape - God Wars Dungeon Released

Default RuneScape - God Wars Dungeon Released

October 24th, 2013, 05:55
If any of you still play RuneScape the developers Jagex have released a new dungeon to celerabte reaching one million players.

Wednesday 23rd October, Cambridge, UK - More than one million retro gaming fans have flocked to RuneScape Old School since Jagex, the UK-based developer, launched a 2007 version of the multi-award winning RuneScape in February this year. Having been released following the mobilisation of over 450,000 players who voted for the launch of Old School, Jagex have continued to empower the community to take control of the developmental direction by allowing them to vote on every update that goes into game.

Following a landslide vote where over 89% of the community voted for the introduction of the God Wars Dungeon to Old School RuneScape, this release heralds in a new era of boss hunting and group gameplay. Featuring four new bosses, K’ril Tsutsaroth, Commander Zilyana, General Graardor and Kree’arra, players have a chance of obtaining a legendary Godsword, the most powerful weapon known to Old School. In addition, new sets of high level melee and range armours and high level weapons including the Staff of the Dead and the Armadyl Crossbow have also been added to the game.

“Seeing RuneScape Old School hit the million player mark so soon after launch is a great milestone for the game and our players have joined the celebration by voting for the game’s most epic update to date,” commented Phil Mansell, RuneScape’s Executive Producer. “Players will need to be steadfast and defiant in order to win through and defeat the gods, but if successful, players will be rewarded beyond their wildest imagination. It is the ultimate game of seeking treasure or die trying – something RuneScape has grown famous for.”
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October 24th, 2013, 05:55
I was going to try Runescape again but since someone got access to my account and got me banned I can't. They totally ignore everything I try to get unbanned so it doesn't sound like it is worthwhile to even try anymore.
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October 24th, 2013, 19:31
I wonder of Blizzard would follow suit on classic servers… Not a chance!
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TCA Announces 2011 Best Fleets to Drive For

Twenty companies are recognized for having the best workplaces for truck drivers; five upcoming companies are identified as “Best Fleets to Watch” February 11th, 2011

Barry Eckert Named TCA Highway Angel

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Epes Transport System driver protected a small child
who had wandered onto a busy road Barry Eckert, a professional truck driver for Epes Transport System, Inc., of Greensboro, N.C., has been named a Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) Highway Angel for protecting a ... September 14th, 2010


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Basic research bill backed in US

02 June 2010

The Democrats have scored big in a political fight underway in the US Congress over legislation to expand government funding for basic research and science programmes.

On 28 May, the House of Representatives approved a bill that aims to keep the US National Science Foundation (NSF), Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science, and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) on a 10-year budget-doubling trajectory to 2016.

Research funding in the US

Basic research should get a funding boost now the bill has finally been passed

The legislation was pulled from consideration 13 May afterRepublicans offered a last minute motion that cut funding for basic research programmes, reduced the five-year authorisation to three years, and prohibited any funds authorised in the bill from being used to pay salaries of federal employees disciplined for viewing pornography. It was rejected again in the House on 19 May, after failing to gain the two-thirds votes required for approval.

Democrats finally got the measure passed, despite Republican concerns about its multi-billion dollar price tag, by using a rare procedural tactic that divided up the Republican motion so that each of its components was voted on separately.

The bill ultimately approved restored the original authorisation period of five years, and included what has come to be known as the 'porn provision'.

Supporters of the legislation, including the American Chemical Society, say it will help foster innovation and ensure US leadership in emerging and growing fields like nanotechnology.

But Republicans remain unenthusiastic. 'While I am glad we were finally able to reauthorise many of the important research and education programmes in this bill, the bill that passed today spends too much money, authorises duplicative programmes, and shifts focus away from the bill's original intent,' said Rep. Ralph Hall from Texas, the top Republican on the House Science and Technology Committee.

Republicans cite a Congressional Budget Office estimate that the bill, which still must pass the Senate before President Obama can sign it into law, would cost $86 billion.

Rebecca Trager, US correspondent for Research Europe

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17 May 2010

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CODY (4.5) by Kimberly Raye: Raye's Texas Vampires series continues with Cody, who was turned after the Civil War. He and his brothers arrived home to find their home burning and their family dead. Now Cody sees the face of the man responsible in a newspaper. It's the man who runs Skull Creek Choppers. Determined to kill him, Cody is derailed by Miranda, who's looking for some sexual excitement before she marries. When he's with her, everything changes for Cody -- who usually feeds off the sexual release of the women he's with, but doesn't experience it himself. Highly sensual, well-developed and sympathetic characters, plus vampire cowboys, make this a first-rate read.

Reviewed by:
Page Traynor


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Image of Smoke Screen (Love Inspired Suspense)

Image of Smoke Screen (Love Inspired Suspense)
SMOKE SCREEN (4) by Stephanie Newton: As the first fire department chaplain of Sea Breeze, Fla., Jake Rollins is still involved with the department. So when a fire kills a woman from church with whom he's been working, and it's set to resemble the one that killed his fiancee three years ago, it seems like it could be the work of a serial killer. FBI agent Chloe Davis is soon involved with the investigation and with Jake, a situation that could put her life in danger. This new story, part of the Emerald Coast 911 series, has plenty of action, an intriguing mystery and some familiar characters from previous stories.
Reviewed by:
Susan Mobley


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Julia London's Guide To San Antonio

If you're in San Antonio for RWA, you might appreciate an insider's guide on what to do, what to see and, most importantly, where to eat. And what better guide than romance author and San Antonio native Julia London? Today the author shares her favorite go-to spots for fun in the Alamo City.

If you’re like a lot of people I meet, the only thing you know about San Antonio is the battle of the Alamo, and you probably think the actual Alamo is a lot bigger than it really is. You’ll see for yourself: The Alamo is a short walk from the conference hotel, and a whole lot smaller than Hollywood has made it.

It seems to me San Antonio doesn’t get the buzz other cities in Texas get (hello, Austin), but it is truly one of our most unique cities. I love the laid-back, Latin American, tropical vibe. But at the same time, the city is also progressively urban. In town for a day or a week, here are a few suggestions for what to see and do:

Mission Concepcion

Historic sites: There are so many! But a must see is the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park. The Alamo wasn’t the only mission, and several remain standing. What’s a mission, you ask? The missions were established by Franciscans to bring Christianity to the indigenous people. Which, technically, would be some of my people. The great news for you is that the River Walk has been greatly expanded in recent years, and you can walk, rent a bike, or run from your hotel to see them. What? Was that a no? Then it’s only a few miles from downtown, a short cab ride.

Plates of Mexican food

Food at Rosario's

Good Eats: What’s San Antonio without Mexican food? Fortunately, you will find authentic Mexican and Tex-Mex food all over San Antonio. One of the more iconic spots downtown for Mexican food is Rosario’s. Not into Mexican food, or afraid of the strong possibility of Mexican food overdose? Try one of my faves: Cappy’s, which is about four miles up Broadway. It serves what I would call American cuisine and is fabulous if you need to get out of downtown. You could walk there, but it’s kind of uphill. So maybe you should take a cab.

Exploring the Vibe: San Antonio has a very rich museum system. The McNay art museum is an oasis in the middle of town. So is the Witte. But this month, the San Antonio Museum of Art has an exhibit of 100 Henri Matisse works on display. To celebrate—the museum is also hosting Matisse Paints the Town, so you may notice Matisse-themed window displays and events around town. Guess what? The museum is free and it’s on the River Walk, which means you can stroll there from your hotel. No, seriously, you can walk there.

A view of the San Antonio botanical gardens

Only part of the San Antonio Botanical Gardens

Great Outdoors: Need to get out of air-conditioned air? Brackenridge Park is more than 300 acres of beautiful landscaped park and recreation. Just a few blocks from the park is the San Antonio Botanical Gardens, a really lovely spot to unwind. And guess what? You can walk here, too! (Or bike. Or run. Okay, take a cab then). It’s just north of downtown on the River Walk.

Fun Times: Pearl Brewery has been repurposed! Back in the day, the Pearl Brewery was exactly what the name implies, but since it has shuttered, it has been transformed into an island of dining, shopping, and urban living. Surprise! It’s also on the River Walk. Don’t walk there—take a river taxi! Not to be confused with the tour boats you’ll see, these riverboats fly a flag. You can pick one up from any of the water taxi stops along the river. Take one from your conference hotel to the Brewery for a bite, a yoga class, or to rent a bike. No? Then visit Twig, a local bookstore.

I sincerely hope you have a great conference and love San Antonio as much as I do. Just remember to take water with you. It can get a little steamy.

- Julia London

If you have any other San Antonio tourism suggestions, sound off in the comments! Julia London's latest novel, Return to Homecoming Ranch, is available today. For more romance visit our Everything Romance page.


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RTCC logo

UK nuclear paralysis threatens climate targets – MPs report

By Ed King

Britain’s stuttering ‘new nuclear’ programme is placing the country’s ambitious carbon reduction targets at risk, an influential committee of MPs has concluded.

The Energy and Climate Change Committee report, Building New Nuclear: the challenges ahead, warns if plans for 16GW of nuclear power collapse, it is likely that fossil fuels would fill the gap.

It says the subsidies offered to nuclear operators are too generous, and in a damning indictment of the Department of Energy and Climate Change claims there is no ‘Plan B’ if current plans flop.

At present EDF Energy is the only company committed to investing in nuclear plants in the UK.

“If new nuclear power stations are not built on time, our legally-binding climate change targets will be extremely challenging and much more expensive to meet,” said committee chair Tim Yeo.

“The Government seems to be crossing its fingers that private companies will deliver a fleet of new nuclear power stations on time and on budget.

“Ministers need to urgently come up with a contingency plan in case the nuclear industry does not deliver the new power stations we need.”

