The last line in my last post says it all, "Woke up with a sore throat today, may have a run tonight will wait and see."
Pretty much downhill from there. Sore throat blew up badly and then attacked sinus and nasal passages. Several nights I went to bed with good intentions of getting up and running but simply did not feel capable in the morning.
Finally on Saturday the throat cleared, just leaving head cold type symptons. I had already discarded the idea of running the 25km SMC so it was a toss up between 10km @ SMC or the STaR. In the end 10km race won, thought being it would be a better gauge as to how I was "really" feeling.
Decided to head out at 4:05 pace and see what happens. Trailed about 5-10 metres behind Blue Dog for the first couple of km but slipped a bit up the hill. By the time I got to the turnaround it was starting to be a struggle and I pretty much bashed it home. Really tried to pick up the pace in the last km to minimal effect finishing in 44:26.
The run did seem to clear the head out initially, however I was quite sore in the lhs midsection, very similar to the incident about 2 weeks ago. After a day of shopping and mowing limping around finally got to do some lower back stretches which pretty much instantly seemed to reduce the pain (that or the voltaren I popped about 5 minutes after).
This week, not sure I'll take tomorrow as rest and see what Tuesday brings in the count down for SMH, will probably reassess the goal for SMH but lets not het too hasty!
Sunday, May 15, 2005
Wednesday, May 11, 2005
A run with the River Rats
Early morning meeting on Tuesday meant no run and so though the day I contemplated how I would have a serious run. Then I remembered the Lane Cove River Rats run Tuesday night through LCNP (on the Striders 10km course) and since Jim normally runs with them I checked with him if it was still the case.
Sure was, kicking off at 5:45 just as the sun vanished, so a new experience running in the dark (no street lights) some of the other guys had led style lights on, something to think about for next time.
Jim suggested I latch on behind the main group as they were a "little more my pace"! So off we go, these guys all knew each other and I was content to just hang around at the back as the pace was pretty good. Held on all the way up Scribbly and until the Rangers hut on the climb to the gates, a few of them had also slipped off by then as well. Pretty impressed the 5km mark was done in around 21:44. Caught back up on the downhill but slowly drifted off on the little pinch climbing up from the bridge. From there I just tried to focus on form/breathing and seeing where I was going on the run back to the weir/finish. Ended up in 43:30, quite a quick time for not racing and an average HR of 171.
Might have to do more runs with these guys (a few were CR's) but it is not an easy run to schedule in with trying to sort out family dinners etc.
Woke up with a sore throat today, may have a run tonight will wait and see.
Sure was, kicking off at 5:45 just as the sun vanished, so a new experience running in the dark (no street lights) some of the other guys had led style lights on, something to think about for next time.
Jim suggested I latch on behind the main group as they were a "little more my pace"! So off we go, these guys all knew each other and I was content to just hang around at the back as the pace was pretty good. Held on all the way up Scribbly and until the Rangers hut on the climb to the gates, a few of them had also slipped off by then as well. Pretty impressed the 5km mark was done in around 21:44. Caught back up on the downhill but slowly drifted off on the little pinch climbing up from the bridge. From there I just tried to focus on form/breathing and seeing where I was going on the run back to the weir/finish. Ended up in 43:30, quite a quick time for not racing and an average HR of 171.
Might have to do more runs with these guys (a few were CR's) but it is not an easy run to schedule in with trying to sort out family dinners etc.
Woke up with a sore throat today, may have a run tonight will wait and see.
Monday, May 09, 2005
Weekend Wrap
Saturday
Up early to North Head to set up the electronic timing system. Was in 2 minds as to whether I'd race or not. Everything was set up and one of the people not running, Richard, seemed to be pretty confident of being able to monitor the timing stuff so I decided to run. First couple of km were pretty relaxed, just running about 5-10m behind Spud and Mr G. As we climbed back up from the turn I could feel the exertion in trying to maintain the pace, also started to worry about the timing and if something went wrong. As we ran back down the slope towards the start/finish and turnaround I could feel the niggles start to complain a little more and opted to withdraw so I could make sure everythinh went ok at the finish. At that point I did 5.7km roughly and bang on 4:05 pace which was my target.
As it happens it was a good thing I dropped out as the timing compute did hang and I had to reboot everything, just in time for the leader to finish. To add to the good karma about making sure everything was working 2 of the 4 different timing methods then did subsequently fail as we processed the 330 odd finishers and so it was even more important that the main system was working, phew!!
Sunday
Quite a while earlier I had offered to be the 7am host at the STaR given the timing between Canberra and SMH and also that it was not far from home. A more relaxed group at around 6 min/km pace and we headed from Buffalo Creek up towards Ryde through East Ryde. As we ran I noticed that the legs/body felt fairly average. At about halfway one person who had stopped off for a nature break had not rejoined us so I sent the group on and went back to find her. No such luck so I cut across towards where the group should be and then ran it pretty hard to catch up. Only caught them in the last km or so and have to say the body did not like the run at all.
Upon reflection I did too much last week, first a km interval session, followed by a tempo run followed by 500m reps, three hard runs in a row, not what should be done. That somewhat explains why I was starting to struggle on Saturday and also why I felt pretty crappy on Sunday.
A full recovery/rest day today and will see how I feel tomorrow morning before deciding what type of run to do. Only 2 weeks to SMH so if I am ok will make this week a hard week before a mini taper next week.
Up early to North Head to set up the electronic timing system. Was in 2 minds as to whether I'd race or not. Everything was set up and one of the people not running, Richard, seemed to be pretty confident of being able to monitor the timing stuff so I decided to run. First couple of km were pretty relaxed, just running about 5-10m behind Spud and Mr G. As we climbed back up from the turn I could feel the exertion in trying to maintain the pace, also started to worry about the timing and if something went wrong. As we ran back down the slope towards the start/finish and turnaround I could feel the niggles start to complain a little more and opted to withdraw so I could make sure everythinh went ok at the finish. At that point I did 5.7km roughly and bang on 4:05 pace which was my target.
As it happens it was a good thing I dropped out as the timing compute did hang and I had to reboot everything, just in time for the leader to finish. To add to the good karma about making sure everything was working 2 of the 4 different timing methods then did subsequently fail as we processed the 330 odd finishers and so it was even more important that the main system was working, phew!!
Sunday
Quite a while earlier I had offered to be the 7am host at the STaR given the timing between Canberra and SMH and also that it was not far from home. A more relaxed group at around 6 min/km pace and we headed from Buffalo Creek up towards Ryde through East Ryde. As we ran I noticed that the legs/body felt fairly average. At about halfway one person who had stopped off for a nature break had not rejoined us so I sent the group on and went back to find her. No such luck so I cut across towards where the group should be and then ran it pretty hard to catch up. Only caught them in the last km or so and have to say the body did not like the run at all.
Upon reflection I did too much last week, first a km interval session, followed by a tempo run followed by 500m reps, three hard runs in a row, not what should be done. That somewhat explains why I was starting to struggle on Saturday and also why I felt pretty crappy on Sunday.
A full recovery/rest day today and will see how I feel tomorrow morning before deciding what type of run to do. Only 2 weeks to SMH so if I am ok will make this week a hard week before a mini taper next week.
Thursday, May 05, 2005
Short and fast
The theme is getting the body used to running faster, after the non satisfactory 1km reps on Tuesday decided to head to the gym in Melbourne City for another session.
This time however it is 500m reps @ 3:25 pace with the same time to recover. A much better session, managing 8 reps and boy was I knackered at the end of the eighth! Afterwards did a few core muscle sets and wandered back to the hotel.
In the last 2 days I've managed to build up a nice little blister on the rh heel, first one in a while. Time to whip out the new blister pads I got while in the US and see how they go on Saturday. A shorter and easier recovery run tomorrow.
This time however it is 500m reps @ 3:25 pace with the same time to recover. A much better session, managing 8 reps and boy was I knackered at the end of the eighth! Afterwards did a few core muscle sets and wandered back to the hotel.
In the last 2 days I've managed to build up a nice little blister on the rh heel, first one in a while. Time to whip out the new blister pads I got while in the US and see how they go on Saturday. A shorter and easier recovery run tomorrow.
Wednesday, May 04, 2005
Interstate Runner
Up early and on the flying 'roo to Melbourne for work. Makes it hard to run in the morning so went out this evening. Quite a temperate climate for this time of the year and I ran from the hotel in the city centre to the Yarra, along the northern bank, crossed a bridge to join up with the Tan at Anderson Street. Then close to 2 full laps of the Tan, stopping a the 0km point 2nd time round and headed back on the south side of the Yarra and back into the city.
I wanted a good hit out tonight but was also focusing on form/style/rhythm/efficiency etc etc. While the Garmin dropped out a couple of times in the end it said 10.8 km in 49:06 which is around 4:32 min/km which was faster than initially planned! A great session to get back into things and another bonus of no pain from the various niggles post Canberra.
A harder rep session tomorrow night on the treadmill and then a nice recovery run on Friday to prepare for the 10km on Saturday that I will hopefully be able to run.
I wanted a good hit out tonight but was also focusing on form/style/rhythm/efficiency etc etc. While the Garmin dropped out a couple of times in the end it said 10.8 km in 49:06 which is around 4:32 min/km which was faster than initially planned! A great session to get back into things and another bonus of no pain from the various niggles post Canberra.
A harder rep session tomorrow night on the treadmill and then a nice recovery run on Friday to prepare for the 10km on Saturday that I will hopefully be able to run.
Tuesday, May 03, 2005
Back into intervals!
Cooler mornings and the plan is to use the handy gym around the corner for speedwork. This is the first interval session for around a month.
Goal was probably ambitious taking the pace up a step from previous sessions to 3:45 min/km from 3:50. Still the same game plan though 1km on and then half the time standing recovery. Wow the gym was packed out this morning but still a few treadmills left. Had my handy iPod shuffle riding shotgun to distract with some up tempo music.
First couple seemed ok but started to develop the soreness I had a week or so ago in the groin /ab area. Kept going but pulled the pin at 3.5km, not worth busting anything. I think this problem is somehow associated with the stomach/digestive system and may even also be part of what happened at Canberra, no scientific fact just gut feel (haha)!
Decided after the warmdown to go and do some core strength work for a change, first time since November, no ill effects so will continue.
Bound for Mexico for a couple of days for work, will pack the woolies and keep things going as the 10km at North Head looms on Saturday.
Goal was probably ambitious taking the pace up a step from previous sessions to 3:45 min/km from 3:50. Still the same game plan though 1km on and then half the time standing recovery. Wow the gym was packed out this morning but still a few treadmills left. Had my handy iPod shuffle riding shotgun to distract with some up tempo music.
First couple seemed ok but started to develop the soreness I had a week or so ago in the groin /ab area. Kept going but pulled the pin at 3.5km, not worth busting anything. I think this problem is somehow associated with the stomach/digestive system and may even also be part of what happened at Canberra, no scientific fact just gut feel (haha)!
Decided after the warmdown to go and do some core strength work for a change, first time since November, no ill effects so will continue.
Bound for Mexico for a couple of days for work, will pack the woolies and keep things going as the 10km at North Head looms on Saturday.
Monday, May 02, 2005
MetrO League
Been a while since I've done any true Orienteering and Sunday was the first race in the Sydney MetrO League series so thought I'd have a bash for a change!
MetrO League is pretty complicated in the way that it works and I'm not in the mood to try and fully describe it. Anyway I'm seeded as the first runner in our team in division 3 which also makes me runner 2 of 30 headed out on this course.
The start is at the ovals just below Pennant Hills and extends through the Lane Cove River Valley in the vicinity. First control was across a river gully and in a group of rocks just off a network of trails. Managed to screw myself up in said network and lost a few minutes realigning myself.
From there it was pretty good, hitting the rest of the controls pretty much bang on. An interesting choice of routes from 3 to 4 which involved some serious bush bashing and climbing at the same time. Then it was faster around the back of netball courts only slowed down by the massive crowds of netballers at some carnival who had set out seats etc on the carefully planned courses!
Really ripped it home catching a guy from Central Coast on the way into control 5 and then really hammering to control 6 and home, putting just about a minute into him in not much distance. It seems quite a few of the earlier runners struggled and this helped the later runners as groups formed so my time while fast was outdone by later runners. However our team still won our match up!!
Only short distance, about 3.5km and it took jusy over 35 minutes, proably should have been low 30's if I had my head on for control #1.
MetrO League is pretty complicated in the way that it works and I'm not in the mood to try and fully describe it. Anyway I'm seeded as the first runner in our team in division 3 which also makes me runner 2 of 30 headed out on this course.
The start is at the ovals just below Pennant Hills and extends through the Lane Cove River Valley in the vicinity. First control was across a river gully and in a group of rocks just off a network of trails. Managed to screw myself up in said network and lost a few minutes realigning myself.
From there it was pretty good, hitting the rest of the controls pretty much bang on. An interesting choice of routes from 3 to 4 which involved some serious bush bashing and climbing at the same time. Then it was faster around the back of netball courts only slowed down by the massive crowds of netballers at some carnival who had set out seats etc on the carefully planned courses!
Really ripped it home catching a guy from Central Coast on the way into control 5 and then really hammering to control 6 and home, putting just about a minute into him in not much distance. It seems quite a few of the earlier runners struggled and this helped the later runners as groups formed so my time while fast was outdone by later runners. However our team still won our match up!!
Only short distance, about 3.5km and it took jusy over 35 minutes, proably should have been low 30's if I had my head on for control #1.
Saturday, April 30, 2005
April Summary
To start April is a tough month for training this year. It involved taper for Canberra, the race itself and post race recovery. To add to the mix I spent a week and a bit travelling overseas which also reduced the number of runs.
So summary is 127km for April which interestingly enough was pretty much identical to last year (128km).
Highlight - well I did do a 10km PB at the domain!
Lowlight - Canberra run, enough already said.
The challenge is now to get back on track for May, which I could not do last year with only 114km, be interesting to see what happens and how I do at SMH, hoping for a sub 90 half PB.
So summary is 127km for April which interestingly enough was pretty much identical to last year (128km).
Highlight - well I did do a 10km PB at the domain!
Lowlight - Canberra run, enough already said.
The challenge is now to get back on track for May, which I could not do last year with only 114km, be interesting to see what happens and how I do at SMH, hoping for a sub 90 half PB.
CR 5km Challenge
Actually felt pretty good as I arrived for the monthly CR 5km challenge, this will be a benchmark run for the next few months. The soreness has gone completely from the percieved injury but I was still unsure as to how I would go. Despite posting a 19:15 last month I opted to stay with the 20 minute group believing I would probably be a bit slower.
Only 4 runs in total since Canberra and pretty much all of them involved some sort of pain from various niggles etc so expected the fitness to have dropped slightly as well. Stand in starter Fats did a fine job in sending off a good sized group and we quickly settled into a good pace. Redback darted out about 5-10m off the front but we all ran quite a bit on the road in the first km or so as there were a lot of people out enjoying the excellent weather.
First km split was 3:50 bang on the money, I hung back near the front of the pack, still a few metres behind Redback. Missed the 2km mark and as we neared the 3km mark Redback had come back to the pack and I was tucked just in behind Mike F and 2 other Striders, one being Tim who I have seen around before. The 3km mark was a 7:44 for 2km which averages out at 3:52/km just a tad slower.
Just after the 3km mark you do a sharp left turn and it was here where I slipped off the back of the three in front running the 4th km pretty much by myself, catching a few earlier runners in the last 400m. The 4th km always seems to be the hardest and I went through in 3:56. Just after MPHaz cruised up and encouraged me to run with hime but I struggled a little with the twisty last km and could not keep up. Still passed a few more and came in just ahead of a heap of runners with a 3:56 final km to give me 19:28 all up just over 10 sec slower than last month.
Have to say I was actually pleased with this given the circumstances and enjoyed the recovery run back having a good chat with various people including Miss Skarmel who smashed another PB!! Great dining at the Blue Dog cafe serving up blueberry pancakes.
Also pleasing that this was the first post Canberra run that something was not hurting and this was at a serious pace as well! Tonight the legs are a little tight, to be expected I suppose. Something different tomorrow where I'll be foregoing the STaR and going Orienteering in the first Metro League round at Pennant Hills, should be great fun!!
Only 4 runs in total since Canberra and pretty much all of them involved some sort of pain from various niggles etc so expected the fitness to have dropped slightly as well. Stand in starter Fats did a fine job in sending off a good sized group and we quickly settled into a good pace. Redback darted out about 5-10m off the front but we all ran quite a bit on the road in the first km or so as there were a lot of people out enjoying the excellent weather.
First km split was 3:50 bang on the money, I hung back near the front of the pack, still a few metres behind Redback. Missed the 2km mark and as we neared the 3km mark Redback had come back to the pack and I was tucked just in behind Mike F and 2 other Striders, one being Tim who I have seen around before. The 3km mark was a 7:44 for 2km which averages out at 3:52/km just a tad slower.
Just after the 3km mark you do a sharp left turn and it was here where I slipped off the back of the three in front running the 4th km pretty much by myself, catching a few earlier runners in the last 400m. The 4th km always seems to be the hardest and I went through in 3:56. Just after MPHaz cruised up and encouraged me to run with hime but I struggled a little with the twisty last km and could not keep up. Still passed a few more and came in just ahead of a heap of runners with a 3:56 final km to give me 19:28 all up just over 10 sec slower than last month.
Have to say I was actually pleased with this given the circumstances and enjoyed the recovery run back having a good chat with various people including Miss Skarmel who smashed another PB!! Great dining at the Blue Dog cafe serving up blueberry pancakes.
Also pleasing that this was the first post Canberra run that something was not hurting and this was at a serious pace as well! Tonight the legs are a little tight, to be expected I suppose. Something different tomorrow where I'll be foregoing the STaR and going Orienteering in the first Metro League round at Pennant Hills, should be great fun!!
Friday, April 29, 2005
A couple of no's
No run but also no injury it seems???
After blogging yesterday and feeling very sore the day progressed well, some ice last night and it seems as good as gold this morning. Not wanting to chance anything, especially given I am running the 5km on Saturday I awarded myself a rest day. April is gone in terms of any decent milage but thems the breaks!
No idea what the problem was but it has gone away completely, I am now thinking it was some sort of muscle spasm....
CR 5km challenge tomorrow, no idea what sort of time I'll run but at least I am very fresh!!
After blogging yesterday and feeling very sore the day progressed well, some ice last night and it seems as good as gold this morning. Not wanting to chance anything, especially given I am running the 5km on Saturday I awarded myself a rest day. April is gone in terms of any decent milage but thems the breaks!
No idea what the problem was but it has gone away completely, I am now thinking it was some sort of muscle spasm....
