Training Log Archive: philm64

BKO Concorde Chase, Barossa, near Bracknell.
My sort of area!!! Oh yes, Clive's sort of area too. Near Star Posts.....
Routegadget: http://www.bko.routegadget.co.uk/rg2/#107

Foot walkable on 1st thing after 5 hours sleep.

Short Brown,8.3km 215m, 26 controls.
1st 51:53

Calf (left - knotty?) and Achilles (R) - last night's nightmare - seemed "fine" - ish.

Started and immediately felt good and happy. big error at no 7 - overshot; misread big path junction area - 2 minutes lost!!!!!!
Then flunked no 8 (too far left ) & no 9 (went in too early). At this point I had serious doubts that my lack of sleep meant that I had simply lost the ability to actually orienteer? Also, by this point, some white haired M60 was there, but heh! - I'll run him down and burn him off, right?

Ah. Colin Dickson. M60. 3rd, 54mins?

Gapped him 30 m on long path leg; did little loop to find pit, leading him straight to it - 25m of my lead gone. Put boot in - got another 30m lead. But no 13 I think was in wrong place / map was wrong. - lost 30 seconds - we punched together. I said, that's worng, oh yeah I agree he said, no question!

Up hill gapped him again, and luckily for me, that was the end of his challenge to me. He's caught me ? when I cocked up no 7?

Calf started knotting / snitching from here on in, and I was getting tired, and "wooden" Achilles was starting to bother me, but I am nothing if not determined and kept the tempo up, hitting most controls fine, passed Pete Maliphant near end, and coping (just!) with some extremely poor vegetation mapping near the end. Dragged to finish by two young BLack course faster (much faster - depressing) runners

Quite surprised to have won, but let's not forget Clive did sub 68 mins on 11.8km Black course! Jeeeez....

2 lovely compliments after: when talking to officials about no 13, one said, ah - are you Clive Hallett? ( I said I was from Bristol & was leader on the course).
.... and when one of the best ever UK M55s (IMO) says to you, he's happy to be "only" just over 2 mins down on me, that means a lot, thank you!

Nearly puking with exhaustion on way back - luckily Paul drove. straight to bed & sleep when I got in - didn't even shower.

REST need to REST REST REST ..... and do mobility to stave off this calf knotting threat and Achilles pain threat. Well done me. Now STOP.

Garmin: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1034703...

Prov results: http://race-results.info/races/20160131conc/course...

Looking at splits, I was caught 2 mins at no 7 by Colin Dickson, and was well down on Andy Monro at that time, but from 15/16 - just as my calf started "snitching" - I was relentlessly faster than everyone to the end, hence winning. Gosh.

Clive ridiculous. Ridiculous.

Gig at Pontins, Weston super mare.

Left home 3:55pm, got home 1:20am

I make that 9.5 hrs......

RIGHT Achilles (wtf?) suddenly started hurting and by the 2nd set, I could not weight my foot nor use it for walking. Hobbled of the huge stage, barely able to carry gear to car, and of course had to unload car at 1:15am then drive miles, park car, hop/hobble back to house, take loads of ibuprofen and rub foot with lotion to loosen this up. no pain at race earlier in this Achilles. totally weird. But horrible.

Sleep probably just before 2am.

(Gig good - played some insanely blistering solos!) (That aint' working.... money for nothing and your chicks... nowhere to be seen, since you ask, Oh you didn't).

"Aspire" Warmley off road mudbath "10km" (9.85km in October, in drier condition). At least 10.2km this time. Failed to start Garmin at start, due to dog start, and then chatting to people. Oh dear.

2nd.
CONDITIONS: https://www.facebook.com/aspirerunningevents/photo...

DOG RACE: http://fabianyeo.zenfolio.com/p743589464
Video here: https://www.facebook.com/mark.williams.33234571/vi...
- you can see my bald head pootling along , fiddling nwith my Garmin, in bright yellow t shirt in about 7th place/

Calf went a bit funny 5-6km, then eased, but I was pooped.

Winner was 50m up after stupid dog race stopped us at 1st stile. it stayed 50m give or take; I got nearer when he nearly got lost - I shouted him back on course (I'm not "winning" a race through the leader getting lost - no way! May as well take EPO.....)