The 2008 Climate Change Act obliges the UK to adopt a series of legally binding carbon budgets, with an ultimate aim of reducing greenhouse gas emissions 80% by 2050.

India is one of 13 countries planning new nuclear reactors (Source: Petr Pavlicek/IAEA)

The UK currently gets 19% of its electricity from nuclear power, but all but one of its nine plants are slated to close by 2023.

Government plans for 16GW of new nuclear were hit last March when energy companies E.ON and RWE npower announced that they would not be proceeding with plans to develop new plants.

In February 2013 Centrica announced it was also pulling out of new investment in two plants, leaving French-owned EDF as the sole company committed to building new reactors in the UK.

The programme was dealt a further blow when Cumbria County Council voted against proposals to develop an underground nuclear waste storage facility.

The Department for Energy and Climate Change’s ‘low cost’ plans for low carbon energy up to 2050 include up to 40GW of nuclear power, together with 1,400 offshore and 4,400 onshore wind turbines.

To place this in context, a Friends of the Earth scenario without nuclear requires 10,000 offshore and 8,000 onshore wind turbines in 2050.

The committee warns that if current proposals fall through, future nuclear investments in the UK would be fatally undermined.

“This would make it likely that future projects would not be able to raise the necessary capital, raising the prospect that it would not be possible to build any further nuclear plant without state funding,” it reads.

New build projects in France and Finland have experienced serious delays and cost overruns.

Nuclear reactors typically cost £7 billion, although are relatively cheap to operate once completed, unlike fossil fuel plants which require daily deliveries of fuel.

Government attempts to incentivise potential partners have led to accusations that nuclear subsidies vastly exceed those given to other forms of energy such as solar or wind.

The report comes at an awkward moment for the government, which is attempting to push a new Energy Bill through Parliament.

The bill is already under attack for omitting a 2030 power sector decarbonisation target that would see the UK fall in line with the recommendations from the advisory Committee on Climate Change.

Read more on: |

Related News

China set to invest in UK nuclear industry

Analysis: UK nuclear plans shrouded in mystery

Shale gas finds could kill Nuclear in UK

IEA report questions wisdom of nuclear shutdowns


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Your iPhone uses more energy than a refridgerator

Smart phone users that consume a huge amount of data are contributing to climate change says new report

(Source: somegeekintn)

The digital economy uses a tenth of the world’s electricity according to a report by technology and investment advisory firm, Digital Power Group.

The report found a single iPhone can consume more energy than a refrigerator due to the substantial data usage of a typical smartphone owner.

According to the report, the UK has the greatest concentration of data centres, consuming over 6.4GW of power per year, which is equivalent to six million British households.

“The problem essentially boils down to data,” said Peter Hopton, green IT entrepreneur, Iceotope CEO.

“Modern mobile users consume data at an alarming rate. It’s not that particular mobile phone models aren’t energy efficient, it’s that we use these devices to access cloud computing services, and this ‘always-on’ IT culture requires huge data farms to be located around the country.”

“Most people are simply unaware of IT’s environmental impact, and this report just highlights the scale of what’s being missed.”

iPhone manufacturer Apple has invested in renewable energy for some of their centres in the US in a bid to reduce theirs and their users’ carbon emissions.

“There’s nothing wrong with heavy data usage, and I am by no means suggesting we ban mobile data, God forbid,” said Hopton.

“Instead, service providers must recognise the impact that this kind of data usage is having on the environment and make sure that the underlying infrastructure is stored in environmentally friendly facilities – particularly as savvy, modern consumers could potentially boycott those which aren’t.

“The solutions to make these facilities green are available, it just takes a little effort from IT decision makers to implement them and it’s down to the rest of us to make them sit up and take note.”

Read more on:

Related News

New iPhone App aims to predict extreme weather events

Greenpeace slates Apple, Twitter and Amazon over energy use

Facebook signs clean energy pact with Greenpeace

17 per cent savings for energy smart households


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Irish craft pop-up at Brown Thomas

Makers & Brothers are set to bring their iconic shed to Brown Thomas as a pop-up installation, celebrating and selling Irish craft.

The Irish company, owned and operated by brothers Jonathan and Mark Legge, is based in Blackrock, Co. Dublin. Started in 2011, the Legges founded the business upon the belief that there is a demand for authentic, handmade objects of Irish origin which are forged with integrity and depth.

Especially championing local craft, Makers & Brothers offers inspirational and thought provoking products, placing Irish craft in an international design context.

Brown Thomas Dublin welcomes Makers & Brothers between Tuesday April 9th and Monday 6th May. A carefully curated selection of their Irish craft designs will be available, housed on the Living Floor (level 3), in the form of the brand's iconic headquarters called 'The Shed'.

The pop-up shop will feature locally handcrafted objects of use that are simple, beautiful, nicely odd and made with love.

Irish makers whose crafted collections will be displayed in the pop-up shop at Brown Thomas include Irish textile designer Claire-Anne O’Brien's Knitted Irish Animals (€62) exclusively for Makers & Brothers. Based on native Connemara animals, 'Brigid the Sheep', 'Fionn the Fox' and 'Liam the Hare' have been knitted and assembled by hand using thick luxury Irish wool from Kilcar, Co. Donegal.

Studio Donegal's tweed cushions (€48) offer a contemporary interpretation of the traditional 'Snail Trail' pattern. Kilkenny based family business Jerpoint offers multi-coloured jugs (€60) that have been individually mouth blown and hand shaped using techniques and tools that are centuries old.

Donal Moloney's hand crafted Irish beech wood iPhone cases designed to fit iPhones 4, 4S and 5 and priced at (€39) are simple, elegant and eminently functional. Each case has been hand crafted from start to finish in his Co. Kildare workshop and finished with natural oil to develop a beautiful patina over time.

Developed by Makers & Brothers and produced exclusively by James Carroll, the gouged stool collection (€110) uses locally sourced Birch and Ash wood and offers a classic shape with three legs and a wonderful gouged top surface. Based in the Wicklow Mountains, James works with the natural features of each piece of wood, never creating the same stool twice.

Customers are also invited to experience interactive events in 'The Shed' pop-up where the brothers will present demonstrations, including:

Saturday, 13th April and Sunday, 14th April: Customise and build a Gouged stool

Saturday, 20th April and Sunday, 21st April: Laser engrave your wooden iPhone case

Saturday, 27th April and Sunday, 28th April: Meet maker Claire-Anne O’Brien and tag your very own Knitted Irish Animals featuring 'Brigid the Sheep', 'Fionn the Fox' and 'Liam the Hare'.

For further information please visit and to find out more information about Maker & Brothers or to shop from their e-store, visit:


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ICTU defers national strike

Wednesday 25 March 2009 22.03
ICTU - Executive council meets
ICTU - Executive council meets

The executive council of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions has announced it is deferring the 'day of action' planned for next Monday.

It comes as union leaders decided to return to talks with the Government on an economic recovery package.

ICTU General Secretary David Begg said unions want the Government to engage with their ten-point plan for economic recovery.

On RTÉ’s News at One, Mr Begg said the public service pension levy was not the only issue and that unions want to discuss a range of matters including protections for workers, mortgage holders, those on social welfare and a fair restructuring of the tax system.

All four teaching unions have voted to defer strike action following the ICTU decision.

The INTO, the ASTI, the TUI and IFUT all voted to defer their planned one-day strikes.

Minister for Foreign Affairs, Micheál Martin, has welcomed the decision to call off the 'day of action' and to re-enter talks on an economic recovery package.

Speaking on RTÉ's Drivetime, Mr Martin said the Government was anxious to develop a collective societal approach to what he called the very significant and grave challenges facing the country.

Monday's action threatened serious disruption, particularly to transport, health and education services.

But in recent days, the campaign received a significant setback, when members of IMPACT, the largest public sector union, failed to reach the required majority to support the action.

Last night, the Association of Higher Civil and Public Servants also voted 60%-40% against taking part.

The invitation for talks from Taoiseach Brian Cowen was welcomed by both unions and the employers' body IBEC.

The unions have consistently complained that the Government strategy to tackle the economic crisis has disproportionately hit working people and lower earners.

Former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern has said employers and unions have done the right thing and that a national day of action would have caused external damage.


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'Small window' open for Syria talks - Ban Ki-moon

Friday 01 March 2013 20.37
Ban Ki-moon said he would meet envoy Lakhdar Brahimi in Switzerland on Saturday for private talks
Ban Ki-moon said he would meet envoy Lakhdar Brahimi in Switzerland on Saturday for private talks

Syria will fall apart if its government and rebels keep fighting instead of seeking a negotiated peace, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said.

He said the situation in Syria was deteriorating by the day after almost two years of conflict in which 70,000 people have died, but there was now a slim chance for peace talks.

"This is a very small window of opportunity which we strongly support and encourage them to use that. The opportunity may soon close," Mr Ban said at a news conference in Geneva.

Syria's government has shown increased willingness to hold talks with the opposition to end a war that has driven nearly 1 million Syrians to flee their country.

Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem said on Monday the government would even speak to armed rebels.

On Thursday it extended passport terms for Syrian nationals abroad, meeting a condition set by the opposition for talks.

Delivering an annual lecture in Geneva todau, the UN chief said: "I continue to urge the Syrian parties to find their way to the negotiating table.

"The horrors of the last months and years prove beyond doubt: the military solution in Syria is leading to the dissolution of Syria."

"The Security Council must no longer stand as a silent witness to the slaughter.

"At long last, it must come together and establish the parameters for the democratic transition that might be the last best hope for saving Syria," he said.

Russia insists Assad exit must not be precondition

Russia has blocked UN Security Council resolutions aimed at forcing an end to the conflict and insists the exit of President Bashar al-Assad from power must not be a precondition for a negotiated solution.