CR 5km challenge tomorrow, no idea what sort of time I'll run but at least I am very fresh!!
Thursday, April 28, 2005
Back to reality!
Yes I am still alive folks. A combination of the post Canberra blahs along with a full on overseas business trip saw me take the easy way out and have a break.
I did some running while away, managing 3 x 10km hit outs in the morning while jet lag had me waking up early and I did not have too late a night the evening before. One of the guys from our office in France is also a runner and did New York last year in 3:15. So we hooked up and went out a couple of times around Disney World near our hotel. There was a pretty safe loop of just over a km around a lake/bay that we ran laps of. Certainly still banged up from Canberra as both the groin/adductor and interestingly enough my rhs ITB were not happy about this running caper again.
Back in Oz now and eventually motivated myself to get out this morning and have a good hit out and try out my new Shuffle. Felt real good on the run down to the LCNP weir and so much so opted to extend the run back through Ryde rather than heading straight home. Not a good move it seems, as I was climbing up to the gates and then along Lane Cove Rd my niggle in the groin area really started complaining. In the end it got so sore I walked the last km and a half. Did a heap of stretches once I got home and I'm pretty sure my hips might be out of alignment as the lower back/hips area "cracked" a couple of times as I really stretched this area out. Still very stiff/sore now, have popped a Naprosen and hopefully will go and see my osteo to check my alignment. This puts some risk into my planned run at the CR 5km challenge on Saturday.
Ignoring present issues from above I have been doing quite a deal of thinking about goals for the rest of the year to strive for. These fall into 2 categories, general and specific.
For the general side I am aiming to train through winter properly this time and will also run as much of the Striders 10km and Super Series events possible as well as others that make sense. Where I have done a particular race before then I will be aiming for a new PB. Through this program I aim to break 40min for 10km and depending upon how I am feeling try to break my PB and 90 @ SMH.
On the specific side I have decided I will run the Sydney Marathon and will go through a structured 12 week program for preparation. In these 12 weeks there will be quite a few races as well such as C2S and W2B for instance and I'll be using these as form guides for the Sydney run. Initial goal is to run a PB and I think 3:10 should be within reach if I train/prepare properly and race with a brain on the day. While it will be very tempting to aim for faster I now need some confidence over the longer races and 3:10 will do me for this year.
I did some running while away, managing 3 x 10km hit outs in the morning while jet lag had me waking up early and I did not have too late a night the evening before. One of the guys from our office in France is also a runner and did New York last year in 3:15. So we hooked up and went out a couple of times around Disney World near our hotel. There was a pretty safe loop of just over a km around a lake/bay that we ran laps of. Certainly still banged up from Canberra as both the groin/adductor and interestingly enough my rhs ITB were not happy about this running caper again.
Back in Oz now and eventually motivated myself to get out this morning and have a good hit out and try out my new Shuffle. Felt real good on the run down to the LCNP weir and so much so opted to extend the run back through Ryde rather than heading straight home. Not a good move it seems, as I was climbing up to the gates and then along Lane Cove Rd my niggle in the groin area really started complaining. In the end it got so sore I walked the last km and a half. Did a heap of stretches once I got home and I'm pretty sure my hips might be out of alignment as the lower back/hips area "cracked" a couple of times as I really stretched this area out. Still very stiff/sore now, have popped a Naprosen and hopefully will go and see my osteo to check my alignment. This puts some risk into my planned run at the CR 5km challenge on Saturday.
Ignoring present issues from above I have been doing quite a deal of thinking about goals for the rest of the year to strive for. These fall into 2 categories, general and specific.
For the general side I am aiming to train through winter properly this time and will also run as much of the Striders 10km and Super Series events possible as well as others that make sense. Where I have done a particular race before then I will be aiming for a new PB. Through this program I aim to break 40min for 10km and depending upon how I am feeling try to break my PB and 90 @ SMH.
On the specific side I have decided I will run the Sydney Marathon and will go through a structured 12 week program for preparation. In these 12 weeks there will be quite a few races as well such as C2S and W2B for instance and I'll be using these as form guides for the Sydney run. Initial goal is to run a PB and I think 3:10 should be within reach if I train/prepare properly and race with a brain on the day. While it will be very tempting to aim for faster I now need some confidence over the longer races and 3:10 will do me for this year.
Tuesday, April 12, 2005
Race Report Canberra Marathon 2005
All the prep was done, just the actual race now.
Pre Race - Headed down to Canberra on Saturday morning to catch up with a cousin for lunch who I have only met a couple of times. From there it was across to the motel to register, meet and greet and then cheer on the runners in the 5/10km.
Had great fun watching the races as there were a number of laps so we got a good chance to cheer a lot of people. In particular Clairie with her pace escorts Mr G and Spud, but also Aki, Luke Skyrunner and a heap of Striders. Also good to see a couple of supported Cool Runners do real well!
Dinner was a good pasta load at a Italian restaurant in Kingston, I was slightly late as I needed to pick up last minute supplies.
Race Day - Slightly disturbed sleep but up at around 5am ready for action. The great thing about where I was staying was it was a walk out the door to the start! Popped over early to put my drinks in for the drink stops. Finally headed back over around 6:15, trying not to get too tense etc. There was certainly a mood of tension in the air.
Soon enough and we were off. I had decided to run by myself and keep a steady pace. If someone that I knew was around then great! Nice even splits early, ran with sportsman for about a km but he was going a little more conservatively so I pushed on. Back to the Bowen Cres turnaround and 10km just before it in 44:09, bang on my plans. A great lift from the crowd as we went through. From there it was just stay as smooth as possible, not far ahead was Philip B, another strider, and he was running probably only a second slower than me so it took until the tunnel until I caught him, we had a quick chat and I kept the momentum going. Back up the hill and through the tunnel and hit the 20km mark in 1:28:09 so a 2nd 10km of 44:00. This put me through the half way point in about 1:33. About here Philip B caught back up to me and we had another quick chat but he moved away from me pretty quickly mainly due to the fact that my pace was slowing.
Made concerted efforts to step it up again but to no avail so I decided to stay running comfortably and see what happened. As we got closer to the Bowen turnaround I could feel myself struggling more. Steve B, caught me at about the same time as I caught Mohammed just at the turn. Again the crowd was great but I was starting to hurt, the stomach in particular was beginning to spasm. Everytime I had a drink it gotr worse so I (maybe unwisely) started to limited fluid intake. Coming out of the turn Amjan gave me a big cheer and I think I said to her things were starting to hurt. Back out along the bridge and just at the drink station after the bridge things got worse. At the same time Superflake, vat_man and Blue Dog caught up to me. We had a quick chat but there was not a chance I could hold on to them.
Now I'm of the opinion that a blog must be honest and so this next bit is difficult...
About a km after the water station I really started to get bad stomach cramps and felt like chucking. I eased up further and around the same time the legs etc also started cramping, calves first probably due to the reduced fluid and also the increasing heat. The 30km time was 2:17:14 so a 49 minute 10km split. By the time I got to where the runners were coming the other way and turning on the bridge I was down to around 7 min/km pace and in semi tears from the pain/frustration. Really contemplated pulling out right there but did not want a dnf. I kept on going in this manner and now people were starting to stream past me. Finally got to the turnaround and shuffled back up the hill. By then I knew I would finish but it would be ugly.
Finally got back across the lake and not many people moving much faster than I was now, the 40km time was 3:24:36 so a 1:07 10km split. The stomach had eased up a bit by now but the damage was done and no way I could get the legs to turnover faster.
Finish time of 3:40:24. Not aware at the time but Miss Skarmel did a cartwheel about 20 metres behind me, and redback was also not too far back. I caught up with a few people right after the finish, including Tesso who had passed me during my worst section but had also slowed. Rather than sit around feeling sorry fro myself I dragged myself to the Striders tent had a couple of drinks and then went back to the finish line to cheer home the others. What an emotional experience cheering on the runners still finishing. Probably brought more of a tear to the eye yelling for people like Psychoma and Bernie G as they finished their first marathon than my own experience. Eventually I had to sit down as I was starting to feel woozy.
The whole race can be best summarised by the 2 half splits, 1:33 and 2:07 for 21 km. I feel somewhat guilty about being down on my time when many, many other people toughed it out for much longer than me. But I expected a whole lot better and am really at a loss as to what happened. Maybe I just went out too hard and did not factor in the warmer weather, it seems I was not alone as many people I know struggled today and missed what they were aiming for. Given my fluid/stomach problems I only used 1 of the 3 gu's I was carrying as well.
Well done to those that posted PB's on a tough day. I did some quick analysis and for those runners that ran in 2004 and 2005 as a group we were 3.1% slower this year.
Two days later now and while the upper quads and lh adductor are still a little sore I have pulled up pretty well. I'm going to go introspective for another day or so before I decide on the program forward. I do have a few ideas in mind and have already entered the SMH half so will be there for that.
Thanks to all those who posted here on my blog and also who were out on the course, both runners and spectators for the encouragement. I had a great weekend of meeting and socialising with Striders and Cool Runners, it is just that hour and a half or so mid Sunday morning that was certainly not enjoyable.
For posterity 5km splits were
5km 22:12 22:12
10km 21:57 44:09
15km 21:54 1:06:03
20km 22:06 1:28:09
25km 23:10 1:51:19
30km 25:55 2:17:14
35km 34:38 2:51:52
40km 34:44 3:24:36
End 3:40:24
Pre Race - Headed down to Canberra on Saturday morning to catch up with a cousin for lunch who I have only met a couple of times. From there it was across to the motel to register, meet and greet and then cheer on the runners in the 5/10km.
Had great fun watching the races as there were a number of laps so we got a good chance to cheer a lot of people. In particular Clairie with her pace escorts Mr G and Spud, but also Aki, Luke Skyrunner and a heap of Striders. Also good to see a couple of supported Cool Runners do real well!
Dinner was a good pasta load at a Italian restaurant in Kingston, I was slightly late as I needed to pick up last minute supplies.
Race Day - Slightly disturbed sleep but up at around 5am ready for action. The great thing about where I was staying was it was a walk out the door to the start! Popped over early to put my drinks in for the drink stops. Finally headed back over around 6:15, trying not to get too tense etc. There was certainly a mood of tension in the air.
Soon enough and we were off. I had decided to run by myself and keep a steady pace. If someone that I knew was around then great! Nice even splits early, ran with sportsman for about a km but he was going a little more conservatively so I pushed on. Back to the Bowen Cres turnaround and 10km just before it in 44:09, bang on my plans. A great lift from the crowd as we went through. From there it was just stay as smooth as possible, not far ahead was Philip B, another strider, and he was running probably only a second slower than me so it took until the tunnel until I caught him, we had a quick chat and I kept the momentum going. Back up the hill and through the tunnel and hit the 20km mark in 1:28:09 so a 2nd 10km of 44:00. This put me through the half way point in about 1:33. About here Philip B caught back up to me and we had another quick chat but he moved away from me pretty quickly mainly due to the fact that my pace was slowing.
Made concerted efforts to step it up again but to no avail so I decided to stay running comfortably and see what happened. As we got closer to the Bowen turnaround I could feel myself struggling more. Steve B, caught me at about the same time as I caught Mohammed just at the turn. Again the crowd was great but I was starting to hurt, the stomach in particular was beginning to spasm. Everytime I had a drink it gotr worse so I (maybe unwisely) started to limited fluid intake. Coming out of the turn Amjan gave me a big cheer and I think I said to her things were starting to hurt. Back out along the bridge and just at the drink station after the bridge things got worse. At the same time Superflake, vat_man and Blue Dog caught up to me. We had a quick chat but there was not a chance I could hold on to them.
Now I'm of the opinion that a blog must be honest and so this next bit is difficult...
About a km after the water station I really started to get bad stomach cramps and felt like chucking. I eased up further and around the same time the legs etc also started cramping, calves first probably due to the reduced fluid and also the increasing heat. The 30km time was 2:17:14 so a 49 minute 10km split. By the time I got to where the runners were coming the other way and turning on the bridge I was down to around 7 min/km pace and in semi tears from the pain/frustration. Really contemplated pulling out right there but did not want a dnf. I kept on going in this manner and now people were starting to stream past me. Finally got to the turnaround and shuffled back up the hill. By then I knew I would finish but it would be ugly.
Finally got back across the lake and not many people moving much faster than I was now, the 40km time was 3:24:36 so a 1:07 10km split. The stomach had eased up a bit by now but the damage was done and no way I could get the legs to turnover faster.
Finish time of 3:40:24. Not aware at the time but Miss Skarmel did a cartwheel about 20 metres behind me, and redback was also not too far back. I caught up with a few people right after the finish, including Tesso who had passed me during my worst section but had also slowed. Rather than sit around feeling sorry fro myself I dragged myself to the Striders tent had a couple of drinks and then went back to the finish line to cheer home the others. What an emotional experience cheering on the runners still finishing. Probably brought more of a tear to the eye yelling for people like Psychoma and Bernie G as they finished their first marathon than my own experience. Eventually I had to sit down as I was starting to feel woozy.
The whole race can be best summarised by the 2 half splits, 1:33 and 2:07 for 21 km. I feel somewhat guilty about being down on my time when many, many other people toughed it out for much longer than me. But I expected a whole lot better and am really at a loss as to what happened. Maybe I just went out too hard and did not factor in the warmer weather, it seems I was not alone as many people I know struggled today and missed what they were aiming for. Given my fluid/stomach problems I only used 1 of the 3 gu's I was carrying as well.
Well done to those that posted PB's on a tough day. I did some quick analysis and for those runners that ran in 2004 and 2005 as a group we were 3.1% slower this year.
Two days later now and while the upper quads and lh adductor are still a little sore I have pulled up pretty well. I'm going to go introspective for another day or so before I decide on the program forward. I do have a few ideas in mind and have already entered the SMH half so will be there for that.
Thanks to all those who posted here on my blog and also who were out on the course, both runners and spectators for the encouragement. I had a great weekend of meeting and socialising with Striders and Cool Runners, it is just that hour and a half or so mid Sunday morning that was certainly not enjoyable.
For posterity 5km splits were
5km 22:12 22:12
10km 21:57 44:09
15km 21:54 1:06:03
20km 22:06 1:28:09
25km 23:10 1:51:19
30km 25:55 2:17:14
35km 34:38 2:51:52
40km 34:44 3:24:36
End 3:40:24
Wednesday, April 06, 2005
Last serious hit out
Getting down to the line now....
Was going to head to the Bay for this session but instead opted for my local run down to the weir and back. A nice 4km warmup and then 3km @ just below target Marathon Pace, a little harder given the undulations and turns @ Lane Cove. Then a warm down on the way home. Felt a little awkward and was a little inconsistent at pacing but in all not too bad.
Just after I finished the MP section I saw Mr G headed down towards the weir.
A minor concern on adductor, a little tender still from Saturday, will focus on ice and NSAID for the next day or so.
That is pretty much it, maybe a 5km lite stretch out on Fri/Sat. Getting ready for loading up on carbos and reducing alcohol intake for the next couple of days.
Was going to head to the Bay for this session but instead opted for my local run down to the weir and back. A nice 4km warmup and then 3km @ just below target Marathon Pace, a little harder given the undulations and turns @ Lane Cove. Then a warm down on the way home. Felt a little awkward and was a little inconsistent at pacing but in all not too bad.
Just after I finished the MP section I saw Mr G headed down towards the weir.
A minor concern on adductor, a little tender still from Saturday, will focus on ice and NSAID for the next day or so.
That is pretty much it, maybe a 5km lite stretch out on Fri/Sat. Getting ready for loading up on carbos and reducing alcohol intake for the next couple of days.
Tuesday, April 05, 2005
Tapering time
Sunday
The Striders STaR was based at Balmoral this week and has a number of hills and singletrack over the long distance. In the end I decided to show up at 7am and run the shorter option at a gentle pace. Quite a group as the MTG planned to do the same thing and I ran along with Redback and Mohammed near the front most of the time, pausing at water stops to regroup. As we came into Mosman the longer runners were coming the other way and I did a fartlek type run up the long hill from the Mosman Ferry wharf to tag onto the back of the 6:20 group. Left them there though and continued up the hill. As I waited for the group to catch up Luke Skyrunner came through, cutting short his long run and I joined in with him to run back to the start. Probably around 12-13km all up at around 6 min/km pace. Very easy!
Canberra prep
A few things on the checklist this week and the short "racing " hair cut has happened, the legs are waxed and I've booked a massage for towards the end of the week. Missed the run this morning so will pop out this afternoon for a nice "recovery" run.
Am still tossing up my pacing strategy but am leaning towards (in 10km increments)
45/44/44/43/9 which will give 3:05 (some rounding in there). The fall back is to run @ 4:30 pace the whole way which will give around a 3:10. Ultimately at the 30km mark I will be running as hard/fast as I and anything could happen....
The Striders STaR was based at Balmoral this week and has a number of hills and singletrack over the long distance. In the end I decided to show up at 7am and run the shorter option at a gentle pace. Quite a group as the MTG planned to do the same thing and I ran along with Redback and Mohammed near the front most of the time, pausing at water stops to regroup. As we came into Mosman the longer runners were coming the other way and I did a fartlek type run up the long hill from the Mosman Ferry wharf to tag onto the back of the 6:20 group. Left them there though and continued up the hill. As I waited for the group to catch up Luke Skyrunner came through, cutting short his long run and I joined in with him to run back to the start. Probably around 12-13km all up at around 6 min/km pace. Very easy!
Canberra prep
A few things on the checklist this week and the short "racing " hair cut has happened, the legs are waxed and I've booked a massage for towards the end of the week. Missed the run this morning so will pop out this afternoon for a nice "recovery" run.
Am still tossing up my pacing strategy but am leaning towards (in 10km increments)
45/44/44/43/9 which will give 3:05 (some rounding in there). The fall back is to run @ 4:30 pace the whole way which will give around a 3:10. Ultimately at the 30km mark I will be running as hard/fast as I and anything could happen....
Saturday, April 02, 2005
Race report Striders 10km @ The Domain
Not a perfectly scheduled race for a fast 10km time only one week out from Canberra and also a tight twisty udulating course, described as not a PB run!
Anyway, got there early to help setup, next month I am flying solo on the timing/results so this was a dry run while I could have some mentoring as required. I have found one of the good things about being involved in the setup is that is distracts from any pre race nerves.
Next thing you know it I'm with just over 300 runners near the point of Lady Macquarie's Chair opposite the Opera House at the start line. Course is three laps and a little bit around Lady Macquarie's chair and The Domain. Heavy congestion for the first couple of km but I am surprised with the splits I am recording as they are faster than I though I was going.
