There’s no way to sugar-coat this one - an appalling 2:12:27.
It’s almost a week on from the race and I’m still trying to work out what happened. After having such a comfortable run in Melbourne just two weeks prior and cruising home in 2:13:32, it’s a real disappointment to have struggled so much for a time in Auckland that was only a minute better.
I said at the start of this quest that - “Doubtless too, there'll be a few gaps, perhaps some despondency, hopefully some steady progress, and - with a fair amount of effort and luck - some ecstasy!” At the moment, I think I can safely say that we’re pretty well anchored in the ‘despondent’ phase of this exercise. My imminent Camino pilgrimage comes at a good time.
It’s strange, because up until the Auckland race actually started, things were going well.
I managed not to miss my flight from Sydney, which arrived in Auckland as scheduled on Friday afternoon. I spent a very quiet Saturday afternoon in my downtown hotel after collecting my bib at the race expo. The forecast for Sunday was fine with a low of 9 and a maximum of 16. Just about perfect running weather.
I didn't get as much sleep as I would have liked that Saturday night but woke up with my alarm at 4:00am (2:00am Sydney time) in anticipation of the 6:50am start. I then walked the short distance from the hotel to the wharf to catch the 5:20am ferry across the harbour - which was still in darkness - to Devonport.
Along with many other early arrivals, I found a seat in the ferry terminal at Devonport wharf and waited there for around an hour until heading for the nearby start line. I was feeling fine and quickly spotted the yellow balloons of the 2 hour pacer. I took up position close to him and locked in behind when the gun fired.
Then, a few hundred metres after the start, the course went up a steady incline and I suddenly felt something very wrong with my breathing. It started to become seriously laboured and I had no choice but to pull over to the side, slow to a walk and watch helplessly as the pacing group cracked on.
Somehow I was completely exhausted after only a couple of minutes running. It was something I’d never experienced before and was at a loss about how to handle it. After a minute or so, I felt as if I’d partially recovered and started running again. But it wasn't too long before I had to stop and walk again.
I was thinking that, maybe, I could wait to latch onto a slower pacing group but then remembered that the 2 hour bus was the last of them. At that moment, I felt a little as if I was stuck in the ocean and watching the only hope of rescue sailing into the distance. But the thought of just giving up never entered my head so I just had to do what I could to recover and finish the race in the least ugly time possible.
I started running again and decided to fall in behind people who seemed to be going at my pace. This worked for a while but once again I had to stop for a short time when going up another incline. I’d forgotten how hilly this race was with several tough ascents in the Devonport neighbourhood and along the course, culminating in the long exposed climb across the deck of the Auckland Harbour Bridge.
Much of the race also had no distance markers. I knew the Bridge was at around 16 kilometres but I had no real landmarks before then. The first one I saw was at 10 kilometres and when it came into view, my heart sank. By that stage, I really thought we'd done 13 or 14 kilometres, at least. To not even be halfway was a real mental blow. At least I seemed to have shaken off the breathing problems that had plagued me in the early part of the race but I was feeling nowhere near as strong as I was at this point in the Melbourne run just two short weeks back.
It was shortly after the halfway point that the course started on the freeway with fewer buildings and just the long, slow, grind of the tarmac. This part was also much more exposed to the strong winds that were now blowing off Auckland Harbour. Sadly, they never quite seemed to blow from directly behind us.
The run up to the apex of the Harbour Bridge was the steepest climb of the course but I found it quite straightforward, especially compared to the much easier hills in the first few kilometres. Once over the bridge, it was a gentle trot through some industrial and commercial areas back into the city where the long finishing chute ran alongside Victoria Park. I was running much better at this point and passing plenty of runners and walkers who seemed to be having a tougher day than me.
At the finish, I was pleased to accomplish at least one goal I’d set before the race - charging down the finishing straight and almost collapsing over the line with nothing left in the tank. After such a long struggle, I was surprised to see the clock on the finish line showing a (gun) time just over 2:13. I’d been expecting at least a 2:20. But to even come close to beating my Melbourne time with that sort of effort was a bit of a shock.
Officially, my net time was 2:12:27 - just over a minute faster than Melbourne. My first 5K took 32:54, the second took 30:34, the third 31:22, and the fourth, 31:02. The final 1.1K took 6:32. In terms of placings, after the first agonising 5K, I was 3,769th. By the end, I’d recovered somewhat to pull it back to 2,984th (of 5,669 finishers).
Overall, it was a tough day on a tough course. I should have done much better, and I did have some excuses (a significantly interrupted training program through injury; no hill sessions in that truncated program; not enough long runs). But this one’s going to take a while to come back from.
And on that fairly sombre note, that’s all from me for now.
As I mentioned a few posts back, I’m on a plane to Europe in a couple of days to walk the Camino Frances again (from St Jean Pied de Port in France to Santiago de Compostela in Spain), followed by the Camino Portuguese (from Porto to Santiago de Compostela and Finisterre), followed by a winter wander around Europe and England. All up, the Camino pilgrimages should be around 1,200 kilometres in 50 days.
I’m really looking forward to the trip, but doubtless when I’m there, I’ll also be looking forward to getting back to the remnants of an Australian summer in early February to try and thaw out. And to kicking-off training for the next stop on this quest - the Canberra half marathon in April 2017.
A reminder that the BQ-Quest schedule (past, present and future) now looks something like this:
1. Sydney half - May 2015 (time 2:00:26)
2. Gold Coast half - July 2015 (missed with hamstring injury)
3. Melbourne half - October 2015 (time 2:18:04, with calf injury)
4. New York half - March 2016 (time 2:01:46)
5. Gold Coast half - July 2016 (time 1:57:46)
5A. Melbourne half - October 2016 (training run - time 2:13:32)
6. Auckland half - October 2016 (time 2:12:27)
7. Canberra half - April 2017
8. Gold Coast half - July 2017
9. Great North Run (England) - September 2017 (assuming I get an entry via the ballot process)
10. Hobart half - January 2018
11. Gold Coast Marathon - July 2018
12. Melbourne Marathon - November 2018
13. Gold Coast Marathon (1st BQ attempt) - July 2019
So I wish you all a happy Christmas, a wonderful and meaningful New Year, and Buen Camino!
See you in 2017.
Saturday, 5 November 2016
Thursday, 27 October 2016
Auckland Half Marathon - Preview
Two sleeps to the big race and all is in readiness.
With three hours left before my flight from Sydney to Auckland (leaving at the much friendlier time of 9:40am), there is absolutely no risk of my next post being about yet another disastrous sleep-in. All being well, the flight gets into Auckland at 2:45pm New Zealand time, with the race starting at 6:50am on Sunday (4:50am Sydney time).
The past couple of weeks training after the Melbourne run were OK. I completed every session except one - the final 2 hour 20 minute long run last weekend, where I bailed out an hour short. I’m not sure what the problem was. Mostly it was motivational - I just didn’t feel like going on - and some of it was technical. I forgot to bring an extra gel along, and there were some chafing issues up top which are getting a bit irritating. Still, the second last week saw my second highest mileage of this 137-week quest so far - 61.13 kilometres, just short of the 65.56 kilometres I ran in the countdown to New York back in March.
The final taper week was navigated successfully. Even the sprint session last Monday, which I almost didn’t attempt. It was that equivalent session in June 2015 that saw me tear my hamstring just before the Gold Coast half marathon and ever since, I’ve been deeply suspicious of it (the session, not the hamstring, although that’s still a little tight). I actually decided to skip the session for that reason in the days before this year’s Gold Coast half. But this time, despite my trepidations, it went without incident. My final run yesterday - a 30 minute tempo effort - was also problem free.
My goal for Auckland, which will be something of a stretch, is a sub-1:55. The organisers have arranged pacers for both the 1:50 and 2:00 times, so I’ve decided to just lob in behind the 2 hour pacing group and look to break away in the last 5 kilometres or so, depending how I feel. With my recent back injury, my training for this one hasn’t been as solid or consistent as I would have liked in order to have a realistic shot at a sub-1:50 time. But the Melbourne run felt so strong, I like the idea of cruising along for the first part of the race and trying to pick up the pace over the final part. And, of course, collapsing exhausted over the finish line with nothing left in the tank. It was also quite motivational passing all those runners at the back-end of Melbourne, so hopefully the same thing can happen here and I can come away with a good mid-1:50 time.
This is actually my second Auckland half marathon. The first was back in October 2005 when I ran it in 1:58:09 - in between my first (Sydney, September 2005) and second (Honolulu, December 2005) marathons. It wasn’t a particularly memorable event. I do have memories of getting the ferry over to the very pretty Davenport for the race start in the dawn hours, the run over the Auckland Harbour Bridge towards the end, and the finish in a park. But not much else.
After the race, I’ll be staying in New Zealand for a few days. Over the years, I’ve spent quite some time in the country's South Island but not so much in the North. So I’ve hired a car to drive around it for a few days to see what I can see (including a trek along the famed Tongariro Alpine Crossing - regarded as one of the best one day walks in the world) before returning home. Consequently, I’m going to have to keep you all in suspense about the outcome for a week or so.
Wish me luck!
With three hours left before my flight from Sydney to Auckland (leaving at the much friendlier time of 9:40am), there is absolutely no risk of my next post being about yet another disastrous sleep-in. All being well, the flight gets into Auckland at 2:45pm New Zealand time, with the race starting at 6:50am on Sunday (4:50am Sydney time).
The past couple of weeks training after the Melbourne run were OK. I completed every session except one - the final 2 hour 20 minute long run last weekend, where I bailed out an hour short. I’m not sure what the problem was. Mostly it was motivational - I just didn’t feel like going on - and some of it was technical. I forgot to bring an extra gel along, and there were some chafing issues up top which are getting a bit irritating. Still, the second last week saw my second highest mileage of this 137-week quest so far - 61.13 kilometres, just short of the 65.56 kilometres I ran in the countdown to New York back in March.
The final taper week was navigated successfully. Even the sprint session last Monday, which I almost didn’t attempt. It was that equivalent session in June 2015 that saw me tear my hamstring just before the Gold Coast half marathon and ever since, I’ve been deeply suspicious of it (the session, not the hamstring, although that’s still a little tight). I actually decided to skip the session for that reason in the days before this year’s Gold Coast half. But this time, despite my trepidations, it went without incident. My final run yesterday - a 30 minute tempo effort - was also problem free.
My goal for Auckland, which will be something of a stretch, is a sub-1:55. The organisers have arranged pacers for both the 1:50 and 2:00 times, so I’ve decided to just lob in behind the 2 hour pacing group and look to break away in the last 5 kilometres or so, depending how I feel. With my recent back injury, my training for this one hasn’t been as solid or consistent as I would have liked in order to have a realistic shot at a sub-1:50 time. But the Melbourne run felt so strong, I like the idea of cruising along for the first part of the race and trying to pick up the pace over the final part. And, of course, collapsing exhausted over the finish line with nothing left in the tank. It was also quite motivational passing all those runners at the back-end of Melbourne, so hopefully the same thing can happen here and I can come away with a good mid-1:50 time.
This is actually my second Auckland half marathon. The first was back in October 2005 when I ran it in 1:58:09 - in between my first (Sydney, September 2005) and second (Honolulu, December 2005) marathons. It wasn’t a particularly memorable event. I do have memories of getting the ferry over to the very pretty Davenport for the race start in the dawn hours, the run over the Auckland Harbour Bridge towards the end, and the finish in a park. But not much else.
After the race, I’ll be staying in New Zealand for a few days. Over the years, I’ve spent quite some time in the country's South Island but not so much in the North. So I’ve hired a car to drive around it for a few days to see what I can see (including a trek along the famed Tongariro Alpine Crossing - regarded as one of the best one day walks in the world) before returning home. Consequently, I’m going to have to keep you all in suspense about the outcome for a week or so.
Wish me luck!
Friday, 21 October 2016
‘Race’ Report: Melbourne Half Marathon - Sunday 16 October 2016
It was another wonderful event on the wonderful Melbourne half marathon course. As you might remember, I was only intending for it to be a training run, with the goal Auckland half marathon race coming up in a couple of weeks. I finished in a time of 2:13:32, and as it happened, I’ve probably never felt in better shape running a half marathon.
That said, sharp-eyed readers will remember me writing, very sincerely, only a few days back that “my plan is simply to lock onto the 2 hour 20 minute pacers and follow them to the end. No heroics. No surges. No final lap sprint around the famed Melbourne Cricket Ground. It’s all about staying disciplined and focussed and just seeing out the distance”.