On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin cautiously welcomed a suggestion from French leader Francois Hollande that dialogue on Syria be broadened to bring in parties that could act as negotiators between Mr Assad and opposition rebels.

"I am urging again the Security Council and regional leaders and the people of Syria to unite themselves to address this issue," Mr Ban told reporters.

"In just about two weeks time, we will be entering the third year of this crisis. How long (do) we have to see the people killed and displaced in this way?"

He said he would meet his Syria envoy Lakhdar Brahimi at an Alpine retreat in Switzerland on Saturday for private talks along with senior aides.

"There's not much political space... I cannot give you any guarantee or a deadline or any future meetings," he said.

For now, in the absence of a political resolution, humanitarian assistance must be increased, he added.

Mali talks

Meanwhile, the secretary general also said talks should be held as soon as possible on deploying a United Nations peacekeeping force in Mali, where French-led forces are pursuing Islamist rebels ousted from cities in the north.

"The idea of deploying United Nations peacekeeping operations, transforming this African-led support mission in Mali, AFISMA, is now being seriously discussed," Mr Ban said.


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Tom Kenny calls time on his Cork career

Updated: Thursday, 12 Dec 2013 16:56 | Comments

Tom Kenny has quit inter-county hurling to focus on the club scene
Tom Kenny has quit inter-county hurling to focus on the club scene

Cork two time All-Ireland winner Tom Kenny has announced his decision to retire from inter-county hurling.

Kenny, who won the Liam MacCarthy Cup with Cork in 2004 and 2005 informed manager Jimmy Barry Murphy of his intention to step down in order to focus on his club career with Grenagh.

"I met Jimmy (Barry-Murphy) a couple of nights ago and told him," Kenny told the Irish Examiner.

"I said all along I’d wait until Grenagh were finished in the championship, and our season ended last Sunday when we won the intermediate football."

"I'm 32 now and I felt it was time to let other lads come through and have their chance. I'm healthy, it’s not because of injury."

Kenny was part of the Cork team to lose this year's All-Ireland final replay with Clare and while he admits that he would have liked to go out on a high, he insists he has no regrets.

"I've had a good innings with Cork, it would have been great to go out with a third All-Ireland medal this year, but it wasn’t to be," he insisted.

Kenny went on to pay tribute to those who had supported him during his time with the Rebels "Over the years my mother and father and extended family were very good to me always, and my wife, Norleen, has been hugely supportive.

"All the lads I played alongside for Cork... It was an honour," he added.

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/ Hockey

Ireland lose Investec Cup to England on penalties

Updated: Sunday, 13 Jul 2014 20:03 | Comments

Eugene Magee scored Ireland's opener
Eugene Magee scored Ireland's opener

Ireland met hosts England in the final of the Investec Cup taking place in London today, losing out 4-2 in a penalty shoot-out after the tie finished 2-2 after normal time.

England opened the scoring early in the sixth minute, leaving Ireland chasing the game at half-time, but Eugene Magee came out with a blazing goal in the 36th minute, with a bullet of a shot from the top of the circle to level 1-1.

England took the lead back once again, after a melee around the goalmouth saw David Condon’s close range shot taking an Irish stick deflection en route into the goal to make it 2-1.

Ireland left it right to the end to level the sides after they attacked throughout the second half, and it was Mitch Darling who converted off a great baseline drive and reverse stick pass from Alan Sothern to make it 2-2 and push the game into a shoot-out.

Two of Ireland’s shoot-outs resulted in a penalty stroke award which Sothern duly converted twice, but England’s clinical shoot-out conversions ensured they secured the Investec Cup title.

Commenting after the match, coach Fulton said: “I'm very proud of the performance today and happy we got the score back to two-all.

"I am very excited to see some of the young talent on show but it’s a pity we couldn’t finish it off with a win.

“I am  delighted that we competed so well, getting the belief back into the Green Machine, and getting the hockey community’s support behind us, it makes all the difference as we continue on the Road To Rio.

"We need all the support we can get behind these players, these are exciting times with a very talented group of players.”

User contributions and/or comments do not, unless specifically stated, represent the views of RTÉ.ie or RTÉ.
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text:
With the evaluation version RTF2FO: RTF to XML converter! you can try all features of the commercial edition before purchasing a license for commerce use.

Using RTF2FO: RTF to XML converter! evaluation version for commercial purposes is forbidden.

Resulting documents contain some letters replaced by "-" and "." symbols.

In prepare-template mode, some text entries are not moved to XML data file.

March, 2009 - Maintainance release, Version 3.4.4d

Version 3.4.3 is published

  • RTF Parser is extended to support form fields;
  • Rendering of form fields is applied (check boxes are drawn using in-stream SVG graphics);
  • Add "fix-svg-indents" attribute in FOP-compatibility options to remove FOP bug in drawing SVG;
  • Add workaround to fix the bug of latest MS Word updates concerning to incorrect using of header/footer destinations.

Version 3.4.2 is published

  • Redesign of RTF2FO logging system. Any logger can be used now;
  • New logging is based on ExternalLogger interface;
  • Introduce RTFOPDF.java class example converting RTF to PDF in the memory using RTF2FO and FOP-0.20.5;
  • Fix a bug with default border width if it is omitted;
  • Support for "current page number" active symbol;
  • Missing char in "Symbol" and "ZapfDingbats" fonts is now substituted with U+2395 char (a rectangle).

3.4.1 is published

  • Support the "INCLUDEPICTURE" field;
  • Support the "if PAGE = NUMPAGES" field in header/footer;
  • Add "simple-server-path" compatibility property (for FOP);
  • Parse OpenOffice frame commands;
  • Convert text from a single shape of any type;
  • Fix a bug with empty borders in tables.

Version 3.4 is published

  • Add the "parse-ignore-case", "parse-by-specification", "parse-with-old-margins", "conversion-density" options which allow override corresponding system properties for the RTF Parser;
  • Add the "hide-track-changes" option and the "rtf.parse.hide-track-changes" system property;
  • Open the RTF DOM Specification and API;
  • Add the "show-rtfdom" option;
  • Improve the RTF2FO GUI: hints are added, new options are added, auto-selection of compatibility model is applied when an output plug-in is changed;
  • Add testing on trial time period in the evaluation version of RTF2FO; if trial time period is not expired, the evaluation version works as the full version without staining a FO output;
  • Improve plug-ins search method: all plug-in configuration files can be stored in the rtf2fo.jar now (in the subdirectory "ru.novosoft.dc.rtf2fo.plugins"); plug-in configuration files stored in the file system have a precedence on those stored in jar;
  • Add possibility to apply filters before converting an RTF DOM to XSL FO;
  • Add two low-level methods to RTF2FO class: the build() method returns an RTF DOM and additional convert() method allows convert an RTF DOM to XSL FO;
  • Fix a bug with incorrect ignoring of \bin command in RTF Parser;
  • Improve processing of tables having "at-least" constrains on their rows.

Version 3.3.5

  • Search of auxiliary files in jar is improved: absolute position of them in jar (e.g. "conf" subdirectory of jar) is replaced with relative position (e.g. with "conf" subdirectory of rtf2fo package directory in jar).

Version 3.3.4

  • Add API for output plug-ins as methods of RTF2FOContext class;
  • Improve line height calculation algorithm (the size of paragraph or cell marker is ignored if the paragraph content consists of smaller or bigger text);
  • Interpret bookmarks inside field instructions;
  • Add the "show-doc-info" option;
  • Improved handling of uri-specification in XSL FO. Picture and external URIs are now encoded in some way depending on compatibility model to allow local encodings in URI specification;
  • Add the "use-absolute-refs" option;
  • Add the "clip-headers" option;
  • Remove the "compare-pictures" option, because the comparison of pictures is always applied now;
  • Producing of indented fo-output in GUI is now available;
  • Watermarks are now supported;
  • Add the "allow-watermarks" option;
  • Algorithm for searching auxiliary files is extended to search in java resources.

Version 3.3.3

  • Add user-defined overriding feature for RTF2FO conversion models;
  • Implement the "separate-inlines" conversion mode;
  • Extended support for RTF Specification 1.7 (process 15 row shading commands);
  • Extended track changes support (revised text is marked with red color);
  • Parse all compatibility options for RTF Specification 1.7;
  • The "brdrnone" command is always interpreted as no-border;
  • Bug with empty field instructions fixed.

Version 3.3.2

  • Renaming of compatibility options with Antenna House XSL Formatter from ahxf to axf;
  • Possibility of hiding of useless compatibility models is added;
  • In compatibility with FOP, continuous section breaks are now interpreted using the base solution;
  • The compatibility with XEP 3.2 is added (in multicolumn layout, footnotes are spanned to the whole width of page as recommended in XSL FO Specification 1.0);
  • The compatibility with FOP-0.20.5 is added (the last right tab is converted using last-line-end-indent attribute);
  • Word-only underlining is implemented (but well-known renderers do not understand it yet);
  • Processing of leading spaces in paragraphs is improved (we change them to no-breaking spaces to avoid their collapsing);
  • Partial support of RTF 1.7 Specification (convert table borders of the new style);
  • Bug with interpreting of zero-width cells with horizontal spans in tables fixed;
  • Picture plug-ins occasionally deactivated in version 3.2 work again.

Version 3.3.1

    The color mixing algorithm is improved;
  • Shading with pattern color is supported by mixing the background and foreground colors in respective proportion;
  • The auto color is supported (automatic change of the text auto color to white color if the background is too dark);
  • Sophisticated selection of line stacking strategy is introduced;
  • Bug with disappearing an empty paragraph containing a bookmark fixed;
  • Bug with parsing of endnote separators fixed;
  • Table rules of new style are now recognized;
  • More exact parsing of cell spacing attributes;
  • Table-header rows are interpreted as table-body rows if a table has no body.

