Thanks to all for the comments re GNW.
Since GNW things have been hectic, with a week in Singapore. Upon my return I headed out to SMC to see how the legs would take to running again. I actually felt pretty fresh bust running at pace my HR went a little haywire and so I modulated my pace to the HR, which saw me alternating places with a few people over a few km. Also not helping was my digestive system "complaining" a little....
At about 13km and the drink station on the way back out the gut complained again and given I was starting to drift on pace the ole heartilidge snapped and I really could not be bothered to keep going. After some rehydration I turned around and walked back most of the way. What did hearten me was the concern from pretty much all and sundry re why I was walking, too bad it was from a "couldn't be stuffed attitude".
So from there some more time off, I have now officially designated this as a "mental health break". Tonight I braved the oppressive heat for summer series around West Lindfield and Lane Cove National Park (the eastern side). A couple of oops' but when I left I was actually top of the leader board so go figure....
It felt good to stretch the legs out but a struggle to get home, the original plan was for a PB crack at the Central Coast Half, I'll still probably have a go but now thoughts start drifting to that certain 46km distance in March where I have a LOT of unfinished business......
More soon (even regular stuff) I promise!!
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
GNW full report
Warning, slightly longer post than normal, might be a good cure for insomnia!
Last minute build up
A hectic couple of days with work requiring me in Melbourne Thursday night so I packed most of the gear ahead of time and got an early flight back to Sydney on Friday morning, more work stuff and finally snuck out at around 1:30 to finish packing. Had arranged to meet Ron Schwebel and my dad at Yarramalong (the finish) for a car drop off and then we drove up to Lake Macquarie, dropping Ron off at the caravan park around the corner from the start.
Dinner saw a good turn out but everyone was a little edgy, back to the motel to complete gear preparation etc. Not a great night sleep, further compromised by the very loud snorer in the room next door. Up early for some toast, managing to set off the smoke alarm, hopefully it woke up the snorer!
The Start
Got to the start around 5am and a hive of activity with registration, people sorting out drop bags and also catching up. Quickly caught up with a few Trotters that I know that were also helping run the event. Very quickly the briefing started and for me it was a bit of a scramble to get myself fully organised as 6am was rapidly approaching. Fronted up on the line, with the Garmin only just having enough time to get a satellite lock and we were off! A sensible pace off the line, once we crossed the railway line we hit the first hill and I immediately went into walk mode while some others including Dave Waugh and Kanangra just kept going. By the top of this “little” hill I was back in around 5th place and running just ahead of Joel and Jonathon with Blue Dog about 50m up the road in 4th.
Just before the end of the tar was another incline and again I eased up and decided to do my first mobile blog :
35 min 6 km just about to hit bush Kanangra and 2 others in front with blue dog 4th I am a few more back just behindf joel and Jonathon
A few more went past me as I walked and typed, once on the track it was back to running as the trail gently undulated until we went under the freeway. A more serious climb here and I again eased up and kept another runner who was wearing a white shirt about 100m in front in sight. This just kept climbing and ended up being about a 300m climb. I felt very relaxed and on the downhill opened the legs up a bit and caught and went past the white shirt runner who had stopped for a drink.
The fun descent finally ended and I reached the road from Freemans Waterhole running inside the guard rail to the Ampol garage where there was a little crowd, knowing I had heaps of fluid I decided just to keep going, sent my support crew a SMS letting them know my progress and crossed the road to start the climb up to Heaton Gap.
Heaton Gap
As I walked up the climb I downed a power bar and also opted to ease up a little further as it was quite steep and the HR was a little high. At one point I could see 3 runners way up ahead (and up high!), this was a very steep climb with lots of stairs/steps etc, just near the top white shirt caught up to me and I found out he was IDW (Ian Wright) we had a quick chat and then I again eased up to do another blog while he continued
Just got to comm tower first major climb done!
Running with IDW
Feel pretty good it is warm but a nice breeze blowing
Leaders were 10 min in front of me at base of climb
Running along the ridge was pretty comfortable and I must have gone past IDW somewhere through here, probably at the toilets. Then it was a right turn and off the firetrail and back onto singletrack. Immediately the running was a lot more technical as we descended into a creek bed with rainforest type environment, very slippery footing and the track was less than clear in many points. About 10 minutes into here a long haired runner with a beard blasted past me and quickly vanished from view. I was actually not expecting the technical nature of this section and found it a little taxing.
After what seemed forever finally I reached a long very steep climb which led to the “hugging post” named after photos from last year. I pretty much caught up to the long haired guy who I found out was Thrax and about the same time IDW caught us as well. Some more mixed running with combinations of firetrail and singletrack and again some indistinct trail marking but finally we popped out on the firetrail leading to CP1. IDW had cleared out and Thrax and I were caught by 2 others. The four of us rolled along and then Miss Gazelle cruised past leaving us in a could of dust. Just as we approached the checkpoint another runner caught us, I think it might have been Lawrence Mead?
CP#1
A good crowd at the check point and Kevin clocked us in and I walked over to the back of Louise’s (my sister in law and crew) car where they had everything laid out for me. I downed a couple of cups of coke, ate some pineapple, changed socks, shirt and cap while they refilled the camelback back up to 3 litres and also had plugged the garmin in for a recharge of the batteries. The change of clothes felt good and I followed 3 runners out with the intent of looking after the legs through this section as per this blog
In and out just over 4 hours in an a 10 minute break
Some very techical terrain from 20 km made slow going. Plan to look after the legs on this section
The firetrail seemed to go on forever here and I found it quite hard to focus, I caught up to Thrax again after about 5km and we walked together as the climb increased, he was feeling the heat a bit and was also worried about his water supply. Shortly after Eagle caught up to us and was looking very efficient and determined. I was starting to really feel the heat along here as well, going up another climb I did another blog (that did not go through)
Approaching Barraba camp betwween cp1 and 2
Bloody hot and wind is hard to catch
Just about to descend to Congwei and walking with cr thrax in about 15th
Eagle just went past looking good
Pretty much straight after this Thrax decided he was going to have a break in the shade and so I continued by myself. Heading down the single track was fun and I again opened up the legs. However I lost a bit of focus and must have missed a marked turn as the track I was on was getting more indistinct. A quick breather and close analysis of the map revealed I was probably on another marked track that followed the spur rather than looping across the gully and so I did a quick bearing and bush bashed down and along the spur. In hindsight this certainly soaked up some time (as evidenced shortly) but even more importantly my fluid supply which was getting low. Much relief when I successfully met the proper marked trail and finished off the descent to Congewai Road
Congewai Road
As I approached the road I saw another runner ahead of me in a blue shirt probably about 200m ahead. However whenever I tried jogging the calves cramped up so I opted to walk at pace. About 1km of this and my camelback was empty and I still had about 5km to go. The sun was blazing (it was about 1pm) and there was minimal shade. A few km of this and I was just holding the same distance to the blue shirt in the distance who was obviously also feeling the conditions. As I approached the trailhead for the walk I saw Eagle coming back the other way headed to CP#3 and gave him a yell of good wishes, although by that point my morale was pretty shot. I was incredibly dry in the mouth and had stopped sweating some time ago. Just as I finally approached the school I saw Spud, Whipper and Tim coming back out. I think we were both a little shocked to see each other, obviously they had gone past during my sojourn in the bush on the descent.
