As I sat down for the blogging and brands panel I felt the power return to my legs and knew I’d make it to the end. To complete my second Write This Run conference with a new PB…

Oops, this isn’t a race report, but you’ll excuse me for taking Jody Raynsford’s tips for writing a great race report literally.  His was one of the many great presentations and panels at the November 2013 Write This Run conference and once again I walked away from the conference all kinds of inspired.

Muireanne/Bangs was her usual charming and confident self giving the room an overview how to work with brands and take control of their voice & blog. Jennifer Bradley inspired us to set big goals and achieve them with hard work and dedication (she also makes the world’s best running & travel spreadsheets).  Sophie & Simon both spoke about their inspiration to run in the face of challenges far worse than the ones I complain about (putting on a cold sports bra in the morning).  We heard directly from the brands & PRs who are looking to build relationships with runners and bloggers and how much the industry is actually changing.  The journalists and writers Jody & Johnny Muir showed us how to tell stories that are interesting and make the audience to forget you have major grammar & spelling issues (gulp!).  Finally we learned more about how to rest, recover and run strong from sport scientists Clifton & Simon, but then Robbie came and threw all the advice out of the window and told us the story of how he became a 24-hour racer for Team GB (that’s running around a 400m track for 24 hours for all who can’t actually believe it’s an actual sport).  He likes running, likes running the further he goes, likes winning races, and thus keeps going.

Like the conference in May it was fun listening to the speakers and be in the same room as so many great bloggers and runners. Plus, this conference was held at the Running Show, so over lunch we were able to wander around and get lots of information (and some good deals) on running gear and races.  It was a busy day filled with listening & learning, interacting, and even a yoga or running class at the end of the day.   This year the organisers took the feedback of wanting more networking time and organised a great “after party” at the Giro cafe where we enjoyed (too much) beer and wine and got to chat with conference & running show exhibitors.  Included in the conference ticket was entry to the 5k or 10k race on Sunday, those who didn’t have as much wine as I did made the trek back out on Sunday morning, but I stayed at home helping nurse my husband’s sprained ankle (and my throbbing head).

Attending Write this Run reminded me how and why I started to blog (and run) in the first place. In 2011 I moved to a new city knowing a grand total of 2 people and couldn’t exactly find the same kind of snowboarding & hiking community I had in London.  Through running and blogging I’ve met real & true friends and a very cool community who I am continually impressed and inspired by.

My 2014 running goal

And I get to eat lunch served in a shoebox.