Version 3.3

  • The internal structure of the converter is completely redesigned to a new modular technology;
  • New implementation of tabs rendering: all types of tabs for all font variants are now supported;
  • Improve processing of leaders in tabs;
  • Bugs with incorrect borders (disappearing or extra borders) in tables are fixed;
  • Deleted text is marked with red color and line-through decoration;
  • Text raising supported;
  • Exact font metrics for subscript and superscript;
  • Allow strict rendering of small caps ("strict-small-caps" option);
  • Conversion of line breaks improved;
  • Improve in conversion of groups of paragraphs with identical formatting having borders and shading;
  • Internal structure of fo-document is improved: in template preparing mode style attributes are grouped in attribute sets;
  • The "rtf-info" option is introduced;
  • The fo:root customization feature is introduced ("preference" option).

Maintenance release, version 3.2.2

  • Fixed bug with cycles in nested tables.

Maintenance release, version 3.2.1

  • Fixed bug with extra borders in tables;
  • Fixed bug in parsing picture shape attributes inside shape parameters;
  • Nonstandard rtf-files starting with \rtf without parameter are now processed.

Version 3.2

  • RTF2FO Graphics User Interface is completely changed
  • The internal structure of the converter is partially redesigned to a new modular technology
  • Compatibility options are replaced with the "model" option
  • Output plug-ins are introduced
  • Loading of GUI preferences in command line run is now enabled
  • Full implementation of tables (support of horizontal positioning, separate borders, headers, invisible cells, and pagination properties is added)
  • Section breaks of all types are supported

Version 3.1

  • Quick Start User's Guide introduced
  • Non-grouped textboxes are supported using absolutely positioned blocks
  • Section start page number is supported
  • Improvements in bookmarks support (avoid *** reference in Antenna House XSL Formatter)
  • Optimization: neighbor inline strings with the same formatting context are merged
  • Improvements in parsing rtf file. Files nonconforming RTF Specification are parsed without troubles
  • RTF2FO: RTF to XML converter! configuration method improved

Version 3.0

  • The user's manual is almost new
  • The entirely new implementation of RTF2FO: RTF to XML converter! is based on the new RTF Parser
  • The user's API is entirely new

Maintenance release, version 2.2.2

  • Fop 0.20.4 compatibility file added
  • Bug fixes

Version 2.2.1

  • Graphics conversion plug-in interface is introduced.
  • Fix a bug in GUI options configuration.
  • Fix bugs with transparent background color, incorrect padding in table cells, and incorrect positioning of headers and footers.

Version 2.2

  • GUI introduced
  • All paragraph pagination properties are supported (widow/orphan control, keep together, keep with next, page break before)
  • All variants of paragraph line spacing are supported
  • Cell, paragraph, and text color shading without pattern supported
  • Last page number field supported
  • Cell margins supported
  • Tabs rendering is turned off if graphics could not be initialized

Version 2.1

  • Support of tabs is essentially improved using partial rendering.
  • The following special characters are supported: "en-dash", "em-dash", "copyright", "trademark", "registered", "ellipsis", left and right single/double quotes, and "bullet" (it is bigger now).
  • Paragraph shading without pattern supported.
  • Compatibility options with XSL Formatter from Antenna House, Inc. added.

Version 2.0

  • All new implementation of the converter version 2.0.
  • Subscript supported.
  • More border types in tables.
  • Footnote separator support.
  • Compatibility options added.
  • Installer is prepared.

Maintenance release, version 1.3.1

  • Bug fixing.

Version 1.3

  • Conversion specification added: conversion rules limitations test examples references.
  • Additional columns support: gap width column breaks.
  • Additional tabs support and TOC's tabs: leader-like tab recognition.
  • Lists of the new format are supported.
  • Logging added: option -v or --verbose. Prints unsupported RTF control words and exceptions.

Version 1.2

Version 1.1 of RTF2FO: RTF to XML converter!

To run the product you should have Java 1.2 or higher installed on your computer.

Download version 3.4.4

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text:
Script reloads window when Netscape Navigator is resized

Overview of the history of Nielloware around the world

Most civilizations have devised ways to beautify their metal objects. Some of the methods used for ornamenting metals are hammering, chiseling, engraving, inlay, Niello, enamelling, etc. It has been argued that decorating metal objects with other metals of contrasting colors is simple by creating alloys that melt easily. For instance, dark color alloys can be produced without much difficulty through melting specific metals [4] . Therefore, the early history of an art such as Niello is difficult to establish.

The origin of Niello has been to Egypt during the 18th dynasty (c. 1540 BC - c. 1292 BC), or in Crete or Mycenae around the same time [5] . According to Avieropolous Choo, one of the earliest examples of Nielloware is a silver cup with Niello decorations originating in Enkomi, Cyprus around 1400 BC (1984). However, other authors, such as Higgins and Frankfort suggest that the first examples of Niello come from Syria. These authors, however, propose different dates of origin, either 1800BC or between the 14th and 12th c. BC.[6]

Most sources agree that Niello was rather popular in Roman times, with production not only in Rome, but also in Roman colonies and in Byzantium. An early example of Niello is a statuette of Roman Emperor Nero from the first century C.E. Other Roman objects decorated with Niello abound through the first five centuries of the Christian era [7]. Link, author who specializes in the history of silver, indicates that the highest achievement in Roman Niello happened during the 4th and 5th centuries C.E. [8]

Niello objects found in Europe originating between the 5th and the 10th centuries seem to have been produced in the British Isles, Byzantium, Constantinople, as far as Sweden and perhaps Syria. Among those objects there are silver dishes, brooches, buckles, bowls, rings, early crosses and reliquaries. Niello is said to have been rare in Sasanian silver objects, although there are a few pieces with small parts of this type of decoration during the 6th century C.E.[9]

Although Niello doesn't seem to have been a popular decorating method in China, there are a few examples of Chinese objects with Niello on red brass, white silver and white copper. The earliest Niello object from China is an alms bowl from the 8th century A.D - Tang Dynasty (618-907) [10]. According to McElney, Niello and red brass may have arrived to Canton, China before the 9th century through Arab or Western Asian influences [11]. (1998, p.137) In addition, Gyllensvärd attributes a great development in technique, form and ornamentation of Chinese metalwork in the same period to commercial contact with other cultures as Sassanian, Byzantine, Scythian and Indian.[12]

Niello, or a substance similar to it, appears in three European documents before the 10th century C.E. Those include a reference by Pliny in addition to two technical treatises, namely the Leyden Papyrus X from the 3rd century C.E., and the Mappae Clavicula from around the 8th century C.E. While it is unclear if the substance known as a 'black asem' in the Leyden Papyrus was really Niello, the Mappae Clavicula contains several recipes for the preparation of Niello. The recipes differ depending on the composition of the Niello, on the material of the vessel that the Niello is applied to, and on the mode of application.[13]

There are numerous examples of Nielloware from the 10th century C.E. found in Central Europe, and the British Isles. At the time, jewelry, reliquaries, and metal boxes were still quite popular recipients of this type of ornamentation. Some of those pieces indicate the influence of Oriental craftsmanship [14]. In Persia, during the Seljuk period (1037 C.E.-1194 C.E.) Niello was used to decorate metalwork. [15] In addition, there is evidence of Niello production in other parts of the Middle East provided by a treatise from Yemen, c. 942 C.E., which discusses Niello manufacture. [16]

Although it has been proposed that Niello may have originated in Russia, Rosenberg indicates that Niello probably arrived in Russia from Armenia or the Caucasus before 1000 C.E.[17] Tait maintains that Niello production became popular with Islamic craftsmen around the 11th and 12th centuries. Concurrently, there was significant production of elaborate Niello decoration work in Kiev and other cities in Russia .[18]

In Tabriz, around the year 1300 C.E. Abu'l-Qasim Kashani wrote a treatise where he describes the production of mixed sulphide Niello. [19] In the 13th and 14th, Niello was very popular in France with many different types of objects receiving this type of decoration. Some authors suggest that Niello production started to decline in Europe around the 13th Century as enamel became more fashionable. [20] Nevertheless, in the 15th century there are two sources that mention Niello, one is the "Trattato dell' Oreficeria," by Benvenuto Cellini; the other is a manuscript written by Johannes Alcherius, both contain recipes for Niello. Besides the traditional role in ornamentation Niello became the main element in the decoration of paxes. From that period there are several large engraved Niello silver plaques. At that time Italy had various centers of Niello production, with Florence and Bologna being the most famous. The most renowned artists of that era are Tomaso or Masso Finiguerra, Antonio del Pollaiuolo in Florence; and in Bologna, Francesco Francia and Peregrino da Cesena. Vasari praised Francia as an unsurpassed master in the art of Niello.[21]

Around the beginning of the 17th Century the popularity of Niello started to decline. Consequently, Niello production in Europe diminished considerably. Nonetheless, Niello manufacture was still strong in Russia in the 19th century. This technique was still used until the early 20th century in traditional Islamic jewelry [22] and also in Turkey, Burma, Italy, Russia and Thailand for the production of small objects in general. [23]

Gold Nielloware bowld

[History in Thailand]


text:
RANDOLPH CHALFANT HEAD (-1970) original pencil architectural drawing dated 1927 by noted early California architect and painter

Jon Berg Fine Arts and More

Jon Berg, Southern California, CA

Fine paintings, drawings, prints, sculpture, Old Master to Contemporary--and other fine collectables

Please look through my offerings for an unusual and rewarding online fine art shopping experience.

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18.5 by 16.5 inch Antique Walnut Gilt Frame Photograph Lady Portrait - 19th Century, USA

Amulet Art and Antiques

R. Kelly, Wilmington, DE

Mostly 19th Century Art & Antiques

Welcome to our shop! We invite you to scroll down, read our customer testimonials and buy with confidence!