I sat down and started on some cold fluids to try and rehydrate, at the same time soaking my feet in some cold water as they had also started cramping. By then I was wondering if I would continue and while sitting there actually started feeling worse rather than better. My stomach did not like the idea of trying to digest the fluids or food and while I was trying to sort myself out it seemed a few others had the same problem. After about half an hour where I did not improve I made the decision to withdraw. I had got up and walked around a little, the legs weren’t too bad, but as soon as I stepped out from the shade the sun felt like an over and I just knew that I would probably get into trouble over the next much longer stage after having run it a couple of weeks ago.
Thoughts
On the drive back I beat myself up mentally a bit about withdrawing and really questioned my ability given this and my experience at Six Foot. However when we got back to my sister in laws place (Kulnura, not far from CP3 and CP4) I was actually more off colour and spent most of the afternoon lying on the lounge not doing anything. At about 6:30 I got a lift down to Yarramalong to pick up my car and I hung around down there to hopefully watch the leaders come through. Down there I caught up with Hermie who also withdrew at CP#2 and was also, like myself, feeling nausea etc. A little while later Jonathon showed up having withdrawn at CP#3 also suffering similar conditions. Dave Waugh came through looking very composed and together and just after he left Joel came in. I left him alone for a while and then had a chat, seems he had had enough and was calling it quits at 100km. I decided to head back to the farm and on the way back finally started to feel hungry and was very pleased to be able to finally eat dinner and drink some fluids without feeling like crap.
To be honest after seeing what happened to much more experienced and better runners than myself on the same day in those conditions I am a little more satisfied with both my decision to withdraw but also my effort on the day. In my mind the pivotal moment was the nav mistake on the descent to Congewai, just enough lost time and extra consumption of fluid to make a difference on the road itself. The legs don’t feel too badly beat up, although 2 days later now and I am still 2kg lighter than I was on Friday! I would certainly contemplate having another crack at this event, or another long ultra. (of course 6 foot is a given….)
Thanks to all that checked in on my blog during the day and also to those brave souls that actually have read my rambling in this post to this point!
Last minute build up
A hectic couple of days with work requiring me in Melbourne Thursday night so I packed most of the gear ahead of time and got an early flight back to Sydney on Friday morning, more work stuff and finally snuck out at around 1:30 to finish packing. Had arranged to meet Ron Schwebel and my dad at Yarramalong (the finish) for a car drop off and then we drove up to Lake Macquarie, dropping Ron off at the caravan park around the corner from the start.
Dinner saw a good turn out but everyone was a little edgy, back to the motel to complete gear preparation etc. Not a great night sleep, further compromised by the very loud snorer in the room next door. Up early for some toast, managing to set off the smoke alarm, hopefully it woke up the snorer!
The Start
Got to the start around 5am and a hive of activity with registration, people sorting out drop bags and also catching up. Quickly caught up with a few Trotters that I know that were also helping run the event. Very quickly the briefing started and for me it was a bit of a scramble to get myself fully organised as 6am was rapidly approaching. Fronted up on the line, with the Garmin only just having enough time to get a satellite lock and we were off! A sensible pace off the line, once we crossed the railway line we hit the first hill and I immediately went into walk mode while some others including Dave Waugh and Kanangra just kept going. By the top of this “little” hill I was back in around 5th place and running just ahead of Joel and Jonathon with Blue Dog about 50m up the road in 4th.
Just before the end of the tar was another incline and again I eased up and decided to do my first mobile blog :
35 min 6 km just about to hit bush Kanangra and 2 others in front with blue dog 4th I am a few more back just behindf joel and Jonathon
A few more went past me as I walked and typed, once on the track it was back to running as the trail gently undulated until we went under the freeway. A more serious climb here and I again eased up and kept another runner who was wearing a white shirt about 100m in front in sight. This just kept climbing and ended up being about a 300m climb. I felt very relaxed and on the downhill opened the legs up a bit and caught and went past the white shirt runner who had stopped for a drink.
The fun descent finally ended and I reached the road from Freemans Waterhole running inside the guard rail to the Ampol garage where there was a little crowd, knowing I had heaps of fluid I decided just to keep going, sent my support crew a SMS letting them know my progress and crossed the road to start the climb up to Heaton Gap.
Heaton Gap
As I walked up the climb I downed a power bar and also opted to ease up a little further as it was quite steep and the HR was a little high. At one point I could see 3 runners way up ahead (and up high!), this was a very steep climb with lots of stairs/steps etc, just near the top white shirt caught up to me and I found out he was IDW (Ian Wright) we had a quick chat and then I again eased up to do another blog while he continued
Just got to comm tower first major climb done!
Running with IDW
Feel pretty good it is warm but a nice breeze blowing
Leaders were 10 min in front of me at base of climb
Running along the ridge was pretty comfortable and I must have gone past IDW somewhere through here, probably at the toilets. Then it was a right turn and off the firetrail and back onto singletrack. Immediately the running was a lot more technical as we descended into a creek bed with rainforest type environment, very slippery footing and the track was less than clear in many points. About 10 minutes into here a long haired runner with a beard blasted past me and quickly vanished from view. I was actually not expecting the technical nature of this section and found it a little taxing.
After what seemed forever finally I reached a long very steep climb which led to the “hugging post” named after photos from last year. I pretty much caught up to the long haired guy who I found out was Thrax and about the same time IDW caught us as well. Some more mixed running with combinations of firetrail and singletrack and again some indistinct trail marking but finally we popped out on the firetrail leading to CP1. IDW had cleared out and Thrax and I were caught by 2 others. The four of us rolled along and then Miss Gazelle cruised past leaving us in a could of dust. Just as we approached the checkpoint another runner caught us, I think it might have been Lawrence Mead?
CP#1
A good crowd at the check point and Kevin clocked us in and I walked over to the back of Louise’s (my sister in law and crew) car where they had everything laid out for me. I downed a couple of cups of coke, ate some pineapple, changed socks, shirt and cap while they refilled the camelback back up to 3 litres and also had plugged the garmin in for a recharge of the batteries. The change of clothes felt good and I followed 3 runners out with the intent of looking after the legs through this section as per this blog
In and out just over 4 hours in an a 10 minute break
Some very techical terrain from 20 km made slow going. Plan to look after the legs on this section
The firetrail seemed to go on forever here and I found it quite hard to focus, I caught up to Thrax again after about 5km and we walked together as the climb increased, he was feeling the heat a bit and was also worried about his water supply. Shortly after Eagle caught up to us and was looking very efficient and determined. I was starting to really feel the heat along here as well, going up another climb I did another blog (that did not go through)
Approaching Barraba camp betwween cp1 and 2
Bloody hot and wind is hard to catch
Just about to descend to Congwei and walking with cr thrax in about 15th
Eagle just went past looking good
Pretty much straight after this Thrax decided he was going to have a break in the shade and so I continued by myself. Heading down the single track was fun and I again opened up the legs. However I lost a bit of focus and must have missed a marked turn as the track I was on was getting more indistinct. A quick breather and close analysis of the map revealed I was probably on another marked track that followed the spur rather than looping across the gully and so I did a quick bearing and bush bashed down and along the spur. In hindsight this certainly soaked up some time (as evidenced shortly) but even more importantly my fluid supply which was getting low. Much relief when I successfully met the proper marked trail and finished off the descent to Congewai Road
Congewai Road
As I approached the road I saw another runner ahead of me in a blue shirt probably about 200m ahead. However whenever I tried jogging the calves cramped up so I opted to walk at pace. About 1km of this and my camelback was empty and I still had about 5km to go. The sun was blazing (it was about 1pm) and there was minimal shade. A few km of this and I was just holding the same distance to the blue shirt in the distance who was obviously also feeling the conditions. As I approached the trailhead for the walk I saw Eagle coming back the other way headed to CP#3 and gave him a yell of good wishes, although by that point my morale was pretty shot. I was incredibly dry in the mouth and had stopped sweating some time ago. Just as I finally approached the school I saw Spud, Whipper and Tim coming back out. I think we were both a little shocked to see each other, obviously they had gone past during my sojourn in the bush on the descent.
