Made my first foray back into training on Sunday at the Middle Harbour Picnic STaR. It started out good, seemingly cruising with the 6:10 group, got bad around Balmoral as I started to struggle and then plain bloody ugly as I very nearly did not even finish the run. My legs were extremely painful which for a while I was perplexed, surely I could not loose that much condition over a couple of weeks. Afterwards I realised that since my six foot hit out I have been wearing my Nike free's and am thinking that I actually "conditoned" my legs/feet somewhat out of my orthotics??? Seriously I don't think I have ever felt as bad in the legs during a run, even at the end of various marathons.....
Feel much better physically today but have had a major distraction with Striders, one of our members getting in a very bad situation out on six foot and I have found it very taxing trying to work through things with all concerned.
Hoping for a better remainder of the week, Summer Series to hopefully blow the cobwebs out and get some confidence back in my condition and legs :(
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
We apologise for this break in transmission.....
A bit of time between posts but all for a good reason!
Just flew back into Sydney yesterday after a family holiday to the US. Obviously I did not blog about this ahead of time as it is not a wise idea to put out in the public domain that the house will be unoccupied for a couple of weeks.
We had an absolute blast, with the focus being on Disneyland (for 3 days!), San Diego (what a great zoo), Las Vegas (Disney for adults!) and the Grand Canyon.
Only downer was record low temperatures during our visit, that combined with a pretty hectic schedule (we drove everywhere) saw absolutely no running, even though I took my gear. So now time is short for Six Foot prep and I have not ventured near the scales yet to see the damage american food has done. Regardless the absolute great time in experiencing everything with my wife and kids more than outweighs any potential performance impact at six foot, some things in life are much more important!
Just flew back into Sydney yesterday after a family holiday to the US. Obviously I did not blog about this ahead of time as it is not a wise idea to put out in the public domain that the house will be unoccupied for a couple of weeks.
We had an absolute blast, with the focus being on Disneyland (for 3 days!), San Diego (what a great zoo), Las Vegas (Disney for adults!) and the Grand Canyon.
Only downer was record low temperatures during our visit, that combined with a pretty hectic schedule (we drove everywhere) saw absolutely no running, even though I took my gear. So now time is short for Six Foot prep and I have not ventured near the scales yet to see the damage american food has done. Regardless the absolute great time in experiencing everything with my wife and kids more than outweighs any potential performance impact at six foot, some things in life are much more important!
Sunday, January 07, 2007
Back to the mountain
Since Black Stump I have again been busy with a Summer Series jaunt around Lindfield, lots more climbing and I absolutely ran myself into the ground.
Again some slackness drifts in but the buck stops on Sunday with a return to Six Foot today. An early start to get up to Megalong Rd to start at 7am with a group of around 10. A conga line down to Cox's River at a pretty good clip, although the group fragmented a little. The water was pretty low but we rock hopped across. I had a need to make a pitstop while the others kept going.
About half way up Mini Mini another runner caught me who I found out was Vurt, the rest were off in the distance. Cruised back past Vurt on the descent down to Allum and then he went past again as we ascended Pluvi. I paused for a second at teh site of my misfortune in last year's race. Right near the top the main group went past headed back down. A quick gu at the top and time to smash the quads....
Back up to Mini Mini before headed all the way to the river. Here vurt, superflake and aimhigh were waiting. I did not realise how tough the climb back up to Megalong was, I was pretty much done (read stuffed) with more walking than running in the final pieces of the climb before thankfully seeing the car.
Stats
Distance 35.4km
Time 4:31:11
Avg Pace 7:39
Avg HR 155
Total climb 1385m (yowsa!)
I'd say this route actually has more climb than the race due to the climb back out from Cox's which is a lot more than Black Range. Legs are not too bad tonight, assisted by the cold dip in the creek, putting on the skins and also some Endura opti.
Again some slackness drifts in but the buck stops on Sunday with a return to Six Foot today. An early start to get up to Megalong Rd to start at 7am with a group of around 10. A conga line down to Cox's River at a pretty good clip, although the group fragmented a little. The water was pretty low but we rock hopped across. I had a need to make a pitstop while the others kept going.
