Alf Tupper update…

My friend Dave Johnson is running the London Marathon this year in aid of two very deserving charities, MIND and Weston Hopsicecare. Dave aka Alf Tupper, is having what might be called a risis, as Alf reports:

Hi

Just to update you all, the battle between the Tough of the Track’s indomitable spirit and his knee injury is turning into something akin to the great sporting rivalries of bygone times – think Ali vs Frazier, Senna vs Prost, McEnroe vs Borg or England vs Australia. Basically, my knee is in a right old state. Having taken 8 days away from training recently, I returned with a 35 minute easy run which I completed without due concern. I then dropped a scheduled session before completing a more demanding 50 minute varied pace run 3 days later. Everything was fine until the last 5 minutes when something weird happened to the knee and it began to feel like a ferret was loose inside it. This feeling was also accompanied by an audible grinding similar to using a ratchet or rubbing two pieces of sandpaper together but, strangely, did not involve excessive pain. Following some slight swelling and tightness, I assumed that that was it and I would not be participating in this year’s London Marathon. I already had an assessment booked for this coming Friday with the Muscular and Skeletal clinic and decided to give the knee a final test yesterday by setting out to do 13 miles but fully expecting to pull up within the first mile. As it turns out, I ended up running reasonably well for more than 16 miles although I could hear the grinding of the knee with every step throughout the 2 hours and 18 minute session. The only pain occurred at the 13 mile stage and this was in the groin area rather than the knee, but in the same leg which makes me wonder whether the dodgy knee is affecting other muscles. So, as Johnny Nash once said, there are more questions than answers! Do I run this year or take advantage of London’s injury deferment policy and have a guaranteed place next year instead when, hopefully, I will be fully fit? Do I take a chance this year based on being able to run 16 miles yesterday, but would I have a further 10 miles in me on the day? How much further damage to the knee could occur if I did run? Could I risk the humiliation of having to end up walking or having to drop out completely? Could I easily handle the frustration of being in London for the weekend but not being able to run? How much training should I do between now and race day? What about the money that people have donated or pledged to my chosen charities? I will, to a large extent, base my decision on the feedback from the clinic this coming Friday and will update you all again next weekend.

So there you have it, Alf Tupper is in a bit of a kerfuffle as to what to do? Add to this the fact that I’m still getting rid of the final dregs of my recent heavy cold and, believe it or not, still painting the hall, stairs and landing and you will appreciate that Tupper’s life is far from simple at the moment. One thing for certain is that, by the end of this week, I will be christening our house “Dundecoratin”. Let’s hope I’m not also considering the alternative “Dunrunnin”.

All the best

Alf