So how did I end up finishing over 6 minutes - almost a kilometre - in front of them? Well, I’m glad you asked. But before I explain, I need to briefly fill you in on the lead-up to the run - which almost didn’t happen for me.
I mentioned in a throwaway comment in the last blog entry that - “I’m a bit nervous now, actually, although it probably has more to do with making sure I get to the airport early enough in time for tomorrow’s (Saturday’s) 7:00am flight to Melbourne than anything else.”
Well, as it turns out, I did miss that flight. For some reason, my iPad ran out of battery power during the night, and so the iPad alarm clock that I had carefully set the night before didn’t go off. When I did wake up, I was shocked to see sunlight out the window. A quick check of the clock on my phone showed it was just after 6:30am. After a silent expletive, I started running through some options about how to get to Melbourne and the consequences of not going. Then the phone rang. It was the airline’s boarding people chasing up late passengers. When I told them I’d slept in and wasn’t going to make it, they sounded quite happy to hear it. I assumed (or hoped) it had more to do with them not having to wait for someone who was at that moment running frantically from the airport carpark than taking some pleasure in my simple misfortune.
I don’t have a habit of missing planes - this was my first. So I didn’t have a plan B. I quickly dismissed the driving option - I simply wasn’t going to make it by the 3:00pm cut-off time to collect my race bib. The ‘abort’ option was also discounted. I'd end up losing both my airfares, one night of my accommodation, my race entry fee and, significantly, miss a medal. The only realistic option was to find another flight. Which I eventually did, although I still don’t want to think about the price I had to pay for it - even if it did include a free in-flight snack and cup of tea.
I eventually made it to the race bib collection point with plenty of time to spare and, after a short wander around some inner city streets afterwards, retired early to my Melbourne CBD hotel.
After a solid night’s sleep, I woke in plenty of time to get ready for the run. The forecast, which was accurate, was for a windy and mild (c.19 degrees) morning and I arrived at the start area about 40 minutes before the 8:00am gun. As with the Gold Coast, my strategy was to join the corral close to the front so I couldn’t possibly miss the 2 hour 20 minute pacers with their balloons and signs going past. And as with the Gold Coast, it worked beautifully.
There were two pacers - an older gentleman (who carried a flag and sign and who seemed to love a chat, even if it meant he had to slow a little and then increase the pace when the conversation was over), and a younger women who carried the balloon and who kept pretty much to herself while running very steadily. I started out locked on to the older guy, but his slightly erratic running style caused me to follow the other pacer. I stayed with her, and the little group which had formed around her, until shortly after the drink station at the 12-13 kilometre point. I moved ahead slightly then to run in some clearer space, but still maintaining the 2 hour 20 minute pace - or so I thought.
After a while, I started turning around to see if I could see the pacers, but without success. I thought for a moment they must have passed me somehow, but I knew I would have seen them if they had. I was also running very slowly thinking they would have to catch up soon enough when I could lock back on. As it happened, I was starting to feel stronger and stronger and the slow pace was getting a little uncomfortable, so I made the decision at about 14 kilometres just to run easily and not bother any longer with the pacing.
By this time, the course was heading back into the city on a long, tree-lined boulevard and as I ran, I noticed I was passing lots of runners who seemed to be struggling in the windy conditions. I felt particularly strong over the last five kilometres, especially over the steeper foot bridges, which I remember being a real problem last year.
I finally cruised into the famed MCG, with the lap of the ground just an incredible experience. I was trying to imagine what it must feel like for the sportspeople who run onto this ground when there’s an 80,000-plus crowd, when I found myself coming into the final straight. For some reason, I decided to sprint the last 100 metres, passing several more runners, and then crossed the finish line feeling remarkably fresh. I remember last year I was absolutely exhausted and need to spend quite some time sitting in the grandstands to recover. This year, I crossed the line, easily ascended the stairs to collect my medal (after I realised I wasn’t going to be able to hang around to thank my pacers for their diligence), and then walked back to the hotel.
Officially, I finished the race in 6,018th place from 9,420 finishers. The word at the start was that there were around 11,500 starters so obviously the race took its toll on quite a few people. The St John’s ambulance people tending to various fallen runners at several spots in the final few kilometres was testament to that.
The pacing results showed that my first 5 kilometres was run at a speed of 9.53km/h, the second at 9.23km/h, the next 8 kilometres at 9.67km/h (this is where I moved ahead of the pacers) and the final 3.1 kilometres at a speed of 9.35km/h (when I was cruising to the finish).
Overall, I was very happy with the race and especially the way I felt so strong throughout. But it was only a training run, and I was a bit disappointed in myself for not showing the discipline to stick with the pacers come what may.
Next up - Auckland. A preview of that one is coming soon.
That said, sharp-eyed readers will remember me writing, very sincerely, only a few days back that “my plan is simply to lock onto the 2 hour 20 minute pacers and follow them to the end. No heroics. No surges. No final lap sprint around the famed Melbourne Cricket Ground. It’s all about staying disciplined and focussed and just seeing out the distance”.
So how did I end up finishing over 6 minutes - almost a kilometre - in front of them? Well, I’m glad you asked. But before I explain, I need to briefly fill you in on the lead-up to the run - which almost didn’t happen for me.
I mentioned in a throwaway comment in the last blog entry that - “I’m a bit nervous now, actually, although it probably has more to do with making sure I get to the airport early enough in time for tomorrow’s (Saturday’s) 7:00am flight to Melbourne than anything else.”
Well, as it turns out, I did miss that flight. For some reason, my iPad ran out of battery power during the night, and so the iPad alarm clock that I had carefully set the night before didn’t go off. When I did wake up, I was shocked to see sunlight out the window. A quick check of the clock on my phone showed it was just after 6:30am. After a silent expletive, I started running through some options about how to get to Melbourne and the consequences of not going. Then the phone rang. It was the airline’s boarding people chasing up late passengers. When I told them I’d slept in and wasn’t going to make it, they sounded quite happy to hear it. I assumed (or hoped) it had more to do with them not having to wait for someone who was at that moment running frantically from the airport carpark than taking some pleasure in my simple misfortune.
I don’t have a habit of missing planes - this was my first. So I didn’t have a plan B. I quickly dismissed the driving option - I simply wasn’t going to make it by the 3:00pm cut-off time to collect my race bib. The ‘abort’ option was also discounted. I'd end up losing both my airfares, one night of my accommodation, my race entry fee and, significantly, miss a medal. The only realistic option was to find another flight. Which I eventually did, although I still don’t want to think about the price I had to pay for it - even if it did include a free in-flight snack and cup of tea.
I eventually made it to the race bib collection point with plenty of time to spare and, after a short wander around some inner city streets afterwards, retired early to my Melbourne CBD hotel.
After a solid night’s sleep, I woke in plenty of time to get ready for the run. The forecast, which was accurate, was for a windy and mild (c.19 degrees) morning and I arrived at the start area about 40 minutes before the 8:00am gun. As with the Gold Coast, my strategy was to join the corral close to the front so I couldn’t possibly miss the 2 hour 20 minute pacers with their balloons and signs going past. And as with the Gold Coast, it worked beautifully.
There were two pacers - an older gentleman (who carried a flag and sign and who seemed to love a chat, even if it meant he had to slow a little and then increase the pace when the conversation was over), and a younger women who carried the balloon and who kept pretty much to herself while running very steadily. I started out locked on to the older guy, but his slightly erratic running style caused me to follow the other pacer. I stayed with her, and the little group which had formed around her, until shortly after the drink station at the 12-13 kilometre point. I moved ahead slightly then to run in some clearer space, but still maintaining the 2 hour 20 minute pace - or so I thought.
After a while, I started turning around to see if I could see the pacers, but without success. I thought for a moment they must have passed me somehow, but I knew I would have seen them if they had. I was also running very slowly thinking they would have to catch up soon enough when I could lock back on. As it happened, I was starting to feel stronger and stronger and the slow pace was getting a little uncomfortable, so I made the decision at about 14 kilometres just to run easily and not bother any longer with the pacing.
By this time, the course was heading back into the city on a long, tree-lined boulevard and as I ran, I noticed I was passing lots of runners who seemed to be struggling in the windy conditions. I felt particularly strong over the last five kilometres, especially over the steeper foot bridges, which I remember being a real problem last year.
I finally cruised into the famed MCG, with the lap of the ground just an incredible experience. I was trying to imagine what it must feel like for the sportspeople who run onto this ground when there’s an 80,000-plus crowd, when I found myself coming into the final straight. For some reason, I decided to sprint the last 100 metres, passing several more runners, and then crossed the finish line feeling remarkably fresh. I remember last year I was absolutely exhausted and need to spend quite some time sitting in the grandstands to recover. This year, I crossed the line, easily ascended the stairs to collect my medal (after I realised I wasn’t going to be able to hang around to thank my pacers for their diligence), and then walked back to the hotel.
Officially, I finished the race in 6,018th place from 9,420 finishers. The word at the start was that there were around 11,500 starters so obviously the race took its toll on quite a few people. The St John’s ambulance people tending to various fallen runners at several spots in the final few kilometres was testament to that.
The pacing results showed that my first 5 kilometres was run at a speed of 9.53km/h, the second at 9.23km/h, the next 8 kilometres at 9.67km/h (this is where I moved ahead of the pacers) and the final 3.1 kilometres at a speed of 9.35km/h (when I was cruising to the finish).
Overall, I was very happy with the race and especially the way I felt so strong throughout. But it was only a training run, and I was a bit disappointed in myself for not showing the discipline to stick with the pacers come what may.
Next up - Auckland. A preview of that one is coming soon.
Thursday, 13 October 2016
Melbourne Half Marathon - Preview
Two sleeps until the Melbourne half and it’s good to be getting back into a racing environment.
After that embarrassing City-to-Surf sleep-in back in August and missing the Harbour Bridge 3.8K (on 18 September) during my back injury hiatus, I haven’t raced since the Gold Coast half on 3 July. And while, technically, this isn’t going to be a ‘race’ for me, it still looks like a duck, quacks like a duck and has feathers like a duck - and I’m still going to be nervous come race morning. I’m a bit nervous now, actually, although it probably has more to do with making sure I get to the airport early enough in time for tomorrow’s (Saturday’s) 7:00am flight to Melbourne than anything else.
I’ve had three solid weeks of running since returning from my back problem, with weekly kilometre totals of 37.13K, 30.84K and 36.02K. This part of the schedule corresponds to weeks 8-10 of Higdon’s 12-week advanced half marathon program, and if all goes to plan, I should be clocking up close to 70 kilometres in the coming week before the final week’s taper leading into the Auckland goal race on Sunday 30 October.
The only training glitch was last Saturday with my scheduled 2 hour 10 minute run. It started out well enough, but as I came up to the first hour, I was bombarded with some quite negative thoughts and quickly lost motivation to see out the run. So I stopped at exactly one hour, with 9.4 kilometres on the clock, jumped on the stair machine for 20 minutes as some sort of punishment and as a vain attempt to salve my conscience, and went home. It was the first time I’d given up like that since a week of missed sessions due to fatigue and motivation problems just over a year ago. It was as disappointing as it was inexplicable, but I guess these things happen from time to time, and you just plough on.
By contrast, the last couple of days looked like being particularly tough - especially today’s 8.1 kilometre run at ‘race pace’ (which, for me, equates to 8 x 1K's at a progressively increasing speed of 10.8km/h to 11.5km/h, with a final 100 metres at 11.6km/h - all at a gradient of 0.7%). But I absolutely smashed it. It was one of those sensational runs you get every now and again where you just don’t get tired and feel like you could go forever. I'm thinking that maybe my brain must have been offering me some sort of compensation for forcing me to pull the plug on that run less than a week before.
Anyway, the Melbourne race kicks off at 8:00am on Sunday 16 October, and assuming I make my flight, my plan is simply to lock onto the 2 hour 20 minute pacers and follow them to the end. No heroics. No surges. No final lap sprint around the famed Melbourne Cricket Ground. It’s all about staying disciplined and focussed and just seeing out the distance.
The Sunday weather forecast at the moment is cloudy with a minimum of 17 degrees, a maximum of 22 and a 90% chance of rain, although mostly in the afternoon and evening. I would have preferred a cooler start, and the cloud means it’s probably going to be a little more humid than I’d like, but Melbourne really is notorious for the changeability of its weather, so anything is possible.