About half way up Mini Mini another runner caught me who I found out was Vurt, the rest were off in the distance. Cruised back past Vurt on the descent down to Allum and then he went past again as we ascended Pluvi. I paused for a second at teh site of my misfortune in last year's race. Right near the top the main group went past headed back down. A quick gu at the top and time to smash the quads....
Back up to Mini Mini before headed all the way to the river. Here vurt, superflake and aimhigh were waiting. I did not realise how tough the climb back up to Megalong was, I was pretty much done (read stuffed) with more walking than running in the final pieces of the climb before thankfully seeing the car.
Stats
Distance 35.4km
Time 4:31:11
Avg Pace 7:39
Avg HR 155
Total climb 1385m (yowsa!)
I'd say this route actually has more climb than the race due to the climb back out from Cox's which is a lot more than Black Range. Legs are not too bad tonight, assisted by the cold dip in the creek, putting on the skins and also some Endura opti.
Tuesday, January 02, 2007
Black Stump Bush Run
Up early after seeing in the New Year with caution on the drinks front. A good thing as I got stopped at Roseville for a random breath test!
An amazing turnout of runners, especially if you compare to last year where there might have been 20 of us. This year around 120!!!
Started out cautiously and ran with Spud and Tom for a way until we hit the uphills where I eased back a little, content to save myself a little, especially if I needed to sprint for the ferry. As it happened I got to the water and the ferry was chugging back so I popped a gu and drank some water. The departure was a little delayed as a couple of groups of runners showed up.
Off the other side and it was a scramble of a large group up the hill. I ran with Blue Dog for a little while and loitered just behind Spud, just losing him at the top. I really enjoyed the run down to the castle and Ron Schwebel caught up to me just after the turn. I was still struggling a little up the hills and just at the top of teh long descent back to the ferry sfGnome ran past. I was content to keep him in sight and again see what happened with the ferry. This time we just missed it so a good regroup again, topping up the camebak and around 6 of us ran off the other side.
I hung in with the group for most of the first climb but really struggled towards the top letting them drift away. It was very pleasing to see the drink drop at the top of the second climb and now I knew it was just good steady running all the way back. Despite feeling tired I kept the legs turning over all the way back and finished in 3:51:35, slight improvement over last year. Got changed and hung around to see most of the others come in, certainly it was a little warmer than the run last year (not the furnace option). Have done some comparision splits for those interested....
TY LY
Berowra to ferry 0:53:10 0:52:30
Ferry over 0:11:22 0:08:00
Ferry to Castle 0:50:41 0:49:27
Castle to Ferry 0:50:00 0:47:18 (really ran hard downhill)
Ferry Back 0:10:00 0:04:45
Ferry to Finish 0:59:34 1:07:45
Act. running time 3:33:35 3:37:00
A decent benchmark, certainly I did a lot better in the last steep section back up the hill this year. Also encouraging that the legs feel not too bad today, despite being pretty much toast when I finished. A good sign that while I did not race the run it was a good solid hit out.
An amazing turnout of runners, especially if you compare to last year where there might have been 20 of us. This year around 120!!!
Started out cautiously and ran with Spud and Tom for a way until we hit the uphills where I eased back a little, content to save myself a little, especially if I needed to sprint for the ferry. As it happened I got to the water and the ferry was chugging back so I popped a gu and drank some water. The departure was a little delayed as a couple of groups of runners showed up.
Off the other side and it was a scramble of a large group up the hill. I ran with Blue Dog for a little while and loitered just behind Spud, just losing him at the top. I really enjoyed the run down to the castle and Ron Schwebel caught up to me just after the turn. I was still struggling a little up the hills and just at the top of teh long descent back to the ferry sfGnome ran past. I was content to keep him in sight and again see what happened with the ferry. This time we just missed it so a good regroup again, topping up the camebak and around 6 of us ran off the other side.
