The runner took a stroll in the deep dark wood...

....in fact it went more like this. This runner took a run through the deep sunny woods,the runner smelt the woods and the woods smelt good. It was wonderful to be out there this morning. The sun was dappling through the trees and the ground was soft underfoot, the streams were flowing well after the recent rainfalls and this runner was in good spirits. There were no gruffalos though ;)
I saw only a handful of people along the way, it was just me and my run. It was blissful and nspired by runners I was privileged to meet yesterday.

Yesterday I went to support friends and fellow runners at the National Trusts Mouth to Mouth 10K off road run. In it's second year it is a fairly new race on the calendar but one not to be missed. I took part last year and enjoyed it immensely, not only was it a fairly small affair but so friendly and unassuming.
Jeff Cherrington from the North Cornwall National Trust was organising it as a keen runner himself he was best placed to select a route that inspired and challenged the most seasoned off roader. That it did! With hills that were nothing but epic, to woodland that was tranquil, to streams that were well, more like rivers yesterday, it really was a wonderful way to spend a morning.
I managed to miss the start as TJ's swimming lesson and Mr T's weekly cycle ride infringed on it slightly but was able to catch the finish where the first runner in was a Bude RATS member and was cheered in appropriately.
From then on it was a steady stream of runners, slip sliding their way down the descent back to Sandymouth, over the bridge to the home straight. Conditions were soggy, boggy and slippery and many runners were having to walk down descents due to the nature of the terrain after the rainfalls that hit N Cornwall in the last few days.
They all crossed the line with smiles on their faces and mud plastered up their legs to receive a warm welcome from a small but perfectly formed support network. Marshalls were along the route with one water station beautifully supervised by @thedaytodavis and Bridget, cheering people along the way with words of encouragement.
I managed to meet two runners from Twitter who I had tweeted many times and who have proved to be fellow mud lovers!!! @PhilippaDavey and Emily aka @plymfitness made their way to the North Cornish coast to take part in the Mouth to Mouth. It was great to meet them and get their reaction to the race. As they had both taken part in the Commando Challenge recently, they were used to getting down and dirty on trails and were taking this one on in the same style. They both commented that it was a tougher beast than the Challenge which I was quite pleased to hear as next year we have a team going into the Challenge from the mud runners in Bude RATS and my name is on the list! 
To top it off, there were medals for all participants, a T shirt and even some bling for category placers of which Emily was one of these!!
All in all, a great run in a spectacular location with some fantastic runners. For all those interested in next years race, keep an eye out on @NorthCornwallNT for information.

Philippa and Emily