I’ll pick up my race bib at the race expo when I arrive there tomorrow and take it easy at my CBD hotel for the rest of the day. I was in Melbourne a few weeks ago to watch some football matches so I had enough of a wander around town back then to satisfy my curiosity. This time, it’s just business, so it will be a very quiet day and an early night.
I’ll let you know how I fared.
After that embarrassing City-to-Surf sleep-in back in August and missing the Harbour Bridge 3.8K (on 18 September) during my back injury hiatus, I haven’t raced since the Gold Coast half on 3 July. And while, technically, this isn’t going to be a ‘race’ for me, it still looks like a duck, quacks like a duck and has feathers like a duck - and I’m still going to be nervous come race morning. I’m a bit nervous now, actually, although it probably has more to do with making sure I get to the airport early enough in time for tomorrow’s (Saturday’s) 7:00am flight to Melbourne than anything else.
I’ve had three solid weeks of running since returning from my back problem, with weekly kilometre totals of 37.13K, 30.84K and 36.02K. This part of the schedule corresponds to weeks 8-10 of Higdon’s 12-week advanced half marathon program, and if all goes to plan, I should be clocking up close to 70 kilometres in the coming week before the final week’s taper leading into the Auckland goal race on Sunday 30 October.
The only training glitch was last Saturday with my scheduled 2 hour 10 minute run. It started out well enough, but as I came up to the first hour, I was bombarded with some quite negative thoughts and quickly lost motivation to see out the run. So I stopped at exactly one hour, with 9.4 kilometres on the clock, jumped on the stair machine for 20 minutes as some sort of punishment and as a vain attempt to salve my conscience, and went home. It was the first time I’d given up like that since a week of missed sessions due to fatigue and motivation problems just over a year ago. It was as disappointing as it was inexplicable, but I guess these things happen from time to time, and you just plough on.
By contrast, the last couple of days looked like being particularly tough - especially today’s 8.1 kilometre run at ‘race pace’ (which, for me, equates to 8 x 1K's at a progressively increasing speed of 10.8km/h to 11.5km/h, with a final 100 metres at 11.6km/h - all at a gradient of 0.7%). But I absolutely smashed it. It was one of those sensational runs you get every now and again where you just don’t get tired and feel like you could go forever. I'm thinking that maybe my brain must have been offering me some sort of compensation for forcing me to pull the plug on that run less than a week before.
Anyway, the Melbourne race kicks off at 8:00am on Sunday 16 October, and assuming I make my flight, my plan is simply to lock onto the 2 hour 20 minute pacers and follow them to the end. No heroics. No surges. No final lap sprint around the famed Melbourne Cricket Ground. It’s all about staying disciplined and focussed and just seeing out the distance.
The Sunday weather forecast at the moment is cloudy with a minimum of 17 degrees, a maximum of 22 and a 90% chance of rain, although mostly in the afternoon and evening. I would have preferred a cooler start, and the cloud means it’s probably going to be a little more humid than I’d like, but Melbourne really is notorious for the changeability of its weather, so anything is possible.
I’ll pick up my race bib at the race expo when I arrive there tomorrow and take it easy at my CBD hotel for the rest of the day. I was in Melbourne a few weeks ago to watch some football matches so I had enough of a wander around town back then to satisfy my curiosity. This time, it’s just business, so it will be a very quiet day and an early night.
I’ll let you know how I fared.
Wednesday, 5 October 2016
Recovery
We’re now just about a week and a half out from my Melbourne half-marathon training run (Sunday 16 October) and three and a half weeks from my Auckland half-marathon goal race (Sunday 30 October) and things are slowly returning to normal.
As I flagged a couple of posts back, this particular preparation has been significantly hampered by a lower back injury that had me off the treadmill for close to four weeks. But after some judicious stretching (prescribed by the physio) and a rest from running, it's great to be getting back into it.
That’s not to say there weren’t some positives from the break. The injury forced me onto the bike for several hour-long sessions. And while that, the occasional spin class and the stair machine, were all excellent challenges, there’s nothing like clocking up the miles on the treadmill.
Even so, I have decided to continue with some regular time on the stair machine (the Lifefitness ‘Stairmaster’) at the end of most of my training runs now. It’s a deceptively very tough piece of equipment. I progressively crank up the effort level from its easiest setting every two minutes until it reaches level 10, and then see how long it takes until complete exhaustion forces me to stop. So far, the most I’ve been able to manage is 22 minutes, but I make sure it’s never less than 20 minutes.
My first actual run back was an easy 5 kilometres on 26 September (my first run since 31 August). I reached for my back at points during that run but there was certainly no pain. Nor has there been on any of the subsequent - mostly daily - runs.
My first scheduled long run was a two hour effort on 29 September, which also went well. While I was sore and very fatigued for a couple of hours afterwards, and while there were some points during the run where I thought about cutting it short, I was pleased I stuck with it right through to the end.
I have another long run (2 hours, 10 minutes) this coming weekend followed a week later by the Melbourne race, where the plan again is to shadow the 2 hour, 20 minute pacers for the duration. Last year, it was simply to avoid exacerbating a left calf muscle injury. This time, it's just a steady training run over a very pretty running course in a wonderful city.
Finally, after 738 kilometres, I’ve retired the running shoes that took me around both the New York and Gold Coast half marathon races earlier this year. In their place, I’ve now been fitted with a pair of 'Nike Air Zoom Odyssey 2' shoes by my long-time shoe expert at The Running Hub in Sydney’s Potts Point (whose judgement I trust implicitly). He tells me these are the newest version of the Nike’s that I’d been running in and confirmed their suitability after filming me on their in-store treadmill.
And so far, so good.
As I flagged a couple of posts back, this particular preparation has been significantly hampered by a lower back injury that had me off the treadmill for close to four weeks. But after some judicious stretching (prescribed by the physio) and a rest from running, it's great to be getting back into it.
That’s not to say there weren’t some positives from the break. The injury forced me onto the bike for several hour-long sessions. And while that, the occasional spin class and the stair machine, were all excellent challenges, there’s nothing like clocking up the miles on the treadmill.
Even so, I have decided to continue with some regular time on the stair machine (the Lifefitness ‘Stairmaster’) at the end of most of my training runs now. It’s a deceptively very tough piece of equipment. I progressively crank up the effort level from its easiest setting every two minutes until it reaches level 10, and then see how long it takes until complete exhaustion forces me to stop. So far, the most I’ve been able to manage is 22 minutes, but I make sure it’s never less than 20 minutes.
My first actual run back was an easy 5 kilometres on 26 September (my first run since 31 August). I reached for my back at points during that run but there was certainly no pain. Nor has there been on any of the subsequent - mostly daily - runs.
My first scheduled long run was a two hour effort on 29 September, which also went well. While I was sore and very fatigued for a couple of hours afterwards, and while there were some points during the run where I thought about cutting it short, I was pleased I stuck with it right through to the end.
I have another long run (2 hours, 10 minutes) this coming weekend followed a week later by the Melbourne race, where the plan again is to shadow the 2 hour, 20 minute pacers for the duration. Last year, it was simply to avoid exacerbating a left calf muscle injury. This time, it's just a steady training run over a very pretty running course in a wonderful city.
Finally, after 738 kilometres, I’ve retired the running shoes that took me around both the New York and Gold Coast half marathon races earlier this year. In their place, I’ve now been fitted with a pair of 'Nike Air Zoom Odyssey 2' shoes by my long-time shoe expert at The Running Hub in Sydney’s Potts Point (whose judgement I trust implicitly). He tells me these are the newest version of the Nike’s that I’d been running in and confirmed their suitability after filming me on their in-store treadmill.
And so far, so good.
Wednesday, 21 September 2016
Playlist
It occurred to me that in all the posts I’ve written on this blog, I’ve not yet mentioned my closest running companion. I take him on every run to keep me company, spur me along, and invariably provide the motivation I need to get me over the line when much of the rest of me is gently suggesting to (or even screaming at) me to stop and go have a lie down somewhere.
It is, of course, my MP3.
Up until recently, it was an Apple iPod Nano. But as part of a revamp of my music playlist since I returned from my time on the Camino, I’ve now bought a Sony MP3 and stocked it with a much wider range of tunes. Several have been with me since my marathon days a decade ago. Many others have been there over the past 100 or so weeks as I’ve been punching out the last few half marathons. And a few more are recent additions.
So, for the sake of completeness, following is the full list of my current running songs. I might add one or two, and maybe take some away, over the next little while as I get more used to the combinations, but essentially, this is it (in alphabetical order of artist).
Abba - Gimme Gimme Gimme A new addition. It’s got a great driving beat and I really like the tune.
ACDC - Jailbreak + Long Way to the Top if You Want to Rock'n'Roll Another two new additions to my running playlist. I defy anyone to start listening to these songs and not immediately bust out the air guitar!
Adele - Rolling in the Deep A great pounding beat ideal for running.
Bee Gees - Staying Alive Love the beat on this one too. The song itself is also my favourite Bee Gees tune.
Black Eyed Peas - I Gotta Feeling This was the first of a few songs that I picked from a couple of lists after googling ‘best running songs’. It’s not bad.
Bob Seger - Hollywood Nights I’ve had the studio version of this song for a while, but now replaced it with the much better live version with the crowd going off their heads.
Bryan Adams - Run to You I’ve wanted this one on my playlist for a long time and I’ve now finally got around to putting it on there. A brilliant lead-in riff headlines a really punchy tune. The running connection also helps.
Chris de Burgh - Don't Pay the Ferryman This has been a staple for a while now and while it’s not an absolutely outstanding song, I know that when it comes on, it won’t let me down.
Dire Straits - Sultans of Swing + Telegraph Road Both of these are off the live “Alchemy” album, with each over 10 minutes long. I’ve had the much shorter version of “Sultans of Swing” on my list for years, but the 11 minute live version here is an absolute classic. I spent quite a bit of time air-guitaring to it on the Camino. “Telegraph Road” is a little slower in parts and slightly less catchy, but the final few minutes are also excellent.
Don McLean - American Pie A song I’ve loved for years and thought I should add it to my playlist. I’m confident it will survive the transition.
Eagle Eye Cherry - Save Tonight I really like this song and have thought for a while that I should put it on my running list. And finally here it is!
ELO - Tightrope Probably my favourite ELO tune. It builds brilliantly as it goes along and deserves its place here for the first time.
Elton John - Teacher I Need You + Tiny Dancer This is the long version of “Tiny Dancer”, and also builds really well to the chorus, while “Teacher I Need You” is an under-rated rocking tune I really like that is worthy of its place here.
Fleetwood Mac - Don't Stop + Tusk Oldies but goodies. They have that magic combination of the motivational and a great pounding beat.
Foreigner - Feels Like the First Time + Urgent Love these two Foreigner classics, with “Urgent” a staple for a while and “Feels Like the First Time” another song that builds to a wonderful crescendo.
G Wayne Thomas - Open Up Your Heart A much under-played Australian song evidently written in just 20 minutes in the early 70’s. The guy is a genius, with lines like - “There's no formula for happiness that's guaranteed to work; And no lover's ever been in love, and not been hurt; No dreamer has ever dreamed, and seen it all come true”. Give it a listen - it’s sensational.
Gary Barlow - Forever Autumn A beautiful rendition of an amazing song.
George Harrison - My Sweet Lord A wonderful tune and good to jog along to.
Gerry Rafferty - Get it Right Next Time + Baker Street In my marathon days a decade ago (and in the days before the shuffle function), “Baker Street” was always my lead-off training song and I knew I’d get a kilometre or more done before that song had finished. Good to see it back here now. “Get it Right” is my other favourite Gerry Rafferty song and an easy addition.
Glee - Don't Stop Believing + Jessie’s Girl I prefer the Glee versions of these songs over the originals. Both are wonderful workout tunes.
Goanna - Solid Rock A long-time running song with a strong, driving best. A must have.
Heather Small - Proud An inherently inspirational song making a return to my playlist now. It should never have left it.
Hunters and Collectors - Holy Grail This makes a return to the playlist after a while away. A good tune.
John Denver - Annie’s Song + Country Roads Two excellent tunes with both new to my MP3. I’m not sure they’ll last the distance on the running list, but the quality of each should keep them there.
Lady Antebellum - Need You Now A great song but new to the running program. I’m sure it will survive.
Londonbeat - I’ve Been Thinking About You This song first appeared in my consciousness when I heard it as a music video at my gym a few months ago. It made an immediate impression and I just had to have it.
Owl City - Fireflies Not sure if this is going to make the grade as a running song, but I like it a lot. We’ll see how it goes.