I sat down and started on some cold fluids to try and rehydrate, at the same time soaking my feet in some cold water as they had also started cramping. By then I was wondering if I would continue and while sitting there actually started feeling worse rather than better. My stomach did not like the idea of trying to digest the fluids or food and while I was trying to sort myself out it seemed a few others had the same problem. After about half an hour where I did not improve I made the decision to withdraw. I had got up and walked around a little, the legs weren’t too bad, but as soon as I stepped out from the shade the sun felt like an over and I just knew that I would probably get into trouble over the next much longer stage after having run it a couple of weeks ago.
Thoughts
On the drive back I beat myself up mentally a bit about withdrawing and really questioned my ability given this and my experience at Six Foot. However when we got back to my sister in laws place (Kulnura, not far from CP3 and CP4) I was actually more off colour and spent most of the afternoon lying on the lounge not doing anything. At about 6:30 I got a lift down to Yarramalong to pick up my car and I hung around down there to hopefully watch the leaders come through. Down there I caught up with Hermie who also withdrew at CP#2 and was also, like myself, feeling nausea etc. A little while later Jonathon showed up having withdrawn at CP#3 also suffering similar conditions. Dave Waugh came through looking very composed and together and just after he left Joel came in. I left him alone for a while and then had a chat, seems he had had enough and was calling it quits at 100km. I decided to head back to the farm and on the way back finally started to feel hungry and was very pleased to be able to finally eat dinner and drink some fluids without feeling like crap.
To be honest after seeing what happened to much more experienced and better runners than myself on the same day in those conditions I am a little more satisfied with both my decision to withdraw but also my effort on the day. In my mind the pivotal moment was the nav mistake on the descent to Congewai, just enough lost time and extra consumption of fluid to make a difference on the road itself. The legs don’t feel too badly beat up, although 2 days later now and I am still 2kg lighter than I was on Friday! I would certainly contemplate having another crack at this event, or another long ultra. (of course 6 foot is a given….)
Thanks to all that checked in on my blog during the day and also to those brave souls that actually have read my rambling in this post to this point!
Sunday, November 12, 2006
GNW - I am still alive!
Sorry for the massive delay folks.
I did do a few more blackberry blog posts but blogger refused to let them through.
I'll post a much more comprehensive report, including the missing posts.
Summary
Halfway through stage 2 I was feeling the pinch a little, especially the heat. I made a slight nav error shortly after that which cost me some time. Upon reaching Congewai Rd the sun was merciless, I had been rationing myself water but had stopped sweating about 1 km along the road I completely emptied the camelbak, 3 litres in just over 3 hours!
By the time I got to CP2 I knew I was severly dehydrated and overheated. After a effort to try and rehydrate and cool down I realised it would take sometime to get myself to a state where it would be sensible to continue and decided to withdraw.
A few others were there in a similar state, including Hermie.
A wise decision I reckon as I was still crook 6 hours later, the gut unable to accept any attempt I made to try and rehydrate and/or eat something.
Edit - A massive thanks to all who read my remote posts and commented and may have been concerned, thank you!!!!
Also a little more heartened after reading the CR GNW thread, people much better than I will ever be also struggled/withdrew
I did do a few more blackberry blog posts but blogger refused to let them through.
I'll post a much more comprehensive report, including the missing posts.
Summary
Halfway through stage 2 I was feeling the pinch a little, especially the heat. I made a slight nav error shortly after that which cost me some time. Upon reaching Congewai Rd the sun was merciless, I had been rationing myself water but had stopped sweating about 1 km along the road I completely emptied the camelbak, 3 litres in just over 3 hours!
By the time I got to CP2 I knew I was severly dehydrated and overheated. After a effort to try and rehydrate and cool down I realised it would take sometime to get myself to a state where it would be sensible to continue and decided to withdraw.
A few others were there in a similar state, including Hermie.
A wise decision I reckon as I was still crook 6 hours later, the gut unable to accept any attempt I made to try and rehydrate and/or eat something.
Edit - A massive thanks to all who read my remote posts and commented and may have been concerned, thank you!!!!
Also a little more heartened after reading the CR GNW thread, people much better than I will ever be also struggled/withdrew
Saturday, November 11, 2006
CP 1
In and out just over 4 hours in an a 10 minute break
Some very techical terrain from 20 km made slow going. Plan to look after the legs on this section
We are off
35 min 6 km just about to hit bush
Kanangra and 2 others in front with blue dog 4th I am a few more back just behindf joel and jonathon
Friday, November 10, 2006
GNW eve
All the prep is done. Lots of food and drink options and the crew is briefed for checkpoints.
A good dinner tonight but everyone was a little edgy, want to get things going!
Game on...
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
Do not add water!
After the semi success of the 10km at Saturday I have slothed around the house watching/listening to the rain tumble down outside. My blouse like excuse was with seemingly the cold that I had dissipating the last thing I needed to do was go out running in the rain for a couple of hours!
This morning, no such excuse so I headed up to the oval for a recovery style run just to tick the legs over for a while. Probably tomorrow night I will still do summer series but then that will be about it.
Planning for Saturday is pretty much complete, I've briefed my support crew and collated most of the provisions that I can think I would need, probably too much actually, or enough to actually do the 100 mile but we won't go there!
In looking through the split times last year and also reading the various race reports I can honestly say I have no idea as to what split times I will do. It is going to be a case of lets just see what the day brings!
This morning, no such excuse so I headed up to the oval for a recovery style run just to tick the legs over for a while. Probably tomorrow night I will still do summer series but then that will be about it.
Planning for Saturday is pretty much complete, I've briefed my support crew and collated most of the provisions that I can think I would need, probably too much actually, or enough to actually do the 100 mile but we won't go there!
In looking through the split times last year and also reading the various race reports I can honestly say I have no idea as to what split times I will do. It is going to be a case of lets just see what the day brings!
Saturday, November 04, 2006
A scare at the 10km!
Well a scare for my PB :)
After rain on Friday and lower temperatures forecast for Saturday the Striders 10km circus returned to Lane Cove for the last race of the season. Going "Actionless" on both timing and course layout but all went well in set up with the new tent being erected over the top of computer and timing gear in case of the inclement weather returning.