I hung in with the group for most of the first climb but really struggled towards the top letting them drift away. It was very pleasing to see the drink drop at the top of the second climb and now I knew it was just good steady running all the way back. Despite feeling tired I kept the legs turning over all the way back and finished in 3:51:35, slight improvement over last year. Got changed and hung around to see most of the others come in, certainly it was a little warmer than the run last year (not the furnace option). Have done some comparision splits for those interested....
TY LY
Berowra to ferry 0:53:10 0:52:30
Ferry over 0:11:22 0:08:00
Ferry to Castle 0:50:41 0:49:27
Castle to Ferry 0:50:00 0:47:18 (really ran hard downhill)
Ferry Back 0:10:00 0:04:45
Ferry to Finish 0:59:34 1:07:45
Act. running time 3:33:35 3:37:00
A decent benchmark, certainly I did a lot better in the last steep section back up the hill this year. Also encouraging that the legs feel not too bad today, despite being pretty much toast when I finished. A good sign that while I did not race the run it was a good solid hit out.
Sunday, December 31, 2006
2006 recap
A quick review of 2006 for posterity....
January - Somewhat steady training for Six Foot but a little inconsistent - 323km
February - Started pretty well with a couple of decent runs in the 10km and Equaliser but training slipped pretty dramatically in the middle - 175km
March - Started with a bout of the flu from which in hindisght I did not recover fully. Six Foot was a shambles and I withdrew halfway up Pluviometer. Did get to watch the Commonwealth Games 5000m race live, which was an absolute belter. Overall a very slack month - 126km
April - Somewhat pleasing to just squeeze in under 3:30 for Canberra given the poor preparation, mentally came out of my hole a little - 177km
May - A little more consistent, including running during my US trip, but still down on distance. Highlight was the SMH Half going within a whisker of my half PB in a pretty well paced race - 171km
June - A fairly quiet month but I did race the NSW XC championships and also lowered my PB at Woodford to Glenbrook - 192km
July - A shambles of a month, only 2 blog posts and minimal running - 96km
August - Finally got myself a little motivated, especially after a horrendous Airport Adventure STaR. A lot more consistent training saw decent times for both City to Surf and Willy to Billy, promising given the lack of real distance in the legs - 239km
September - Again some consistency without really digging in. Ran Sydney Marathon as a pacer with SilverFox and faded in the last 10km. Some decent speedwork was seeing my rep times dropping - 234km
October - A pleasing month with some good running. First race at Fitzroy Falls in the marathon and also a first in equal highest points for a Summer Series event. A very strong run in the internal half capped off with a good jaunt along part of the GNW course with Blue Dog - 321km
November - Started by just about breaking my 10km PB, getting within 10 seconds at Lane Cove. The rest of the month centered around the GNW, I had a great time, but sadly was probably a little underdone and that was not helped by the heat. A reluctant but wise decision to withdraw at the 52km mark. After that pretty much a break to recover mentally and physically - 107km
December - The start of the Six Foot Campaign, funnily enough, not a single race in December, unusual for me (other than Summer Series!). Some good longer runs but the usual work and family stuff this time of the year reduced my ability to run every day - 255km
Summary - In hindsight a lot of expectations but not enough preparation to try and achieve stated goals. Probably the best yardstick is my stated goal in January to run 3000km for the year, in fact the actual yearly total just snuck over 2400. Some encouraging signs at various points through the year.