Passenger - Let Her Go Another newbie and a simply beautiful tune that I only recently rediscovered on the Camino. A fond memory of someone that I used to know.
REM - Losing My Religion + Man in the Moon I quite like REM and these two songs are probably their best. I’ve had them in my car for a long time but now they’ve graduated to my running MP3.
The Corries - Go Lassie Go Not an immediately obvious running song choice, I grant you. But it builds throughout and deserves its place.
The Script - Hall of Fame Another google running song. Really inspiring stuff when the going gets a little tough.
Train - Drops of Jupiter A favourite song for a while now and it easily retains its place on the new songlist.
Van Halen - Jump Another taken from Google’s list of ‘best running songs’. It’s OK I guess, but it’s on probation for now.
And last but not least ,,,
Yes - It Can Happen + Love Will Find a Way + Rhythm of Love I was at University years ago with a guy who was a massive Yes fan. Back then, I couldn’t really see the attraction. Now I absolutely do. They produced some incredible songs in the mid-80s and these three are probably their best. “It Can Happen” has been a staple running song of mine for a while now and probably also ranks as my favourite all-time song. It’s my go-to tune when I’m at the back end of a hard training session or about to launch into a sprint finish in a time trial. The other two are equally brilliant songs and I’ve only just added them to my playlist. I don’t know why I waited for so long. They should have been on it years ago.
It is, of course, my MP3.
Up until recently, it was an Apple iPod Nano. But as part of a revamp of my music playlist since I returned from my time on the Camino, I’ve now bought a Sony MP3 and stocked it with a much wider range of tunes. Several have been with me since my marathon days a decade ago. Many others have been there over the past 100 or so weeks as I’ve been punching out the last few half marathons. And a few more are recent additions.
So, for the sake of completeness, following is the full list of my current running songs. I might add one or two, and maybe take some away, over the next little while as I get more used to the combinations, but essentially, this is it (in alphabetical order of artist).
Abba - Gimme Gimme Gimme A new addition. It’s got a great driving beat and I really like the tune.
ACDC - Jailbreak + Long Way to the Top if You Want to Rock'n'Roll Another two new additions to my running playlist. I defy anyone to start listening to these songs and not immediately bust out the air guitar!
Adele - Rolling in the Deep A great pounding beat ideal for running.
Bee Gees - Staying Alive Love the beat on this one too. The song itself is also my favourite Bee Gees tune.
Black Eyed Peas - I Gotta Feeling This was the first of a few songs that I picked from a couple of lists after googling ‘best running songs’. It’s not bad.
Bob Seger - Hollywood Nights I’ve had the studio version of this song for a while, but now replaced it with the much better live version with the crowd going off their heads.
Bryan Adams - Run to You I’ve wanted this one on my playlist for a long time and I’ve now finally got around to putting it on there. A brilliant lead-in riff headlines a really punchy tune. The running connection also helps.
Chris de Burgh - Don't Pay the Ferryman This has been a staple for a while now and while it’s not an absolutely outstanding song, I know that when it comes on, it won’t let me down.
Dire Straits - Sultans of Swing + Telegraph Road Both of these are off the live “Alchemy” album, with each over 10 minutes long. I’ve had the much shorter version of “Sultans of Swing” on my list for years, but the 11 minute live version here is an absolute classic. I spent quite a bit of time air-guitaring to it on the Camino. “Telegraph Road” is a little slower in parts and slightly less catchy, but the final few minutes are also excellent.
Don McLean - American Pie A song I’ve loved for years and thought I should add it to my playlist. I’m confident it will survive the transition.
Eagle Eye Cherry - Save Tonight I really like this song and have thought for a while that I should put it on my running list. And finally here it is!
ELO - Tightrope Probably my favourite ELO tune. It builds brilliantly as it goes along and deserves its place here for the first time.
Elton John - Teacher I Need You + Tiny Dancer This is the long version of “Tiny Dancer”, and also builds really well to the chorus, while “Teacher I Need You” is an under-rated rocking tune I really like that is worthy of its place here.
Fleetwood Mac - Don't Stop + Tusk Oldies but goodies. They have that magic combination of the motivational and a great pounding beat.
Foreigner - Feels Like the First Time + Urgent Love these two Foreigner classics, with “Urgent” a staple for a while and “Feels Like the First Time” another song that builds to a wonderful crescendo.
G Wayne Thomas - Open Up Your Heart A much under-played Australian song evidently written in just 20 minutes in the early 70’s. The guy is a genius, with lines like - “There's no formula for happiness that's guaranteed to work; And no lover's ever been in love, and not been hurt; No dreamer has ever dreamed, and seen it all come true”. Give it a listen - it’s sensational.
Gary Barlow - Forever Autumn A beautiful rendition of an amazing song.
George Harrison - My Sweet Lord A wonderful tune and good to jog along to.
Gerry Rafferty - Get it Right Next Time + Baker Street In my marathon days a decade ago (and in the days before the shuffle function), “Baker Street” was always my lead-off training song and I knew I’d get a kilometre or more done before that song had finished. Good to see it back here now. “Get it Right” is my other favourite Gerry Rafferty song and an easy addition.
Glee - Don't Stop Believing + Jessie’s Girl I prefer the Glee versions of these songs over the originals. Both are wonderful workout tunes.
Goanna - Solid Rock A long-time running song with a strong, driving best. A must have.
Heather Small - Proud An inherently inspirational song making a return to my playlist now. It should never have left it.
Hunters and Collectors - Holy Grail This makes a return to the playlist after a while away. A good tune.
John Denver - Annie’s Song + Country Roads Two excellent tunes with both new to my MP3. I’m not sure they’ll last the distance on the running list, but the quality of each should keep them there.
Lady Antebellum - Need You Now A great song but new to the running program. I’m sure it will survive.
Londonbeat - I’ve Been Thinking About You This song first appeared in my consciousness when I heard it as a music video at my gym a few months ago. It made an immediate impression and I just had to have it.
Owl City - Fireflies Not sure if this is going to make the grade as a running song, but I like it a lot. We’ll see how it goes.
Passenger - Let Her Go Another newbie and a simply beautiful tune that I only recently rediscovered on the Camino. A fond memory of someone that I used to know.
REM - Losing My Religion + Man in the Moon I quite like REM and these two songs are probably their best. I’ve had them in my car for a long time but now they’ve graduated to my running MP3.
The Corries - Go Lassie Go Not an immediately obvious running song choice, I grant you. But it builds throughout and deserves its place.
The Script - Hall of Fame Another google running song. Really inspiring stuff when the going gets a little tough.
Train - Drops of Jupiter A favourite song for a while now and it easily retains its place on the new songlist.
Van Halen - Jump Another taken from Google’s list of ‘best running songs’. It’s OK I guess, but it’s on probation for now.
And last but not least ,,,
Yes - It Can Happen + Love Will Find a Way + Rhythm of Love I was at University years ago with a guy who was a massive Yes fan. Back then, I couldn’t really see the attraction. Now I absolutely do. They produced some incredible songs in the mid-80s and these three are probably their best. “It Can Happen” has been a staple running song of mine for a while now and probably also ranks as my favourite all-time song. It’s my go-to tune when I’m at the back end of a hard training session or about to launch into a sprint finish in a time trial. The other two are equally brilliant songs and I’ve only just added them to my playlist. I don’t know why I waited for so long. They should have been on it years ago.
Friday, 9 September 2016
Speed-bumps and changed directions
For the benefit of those amongst you who are not keeping count, it’s been just on four weeks since I landed back in Sydney after finishing my Camino journey and about the same time since I resumed running in pursuit of this little quest of mine to qualify to run the Boston marathon.
And it’s certainly been an eventful few weeks.
I mentioned in my last post about a back twinge I’d just picked up and, happily, that disappeared as quickly as it came on. Week 3 of the 12-week training program for the Auckland half-marathon (my first full running week since returning) went very well and I managed to clock up 44.34 kilometres, with a strong 1 hour 45 minute long run to cap off the week.
But in the following week, the back pain returned from nowhere with a vengeance and after a few increasingly painful runs through gritted teeth, I conceded defeat and spent the next few sessions on a bike trying to maintain some fitness while hoping the injury would just go away.
A visit to the physio about a week later confirmed a problem at the L4-5 vertebrae which he thinks should be cured in a week or two with some focussed daily stretches and an abstinence from any running. Long-time readers of this blog will appreciate that it has actually been quite a while since I’ve suffered any injuries so I suppose this one really is overdue. And while it’s terribly annoying, it has given me the opportunity to do some serious bike riding (my average session is an hour at a constant heart rate of 70-80% of maximum) and also to participate in some spin classes at my gym for the first time - which I’ve really been enjoying.
So hopefully all this won’t set the Auckland program back too much. But we shall wait and see.
I’ve also decided to substitute my 2 hour 15 minute long training run scheduled for the end of week 10 with an entry in the Melbourne half-marathon on that day. I had such a good time running that race last year (carrying a left calf injury), I thought I’d do the same thing again this year and simply follow the 2 hour 20 minute pacers around the course as my reasonably easy long run for the week. Looking forward to it - so long as the back has healed by then.
More significantly, I’ve also just made the decision to abandon the next half-marathon I had scheduled after Auckland (i.e. Hobart, on 15 January 2017) and head back to Spain for a while. I have to confess that I’ve been bitten badly by the Camino bug so I’ve decided to fly to Europe a week or so after the Auckland race and walk the Camino Frances again (St Jean Pied de Port to Santiago) followed immediately by the Camino Portuguese (Porto to Santiago). With Christmas Day in Santiago, it’s then off to Finisterre and Muxia on the western coast of Spain before arriving back in Santiago on New Year’s Eve. All-up, it should be about 1,200 kilometres of mid-Winter walking in around 50 days. And after some time in England, it will be back home and into training for Canberra in April 2017.
Although I love Hobart and Tasmania generally, it was probably the half marathon in my program that I was the least excited about, so it wasn’t too difficult a decision to scrub it - especially given the attraction of the alternative. And it’s still on the program for 2018.
So all that means that the BQ-Quest schedule (past, present and future) now looks something like this:
1. Sydney half - May 2015 (time 2:00:26)
2. Gold Coast half - July 2015 (missed with hamstring injury)
3. Melbourne half - October 2015 (time 2:18:04, with calf injury)
4. New York half - March 2016 (time 2:01:46)
5. Gold Coast half - July 2016 (time 1:57:46)
5A. Melbourne half - October 2016
6. Auckland half - October 2016
7. Canberra half - April 2017
8. Gold Coast half - July 2017
9. Great North Run (England) - September 2017
10. Hobart half - January 2018
11. Gold Coast Marathon - July 2018
12. Melbourne Marathon - November 2018
13. Gold Coast Marathon (1st BQ attempt) - July 2019
And it’s certainly been an eventful few weeks.
I mentioned in my last post about a back twinge I’d just picked up and, happily, that disappeared as quickly as it came on. Week 3 of the 12-week training program for the Auckland half-marathon (my first full running week since returning) went very well and I managed to clock up 44.34 kilometres, with a strong 1 hour 45 minute long run to cap off the week.
But in the following week, the back pain returned from nowhere with a vengeance and after a few increasingly painful runs through gritted teeth, I conceded defeat and spent the next few sessions on a bike trying to maintain some fitness while hoping the injury would just go away.
A visit to the physio about a week later confirmed a problem at the L4-5 vertebrae which he thinks should be cured in a week or two with some focussed daily stretches and an abstinence from any running. Long-time readers of this blog will appreciate that it has actually been quite a while since I’ve suffered any injuries so I suppose this one really is overdue. And while it’s terribly annoying, it has given me the opportunity to do some serious bike riding (my average session is an hour at a constant heart rate of 70-80% of maximum) and also to participate in some spin classes at my gym for the first time - which I’ve really been enjoying.
So hopefully all this won’t set the Auckland program back too much. But we shall wait and see.
I’ve also decided to substitute my 2 hour 15 minute long training run scheduled for the end of week 10 with an entry in the Melbourne half-marathon on that day. I had such a good time running that race last year (carrying a left calf injury), I thought I’d do the same thing again this year and simply follow the 2 hour 20 minute pacers around the course as my reasonably easy long run for the week. Looking forward to it - so long as the back has healed by then.