Not much time to chat or warm up as the crowd descended across the weir for the start. A few words of advice from Joe and we were off!
Pretty clear running from the get go and I was in just behind Blue Dog who was operating the targetting radar on Superflake. At about a km Coaster slowly drifted past and I was also running near Sawdust so I decided to see how long I could follow them. At the top of Scribblys I was surprised to see that I was a little closer to the leaders than usual and Sportsman gave me a cheer as he saw me not too far behind him. Actually went past both Coaster and Sawdust on the descent and then they slowly went past as we ran along the flat section where I do my 1km reps.
I knew I had some time in the bank and so opted to try and not bust myself up the hill but held my position fairly well. Caught back up to coaster at the drinks station and tried to attack the downhill. The slight climb before 7km hurt a little and I felt like I was struggling a little along that flat section, reinforced by the others pulling away. The climb just after 8km seemed a little better but I still could not hold the gap on the others. Just after here Will edged past and I gritted the teeth, knowing I was still a chance to PB, but not break 40.
In the last km there were quite a few footsteps behind me and I held them off pretty well with only 1 or 2 slipping past. Still had enough for a raised effort across the weir but Paul S just got me before the line!
End up with 40:38, only 10 seconds off my PB and am, I suppose ok with that, certainly better than Homebush. If I had held on to Coaster and Sawdust for sure I would have cracked my PB as they posted 39:59 andd 40:06 respectively. So only really the last 2.5km that got me and the splits show this
Stats
Distance 10km (duh!)
Time 40:38
Avg pace 4:05
Avg HR 179
Splits
1km 3:53 3:53
2km 3:53 7:46
3km 3:58 11:44 (Scribblys)
4km 4:01 15:45
5km 4:23 20:08 (Rangers hut)
6km 4:05 24:13 (Up to the gate and back down the hill)
7km 4:01 28:14 (on pace and 40 still within reach)
8km 4:12 32:26 (not a good km, especially since it is flattish)
9km 4:15 36:41 (that hill after 8km mark!)
10km 3:57 40:38
Certainly gave it crack and I reckon with a bit more hill work and speed reps things will tumble. Obviously more than half human with the lurgy on the decline. A cruisy 20 odd km planned tomorrow for the STaR and then just some work through the week to keep the legs kicking over.
After rain on Friday and lower temperatures forecast for Saturday the Striders 10km circus returned to Lane Cove for the last race of the season. Going "Actionless" on both timing and course layout but all went well in set up with the new tent being erected over the top of computer and timing gear in case of the inclement weather returning.
Not much time to chat or warm up as the crowd descended across the weir for the start. A few words of advice from Joe and we were off!
Pretty clear running from the get go and I was in just behind Blue Dog who was operating the targetting radar on Superflake. At about a km Coaster slowly drifted past and I was also running near Sawdust so I decided to see how long I could follow them. At the top of Scribblys I was surprised to see that I was a little closer to the leaders than usual and Sportsman gave me a cheer as he saw me not too far behind him. Actually went past both Coaster and Sawdust on the descent and then they slowly went past as we ran along the flat section where I do my 1km reps.
I knew I had some time in the bank and so opted to try and not bust myself up the hill but held my position fairly well. Caught back up to coaster at the drinks station and tried to attack the downhill. The slight climb before 7km hurt a little and I felt like I was struggling a little along that flat section, reinforced by the others pulling away. The climb just after 8km seemed a little better but I still could not hold the gap on the others. Just after here Will edged past and I gritted the teeth, knowing I was still a chance to PB, but not break 40.
In the last km there were quite a few footsteps behind me and I held them off pretty well with only 1 or 2 slipping past. Still had enough for a raised effort across the weir but Paul S just got me before the line!
End up with 40:38, only 10 seconds off my PB and am, I suppose ok with that, certainly better than Homebush. If I had held on to Coaster and Sawdust for sure I would have cracked my PB as they posted 39:59 andd 40:06 respectively. So only really the last 2.5km that got me and the splits show this
Stats
Distance 10km (duh!)
Time 40:38
Avg pace 4:05
Avg HR 179
Splits
1km 3:53 3:53
2km 3:53 7:46
3km 3:58 11:44 (Scribblys)
4km 4:01 15:45
5km 4:23 20:08 (Rangers hut)
6km 4:05 24:13 (Up to the gate and back down the hill)
7km 4:01 28:14 (on pace and 40 still within reach)
8km 4:12 32:26 (not a good km, especially since it is flattish)
9km 4:15 36:41 (that hill after 8km mark!)
10km 3:57 40:38
Certainly gave it crack and I reckon with a bit more hill work and speed reps things will tumble. Obviously more than half human with the lurgy on the decline. A cruisy 20 odd km planned tomorrow for the STaR and then just some work through the week to keep the legs kicking over.
Friday, November 03, 2006
A quiet running week
A quick minute to duck out from the bubble to report on not a lot. I did run Summer Series on Wednesday night and seemed to stride out nicely although the brain must be affected as I had terrible route choice!
The sore throat has eveolved to runny nose, stuffed head/sinuses etc but I still feel semi-human.
No doubt I'll still run tomorrow morning and at least the legs will be very fresh with the enforced taper, not much that can be done now for the 10km or more importantly the 100km other than get to the line in one piece as healthy as possible and with all the right plans for checkpoints/drinks/nutrition etc etc.
The sore throat has eveolved to runny nose, stuffed head/sinuses etc but I still feel semi-human.
No doubt I'll still run tomorrow morning and at least the legs will be very fresh with the enforced taper, not much that can be done now for the 10km or more importantly the 100km other than get to the line in one piece as healthy as possible and with all the right plans for checkpoints/drinks/nutrition etc etc.
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
October & cotton wool
So October is done, or at least I won't be doing anymore runs so time for a recap.
But first I've laid low the last 2 days, Sunday night I developed a scratchy throat which has extended itself somewhat so I have canned both Monday and Tuesday's sessions. Feeling somewhat ok at the moment but with less than 2 weeks to go the cotton wool is out and I am contemplating buying a big plastic bubble to live in for the next 10 days, certainly do not want to have another episode like I did at 6 foot so heaps of Garlic and vitamin C etc etc etc.
In non running related news I also spent last night at the Opera House watching our eldest participate in a schools extravaganza, great stuff and the talent of some of the kids on the night was mind boggling.
Summary for October
Distance 321km
Avg Pace 5:39
Total climb 2,700m
Only missed 7 days of running (2 of those being the last 2 of the month!) so certainly getting more consistent. The avg pace is skewed somewhat by Saturday's effort. Interestingly enough these stats are almost identical to January when I was prepping for 6 foot but only climbed 2000m
November will be a big one for obvious reasons but I'll also have (yet) another crack at the 10km PB on Saturday if the lurgy continues to fade away.
But first I've laid low the last 2 days, Sunday night I developed a scratchy throat which has extended itself somewhat so I have canned both Monday and Tuesday's sessions. Feeling somewhat ok at the moment but with less than 2 weeks to go the cotton wool is out and I am contemplating buying a big plastic bubble to live in for the next 10 days, certainly do not want to have another episode like I did at 6 foot so heaps of Garlic and vitamin C etc etc etc.
