Things Are about to Get a Whole Lot Different around Here. — Every January, I set myself targets for the year ahead. You could call them resolutions, but I find that sounds so…inflexible. I prefer to think of them as declarations of intent. I usually try to avoid making them too specific. Last year my main goal was to run a marathon…

We Gather Here Today to Mourn the Loss of the Under Armour HOVR Velociti 2. The Shoes Lived a Long, Full Life of 700km. — To provide a little extra context for this review, here’s some basic info on me as a runner: Mid-thirties, ~183cm, ~75kg, neutral pronation with a slight tendency towards supination, fairly narrow feet with high-ish arches, mild heel-striker approaching mid-foot (on a good day), preference towards cushioning on the softer side…

A Month of Anger and Frustration. — The loudspeaker crackled into life around noon: “The community is about to begin closed nucleic acid testing. Please purchase enough supplies for at least the next two days. The Residents’ Committee will announce the exact time in due course*.” That was how the first round started, back on 17 March…

How I Came to Like “The Good One”. — I always hated coffee. It wasn’t so much the bitterness, I just found it unpleasant to drink. Even now, black coffee is something to be endured rather than savoured, a way to feed the habit when there’s nothing else around. Friends used to tell me “you’ve never had good coffee”…

A Summary of a Training Block for a Marathon that Didn’t Happen… Again. — The 2021 Hangzhou International Marathon was originally scheduled to take place in November of last year. But, thanks to a rise in COVID cases throughout China, it was cancelled about a week before it was due to kick off. I was hoping it would be cancelled altogether, that I could…

Shanghai’s Second Lockdown. — It’s been just over two years since my first experience of lockdown here in Shanghai. It occurred shortly after I’d arrived in the city and ensured that I started my new job from the comfort of my own sofa. I jest about comfort; the situation was far from ideal. It…

Getting Better and Where do I Go from Here. — 2022 is here, so I guess it’s time to take a look back at the year just gone, take stock of what I achieved, and decide on my goals for the year to come.

Reflections on My Second Ever Marathon. — It was supposed to be the Hangzhou marathon on 7 November, but that got postponed. It was then going to be the Shanghai marathon on 28 November, but that got postponed. …

A Lot Can Happen in a Day or Two. — Last time I started with the Hangzhou marathon. This time I’ll start with its Shanghainese cousin. Last time I said it was yet to be cancelled. This time, I regret to say, that is no longer the case. Yesterday, the organising committee of the Shanghai marathon sent out a press…