What is the Antwerp 10 Miles

The Antwerp 10 Miles is a street run in Antwerp that has been held every year around Easter since 1986.

On the same day several other street runs are held in the capital of the Antwerp province: the 5km, the Antwerp Marathon and many more, including a kids' run.

A nice touch is that during the Antwerp 10 Miles, participants are allowed to run through the (in)famous Kennedy Tunnel and Waasland Tunnel.

The first editions only had a limited success (a couple of hundred participants) but the most recent runs brought more than 20,000 runners on their feet.

In 2013, about 22,000 runners appeared on the starting grid.

And this year you can add one more, since I will also be participating!

What is the 10 Miles?

The 10 Miles (also known under the name The 10 English Miles) is a common distance in athletics. Although this distance is not officially recognized by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) it is often included in record tables.

The current world record is held by Haile Gebrselassie with 44'23". If you know It takes me about 52 minutes on the 10km, then you can call that superhumanly fast :)

In the women tables the world record is held by Mary Keitany with 50'05"

One of the most famous 10 Miles competitions in the Antwerp 10 Miles. I will participate this year for the first time.

10 Miles Antwerp, Here I Come!

My employer, ISS, is encouraging its employees to lead a healthier life, and so I have taken up the challenge to run 10 miles (approximately 16 kilometers) during the Antwerp 10 Miles on 27 April 2014.

This gives me exactly 7 weeks to get in shape. I will use a specially adapted program that will hopefully transform me from a 5km recreational jogger into a 16km long-distance runner.

I can certainly use your encouragement, so don't hesitate to push me forward!>p

Biker Chicks of Wales

On our trip through England & Wales we met up with Alison, a good friend from the old days when I was still hitchhiking in the British Isles. She owned a Bed & Breakfast near St. Clears where I stayed for a couple of days. We became friends and I have been visiting her ever since.

The house where this Biker Chick lives was actually the sight of a gruesome murder...well, to be honest the good people were butchered in Pendine but they were abducted from this house. All can be read on : http://betraveller.blogspot.be/2012/02/llangynin-wales.html

Ciara turns 1 hip hip hooray

Tomorrow it will be exactly one year since Ciara was born. A wonderful year that went by much too quickly. Pretty soon she will start walking, talking, doing all the stuff her older sister does.

The Muffinman is free!

Dumpster Divers of all nations, rejoice! The famous Belgian Muffinman has been acquitted of stealing 2 bags of perished muffinds. For those who are not familiar with the concept of dumpster diving, skipping, tatting, bin-diving, D-mart or "recycling" food: this is "the practice of sifting through commercial or residential trash to find items that have been discarded by their owners but might be useful to the dumpster diver" (Wikipedia definition). But who is the Muffinman, you might ask? Well, Steven De Geynst is a dumpster diver who received a 6-month sentence for "stealing" 2 bags of perished muffins from a GB supermarket. He appealed and was acquitted. He has been a strong voice in the battle against food waste and the way supermarkets deal with goods that are still perfectly alright.

Building a snowman, flake by flake

Last year Caitlin built her first snowman with her grandfather in Germany. This time I helped her build one here in Belgium. The German one was more beautiful, but I'm sure the quality of the snow played some part in that. In Germany they use the roll-the-snow-till-it-becomes-a-ball, and repeat that three times with balls of smaller sizes. Here in Belgium the snow just doesn't stick, so we use the fill-the-bucket-and-then-push-the-snow-tight. It works like a charm :)