In non running related news I also spent last night at the Opera House watching our eldest participate in a schools extravaganza, great stuff and the talent of some of the kids on the night was mind boggling.
Summary for October
Distance 321km
Avg Pace 5:39
Total climb 2,700m
Only missed 7 days of running (2 of those being the last 2 of the month!) so certainly getting more consistent. The avg pace is skewed somewhat by Saturday's effort. Interestingly enough these stats are almost identical to January when I was prepping for 6 foot but only climbed 2000m
November will be a big one for obvious reasons but I'll also have (yet) another crack at the 10km PB on Saturday if the lurgy continues to fade away.
Sunday, October 29, 2006
Intensity = right up there :)
With designated tasks this morning to optimise the DTI I had to bypass the flatish STaR but with daylight saving now in effect I slipped out this afternoon for a run to determine how much was really left in the legs after my bush sojourn yesterday.
So the course was my tempo route which I think I'll rename the "C2S prep" course given it's 14km distance and inclusion of some nice inclines. The legs in general felt quite good, with a bit of DOMs in areas not normally felt but also seemingly not normally used in "regular" running.
A little bit slower than my recent best effort over this route on fresh legs but right up there with other runs.
Distance 14.25
Time 1:06:25
Avg Pace 4:39
Avg HR 161
So I'll ease back a little this week with the 10km at Lane Cove and starting a taper for GNW. Speaking of which I did not do any practice mobile blogging but at different points there was enough of a signal so I'll be looking to pound out a few choice thoights as I do some of the climbs and when the signal is strong enough they will hopefully float through to the blog.
So the course was my tempo route which I think I'll rename the "C2S prep" course given it's 14km distance and inclusion of some nice inclines. The legs in general felt quite good, with a bit of DOMs in areas not normally felt but also seemingly not normally used in "regular" running.
A little bit slower than my recent best effort over this route on fresh legs but right up there with other runs.
Distance 14.25
Time 1:06:25
Avg Pace 4:39
Avg HR 161
So I'll ease back a little this week with the 10km at Lane Cove and starting a taper for GNW. Speaking of which I did not do any practice mobile blogging but at different points there was enough of a signal so I'll be looking to pound out a few choice thoights as I do some of the climbs and when the signal is strong enough they will hopefully float through to the blog.
Saturday, October 28, 2006
A walk with the dog
No sekrit about this training run as I was joined by Blue Dog for a recon run of part of the Great North Walk course, opting to tackle the section between CP#2 and CP#4. Last year this was the area where most people became navigationally challenged and also I will be doing at least part of this in fading light or complete darkness.
Thanks to my brother in law who dropped us off at Congewai so we could avoid prolonged car shuffling after the run. Straight away we were into it with a significant climb out of the valley up to the ridgeline, just under a 400m ascent!
From here it was some quite level running along the ridge, although a potentially
serious problem was averted when my camelbak sprouted a leak. Remembering what happened in January at the Black Stump I very quickly pulled the back pack off and held it upside down while extracting the bladder. Sure enough the hose had come undone, after a quick reattachment and the loss of thankfully only about half a litre all was fixed and we were off again. (note to self, secure hose with cable tie)
Eventually we got back to some singletrack for the winding descent down to Watagan Creek and said hello to a few cows as we crossed the creek and farmlands before tackling the climb back out of the valley. This one was more technical with very steep bits and serious ruts. As we contoured around the mountain we hit some more singletrack which was very scenic. Through here we saw our first goanna, eventually seeing seven, but thankfully none of their reptilian cousins that slither :)
One feature I noticed along a lot of these tracks was how soft underfoot they were, with a lot of leaf litter and sandy soil the impact on the legs was certainly diminished. The descent down towards the basin was certainly a bit trickier and the trail was hard to identify in places, certainly I would want to be through here before the light got too bad. Also identified the track intersection that a lot of people had problems with last year and you could see why, another great reason for the recon.
A joint decision between Blue Dog and myself to not do the in and out section to The Basin and so we started the climb out, again the trail was hard to follow in places. A short refueling stop at the top at the road junction before running along another ridgeline and then descending into Yarramalong Valley. This was more technical than I expected and than the map showed. Our final goanna spotting also through here and finally we popped out at the trail head with the cars waiting for us.
Stats
Distance 32.5km
Time 5:34
Total Climb 1300m
For interest here is the google earth view of the run
And here is the elevation profile
Thoughts
Very pleased to have done this run, it was a great way to get a good feel for the type of terrain that we will be racing across as well as the nature of at least 3 of the major climbs, which had a bit of mystique associated with them after last year. Also mentally tucked away a few areas for focus required in navigation. The legs have pulled up quite well which is pleasing since I really only did about a third of the course, however I calculate that around another 30 odd km will be run on flatter dirt roads etc, the unknown is the steeper stuff in the first 2 stages.....
Weekly Summary
Distance 95km
Time 10:33
Avg Pace 6:40 (was 4:48 before today!)
Thanks to my brother in law who dropped us off at Congewai so we could avoid prolonged car shuffling after the run. Straight away we were into it with a significant climb out of the valley up to the ridgeline, just under a 400m ascent!
From here it was some quite level running along the ridge, although a potentially
serious problem was averted when my camelbak sprouted a leak. Remembering what happened in January at the Black Stump I very quickly pulled the back pack off and held it upside down while extracting the bladder. Sure enough the hose had come undone, after a quick reattachment and the loss of thankfully only about half a litre all was fixed and we were off again. (note to self, secure hose with cable tie)
Eventually we got back to some singletrack for the winding descent down to Watagan Creek and said hello to a few cows as we crossed the creek and farmlands before tackling the climb back out of the valley. This one was more technical with very steep bits and serious ruts. As we contoured around the mountain we hit some more singletrack which was very scenic. Through here we saw our first goanna, eventually seeing seven, but thankfully none of their reptilian cousins that slither :)
One feature I noticed along a lot of these tracks was how soft underfoot they were, with a lot of leaf litter and sandy soil the impact on the legs was certainly diminished. The descent down towards the basin was certainly a bit trickier and the trail was hard to identify in places, certainly I would want to be through here before the light got too bad. Also identified the track intersection that a lot of people had problems with last year and you could see why, another great reason for the recon.
A joint decision between Blue Dog and myself to not do the in and out section to The Basin and so we started the climb out, again the trail was hard to follow in places. A short refueling stop at the top at the road junction before running along another ridgeline and then descending into Yarramalong Valley. This was more technical than I expected and than the map showed. Our final goanna spotting also through here and finally we popped out at the trail head with the cars waiting for us.
Stats
Distance 32.5km
Time 5:34
Total Climb 1300m
For interest here is the google earth view of the run
And here is the elevation profile
Thoughts
Very pleased to have done this run, it was a great way to get a good feel for the type of terrain that we will be racing across as well as the nature of at least 3 of the major climbs, which had a bit of mystique associated with them after last year. Also mentally tucked away a few areas for focus required in navigation. The legs have pulled up quite well which is pleasing since I really only did about a third of the course, however I calculate that around another 30 odd km will be run on flatter dirt roads etc, the unknown is the steeper stuff in the first 2 stages.....
Weekly Summary
Distance 95km
Time 10:33
Avg Pace 6:40 (was 4:48 before today!)