My PB table is starting to look somewhat dusty. 2007 should hopefully be a watershed year in my running, more consistent training will help. As I turn 40 in March the major focus will be to go sub 40 when 40 :)
January - Somewhat steady training for Six Foot but a little inconsistent - 323km
February - Started pretty well with a couple of decent runs in the 10km and Equaliser but training slipped pretty dramatically in the middle - 175km
March - Started with a bout of the flu from which in hindisght I did not recover fully. Six Foot was a shambles and I withdrew halfway up Pluviometer. Did get to watch the Commonwealth Games 5000m race live, which was an absolute belter. Overall a very slack month - 126km
April - Somewhat pleasing to just squeeze in under 3:30 for Canberra given the poor preparation, mentally came out of my hole a little - 177km
May - A little more consistent, including running during my US trip, but still down on distance. Highlight was the SMH Half going within a whisker of my half PB in a pretty well paced race - 171km
June - A fairly quiet month but I did race the NSW XC championships and also lowered my PB at Woodford to Glenbrook - 192km
July - A shambles of a month, only 2 blog posts and minimal running - 96km
August - Finally got myself a little motivated, especially after a horrendous Airport Adventure STaR. A lot more consistent training saw decent times for both City to Surf and Willy to Billy, promising given the lack of real distance in the legs - 239km
September - Again some consistency without really digging in. Ran Sydney Marathon as a pacer with SilverFox and faded in the last 10km. Some decent speedwork was seeing my rep times dropping - 234km
October - A pleasing month with some good running. First race at Fitzroy Falls in the marathon and also a first in equal highest points for a Summer Series event. A very strong run in the internal half capped off with a good jaunt along part of the GNW course with Blue Dog - 321km
November - Started by just about breaking my 10km PB, getting within 10 seconds at Lane Cove. The rest of the month centered around the GNW, I had a great time, but sadly was probably a little underdone and that was not helped by the heat. A reluctant but wise decision to withdraw at the 52km mark. After that pretty much a break to recover mentally and physically - 107km
December - The start of the Six Foot Campaign, funnily enough, not a single race in December, unusual for me (other than Summer Series!). Some good longer runs but the usual work and family stuff this time of the year reduced my ability to run every day - 255km
Summary - In hindsight a lot of expectations but not enough preparation to try and achieve stated goals. Probably the best yardstick is my stated goal in January to run 3000km for the year, in fact the actual yearly total just snuck over 2400. Some encouraging signs at various points through the year.
My PB table is starting to look somewhat dusty. 2007 should hopefully be a watershed year in my running, more consistent training will help. As I turn 40 in March the major focus will be to go sub 40 when 40 :)
Seeing out 2006
Last runs for 2006
Thursday - Out for a tempo run around my 14km circuit, went out in the late afternoon but still quite warm and I was pretty lathered by the time I got home.
Distance 14.3km
Time 1:05:38
Avg Pace 4:35
Avg HR 167
Saturday - This time I opted for my "Half Marathon" route with some good decent hills including a nasty long 1km haul up Pittwater Road to get home. Again I was pretty spent when I had finished.
Distance 20.84km
Time 1:41:43
Avg Pace 4:52
Avg HR 163
So that ends December and 2006 (I'll do a separate 2006 summary blog)
Six Foot Campaign Summary
Day 29 of 96
Days run 15
Total distance 255
Total climb 2142
Still somewhat inconsistent but the days I have dropped/not run I have used as recovery runs and shuffled my more intense sessions around and kept them.
Thursday - Out for a tempo run around my 14km circuit, went out in the late afternoon but still quite warm and I was pretty lathered by the time I got home.
Distance 14.3km
Time 1:05:38
Avg Pace 4:35
Avg HR 167
Saturday - This time I opted for my "Half Marathon" route with some good decent hills including a nasty long 1km haul up Pittwater Road to get home. Again I was pretty spent when I had finished.
Distance 20.84km
Time 1:41:43
Avg Pace 4:52
Avg HR 163
So that ends December and 2006 (I'll do a separate 2006 summary blog)
Six Foot Campaign Summary
Day 29 of 96
Days run 15
Total distance 255
Total climb 2142
Still somewhat inconsistent but the days I have dropped/not run I have used as recovery runs and shuffled my more intense sessions around and kept them.
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
Merry Christmas!!!
First of all Merry Christmas to all readers and fellow bloggers, a little belated but then that's life I suppose when you have 3 kids over Christmas, plus one of them having a birthday 2 days later.....