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Torchlight 1 Mods: Classes

Files in category : Classes
  File Date Torchlight 1 ModsReverse Sort Order
Jarcho's Class Compilation V1.3 Jarcho's Class Compilation V1.3 : 2011-07-20 Admin Update: This mod is not compatible with HotSpot. We suggest you install the individual class manually and allow HotSpot to merge them, to help with compatibility problems. 2012-01- ... [more] (41.27 MB) 07-20-2010 211,745
Lady Knight v1.03 Lady Knight v1.03 : Includes Lady Knight class - noble warrior with power over light. 20 new items (swords and shields) with 'gothic' look (new meshes and new icons) 2 new wardrobes (starting one and light leather) s ... [more] (6.43 MB) 07-20-2010 49,383
[CLASS] Enchantress Mod [CLASS] Enchantress Mod : The Enchantress uses the power of ember to attack with deathly magic and summon minions to do her bidding! Version History v3.0 - Aug.12 ... [more] (14.45 MB) 08-03-2010 38,957
Necromancer Necromancer : Here it is finally. Hope you guys like it. For updates or to leave feedback go here. Thread Discussion ... [more] (25.91 MB) 09-17-2010 29,481
GenderMod 2 GenderMod 2 : This mod (as before) allows you to select an alternate gender version of any of the original 3 classes. Valkyrie - Basically a female Destroyer (model = Vanquisher). Gains health and mana the same ... [more] (6.54 MB) 04-18-2011 27,542
King of Torchlight King of Torchlight : "The King of Torchlight is here to solve the problems of his realm!" This mod adds a new class; King. This is my first mod where I tried to modify mesh files and where I put only skills modified o ... [more] (15.14 MB) 03-03-2011 25,059
[CLASS] Ravager, Blade, and Zealot Pet v2.7 [CLASS] Ravager, Blade, and Zealot Pet v2.7 : Enhanced "Destroyer" Class V2.7 cHANGES IN V2.7 I realized the affix file for the power surge skill was not the same one I had planned. updated Power Surge scales more and is a little more powerf ... [more] (10.71 MB) 12-11-2010 21,751
[CLASS] Jedi [CLASS] Jedi : Adds a Jedi as a new playable class in TL1. I am only uploading this mod on behalf of a handful of fine modders who collaborated to get this mod finished. Spunedagr (the original author) Robcal ... [more] (10.54 MB) 07-22-2011 17,460
Paladin Paladin : Torchlight Paladin Class Mod v 1.07 September 14, 2010 Most recent update: Version 1.07 is now available (9/14/10). Updates: 1) Added a Whirlwind skill to the Zealot tree. A placeholder skill ... [more] (7.10 MB) 07-20-2010 17,298
Valkyrie II Valkyrie II : Places the class "Valkyrie" into Torchlight. The Valkyrie is a female melee fighter class based on the ski ... [more] (15.93 MB) 07-20-2010 16,718
SpiritSeer (Updated) SpiritSeer (Updated) : This mod adds a class called the SpiritSeer, which is loosely inspired by the farseer from Dawn of War 2. She is a very versatile class, probably the most versatile one out there, and has the vanquis ... [more] (8.86 MB) 08-09-2010 15,691
Assassin Class V 1.8 Assassin Class V 1.8 : A flexible class designed to fill the role of the weaker, more damage oriented rogue type. A new skin, recolored armor and a custom icon distinguish him from the alchemist and give him a killer/rogue ... [more] (5.51 MB) 07-17-2010 15,447
Banshee Class V0.9a Banshee Class V0.9a : Banshee Class Mod v0.9a The Banshee is a feared harbinger of death. Her wailing forebodes unspeakable horrors. Drawing on her spectral essense infused with ember, she is both physical and ethereal ... [more] (1.69 MB) 07-20-2010 14,999
Assassino Assassino : Yesterday I had nothing to do so i made a class mod, tha "Assassino" XD It is an simple assassin class with skills taken from the 3 main classes. I made this class using the Henchman mesh (Alric's ... [more] (129.3 KB) 10-03-2010 14,077
[CLASS] Vindicator v1.7b [CLASS] Vindicator v1.7b : Vindicator, Torchlight Character Class Mod ========================================== Description =========== Places a class named "The Vindicator" into Torchlight. The Vindicator is a hybrid c ... [more] (8.48 MB) 10-29-2011 13,695
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Battle Of Britain

August 1, 2004, sees the start of the second annual Marathon of Britain: a glorious six-day, 175-mile ultra through the heart of England. Here's Andy Blackford's account of last year's inaugural event

Posted: 31 July 2004
by Andy Blackford

Into the hills: leaving Malvern on Day One

It was 6pm. The sun, relenting after a scorching assault upon the day, cast a benevolent glow upon the golden stone of a handsome Cotswold church – and, in its peaceful graveyard, upon a small, nervous group of ultrarunners.

Rory Coleman, the race director, was characteristically neither peaceful nor nervous.

“First of all, welcome to the first-ever Children With Leukaemia Marathon of Britain! For 12 months, this has been my dream – now I want it to be your dream!”

He spread his arms in a wonderfully inclusive gesture, embracing not only the 35 bemused guinea pigs who had signed up for this extraordinary, ‘self-supported’ running ordeal, but also most of Worcestershire – starting with the gently rolling lawns of Croombe Landscape Park.

This venerable estate, centred on an uncompromisingly geometrical 18th-century house, is most renowned for its artfully landscaped grounds – the very first opus in the portfolio of Capability Brown.

There were the Brits, a handful of Germans (a handful being the collective noun for any number of Germans greater than two) and Cyril.

“And let’s also welcome Cyril, who’s from Ireland!”

There was a pregnant silence – then, in an especially aggressive brogue: “Have you got a problem with that?”

Cyril Bennis was to be my tentmate, apparently.

I was already slightly frayed.

Earlier that day I’d turned up at Evesham railway station, expecting a shuttle to spirit me to the MOB encampment, in the style appropriate to a senior media celebrity.

Field events: runners made hay while the sun shone

Two hours of merciless sun in the station car park elapsed before I was forced to seek urinary relief at the Railway Hotel. Which was deserted. I sidled to the gents, where bizarrely, a loudspeaker was relaying a recording of the alleged comedian, Bernard Manning.

Rory was right about the dream thing. The inaugural MOB, a 174-mile middle England cousin of the Marathon des Sables, was looking like the most surreal event of my running career. And I hadn’t even run a step yet.

Dinner that night was to be the first of many miracles conjured twice-daily from thin air by our mystical support staff. As we waited, we circled warily around the neighbours whose idiosyncrasies, bodily odours and mood swings we would have to endure for the next six days.

Thankfully, one of these turned out to be Luke Cunliffe, with whom I had charged around Dartmoor two years earlier in celebration of RW Online Editor Sean Fishpool’s 30th birthday.

Unaccountably, he was fat. I say unaccountably because he’s a personal trainer. And only a few months earlier, he’d been the only Brit to complete the dreadful Trans 333, just before turning in a sterling performance in the Grand Union Canal 145 mile race – the one where they castrate you with a rusty hacksaw if you sit down for more than five minutes.

He moaned a lot about being overweight. He needn’t have worried. Six days later, despite the best endeavours of our prestidigitatory cooks, he was thin. We all were.

Bennis was thin already. Indeed, he resembled a spectral projection of Richard Harris after an eternity spent in Limbo, deprived of all sustenance. But he was amiable enough for a spectre, and displayed an early enthusiasm for tidiness, which the rest of Tent Four quietly conspired to encourage.

The rest were mostly Malcolm Croft and Del Ripley, proprietors of Tortoise & Hare, the legendary Surrey running store. They looked horribly like Proper Runners.

Croft had dark, burning eyes of the sort that are often seen staring wildly ahead as they streak across the finish line 20 minutes before the next bloke.

Ripley radiated the icy calm of the hard-bitten ultrarunner – the professional who has seen things that would make your orthotics shrivel in your Montrails, but who elects to keep his own counsel.

They reminded me of bounty hunters in a B-movie Western.

Direct trial: navigation skills are tested en route

God knows what they thought of me. They already knew Cunliffe – together they formed the Flame Health Team, handsomely equipped with gleaming new kit and branded shirts, courtesy of an imaginative and far-seeing sponsor. While I, the ageing privateer, was clad in exactly the same kit I wore finishing second to last in the 1962 Middlesbrough Boys’ High School Cross-Country.

That evening I laughed intemperately. I was consumed by a kind of gallows humour with its roots in my inability to provide a satisfactory answer to the question: ‘What in God’s name am I doing here?’

We went through a rather perfunctory kit inspection. Needless to say, I’d left everything to the minute just after the last one, then raced around town in a frenzy, loading up with kilos of unnecessary stuff – cast-iron fire dogs, mahogany table lamps and an impressive Druidic headdress cast in phosphor bronze and emblazoned with a hundred leaden figurines representing the elfin spirits of the woods.

In the excitement, I had quite forgotten my whistle.

Fortunately, this oversight was rectified by the redoubtable Stephen Partridge – a key figure in the MOB’s translation from ill-conceived fantasy to ghastly reality. Only Partridge would carry a spare whistle.

Next morning, we were woken at 6am by a pitifully poor impression of a cockcrow. Coleman mustered us for a final briefing. It was already hotter than the Sahara when I ran the Marathon des Sables.

He surveyed us slowly, nodding and grinning evilly. He took us through the day’s section of the road book, our comprehensive (if indecipherable) guide to the route. He illuminated some of the more arcane convolutions of the course.

“This race is 98 per cent off-road. I’ve run every inch of it. It took me 12 months. It’s a bastard, frankly.” He displayed all the self-satisfied sadism of the poacher-turned-gamekeeper.