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Triple treat!
So after the hill session on Tuesday a recovery run around the oval Wednesday morning. Some work related delays saw me arrive at the Summer Series venue quite late and it was literally pay your money and start so no detailed course planning etc.
From the look of the map (once running) the lot did seem gettable but main concern was darkness rapidly descending. Accordingly I opted to drop the 2 outermost controls (near Timbrell) even though I was probably able to pick them up within 2-3 minutes. A couple of little oops' as I hurried along but was keeping a good pace and seemingly had some time up my sleeve. Thankfully I did as the last 10 minutes of running were pretty much dark and I spent a bit of time at a couple of controls that would have been very visible in daylight but more of a challenge in lower light levels.
Finally screamed back down the hill to the start with 570 points but my time up the sleeve had evaporated due to the light and I ended up being late by 15 seconds so ended up with 560 points. Alas the faster young guys were there tonight and Andrew Hill did collect the lot in just over 40 minutes which will drag down my actual points earned a little more :(
Stats
Distance 9.3km
Time 45:15
Avg Pace 4:52
Avg HR 169
Thursday morning
The legs felt a bit beat up but I headed down to the weir to see how fast I could knock out the 11km anyway. Once I was moving along it was not too bad but still a tad slowish. Saw Spud out on his bike again and caught up with him where he had parked near the caravan park on the way home where we had a bit of a chat re GNW strategy etc.
Stats
Distance 10.9 km
Time 51:26
Avg Pace 4:44
Avg HR 157
So thus ends three hard days in a row with the tempoish run today certainly a challenge on legs that I thrashed less than 12 hours earlier! A nice recovery run tomorrow and then a longer slower effort on Saturday with a recon run/walk over a good section of the GNW course that I will be probably covering in the afternoon/night during the actual race itself.
From the look of the map (once running) the lot did seem gettable but main concern was darkness rapidly descending. Accordingly I opted to drop the 2 outermost controls (near Timbrell) even though I was probably able to pick them up within 2-3 minutes. A couple of little oops' as I hurried along but was keeping a good pace and seemingly had some time up my sleeve. Thankfully I did as the last 10 minutes of running were pretty much dark and I spent a bit of time at a couple of controls that would have been very visible in daylight but more of a challenge in lower light levels.
Finally screamed back down the hill to the start with 570 points but my time up the sleeve had evaporated due to the light and I ended up being late by 15 seconds so ended up with 560 points. Alas the faster young guys were there tonight and Andrew Hill did collect the lot in just over 40 minutes which will drag down my actual points earned a little more :(
Stats
Distance 9.3km
Time 45:15
Avg Pace 4:52
Avg HR 169
Thursday morning
The legs felt a bit beat up but I headed down to the weir to see how fast I could knock out the 11km anyway. Once I was moving along it was not too bad but still a tad slowish. Saw Spud out on his bike again and caught up with him where he had parked near the caravan park on the way home where we had a bit of a chat re GNW strategy etc.
Stats
Distance 10.9 km
Time 51:26
Avg Pace 4:44
Avg HR 157
So thus ends three hard days in a row with the tempoish run today certainly a challenge on legs that I thrashed less than 12 hours earlier! A nice recovery run tomorrow and then a longer slower effort on Saturday with a recon run/walk over a good section of the GNW course that I will be probably covering in the afternoon/night during the actual race itself.
Tuesday, October 24, 2006
Internal Half and more
A very early start for Sunday due to a few things I had to do as part of organising the race. Gloomy skies, on and off drizzle and cooler temperatures were the go, an amazing difference from the furnace like conditions a week ago at Fitzroy Falls.
This Striders only race is a Half Marathon but with a handicap start with the goal (for me as handicaper) to have everyone finish at exactly the same time. But there are always people either faster or slower than documented form.
I had a handicap of 94, mainly based upon my SMH time with a difficulty scaling factor for the "tougher" Lane Cove course. As it turned out my only start line companion was Silver Fox but he was running with the pram. My initial goal was to go out fairly hard and see how long I could hold the tempo. I started hauling in the 95 group and had caught them all by halfway up the rangers hut hill the first time.
5km split of 22:03 (4:25 min/km)
Anthony W stayed with me up the hill but then I kept the pressure going on the downhill and he drifted back a little. The run back to the start area was pretty fast and I picked up quite a few more runners along here.
10km time of 43:24 which gives a 5km split of 21:21 (4:16 min/km)
Back up the course and Scribbly's felt a little harder the second time, caught quite a few people on the climb up to the rangers hut again but the legs were certainly hurting a bit now and still had Anthony W lurking back about 20-30m
15km time of 1:04:45 which gives a 5km split of 21:21 again (very consistent!)
Now the downhill run home and I just focussed on form and trying to hold off anyone who might be catching me. Hauled in Johnny Dark and a strong Redback along here.
20km time of 1:26:47 which gives 5km split of 22:02 (4:24 min/km)
As you can see the legs started to fade and Anthony and another runner I passed at about 19km hauled me in at 1km to go. I tried to hang on to them but just could not hold the pace.
Finish time was 91:31 which gives an average pace of 4:20 with an average HR of 174.
Very happy to post this time, just outside my SMH run, but I did not run a marathon the week before SMH! The legs pulled up pretty well Sunday afternoon and I was contemplating heading out for another run but stayed on the lounge until the thought passed!
Tuesday
Probably 2-3 too many glasses of red last night celebrating my sister in law's birthday and so I felt a bit ordinary in mind, spirit and even the legs were not that keen to get going this morning. So in my wisdom I trotted around to my hill rep route, surprisingly it has been about a month since my last hill rep session.
The first rep was maybe just a tad too fast but I ground out the 10 reps and was also pleasantly surprised once I downloaded the splits to see today's average was actually marginally quicker than my last session as I felt pretty rough through the run, not helped but what seemed a warmer day as well! Also sliced quite a bit (ie 5 seconds on average) off my recovery run back down the hill between reps!
Stats
10 reps, average 1:28.9 with average recovery of 1:44
Summer Series tomorrow night at Drummoyne so should be a pretty fast course, but I'll also slip in a recovery run tomorrow morning. In aother news my GNW 100k entry has been accepted so no backing out now, in fact will do a recon session on Saturday over part of the course.
This Striders only race is a Half Marathon but with a handicap start with the goal (for me as handicaper) to have everyone finish at exactly the same time. But there are always people either faster or slower than documented form.
I had a handicap of 94, mainly based upon my SMH time with a difficulty scaling factor for the "tougher" Lane Cove course. As it turned out my only start line companion was Silver Fox but he was running with the pram. My initial goal was to go out fairly hard and see how long I could hold the tempo. I started hauling in the 95 group and had caught them all by halfway up the rangers hut hill the first time.
5km split of 22:03 (4:25 min/km)
Anthony W stayed with me up the hill but then I kept the pressure going on the downhill and he drifted back a little. The run back to the start area was pretty fast and I picked up quite a few more runners along here.
10km time of 43:24 which gives a 5km split of 21:21 (4:16 min/km)
Back up the course and Scribbly's felt a little harder the second time, caught quite a few people on the climb up to the rangers hut again but the legs were certainly hurting a bit now and still had Anthony W lurking back about 20-30m
15km time of 1:04:45 which gives a 5km split of 21:21 again (very consistent!)
