Big Bangkok Welcome Promised on Sunday
Hi everyone, Yes it’s about time I made a new posting or even a quick update.Things as always so, so hectic.
Today Saturday I had a lovely run, all 48km of it with the Samutsongkham Running Club who ran with me for about 24km, Thanks to Mr Narong and all the runners and crew. Then later Uru came by to crew for me. We couldn’t find an hotel on my arrival in this small town.So Uru stopped at the police station to ask and the nice policeman, Mr U Thong Nokyim offered me a bed and hospitality for the night.I type this on the police computer. Thanks lads!
Tomorrow I plan to start running at 7am with the Samutsakorn Running club for the final 34km to Bangkok. They will be calling to the police station.
It has been a tough run these last 10 days or so. I mentioned before in the comments that I had to run an average of 60km a day for about 10 days to get here tomorrow and have the weekend running with the runners that have treated me so well. Also a party is planned, so really I had to run hard to arrive at the weekend and not Tues or Wed when everyone is working. Thanks to everyone that has helped me.It was a bit runner lonely last week, but am back in the company I love.
Yesterday, 65km run, Thursday 60k. Today after the runners departed it all caught up with me, the fatigue that is! I look forward to the run tomorrow, short as it is, always nice running with new runners.
In Bangkok I will be the guest of fellow Dubliner, Danny Corrigan of the Irish Chamber of Commerce. Danny has kindly picked up my six packages from the Irish Embassy. Thanks there to Supara for your patience as the first one was sent last Christmas.
It will take me a couple of days to sort ‘ Nirvana ‘ my Chariot Carrier cart which I will use to push my winter gear as I run through China. I have other stuff to get sorted here, so it will be a delay/rest of sorts. Thanks again Danny for the bed and use of your office and other help, phone calls on my behalf. I tell you if the readers only knew the effort that goes into keeping this run on the road without a support crew! Many thanks also to Greg Havely for checking and rechecking research I have done over the years but now don’t have the time to keep my Plan B and Plan C as viable alternates with the latest information. He must wonder and scratch his head sometimes when I ask him to check the daylight hours between March and June for Kazakhstan! Do people still transport cars from one city to another on trucks because the roads are so bad, is there a risk of flooding and mud from the winter snow melt there causing all kinds of problems for Nirvana, Ah yes, the lads that went through there on their big bikes and support crew had it so easy!Funny enough I am not too concerned about Kazakhstan, to me China will be the last big challenge of the run, a challenge I am up to. I kinda view Kaz as a bit like Patagonia
I hope I can do a major blog update from Bangkok. I should be able to do more anyway now that I will have my laptop back.
Sorry to the German reader who posted his concern re: my lack of updates. As I have said before,I never know who is reading the blog till I hear from you, thanks for your support in Germany, I hope to be passing through there in Aug/September next,
Yes this time next year I will be nearly finished, and am planning a 800/900km run around Ireland. That is the dream route and should take the total up to 51,800km. I can get a finish without the tour of Ireland and less in the UK with 50,500km but am not thinking of that, I am dreaming big!
Today when I was out with the runners I was thinking it would be nice if some of my own MSB club members or any other runner in Ireland could join in for as little or as much running as they wanted as I run through Ireland.
So that is almost exactly 15,000km in 12 months or 41km per day, really a marathon as I need to do a bit more to keep ahead of any unforeseen delays.
So as I approach China, just a little over a 1,000km away I have my own plan, 3 years of the run completed, I plan on running 5,000km for each 4 month period, I just checked the records for the last 4 months and it reads around 5,100km for that period, with some delays also poor days in Indonesia, not bad I say.
Finally best wishes to all Dublin City marathon runners running next weekend.
I waited 3 years to say this…
See you all next year, I am confident, nothings going to stop me now, that’s for sure! 
Thanks for your support!
Total distance run is 36,727km for 843 road days.
October 19th, 2013 at 4:30 pm
tony, that is a brilliant blog. the idea of you being almost home this time next year is amazing. hope the reunion with nirvana is not too emotional!!!!! certainly watching the spot move quickly northbound every day shows the effort you are putting in!!!!! well done. kevin
October 20th, 2013 at 2:21 am
Hey Tony—-you are right–I do scratch my bald head now and again, but enjoy doing the research—wow, starting on the last big leg of the run—hard to believe–seems just a short time ago that you were in Sedona–anyway–more info coming on Kazakh.–but I like you don’t worry about it so much with everything else you have gone through—-glad to hear you are having a party of sorts in Bangkok–enjoy the moment and the well deserved rest—–back soon with info on border crossings etc that you requested–good running Greg
October 20th, 2013 at 11:00 am
Good Man Tony, The performance of the past three years is just staggering. And the thought of coming on the “home straight” from China to Ireland is amazing. Also, it’s great to hear of Nirvana coming back into the picture. Continuing congrats on phenomenal pace in Thailand.
October 21st, 2013 at 1:06 am
Fair play to the runners coming out to support you and giving you a party, enjoy and take care Ann
October 21st, 2013 at 3:00 am
Hi Tony
Hope your stove and sheet arrived there-congratulations on a fantastic run I still hope to join you again next year
I am joining the run raw crew from Ceduna in South Australia next week for the run back to Melbourne
I got cleared from the cancer thing after lotsa problems
Michael
October 21st, 2013 at 5:34 pm
Hi Everyone. Nice to hear from you Michael and glad all is well health-wise as I was worried. Have nice time with the raws but you know they insist on the same diet for the crew Enjoy
Yes got that package, thanks.
I have been so busy I have not even had a chance to check this site for 24hours.
I enjoyed running with the runners but unfortunately they decided on a finish location way out of the city and off my route and didnt even communicate with me or other runners about the change from the city centre. I know their hearts were in the right place however it was just incompetence and they didnt even communicate to tell runners that the route was changed one runner phoned me to say she was disapointed as she didnt know, I trusted them and am annoyed as now I got to return to a remote location to continue the run and find a way to get my cart there. I am annoyed also with myself for I lost control of my run for the very first time. All the time when I left the highway they kept insisting we were still running to bangkok, all be it the greater Bangkok area. The party was attended by about 6 of us, a catered meal, I presume many people did not show or more likely not know. We could have had that in a restaurant downtown. I was told the original place was booked out.
You know even after explaining this several times, they still dont get it and understand why I now got to return to that remote location and after all my hard days with 60km days to arrive on Sunday.I have been asked why I dont restart from the city and not the remote school!! One man who was very friendly just shook my hand and walked away when we arrived, I know he thinks I am an A H
Yes there were about 20 runners and we even got a police escort for the last 15km. The runners were told I would start at 7am and again more poor communication they showed up at 5.30!!!!
I am told Thai’s cant organise events as there are usually disasters and often hire foreign companies to do this, I believe this to be the case,very much so!
Despite all this I am very grateful to people that offer me help, all be it two drivers even lost me on the road in locations that were not so busy and I was highly visable, I am annoyed and to be honest think I would be better off on my own without any help, but would miss the runners.
On one of those 2 days they lost me I lost 10km, and thought about that a lot on my very weary run towards Bangkok when I could have had a shorter day.
Anyway got so much work to do and Wednesday is a holiday here. Please stand by for some major breaking news on the run in a few days time.
October 22nd, 2013 at 6:39 am
Wah,good to hear that u got nice welcome in Bangkok.I believe other part in Thailand also got same warm heart runners to wait for your arrival.
Pray for you in apply for China Visa.
Keep it up !