More significantly, I’ve also just made the decision to abandon the next half-marathon I had scheduled after Auckland (i.e. Hobart, on 15 January 2017) and head back to Spain for a while. I have to confess that I’ve been bitten badly by the Camino bug so I’ve decided to fly to Europe a week or so after the Auckland race and walk the Camino Frances again (St Jean Pied de Port to Santiago) followed immediately by the Camino Portuguese (Porto to Santiago). With Christmas Day in Santiago, it’s then off to Finisterre and Muxia on the western coast of Spain before arriving back in Santiago on New Year’s Eve. All-up, it should be about 1,200 kilometres of mid-Winter walking in around 50 days. And after some time in England, it will be back home and into training for Canberra in April 2017.
Although I love Hobart and Tasmania generally, it was probably the half marathon in my program that I was the least excited about, so it wasn’t too difficult a decision to scrub it - especially given the attraction of the alternative. And it’s still on the program for 2018.
So all that means that the BQ-Quest schedule (past, present and future) now looks something like this:
1. Sydney half - May 2015 (time 2:00:26)
2. Gold Coast half - July 2015 (missed with hamstring injury)
3. Melbourne half - October 2015 (time 2:18:04, with calf injury)
4. New York half - March 2016 (time 2:01:46)
5. Gold Coast half - July 2016 (time 1:57:46)
5A. Melbourne half - October 2016
6. Auckland half - October 2016
7. Canberra half - April 2017
8. Gold Coast half - July 2017
9. Great North Run (England) - September 2017
10. Hobart half - January 2018
11. Gold Coast Marathon - July 2018
12. Melbourne Marathon - November 2018
13. Gold Coast Marathon (1st BQ attempt) - July 2019
Thursday, 18 August 2016
City-to-Surf debacle
Well, that was embarrassing. And very disappointing.
I’d finally arrived back in Sydney early on Saturday 13 August to line up for the City-to-Surf the next day. Only a few days before, I’d walked into the famed cathedral at Santiago de Compostela at the end of the simply extraordinary 800K Camino Frances pilgrimage across Spain (you’ve got to find the time to do it, folks - it’s just amazing). I then began an increasingly tortuous series of flights that would see me back to Sydney well in time for the race to Bondi Beach.
But, alas, my body clock got the better of me and I somehow managed to sleep through the 6:30am alarm on Sunday morning. When I finally woke up at 9:30am, the starting gun for the blue group had been fired an hour before and most of the runners would have been slogging it out along Military Parade waiting for the start of that long, wonderful, descent into Bondi Beach.
It’s only the third City-to-Surf I’ve missed in the past 25 years. The first was in 2000 because I was too sick to attempt it, and the second was in 2011 because I’d managed to be in Melbourne during the weekend of the race after I got the dates mixed up.
As I mentioned in my last post, I wasn’t expecting a quick time there at all. But it’s the City-to-Surf and I had to do it. And I’m pretty annoyed I missed it.
But now it’s onwards and upwards to Auckland on 30 October - just over 10 weeks away.
I’ve not done much training at all since my return from Spain with only a quick 5K on Thursday to blow out the cobwebs. I’m still suffering a little from the time zone changes and feeling quite lethargic as a result. Although this morning I managed to sleep in until just after 3:00am, which was a big improvement! After a comparatively injury-free Camino, I’ve now managed to pick up a slight back problem somewhere in the last 24 hours, so I didn’t run on Friday. I’ll see how it goes on a 10K run tomorrow (Saturday). I'm hoping it's because my body is still getting used to me moving around without an overloaded backpack strapped to it.
Finally, one of the many positive outcomes of the Camino for me has been that I’ve managed to drop about 5 kilograms since the Gold Coast race, meaning I’m now at my lowest weight (89 kilograms) since my marathon days a decade ago. One of my key goals over the next training cycle will be to maintain and improve on that, and to that end, I think I’ll slightly increase the speed and gradients of most of my training runs. I’ll also continue with the longer long-run strategy. It seemed to give me some extra endurance at the Gold Coast so when you’re on a good thing, stick to it.
I’d finally arrived back in Sydney early on Saturday 13 August to line up for the City-to-Surf the next day. Only a few days before, I’d walked into the famed cathedral at Santiago de Compostela at the end of the simply extraordinary 800K Camino Frances pilgrimage across Spain (you’ve got to find the time to do it, folks - it’s just amazing). I then began an increasingly tortuous series of flights that would see me back to Sydney well in time for the race to Bondi Beach.
But, alas, my body clock got the better of me and I somehow managed to sleep through the 6:30am alarm on Sunday morning. When I finally woke up at 9:30am, the starting gun for the blue group had been fired an hour before and most of the runners would have been slogging it out along Military Parade waiting for the start of that long, wonderful, descent into Bondi Beach.
It’s only the third City-to-Surf I’ve missed in the past 25 years. The first was in 2000 because I was too sick to attempt it, and the second was in 2011 because I’d managed to be in Melbourne during the weekend of the race after I got the dates mixed up.
As I mentioned in my last post, I wasn’t expecting a quick time there at all. But it’s the City-to-Surf and I had to do it. And I’m pretty annoyed I missed it.
But now it’s onwards and upwards to Auckland on 30 October - just over 10 weeks away.
I’ve not done much training at all since my return from Spain with only a quick 5K on Thursday to blow out the cobwebs. I’m still suffering a little from the time zone changes and feeling quite lethargic as a result. Although this morning I managed to sleep in until just after 3:00am, which was a big improvement! After a comparatively injury-free Camino, I’ve now managed to pick up a slight back problem somewhere in the last 24 hours, so I didn’t run on Friday. I’ll see how it goes on a 10K run tomorrow (Saturday). I'm hoping it's because my body is still getting used to me moving around without an overloaded backpack strapped to it.
Finally, one of the many positive outcomes of the Camino for me has been that I’ve managed to drop about 5 kilograms since the Gold Coast race, meaning I’m now at my lowest weight (89 kilograms) since my marathon days a decade ago. One of my key goals over the next training cycle will be to maintain and improve on that, and to that end, I think I’ll slightly increase the speed and gradients of most of my training runs. I’ll also continue with the longer long-run strategy. It seemed to give me some extra endurance at the Gold Coast so when you’re on a good thing, stick to it.
Sunday, 3 July 2016
Race Report: Gold Coast Half Marathon - Sunday 3 July 2016
The time - 1:57:46. And I’m happy with that.
I’d been hoping to break 2 hours for the first time since my half-marathon PB of 1:50:07 in the same race precisely a decade ago. So it’s been a long time coming. All-up, it was the third-fastest of my 13 lifetime half-marathons.
It goes without saying that it was yet another great morning for a Gold Coast run, with plenty of chill in the air by the time of the 6:00am gun.
My race strategy was to hook onto the 2 hour pacers and stick with them until the 18 or 19 kilometre mark when I would look to charge ahead for a good sub-2. Which meant I was absolutely determined not to miss the 2 hour pacers this time. As a result, I decided to line up as close to the front of the starting pack as possible and then wait until the pacing bus and their black balloons came along before crossing the start line with them. And it worked!
There were two pacers and I started with the front man, whose name I think was Scotty. He seemed to be pushing it reasonably hard through the first few Ks, and we were constantly passing people as we motored along. Things got a bit wobbly at one stage when he stopped to help a fallen runner and a few of us looked at each other wondering what to do next. But soon enough he was back on track.
At the turnaround point at the top of the course, he picked up the pace and I was quickly dropped. It then occurred to me that maybe he was working on the gun time, which meant he had about a 5 or 6 minute deficit to make up, and that the second 2 hour, chip time, pacer was still to come. So all I could do was churn out the miles and hope the second set of balloons stayed out of sight behind me. As I ran along, I passed some of my pacing group colleagues from the first 10K who had been similarly blown away by the change in pace.
At around the 12K mark, I used up the gel I’d been carrying with me and that seemed to kick in nicely over the next couple of K’s. By the three-quarter mark, the sun - and the temperature - were both rising and I was into the 5K countdown zone, thinking of the many times in training that I’d run that distance.
I remember thinking that I felt much stronger over this part of the race than I had at the same stage in New York, and that the extra distances in the long runs were paying some sort of dividend.
I passed the overhead gun-time display at the 20K mark which read 1:56 something, so I knew then I was well on track for a sub-2 chip finish. And with 1K left, it was all hands on deck with a finish line collapse to look forward to.
It really is one of the great finishes at the Gold Coast half, with people lined up and cheering all the way along what is a reasonably narrow chute to the end. It also twists and turns along the final few hundred metres which means you can never really be quite sure which corner the finish line is just around. But when it does come into view, it’s a wonderful sight.
One of the highlights of the day was seeing the great Rob de Castella at the finish zone a few steps after I crossed the line in a state of absolute exhaustion. We made eye contact, he mouthed some words of congratulations and we shook hands. A memorable finish to another great day at the Goldie.
I found out about my time on the bus to the airport a few hours later and my exclamation in response to it attracted some quizzical glances from nearby passengers. Overall, I finished 3,698th from 8,782 finishers. In terms of pacing, my first 10K speed was 10.92km/h, slowing slightly to 10.68km/h for the second 10K after the gun time pacer took off, with the final 1.1K at a speed of 9.92km/h. It felt a bit faster than that for the final section but I was probably just putting more effort in for comparatively less return.
Post-race, I suffered the usual stiffness and soreness but nothing that won’t right itself after a few days.
All in all, a very good day, but with plenty of room for improvement.
And that’s it from me for a while.
Later today, I’m on a plane to Europe (via Singapore, London, Bordeaux and Bayonne) to walk the legendary Camino Frances from St Jean Pied de Port in the south of France, across the Pyrenees, to Santiago de Compostela in north-western Spain. Just a lazy 800K at the height of what will hopefully be a not-too-brutal Spanish summer. Evidently the record for the pilgrimage is just over a week, but I’ll be taking about five.
I’m due to arrive back in Sydney the day before I line up for my 23rd City-to-Surf on 14 August. I’m not expecting a quick time, but it’s a race that has to be done. Then it’s straight back into another 11 weeks of training for the Auckland half-marathon on 30 October.
Buen camino!
I’d been hoping to break 2 hours for the first time since my half-marathon PB of 1:50:07 in the same race precisely a decade ago. So it’s been a long time coming. All-up, it was the third-fastest of my 13 lifetime half-marathons.
It goes without saying that it was yet another great morning for a Gold Coast run, with plenty of chill in the air by the time of the 6:00am gun.
My race strategy was to hook onto the 2 hour pacers and stick with them until the 18 or 19 kilometre mark when I would look to charge ahead for a good sub-2. Which meant I was absolutely determined not to miss the 2 hour pacers this time. As a result, I decided to line up as close to the front of the starting pack as possible and then wait until the pacing bus and their black balloons came along before crossing the start line with them. And it worked!
There were two pacers and I started with the front man, whose name I think was Scotty. He seemed to be pushing it reasonably hard through the first few Ks, and we were constantly passing people as we motored along. Things got a bit wobbly at one stage when he stopped to help a fallen runner and a few of us looked at each other wondering what to do next. But soon enough he was back on track.
At the turnaround point at the top of the course, he picked up the pace and I was quickly dropped. It then occurred to me that maybe he was working on the gun time, which meant he had about a 5 or 6 minute deficit to make up, and that the second 2 hour, chip time, pacer was still to come. So all I could do was churn out the miles and hope the second set of balloons stayed out of sight behind me. As I ran along, I passed some of my pacing group colleagues from the first 10K who had been similarly blown away by the change in pace.
At around the 12K mark, I used up the gel I’d been carrying with me and that seemed to kick in nicely over the next couple of K’s. By the three-quarter mark, the sun - and the temperature - were both rising and I was into the 5K countdown zone, thinking of the many times in training that I’d run that distance.
I remember thinking that I felt much stronger over this part of the race than I had at the same stage in New York, and that the extra distances in the long runs were paying some sort of dividend.
I passed the overhead gun-time display at the 20K mark which read 1:56 something, so I knew then I was well on track for a sub-2 chip finish. And with 1K left, it was all hands on deck with a finish line collapse to look forward to.
It really is one of the great finishes at the Gold Coast half, with people lined up and cheering all the way along what is a reasonably narrow chute to the end. It also twists and turns along the final few hundred metres which means you can never really be quite sure which corner the finish line is just around. But when it does come into view, it’s a wonderful sight.
One of the highlights of the day was seeing the great Rob de Castella at the finish zone a few steps after I crossed the line in a state of absolute exhaustion. We made eye contact, he mouthed some words of congratulations and we shook hands. A memorable finish to another great day at the Goldie.