“Lastly, a warning. It’s about the stiles. Many of them are rickety. Some are slippery with moss. Be extremely careful on the stiles.

“Now – the bus is waiting to take you to the start. Good luck, everyone, and God bless.”

We turned to go, but Partridge intervened dramatically: “Wait, everyone! Before you go, there’s one thing you should know. It’s about the stiles. Many of them are rickety. Some are slippery with moss. Be extremely careful on the stiles.”

Coleman stared at him blankly. “Thank you, Stephen.”

The bus took us to the charming town of Malvern, a celebration of 18th-century prosperity. Winding streets, clinging to the side of that astonishing geological aberration, the Malvern Range.

A few elegantly chosen words from our glamorous starter, Floella Benjamin (surrealism was already taking hold), and we were off.

The race literature makes no bones about it: “Competitors must have considerable orienteering skills to complete this event successfully.”

Three minutes in, and we were all completely lost. We careered for 10 precious minutes around the roads and tracks that were supposed to lead us to the ridge of the Malverns.

Steeple chase: the race was run against a backdrop of villages, churches and rolling hills

I suppose propelling us up a 1:4 incline bearing 10kg rucksacks at the height of a heatwave was Rory’s idea of a joke. And we responded, I think, with admirable good-humour. So far there were no blisters, stress fractures or obvious cases of heatstroke. And the view from the top was simply stunning. Across the Vale of Evesham shimmered the misty ridges of the Cotswolds. Little did we know it then – the course had been a well-kept secret – but we could just have made out the destination of the third day’s run.

Back down the Malverns and 17 miles ex-Floella, we broke the tape by the elegant private church at Croombe Landscape Park. Cunliffe and I had notched up a creditable joint sixth place. I was privately amazed. Mr Banks, my grammar school PE teacher, would have eaten his mortarboard.

My success was largely down to Cunliffe’s excellent map-reading. He ran with his head buried in the road book.

AB: “Look! Muntjack! Dwarf deer originally introduced by private collectors for their private zoos, but now breeding successfully in the English countryside!”

LC: “Hard left, then right in 150 metres.”

AB: “Ah! Now this is a really ancient track! Hooper’s Law enables one to date a hedgerow by counting the established species therein, then attributing 100 years for each species.”

LC: “Across the field, then a 30-degree turn east-nor’east, passing the sewage works on the right.”

Cunliffe ran from Malvern to Nottingham through some of the most beautiful countryside in all of fair England, and I swear he saw about six feet of it. He endured this without complaint and it’s the primary reason we did so well. In rueful retrospect he called it “the plight of the navigator”.

I’d loved to have helped, of course, but the road book was designed by The Borrowers, and was thus indecipherable to anyone with eyes more than 40 years old.

I’ve made the point to Coleman, who has promised to produce a ‘talking book’ version next year for the aged and infirm.

That evening, I extended the hand of friendship to the Bounty Hunters – tentatively, as you do to men with guns.

I asked Croft how he’d come to own a running shop. To cut a long story short, he’d tried to get a proper job but his interviewer had asked him what frightened him. He’d replied, “Giants”.

Tortoise & Hare is founded on unusual principles. It’s miles from anywhere, it doesn’t open until noon, but it doesn’t close until 8pm. Its customers have names like ‘Spikey Al’, and are expected to spend several hours there. They are received with enthusiasm proportional to the number of doughnuts they bring.

Next day, they were on their way back to count the doughnuts. England, particularly its already burnt-to-a-crisp middle, lay in a state of shock under a sun like a sledgehammer. Croft succumbed to a virus and Ripley dropped out in a heroic gesture of solidarity and drove him home.

Not a breath of breeze stirred the wilting junipers as we trudged and jogged along the scarp of the Cotswolds. On either side, plains of scorched stubble stretched away into a vague penumbra of heat and dust. Crouched beneath sweltering hills, Stanton and Broadway played dead. The temperature lurched into the high 90s.

Cunliffe and I found we were good at heat and hills. By the time we’d climbed to the weird, Italianate fantasy that is Broadway Tower, we knew that we must be hard on the heels of the leaders.

Out to dry: airing kit after a day on the trails

As we crossed the finish line, there was the merest smattering of applause. At first we were crestfallen; then we realised that there was nobody there to applaud. Almost everyone else was behind us.

This was a new concept to us: the less applause, the better your position. Excellent.

I agreed to run the MOB for two reasons: 1) Coleman, 2) I’d run up the Himalayas, across the Sahara, through the rainforests of Guyana. But my knowledge of England was largely restricted to what I’d glimpsed from the window of a speeding car on the M1.

I figured I should try to catch at least a flavour of the landscapes that had inspired such giants as Elgar, Vaughan Williams and The Chuckle Brothers.

I wasn’t disappointed. The following day we descended upon Stratford-upon-Avon, almost 20 miles into a 28-mile day. There we saw the swans that Cyril, as the highly unlikely ex-Mayor of that famous town, had once tried to protect. (His efforts brought down upon him the wrath of the fishing fraternity. They placed a mischievous advertisement in the Angling Times, which resulted in his receiving around 10,000 unsolicited telephone calls. “So I gave up politics. Now I’m just a folk singer. And every year, me an’ the missus go to Lapland to help Santa.”)

We wound through 32 miles of Leicestershire – a county of extraordinary beauty (and vicious hills) that I would have gone to the grave underestimating, if not for the MOB.

It was all little more than an aperitif for the Long Day, a 54-mile haul through Coventry and Sawley in the best traditions of any lunatic stage race.

We were about 35 miles into the Long Day. It was unbelievably hot and I was having trouble keeping up with Cunliffe, Anke Molkenthin (former Marathon des Sables winner) and eventual winner, the amazing Andy Rivett.

We reached the summit, capped by an ancient tower and affording fantastic, panoramic views of the surrounding country.

The leaders, though, didn’t pause for a moment. They just peered at their maps, poking and grumbling.

“Look!” I barked (they tell me). “I’m all for competition. But this is beautiful! If you don’t look at it, what’s the ****ing point? We might as well be on a ****ing treadmill!”

They stared at me like a schizophrenic who had neglected to take his medication – then they were off down the hill with me flailing uselessly along behind them.

Anyway, five of us crossed the line that night, 14 hours and 56 miles after setting out, and I’ve never run so well or felt so fulfilled.

The next morning’s 10, beautifully flat miles up the River Trent to the gates of Nottingham Castle were almost a formality.

The MOB does what all great races do. It binds a band of people together in a huge, pointless, epic enterprise that each of them will always count among the defining experiences of their lives.

You’ve either done it or you haven’t. I don’t often say this, but you really should.

So you want to run the Marathon of Britain...

Find out more at
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Remember Penry, the mild-mannered cartoon janitor who regularly turned into superhero Hong Kong Phooey?

Runner's World would like to introduce our own version. By day, Heidi Wilson looks after our ad clients. Then she's been taking a deep breath and running the long route home: up to 30 miles, some nights.

Heidi's been training all year for the 175-mile 2004 Flame Health Marathon of Britain - a six-day jaunt through the heart of England, which starts this Sunday, August 1. (See Andy Blackford's article above, about last year's first-ever race.)

She'll be logging in to this forum thread every evening to tell us all how it's going. With a bit of luck, we'll be adding pictures to a photo page, too.

May the wind be at your feet, crazy girl!

Sean and the RW staff

ps – if you’re feeling inspired, the race’s official charity is Action on Addiction, and Heidi is running for the Alzheimer’s Society, in memory of her best friend’s father (you can sponsor her here)

Posted: 31/07/2004 at 17:04

Thanks guys, I am still alive!

First stage done – 15.5 miles.

Rory (Race Director) woke us up this morning trying to impersonate a cockerel, which set the day off with a smile. I continued to smile all through the day, it was such a great day.

At 10am we set off at the Abbey Archway, with map firmly grasped in hand. It was straight up 100 steep steps, to an ever steeper ascent up to Worcestershire Beacon, the highest point in the Malvern Hills at some 1,500 feet. It was well worth it as the views were breathtaking. The scenes continued as we navigated our way along the ridgeway crossing all the major summits of the Malverns. It was then cross-country all the way to the final checkpoint three, at Upton-upon-Severn. The finish was through a field to Croome Court, and we had to hurdle over what felt like hundreds of miniature hay stacks, which led aptly through the graveyard to the Finish.

My partner, who I had thought I would set off with, darted off like a whippet, and came in good third overall. I was grateful to find a perfect running partner, Mike, who shared my navigational nerves, and provided some good banter along the way.

The winner of the stage was last years overall winner, Andy Rivett coming in a very fast time of 2hr 25mins. (He is the current world record holder for running from Lands End to John O’Groats). The last competitor came in 5hr 21mins. I came in 12th in 2hr 59mins, after getting lost a few times!

Some say tomorrow is the toughest day, 33 miles of tough hilly terrain – I can’t wait to find out. Now, where’s my dinner!

Posted: 01/08/2004 at 21:53

good luck lass
enjoy dinner
Posted: 01/08/2004 at 21:56

Hey Heidi,

Sounds ummm, great! Hope your 33 miles is going welll...look forward to your next installment.

run well!

Posted: 02/08/2004 at 10:24

Hi, enjoy yourself Heidi, getting lost is half the fun (or so I'm told)
Andy Rivett is very strong and won the first ever 24 hour race I took part in.
Looking forward to today's report.
Say hi to Andy and Paul Shields from me if he's there.
Posted: 02/08/2004 at 10:36

Forgot to say good luck. You mentalist!
Posted: 02/08/2004 at 11:05

WOW - Hey hat off to anyone who is able to run this kind of distance!! (Mind I have only started running since March & completed my first 10k yesterday so there's plenty of time for me yet :)

Good Luck Heidi, I will be interested in following your progress...enjoy :)

Posted: 02/08/2004 at 11:19

Hey heidi,

good luck!!! I'll be eager to read your race reports.