I was only about 5th at 1km but Alex Hamblin (Westbury) - a 17:36 5km man - was in trainers, so he started skiing, and a North Bristol tri guy who looked VERY good, lost his trainer in the mud. Game over pal!

5km I was 20 seconds down, then felt bad, calf started hurting; eased off but noticed the leader was also slowing! No real effort to catch him - heart wasn't in it & it was so tough. He had legs like tree trunks. Mine were like spindly .... spindles?

Lapped lots of 5 & 10km backmwarkers. with 1km to go, I decided to stop with one girl, and chat to her / jog / walk. I'd simply had enough. She eventually persuaded me to carry on !!!!

Jogged after getting home, to see how calf was - seemed fine structurally - it's all to do with tightness over glutes / hamstrings, I'm sure, and overdoing it. Need a break. DEFINITELY. With more flex work needed.

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1032552...

TCA indoor bouldering with Fenella.

R Forearm still a bit sore. first time I've been for 2 weeks.

Probably a good move - helping rehab sore arm; & stretching out my limbs / legs (needed). Arm sore later. To be expected.

Climbed OK. TIcking over. Is all.

Cycle to gym., sauna shut, no biggie, 1 mile on treadmill (in case of dire need, eg jumping off treadmill with knotted calf), went fine, ventured outside, round greville smyth park, a bit of roads, 9 minutes more. No pain, anywhere, everything seemed wholly intact.


So I declare myself fit for 10km Aspire off road race tomorrow & BKO Level B on sunday (the latter depending on surviving defending my title at Warmley 10km!).

slightly irritating incident on way home detailed on facebook. (cycling)

No job news all week. Shall I give up? I have a new lifestyle now. . . will need a lodger tho, as I'm losing £££ each month.

C • DON'T 3

Nice-ish day, calf felt vulnerable still, tho no distinct pain (yet) - decided on a whim to continue cycling after meeting someone in town. AT least an hour, including 2 coffee stops & a stop to visit a new music shop I happened to notice on my travels.

Tired later - too many races - got into bed and next thing I knew it was dark & I was late & hungry! Oh dear....

No way could I maintain this lot *and* have a job......

Mapometer - 20km!!!! http://www.mapometer.com/cycling/route_4237033.htm...

C • Job 8

Legs fine apart from left calf, which nearly "went" in race last night. Hmmm. May need to cut down for the rest of the week til Concorde Chase on Sunday. I'm drawing too much from the well......?

Bad nights sleep again - always the same after a really hard flat out race. Grim. It's called being "old", I think.

Pottering at home and doing a fair bit of stretching, hoping the wind dies down for later.... ?

Aztec Fast 5km, B&W, first one for 4 months, when I did 18:10 & was delighted. Could I go sub - 18? Not likely? Weather grim all day, legs still tired from multi terrain 10km on Sunday.

Rain & blustery wind, went off like a fool (trying to stay with Mark Ducker), at back of leading pack. At 1km (3:25 - IDIOT), not surprisingly,. felt too much. and was dropped. Badly. Isolated at 1km? Oops.

3:32 km 2, and in limbo. This was looking a bit suspect now. Decided to run "my own race". Well, what else could I do?

3:40 km no 3 - oh dear. Paul Deaton finally caught me. Left calf started knotting with a mile to go, and I was blowing up. Double whammy. 4th km in a desperate 3:41. Breathing shot to pieces, & dying in the road now. Embarrassing, and, frankly, shit. Paul & 3 B&W guys moved away. Hopeless.

Somehow kept my act together (a junior was on my shoulder - and we know how fast they like to finish!). Pre-"kicked" with 200m to go, and it discouraged him enough that I held him off down to the finish (by one second!)

Amazingly, it transpired that I had, indeed, gone sub-18, with 17:58. Despite rubbish pace judgement & vile conditions. Mark Ducker was amazing with 16:58. Garmin - watch didn't seem to start so started it, apparently, 7 or 8 seconds later. It said 17:51.

Calf crampy on warm down jog with Ange. who did a PB of 21:36!!!!
Will work on flexibility over next few days & try to keep knotting at bay.

Beer. I'm very pleased. Not run this fast since 1993 when I ran a north Bristol (Yate?) 5km in about 17:30....... age 29.

33rd out of 156. 1st Vet50. High standard race, but not as high as it usually is. Winning time "only" 15:56..... what have I done? 15:37 in 1989 .... hmmm. Those days are gone.