Settle in at a steady pace which felt real comfortable and it just happens to coincide to being about 15-20 metres behind vat_man. At the same time I am swapping places with a couple of other Striders who are usually a bit quicker than I am. Coming through the final lap I missed the 9km marker and decided just to run the same steady pace to the line and not go crazy, knowing I was close to a PB but not stressing about it.
Ended up across the line just behind the group I had been tailing and with a new PB of 41:14, a ten second improvement. The best thing is I ran within myself and felt relatively composed at the end.
Splits were
1km 4:14 4:14
2km 4:00 8:14
3km 3:44 11:58
4km 4:17 16:15
5km 4:13 20:28
6km 3:58 24:26
7km 4:16 28:43
8km 4:30 33:12
10km 8:02 41:14
This is yet another great positive piece of feedback for Canberra. The week summary is 53km but the real interesting thing is the Parrot Predictor says a 2:59:44!!
With 7 days to go this week is critical in the taper and will have no high intensity or long distance. For tomorrow I'm probably going to do the STaR but run the 7am group at an easy pace with a few mates for about 15km.
Anyway, got there early to help setup, next month I am flying solo on the timing/results so this was a dry run while I could have some mentoring as required. I have found one of the good things about being involved in the setup is that is distracts from any pre race nerves.
Next thing you know it I'm with just over 300 runners near the point of Lady Macquarie's Chair opposite the Opera House at the start line. Course is three laps and a little bit around Lady Macquarie's chair and The Domain. Heavy congestion for the first couple of km but I am surprised with the splits I am recording as they are faster than I though I was going.
Settle in at a steady pace which felt real comfortable and it just happens to coincide to being about 15-20 metres behind vat_man. At the same time I am swapping places with a couple of other Striders who are usually a bit quicker than I am. Coming through the final lap I missed the 9km marker and decided just to run the same steady pace to the line and not go crazy, knowing I was close to a PB but not stressing about it.
Ended up across the line just behind the group I had been tailing and with a new PB of 41:14, a ten second improvement. The best thing is I ran within myself and felt relatively composed at the end.
Splits were
1km 4:14 4:14
2km 4:00 8:14
3km 3:44 11:58
4km 4:17 16:15
5km 4:13 20:28
6km 3:58 24:26
7km 4:16 28:43
8km 4:30 33:12
10km 8:02 41:14
This is yet another great positive piece of feedback for Canberra. The week summary is 53km but the real interesting thing is the Parrot Predictor says a 2:59:44!!
With 7 days to go this week is critical in the taper and will have no high intensity or long distance. For tomorrow I'm probably going to do the STaR but run the 7am group at an easy pace with a few mates for about 15km.
Thursday, March 31, 2005
March review
Hey it's the end of March I just realised!!
A quick review shows
Total for March = 236km, quite a bit below initial plan but that can really be put down to 6ft taking more out of me than planned and thus wiping out pretty much a week of training.
In comparing to March last year where I did 294km!
Interesting also to see that my average pace this year vs last year was actually the same. Again that 6ft influence where the avg pace was 7:51 for 45km.
Highlights for March - completing 6ft and also a 35second PB for 5km
Lowlight for March - struggling on 6ft much more than planned
A quick review shows
Total for March = 236km, quite a bit below initial plan but that can really be put down to 6ft taking more out of me than planned and thus wiping out pretty much a week of training.
In comparing to March last year where I did 294km!
Interesting also to see that my average pace this year vs last year was actually the same. Again that 6ft influence where the avg pace was 7:51 for 45km.
Highlights for March - completing 6ft and also a 35second PB for 5km
Lowlight for March - struggling on 6ft much more than planned
As sharp as it gets
The days continue to tick down and this morning I had scheduled my last "high intensity" pace session. Back to the treadie but this time 500m reps.
I planned to do between 8-10 but slightly slower than I would do normally (3:20) and so set the pace guide for 3:30 and did 8 (with 1:45 standing recovery). Once again could have done more but felt 8 was about right!
I call this high intensity given it is well below my Target Marathon Pace. Next run is on Saturday where we have the Striders 10km in the domain, was tempted to give this a real thrash but I think I'll now run the first 5km at around 4:15 pace and then see what happens.
I planned to do between 8-10 but slightly slower than I would do normally (3:20) and so set the pace guide for 3:30 and did 8 (with 1:45 standing recovery). Once again could have done more but felt 8 was about right!
I call this high intensity given it is well below my Target Marathon Pace. Next run is on Saturday where we have the Striders 10km in the domain, was tempted to give this a real thrash but I think I'll now run the first 5km at around 4:15 pace and then see what happens.
Tuesday, March 29, 2005
Time to sharpen up!
No more long stuff, time to get the legs used to turning over quicker.
A good session this morning of 6 x 1km @ 3:50 pace with 1:55 standing recovery.
No problems at all with this and really could have done at least another 2 but that is not the program at this point.
Combined with a nice warm up/down another good session to have under the belt and a further confidence booster. Rest tomorrow and then some shorter faster reps on Thursday.
I like this taper business!
A good session this morning of 6 x 1km @ 3:50 pace with 1:55 standing recovery.
No problems at all with this and really could have done at least another 2 but that is not the program at this point.
Combined with a nice warm up/down another good session to have under the belt and a further confidence booster. Rest tomorrow and then some shorter faster reps on Thursday.
I like this taper business!
Sunday, March 27, 2005
Homebush Hustle STaR
Last "long" run on the schedule before Canberra and you could not pick a better STaR to do it with. Starting in Concord you proceed straight through Olympica Park, then along Parramatta River crossing at Silverwater Rd, back along the northern shore and then across to Rhodes on the way home.
I wanted to have a pretty hard/fast hit out today and so decided to go out with the 6:20 group. Pretty much straight away the pace was one and after about 10km the group split into about 3 sub groups. I stayed towards the back and ended up running with Action, Luke Skyrunner and vat_man. We had a great time chatting and joking as the km steadily ticked by and I just started to struggle a little as we headed back through West Ryde/Meadowbank. Popped a gu and held it together as we too the short option "B" and headed back through Rhodes, just hanging on on some of the inclines. The guys knew I was being stretched but thought I should step up the pace on the way home. With a couple of km to go Luke offered to run with me at my actual Marathon Pace and we took off from the others. As it happened we only has about 1.5 km before a overpass to cross the railway line but we really turned it on and actually went a bit faster than MP, and just before the bridge headed up a slight hill I was really going for it!
Got back to the finish a little knackered and sore but very happy with the workout
26.3km in 2:04:06 (avg pace 4:43min/km and avg HR 163)
EDIT : Action dropped me a note saying his calculations make it 27.1km which then makes it an avg pace of 4:35 min/km!! Who am I to argue with a certified course measurer... (makes the run even more pleasing)
After cooling down had some good chats with different people at the finish and on reflection am very happy with this run as a last long hit out, the groin is still a bit sore but some rest and care should sort that out before race day. Some real sharpening this week as the focus shifts to intensity and rest rather than distance.
I wanted to have a pretty hard/fast hit out today and so decided to go out with the 6:20 group. Pretty much straight away the pace was one and after about 10km the group split into about 3 sub groups. I stayed towards the back and ended up running with Action, Luke Skyrunner and vat_man. We had a great time chatting and joking as the km steadily ticked by and I just started to struggle a little as we headed back through West Ryde/Meadowbank. Popped a gu and held it together as we too the short option "B" and headed back through Rhodes, just hanging on on some of the inclines. The guys knew I was being stretched but thought I should step up the pace on the way home. With a couple of km to go Luke offered to run with me at my actual Marathon Pace and we took off from the others. As it happened we only has about 1.5 km before a overpass to cross the railway line but we really turned it on and actually went a bit faster than MP, and just before the bridge headed up a slight hill I was really going for it!
Got back to the finish a little knackered and sore but very happy with the workout
26.3km in 2:04:06 (avg pace 4:43min/km and avg HR 163)
EDIT : Action dropped me a note saying his calculations make it 27.1km which then makes it an avg pace of 4:35 min/km!! Who am I to argue with a certified course measurer... (makes the run even more pleasing)
After cooling down had some good chats with different people at the finish and on reflection am very happy with this run as a last long hit out, the groin is still a bit sore but some rest and care should sort that out before race day. Some real sharpening this week as the focus shifts to intensity and rest rather than distance.
Saturday, March 26, 2005
CR 5km Challenge
A different approach to this week's run, I know I can break the current PB of 19:50 if I sort out my pacing. Decided to use the virtual partner feature on the Garmin 301 and set it for 3:55 pace which would give me a 19:35.
Up in the morning and as I'm eating toast and getting ready it starts to rain. No problems, a mere distraction. Get to the start early and watch/listen to the rain on the car roof. It eases up as 7am approaches and people start to arrive. I also decide to run with 20 minute group rather than 19 minutes so I don't get caught up following someone out too hard.
Action sends us off and while I'm at the front, no heroics and pretty soon Redback and Mr WT ease past into the lead. I'm happy with this as I'm feeling comfortable and this will stop me being silly at the front. Also in our bunch were Horrie and Mr G plus at least one other but really never saw them. At about the 3km mark Mr WT slipped back a little and I moved up next to Redback, we ran next to each other for a couple of hundred metres and then he started to drift back. Still feeling good and merely maintaining my pace we entered the last km and also started catching some of the earlier starters.
That last km is a bugger with a twisting path to keep you honest but I gritted the teeth and kept it going, as I rounded the final curve for the finish straight Luke Skyrunner and pram came up along side and cruised past, not much I could do about that. Crossed the line and immediately attempted to try and recover the oxygen that the lungs seemed to be a little short on.
The end result was a PB of 35 seconds with a new time of 19:15. Splits roughly were
3:43
3:56
3:53
3:49
3:54
Very happy with that and did a return warmdown run back for brekky in the cold and rain but good company!
This is a new benchmark for me and according to various calculators I a on line for a 40 min 10km and also a 3:10 marathon!! Just the tonic needed for the mind with 2 weeks to go.
So ends another week, seemingly a turnaround physically and mentally after 6 foot.
53km for the week and the parrot predictor says a 3:36:47, heavily influenced by last Sunday's struggle in the STaR.
Up in the morning and as I'm eating toast and getting ready it starts to rain. No problems, a mere distraction. Get to the start early and watch/listen to the rain on the car roof. It eases up as 7am approaches and people start to arrive. I also decide to run with 20 minute group rather than 19 minutes so I don't get caught up following someone out too hard.
Action sends us off and while I'm at the front, no heroics and pretty soon Redback and Mr WT ease past into the lead. I'm happy with this as I'm feeling comfortable and this will stop me being silly at the front. Also in our bunch were Horrie and Mr G plus at least one other but really never saw them. At about the 3km mark Mr WT slipped back a little and I moved up next to Redback, we ran next to each other for a couple of hundred metres and then he started to drift back. Still feeling good and merely maintaining my pace we entered the last km and also started catching some of the earlier starters.
That last km is a bugger with a twisting path to keep you honest but I gritted the teeth and kept it going, as I rounded the final curve for the finish straight Luke Skyrunner and pram came up along side and cruised past, not much I could do about that. Crossed the line and immediately attempted to try and recover the oxygen that the lungs seemed to be a little short on.
The end result was a PB of 35 seconds with a new time of 19:15. Splits roughly were
3:43
3:56
3:53
3:49
3:54
Very happy with that and did a return warmdown run back for brekky in the cold and rain but good company!
This is a new benchmark for me and according to various calculators I a on line for a 40 min 10km and also a 3:10 marathon!! Just the tonic needed for the mind with 2 weeks to go.
So ends another week, seemingly a turnaround physically and mentally after 6 foot.
53km for the week and the parrot predictor says a 3:36:47, heavily influenced by last Sunday's struggle in the STaR.
Friday, March 25, 2005
Sharpen up time
A nice sleep in this morning but still wanted to get out today so headed out this afternoon. Wanted to do a pretty hard session but not a full on headbanging interval set. I decided to do my normal run through the park to the weir and back. Main difference being that at 3km I'd shift down to around Half Marathon pace and hold that through the undulations for 5km. As it happened the start and end of the 5km were both halfway down Scribbly so a nice uphill finish to really test things out.
The warm up was pretty good and I was really floating but still running sub 5 min/km pace. When the 3km distance beep went off I immediately upped the effort and then monitored things on the garmin. At the end of the 5km I ended up in a time of 21:04 so slightly sub 4:15 pace, again on a undulating course.
Had a minute break and then warmed down heading home. The final stats were
10.97 km in 49:41, avg pace 4:32 (which is pretty much my new Canberra target MP) and avg HR of 170.
I have had the "blahs" since 6 ft but I think this session has turned the corner for me mentally. Not even that fussed by the blister I managed to pick up on my heel. No niggles from either lower leg and I did plenty of stretching at the end of the run.
A rest day tomorrow and the CR 5km challenge at the bay to round out the week and keep teh sharpening coming!
The warm up was pretty good and I was really floating but still running sub 5 min/km pace. When the 3km distance beep went off I immediately upped the effort and then monitored things on the garmin. At the end of the 5km I ended up in a time of 21:04 so slightly sub 4:15 pace, again on a undulating course.
Had a minute break and then warmed down heading home. The final stats were
10.97 km in 49:41, avg pace 4:32 (which is pretty much my new Canberra target MP) and avg HR of 170.
I have had the "blahs" since 6 ft but I think this session has turned the corner for me mentally. Not even that fussed by the blister I managed to pick up on my heel. No niggles from either lower leg and I did plenty of stretching at the end of the run.
A rest day tomorrow and the CR 5km challenge at the bay to round out the week and keep teh sharpening coming!
Wednesday, March 23, 2005
Lets get back on Track!
Ok, time to get serious again.
Summer Series final event at Macquarie Uni. The scene is I am running 4th by 2 points from 5th. If we both run the same score then he goes past me as he gets to drop a lower scoring poor run. So I need to beat him by a bit, hard to do when he is significantly faster than me.
To complicated things further it had been absolutely bucketing down with rain here and when I got to the start part of the course was closed, as it was on sporting grounds (as you will see from the map scan). So a max of 480 up for grabs which means need a perfect score as 480 is gettable!
A route selected I'm off, good thing is I have run this map twice before so have a bit of an idea what to expect. Out to 3, down to 7 and in and out to 22. Around to 2 and another in and out for 13. Running very freely here, quickly past 12 down the hill to 15. First muddle here as I misinterpret the map and stumble for a minute or 2 with another runner. He leaves, I re-establlish map contact and sort out the problem. Back out up the hill for 21 on the way to 1. Continue up the hill and across an overgrown paddock for 25, down the hill to the dam and 14.
Major stuff up here as I completely fumble 26, but it seemed I was not the only one... Lost many minutes here, very frustrating. Finally sorted myself out and then raced across the paddock towards the campus and got 4/23 and 5 very quickly. Around the buildings now and extra complication of people everywhere. Slow down for 23 and then again lose map contact on the way to 6 sucking up at least another minute.
Now on to 23 and it is obvious time is not good and so opt to miss 30/19/20. Through the buildings again for 16 then real open running for 27 and home.
Here is the map and my route
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/Uni.jpg
End up back in 50:38 so 60 points deducted for lateness. Given I got 410 that gives a net of 350, a terrible score given the fast guys got the lot in under 40 minutes. The only saving grace is 5th place did not show up so I managed to keep 4th place!! Also scored a special award and a bottle of wine for the work I did on the web site.
The run stats, 9.1km in 50:38, avg pace of 5:33 and avg HR of 168.
So the season ends, ended up 4th. Interesting looking at the three guys in front of me. First just finished 6th @ 6ft in 3:43, 2nd also just ran 6ft in 4:30 and 3rd has run a sub 4hr 6ft as well. Pretty esteemed company!!
The other good thing is both lower leg niggles gave no problems, the groin was a little sore but I think that will be the case for a while whenever I am running this type of event with sudden changes in direction etc.
I think next year I'' approach SS a bi differently and always aim to get the lot, just to stretch me out a bit further.
Summer Series final event at Macquarie Uni. The scene is I am running 4th by 2 points from 5th. If we both run the same score then he goes past me as he gets to drop a lower scoring poor run. So I need to beat him by a bit, hard to do when he is significantly faster than me.
To complicated things further it had been absolutely bucketing down with rain here and when I got to the start part of the course was closed, as it was on sporting grounds (as you will see from the map scan). So a max of 480 up for grabs which means need a perfect score as 480 is gettable!
A route selected I'm off, good thing is I have run this map twice before so have a bit of an idea what to expect. Out to 3, down to 7 and in and out to 22. Around to 2 and another in and out for 13. Running very freely here, quickly past 12 down the hill to 15. First muddle here as I misinterpret the map and stumble for a minute or 2 with another runner. He leaves, I re-establlish map contact and sort out the problem. Back out up the hill for 21 on the way to 1. Continue up the hill and across an overgrown paddock for 25, down the hill to the dam and 14.
Major stuff up here as I completely fumble 26, but it seemed I was not the only one... Lost many minutes here, very frustrating. Finally sorted myself out and then raced across the paddock towards the campus and got 4/23 and 5 very quickly. Around the buildings now and extra complication of people everywhere. Slow down for 23 and then again lose map contact on the way to 6 sucking up at least another minute.
Now on to 23 and it is obvious time is not good and so opt to miss 30/19/20. Through the buildings again for 16 then real open running for 27 and home.
Here is the map and my route
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/Uni.jpg
End up back in 50:38 so 60 points deducted for lateness. Given I got 410 that gives a net of 350, a terrible score given the fast guys got the lot in under 40 minutes. The only saving grace is 5th place did not show up so I managed to keep 4th place!! Also scored a special award and a bottle of wine for the work I did on the web site.
The run stats, 9.1km in 50:38, avg pace of 5:33 and avg HR of 168.
So the season ends, ended up 4th. Interesting looking at the three guys in front of me. First just finished 6th @ 6ft in 3:43, 2nd also just ran 6ft in 4:30 and 3rd has run a sub 4hr 6ft as well. Pretty esteemed company!!
The other good thing is both lower leg niggles gave no problems, the groin was a little sore but I think that will be the case for a while whenever I am running this type of event with sudden changes in direction etc.
I think next year I'' approach SS a bi differently and always aim to get the lot, just to stretch me out a bit further.
Tuesday, March 22, 2005
Whats been going on??
Yes I have been slack in blogging! Quite strange I seem to have drifted into a mental "blahness" since 6ft, sort of like how I felt after Canberra last year. Maybe subconsciously I am still beating myself up....
Anyway not that much to report so here goes
Wed 16th - Summer Series @ Lane Cove
Not going to do the usual detailed thing here. The map is a good one with challenging climbs on the way home and lots of undualtions and some nice bush sections. Headed out and the legs seemed to turnover ok, however the brain took about 3-4 controls before I was back in the groove navigating. Ended up coming back late, and it was getting dark and cool now as well. Overall a nice fast hit out but as I cooled down the upper quads were getting tight.