Hope yourself and all the other MOB runners have a great time.

(p.s. We crossed paths at the MOB lite back in March)

Posted: 02/08/2004 at 13:28

i'm intrigued, keep us informed Heidi, am watching with interest. Best of luck, too.
Posted: 02/08/2004 at 14:57

Good luck Heidi. Hope the 33 miles went OK. Ran a 6 miler on Sunday in the heat and that was bad enough! I reckon it's nearly as hot today!

Posted: 02/08/2004 at 15:02

Yeah, Good Luck Heidi. 175 miles is a long way. How much assistance do you get along the way? Are there vehicles that follow you if you need a drink or a sleep? Take care and enjoy the running. Gav
Posted: 02/08/2004 at 15:12

Hi Heidi,
Good for you!
Hope the second day ahs gone well.
bests wishes
Posted: 02/08/2004 at 15:24

Hope you enjoyed the 33miles today! Sounds like superb fun, in a kinda strange way. I'd love to be able to do something like this one day... it's on my list of 'things to do sometime in my life'!

Will look forward to reading your reports.
Good luck!

Posted: 02/08/2004 at 15:57

Good luck and have fun!:o)
Posted: 02/08/2004 at 16:04

Oh yeah. If you don't win, well...
Posted: 02/08/2004 at 18:48

Stage 2 – 33 miles.

Hi Guys,

Thanks so much for the messages. It was so lovely to read them after a hard day’s work.

Hi Jason, hope all is going well. Well done Tamsy for your first 10k, great news. Gav, the event is supposed to be unassisted. You are provided with a tent, water, breakfast and evening meal, but you have to provide the rest – so the backpack is very heavy! There are checkpoints along the way, today there were 5, with water at each station to top up your bladders/bottles. Other than that – you are on your own!

Today was tough, and I am now finding walking rather painful on the thighs. We started off more level than yesterday crossing over the River Avon to the first checkpoint. We had to stock up on water as it was a long way to the next checkpoint, as the vehicles could not get up the hills we were faced with! The hills soon came into view, with the Banbury Tower as our target point. I now know why we had the Race Doc check our lungs, as they were gasping for air as I scrambled on hands and knees to the top. The route followed around the hills, showing us the most amazing landscapes and then back down to checkpoint two. By this time Mike and I had grouped up with some fellow runners, and we tackled the next stage together. We had done the MOB Lite last year, which takes you through some of this stage. Mike declared ‘I remember this, I know where to go’ and we were immediately lost, scrambling aimlessly through grassy fields! Onto check point four, and up the penultimate hill, I was really starting to feel it now, and the midday sun was ferocious. We realised that we had all finished our water, and with the rest of the hill to climb, the next few miles to the next checkpoint got very worrying. We made it though, and the MOB van was such a gorgeous sight. The last hill was a killer, but was the last of the four highest peaks in the Cotswolds we tackled. But the navigation was easier and Mike and I managed to sprint the last bit to make sure we came in under 7 hours.

The screams from Iodine being inserted into blisters has died down, and we are now all sitting in the tent supping our tea and looking at the sunset over the Cotswolds. Fantastic.

Yesterday, I was dodging all the cowpats that covered the fields, today I was only dodging the wet ones, I dread to think what I won’t care running through at the end of the race….

Unfortunately we had a couple of people drop out today. Andy Rivett, the current leader, was unfortunately one of them, suffering from heat exhaustion. Hanno is the new leader, after coming in first today with an amazing time of 5hrs 38mins. The last person crossed the finish in 11hr 32mins. I came in after 6hr 56mins.

33 miles again tomorrow.

Posted: 02/08/2004 at 23:07

Well done Heidi

Good luck hope the weather is cooler tomorrow
Posted: 02/08/2004 at 23:28

what shoes/boots are you wearing?

why blisters????????

i cant believe rivet dropped out
Posted: 02/08/2004 at 23:38

Andy dropped out with heat exhaustion? Hope he's ok-he's run the MDS!!
Well done Heidi, sounds like you survived a tough stage. Thanks for posting, it sounds like you're doing very well. Good luck.
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 07:53

Well done Heidi and good luck for the future stages.

Posted: 03/08/2004 at 07:55

Good luck on the next 33 miles Heidi and well done for having the guts to do such a difficult race!
all the best!
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 09:50

"Hope he's ok-he's run the MDS!!"

....would that be Marathon de Sade?

Posted: 03/08/2004 at 09:55 has already been said, Heidi, mentalist!
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 10:02

I think you've got it about right on that one Dodge!!
I'm surprised cos Andy seems to do well in the heat.
What's so mad about spending a week wandering around the countryside then?
I'm seriously tempted.
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 10:13

Erm, Dodge - what was that little run you were planning in 05?
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 10:15

...and carrying all your kit with you.
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 10:18

(nice X-post)

Posted: 03/08/2004 at 10:18

tim... you can't afford it.
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 10:22

Keep the race reports coming.......

Andy privitt dropped out with heat exhaustion, on only the second stage - damm it must be tough.

Someone better up their pace and beat that mad german ;-)
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 10:35

I don't think I'd be allowed anyway Ed.
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 11:28

Many congratulations on your run so far. I was wondering if you could pass on a message of good wishes to Andy Mouncey,(bloke with no hair and long legs). Could you tell him ole hairy head is sending loads of positive waves.... but not dreaming of him.
Thanks everso much, and good luck with the rest of your adventure.
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 11:29

Hi Heidi,

Well done- sounds like you are doing fantastically. You really are a superstar- we are all very proud of you and what you are doing this week. You truly are amazing.

Keep going and I can't wait to see you when it's all over.

Posted: 03/08/2004 at 13:52

Just wanted to say good luck and I hope the weather stays nice and cool for you this week.

Posted: 03/08/2004 at 14:21

Awesome! Keep it going!

Girl Power!
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 14:28

unfortunately missing this years mob due to slight injury and pulled back, well done all especially heidi, was looking at last years times and day 2 was won in 7:21, either this years maps are easier to follow or everyone is running a damn site faster. looks like the weather is going to cool down for the rest of the week, should be helpful for the big day.
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 16:25

Hey you!! Neil here. I am really sorry to hear about Andy - please tell him that I hope he is OK and that I look forward to seeing him soon.

How is Dan getting on? Are his knees holding out? Talking of which I hope your scars have healed from your cartoonesque slid down the back window of that car!!!

I am really sorry that I am not there with you guys this year but I am fondly thinking of you as the clouds draw in and the thunder follows the lightning!!

You are doing really well!! Keep it up and enjoy the experience!! I am very jealous!!

Say Hi to Rorz and Richie for me and everyone else.

Take care and write soon!!
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 18:21

I was slightly heartened by the slowest time yesterday

does that mean-----------
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 18:29

Yes... you can do it next year PH!
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 20:40

Judging by your picture you have lost your grip on reality;)
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 20:43

This is exciting stuff Heidi, I remember reading a report of last years race and thinking it was unbelievably tough, particulary in the baking heat. You are doing very well indeed, all that training has paid off! Looking forward to tomorrows report, keep your pecker up.
Posted: 03/08/2004 at 21:28

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Heart Rate

1 to 20 of 23 messages
27/08/2002 at 06:02
I took my resting heart rate yesterday for the first time in a couple of months.
Last time I took it: 72 bpm
Yesterday: 62 bpm

I was very pleased that my RHR has come down and I presume it is because I've got fitter, but could it be a reason for concern at all?

I'd be interested to know what you more experienced runners' RHRs are.

27/08/2002 at 07:26

A low RHR is generally a reasonable indicator of fitness (stronger heart = less beats to supply body's needs) however a number of experts believe that it is the speed with which the heart slows again after exercise that is a more reliable indicator of fitness.

Looking at your RHR can be a good indicator of overtraining and/or illness. You should monitor your RHR every morning before getting out of bed - if it is significantly higher on one day then perhaps best not to train.

Average rates for men and women are different (I'm not sure what the average is but 72 is often bandied about). My RHR is currently 40.

Remember that heart rates can be adversely affected by heat.

This is a huge topic and once you get hooked on heart rates and exercise it can be quite addictive.
WildWill    pirate
27/08/2002 at 10:12

I have also witnessed my RHR drop as I have become fitter and my current average RHR (taken 1st thing in the morning) is about 40bpm give or take a couple

On my last visit to the docs he did inform me that I had a large left ventricle but it was nothing to be worried about – which was good as I was in with a suspected heart attack – turned out to be reflux :o)

A decrees in RHR along with a decrease in the time it takes your HR to recover after intense exercise can be good indicators of improvement in general fitness.

27/08/2002 at 11:29
Beth: I agree with Martin and Will; it is usaually a good sign that you are getting fitter and that your heart doesn't need to beat as fast to supply the same blood flow as it did before (the heart is a 'muscle' really and is responding to the training it has been receiving by you getting out of breath). Well done!

Martin: How do measure your recovery rate? I have a HRM and am interested in know how to do this properly. I usually finish a run at about 140 ish and start stretching. After a minute I check my HRM, if it is around 100 then I think that I am doing ok.
WildWill    pirate
27/08/2002 at 11:38

I have a function on my HRM that measures recovery speed – you set the upper and lower limits and it measures the time to recover from one to the other – I use this mainly on interval or hill session with walk recoveries where I have the upper set at about 170bpm and the lower at 120bpm – So I measure how long (In Seconds) it takes my HR to recover by 50bpm

PS I use a Cardiosport ultima to do this – when I use to use my Polar I had to watch the display as it did not capture this info.