Now where was I? (warning longish type post to cover a week and a half)
A trip to Melbourne screwed up Mon/Tues after the STaR so I headed to Balmoral for the Summer Series event on Wednesday. Running here is always a challenge with controls usually set at the top of the ridge, halfway down and then along the waterfront with generally a good amount of climbing required to collate a decent score. I worked out a route which kept most controls open depending upon my progress. As it happens the progress was good. I know some lurkers are Summer Series runners and so below is my route, with a commentary, scroll down further for other stuff if not interested.
Initially some easy pickings with 3,12 and 4 then up the hill/path to 11, dropping back a little to then climb up further to 22. Then following the contours along to 21, dropping down to 13, missing 30 points at 2 and 14. Back up and along to 24 (droppong another 10 points with 1) then halfway down the slope to 25, climbing back up to 16. TRaversing the slope to 6 (on Awaba) up to 27 then zig zagging down to 19 and 18. Across and then up to 28 then down through Chinamans Beach for 9 and 29. Anothet climb out and along to 30 then 20, dropping back down to Balmoral for 7. Running low on time but out to the island for 26 then weaving the streets of Balmoral for 17 and 10. I was on around 43 minutes here so knew I would be late but decided to be greedy and hit 15, looping around and up for 23, with a final downhill surge to 5 and home. Six and a bit minutes late saw 70 points deducted from my gross score of 550 to give a net of 480.
Stats
Distance 9.3km
Time 51:49
Avg Pace 5:35
Avg HR 171
Climb 120m
Friday
Did the stock standard weir run but felt pretty crappy throughout seemed to be very humid. Somewhat slower than my best but anyway...
Saturday
Initially planned a Quarry Rd jaunt in place of the CR Xmas eve run but fell short so headed out in the middle of the day with the goal of a longer run, including some good bush. A short cut through to Deburghs Bridge and already the heat and humidity were evident, putting my head under the tap at the rangers hut to try and cool down. New territory on the Eastern Side of Lane Cove River along the GNW with some good undulating trail running. As I paused at one intersection another runner approached who I recognised as Tom, a fellow Strider. We continued together up to Browns Waterhole where he turned around and I crossed the river and climbed up to Vimiera Road. A long pause near Macquarie Uni where I rehydrated, popped a gu and endeavoured to try and cool down. Eventually took a short cut or 2 on the way home and was pretty wiped by the end.
Stats
Distance 19km
Time 1:42
Avg Pace 5:27
Avg HR 165
Climb 160m
Tuesday (Boxing Day)
Took advantage of the reshuffled family Xmas arrangements and cooler weather to head out for a longer run. Dropped through LCNP, seeing Tom again and then also catching up with Jim Moody near the start of the Striders 10km races. A good long climb up to West Lindfield and then hit the bush in an effort to do the Striders Chatswood Chase in reverse. I missed one turn in the bush and was momentarily dislocated but kept on running on commonsense and eventually reestablished contact with the planned run. Kept climbing up to the Mona Vale Rd/Pacific Hwy intersction and across for some climbing up to Gordon and then along the rollercoaster parallel to the railway line to Boundary St. I decided to take the "long option" and headed east towards Penshurst St all the way down to Mowbray Rd. It finally started to warm up by now but I pushed hard home, grinding out the climb up Epping Rd back to home. Overall a much better run than Saturday!
Stats
Distance 28.2km
Time 2:29:40
Avg Pace 5:18
Avg HR 152 (legs seemed to be limiting factor!)
Climb 240m
Six Foot Campaign Summary
Day 25 of 96
Days run 13
Total distance 220km
Total climb 1965
Better than nothing I suppose but more consistency required which knowing my timetable will be tough.....
Also apologies to fellow bloggers for lack of recent comments, a little bit stretched at the moment!!
Now where was I? (warning longish type post to cover a week and a half)
A trip to Melbourne screwed up Mon/Tues after the STaR so I headed to Balmoral for the Summer Series event on Wednesday. Running here is always a challenge with controls usually set at the top of the ridge, halfway down and then along the waterfront with generally a good amount of climbing required to collate a decent score. I worked out a route which kept most controls open depending upon my progress. As it happens the progress was good. I know some lurkers are Summer Series runners and so below is my route, with a commentary, scroll down further for other stuff if not interested.