Garmin: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1029422...

C • Great Run 4

Pretty much hurting everywhere.

TACH MOorland Multi terrain 10km - mudbath as usual.

I have a good record in this race, missed it last year due to illness (cough). 2nd this year (best yet, though field a bit weak), to Clubmate & friend Paul Deaton, in 43:06, my best time on the course yet, though it was slightly changed.
Result: http://www.tach.org.uk/result.php?race=moorland_re...

Paul wasn't very well and nearly didn't start. Found pace at start very easy - jogged into the lead at 1km, Paul ominously bearing down on my leading group.

Paul went away down big hill - I was cautious, in 3rd place, due to hamstring. Flat on the bottom, I decided to go for it & catch him, and by doing so, we gapped everyone, so my surprise. Paul sounded a bit "chesty" / wheezy / rattly, and I entertained thoughts of beating him & winning, or failing that, us running in hand in hand a la London Marathon 1981. No such luck.

Ran with him to 5-6km, when we hit the long (mile?) road section - grim. in studs - I did 3:56 for this km but lost probably 8 seconds to Paul - so he's doing 3:45 ... no chance! I relinquished hopes of a victory.

Feeble on later hills - really quite knackered - sliding everywhere too. Tried to rally in last woody bit, but all too late, but 1st V50 and 2nd overall in decent time, tho course slightly different - will try to compare to 2014 when I think I garminned it?

Main thing is leg seems OK..... I think .....

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1025896...

Previous years: 6th 2013 46:00 (3rd V40)
6th 2014 43:51 (3rd V40)

Note - not a rest day! AT ALL.
slept less than 4 hours (gig was late, got home 1:20, tw*t in room next to mine STILL UP being "hip" and "urban" and "on it, man". **** off?)

ALarm 6am (hope it woke him, too), up, out by 6:50 , drove to G.Combe, headtorch on, started at 7:20, hung 18 controls by 9:45.

Event went OK. I think. Too many people suffered on the green & light green. TOo few on Yellow (not enough beginners - worried O is a dying sport....)

Results: http://www.bristolorienteering.org.uk/sites/defaul...

Great help from Sue, Liz, Paul (non- O-ers), but also: Phil W & Chris Moon (start), Alan Honey (PCs), Trevor Crowe (master mapper), first aiders, and then the show -savers for me & my flagging energy:

TOMMI, CLARE, MATT, DAVE.

You collected the controls (most of them) and this was soooo appreciated, thanks again. Sophie for sweeping the hall!!!!

Went out alone in dusk to get the grippled ones & take down the taped route. Didn't quite need my headtorch again! :-)

Hope it was a success, and people weren't just being polite.

Kebab shop at 6pm.

ON sofa by 7pm, empty beer bottle and half finished takeaway.

Dragged myself up stairs before 8pm.

Goner from 8pm - 8am. 11 hours sleep I'd say.

ZZZZZzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzZZZZZZZ

Walking round goblin combe hanging controls & putting out taped route for my event tomorrow. Took longer that I'd hoped. Tangled tapes added to this! Rain had stopped & it was nice if soft & wet.

Hamstring OK at first but then worsened. Hmmmm.

All I have to do now is play my guitar til midnight, get home 1am, get up 5 hours later, and hang the rest of the controls out!!! Oh well weekends are for living eh?

please support my event : http://www.bristolorienteering.org.uk/events/satur...

Gym - 15 mins / 4.33 km on cross train,er then easy 20 min flat run up portway. (another 4km?)

Sadly, right hamstring still very sore - immediately - downhills a REAL problem. Fine uphlils. If I run "different", ie. spring up with glutes not hammys, it's not so bad.

WTF? I mean, seriously?

Saw Liz after - she thinks I'm overdoing it, but agrees that surely I'd have felt something "go" when running before? as usual, she reckons some slight strain .... nothing "major" (I'd hope not, seeing as nothing happened at all!!!)

L hamstring / calf / leg is absolutely fine.....

Fucked off & worried. What do I do? Spent £8.50 on Moorland 10k entry sunday, really gutted at missing it last year, want to run..... and go for 1st V50 and wine.....

Right Hamstring still pretty sore. Hmm . how did this "happen"? in the same sort of place my bad tear was last Spring.