I found out about my time on the bus to the airport a few hours later and my exclamation in response to it attracted some quizzical glances from nearby passengers. Overall, I finished 3,698th from 8,782 finishers. In terms of pacing, my first 10K speed was 10.92km/h, slowing slightly to 10.68km/h for the second 10K after the gun time pacer took off, with the final 1.1K at a speed of 9.92km/h. It felt a bit faster than that for the final section but I was probably just putting more effort in for comparatively less return.
Post-race, I suffered the usual stiffness and soreness but nothing that won’t right itself after a few days.
All in all, a very good day, but with plenty of room for improvement.
And that’s it from me for a while.
Later today, I’m on a plane to Europe (via Singapore, London, Bordeaux and Bayonne) to walk the legendary Camino Frances from St Jean Pied de Port in the south of France, across the Pyrenees, to Santiago de Compostela in north-western Spain. Just a lazy 800K at the height of what will hopefully be a not-too-brutal Spanish summer. Evidently the record for the pilgrimage is just over a week, but I’ll be taking about five.
I’m due to arrive back in Sydney the day before I line up for my 23rd City-to-Surf on 14 August. I’m not expecting a quick time, but it’s a race that has to be done. Then it’s straight back into another 11 weeks of training for the Auckland half-marathon on 30 October.
Buen camino!
Monday, 20 June 2016
Ten weeks down
Less than two weeks out from the Gold Coast half and I’m very happy to report that things remain firmly on track.
Since last I checked in, the weekly mileage has been fairly steady, with outputs of 48.51K, 47.87K, 40.32K, 40.76K and 52.19K for each of the past five weeks. There were some hiccups around the time of a couple of significant deadlines in my non-running life in weeks eight and nine, as well as a couple of long runs that had to be cut slightly short due to unavoidable ablution and/or absolutely avoidable ‘failure-to-apply-body-glide’, issues.
My scheduled 10K time trial at the end of week nine went particularly well, with a time of 51:23. That turned out to be my fastest 10K in almost a year (50:35 on 13 June 2015) and felt quite comfortable. I started out conservatively at 11.1km/h and bumped up the pace by 0.1km/h for every kilometre until the 7.5K mark, when the acceleration increased until I was smashing the last 400-500 metres at over 15km/h. On reflection, I could have started at a little faster pace but I was probably too intent on wanting to make sure I had enough in the tank at the end.
So now it’s into the final hard week which is capped off with a two hour, twenty minute long run this Saturday (which should cover upwards of 21K), followed by the week 12 taper of less than 20K.
There’s really not much else to say. Injury-wise, I’ve had no real concerns. I’ve also avoided catching anything that might otherwise have laid me up during some comparatively dreadful Sydney winter weather. And, even more happily, I’ve managed to drop a few kilograms over the last few weeks - so much so that I’m anticipating being at least five kilos below my New York race weight come Sunday 3 July.
But, of course, two weeks is still a long time in the world of running …
Since last I checked in, the weekly mileage has been fairly steady, with outputs of 48.51K, 47.87K, 40.32K, 40.76K and 52.19K for each of the past five weeks. There were some hiccups around the time of a couple of significant deadlines in my non-running life in weeks eight and nine, as well as a couple of long runs that had to be cut slightly short due to unavoidable ablution and/or absolutely avoidable ‘failure-to-apply-body-glide’, issues.
My scheduled 10K time trial at the end of week nine went particularly well, with a time of 51:23. That turned out to be my fastest 10K in almost a year (50:35 on 13 June 2015) and felt quite comfortable. I started out conservatively at 11.1km/h and bumped up the pace by 0.1km/h for every kilometre until the 7.5K mark, when the acceleration increased until I was smashing the last 400-500 metres at over 15km/h. On reflection, I could have started at a little faster pace but I was probably too intent on wanting to make sure I had enough in the tank at the end.
So now it’s into the final hard week which is capped off with a two hour, twenty minute long run this Saturday (which should cover upwards of 21K), followed by the week 12 taper of less than 20K.
There’s really not much else to say. Injury-wise, I’ve had no real concerns. I’ve also avoided catching anything that might otherwise have laid me up during some comparatively dreadful Sydney winter weather. And, even more happily, I’ve managed to drop a few kilograms over the last few weeks - so much so that I’m anticipating being at least five kilos below my New York race weight come Sunday 3 July.
But, of course, two weeks is still a long time in the world of running …
Tuesday, 17 May 2016
Five weeks down
I thought I should report back on my initial impressions of the slightly revised training program I wrote about last time. In short, after the first five weeks of the 12-week Gold Coast half marathon program, the news is pretty good.
My scheduled 5K time trial at the end of week 3 went well with my time of 24:26 my fastest 5K in over a year (since running a 23:52 in March 2015). The increasingly longer, long runs have also been very comfortable. 100 minutes (14.73K) in week 1 was followed by 105 minutes (15.32K) in week 2, 110 minutes (16.53K) in week 4 and 115 minutes (17.19K) in the just completed week 5. According to the schedule, my final long run will rise to 140 minutes at the end of week 11.
Health-wise, things are also going well, all things considered. The left Achilles - while not debilitating - persists as a dull pain, and I’ve been feeling the right knee occasionally. The top of the left hamstring also gets a little tetchy now and then, but overall, nothing to cause any real concern.
I’m running six days a week now and not once have I had to miss or cut short any scheduled session. The weekly mileage has been, in order, 40.46K, 43.78K, 27.92K, 44.76K and 45.52K. All the remaining weeks with the exception of the taper are also scheduled to exceed 40K, with three over 50K.
Week 6 also began positively with one of my three-weekly Bay Runs. Normally it takes around 40-42 minutes for the 7K loop. But on Sunday, I managed it in 38:38 without looking to run especially quickly, and even having to weave in and out of the very large number of Sunday morning Bay-walkers who were also taking in the wonderful Sydney autumn sun.
Of course, any optimism I might be conveying by all this is necessarily tempered by the memory of last year’s hamstring tear in the couple of days before the Gold Coast event. It occurred at the end of what was otherwise a similarly very successful training schedule.
So while I’m somewhat confident of a good outcome from this current training block, I’m also acutely conscious that what the running gods giveth, the running gods taketh away. Blessed be the name of the running gods!
My scheduled 5K time trial at the end of week 3 went well with my time of 24:26 my fastest 5K in over a year (since running a 23:52 in March 2015). The increasingly longer, long runs have also been very comfortable. 100 minutes (14.73K) in week 1 was followed by 105 minutes (15.32K) in week 2, 110 minutes (16.53K) in week 4 and 115 minutes (17.19K) in the just completed week 5. According to the schedule, my final long run will rise to 140 minutes at the end of week 11.
Health-wise, things are also going well, all things considered. The left Achilles - while not debilitating - persists as a dull pain, and I’ve been feeling the right knee occasionally. The top of the left hamstring also gets a little tetchy now and then, but overall, nothing to cause any real concern.
I’m running six days a week now and not once have I had to miss or cut short any scheduled session. The weekly mileage has been, in order, 40.46K, 43.78K, 27.92K, 44.76K and 45.52K. All the remaining weeks with the exception of the taper are also scheduled to exceed 40K, with three over 50K.
Week 6 also began positively with one of my three-weekly Bay Runs. Normally it takes around 40-42 minutes for the 7K loop. But on Sunday, I managed it in 38:38 without looking to run especially quickly, and even having to weave in and out of the very large number of Sunday morning Bay-walkers who were also taking in the wonderful Sydney autumn sun.
Of course, any optimism I might be conveying by all this is necessarily tempered by the memory of last year’s hamstring tear in the couple of days before the Gold Coast event. It occurred at the end of what was otherwise a similarly very successful training schedule.
So while I’m somewhat confident of a good outcome from this current training block, I’m also acutely conscious that what the running gods giveth, the running gods taketh away. Blessed be the name of the running gods!
Tuesday, 26 April 2016
Some training tweaks
We’ve now entered week 3 of the 12 week Gold Coast half marathon training program and all is well. I seem to have adjusted reasonably well back into the training routine and am looking forward to a largely uninterrupted couple of months cranking out the miles in the lead-up to the 3 July event.
That said, I’ve been thinking a lot about New York over the past few weeks and decided I need to try a couple of tweaks to the Higdon advanced training schedule I’ve been following almost religiously for the last few races.
First, I’ve decided to cut back the three recommended time trials (in weeks 3, 6 and 9) to two - a 5K in week 3 and a 10K in week 9. I just think I could benefit more from an additional long run rather than what would otherwise be a shorter time trial.
Second, and most significantly, I’ve cranked up the long runs themselves.
Higdon has the first four long runs at 90 minutes, the next two at 105 minutes, and the final two at 120 minutes. The three time trials are interspersed among these to give the 11 major weekly training runs. Half of Higdon’s long runs also increase the speed for the last quarter or so to something approaching half marathon pace.
Under my changes, each of the long runs increases by 5 minutes weekly - from the starting point of 100 minutes in week 1. By week 11, the ninth and final long run will be 140 minutes. I’ve kept the speed increase for Higdon’s workouts, and for the others I’ve also incorporated 10-18 minutes at the end where the speed increases gradually until the finish. The intention is that this overall increase in mileage will increase my ability to stay strong over the last 5K and avoid, or minimise as far as possible, the ‘dying’ sensation I experienced during that period of the New York race.
Already the increased mileage is evident when compared to New York. For the first two weeks of that program, the distances covered were 32.26K (with one missed session) and 41.45K. In the current Gold Coast program, my first two weeks were 40.46K and 43.78K. So far, each of the new, longer, long runs in those weeks has felt reasonably comfortable and I get a sense I’m going to benefit - both physically and mentally - from spending such a significantly longer period in motion.
In aggregate, the long runs throughout the program will go from 810 minutes to 1,080 minutes - quite a solid increase of 4.5 hours overall.
Finally, I thought I might also share a little summary table I’ve been compiling (and which I’ve just figured out how to post) about progress so far. It’s based on my thinking about the particular importance of two factors in this business - body weight and a solid running base.
Among other things, it highlights for me the what-might-have-been for the Gold Coast last year had I not suffered that debilitating hamstring tear in the final week. By the time the Gold Coast comes around this year, and in the absence of injury, I’d expect the running base numbers to be right up there, and the race weight number to start with an ‘8’. Let’s see what happens!
That said, I’ve been thinking a lot about New York over the past few weeks and decided I need to try a couple of tweaks to the Higdon advanced training schedule I’ve been following almost religiously for the last few races.
First, I’ve decided to cut back the three recommended time trials (in weeks 3, 6 and 9) to two - a 5K in week 3 and a 10K in week 9. I just think I could benefit more from an additional long run rather than what would otherwise be a shorter time trial.
Second, and most significantly, I’ve cranked up the long runs themselves.
Higdon has the first four long runs at 90 minutes, the next two at 105 minutes, and the final two at 120 minutes. The three time trials are interspersed among these to give the 11 major weekly training runs. Half of Higdon’s long runs also increase the speed for the last quarter or so to something approaching half marathon pace.
Under my changes, each of the long runs increases by 5 minutes weekly - from the starting point of 100 minutes in week 1. By week 11, the ninth and final long run will be 140 minutes. I’ve kept the speed increase for Higdon’s workouts, and for the others I’ve also incorporated 10-18 minutes at the end where the speed increases gradually until the finish. The intention is that this overall increase in mileage will increase my ability to stay strong over the last 5K and avoid, or minimise as far as possible, the ‘dying’ sensation I experienced during that period of the New York race.
Already the increased mileage is evident when compared to New York. For the first two weeks of that program, the distances covered were 32.26K (with one missed session) and 41.45K. In the current Gold Coast program, my first two weeks were 40.46K and 43.78K. So far, each of the new, longer, long runs in those weeks has felt reasonably comfortable and I get a sense I’m going to benefit - both physically and mentally - from spending such a significantly longer period in motion.
In aggregate, the long runs throughout the program will go from 810 minutes to 1,080 minutes - quite a solid increase of 4.5 hours overall.
Finally, I thought I might also share a little summary table I’ve been compiling (and which I’ve just figured out how to post) about progress so far. It’s based on my thinking about the particular importance of two factors in this business - body weight and a solid running base.
Among other things, it highlights for me the what-might-have-been for the Gold Coast last year had I not suffered that debilitating hamstring tear in the final week. By the time the Gold Coast comes around this year, and in the absence of injury, I’d expect the running base numbers to be right up there, and the race weight number to start with an ‘8’. Let’s see what happens!
Friday, 15 April 2016
Happy 500th!
A slight indulgence as I dedicate this post to my 500th session at Camperdown Fitness, the Sydney gym I’ve been frequenting for the past couple of years. It happened back on Saturday 9 April 2016.