Initially some easy pickings with 3,12 and 4 then up the hill/path to 11, dropping back a little to then climb up further to 22. Then following the contours along to 21, dropping down to 13, missing 30 points at 2 and 14. Back up and along to 24 (droppong another 10 points with 1) then halfway down the slope to 25, climbing back up to 16. TRaversing the slope to 6 (on Awaba) up to 27 then zig zagging down to 19 and 18. Across and then up to 28 then down through Chinamans Beach for 9 and 29. Anothet climb out and along to 30 then 20, dropping back down to Balmoral for 7. Running low on time but out to the island for 26 then weaving the streets of Balmoral for 17 and 10. I was on around 43 minutes here so knew I would be late but decided to be greedy and hit 15, looping around and up for 23, with a final downhill surge to 5 and home. Six and a bit minutes late saw 70 points deducted from my gross score of 550 to give a net of 480.
Stats
Distance 9.3km
Time 51:49
Avg Pace 5:35
Avg HR 171
Climb 120m
Friday
Did the stock standard weir run but felt pretty crappy throughout seemed to be very humid. Somewhat slower than my best but anyway...
Saturday
Initially planned a Quarry Rd jaunt in place of the CR Xmas eve run but fell short so headed out in the middle of the day with the goal of a longer run, including some good bush. A short cut through to Deburghs Bridge and already the heat and humidity were evident, putting my head under the tap at the rangers hut to try and cool down. New territory on the Eastern Side of Lane Cove River along the GNW with some good undulating trail running. As I paused at one intersection another runner approached who I recognised as Tom, a fellow Strider. We continued together up to Browns Waterhole where he turned around and I crossed the river and climbed up to Vimiera Road. A long pause near Macquarie Uni where I rehydrated, popped a gu and endeavoured to try and cool down. Eventually took a short cut or 2 on the way home and was pretty wiped by the end.
Stats
Distance 19km
Time 1:42
Avg Pace 5:27
Avg HR 165
Climb 160m
Tuesday (Boxing Day)
Took advantage of the reshuffled family Xmas arrangements and cooler weather to head out for a longer run. Dropped through LCNP, seeing Tom again and then also catching up with Jim Moody near the start of the Striders 10km races. A good long climb up to West Lindfield and then hit the bush in an effort to do the Striders Chatswood Chase in reverse. I missed one turn in the bush and was momentarily dislocated but kept on running on commonsense and eventually reestablished contact with the planned run. Kept climbing up to the Mona Vale Rd/Pacific Hwy intersction and across for some climbing up to Gordon and then along the rollercoaster parallel to the railway line to Boundary St. I decided to take the "long option" and headed east towards Penshurst St all the way down to Mowbray Rd. It finally started to warm up by now but I pushed hard home, grinding out the climb up Epping Rd back to home. Overall a much better run than Saturday!
Stats
Distance 28.2km
Time 2:29:40
Avg Pace 5:18
Avg HR 152 (legs seemed to be limiting factor!)
Climb 240m
Six Foot Campaign Summary
Day 25 of 96
Days run 13
Total distance 220km
Total climb 1965
Better than nothing I suppose but more consistency required which knowing my timetable will be tough.....
Also apologies to fellow bloggers for lack of recent comments, a little bit stretched at the moment!!
Monday, December 18, 2006
Reaping what you have sown!
So over to Centennial Park for the Tourist Trot STaR. A good sized group but immediately the pace was on....
I won't rant too much about the group pace but suffice to say I eventually faded at around 18km drifting off the back. If the goal was to run on tired legs then mission accomplished! Also heartening to hear that the bulk of the 6:10 group finally realised that they really should be running 6:20 (especially since they averaged 4:59 pace....)