Had Thursday and then Friday off which meant after the big night on the beer for Cool Running drinks no running on Saturday either.
Sun 20th - STaR, North Ryde Rambler
Another night out on Saturday night (not big time drinking this time) and a need to be home by 9am so we could take the kids to the show saw me stumble out of bed and get to the STaR to run in the dark with the MTG who were doing a little extra distance. So a nice 5km in just over 30 minutes took me back to the start to head out with the 6:10am group. Just the four of us with Kev, Horrie and Spud and we cruised having a good chat about all sorts of stuff. The 6:20 group screamed past us after only about 5km but I could not be bothered trying to hang on so early. As we headed back towards the start (this star is like a figure 8) I was starting to feel the effects of 6ft but opted to continue into the bush for a little while where I knew there was a logical turn point. As we dropped down I noticed my rh ankle was starting to get sore (just to accompany the already complaining lh calf and groin). Turned around and ran back to the start and I quickly headed off to get ready for the show.
By the time I got home and had cooled down the niggles were all a good deal sorer and in particular the front of the rh ankle (near the tendon) was not good. Washed up and changed and headed to the show and proceeded to limp around for about 5 hours on a painful ankle. That night my wife was laughing.shaking her head as I rotated ice packs between the ankle, calf and groin. I think all three are tendonitis type problems and the ice was working (along with the naprosen).
No way I was running Monday and today I used discretion as well (I am now officially tapering!) but everything was certainly feeling better. The plan for the rest of the week is as follows :
Wed - Last summer series event at Macquarie Uni. I'm defending 4th overall by only 2 points now and due to the way the best 12 runs are calculated actually need to beat the guy in 5th by about 6 points due to the next worst run that we both drop! Needless to say I'll be having a go.
Thursday - recovery of around 10km but will include some MP fartlek pieces in as well.
Friday - rest
Saturday - CR 5km challenge
Sunday - a good paced 25km at the STaR on a nice flat course out at Homebush.
Hopefully this will shake out the "blues" as I get back on track with not that many days before Canberra, I need to get focussed and motivated.
Anyway not that much to report so here goes
Wed 16th - Summer Series @ Lane Cove
Not going to do the usual detailed thing here. The map is a good one with challenging climbs on the way home and lots of undualtions and some nice bush sections. Headed out and the legs seemed to turnover ok, however the brain took about 3-4 controls before I was back in the groove navigating. Ended up coming back late, and it was getting dark and cool now as well. Overall a nice fast hit out but as I cooled down the upper quads were getting tight.
Had Thursday and then Friday off which meant after the big night on the beer for Cool Running drinks no running on Saturday either.
Sun 20th - STaR, North Ryde Rambler
Another night out on Saturday night (not big time drinking this time) and a need to be home by 9am so we could take the kids to the show saw me stumble out of bed and get to the STaR to run in the dark with the MTG who were doing a little extra distance. So a nice 5km in just over 30 minutes took me back to the start to head out with the 6:10am group. Just the four of us with Kev, Horrie and Spud and we cruised having a good chat about all sorts of stuff. The 6:20 group screamed past us after only about 5km but I could not be bothered trying to hang on so early. As we headed back towards the start (this star is like a figure 8) I was starting to feel the effects of 6ft but opted to continue into the bush for a little while where I knew there was a logical turn point. As we dropped down I noticed my rh ankle was starting to get sore (just to accompany the already complaining lh calf and groin). Turned around and ran back to the start and I quickly headed off to get ready for the show.
By the time I got home and had cooled down the niggles were all a good deal sorer and in particular the front of the rh ankle (near the tendon) was not good. Washed up and changed and headed to the show and proceeded to limp around for about 5 hours on a painful ankle. That night my wife was laughing.shaking her head as I rotated ice packs between the ankle, calf and groin. I think all three are tendonitis type problems and the ice was working (along with the naprosen).
No way I was running Monday and today I used discretion as well (I am now officially tapering!) but everything was certainly feeling better. The plan for the rest of the week is as follows :
Wed - Last summer series event at Macquarie Uni. I'm defending 4th overall by only 2 points now and due to the way the best 12 runs are calculated actually need to beat the guy in 5th by about 6 points due to the next worst run that we both drop! Needless to say I'll be having a go.
Thursday - recovery of around 10km but will include some MP fartlek pieces in as well.
Friday - rest
Saturday - CR 5km challenge
Sunday - a good paced 25km at the STaR on a nice flat course out at Homebush.
Hopefully this will shake out the "blues" as I get back on track with not that many days before Canberra, I need to get focussed and motivated.
Wednesday, March 16, 2005
Six foot Garmin 301 data
Forgot to include the HR/Elevation from the Garmin 301.
Pretty interesting, maybe I did go out a tad too hard looking at the HR.....
Pretty interesting, maybe I did go out a tad too hard looking at the HR.....
Tuesday, March 15, 2005
Race Report 6 foot track
I've expanded upon my CR post re 6ft, read on for a more detailed version!
Wow, what an experience!
Running 6ft was the end of an 18 month goal, set when I started running seriously. A slight change in priorities saw a fast run in Canberra take precedence over a fast first 6ft. So the end goal was to do the run at a more leisurely pace and soak up the atmosphere. After a lot of reading and researching I determined that between 5:30-6:00 would be a realistic target given the above goal. In the end I worked out some splits which would keep me on track for a 5:45 finish. Some heavy milage in the weeks before and pretty much no taper were also the lead in for the run.
I had found some great accommodation in the Megalong Valley just off Nellies Glen Road and as we got there the eveing before scanned up the escarpement trying to work out the path of the track. Early morning rise and my brother in law dropped me off. Caught up with a few familiar faces and then boarded the shuttle bus to the start.
At the start the atmosphere was amazing as there was this real feeling of tension in the air as all the runners wanted to get going! Seeded in wave 2 I was a couple of rows back from the front and we were off!
Now I run trails (and downhill ones especially) fairly well and so was already zipping past people in the wide beginning section. Finally get to the "real" descent and form an orderly supermarket queue. Everyone was well behaved but still there were people slipping on the more difficult pieces. Gaps started to form and when we got to a slightly more level area I started going past slower runners when the track allowed. By the time we got to Nellies Glen Road it was pretty open running and I caught up to Spud and Jan. Was feeling great and well within myself so kept going and along the road could see other runners such as coaster and RMC just ahead.
At the first fence crossing (and aid station) my family were there cheering. As it happened it was also my birthday and they had some signs made up. A runner behind me joked as we went over the stile about a wierd way to celebrate a birthday. Along the section to Megalong Road caught up to Mr G and went past him as he stopped at the aid station to refill. Still felt great and ran just behind some Striders (Barry, Stephen, James and Tim) through this section. As we descended from pinnacle towards Cox's on singletrack sections I left them behind as my track running shone through. Caught up to a couple of conga lines and slowly moved my way through when opportunity allowed.
As we approached Cox's I was in the clear by myself for about a km or so and thus was not real sure about the crossing but picked my way over the stones on the right. At this point the time was 1:22 and so I was way ahead of the 1:35 that I had calculated. Knowing the hardest bit was just about to start I felt very comfortable and was planning to walk most of the climbs, only running on any flatter or downhill sections. Had my first gu here.
I could see a Strider in the distance but we seemed to be climbing around the same rate. Not too soon and coaster, Spud and Jan went past. Just as we approached the cattle yards you could see quite a bit ahead as the trail twisted, saw Mohammed (easy with the red cap) and maybe Blue Dog there. I then caught up to the Strider who I had been following and was surprised to see it was MPHaz, had a quick chat at the aid station and then kept going, his calf was not good but there was no way he was not finishing!
Soon after Mr G loomed up next to me and we had a quick talk, during which he commented he thought I was limping! As he moved forward up the climb, I thought bollocks, but then all of a sudden my left calf started to grab. Through here the group of Striders I went past earlier also went past but I was just managing my pace and adjusting my style so the calf did not complain.
A bit disappointed at the top of Mini Mini (no big sign saying you have climbed Mini Mini etc!) and started downhill. Was a little surprised at how much harder it was to stretch out after the walk/climb. Went through the aid station at Alum Creek (2nd gu) and splashed straight through the different crossings.As the pluvio climb progressed the calf complained more and more but I just slowed my walking to alleviate the pain. At that point I was pretty convinced I had pulled the muscle now based upon my previous calf strain last year. MPHaz went back past here, bloody tough bugger. Some of the other muscles in the left leg were now complaining as I am sure I had subconsciously adjusted my gait.Many people walking but I was slower than most. Very happy to get to the top in 3:08, losing a bit of time gained to Cox's but still ahead of original schedule.
The horror that I know now as Black Range immediately commenced. As I tried to shift back into running the legs refused to co-operate and now I was getting intermittent lock up of a muscle I had never even heard of before (which I now know was the Sartorius) crossing from inside the knee to the hip flexor, very hard to move your leg when this locks up!Black Range was much more about walking than running and I contemplated on a number of occasions quitting at the next aid station. Grabbed a banana and it seemed to make a difference so on I went breaking down the remainder of the race into chunks. Around here another Strider Dave King caught up to me and we swapped places about 20 times before the finish, both struggling badly.
I thought after Deviation (final gu) it would improve, and it did until I turned the corner to see the "short steep" section Mr G had written about. Somewhere along here Sarge and Horrie went past. Finally made it to Caves Rd and knew I'd get home, to be honest the downhill was not that bad for me, but I could not stretch out. The progression of runners going past continued and Amjan went past, running really well at this point.Finally made it down and as I turned the last corner both calves locked up as I tried to run to the line so it was more a limp across the line.Many, many lessons learned, ended up close to my original target but not in the style or manner planned. In the end it seems the calf/achilles was just a cramp as the legs have recovered pretty well, which is a relief!
A great day and all of the volunteers were magnificent in encouragement. I certainly appreciated the novelty of seeing the course first up on race day, adding to the whole experience.Some great runs and very definitely some gutsy runs from people I know (or know of). I perhaps treated 6ft with not enough respect first up and it certainly sorted me out. I'm already thinking about next year! Onwards to Canberra....
Stats 5:53:22
Wow, what an experience!
Running 6ft was the end of an 18 month goal, set when I started running seriously. A slight change in priorities saw a fast run in Canberra take precedence over a fast first 6ft. So the end goal was to do the run at a more leisurely pace and soak up the atmosphere. After a lot of reading and researching I determined that between 5:30-6:00 would be a realistic target given the above goal. In the end I worked out some splits which would keep me on track for a 5:45 finish. Some heavy milage in the weeks before and pretty much no taper were also the lead in for the run.
I had found some great accommodation in the Megalong Valley just off Nellies Glen Road and as we got there the eveing before scanned up the escarpement trying to work out the path of the track. Early morning rise and my brother in law dropped me off. Caught up with a few familiar faces and then boarded the shuttle bus to the start.
At the start the atmosphere was amazing as there was this real feeling of tension in the air as all the runners wanted to get going! Seeded in wave 2 I was a couple of rows back from the front and we were off!
Now I run trails (and downhill ones especially) fairly well and so was already zipping past people in the wide beginning section. Finally get to the "real" descent and form an orderly supermarket queue. Everyone was well behaved but still there were people slipping on the more difficult pieces. Gaps started to form and when we got to a slightly more level area I started going past slower runners when the track allowed. By the time we got to Nellies Glen Road it was pretty open running and I caught up to Spud and Jan. Was feeling great and well within myself so kept going and along the road could see other runners such as coaster and RMC just ahead.
At the first fence crossing (and aid station) my family were there cheering. As it happened it was also my birthday and they had some signs made up. A runner behind me joked as we went over the stile about a wierd way to celebrate a birthday. Along the section to Megalong Road caught up to Mr G and went past him as he stopped at the aid station to refill. Still felt great and ran just behind some Striders (Barry, Stephen, James and Tim) through this section. As we descended from pinnacle towards Cox's on singletrack sections I left them behind as my track running shone through. Caught up to a couple of conga lines and slowly moved my way through when opportunity allowed.
As we approached Cox's I was in the clear by myself for about a km or so and thus was not real sure about the crossing but picked my way over the stones on the right. At this point the time was 1:22 and so I was way ahead of the 1:35 that I had calculated. Knowing the hardest bit was just about to start I felt very comfortable and was planning to walk most of the climbs, only running on any flatter or downhill sections. Had my first gu here.
I could see a Strider in the distance but we seemed to be climbing around the same rate. Not too soon and coaster, Spud and Jan went past. Just as we approached the cattle yards you could see quite a bit ahead as the trail twisted, saw Mohammed (easy with the red cap) and maybe Blue Dog there. I then caught up to the Strider who I had been following and was surprised to see it was MPHaz, had a quick chat at the aid station and then kept going, his calf was not good but there was no way he was not finishing!
Soon after Mr G loomed up next to me and we had a quick talk, during which he commented he thought I was limping! As he moved forward up the climb, I thought bollocks, but then all of a sudden my left calf started to grab. Through here the group of Striders I went past earlier also went past but I was just managing my pace and adjusting my style so the calf did not complain.
A bit disappointed at the top of Mini Mini (no big sign saying you have climbed Mini Mini etc!) and started downhill. Was a little surprised at how much harder it was to stretch out after the walk/climb. Went through the aid station at Alum Creek (2nd gu) and splashed straight through the different crossings.As the pluvio climb progressed the calf complained more and more but I just slowed my walking to alleviate the pain. At that point I was pretty convinced I had pulled the muscle now based upon my previous calf strain last year. MPHaz went back past here, bloody tough bugger. Some of the other muscles in the left leg were now complaining as I am sure I had subconsciously adjusted my gait.Many people walking but I was slower than most. Very happy to get to the top in 3:08, losing a bit of time gained to Cox's but still ahead of original schedule.
The horror that I know now as Black Range immediately commenced. As I tried to shift back into running the legs refused to co-operate and now I was getting intermittent lock up of a muscle I had never even heard of before (which I now know was the Sartorius) crossing from inside the knee to the hip flexor, very hard to move your leg when this locks up!Black Range was much more about walking than running and I contemplated on a number of occasions quitting at the next aid station. Grabbed a banana and it seemed to make a difference so on I went breaking down the remainder of the race into chunks. Around here another Strider Dave King caught up to me and we swapped places about 20 times before the finish, both struggling badly.
I thought after Deviation (final gu) it would improve, and it did until I turned the corner to see the "short steep" section Mr G had written about. Somewhere along here Sarge and Horrie went past. Finally made it to Caves Rd and knew I'd get home, to be honest the downhill was not that bad for me, but I could not stretch out. The progression of runners going past continued and Amjan went past, running really well at this point.Finally made it down and as I turned the last corner both calves locked up as I tried to run to the line so it was more a limp across the line.Many, many lessons learned, ended up close to my original target but not in the style or manner planned. In the end it seems the calf/achilles was just a cramp as the legs have recovered pretty well, which is a relief!
A great day and all of the volunteers were magnificent in encouragement. I certainly appreciated the novelty of seeing the course first up on race day, adding to the whole experience.Some great runs and very definitely some gutsy runs from people I know (or know of). I perhaps treated 6ft with not enough respect first up and it certainly sorted me out. I'm already thinking about next year! Onwards to Canberra....
Stats 5:53:22
Summer Series (with a twist!)
Catch up time, craziness at work along with 6 foot have combined to delay my blogging considerably.
First up lets deal with Wednesday, travelled to Melbourne for work meetings and decided to head out to Mullum Mullum (near Ringwood) for a spot of Street Orienteering Melbourne style. Mentioned to fellow CR and chatter Louise that I might do this and she came up and introduced herself at the start.
The style of event is a little different compared to Sydney. The maps are black and white and are "melways" style. There are 20 controls put out and these are 2 x orienteering punches chained and locked to the base of trees, power poles etc. It is a mass start and you nominate a grade, I went for A grade which meant I had to get any 17 of the 20 controls. Ended up 9th in A grade and there were some pretty prominent elite orienteers there!
The distance was 9.1km in 40:57 (avg pace 4:30 and avg hr of 171)
A nice fast hit out and felt good at the end. Missed catching up with Louise afterwards.
First up lets deal with Wednesday, travelled to Melbourne for work meetings and decided to head out to Mullum Mullum (near Ringwood) for a spot of Street Orienteering Melbourne style. Mentioned to fellow CR and chatter Louise that I might do this and she came up and introduced herself at the start.
The style of event is a little different compared to Sydney. The maps are black and white and are "melways" style. There are 20 controls put out and these are 2 x orienteering punches chained and locked to the base of trees, power poles etc. It is a mass start and you nominate a grade, I went for A grade which meant I had to get any 17 of the 20 controls. Ended up 9th in A grade and there were some pretty prominent elite orienteers there!
The distance was 9.1km in 40:57 (avg pace 4:30 and avg hr of 171)
A nice fast hit out and felt good at the end. Missed catching up with Louise afterwards.
Tuesday, March 08, 2005
Recovery run to weir
A lighter mid week this week to do a "mini taper" for 6foot.
Headed out for the usual weir run in LCNP, a little cooler and less humid this morning. I do like running this time of year.
Nothing extraordinary, 11km in 52:18 (4:47 min/km and avg hr of 154).
Yesterday I went for a massage to iron out the little kinks from the last couple of weeks. I asked the masseur to be pretty firm especially on my calves and lhs ITB. In the end I reckon she was sorer than I was as she went at the legs hammer and tongs with deep elbows etc but could not get me to say that it was a little too much pressure :).
Melbourne bound for the remainder of the week, may try and do a evening orienteering event on Wednesday and then a light run on Friday.
Headed out for the usual weir run in LCNP, a little cooler and less humid this morning. I do like running this time of year.
Nothing extraordinary, 11km in 52:18 (4:47 min/km and avg hr of 154).
Yesterday I went for a massage to iron out the little kinks from the last couple of weeks. I asked the masseur to be pretty firm especially on my calves and lhs ITB. In the end I reckon she was sorer than I was as she went at the legs hammer and tongs with deep elbows etc but could not get me to say that it was a little too much pressure :).
Melbourne bound for the remainder of the week, may try and do a evening orienteering event on Wednesday and then a light run on Friday.
Sunday, March 06, 2005
STaR - Western Wanderer
Have been looking forward to this STaR, a little flatter than most and one I have not done for the longer distances before. As usual a big 6am pack went out, it was actually quite cool standing around in running kit. Decided to run the 6:20 group, given the target pace of around 5 min/km.
Off we went and it was a pretty good sized group. A nice easy first km and then the hammer went down as they churned out a string of 4:30 min/kms. After about 8km I eased off the back with Action and a few others so I could actually make 20km! The speedsters kept on going but we regrouped to around 10. At one point we split as some wanted 20km and some 30km, I of course wanted about 25km so went my own way as well.