Just for the heck of it, and given it also happened to be the day before the start of my 12 week Gold Coast half marathon program, I decided to replicate the workout I undertook at my very first session back on 26 August 2013. That is, 20 minutes on the elliptical machine at its easiest setting, followed by 10 minutes on the treadmill at 5km/h at an elevation of 0.5%.
While I don’t remember that very first session well, I do have an extraordinarily vivid memory of being completely buggered at most times in those first few weeks, culminating in my attempt (in session 13) to run 5K in 30 minutes on the day before I headed overseas for a couple of months. As it happened, I could only manage 4.41K in that time. I can’t remember how I felt when I stopped, but it was probably more relief that it was over than disappointment that I’d missed a target.
Between then and now, there’s been many a running session where I felt I could have gone on forever, sessions that were a real struggle and which left me completely exhausted (but which I finished!), and the odd one where I just couldn’t keep going and was forced to bail. I even remember one where I started warming up but then stopped and went back home because my head just wasn’t in the right space. And, of course, there were those couple of awful sessions cut short by torn leg muscles.
So that’s a total of 500 gym visits in the 700 or so days that I’ve been home over that time. Throw in the various races I’ve run, several loops around the Bay Run and a few other bits and pieces and it’s not a bad strike rate really.
Here’s to a productive next 500!
And, of course, here’s to all those with their hard-won BQ’s who are lining-up at Hopkinton on Monday. Good job, and go well everyone! With a lot of hard work, and a little bit of luck, I'll be looking forward to following in your footsteps on Patriots’ Day 2020.
Just for the heck of it, and given it also happened to be the day before the start of my 12 week Gold Coast half marathon program, I decided to replicate the workout I undertook at my very first session back on 26 August 2013. That is, 20 minutes on the elliptical machine at its easiest setting, followed by 10 minutes on the treadmill at 5km/h at an elevation of 0.5%.
While I don’t remember that very first session well, I do have an extraordinarily vivid memory of being completely buggered at most times in those first few weeks, culminating in my attempt (in session 13) to run 5K in 30 minutes on the day before I headed overseas for a couple of months. As it happened, I could only manage 4.41K in that time. I can’t remember how I felt when I stopped, but it was probably more relief that it was over than disappointment that I’d missed a target.
Between then and now, there’s been many a running session where I felt I could have gone on forever, sessions that were a real struggle and which left me completely exhausted (but which I finished!), and the odd one where I just couldn’t keep going and was forced to bail. I even remember one where I started warming up but then stopped and went back home because my head just wasn’t in the right space. And, of course, there were those couple of awful sessions cut short by torn leg muscles.
So that’s a total of 500 gym visits in the 700 or so days that I’ve been home over that time. Throw in the various races I’ve run, several loops around the Bay Run and a few other bits and pieces and it’s not a bad strike rate really.
Here’s to a productive next 500!
And, of course, here’s to all those with their hard-won BQ’s who are lining-up at Hopkinton on Monday. Good job, and go well everyone! With a lot of hard work, and a little bit of luck, I'll be looking forward to following in your footsteps on Patriots’ Day 2020.
Wednesday, 13 April 2016
Race Report: New York Half Marathon - Sunday 20 March 2016
First the result - 2:01:46.
Respectable, I suppose, but disappointed I didn’t at least crack 2 hours.
Given where I felt I was in terms of my training, my plan was to trail along behind the 1:55 pacer and see how it went. But of course, s/he was nowhere to be seen at the allocated starting corrals deep in Central Park so I just went with the crowd. I did see the 1:50 pacer stationed a short distance in front of me and, in hindsight, I should have waited before the start line for the 1:55 pacer to come past me and then latch on. But I didn’t think of that at the time, and besides, I just wanted to get moving.
The result aside, my abiding memory of this race will be the cold. It was absolutely freezing.
My hotel was about a 15 minute walk from the bag drop in the street at the bottom of Central Park. At 6:00am when I arrived there, it must have been zero degrees at best, with a minus wind chill. Along with many others, I waited there as long as I could, crouched behind a wall, before finally peeling off some layers and putting them in the vans to take down to the finishing area. From the bag drop, it was a short walk to the security checkpoint at the entrance to Central Park where everyone and everything went through metal detectors that were manned by scores of hardy police. Then, it was a brisk walk through the park - still in the dark - to the starting area. I waited with many others in a helpfully located, large underground public lavatory complex that I’d managed to find nearby.
Once in the corral, and just before the gun went off, I tossed aside my gloves and jumper and the four New York souvenir tee-shirts I’d got the night before at one of those 5-for-$10 tourist shops. It wasn’t too long into the race before I realised I probably should have held onto at least one or two of them for a bit longer, but it was too late then. The undulating start to the race did work to warm us up a little, but the cold continued to bite.
Of course, I hadn’t factored the cold into my race plan. Or the deadening effects of a crammed 30 hour flight from Sydney to New York (with a 3 hour early morning transit in Abu Dhabi) a few days before. Or the swirl of time zones. But everything else I was reasonably pleased with. The final three weeks’ training continued as planned, with 65.56K in week 10 of the 12 week program, 50.52K in week 11, and 18.62 in week 12. The new running shoes had about 120K in them and felt good. I’d had regular leg massages in the weeks before leaving, and I’d even managed to drop a few late kilograms. With all this, my aim was a solid sub-2 hour race closing in on 1:55.
The first 7-8Ks meandered through Central Park and up its various inclines. They weren’t particularly savage but a couple did go on for a little longer than was really necessary. Of course, there was always the down to follow each up, and the knowledge that once out of the park, the course was flat with maybe a slight downhill. Emerging from the park and heading south into mid-town Manhattan, the wind chill picked up as the breeze made its way through the canyon created by myriad office towers - which also worked to block out the mildly warming impact of the sun. The run through a crowded Times Square (traffic-free for only the second time in the year, after New Year’s) was invigorating, but the wind and shade made it feel like the coldest place on the course. From there, it was a sharp turn west, out to the major highway that runs down the length of Manhattan alongside the Hudson River.
This last 8K or so of the course - before the entry into the Battery Park area downtown - was the most tedious with not much to distract the attention. Although it was motivating to see the new World Trade Centre (as the Freedom Tower is evidently now known) off in the distance, and gradually coming into focus as the run toward it went on. Passing it by with a short distance to go to the finish and looking up at it was a highlight.
It was on that stretch that I felt myself tightening up, especially in the left leg, and then slowing as runners started to pass. The 1:55 pacing group went by around the time I passed the World Trade Centre, which indicated I wasn’t going to make that time. But I felt I was still on track for a sub-2.
From the briefing at the race expo a couple of days prior, I was well prepared for the final mile or so with a long tunnel run underneath Battery Park, followed by a short hill and a couple of sharp left turns before shooting up to the finish line. So while the terrain didn’t come as a surprise, I also wasn’t able to accelerate across it by as much as I would have liked.
Nonetheless, I finished as I’d planned - completely exhausted after a sprint to the line. I had to grab on to a hoarding at the end to stop myself from collapsing in the finishing chute. Both the finishers’ medal and the warming sheet provided shortly after were welcome as I staggered through the recovery area, trying to dodge the multitude of runners who hadn't gotten off their cell phones since crossing the finish line. The bag collection was very efficient and I quickly (or as quickly as my fumbling, numb hands would allow) put on my warmer clothes to ward off some of the weather.
I finally wended my way up to the nearest subway station, and with medal proudly hanging around my neck, managed to catch the subway to somewhere close to my hotel. The rest of the day was spent drifting in and out of consciousness. It was suitably capped off with a snowstorm as I went out to get something to eat.
Overall, I finished 9,635th out of the 20,149 hardy souls who completed the journey. Evidently the organisers had a three hour cut-off for the race. I can’t imagine what state the backmarkers must have been in after having spent at least that time out there.
In terms of pacing, my 5K splits for the race were as follows - 1st 5km - 28:09mins; 2nd 5km - 28:43mins; 3rd 5km - 28:27mins; 4th 5km - 30:00mins; final 1.1km - 6:27mins. It’s clear that the long roadway toward the end took its toll, but maybe I also started a little too quickly through Central Park and might have benefited from proper pacing. It’s tempting, but of course futile, to think that slowing a minute or so in the hilly first 5K might have allowed me to save a couple of minutes in the last part of the race.
The race itself was pure New York - big and loud. But it also had its humanity. Enthusiastic crowds. Ridiculously helpful and numerous volunteers wrapped up in scarfs, gloves and beanies. And an uncommon urgency to help when an occasional runner tripped up.
Ultimately, it was a wonderful experience that’s on the list to do again - once this BQ quest is done.
Respectable, I suppose, but disappointed I didn’t at least crack 2 hours.
Given where I felt I was in terms of my training, my plan was to trail along behind the 1:55 pacer and see how it went. But of course, s/he was nowhere to be seen at the allocated starting corrals deep in Central Park so I just went with the crowd. I did see the 1:50 pacer stationed a short distance in front of me and, in hindsight, I should have waited before the start line for the 1:55 pacer to come past me and then latch on. But I didn’t think of that at the time, and besides, I just wanted to get moving.
The result aside, my abiding memory of this race will be the cold. It was absolutely freezing.
My hotel was about a 15 minute walk from the bag drop in the street at the bottom of Central Park. At 6:00am when I arrived there, it must have been zero degrees at best, with a minus wind chill. Along with many others, I waited there as long as I could, crouched behind a wall, before finally peeling off some layers and putting them in the vans to take down to the finishing area. From the bag drop, it was a short walk to the security checkpoint at the entrance to Central Park where everyone and everything went through metal detectors that were manned by scores of hardy police. Then, it was a brisk walk through the park - still in the dark - to the starting area. I waited with many others in a helpfully located, large underground public lavatory complex that I’d managed to find nearby.
Once in the corral, and just before the gun went off, I tossed aside my gloves and jumper and the four New York souvenir tee-shirts I’d got the night before at one of those 5-for-$10 tourist shops. It wasn’t too long into the race before I realised I probably should have held onto at least one or two of them for a bit longer, but it was too late then. The undulating start to the race did work to warm us up a little, but the cold continued to bite.
Of course, I hadn’t factored the cold into my race plan. Or the deadening effects of a crammed 30 hour flight from Sydney to New York (with a 3 hour early morning transit in Abu Dhabi) a few days before. Or the swirl of time zones. But everything else I was reasonably pleased with. The final three weeks’ training continued as planned, with 65.56K in week 10 of the 12 week program, 50.52K in week 11, and 18.62 in week 12. The new running shoes had about 120K in them and felt good. I’d had regular leg massages in the weeks before leaving, and I’d even managed to drop a few late kilograms. With all this, my aim was a solid sub-2 hour race closing in on 1:55.
The first 7-8Ks meandered through Central Park and up its various inclines. They weren’t particularly savage but a couple did go on for a little longer than was really necessary. Of course, there was always the down to follow each up, and the knowledge that once out of the park, the course was flat with maybe a slight downhill. Emerging from the park and heading south into mid-town Manhattan, the wind chill picked up as the breeze made its way through the canyon created by myriad office towers - which also worked to block out the mildly warming impact of the sun. The run through a crowded Times Square (traffic-free for only the second time in the year, after New Year’s) was invigorating, but the wind and shade made it feel like the coldest place on the course. From there, it was a sharp turn west, out to the major highway that runs down the length of Manhattan alongside the Hudson River.
This last 8K or so of the course - before the entry into the Battery Park area downtown - was the most tedious with not much to distract the attention. Although it was motivating to see the new World Trade Centre (as the Freedom Tower is evidently now known) off in the distance, and gradually coming into focus as the run toward it went on. Passing it by with a short distance to go to the finish and looking up at it was a highlight.
It was on that stretch that I felt myself tightening up, especially in the left leg, and then slowing as runners started to pass. The 1:55 pacing group went by around the time I passed the World Trade Centre, which indicated I wasn’t going to make that time. But I felt I was still on track for a sub-2.
From the briefing at the race expo a couple of days prior, I was well prepared for the final mile or so with a long tunnel run underneath Battery Park, followed by a short hill and a couple of sharp left turns before shooting up to the finish line. So while the terrain didn’t come as a surprise, I also wasn’t able to accelerate across it by as much as I would have liked.