27/08/2002 at 12:07
In three months of running my resting HR has fallen from 60ish to between 47 and 53. If I've had too much to drink the night before I've noticed that it causes it to be elevated as high as 65 - which is quite scary.

I think it's quite suprising how quickly your heart adapts to the exercise. I thought it would take years of training rather than months to make a significant difference to your RHR.

27/08/2002 at 12:21
Beth -- I used to be a cardiac nurse and I would say that the difference in 3 months in your RHR is fine (as the others have said) but a better indicator of cardiac health would be how quickly the HR recovers following exercise. I'm not a fitness expert by any stretch of the imagination but I think (not sure) between 1-2 mins is generally viewed as being a good recovery time. I know my HR returns to it's resting state in about 3 mins because I'm not entirely fit yet (getting there).

Also another indicator is your blood pressure - athletes find that their blood pressure is alot lower than the average Joe's because the heart doesn't have to work as hard to maintain the same level of cardiac output. For example, my blood pressure used to be 140/90 but it is currently 110/60 but I fully expect it to drop further and wouldn't be at all surprised if it is as low as 90/50.

The main thing to remember with heart rates and blood pressures is, there isn't usually any cause for concern unless there are other symptoms as well. Sportsmen and women do occasionally have heart problems but this is more often than not due to congenital (inherited) problems rather than the effects of their sporting exercise regime.

Will --- If someone told me I had a huge left ventricle I think I would be extremely pleased - it means your heart can shift more blood with each pumping action. I bet you rarely suffer with the lactic cramps.

27/08/2002 at 12:23

I don't tend to monitor recovery heart rate (I'm sure there are some prescribed formula), however, as with RHR you should monitor it over time i.e. after 60 seconds and this will then tell you whether you are improving or not and will also indicate (as with RHR) whether you are ill, overtrained etc.

WW's idea is also one suggested way of monitoring intervals i.e. don't start the next until you rate reaches a certain level.
27/08/2002 at 12:28
Thanks everybody! I will start to make a note of my HR after 1 minute and again after 2 mins. This way I will be able to spot a trend.

27/08/2002 at 12:31
My resting rate is around 43 bpm.
To measure my recovery rate, like Will, i use a Cardiosport but i have to keep looking at my watch for the time. I did a hard session last Thursday - 4 minutes at 85% WHR, 2 mins recovery slow jog. It took me about 30 seconds from recovery when i was around 134 bpm up to 85%, then about 40 seconds back down below 140 when my Cardiosport started beeping again.
27/08/2002 at 14:47
Thanks everyone. I will take my heart rate after 1 and 2 minutes recovery.
I appreciate your advice and am glad that there is a nurse on the forum for that professional opinion!
WildWill    pirate
27/08/2002 at 14:59

Funnily enough I don’t suffer from lactic cram and have found over a 10k race I can maintain a very high heart rate (92-94%MHR) for the full race, which for me at the moment is around 48mins

16/01/2004 at 16:03
My heart rate is about 160bpm right after a 20 min run around my local park. I just quite smoking, im 19 and dont class myself as fit .....yet. Im hoping to run the london marathon in 2005, so i gotta make myself super fit, and invest in a heart monitor.
16/01/2004 at 16:22
Well done on starting to regain your health.
Just it take it nice and easy in these early days and don't be afraid to walk!

19/01/2004 at 10:45
I've just sarted using a HRM and I'm finding it really useful - particularly helping me not feel depressed that everything was a struggle - I was spending too much time at 90%! My one query is, in training schedules I often see runs at marathon pace, but as I'm training for my first marathone, what should my heart rate be for race pace? I'm following the 5.00 schedule.
15/02/2004 at 11:31
Hi all,
I've recently found this site and have been really interested to hear what you have all have to say. What a friendly bunch! I'm doing a half marathon in march and a full marathon in june. I have already done the half marathon distance (actually did 14.5 miles!) I noticed that during running my heart rate is around 160-180. My resting heart rate is around 60. It usually takes me a couple of minutes for my heart rate to come back down to normal level once finishing exercise. Does this sound ok? I'm 24 and i would say reasonably fit.
15/02/2004 at 14:37
Hard to say, Richard. The crucial figures are percentages, not absolute numbers.

You need to take your resting hr, and find your max. Max hr minus resting hr gives you your heart rate range, from which you calculate your percentages.

Example: my resting is 40, max 178. Deduct min from max and my heart rate range is 138.

Today's long run came in at an average of just under 70 per cent of hr range. The 70 per cent figure is more important than the number of beats (133).

Your hrm manual will have more info on this. Or try John L Parker's Heart Monitor Training for the Compleat Idiot.

Hope this helps!
14/04/2004 at 14:27
I'm looking to buy a heart rate monitor, but I'm finding it difficult to find any objective reviews or recommendations. The Runner's World list doesn't really recommend any particular one.

I want one with a good selection of functions, but it doesn't need to be top of the range as I probably wouldn't be downloading info to a computer etc.

Any suggestions or recommendations? I appreciate any help with this.

14/04/2004 at 14:53
I have a Polar M52 which satisfies my number crunching nerdiness without being OTT. I think they cost about £60 nowadays, bought mine over 2 years ago.

Polar are good in the gym as most machines are compatible, but I know CardioSport are also rated by some folks.
19/02/2010 at 18:42
I have just not long purchased a Polar FT40 to help me train for my first marathon. I followed Runners World advice on finding my working heart rate but seem to hitting 80 - 90% without even trying. Can anyone advise me where I'm going wrong? My 10k time is 50 mins and my half marathon time is I.57.
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text:
I saw a mouse, where? there on the stair....

Well actually in the kitchen.

21 to 23 of 23 messages
02/05/2013 at 12:05
seren nos wrote (see)

we put chocolate in the human mouse traps instead of cheese.apparantley they like it more

i am sure they do but I have never tried trapping humans.

12/05/2013 at 22:39

Lol skotty!

mouse traps have come up. After a week the mice had successfully avoided them completely. Maybe they don't like peanut butter as it hadn't been touched. Thought maybe they weren't getting in but one ran across the room while I was watching tv. Next plan, contact landlord.

13/05/2013 at 16:49

I used to be very tolerant of mice until within a few weeks they had replicated... they breed like, er, rabbits.  Kill them now before they take over and infest everything.  The smell is disgusting and really hard to get rid of.  I never kill spiders though

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text:
Madrid, Rome or any other recommendations for the Spring

Spring European Marathon

6 messages
02/10/2012 at 10:45

A group of friends are looking for an interesting european marathon in the Spring as a good excuse to get away.  So far, Madrid and Rome are looking popular, although I'd probably prefer something a little flatter - Any recommendations?

03/10/2012 at 08:26
Hi Alli me and a friend are doing Rome in march. If your looking at doing Rome decide quickly as there is a six nations rugby match the same weekend in Rome so cheapish accom is running out fast. But the idea of running in the eternal city is so appealing.
13/10/2012 at 09:54

What about Copenhagen (19 May) or Stockholm (1 June)? I've signed up for Stockholm next year - not done either race before but both seem to get very good reviews and if like me you don't like running in heat they are a better option than southern Europe. No cobblestones either as in Rome!

13/10/2012 at 16:45
Does anyone have a list of marathons with their total elevation change? I signed up for Rome because I thought it was pretty flat, but it seems not?
14/10/2012 at 20:18
I'm doing Barcelona in march, think that's flat more or less
16/10/2012 at 22:26

Yes Barcelona is a pretty flat.  Comfortable temperature too. City scenic!

I'd like to do it again - it is a lovely place.

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text:
Autumn 04 Shoe Guide

This Autumn's 20 best new shoes

Posted: 29 July 2004

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hi. i have recently become more of a serious runner and have a couple races lined up. the big one being london marathon but also a half marathon in october. i need to buy a new pair of shoes but have no idea where to start. can anyone suggest a shop in london??
Posted: 06/08/2004 at 11:26

There's the marathon store in WC2? I haven't used them but I have asked a couple of questions and people have come back with good reports of them.
Posted: 06/08/2004 at 11:34

There really are no "good" and "bad" shoes as such. Its just that certain people suit different shoes.

My advice would be to go to a reputable running shop and get yourself sorted with a proper pair of shoes. You're lucky living in London in that respect.

Be prepared to spend £60-£80 (depending on your weight-"big guy" shoes tend to be a bit pricier).

A good starting point would be to look at Asics and Saucony the favourite shoes of the majority of road runners I would imagine, certainly based on the runners on this forum. Dont be too sniffy of so-called "lifestyle" brands either. Nike, Adidas and Reebok all do reputable running shoes. Also dont be put off by brands you've may never have heard of before; Brooks and Etonics for example.

Try to get to run in them before you buy. You feel a bit of a plank running up and down outside a shop but it's vital so if the facility is there use it and really judge the shoe.

Dont be persuaded to buy "this years must have". They are often upgrades and savings can be made by buying last year's model which were after all last years "must haves"

Running shoes have been excellent products for years now and whereas there are now no wrong 'uns, it is important that the shoes you choose is appropriate for you. The wrong choice now could lead to injuries and disillusionment. So take your time and make sure you're 100% happy with your choice before you buy.

Good luck
Good luck
Posted: 06/08/2004 at 11:42

Although I live and work in Cheshire I frequently have to travel to London with my job. A while ago I found a really good running shop near St.Paul's Cathedral called London City Runner. They have a wide range of Trainers are are pretty helpful. It is on Ludgate Circus, if I remember correctly.
Posted: 06/08/2004 at 21:24

Two shops:-

"Run and Become" in Victora

42 Palmer Street Victoria
Tel 0207 222 1314

And Max Sports, Twickenham - the husband and wife team seem to know their stuff.
Posted: 12/08/2004 at 06:10

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