Now the downhill run home and I just focussed on form and trying to hold off anyone who might be catching me. Hauled in Johnny Dark and a strong Redback along here.
20km time of 1:26:47 which gives 5km split of 22:02 (4:24 min/km)
As you can see the legs started to fade and Anthony and another runner I passed at about 19km hauled me in at 1km to go. I tried to hang on to them but just could not hold the pace.
Finish time was 91:31 which gives an average pace of 4:20 with an average HR of 174.
Very happy to post this time, just outside my SMH run, but I did not run a marathon the week before SMH! The legs pulled up pretty well Sunday afternoon and I was contemplating heading out for another run but stayed on the lounge until the thought passed!
Tuesday
Probably 2-3 too many glasses of red last night celebrating my sister in law's birthday and so I felt a bit ordinary in mind, spirit and even the legs were not that keen to get going this morning. So in my wisdom I trotted around to my hill rep route, surprisingly it has been about a month since my last hill rep session.
The first rep was maybe just a tad too fast but I ground out the 10 reps and was also pleasantly surprised once I downloaded the splits to see today's average was actually marginally quicker than my last session as I felt pretty rough through the run, not helped but what seemed a warmer day as well! Also sliced quite a bit (ie 5 seconds on average) off my recovery run back down the hill between reps!
Stats
10 reps, average 1:28.9 with average recovery of 1:44
Summer Series tomorrow night at Drummoyne so should be a pretty fast course, but I'll also slip in a recovery run tomorrow morning. In aother news my GNW 100k entry has been accepted so no backing out now, in fact will do a recon session on Saturday over part of the course.
Friday, October 20, 2006
Friday Free for All
A different run today, wanted to knock out some intervals but also wanted a little bit of distance. So I opted to do a longish warm up (lets call it 8km!) through LCNP to Rotary Park and then some short sharp quick stuff.
By the time I got to Rotary it was quite warm but a breeze was blowing, only problem was that it seemed to be blowing straight into my face along the back straight!
In deference to the half marathon on Sunday I decided to do only 6 400m reps and after a slowish first rep got into the swing of things.
6 x 400m reps in average of 1:24.5 with 1:30 standing recovery.
Home up the hill which is always a bit of a challenge on somewhat lactic legs.....
Somewhat surprising today to see that I seem to have lost another kg. Gee a chunk of flesh out of the forehead seems to be a bit extreme for weight loss but somewhat effective :)
So now to the questions/comments
DTI - this anacronym is very important to many runners. The better the DTI the easier it is to stick with a training and race schedule. If the DTI starts to fall then things are seriously in trouble and it needs some focus otherwise your running can suffer some serious setbacks when least expected. So what is the DTI and why have you not heard of it before?
The Domestic Tranquility Index is directly proportional to your significant other's tolerance level of any planned running committment. While runnning with an injury is risky, continuing to maintain training/racing levels with a low DTI can be VERY detrimental to your health :)
I devoted an entire day today to ensure my DTI is in tip top shape with the planned demand for GNW looming!
For R2B, no results back yet from the biopsy and yes I am deadly serious about a weekly 30km run. Luckily with Striders we have a 30km on offer every Sunday and it is a very important factor in many people's Six Foot Prep!
By the time I got to Rotary it was quite warm but a breeze was blowing, only problem was that it seemed to be blowing straight into my face along the back straight!
In deference to the half marathon on Sunday I decided to do only 6 400m reps and after a slowish first rep got into the swing of things.
6 x 400m reps in average of 1:24.5 with 1:30 standing recovery.
Home up the hill which is always a bit of a challenge on somewhat lactic legs.....
Somewhat surprising today to see that I seem to have lost another kg. Gee a chunk of flesh out of the forehead seems to be a bit extreme for weight loss but somewhat effective :)
So now to the questions/comments
DTI - this anacronym is very important to many runners. The better the DTI the easier it is to stick with a training and race schedule. If the DTI starts to fall then things are seriously in trouble and it needs some focus otherwise your running can suffer some serious setbacks when least expected. So what is the DTI and why have you not heard of it before?
The Domestic Tranquility Index is directly proportional to your significant other's tolerance level of any planned running committment. While runnning with an injury is risky, continuing to maintain training/racing levels with a low DTI can be VERY detrimental to your health :)
I devoted an entire day today to ensure my DTI is in tip top shape with the planned demand for GNW looming!
For R2B, no results back yet from the biopsy and yes I am deadly serious about a weekly 30km run. Luckily with Striders we have a 30km on offer every Sunday and it is a very important factor in many people's Six Foot Prep!
Thursday, October 19, 2006
Welcome back legs!
To paraphrase from that TV ad welcome back legs!
After yesterday's schmozzle I was very keen to get out for a real thrashing today and so opted for a tempo run over my 14km course. I popped a cap over the bandage so I did not look too wierd!
The legs felt very fresh as I headed off and as such the pace was pretty good. On the way down to the weir I thought I saw Spud on his bike and sure enough as I started running up along the 10km course he came back and said he'd catch up to me. He only just made it as I was at the gates at the top of the hill. We both briefly stopped and chatted about C2K and also maintaining our respective DTI's, good to see you mate!
The legs did feel a little heavy on the rises but the speed was still pretty good. By the time I got to Cox's Rd and the downhill I was still running well so I kept the momentum going all the way home.
Stats
Distance 14.2km
Time 1:02:58
Avg Pace 4:25
Avg HR 168
Very pleased with this run, again on a rolling course. This is another 2.5 minutes off the recent fastest time. This is getting close to 26miles guideline of 14km tempo in an hour, which I reckon I could certainly do on a flatter route right now!
Body wise, the legs now seem to have recovered fully from FFFTM and no niggles seemingly. The head was throbbing a little but the bandage is gone and I'm feeling a little more normal again!
Thanks for the comments and feedback on both my little misadventure yesterday as well as my decision to take a walk on the dark side!
After yesterday's schmozzle I was very keen to get out for a real thrashing today and so opted for a tempo run over my 14km course. I popped a cap over the bandage so I did not look too wierd!
The legs felt very fresh as I headed off and as such the pace was pretty good. On the way down to the weir I thought I saw Spud on his bike and sure enough as I started running up along the 10km course he came back and said he'd catch up to me. He only just made it as I was at the gates at the top of the hill. We both briefly stopped and chatted about C2K and also maintaining our respective DTI's, good to see you mate!
The legs did feel a little heavy on the rises but the speed was still pretty good. By the time I got to Cox's Rd and the downhill I was still running well so I kept the momentum going all the way home.
Stats
Distance 14.2km
Time 1:02:58
Avg Pace 4:25
Avg HR 168
Very pleased with this run, again on a rolling course. This is another 2.5 minutes off the recent fastest time. This is getting close to 26miles guideline of 14km tempo in an hour, which I reckon I could certainly do on a flatter route right now!
Body wise, the legs now seem to have recovered fully from FFFTM and no niggles seemingly. The head was throbbing a little but the bandage is gone and I'm feeling a little more normal again!
Thanks for the comments and feedback on both my little misadventure yesterday as well as my decision to take a walk on the dark side!