So to my run
Distance 28km
Time 2:26
Avg Pace 5:14
Climb - Garmin initially says 410 but I will revise that back to 330 after it plotted a 140m peak in the middle of King St.....
Campaign status
Day 16 of 96
Days run 9 (David must be more consistent....)
Total distance 153km
Total climb 1370m
I won't rant too much about the group pace but suffice to say I eventually faded at around 18km drifting off the back. If the goal was to run on tired legs then mission accomplished! Also heartening to hear that the bulk of the 6:10 group finally realised that they really should be running 6:20 (especially since they averaged 4:59 pace....)
So to my run
Distance 28km
Time 2:26
Avg Pace 5:14
Climb - Garmin initially says 410 but I will revise that back to 330 after it plotted a 140m peak in the middle of King St.....
Campaign status
Day 16 of 96
Days run 9 (David must be more consistent....)
Total distance 153km
Total climb 1370m
Saturday, December 16, 2006
U can't touch this
To borrow from my pal MC a few slack days (more travel and some Xmas carousing) so it is hammer time....
Hard tempo run down to the weir and back with the Garmin Virtual Partner for company using the course feature from a previous run. Suffice to say that I smoked his arse but was absolutely knackered at the end. Probably more than a standard tempo, slipping closer to race pace...
Distance 10.92
Time 48:40 (a course PB of 35 seconds!)
Avg Pace 4:27
Avg HR of 169 so still a little in the bank
So the desired goal of heading into a 30km Star on tired legs seems to be in process.
Hard tempo run down to the weir and back with the Garmin Virtual Partner for company using the course feature from a previous run. Suffice to say that I smoked his arse but was absolutely knackered at the end. Probably more than a standard tempo, slipping closer to race pace...
Distance 10.92
Time 48:40 (a course PB of 35 seconds!)
Avg Pace 4:27
Avg HR of 169 so still a little in the bank
So the desired goal of heading into a 30km Star on tired legs seems to be in process.
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Tis the season to be busy....
Heaps happening (whats new, I hear you say) but managing to fit running into the schedule, here is what has happened since my last post.
Friday - saw me back up at Duffy's Forest to check out and map the back half of the Striders Xmas Brunch. This session actually beat me up quite a bit with some impressive hills on the trails between Duffys Forest and Mona Vale Road.
Distance 13.1km
Climb of 225m
Saturday - lots of non running stuff and then my work Xmas party, walked the fine line of consumption/sleep/partying.
Sunday - Got the chance to test out the course I had laid out. A good sized 6:10 group and very well behaved. When we hit the decent climb the group fragmented and I ran back with various people, settling in along the final section of the perimeter trail with the faster girls. Then some great food as part of the awards brunch. Some pretty good feedback on the course and if we can add a little bit of extra distance it will be a great 6 foot preparation run!
Distance 23.6km
Climb of 305m
Tuesday - With Six foot in mind I had mapped out a new hills course which is pretty much straight out and back to Parramatta River, see below.
The goal will be to add in some reps of the section between around 3km and 7km.
Distance 9.3km
Climb of 120m
Wednesday - With extra curricular activities associated with the kids school Summer Series is out so I opted for a tempo run on my 14km standard route. Seemed quite humid and I really felt like I was struggling, especially up the hills, probably after affects from yesterdays session. Ended up with 1:04:35 which when I checked my records is the 2nd fastest time over this route, so the suffering was meaningful!
Distance 14.2
Climb of 60m
So the campaign summary looks like....
Day 11 of 96
Days run 7
Total distance 114.5km
Total climb 970m
Friday - saw me back up at Duffy's Forest to check out and map the back half of the Striders Xmas Brunch. This session actually beat me up quite a bit with some impressive hills on the trails between Duffys Forest and Mona Vale Road.
Distance 13.1km
Climb of 225m
Saturday - lots of non running stuff and then my work Xmas party, walked the fine line of consumption/sleep/partying.