It was a bit of a push by myself but regrouped and upped the pace for the last couple of km back to around 4:30 (which is a planned Marathon Pace).
Ended up with 25km in 1:57:50 (avg pace of 4:43) and avg Hr of 156.
Slightly easier week this week as I mini taper for 6ft. The niggles continue and I want to settle them down a little.
Off we went and it was a pretty good sized group. A nice easy first km and then the hammer went down as they churned out a string of 4:30 min/kms. After about 8km I eased off the back with Action and a few others so I could actually make 20km! The speedsters kept on going but we regrouped to around 10. At one point we split as some wanted 20km and some 30km, I of course wanted about 25km so went my own way as well.
It was a bit of a push by myself but regrouped and upped the pace for the last couple of km back to around 4:30 (which is a planned Marathon Pace).
Ended up with 25km in 1:57:50 (avg pace of 4:43) and avg Hr of 156.
Slightly easier week this week as I mini taper for 6ft. The niggles continue and I want to settle them down a little.
Saturday, March 05, 2005
Race Report, Striders 10km @ Homebush
Time for some speed and back to Homebush the site of my current 10k distance PB. A fairly flat course in a figure 8 type shape based on the Homebush Olympic games site. A small loop (around 800m) then a large loop (around 4km), repeat and then another small loop to finish.
Got there around 6am to help set up (doing backup learning on the new electronic timing system). The mozzies made an appearance at around 6:30 and another large crowd, around 250+ runners faced the gun @ 7am. Someone tripped over a couple of metres into the race and there was a bit of congestion but after the first km it was pretty open running. The plan was for even pacing throughout and the first 3km were just that. After that however I started drifting a little and while the lungs felt ok the legs could not go faster. Finished up with 41:43 6 seconds slower than last month at Lane Cove and 20 seconds off my PB, however it was 1:40 faster than the race at Homebush at the same time last year leading into Canberra.
Probably a bit ambitious to expect a PB based upon what distance I have been running and also since I have not been as diligent on my speed sessions in the last couple of weeks. Plenty of time for speed after I knock over the next couple of longer races!
Did not get a chance to talk to too many runners afterwards as I found the guy that fell over and made sure the St Johns people patched him up and then went through the steps in finalising the electronic finish results with Action (we'll be flying solo in 2 races time as he goes on holidays!). Ended up a beautiful morning, although again quite humid.
Weekly Summary
Total distance 92km and Parrot Predictor says 3:28:08 for a marathon time. This coming week is another tough one with probably 30km tomorrow in the Striders STaR, some shorter hit outs mid week and a mini taper for the big one, Six Foot Track. This time next week I expect to have done my first 6 ft and will no doubt be hooking into a few refreshing ales!
Got there around 6am to help set up (doing backup learning on the new electronic timing system). The mozzies made an appearance at around 6:30 and another large crowd, around 250+ runners faced the gun @ 7am. Someone tripped over a couple of metres into the race and there was a bit of congestion but after the first km it was pretty open running. The plan was for even pacing throughout and the first 3km were just that. After that however I started drifting a little and while the lungs felt ok the legs could not go faster. Finished up with 41:43 6 seconds slower than last month at Lane Cove and 20 seconds off my PB, however it was 1:40 faster than the race at Homebush at the same time last year leading into Canberra.
Probably a bit ambitious to expect a PB based upon what distance I have been running and also since I have not been as diligent on my speed sessions in the last couple of weeks. Plenty of time for speed after I knock over the next couple of longer races!
Did not get a chance to talk to too many runners afterwards as I found the guy that fell over and made sure the St Johns people patched him up and then went through the steps in finalising the electronic finish results with Action (we'll be flying solo in 2 races time as he goes on holidays!). Ended up a beautiful morning, although again quite humid.
| Distance | Lap Time | Split |
|---|---|---|
| 1km | 4:01 | 4:01 |
| 2km | 3:58 | 7:59 |
| 3km | 4:02 | 12:01 |
| 4km | 4:12 | 16:13 |
| 5km | 4:05 | 20:19 |
| 6km | 4:15 | 24:34 |
| 7km | 4:17 | 28:51 |
| 8km | 4:27 | 33:18 |
| 9km | 4:21 | 37:39 |
| 10km | 4:04 | 41:43 |
Weekly Summary
Total distance 92km and Parrot Predictor says 3:28:08 for a marathon time. This coming week is another tough one with probably 30km tomorrow in the Striders STaR, some shorter hit outs mid week and a mini taper for the big one, Six Foot Track. This time next week I expect to have done my first 6 ft and will no doubt be hooking into a few refreshing ales!
Thursday, March 03, 2005
Recovery & physio
Again a steady run down to the weir at LCNP and back, done the 11km in 52:28 (about 2 minutes faster than Tuesday) so an avg pace of 4:51 and avg hr of 155. Certainly felt the efforts of the night before and again noticed little niggles where I have had problems in the past.
Given what has happened to MPHaz in regards to an injury sneaking up on you, and also being slightly paranoid I made a booking with my physio as a precautionary measure. I really wanted him to have a look at my previous core muscle issues and stance etc to catch anything that may have been happening since I saw him last (late last year).
The good news is no obvious problems looming but I still have a dodgy stance, tending to tuck my hips/pelvis too far forward and this reducing the impact of my gluts and hamstrings while also causing adductor problems. He gave me a series of different exercises/activities to focus on. My physio know heaps about running and orienteering (he was in a team that finished ahead of us in the Metrogaine and has also run 6ft) it was well worth the effort to check in with him as I can now focus on some areas as a preventative approach to injury.
Rest day scheduled for Friday and then Striders 10km @ Homebush Saturday morning. This is where my current 10km PB was set and I am quietly confident about breaking that and perhaps also getting very close to 40 minutes. If I can do that now on a pretty heavy training load I will be very happy!
Given what has happened to MPHaz in regards to an injury sneaking up on you, and also being slightly paranoid I made a booking with my physio as a precautionary measure. I really wanted him to have a look at my previous core muscle issues and stance etc to catch anything that may have been happening since I saw him last (late last year).
The good news is no obvious problems looming but I still have a dodgy stance, tending to tuck my hips/pelvis too far forward and this reducing the impact of my gluts and hamstrings while also causing adductor problems. He gave me a series of different exercises/activities to focus on. My physio know heaps about running and orienteering (he was in a team that finished ahead of us in the Metrogaine and has also run 6ft) it was well worth the effort to check in with him as I can now focus on some areas as a preventative approach to injury.
Rest day scheduled for Friday and then Striders 10km @ Homebush Saturday morning. This is where my current 10km PB was set and I am quietly confident about breaking that and perhaps also getting very close to 40 minutes. If I can do that now on a pretty heavy training load I will be very happy!
Wednesday, March 02, 2005
Summer Series Slip Up
After tossing it up this afternoon, taking the cooler weather into account, wanting to defend my position on the points table etc etc I decided to run Summer Series again. This week a little further afield at West Carlingford. The map centred around a creek running through the suburb and some nice bush and corresponding tracks for some different types of running. Before I left I noticed the points leader had already finished and got all the controls in 39 minutes and so I resolved to go for the lot as well.
A fast start through to 9, 11 then a quick in/out along a trail to 7. Pretty easy to locate 10 under a power line tower and then some trail running for 24 and 4. (massive mistake here but more on that later). Further along the track to 19 then some faster street running with 25, 15, 30 and 20 in quick succession. A nice downhill stretch back to the bush and 18 then 22. Decided to duck in for 27. Excellent time to this point and I was feeling pretty good.
Up to 5 and then 8 with a bush bash to cut back to the higher track and pick up 12. More street running again and 6, 29, 13 were all pretty easy. Still looking good on time but in going so fast I had now reached the point where I had stopped planning ahead while running. A little of a muddle both in and out of 23 and it took a little while to regain map contact. Slowed down to ensure I got 14 right but had a poor route to then get to 17 which was also a little more difficult to find.
All of a sudden time which had seemed plentiful was running out! Street running again now and back up a hill to get to 28 and then 16 and headed back to the school grounds. As I entered and got 3 time had pretty much run out but I decided to get 2, 26 and 1 to complete the card. As I was running from 26 to 1, much to my horror I noticed there were 2 empty controls, number 21 was missing!! Too hard to work out why while also running late and I got 1 and then ran it home.
Here is the map and my route
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/Hunts%20Creek.jpg
Ended up back in a time of 50:11 which means a 60 point penalty so 2,26 and 1 balanced out. I now got a chance to work out where 21 was and it was back up between 20 and 4. (Grrrrr). Anyway that leaves me with 510 points, normally a good score but not tonight with a number of people getting the lot in early time. Still holding onto 4th overall as 5th did not run again tonight and I did at least increase my best 12 runs points tally by 2 points! However another person has now leapfrogged into 5th place and is only 22 points behind me. Will be very interesting to see how the final 3 events turnout and how these affect each of our 12 best events points. No Summer Series for me next week as I am in Melbourne for work and miss out on a new map based around Milsons Point and Kiribilli.
Distance covered was 9km and so an average pace of 5:36 and avg hr of 169. Some good lessons to be learned but the good thing was the legs felt fine after the 50km epic on Sunday.
A fast start through to 9, 11 then a quick in/out along a trail to 7. Pretty easy to locate 10 under a power line tower and then some trail running for 24 and 4. (massive mistake here but more on that later). Further along the track to 19 then some faster street running with 25, 15, 30 and 20 in quick succession. A nice downhill stretch back to the bush and 18 then 22. Decided to duck in for 27. Excellent time to this point and I was feeling pretty good.
Up to 5 and then 8 with a bush bash to cut back to the higher track and pick up 12. More street running again and 6, 29, 13 were all pretty easy. Still looking good on time but in going so fast I had now reached the point where I had stopped planning ahead while running. A little of a muddle both in and out of 23 and it took a little while to regain map contact. Slowed down to ensure I got 14 right but had a poor route to then get to 17 which was also a little more difficult to find.
All of a sudden time which had seemed plentiful was running out! Street running again now and back up a hill to get to 28 and then 16 and headed back to the school grounds. As I entered and got 3 time had pretty much run out but I decided to get 2, 26 and 1 to complete the card. As I was running from 26 to 1, much to my horror I noticed there were 2 empty controls, number 21 was missing!! Too hard to work out why while also running late and I got 1 and then ran it home.
Here is the map and my route
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/Hunts%20Creek.jpg
Ended up back in a time of 50:11 which means a 60 point penalty so 2,26 and 1 balanced out. I now got a chance to work out where 21 was and it was back up between 20 and 4. (Grrrrr). Anyway that leaves me with 510 points, normally a good score but not tonight with a number of people getting the lot in early time. Still holding onto 4th overall as 5th did not run again tonight and I did at least increase my best 12 runs points tally by 2 points! However another person has now leapfrogged into 5th place and is only 22 points behind me. Will be very interesting to see how the final 3 events turnout and how these affect each of our 12 best events points. No Summer Series for me next week as I am in Melbourne for work and miss out on a new map based around Milsons Point and Kiribilli.
Distance covered was 9km and so an average pace of 5:36 and avg hr of 169. Some good lessons to be learned but the good thing was the legs felt fine after the 50km epic on Sunday.
Tuesday, March 01, 2005
Recovery and test drive of 301
Monday off and the body needed it, surprisingly the sorest part is still the shoulders and upper back from the camelbak.
Wanted to get out and see what the body said to more running. In general it was a pretty good shakeout. First use of my "Birthday Pressie" a Garmin 301, needed to do a few test runs before my actual birthday (6 foot). Used one of my more usual runs, straight to the Lane Cove weir and back. Got down there pretty bang on what I did last time I ran. The legs felt fairly good but I did notice the odd twinges appearing from the sites of my more significant injuries (ie RH Soleus and LH ITB).
Ended up running the 11km in 54:19 (slowed down a little on the way back) for an average of 4:55 min/km and avg HR of 163. Some good stretching for the aforementioned twinges worked a treat on the ITB (also did the roller tonight). Backed up with ice on the RHS calf. Again the LHS calf with the problem last week was fine.
The 301 was absolutely brilliant! Now way I can go back to the bodylink now. Easier to use, less bits and much, much better software!
Undecided as to what to do tomorrow, leaning towards not doing Summer Series and just some straight line running.
Wanted to get out and see what the body said to more running. In general it was a pretty good shakeout. First use of my "Birthday Pressie" a Garmin 301, needed to do a few test runs before my actual birthday (6 foot). Used one of my more usual runs, straight to the Lane Cove weir and back. Got down there pretty bang on what I did last time I ran. The legs felt fairly good but I did notice the odd twinges appearing from the sites of my more significant injuries (ie RH Soleus and LH ITB).
Ended up running the 11km in 54:19 (slowed down a little on the way back) for an average of 4:55 min/km and avg HR of 163. Some good stretching for the aforementioned twinges worked a treat on the ITB (also did the roller tonight). Backed up with ice on the RHS calf. Again the LHS calf with the problem last week was fine.
The 301 was absolutely brilliant! Now way I can go back to the bodylink now. Easier to use, less bits and much, much better software!
Undecided as to what to do tomorrow, leaning towards not doing Summer Series and just some straight line running.
Monday, February 28, 2005
February recap
A pretty good month of running, only disrupted right at the end by a niggle in the calf which caused me to miss the monthly target (was on track at last Thursday).
Highlight - A great run at the Metrogaine
Lowlight - Tough going at SMC and thus probably revising Canberra target
Total distance was 282km at an average pace of 5:25 min/km, blown out a little though by the 7:11 min/km 50km from the Metrogaine.
Compared to last year where I did 302km at an average pace of 5:33 min/km (and no Rogaine).
March is a big month with 6 foot and I am training through as well with really no taper. Targetting around 315km. Also should be interesting as to how I go at the Striders 10km next Saturday on what is my current PB course.
Highlight - A great run at the Metrogaine
Lowlight - Tough going at SMC and thus probably revising Canberra target
Total distance was 282km at an average pace of 5:25 min/km, blown out a little though by the 7:11 min/km 50km from the Metrogaine.
Compared to last year where I did 302km at an average pace of 5:33 min/km (and no Rogaine).
March is a big month with 6 foot and I am training through as well with really no taper. Targetting around 315km. Also should be interesting as to how I go at the Striders 10km next Saturday on what is my current PB course.
Race Report 6 hours Metrogaine
Following the format of the Arizona Half, I'll offer an executive summary here for those that don't want to read through a blow by blow recount.
A score type event where the goal is to get as many points as possible in 6 hours. Each control point has a certain value. You choose which controls you want to visit and thus your own route. Each minute back late after 6 hours has 10 points deducted. For this event the controls were a series of questions about different landmarks/houses etc around the map.
A minimum 2 person team event and Horrie agreed to run with me as a 6ft distance experiment.
We finished up with 1980 points but were back 8 minutes late so ended up with 1900 points. This gave us 5th overall, 4th just ahead on 1910 and first had around 2160 from memory. Distance covered was around 51km with an average pace of 7:11 min/km, average HR was 151.
Still prepared to read my ramblings then lets go!
Start was at Como Primary school, on the southern shores of the Georges River. Some detailed analysis of the map and Horrie and I opted to head East, picking up all the controls on offer, cut North across Tom Ugly's Bridge, return West again picking up all controls, back across the river at Como and see if there was any time to pick up some extra controls on the west. The map wheel said that it would be around 50km back to Como Bridge.
Loaded up with camelbaks and power bars/gus etc, caught up with a few other people and then the siren sounded.
First target was 64 so across a walkway and along a trail which turned into a paved driveway access. Up and down a tight pinch and out to the point, looking for the first object "What are the initials on east side of forked eucalypt?". The tree was easy to spot and we jotted down DEE and were away. Thought we were by ourselves but then as we were returning up the hill there were a heap of teams headed down. From there around through Oyster Bay to 54 & 43. Cutting back to get 53, 41 and then a nice long downhill run to 42. Along the creek and then up two really steep sets of stairs for 76, around to 11 and then onto 77. At 77 we learnt our first lesson in making sure you read the clues carefully "On commemerative plaque, how many years anniversary?", when we got there another couple of teams were examining 2 signs near the entrance and so we joined them. Nothing definitive that seemed to match the question and then I noticed a plaque on a rock about 50m away which the clue refered to. Down from here towards teh main road but we were blocked by a fence, eventually found a way through it (read later on that it was impassable!) and up past Kareela golf course to the Princes Highway.
Number 44 was in a nature strip and then along the water to 65 (this was part of the Striders Airport Adventure STaR). Up to 34 which in hindsight was a long run for 30 points, picked up 25 and then down through Sylvania for 75 ( a tricky clue regarding some grafitti) and 24. Through Sylvania Waters for 82 and then 72 and 16 for the last controls at Tom Ugly's. At this point a few other teams that I knew were fast were coming the other way, obviously having gone North first. Around the back of Blakehurst for 12, 81, 92 and 35. It looked like we could get through to 57 via a reserve, as we were picking our way along the nature strip a resident grilled us about what/why we were doing and pointed out that we were headed through private property and could not get out at the bottom as there was a large locked gate. Not wanting to argue we retraced our steps, but then found a path that was not marked on the map which was just as good anyway.
Pretty smooth sailing with 57, up to 45, just after that saw Bandanna and then down to 47. We had a great deal of trouble here with "What must be erected?" and were just about to give up when I noticed a metal plate on top of what was some pumping station which said Barricades needed to be erected before any work could commence. Uphill again and another little shortcut (this one successful) to 56 then along a nice firetrail to 68, where there was a photographer. Across to 36 and then cut through another reserve and out the other side to get to 22. Now we were in Oatley and went under the railway line for 23 and up to 83. Here we had a quick break and refilled the camelbaks for the last section through Oatley Park and back to Como.
Down along another nice firetrail to 66 and then 67, opting to leave the climb to 15 (only 10 points) and so straight to 21 and 74. Back over the railway line (and also past the 42km mark in just over 5 hours) to 37 and 73. A good save by Horrie here as the clue was "What occupation at street number 15?" Well there was a big sign up for a builder who built decks which I wrote down, just as we leaving Horrie pointed out the 15 was actually an architect and the builders sign was #17! Along the point to 91 with a bit of bush bashing and then back up to 55. At this point we had 25 minutes to get back.
Crossed over Como bridge for 31, we still had 15 minutes and decided to go under the railway line for 62 and 10 and try and not get back too late. In the end the extra 70 points were offset by the 80 point late arrival penalty which also cost us equal 4th! However it did mean we ran over 50km which was also a goal.