Nonetheless, I finished as I’d planned - completely exhausted after a sprint to the line. I had to grab on to a hoarding at the end to stop myself from collapsing in the finishing chute. Both the finishers’ medal and the warming sheet provided shortly after were welcome as I staggered through the recovery area, trying to dodge the multitude of runners who hadn't gotten off their cell phones since crossing the finish line. The bag collection was very efficient and I quickly (or as quickly as my fumbling, numb hands would allow) put on my warmer clothes to ward off some of the weather.
I finally wended my way up to the nearest subway station, and with medal proudly hanging around my neck, managed to catch the subway to somewhere close to my hotel. The rest of the day was spent drifting in and out of consciousness. It was suitably capped off with a snowstorm as I went out to get something to eat.
Overall, I finished 9,635th out of the 20,149 hardy souls who completed the journey. Evidently the organisers had a three hour cut-off for the race. I can’t imagine what state the backmarkers must have been in after having spent at least that time out there.
In terms of pacing, my 5K splits for the race were as follows - 1st 5km - 28:09mins; 2nd 5km - 28:43mins; 3rd 5km - 28:27mins; 4th 5km - 30:00mins; final 1.1km - 6:27mins. It’s clear that the long roadway toward the end took its toll, but maybe I also started a little too quickly through Central Park and might have benefited from proper pacing. It’s tempting, but of course futile, to think that slowing a minute or so in the hilly first 5K might have allowed me to save a couple of minutes in the last part of the race.
The race itself was pure New York - big and loud. But it also had its humanity. Enthusiastic crowds. Ridiculously helpful and numerous volunteers wrapped up in scarfs, gloves and beanies. And an uncommon urgency to help when an occasional runner tripped up.
Ultimately, it was a wonderful experience that’s on the list to do again - once this BQ quest is done.
Wednesday, 2 March 2016
February update
Well, we’re deep into week 10 of this 12 week New York half marathon program now, and things seem to be going remarkably well.
Since we last spoke, I’ve hit just about every training session, albeit a left knee scare earlier in the month saw me cutting short an interval workout. A quick visit to the physio followed and it seemed to fix itself as fast as it appeared. Not a peep since.
The only other dent in my consistent six-day running weeks was brought about by a trek along the Six Foot Track last week. I’d walked this historic 45 kilometre route from Katoomba to Jenolan Caves about 100 kilometres east of Sydney in the magnificent Blue Mountains on two previous occasions as part of a three day guided group walk, most recently in December 2015. Back then, I promised myself that, someday, I’d come back and walk it in reverse (from Jenolan Caves to Katoomba I mean). And that I’d do it in one day. Last Wednesday became that day. Unfortunately for me, it was one of the hotter days of the summer and after a very strong start, I became badly dehydrated with an equally badly blistered right foot. With several forced rest stops throughout the afternoon, I finally managed to stagger into Katoomba 13 hours and 44 minutes after setting off. After all that, I didn’t run again until Sunday. But it really was a great challenge and I’ll certainly be back!
It’s all good now, and this week - at around 65 kilometres - is on track to be the most prolific, and toughest, running week since I first started on this running comeback precisely 104 weeks ago.
A couple of other brief updates.
First, after around 650 kilometres on the previous pair, my trusty shoe dealer in Potts Point fitted me with a new pair of wheels the other day. I’ve gone from a pair of Asics to a (slightly less garish) Nike model for the next 600+ KMs, which will, of course, take in the New York half. They feel fine, I suppose, but then they all have so far. Just so long as they keep doing their job.
And second, I’ve made a slight change to my future half marathon schedule. I’ve decided to jettison the Sydney half marathon in May 2017 and replace it with the Canberra half marathon a month earlier. I had a look at the Canberra course on-line a few days back and it really is quite an attractive one alongside Lake Burley Griffin. I guess it’s also a bit of an omen thing. My Canberra marathon time back in 2006 was a 20+ minute improvement on my best to that point, so maybe the gods will be with me again there in 2017 for the half. It also evens up the period, and the training programs, between the preceding and succeeding half marathons (Hobart and Gold Coast, respectively). And, finally, and perhaps most compellingly, it’s a good excuse not to run Sydney again - and avoid those annoying little hills around Pyrmont and Ultimo!
But the next stop is the Big Apple in just 17 short days (or, perhaps more accurately, 15 short days and 2 very, very long days stuck in aeroplanes and airports). More on that next time.
Since we last spoke, I’ve hit just about every training session, albeit a left knee scare earlier in the month saw me cutting short an interval workout. A quick visit to the physio followed and it seemed to fix itself as fast as it appeared. Not a peep since.
The only other dent in my consistent six-day running weeks was brought about by a trek along the Six Foot Track last week. I’d walked this historic 45 kilometre route from Katoomba to Jenolan Caves about 100 kilometres east of Sydney in the magnificent Blue Mountains on two previous occasions as part of a three day guided group walk, most recently in December 2015. Back then, I promised myself that, someday, I’d come back and walk it in reverse (from Jenolan Caves to Katoomba I mean). And that I’d do it in one day. Last Wednesday became that day. Unfortunately for me, it was one of the hotter days of the summer and after a very strong start, I became badly dehydrated with an equally badly blistered right foot. With several forced rest stops throughout the afternoon, I finally managed to stagger into Katoomba 13 hours and 44 minutes after setting off. After all that, I didn’t run again until Sunday. But it really was a great challenge and I’ll certainly be back!
It’s all good now, and this week - at around 65 kilometres - is on track to be the most prolific, and toughest, running week since I first started on this running comeback precisely 104 weeks ago.
A couple of other brief updates.
First, after around 650 kilometres on the previous pair, my trusty shoe dealer in Potts Point fitted me with a new pair of wheels the other day. I’ve gone from a pair of Asics to a (slightly less garish) Nike model for the next 600+ KMs, which will, of course, take in the New York half. They feel fine, I suppose, but then they all have so far. Just so long as they keep doing their job.
And second, I’ve made a slight change to my future half marathon schedule. I’ve decided to jettison the Sydney half marathon in May 2017 and replace it with the Canberra half marathon a month earlier. I had a look at the Canberra course on-line a few days back and it really is quite an attractive one alongside Lake Burley Griffin. I guess it’s also a bit of an omen thing. My Canberra marathon time back in 2006 was a 20+ minute improvement on my best to that point, so maybe the gods will be with me again there in 2017 for the half. It also evens up the period, and the training programs, between the preceding and succeeding half marathons (Hobart and Gold Coast, respectively). And, finally, and perhaps most compellingly, it’s a good excuse not to run Sydney again - and avoid those annoying little hills around Pyrmont and Ultimo!
But the next stop is the Big Apple in just 17 short days (or, perhaps more accurately, 15 short days and 2 very, very long days stuck in aeroplanes and airports). More on that next time.
Sunday, 31 January 2016
Happy 2016!!
A belated welcome to the new year to you all! I trust it is everything you hoped it would be.
Given my absence from this blog for the past three months (nothing dramatic - just having a break), I owe you an update with my running. In a word, progress could probably best be described as ‘steady’.
I’m just starting week 6 of the 12-week training program for the New York half marathon, which is set down for Sunday 20 March. The first five weeks went well with most sessions completed happily and without injury. I ran a scheduled 5K time trial at a disappointing time of 25:21 at the end of week 3 (was hoping for at least a sub-25) but have a second one coming up at the end of this week where I’ll be looking to redeem myself. I did miss a few sessions while on an interstate road trip and didn’t finish a couple of others owing to some fatigue problems, but in the main, it’s steady as she goes.
In the period between the Melbourne half marathon (on 18 October) and the start of the New York program (27 December), the running was quite light and interrupted by several travel-related absences. For the record, the mileage for that ten weeks averaged just on 12.7K per week, with the weekly kilometre readings as follows - 15, 25, nil, 8.1, 23.01, 24.4, nil, 16.3, 14.7 and nil. Amongst that was another 5K time trial on 27 November - resulting in a time of 25:53.
Since then, the totals have increased reasonably significantly - 32.26, 41.45, 27.92, 16.70 (the week of the road trip), and 34.51. And with no more breaks planned until I fly out of Sydney on the afternoon of 16 March, I’m expecting to continue to record some solid distances.
And finally for this instalment, a recap of where we’ve come and where we’re going in the quest to qualify for the Boston marathon. In short, I’d pin-pointed 13 races (11 half marathons and 2 marathons) as a prelude to making an assault on the BQ at the Gold Coast Marathon in July 2019. My BQ time then will be 3:40.
So far, I’ve completed two of these races - the Sydney (May 2015) and Melbourne (October 2015) half marathons - in times of 2:00:26 and 2:18:04 respectively. I forfeited the third scheduled half marathon at the Gold Coast in July 2015 due to a torn left hamstring sustained in the couple of days before the event, while the Melbourne race almost went the same way after a left calf muscle tear a couple of weeks prior. But I recovered sufficiently on that one to be able to trot around the circuit behind the 2:20 pacers.
The rest of the half marathon and marathon program, to be interspersed with the annual 14K City to Surf and some other miscellaneous shorter events, is:
3. New York (USA) - 20 March 2016
4. Gold Coast - 3 July 2016
5. Auckland (New Zealand) - 30 October 2016
6. Hobart - January 2017
7. Sydney - May 2017
8. Gold Coast - July 2017
9. Great North Run (England) - September 2017
10. Hobart - January 2018
11. Gold Coast Marathon - July 2018
12. Melbourne Marathon - October 2018
13. Gold Coast Marathon (BQ attempt) - July 2019
It’s a tough schedule to try and meet an even tougher target, but I’m still as positive - and realistic - about it as I was at the beginning of this journey. At the moment though, it’s simply a matter of taking one session at a time, trusting in the process, keeping the faith - and, of course, continuing to be accountable to all you out there! Go well.
Given my absence from this blog for the past three months (nothing dramatic - just having a break), I owe you an update with my running. In a word, progress could probably best be described as ‘steady’.
I’m just starting week 6 of the 12-week training program for the New York half marathon, which is set down for Sunday 20 March. The first five weeks went well with most sessions completed happily and without injury. I ran a scheduled 5K time trial at a disappointing time of 25:21 at the end of week 3 (was hoping for at least a sub-25) but have a second one coming up at the end of this week where I’ll be looking to redeem myself. I did miss a few sessions while on an interstate road trip and didn’t finish a couple of others owing to some fatigue problems, but in the main, it’s steady as she goes.
In the period between the Melbourne half marathon (on 18 October) and the start of the New York program (27 December), the running was quite light and interrupted by several travel-related absences. For the record, the mileage for that ten weeks averaged just on 12.7K per week, with the weekly kilometre readings as follows - 15, 25, nil, 8.1, 23.01, 24.4, nil, 16.3, 14.7 and nil. Amongst that was another 5K time trial on 27 November - resulting in a time of 25:53.
Since then, the totals have increased reasonably significantly - 32.26, 41.45, 27.92, 16.70 (the week of the road trip), and 34.51. And with no more breaks planned until I fly out of Sydney on the afternoon of 16 March, I’m expecting to continue to record some solid distances.
And finally for this instalment, a recap of where we’ve come and where we’re going in the quest to qualify for the Boston marathon. In short, I’d pin-pointed 13 races (11 half marathons and 2 marathons) as a prelude to making an assault on the BQ at the Gold Coast Marathon in July 2019. My BQ time then will be 3:40.
So far, I’ve completed two of these races - the Sydney (May 2015) and Melbourne (October 2015) half marathons - in times of 2:00:26 and 2:18:04 respectively. I forfeited the third scheduled half marathon at the Gold Coast in July 2015 due to a torn left hamstring sustained in the couple of days before the event, while the Melbourne race almost went the same way after a left calf muscle tear a couple of weeks prior. But I recovered sufficiently on that one to be able to trot around the circuit behind the 2:20 pacers.
The rest of the half marathon and marathon program, to be interspersed with the annual 14K City to Surf and some other miscellaneous shorter events, is:
3. New York (USA) - 20 March 2016
4. Gold Coast - 3 July 2016
5. Auckland (New Zealand) - 30 October 2016
6. Hobart - January 2017
7. Sydney - May 2017
8. Gold Coast - July 2017
9. Great North Run (England) - September 2017
10. Hobart - January 2018
11. Gold Coast Marathon - July 2018
12. Melbourne Marathon - October 2018
13. Gold Coast Marathon (BQ attempt) - July 2019
It’s a tough schedule to try and meet an even tougher target, but I’m still as positive - and realistic - about it as I was at the beginning of this journey. At the moment though, it’s simply a matter of taking one session at a time, trusting in the process, keeping the faith - and, of course, continuing to be accountable to all you out there! Go well.
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