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
Code Blue - Sith Apprentice down!
A day to forget.....
With Summer Series on this afternoon I skipped the morning run. However I had a follow appointment with the skin specialist. I had some spots frozen off a couple of weeks ago and he was worried about one so took a small biopsy. I assumed that given the routine nature of their follow up request that all was ok and he was now going to freeze the offending mark off as well.
However I was mistaken, he informed me it was actually a BCC and was going to remove it now, with a knife no less. No trauma I thought, it's only the size of a match head so shouldn't be too bad. After some local he went to work but seemed to take forever to stitch up what I assumed was a small wound. When finished I asked him how many stitches and it was 14 stitches and I had a quick look at the sample bottle and in it was a chunk from my forehead the size of freakin Tasmania!!!
So not too bad, but $470 bucks later my hip pocket was hurting more than the head. Anyway quite handily next door to the clinic is a Medicare so I wandered in with this huge bandage around my head to get partially reimbursed. While the clerk was sorting out the paperwork I went from feeling jim dandy to lying on the ground with some very concerned medicare staff peering down at me..... As Effie says, how embarassment! Seems I fainted in a repeat of my experience in having blood samples taken a little while ago. I might need to start borrowing Miners' blouse collection.
About 10 minutes later after sitting down and assuring them I was now ok I scuttled out the door as quickly as possible, making a mental note to avoid that branch in the future.
Of course the first thing I asked the doc after he sliced me up was could I run this afternoon, he of course said no and I promptly decided to ignore his advice :) However as the afternoon wore on I developed a nice throbbing headache, accompanied by very sore elbows (seemed I landed on them as I fell on the tiled floor, managing to miss the carpet naturally!). So that and terse instructions from the wife now see me at home indulging in medicinal wine consumption rather than attempting another Summer Series win :(
Anyway, I'll head out tomorrow for a stretcher session to make up.
Now to the GNW, thanks for all the comments!!!
I am "only" going to the 100km, more than enough to chew upon in my first dark side outing. If you have been paying attention I have been trying to build up and the FF run was designated as a good prep run. No doubt it will be the toughest run I have ever done. But on the postitive side I:
- have done a few rogaines, including about 16 hours in Wollomi National Park last years, a few 6 hour events, including one 6 hour in the Watagans so I have some idea on terrain
- have decent navigation skills, both in daylight and night time
- am somewhat used to sleep deprivation
Prep is pretty advanced with a support team already organised, some kit already organised (including some dirty girl gaiters) and also a trial run (that was going to be sekrit) next weekend.
One goal I will also try to do is actually blog via the blackberry as my mood, phone signal and the run permits.
So should be heaps of fun :)
Back at it tomorrow!
With Summer Series on this afternoon I skipped the morning run. However I had a follow appointment with the skin specialist. I had some spots frozen off a couple of weeks ago and he was worried about one so took a small biopsy. I assumed that given the routine nature of their follow up request that all was ok and he was now going to freeze the offending mark off as well.
However I was mistaken, he informed me it was actually a BCC and was going to remove it now, with a knife no less. No trauma I thought, it's only the size of a match head so shouldn't be too bad. After some local he went to work but seemed to take forever to stitch up what I assumed was a small wound. When finished I asked him how many stitches and it was 14 stitches and I had a quick look at the sample bottle and in it was a chunk from my forehead the size of freakin Tasmania!!!
So not too bad, but $470 bucks later my hip pocket was hurting more than the head. Anyway quite handily next door to the clinic is a Medicare so I wandered in with this huge bandage around my head to get partially reimbursed. While the clerk was sorting out the paperwork I went from feeling jim dandy to lying on the ground with some very concerned medicare staff peering down at me..... As Effie says, how embarassment! Seems I fainted in a repeat of my experience in having blood samples taken a little while ago. I might need to start borrowing Miners' blouse collection.
About 10 minutes later after sitting down and assuring them I was now ok I scuttled out the door as quickly as possible, making a mental note to avoid that branch in the future.
Of course the first thing I asked the doc after he sliced me up was could I run this afternoon, he of course said no and I promptly decided to ignore his advice :) However as the afternoon wore on I developed a nice throbbing headache, accompanied by very sore elbows (seemed I landed on them as I fell on the tiled floor, managing to miss the carpet naturally!). So that and terse instructions from the wife now see me at home indulging in medicinal wine consumption rather than attempting another Summer Series win :(
Anyway, I'll head out tomorrow for a stretcher session to make up.
Now to the GNW, thanks for all the comments!!!
I am "only" going to the 100km, more than enough to chew upon in my first dark side outing. If you have been paying attention I have been trying to build up and the FF run was designated as a good prep run. No doubt it will be the toughest run I have ever done. But on the postitive side I:
- have done a few rogaines, including about 16 hours in Wollomi National Park last years, a few 6 hour events, including one 6 hour in the Watagans so I have some idea on terrain
- have decent navigation skills, both in daylight and night time
- am somewhat used to sleep deprivation
Prep is pretty advanced with a support team already organised, some kit already organised (including some dirty girl gaiters) and also a trial run (that was going to be sekrit) next weekend.
One goal I will also try to do is actually blog via the blackberry as my mood, phone signal and the run permits.
So should be heaps of fun :)
Back at it tomorrow!
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Monday, October 16, 2006
Inverse run
The goal was a tempo run today to see what happened. Adopted the weir run and headed out in slight drizzle.
It certainly was an effort to get the pace going, the legs do not feel too badly chopped up, just slow!
Stats
Distance 11km
Time 55:38
Avg pace 5:07
Avg HR 150
Very interesting the avg HR shows the cardio was certainly fine, just teh legs would not go any faster. As the title says I'll call this an inverse run, the opposite of my long fast run last week, a shorter slower run!
Another recovery session tomorrow.
It certainly was an effort to get the pace going, the legs do not feel too badly chopped up, just slow!
Stats
Distance 11km
Time 55:38
Avg pace 5:07
Avg HR 150
Very interesting the avg HR shows the cardio was certainly fine, just teh legs would not go any faster. As the title says I'll call this an inverse run, the opposite of my long fast run last week, a shorter slower run!
Another recovery session tomorrow.
Sunday, October 15, 2006
Stop the press!
Just got the Summer Series results from Wednesday night.
An absolute first I was equal top score (over all entrants). A good thing my navigation skills have not diminished as the equal winner was Gary MacGregor (six foot track winner) and a slew of faster runners behind me.
And there I was after the run a bit bummed out about my stuff up around 30 and taking a walk break up a couple of the steeper pinches...
Certainly a good course to know when to turn for home rather than chase more points!
This will have to go down in the history books, a good thing a few more of the faster runners did not show up :)
Edit : for interest here is my route on google earth
An absolute first I was equal top score (over all entrants). A good thing my navigation skills have not diminished as the equal winner was Gary MacGregor (six foot track winner) and a slew of faster runners behind me.
And there I was after the run a bit bummed out about my stuff up around 30 and taking a walk break up a couple of the steeper pinches...
Certainly a good course to know when to turn for home rather than chase more points!
This will have to go down in the history books, a good thing a few more of the faster runners did not show up :)
Edit : for interest here is my route on google earth
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