Here is the course map and our route, scanned in 2 halves
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/Metrogaine1.jpg
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/Metrogaine2.jpg
Many thanks to Horrie for agreeing to run with me, at times I think I had him a little bewildered with the navigation choices but he was picking the map reading on the run up nicely and asking very good questions as to why/where we were going. We had a good routine worked out for navigating and preparing for each control and I reckon did very well. In fact if I was 2 years older we would have won the Veteran division! Certainly also very happy with really no navigational errors and pretty optimum route selection (we'll see what others did later on)
Things are looking good for 6ft, a little tired today but that will pass. In fact the sorest muscles I have are across the shoulder from running with the camelbak. Of and almost forgot, not a peep out of the sore calf muscle from late last week and the groin while not healed is also behaving.
A score type event where the goal is to get as many points as possible in 6 hours. Each control point has a certain value. You choose which controls you want to visit and thus your own route. Each minute back late after 6 hours has 10 points deducted. For this event the controls were a series of questions about different landmarks/houses etc around the map.
A minimum 2 person team event and Horrie agreed to run with me as a 6ft distance experiment.
We finished up with 1980 points but were back 8 minutes late so ended up with 1900 points. This gave us 5th overall, 4th just ahead on 1910 and first had around 2160 from memory. Distance covered was around 51km with an average pace of 7:11 min/km, average HR was 151.
Still prepared to read my ramblings then lets go!
Start was at Como Primary school, on the southern shores of the Georges River. Some detailed analysis of the map and Horrie and I opted to head East, picking up all the controls on offer, cut North across Tom Ugly's Bridge, return West again picking up all controls, back across the river at Como and see if there was any time to pick up some extra controls on the west. The map wheel said that it would be around 50km back to Como Bridge.
Loaded up with camelbaks and power bars/gus etc, caught up with a few other people and then the siren sounded.
First target was 64 so across a walkway and along a trail which turned into a paved driveway access. Up and down a tight pinch and out to the point, looking for the first object "What are the initials on east side of forked eucalypt?". The tree was easy to spot and we jotted down DEE and were away. Thought we were by ourselves but then as we were returning up the hill there were a heap of teams headed down. From there around through Oyster Bay to 54 & 43. Cutting back to get 53, 41 and then a nice long downhill run to 42. Along the creek and then up two really steep sets of stairs for 76, around to 11 and then onto 77. At 77 we learnt our first lesson in making sure you read the clues carefully "On commemerative plaque, how many years anniversary?", when we got there another couple of teams were examining 2 signs near the entrance and so we joined them. Nothing definitive that seemed to match the question and then I noticed a plaque on a rock about 50m away which the clue refered to. Down from here towards teh main road but we were blocked by a fence, eventually found a way through it (read later on that it was impassable!) and up past Kareela golf course to the Princes Highway.
Number 44 was in a nature strip and then along the water to 65 (this was part of the Striders Airport Adventure STaR). Up to 34 which in hindsight was a long run for 30 points, picked up 25 and then down through Sylvania for 75 ( a tricky clue regarding some grafitti) and 24. Through Sylvania Waters for 82 and then 72 and 16 for the last controls at Tom Ugly's. At this point a few other teams that I knew were fast were coming the other way, obviously having gone North first. Around the back of Blakehurst for 12, 81, 92 and 35. It looked like we could get through to 57 via a reserve, as we were picking our way along the nature strip a resident grilled us about what/why we were doing and pointed out that we were headed through private property and could not get out at the bottom as there was a large locked gate. Not wanting to argue we retraced our steps, but then found a path that was not marked on the map which was just as good anyway.
Pretty smooth sailing with 57, up to 45, just after that saw Bandanna and then down to 47. We had a great deal of trouble here with "What must be erected?" and were just about to give up when I noticed a metal plate on top of what was some pumping station which said Barricades needed to be erected before any work could commence. Uphill again and another little shortcut (this one successful) to 56 then along a nice firetrail to 68, where there was a photographer. Across to 36 and then cut through another reserve and out the other side to get to 22. Now we were in Oatley and went under the railway line for 23 and up to 83. Here we had a quick break and refilled the camelbaks for the last section through Oatley Park and back to Como.
Down along another nice firetrail to 66 and then 67, opting to leave the climb to 15 (only 10 points) and so straight to 21 and 74. Back over the railway line (and also past the 42km mark in just over 5 hours) to 37 and 73. A good save by Horrie here as the clue was "What occupation at street number 15?" Well there was a big sign up for a builder who built decks which I wrote down, just as we leaving Horrie pointed out the 15 was actually an architect and the builders sign was #17! Along the point to 91 with a bit of bush bashing and then back up to 55. At this point we had 25 minutes to get back.
Crossed over Como bridge for 31, we still had 15 minutes and decided to go under the railway line for 62 and 10 and try and not get back too late. In the end the extra 70 points were offset by the 80 point late arrival penalty which also cost us equal 4th! However it did mean we ran over 50km which was also a goal.
Here is the course map and our route, scanned in 2 halves
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/Metrogaine1.jpg
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/Metrogaine2.jpg
Many thanks to Horrie for agreeing to run with me, at times I think I had him a little bewildered with the navigation choices but he was picking the map reading on the run up nicely and asking very good questions as to why/where we were going. We had a good routine worked out for navigating and preparing for each control and I reckon did very well. In fact if I was 2 years older we would have won the Veteran division! Certainly also very happy with really no navigational errors and pretty optimum route selection (we'll see what others did later on)
Things are looking good for 6ft, a little tired today but that will pass. In fact the sorest muscles I have are across the shoulder from running with the camelbak. Of and almost forgot, not a peep out of the sore calf muscle from late last week and the groin while not healed is also behaving.
Saturday, February 26, 2005
End of Week
Not a good end to the week. My LHS calf developed a nasty "twinge" Thursday evening which I traced back to earlier in the day. After running in the morning I popped into the city at lunchtime to pick up my CR gear order from Kevin. The bus I was on was running a little late so when I got off I jogged a couple of blocks in my work shoes so I did not keep him waiting. Seemed to be the only thing I can think of that caused it. Ice and Voltaren applied and opted not to run on Friday (was going to do 10km). Had a massage on Friday from one of the new masseurs in the gym below my office and she was great, actually knew about running and did some excellent trigger point manipulation of the calf and also (as a bonus) found a "knot" in my RHS gluts/piris which she worked away. Well worth the visit and I'll be looking for her again in the future.
Despite making progress on the calf decided I did not want to blow it out on a speed session 5km on Saturday morning and so wrapped the week. Ended up with 57km, when it should/would have been around 70km. Parrot predictor says a marathon time of 3:11:36
Despite making progress on the calf decided I did not want to blow it out on a speed session 5km on Saturday morning and so wrapped the week. Ended up with 57km, when it should/would have been around 70km. Parrot predictor says a marathon time of 3:11:36
Thursday, February 24, 2005
More Summer Series and other stuff
The program rolls on and after a 5km recovery run on Wed morning (23:11) I headed across Lane Cove River to Blackman Park in Lane Cove West for Summer Series. A large sporting ground area built within a natural amphitheatre with hills on all sides and the river to the west.
I have run many of the trails through here a number of times and instantly dismissed the controls way south, knowing the slow running that it would take to get there. Mapped out a course which seemed realistic and headed off once I had paid my money. Again over 200 runners and had to line up for around 15 minutes just to enter!
The plan was to to a big loop and then cherry pick any of the 10 pointers in the sportground area as time permitted.
Up hill through the bush first and into the back of the industrial estate for 19, 9 near the substation and then 12 which was at the top of a trail. Back down to the water and along the walking track to get near the power line tower for 11. Surprised to see a pretty good track coming down from the service rd which was a good exit point but if I had known that I would have run the service rd/firetrail rather than the walkway. Anyway up the hill a little for 26 and then down to the bridge for 28. Slower going from this point with overgrown singletrack running as I picked up 10 and then after running below the Shell servo 29 & 18. Back on some tarmac for 7,24,6 then a short cut through a track to get 12.
More suburbia now as I zig zag for 22,20,16 & 4. Scrubbed heading to 15 due to time, wanted those 30 pointers further south. 23 was easy but 14 took a little more time as there were a number of rocks and rock faces. Up the hill a bit more for 30 and in and out for 25.
Big mistake time. Running short on time but wanted the 40 points on offer from 5 & 21. Ran down but could not find the marked path heading to 5. Determined later on it was probably the driveway. So did a bit of bush bashing but soon realised I was killing time. About 20 spiders webs later I got back on a track and picked up 2 on the way to only finish with 1 minute late so - 10 points. What I SHOULD have done after 25 was straight through the bush to get 13 and 3 on the way to 2. That way I would have finished on time and picked up another 30 points. Hindsight such a wonderful thing.
Slower going tonight with all the singletrack running and then straight out bush bashing so teh distance was 7.2km in 45:47 and a pretty sucky average pace. The good news is the guy just behind me in the points had a worse run than I did and so I will increase my lead!!
Here's the map and route traced out.
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/Blackman%20Park.jpg
Onto today (Thursday) and a recovery run down throough Lane Cove National Park to the weir and back. Legs felt a little tired but a resonable run 10.7km in 52:53 (avg pace 4:55, avg hr 158).
So 4 runs in three days and not doing too badly, however I have lost 2.5kg since Tuesday morning and I'm betting a bit of that is fluid so the water is going down big time today).
Probably a lighter hit out again tomorrow with the 5km on Saturday and then the Metrogaine on Sunday looming.
I have run many of the trails through here a number of times and instantly dismissed the controls way south, knowing the slow running that it would take to get there. Mapped out a course which seemed realistic and headed off once I had paid my money. Again over 200 runners and had to line up for around 15 minutes just to enter!
The plan was to to a big loop and then cherry pick any of the 10 pointers in the sportground area as time permitted.
Up hill through the bush first and into the back of the industrial estate for 19, 9 near the substation and then 12 which was at the top of a trail. Back down to the water and along the walking track to get near the power line tower for 11. Surprised to see a pretty good track coming down from the service rd which was a good exit point but if I had known that I would have run the service rd/firetrail rather than the walkway. Anyway up the hill a little for 26 and then down to the bridge for 28. Slower going from this point with overgrown singletrack running as I picked up 10 and then after running below the Shell servo 29 & 18. Back on some tarmac for 7,24,6 then a short cut through a track to get 12.
More suburbia now as I zig zag for 22,20,16 & 4. Scrubbed heading to 15 due to time, wanted those 30 pointers further south. 23 was easy but 14 took a little more time as there were a number of rocks and rock faces. Up the hill a bit more for 30 and in and out for 25.
Big mistake time. Running short on time but wanted the 40 points on offer from 5 & 21. Ran down but could not find the marked path heading to 5. Determined later on it was probably the driveway. So did a bit of bush bashing but soon realised I was killing time. About 20 spiders webs later I got back on a track and picked up 2 on the way to only finish with 1 minute late so - 10 points. What I SHOULD have done after 25 was straight through the bush to get 13 and 3 on the way to 2. That way I would have finished on time and picked up another 30 points. Hindsight such a wonderful thing.
Slower going tonight with all the singletrack running and then straight out bush bashing so teh distance was 7.2km in 45:47 and a pretty sucky average pace. The good news is the guy just behind me in the points had a worse run than I did and so I will increase my lead!!
Here's the map and route traced out.
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/Blackman%20Park.jpg
Onto today (Thursday) and a recovery run down throough Lane Cove National Park to the weir and back. Legs felt a little tired but a resonable run 10.7km in 52:53 (avg pace 4:55, avg hr 158).
So 4 runs in three days and not doing too badly, however I have lost 2.5kg since Tuesday morning and I'm betting a bit of that is fluid so the water is going down big time today).
Probably a lighter hit out again tomorrow with the 5km on Saturday and then the Metrogaine on Sunday looming.
Tuesday, February 22, 2005
Back into it
After the rest yesterday time to turn the legs over. Woke up with the alarm @ 6am this morning and felt like crap, probably a combination of too much chat and wine last night which saw me late to bed. Opted to roll over instead of heading out. Packed the running gear to take to work so if I perked up I could hit the gym.
As it happens I did perk up and wandered over to the gym. On the way my errr "running injury" felt a little tight but once I got cracking on the treadmill everything fell into place. The gym was pretty packed but was thinning out. After warming up cranked the machine up to 3:55 pace and then proceeded to work my way through the reps.
Got to end of rep 7 and was starting to feel a little woozy (did not have lunch before the session and it was 1:30!) and I also had some work committments that I needed to be back for so did the warm down and called it a day. Thus the session was 7 x 1Km @ 3:55 with 1:52 standing recovery. Pretty happy with the way the body was feeling after Sunday's effort. Tomorrow I'll do a 10km recovery run in the morning and then stretch out for Summer Series which is at Blackman Park, Lane Cove West, some bush for sure and hills, but not as bad as last week.
Thanks for the comments and support, I really wasn't beating myself up too much. Just more a good reality check on what I was capable of at Canberra so I did not blow up halfway through the race.
As it happens I did perk up and wandered over to the gym. On the way my errr "running injury" felt a little tight but once I got cracking on the treadmill everything fell into place. The gym was pretty packed but was thinning out. After warming up cranked the machine up to 3:55 pace and then proceeded to work my way through the reps.
Got to end of rep 7 and was starting to feel a little woozy (did not have lunch before the session and it was 1:30!) and I also had some work committments that I needed to be back for so did the warm down and called it a day. Thus the session was 7 x 1Km @ 3:55 with 1:52 standing recovery. Pretty happy with the way the body was feeling after Sunday's effort. Tomorrow I'll do a 10km recovery run in the morning and then stretch out for Summer Series which is at Blackman Park, Lane Cove West, some bush for sure and hills, but not as bad as last week.
Thanks for the comments and support, I really wasn't beating myself up too much. Just more a good reality check on what I was capable of at Canberra so I did not blow up halfway through the race.
Monday, February 21, 2005
SMC reality check
25km at Smithfield on Sunday morning and this was always going to be a benchmark test to narrow down my target pace for Canberra (hoping for 2:59:59 or under).
A heap of Striders and CR at the start and I had the GPS riding shotgun today to manage my pace. Off we went and there were quite a few that had the same idea as me but I just hung about 5m off the back of the "bus" as we went through the first km in 4:22. At this point I was running with my old school buddy Silver Fox and a young guy from Woodstock. Next km was a tad faster with a 4:06. I was determined to stay on 4:15 and not go too hard so headed up the hill for the first time after the 2.5km drink stop I let a gap develop as they went a little faster. Through to the 5km mark and bang on pace, but there is a short up/down/up section out the back for the longer SMC runs which dented the avg pace. Coming back past the 5km drink stop and Blue Dog caught up and I slipped in behind him. As we went around the corner it seemed that he did a serious lift in pace (which I confirmed later on) and I could/would not match it. However kept him in the same range for quite a while after that. I started to feel pretty good through this section and was steadily running 4:22 pace. However back out to the up/down/up bit and it really hurt this time. Only 6km to go so just ran it home the best I could. At around the 5km mark the GPS battery died (did not seem long ago that I changed it...) but it made no difference. Was a pretty ugly last couple of km as run42k went past with another, they ran a well paced race.
Finish time was 1:54:24 which is avg pace of 4:35 and avg HR of 171.
A wild set of emotions re this performance, certainly not delighted but not distraught either. It was a very humid day and the hills at SMC seem to get bigger every race! Many others also struggled but Silver Fox ran very well! Not forgetting that I also did no taper and the 25km meant 80km in the last 7 days.
Anyway regardless of the above rationalisation/justifications I am really thinking that breaking 3 hours at Canberra might be a step too far. Too many benchmark runners posted times that I should have achieved and we were all in the same boat.
Some more thinking to do, but I don't want to embark on a race at Canberra at a pace that will break me at some point over the 42.2km. A PB clearly beckons and I need to focus on running that the best I can. At the moment I'm shifting a likely target to around 3:10 - 3:05 and more importantly run a pace that I should be able to negative split and come home faster if the body allows. I've only been running seriously for 18 months and have made tremendous gains over that time, this year I'm planning 3 marathons vs just one last year. Need to focus on continuing the building process and having goals that stretch me but are not out of reach.
Anyway, everything might change if I carve up my 10km PB at Homebush but that is the thinking at this point in time.
The good news is I pulled up real well after the race, I am sure the Endura Optimiser is improving my revovery abilities. Regardless a rest day today before a pretty big week, culminating on the weekend with the CR 5km challenge on Saturday and the the 6hour Metrogaine with Horrie on the Sunday. The plan is to train all the way to Six foot with no pronounced taper, just a couple of lower intensity runs before hand as the Canberra preparation continues.
A heap of Striders and CR at the start and I had the GPS riding shotgun today to manage my pace. Off we went and there were quite a few that had the same idea as me but I just hung about 5m off the back of the "bus" as we went through the first km in 4:22. At this point I was running with my old school buddy Silver Fox and a young guy from Woodstock. Next km was a tad faster with a 4:06. I was determined to stay on 4:15 and not go too hard so headed up the hill for the first time after the 2.5km drink stop I let a gap develop as they went a little faster. Through to the 5km mark and bang on pace, but there is a short up/down/up section out the back for the longer SMC runs which dented the avg pace. Coming back past the 5km drink stop and Blue Dog caught up and I slipped in behind him. As we went around the corner it seemed that he did a serious lift in pace (which I confirmed later on) and I could/would not match it. However kept him in the same range for quite a while after that. I started to feel pretty good through this section and was steadily running 4:22 pace. However back out to the up/down/up bit and it really hurt this time. Only 6km to go so just ran it home the best I could. At around the 5km mark the GPS battery died (did not seem long ago that I changed it...) but it made no difference. Was a pretty ugly last couple of km as run42k went past with another, they ran a well paced race.
Finish time was 1:54:24 which is avg pace of 4:35 and avg HR of 171.
A wild set of emotions re this performance, certainly not delighted but not distraught either. It was a very humid day and the hills at SMC seem to get bigger every race! Many others also struggled but Silver Fox ran very well! Not forgetting that I also did no taper and the 25km meant 80km in the last 7 days.
Anyway regardless of the above rationalisation/justifications I am really thinking that breaking 3 hours at Canberra might be a step too far. Too many benchmark runners posted times that I should have achieved and we were all in the same boat.
Some more thinking to do, but I don't want to embark on a race at Canberra at a pace that will break me at some point over the 42.2km. A PB clearly beckons and I need to focus on running that the best I can. At the moment I'm shifting a likely target to around 3:10 - 3:05 and more importantly run a pace that I should be able to negative split and come home faster if the body allows. I've only been running seriously for 18 months and have made tremendous gains over that time, this year I'm planning 3 marathons vs just one last year. Need to focus on continuing the building process and having goals that stretch me but are not out of reach.