Sunday - Got the chance to test out the course I had laid out. A good sized 6:10 group and very well behaved. When we hit the decent climb the group fragmented and I ran back with various people, settling in along the final section of the perimeter trail with the faster girls. Then some great food as part of the awards brunch. Some pretty good feedback on the course and if we can add a little bit of extra distance it will be a great 6 foot preparation run!
Distance 23.6km
Climb of 305m
Tuesday - With Six foot in mind I had mapped out a new hills course which is pretty much straight out and back to Parramatta River, see below.
The goal will be to add in some reps of the section between around 3km and 7km.
Distance 9.3km
Climb of 120m
Wednesday - With extra curricular activities associated with the kids school Summer Series is out so I opted for a tempo run on my 14km standard route. Seemed quite humid and I really felt like I was struggling, especially up the hills, probably after affects from yesterdays session. Ended up with 1:04:35 which when I checked my records is the 2nd fastest time over this route, so the suffering was meaningful!
Distance 14.2
Climb of 60m
So the campaign summary looks like....
Day 11 of 96
Days run 7
Total distance 114.5km
Total climb 970m
Wednesday, December 06, 2006
Summer Series - Shrimpton Creek
Summer Series tonight, some sort of advantage given the map is based around the bike path that I regularly run on my longer runs. To make things more interesting I opted to run to the start from home. Not going to go into a complete analysis of the run but from a quick look at the map the lot were gettable. I charged around with only 2 small stumbles in locating the controls. Ended up getting back just over 1 minute late so got docked 20 points, however, I'm pretty sure this was the first time I got the lot, only problem was that the speedsters were also out in force and Ben Rattray scorched the lot in 39 minutes 30 seconds.....
Distance 9.6km
Avg Pace 4:51
Avg HR 181
A warm downish type run home to give me 16km all up.
Day 4 of 96
Days run 3
Total campaign distance 54km
Total climb 260m
Distance 9.6km
Avg Pace 4:51
Avg HR 181
A warm downish type run home to give me 16km all up.
Day 4 of 96
Days run 3
Total campaign distance 54km
Total climb 260m
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
Stealth
The campaign has started.....
A variety of factors, including DTI maintenance saw me reluctantly bypass the Central Coast Half, opting instead for my first STaR for quite a while. I had heard/read a few things about (sigh) pacing at STaR's and so was very amused when the 6:10 group started to form. One of the main fast pace culprits (lets call him tiger) noticed my presence and immediately announced his intent to run 6:20 this week. So a fairly subdued bunch headed out. Regardless it was still a good pace in cool and wet conditions around Homebush/Meadowbank. Some slight twinges in the LH hammie extended down to the calf at around 20km and I started drifting a little, opting to take the short cut.
Monday was a break and today I headed out for a reconnoitre of the Striders Xmas brunch course at Terrey Hills/Duffy's Forest. Some work to do to get the whole thing mapped out yet....
The Stealth title refers to my official kick off to the Six Foot Campaign :)
Days into campaign 3
Days run 2
Total campaign distance 38km
Total climb 195m
More details on the stealth runs when I reappear next.....
A variety of factors, including DTI maintenance saw me reluctantly bypass the Central Coast Half, opting instead for my first STaR for quite a while. I had heard/read a few things about (sigh) pacing at STaR's and so was very amused when the 6:10 group started to form. One of the main fast pace culprits (lets call him tiger) noticed my presence and immediately announced his intent to run 6:20 this week. So a fairly subdued bunch headed out. Regardless it was still a good pace in cool and wet conditions around Homebush/Meadowbank. Some slight twinges in the LH hammie extended down to the calf at around 20km and I started drifting a little, opting to take the short cut.
Monday was a break and today I headed out for a reconnoitre of the Striders Xmas brunch course at Terrey Hills/Duffy's Forest. Some work to do to get the whole thing mapped out yet....
The Stealth title refers to my official kick off to the Six Foot Campaign :)
Days into campaign 3
Days run 2
Total campaign distance 38km
Total climb 195m
More details on the stealth runs when I reappear next.....
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
A little breather
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!!
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!!
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.
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