Anyway, everything might change if I carve up my 10km PB at Homebush but that is the thinking at this point in time.
The good news is I pulled up real well after the race, I am sure the Endura Optimiser is improving my revovery abilities. Regardless a rest day today before a pretty big week, culminating on the weekend with the CR 5km challenge on Saturday and the the 6hour Metrogaine with Horrie on the Sunday. The plan is to train all the way to Six foot with no pronounced taper, just a couple of lower intensity runs before hand as the Canberra preparation continues.
Friday, February 18, 2005
Too much speed is barely enough
Back to the gym to redeem myself after last Friday's aborted interval session.
This time the flavour is 500m and to spice it up a little we're upping the pace from the 3:30 min/km last time to 3:25 min/km. Goal is 10 and around 1:40 standing rest.
I get to knock out 8 this week which in hindsight is pretty good, given my 10 from the last session of 500's was a little slower.
Add a few warmup/down km and that finishes the week. Total distance this week was 68 and that is without a 30km STaR on Sunday. Parrot predictor thinks 3:18:12 for a marathon.
Rest tomorrow to get fresh for 25km at SMC on Sunday. I'll be aiming to run at optimum target pace for Canberra (ie 4:15 min/km pace) and see what happens. If I can't do this then target time at Canberra will be revised accordingly.
This time the flavour is 500m and to spice it up a little we're upping the pace from the 3:30 min/km last time to 3:25 min/km. Goal is 10 and around 1:40 standing rest.
I get to knock out 8 this week which in hindsight is pretty good, given my 10 from the last session of 500's was a little slower.
Add a few warmup/down km and that finishes the week. Total distance this week was 68 and that is without a 30km STaR on Sunday. Parrot predictor thinks 3:18:12 for a marathon.
Rest tomorrow to get fresh for 25km at SMC on Sunday. I'll be aiming to run at optimum target pace for Canberra (ie 4:15 min/km pace) and see what happens. If I can't do this then target time at Canberra will be revised accordingly.
Thursday, February 17, 2005
Summer Series @ West Denistone & recovery
Wednesday rolls around and the Summer Series caravan moves to Denistone West in an area wedged between the main north railway, Marsden Road, Victoria Rd and Eastwood shopping centre. Quite a decent climb/descent at the northern end of the map. I had to pass on my recovery run this morning with some urgent business meetings taking priority.
At least the afternoon was a little cooler than last time we ran here, and a new start spot which makes things a little more interesting. The goal in plotting a course here is to minimise the climbs, ie only one major climb, so you have to look at the contours.
Off and around the edge of the park to get 17 then some fairly flat running for 23 & 8. A little climb up to 14 then down again to collect 3 on the way to 27. A little in and out for 10 and then the big climb (counted 10 contours = 40m climb) to 12. Up a little further to locate the bush track that leds down to 7 and then back out for the three controls (16,28,1) around the sports fields. First little oops on the way from 1 to 22, three options low track, high track or even higher road. Of course I chose the worst option the high track which was more overgrown than I know the low track was and certainly not as fast as the parallel road. Anyway after 22 some nice fast trail running downhill to 11 & 21 and then the second climbing portion up to 25 (30 vertical metres). Very tempting to cut across to 20 but from previous experience that green band was thick lantana so up to 9 and then in and out for 20 with fairly flat (and fast) running. A drop down for 30 and then decision time, keep going east for more points or drop back down and risk being early...
Of course I went east and picked up 29 with a real quick downhill to 15, tempted to run along the park for 24 & 2 but time was ticking so ran as direct a path as possible back getting as many controls as possible with 13, 26, 6 & 19 all in quick succession. As I was leaving 19 the 45 minutes ticked over and so now it was a sprint back to the finish as quickly as possible. I really turned the legs over and got just on 48 minutes so lose 30 points (another second and it would have been 40!).
Overall score ended up @ 490 with 9.3km in 48 minutes (5:09 pace) and am pretty happy with that over a pretty hilly course.
Here's my route
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/Brush%20Farm.jpg
During my recovery run this morning (10.4km in 50:25 4:51min/km avg HR 160) I was thinking (as you do!) more about the Wednesday night runs. I record them in my diary as a Tempo run but they are usually an average pace slower than my recovery or longer runs so what benefit then?
The thing is I have never taken into account the time spent at each control as I run the course. In looking at it you slow down a little if you can clearly see the object/control more if you can't. Pretty much stop to identify the actual control code, write it down on your card and then accelerate away again. Now I plan my exit point before I get to the control so get away fairly fast but would say that this whole process takes between 5-10 seconds out of running at normal pace (and that is I don't have problems finding the control). Now if you look at last night I visited 25 controls, if you work that time out it comes out to between 2 - 4 minutes extra time not really running. So if you deduct that sort of time all of a sudden I'm running at around 4:30 pace and on quite a hilly course, so I guess it is really a tempo run after all!
Enough analysis paralysis, for tomorrow I have a sharpener session scheduled of 500m reps to get the legs kicking over before resting on Saturday for the 25km @ SMC.
At least the afternoon was a little cooler than last time we ran here, and a new start spot which makes things a little more interesting. The goal in plotting a course here is to minimise the climbs, ie only one major climb, so you have to look at the contours.
Off and around the edge of the park to get 17 then some fairly flat running for 23 & 8. A little climb up to 14 then down again to collect 3 on the way to 27. A little in and out for 10 and then the big climb (counted 10 contours = 40m climb) to 12. Up a little further to locate the bush track that leds down to 7 and then back out for the three controls (16,28,1) around the sports fields. First little oops on the way from 1 to 22, three options low track, high track or even higher road. Of course I chose the worst option the high track which was more overgrown than I know the low track was and certainly not as fast as the parallel road. Anyway after 22 some nice fast trail running downhill to 11 & 21 and then the second climbing portion up to 25 (30 vertical metres). Very tempting to cut across to 20 but from previous experience that green band was thick lantana so up to 9 and then in and out for 20 with fairly flat (and fast) running. A drop down for 30 and then decision time, keep going east for more points or drop back down and risk being early...
Of course I went east and picked up 29 with a real quick downhill to 15, tempted to run along the park for 24 & 2 but time was ticking so ran as direct a path as possible back getting as many controls as possible with 13, 26, 6 & 19 all in quick succession. As I was leaving 19 the 45 minutes ticked over and so now it was a sprint back to the finish as quickly as possible. I really turned the legs over and got just on 48 minutes so lose 30 points (another second and it would have been 40!).
Overall score ended up @ 490 with 9.3km in 48 minutes (5:09 pace) and am pretty happy with that over a pretty hilly course.
Here's my route
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/Brush%20Farm.jpg
During my recovery run this morning (10.4km in 50:25 4:51min/km avg HR 160) I was thinking (as you do!) more about the Wednesday night runs. I record them in my diary as a Tempo run but they are usually an average pace slower than my recovery or longer runs so what benefit then?
The thing is I have never taken into account the time spent at each control as I run the course. In looking at it you slow down a little if you can clearly see the object/control more if you can't. Pretty much stop to identify the actual control code, write it down on your card and then accelerate away again. Now I plan my exit point before I get to the control so get away fairly fast but would say that this whole process takes between 5-10 seconds out of running at normal pace (and that is I don't have problems finding the control). Now if you look at last night I visited 25 controls, if you work that time out it comes out to between 2 - 4 minutes extra time not really running. So if you deduct that sort of time all of a sudden I'm running at around 4:30 pace and on quite a hilly course, so I guess it is really a tempo run after all!
Enough analysis paralysis, for tomorrow I have a sharpener session scheduled of 500m reps to get the legs kicking over before resting on Saturday for the 25km @ SMC.
Tuesday, February 15, 2005
Longer(ish) run
After much analysis and discussion in the CR chatroom I opted to forego the usual rep session for a slightly longer run. Main reason being the tightness I was still feeling in my upper quads, did not want to blow out another "hard" session.
Thus headed out early for at least 15km. Felt pretty good after a couple of km so decided to up the ante and include some fartlek pieces, running harder up each (of the many) hills on this run.
The end result was the 15km done in 1:11:15 (4:45 pace) and avg HR of 161. This was a time over 1 minute quicker than what I have sone previously on the same course so the extra focus on hill exertions showed without blowing out my avg HR.
Plan for tomorrow is a gentle 5km to blow the cobwebs out and then a real hard tempo style session with Summer Series @ Dennistone East (nice and hilly and mostly street based)
Thus headed out early for at least 15km. Felt pretty good after a couple of km so decided to up the ante and include some fartlek pieces, running harder up each (of the many) hills on this run.
The end result was the 15km done in 1:11:15 (4:45 pace) and avg HR of 161. This was a time over 1 minute quicker than what I have sone previously on the same course so the extra focus on hill exertions showed without blowing out my avg HR.
Plan for tomorrow is a gentle 5km to blow the cobwebs out and then a real hard tempo style session with Summer Series @ Dennistone East (nice and hilly and mostly street based)
Monday, February 14, 2005
Equaliser & recovery
Sunday was the day for the Equaliser a fairly brutal cross country race from Belrose to St Ives and back. Only thing is the great big valley in between that you need to traverse twice!
Last year we held this in the middle of winter on a wet, cold & windy day. Yesterday was much nicer, a little cooler than this time of year and very occasionaly a slight drizzle of rain. Not sure what the humidity reading was though.
The first km is a slight downhill along a street which then turns into a dirt road which winds amongst the electrical substations. Then it is pretty much down to the bottom of the valley. I went out at 10km pace and then really turned it on going down the descent. Doing so meant I passed a number of people who are normally a bit further up the field than me. Of course all was rectified once we started climbing (my running weakness at the moment) and quite a few people went past as I laboured up the first climb. This included Redback my old sparring partner who looks like he is over his injury problems. As we hit the tarmac for a quick break (about 1km) from the bush I noticed Spud and Mr G were looming from behind as I tried to recover and make up some ground on Redback.
By the time we got to the re-entry into the bush however Redback had maintained his lead and now I had Spud and Mr G on my shoulder. A km or so of fairly level bush track and then another descent back down to the creek. I really opened up here and we went past a number of runners here including Redback on a real fast downhill run. I also dropped of Spud and Mr G to give myself some breathing room on the inevitable climb to the finish.
Did a combination of run/walk on the steeper bits and once again some of the people I passed on the downhill cruised past and I KNEW Mr G was only about 10 secs behind and trying to catch me. Redback, Springer and Spud left me in their wake and just near the top of the climb a couple more runners loomed from behind. However now we were back to somewhat level running and I just tried to press it to the line, even if I did feel like I was jogging on the spot!
Just in the last couple of hundred metres as we returned to the street Rooster went by and I increased my effort (also not daring to look behind to see where Mr G was). Holding but not gaining on Rooster in the last 100m another Strider sprinted past, he must have held back some good reserves!
Over the line in 1:08:52 which was 2 minutes faster than my run last June. Average HR was 174 with a max of 184. For certain it was the legs and not the lungs/heart that limited me today, all the more reason to keep on at those hill intervals.
Splits were
1km 4:01 4:01
2km 3:41 7:42
3km 4:06 11:48
4km 5:11 16:59
5km 5:14 22:13
6km 6:08 28:21
7km 4:14 32:34
8km 4:35 37:09
9km 5:11 42:20
10km 4:53 47:12
11km 4:31 41:44
12km 5:53 57:37
13km 6:43 1:04:21
14km 4:31 1:08:52
Monday - recovery
A late lunch with a few too many red wines ensured no "top up" run on Sunday so headed out this morning for a 10km recovery (and to keep up the distance). Intersted to note the upper quads and adductors were quite tight. (in fact last night I did some icing in that area out of concern that the run might have had on my groin problem). A nice cooler morning for running, I do like this time of year. 11km in 56:20 for an average pace of 5:10
Last year we held this in the middle of winter on a wet, cold & windy day. Yesterday was much nicer, a little cooler than this time of year and very occasionaly a slight drizzle of rain. Not sure what the humidity reading was though.
The first km is a slight downhill along a street which then turns into a dirt road which winds amongst the electrical substations. Then it is pretty much down to the bottom of the valley. I went out at 10km pace and then really turned it on going down the descent. Doing so meant I passed a number of people who are normally a bit further up the field than me. Of course all was rectified once we started climbing (my running weakness at the moment) and quite a few people went past as I laboured up the first climb. This included Redback my old sparring partner who looks like he is over his injury problems. As we hit the tarmac for a quick break (about 1km) from the bush I noticed Spud and Mr G were looming from behind as I tried to recover and make up some ground on Redback.
By the time we got to the re-entry into the bush however Redback had maintained his lead and now I had Spud and Mr G on my shoulder. A km or so of fairly level bush track and then another descent back down to the creek. I really opened up here and we went past a number of runners here including Redback on a real fast downhill run. I also dropped of Spud and Mr G to give myself some breathing room on the inevitable climb to the finish.
Did a combination of run/walk on the steeper bits and once again some of the people I passed on the downhill cruised past and I KNEW Mr G was only about 10 secs behind and trying to catch me. Redback, Springer and Spud left me in their wake and just near the top of the climb a couple more runners loomed from behind. However now we were back to somewhat level running and I just tried to press it to the line, even if I did feel like I was jogging on the spot!
Just in the last couple of hundred metres as we returned to the street Rooster went by and I increased my effort (also not daring to look behind to see where Mr G was). Holding but not gaining on Rooster in the last 100m another Strider sprinted past, he must have held back some good reserves!
Over the line in 1:08:52 which was 2 minutes faster than my run last June. Average HR was 174 with a max of 184. For certain it was the legs and not the lungs/heart that limited me today, all the more reason to keep on at those hill intervals.
Splits were
1km 4:01 4:01
2km 3:41 7:42
3km 4:06 11:48
4km 5:11 16:59
5km 5:14 22:13
6km 6:08 28:21
7km 4:14 32:34
8km 4:35 37:09
9km 5:11 42:20
10km 4:53 47:12
11km 4:31 41:44
12km 5:53 57:37
13km 6:43 1:04:21
14km 4:31 1:08:52
Monday - recovery
A late lunch with a few too many red wines ensured no "top up" run on Sunday so headed out this morning for a 10km recovery (and to keep up the distance). Intersted to note the upper quads and adductors were quite tight. (in fact last night I did some icing in that area out of concern that the run might have had on my groin problem). A nice cooler morning for running, I do like this time of year. 11km in 56:20 for an average pace of 5:10
Friday, February 11, 2005
The Good, Bad and Ugly
Keeping a blog is all about the title.
It is great to write up on the good days, like my run at Arizona.
You need to record the bad things, like my injury.
Well today was just ugly....
Firstly did a "recovery" run yesterday afternoon, down to the weir at Lane Cove National Park and back. Close to 12km in 57:16 (4:52 min/km) and avg HR of 160.
This morning a longer distance interval session was scheduled, aiming for 1km reps @ 3:55 like 2 weeks ago. I felt a little tight from the week's efforts during the warm up run to the gym. The first 2 reps were ok, but I could sense it was a little struggle. I decided to shift to 500m reps and did a couple more but really felt drained so aborted the session and did a good warm down.
A tough week and given the hard/hilly Equaliser cross country race on Sunday I am also going for a full recovery/rest day for tomorrow.
Weekly distance 70km and Parrot says a slower 3:34 this week.
It is great to write up on the good days, like my run at Arizona.
You need to record the bad things, like my injury.
Well today was just ugly....
Firstly did a "recovery" run yesterday afternoon, down to the weir at Lane Cove National Park and back. Close to 12km in 57:16 (4:52 min/km) and avg HR of 160.
This morning a longer distance interval session was scheduled, aiming for 1km reps @ 3:55 like 2 weeks ago. I felt a little tight from the week's efforts during the warm up run to the gym. The first 2 reps were ok, but I could sense it was a little struggle. I decided to shift to 500m reps and did a couple more but really felt drained so aborted the session and did a good warm down.
A tough week and given the hard/hilly Equaliser cross country race on Sunday I am also going for a full recovery/rest day for tomorrow.
Weekly distance 70km and Parrot says a slower 3:34 this week.
Wednesday, February 09, 2005
Summer Series @ Gladesville + more!
Another Wednesday rolls around and this time it is a little different.
Firstly I introduced a recovery run this morning, nothing major just around 5km @ 5 min/km pace to shake the legs out from yesterday. But another step up in overall weekly distance and also introduces a little fatigue for tonights run.
This map is a good challenge, especially for first timers as they have to deal with the old Gladesville Mental Hospital grounds and the large (ie unclimbable) walls that surround it as the course weaves in and out. A slight advantage for me this week as I set a course using part of the map back in October so I walked over most of the map.
Opted to head west first and get the points which were more road based before dealing with the hospital grounds. So a bit of bush first with 4 & 13, uphill to 24, back down to 12 and then more bush with 23 and then along the water to 11. Now some good open ground running with 1, 21 22, 2 and 3 in quick succession. A nice break with an unmapped lane shortcut to 15 and downhill to the hospital. At this point I had just hit 22 minutes (or half way).
Tricky stuff in the grounds, lots of buildings but also dead ends etc. 6 is easy, around a few buildings to 14. First route selection mistake as I head downhill to 26 (should have picked it up on the way back). Then back uphill (see what I mean) to 16, around to 6 and then over the fence and along Victoria Rd to 27. Route choice here and I head to 10 for 10 points (in hindsight probably a mistake for the distance). Down and across for 29 and then homeward bound with a run around the wall for 28, a difficult route to 8 and down to 17. A short diversion in the bush to 7 and then sprint home via 25 to finish. Here is the route:
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/Bedlam%20Point.jpg
The tally 500 points less 40 for my usual lateness = 460. Best score when I left was 530 so a pretty good result, about 4th overall. Looks like I also keep my overall 4th place in Open Men as I narrowly beat the 5th guy again. It will be down to the wire as only 3 points separate us. He is so much a faster runner than me (did 36:xx in the 10km on Saturday vs my 41:38) so it's only my navigation and route selection skills keeping me in front.
Total distance 9.2km in 48:55 (avg pace 5:18 min/km).
Recovery run tomorrow.
Firstly I introduced a recovery run this morning, nothing major just around 5km @ 5 min/km pace to shake the legs out from yesterday. But another step up in overall weekly distance and also introduces a little fatigue for tonights run.
This map is a good challenge, especially for first timers as they have to deal with the old Gladesville Mental Hospital grounds and the large (ie unclimbable) walls that surround it as the course weaves in and out. A slight advantage for me this week as I set a course using part of the map back in October so I walked over most of the map.
Opted to head west first and get the points which were more road based before dealing with the hospital grounds. So a bit of bush first with 4 & 13, uphill to 24, back down to 12 and then more bush with 23 and then along the water to 11. Now some good open ground running with 1, 21 22, 2 and 3 in quick succession. A nice break with an unmapped lane shortcut to 15 and downhill to the hospital. At this point I had just hit 22 minutes (or half way).
Tricky stuff in the grounds, lots of buildings but also dead ends etc. 6 is easy, around a few buildings to 14. First route selection mistake as I head downhill to 26 (should have picked it up on the way back). Then back uphill (see what I mean) to 16, around to 6 and then over the fence and along Victoria Rd to 27. Route choice here and I head to 10 for 10 points (in hindsight probably a mistake for the distance). Down and across for 29 and then homeward bound with a run around the wall for 28, a difficult route to 8 and down to 17. A short diversion in the bush to 7 and then sprint home via 25 to finish. Here is the route:
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/Bedlam%20Point.jpg
The tally 500 points less 40 for my usual lateness = 460. Best score when I left was 530 so a pretty good result, about 4th overall. Looks like I also keep my overall 4th place in Open Men as I narrowly beat the 5th guy again. It will be down to the wire as only 3 points separate us. He is so much a faster runner than me (did 36:xx in the 10km on Saturday vs my 41:38) so it's only my navigation and route selection skills keeping me in front.
Total distance 9.2km in 48:55 (avg pace 5:18 min/km).
Recovery run tomorrow.
Tuesday, February 08, 2005
The Hills are alive.....
I wonder how many Hills songs/phrases I can use for my hill rep sessions.
In alignment with my review of other interval work today I approached the hill reps slightly differently. Firstly, finally managed to get out in the morning for a change, although it was made easier by my wife giving me a big nudge. She has had enough of the alarm going off, waking her and me not getting up.
Extending the concept of what I did with the 1km and 500m reps I deliberately went a little slower today. In thinking back my hill rep sessions have blown out because of the cardiovascular overload first rather than the legs. Today I wanted to hurt the legs before the lungs gave out.
As a result I did 11 reps today, and man the last 2 or 3 the lactic was really kicking in, which then worked the lungs more as well.
So 11 reps @ average of 1:33 with average 1:52 jog back down/recovery.
Last week the session was 7 @ 1:29 and 1:59 recovery, so I think the change had the desired effect. Legs also seemed to be carrying a bit from the Saturday/Sunday efforts. Hopefully this change will improve my hill running, a bit too early to assess at the Equaliser but by next Lane Cove 10km I want to be able to maintain the pace more on the hills without sufferering from the effort towards the end.
All in all, I'm pretty happy with my progress, February/March were always going to be harder as I picked up the efforts and I still need to remind myself that I am really only 2 months into proper training from a low base towards the end of last year. It seems no one is interested in doing the Metrogaine with me which is a pity, I would have enjoyed the 6 hours down near the Georges River.
In alignment with my review of other interval work today I approached the hill reps slightly differently. Firstly, finally managed to get out in the morning for a change, although it was made easier by my wife giving me a big nudge. She has had enough of the alarm going off, waking her and me not getting up.
Extending the concept of what I did with the 1km and 500m reps I deliberately went a little slower today. In thinking back my hill rep sessions have blown out because of the cardiovascular overload first rather than the legs. Today I wanted to hurt the legs before the lungs gave out.
As a result I did 11 reps today, and man the last 2 or 3 the lactic was really kicking in, which then worked the lungs more as well.
So 11 reps @ average of 1:33 with average 1:52 jog back down/recovery.
Last week the session was 7 @ 1:29 and 1:59 recovery, so I think the change had the desired effect. Legs also seemed to be carrying a bit from the Saturday/Sunday efforts. Hopefully this change will improve my hill running, a bit too early to assess at the Equaliser but by next Lane Cove 10km I want to be able to maintain the pace more on the hills without sufferering from the effort towards the end.
All in all, I'm pretty happy with my progress, February/March were always going to be harder as I picked up the efforts and I still need to remind myself that I am really only 2 months into proper training from a low base towards the end of last year. It seems no one is interested in doing the Metrogaine with me which is a pity, I would have enjoyed the 6 hours down near the Georges River.
Monday, February 07, 2005
Berowra Big Dipper STaR
A nice drive up to Berowra for Kevin's Big Dipper. A slightly smaller turnout, but still a lot of runners. Opted for the 6:10 group and we set off. A few familiar faces missing with Horrie in hospital and Superflake Melbourne bound. However still a number of the usuals with CR's MrG, Blue Dog and Spud, Striders Barry and Peter. Also some new faces with Kev's wife Dawn, Warwick Selby, Jonathon Worswick (I think) and a few others so the pack had a real 6 foot flavour. Right from the start it was take no prisoners and everyone seemed pretty determined to hold a very good pace. I could really feel the effects of yesterdays 10km and to be honest was not feeling real flash. So after around 9km @ 4:53 pace I just slid off the back, I wanted to run 30km and there was no way I could do that the way I was feeling.
At around the same time we entered the bush and so the pack quickly was out of sight and I was by myself. Still not feeling real good I just focussed on where my feet weer going (it was quite rocky underfoot).Caught up to the walkers and then Elf who was having some problems with her feet (PF I found out later). Also around here my GPS packed it in, forgot to change the batteries. A little further on the track turned into singletrail and was a little more uneven with lots of little ups and downs. Went past Amjan and Psychoma here and shortly after on the descent to Berowra Waters Ferry the guns, of Guzzo, Uncle Dave and a Truscott (??) went past.
It seems I was not that far behind the 6:10 group as Warwick Selby was running up the hill as I came out of the bush and I could hear the others above him. Anyway did a quick drink stop and tightened the shoes (drenched with sweat yet again) and took off up the hill. I have fond memories of the climb out of Berowra Waters as I rode through there many times when I was cycling. To my surprise I felt really good on the climb, the slope seemed to suit me and I was going at a decent pace. There were lots of runners ahead and I picked them off one by one with only Highway Man going past me.
Another quick water stop and also had a Gu at the top before doing some in and out (and also up and down) bush sections to the North of Berowra. Again solo running, passing different runners every so often and only had a couple more catch up to me at around 27km as wecame to the last bush section. Ran this bit with sawdust and Jaap before they left me on the hill, a steady climb up to the finish and done. Really surprised the bulk of the 6:20 group did not catch me.
The stats 30km (by the map) in 2:56:32 for an average pace of 5:53. Avg HR was 155. In comparing times at the end I was pretty happy with my effort, especially running solo most of the way. A real good workout built upon some fatigue from the 10km race.
Got home, had a shower and then popped up to the hospital to see Horrie. We had a great chat about a lot of different running stuff, I think he was please to have some company, his room did not even have a tv or radio.
At around the same time we entered the bush and so the pack quickly was out of sight and I was by myself. Still not feeling real good I just focussed on where my feet weer going (it was quite rocky underfoot).Caught up to the walkers and then Elf who was having some problems with her feet (PF I found out later). Also around here my GPS packed it in, forgot to change the batteries. A little further on the track turned into singletrail and was a little more uneven with lots of little ups and downs. Went past Amjan and Psychoma here and shortly after on the descent to Berowra Waters Ferry the guns, of Guzzo, Uncle Dave and a Truscott (??) went past.
It seems I was not that far behind the 6:10 group as Warwick Selby was running up the hill as I came out of the bush and I could hear the others above him. Anyway did a quick drink stop and tightened the shoes (drenched with sweat yet again) and took off up the hill. I have fond memories of the climb out of Berowra Waters as I rode through there many times when I was cycling. To my surprise I felt really good on the climb, the slope seemed to suit me and I was going at a decent pace. There were lots of runners ahead and I picked them off one by one with only Highway Man going past me.
Another quick water stop and also had a Gu at the top before doing some in and out (and also up and down) bush sections to the North of Berowra. Again solo running, passing different runners every so often and only had a couple more catch up to me at around 27km as wecame to the last bush section. Ran this bit with sawdust and Jaap before they left me on the hill, a steady climb up to the finish and done. Really surprised the bulk of the 6:20 group did not catch me.
The stats 30km (by the map) in 2:56:32 for an average pace of 5:53. Avg HR was 155. In comparing times at the end I was pretty happy with my effort, especially running solo most of the way. A real good workout built upon some fatigue from the 10km race.
Got home, had a shower and then popped up to the hospital to see Horrie. We had a great chat about a lot of different running stuff, I think he was please to have some company, his room did not even have a tv or radio.
Saturday, February 05, 2005
Striders 10km @ Lane Cove
Time to return to the 10km series for another year and first up we have Lane Cove. I will not lie, my true hope was to lower my PB down around 40 minutes. To do this I needed to not go out too hard and try and run an even pace, with something hopefully left to kick home with.
A massive crowd which I thought was going to be around 300, it as it turns out was just over.
Things were looking good with fractionaly under 4 min splits for km 1&2. At around the 2km mark Superflake went by, looking very relaxed. Luke Skyrunner and pram were lurking just behind me as well. The 3rd km includes the climb and descent of Scribbly Gums hill, but my split was ok, keeping me just ahead of even pace. At around the 4km mark there is a little rise before dropping down to the creek and then the climb up to Ryde Road, still well on target here but the pram cruised past.
As I started up the climb Horrie went by and while it was tempting to try and keep up I decided to keep some in the bank for the run home. The 5km split was a 4:30 and so now it was at 20:30, with a some climbing still to do and then the run back. Picked up the pace down the hill which limited my hill climb losses with a 4:10 but now I needed to post 3:50 pace for the last 4km. Another 4:15 split and now 40 was just a dream again as I slogged home. The last hill at around 2.5km to go slowed me a little further but in general I was running 4:15's the rest of the way. I could see I was gaining on Horrie and with around 500m to go went past, asked him if he was ok ( he was looking a little erratic) and he said yes.
Finished with 41:38 (unofficial) which it turns out was a 19 second PB for the course, so something positive. Splits were :
1 3:57 3:57
2 3:58 7:55
3 4:01 11:56
4 4:04 16:01
5 4:30 20:31
6 4:11 24:42
7 4:15 28:57
8 4:15 33:11
9 4:22 37:33
10 4:05 41:38
Average HR of 174
I am now seriously rethinking my planned tilt at 3 hours for Canberra, in my mind if I can't run 10km in 40 then 42.2 in 3 hours is maybe not achieveable. Final decision will be based upon performance at SMC 25km coming up.
After finishing I turned around to check on Horrie and he had not come in, someone had already gone back to find him and was helping him along, as they got close to the line it was obvious he was not very healthy. I'll leave it to him to post the details, if he remembers, but for a little while there his condition was a little concerning.
Anyway, end of the week and I logged 67km and the "Famous" Parrot Predictor says 3:18 for a marathon.
Hydrating and resting up now for Kevin's Berowra Big Dipper which looks like a very trying 30km.
A massive crowd which I thought was going to be around 300, it as it turns out was just over.
Things were looking good with fractionaly under 4 min splits for km 1&2. At around the 2km mark Superflake went by, looking very relaxed. Luke Skyrunner and pram were lurking just behind me as well. The 3rd km includes the climb and descent of Scribbly Gums hill, but my split was ok, keeping me just ahead of even pace. At around the 4km mark there is a little rise before dropping down to the creek and then the climb up to Ryde Road, still well on target here but the pram cruised past.
As I started up the climb Horrie went by and while it was tempting to try and keep up I decided to keep some in the bank for the run home. The 5km split was a 4:30 and so now it was at 20:30, with a some climbing still to do and then the run back. Picked up the pace down the hill which limited my hill climb losses with a 4:10 but now I needed to post 3:50 pace for the last 4km. Another 4:15 split and now 40 was just a dream again as I slogged home. The last hill at around 2.5km to go slowed me a little further but in general I was running 4:15's the rest of the way. I could see I was gaining on Horrie and with around 500m to go went past, asked him if he was ok ( he was looking a little erratic) and he said yes.
Finished with 41:38 (unofficial) which it turns out was a 19 second PB for the course, so something positive. Splits were :
1 3:57 3:57
2 3:58 7:55
3 4:01 11:56
4 4:04 16:01
5 4:30 20:31
6 4:11 24:42
7 4:15 28:57
8 4:15 33:11
9 4:22 37:33
10 4:05 41:38
Average HR of 174
I am now seriously rethinking my planned tilt at 3 hours for Canberra, in my mind if I can't run 10km in 40 then 42.2 in 3 hours is maybe not achieveable. Final decision will be based upon performance at SMC 25km coming up.
After finishing I turned around to check on Horrie and he had not come in, someone had already gone back to find him and was helping him along, as they got close to the line it was obvious he was not very healthy. I'll leave it to him to post the details, if he remembers, but for a little while there his condition was a little concerning.
Anyway, end of the week and I logged 67km and the "Famous" Parrot Predictor says 3:18 for a marathon.
Hydrating and resting up now for Kevin's Berowra Big Dipper which looks like a very trying 30km.
Thursday, February 03, 2005
I feel the need for speed
After further introspection and obsessive analysis I determined that not only was I running my long interval sessions incorrectly, the same could be said for the shorter & faster sessions.
So today I decided to hop back on the treadmill.
10 x 500m @ 1:45 (3:30 pace) with same time standing recovery. This felt like a good speed form session and for the last one I even upped the speed to 3:25 pace. The goal of the session is to get the legs used to moving faster but to also push the cardiovascular system towards the later reps at keeping those fast legs moving.
The closest I have come to a session like this was back in early December with 6 x 400 @ 1:22 (3:26 pace), so longer and more reps at a slightly slower pace.
Pretty happy with that, next time I'll drop them down to 3:25 pace.
Recovery/easy run tomorrow in prep for the Striders 10km on Saturday am.
So today I decided to hop back on the treadmill.
10 x 500m @ 1:45 (3:30 pace) with same time standing recovery. This felt like a good speed form session and for the last one I even upped the speed to 3:25 pace. The goal of the session is to get the legs used to moving faster but to also push the cardiovascular system towards the later reps at keeping those fast legs moving.
The closest I have come to a session like this was back in early December with 6 x 400 @ 1:22 (3:26 pace), so longer and more reps at a slightly slower pace.
Pretty happy with that, next time I'll drop them down to 3:25 pace.
Recovery/easy run tomorrow in prep for the Striders 10km on Saturday am.
Wednesday, February 02, 2005
Wet Summer Series @ W Lindfield
Things were looking grim this afternoon as massive thunderstorms ripped their way across the Sydney suburbs. At work it got progressively darker outside from 3:30 and by 4:30 it was absolutely bucketing down. I left just after 5 with not much hope of having a run as it was still raining very heavily and there was thunder/lightning still going off! But by the time I got home there were patches of blue sky visible to I headed off to West Lindfield.
Todays map was based near the CSIRO Measurement Centre and took in West Lindfield and also the eastern side of Lane Cove National Park. Some nice suburban street running mixed in with more technical bush sections. I opted to head north first taking in the streets to hopefully let a little more water drain off before hitting the bush.
Pretty simple up front then with 5,13,12,2 and 11. While it was tempting to head down in the bush here I know from previous runs along the GNW at this section it would not be fast going. So instead kept up high and polished off 3,24,14,23 and 15. Making very good time with only around 15 minutes elapsed so far. In the rush to get out of the house I left behind the GPS receiver and HR so all I had was the timer.
Into the bush now crossing to 25, and then down to 16. First mistake here, I should have bush bashed down to the track coming out near 26 but instead ran away and down to 7 leaving an in and out track run to 26. Fairly smooth running although now a little slower to 28 and then onto 9. Here I decided to short cut as time was ticking down so across to 19. Back on the streets and up to 18 followed by 8. Into the nature strip behind the houses for 29 and then missed the straight trail leading to the exit for 27, running the slower fenceline route. Uphill finish after 27 with 6 on the way home.
Ended up back around 4 minutes late and missed around 160 points at either end of the map. Net score then was 400 which I was fairly happy with. In reviewing my route here :
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/West%20Lindfield.jpg
perhaps the only better thing I could have done would have been to not go to 2&11 (30 points) and have used that running time to get 30,20 & 10 (60 points).
Anyway the top guys only got 460 so I get a nice 87 points, although I do lose 2nd overall spot now in the season pointscore.
Back home the map wheel said around 8.5km in 48:41, avg pace 5:44.
Todays map was based near the CSIRO Measurement Centre and took in West Lindfield and also the eastern side of Lane Cove National Park. Some nice suburban street running mixed in with more technical bush sections. I opted to head north first taking in the streets to hopefully let a little more water drain off before hitting the bush.
Pretty simple up front then with 5,13,12,2 and 11. While it was tempting to head down in the bush here I know from previous runs along the GNW at this section it would not be fast going. So instead kept up high and polished off 3,24,14,23 and 15. Making very good time with only around 15 minutes elapsed so far. In the rush to get out of the house I left behind the GPS receiver and HR so all I had was the timer.
Into the bush now crossing to 25, and then down to 16. First mistake here, I should have bush bashed down to the track coming out near 26 but instead ran away and down to 7 leaving an in and out track run to 26. Fairly smooth running although now a little slower to 28 and then onto 9. Here I decided to short cut as time was ticking down so across to 19. Back on the streets and up to 18 followed by 8. Into the nature strip behind the houses for 29 and then missed the straight trail leading to the exit for 27, running the slower fenceline route. Uphill finish after 27 with 6 on the way home.
Ended up back around 4 minutes late and missed around 160 points at either end of the map. Net score then was 400 which I was fairly happy with. In reviewing my route here :
http://www.users.bigpond.com/dmbray/West%20Lindfield.jpg
perhaps the only better thing I could have done would have been to not go to 2&11 (30 points) and have used that running time to get 30,20 & 10 (60 points).
Anyway the top guys only got 460 so I get a nice 87 points, although I do lose 2nd overall spot now in the season pointscore.
Back home the map wheel said around 8.5km in 48:41, avg pace 5:44.
Tuesday, February 01, 2005
Run to the hills
Another bad night/morning and it was my 4yo daughters first day at kinder today so a great deal of excitement and just difficult to get out for a run in the morning.
So in the heat of the afternoon got home and ran around the corner for some nice hill reps! It was sure a good deal warmer than the usual morning time but off I went.
Sporadic pacing seemed the order of the day.
First six were done at an average of 88 secs, was very average after the 6th (just about chucked!) but jogged back down for #7. Total blowout with a 97 second and thus called it a day.
Glad I got out, not glad about running hills in the heat, spent about 10 minutes under a cold shower.
So in the heat of the afternoon got home and ran around the corner for some nice hill reps! It was sure a good deal warmer than the usual morning time but off I went.
Sporadic pacing seemed the order of the day.
First six were done at an average of 88 secs, was very average after the 6th (just about chucked!) but jogged back down for #7. Total blowout with a 97 second and thus called it a day.
Glad I got out, not glad about running hills in the heat, spent about 10 minutes under a cold shower.
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