Foam roller, stretches, cycled to shops. Rest day anyway. Not too worried (yet).

Steady run round park , in Terraclaw, a pain on the road to & from, but fine on soft & frosty grass.

Ran for 20 mins, stretched, turned round & reversed.

Right hamstring sore / "stiff" - dunno why, tedious. Particularly bad on downhills . 5 days til Sunday's big 10k mudfest race. Should be fine.

Legs dead.

Crazy very long run with my club., southville running club. Round Cheddar gorge twice - nearly 3000ft of climb and about a hundred mudbaths in only 10 miles.

Carried a banana with me & ate it. Efforts on hills but otherwise found the pace very easy.

In 2nd hour, hit my stride - hmmmm. (felt sick earlier). Burning off the Ducker, and trying for a decent couple of segments. eg. https://www.strava.com/activities/472350165/segmen...

Wore a lot of clothes & needed them. Felt rather "extreme". OMM training?

Bath & bed when I got in. Pathetic!

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1018044...

Little Stoke ParkRun
With Paul Deaton, very cold / icy - wore gloves, hat, helly. LIght road racers on too, though. Winter course - 3.5 laps of tarmac, Four times up the little "bump", as a result. (not three). Bends were scary with ice, and some parts were like an ice rink, but generally, fast enough going (unlike pomphrey last Saturday!)

Started a bit fast due to being effing freezing. moved into 2nd place after 600m but this was just silly. I'm not 26 any more?

kms 3:35, 3:35, 3:39, 3:41 (slowing as lapping people by going on frozen grassy verges). 3:35. Very consistent but the pain etched on my face was not so consistent. OUCH. Felt almost puk-ey at the end?

Paul & group passed & dropped me at halfway. another younger guy was 20m down for the last mile; he then came hard at me with 250 m to go so I "pre-kicked" & that put him off enough to hold him off. Just. OLD MAN=NO SPEED.

7th 18:09, which compares very favourably to 18:04 in June/July 2014. Age 49 then......

Last 800m pretty agonizing, not fun but worth it for the time?

Results: http://www.parkrun.org.uk/littlestoke/results/late...

Warm down jog then fry up / tea frenzy at mine with Paul & his son Joe.
https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1016444...

TCA bouldering with Liz & Fenella

first climb since Spain, 3.5 weeks ago.

RIght forearm still not right - will probably leave it another 2 weeks minimum, I don't like pain & injury.

Not at all motivated by climbing right now either.
Having said that, a good rest day activity & stretches out so much of the body - high steps, groin stretches, reaching out on tip toes & with arms / chest / shoulders fully expanded - so good generally (shame about the annoying forearm pain). sort of vertical yoga?

Did one hard (yellow) problem - pleasing.

Stick to Running / O. It's the season.

Typical Phil -self-obliterate run midweek. One run like this each week in the week should keep me in order.

Did my Malago route in reverse, bringing in 3-4 decent "hills" in the first few km, plus a 20-second 100m stretch, and a mostly downhill 800m in 3:00. Lots of verges; some efforts on flat roads as well (thinking of doing a ParkRun shortly).

Never really eased off, felt light, fit, strong & full of it. Very wet & slidy in places which suits O & moorland multi terrain 10k (in 10 days time). Shoes hopeless - whatever. they are great on the roads. stability.

Died in last 1km a bit, so eased right off & jogged in, defeated. which was kind of the whole point.

Nothing really hurt so feeling quite charmed right now.

http://www.mapometer.com/running/route_4226941.htm...

Not really intense training, but 2.5 hours in Goblin combe, tagging & checking all my control sites, also gardening some overgrown paths, esp. on the yellow course. So a lot of time spent in the same place, on balance.

after 2 hours I tried to "run" a bit, being overdressed with a bum bag stuffed full of things, this felt more like OMM training. Still, good to be out & on feet for nearly 2.5 hours!

C • This should... 3

oh dear.

BOK Stock Hill Blue course, 6.85km 120m

Car parking duty for 90 mins first. Quite cold & hungry.

Started OK , fluked no 1 slightly, then was OK with bad map en route to no 2.
no 5, biggest error - took the west route on VERY fast path, then somehow got into wrong block of forest - 90 seconds. Fluked no 8 and no 25 (last control - which Clive cocked up), so will take this brief brain-wrong in return for not cocking up elsewhere when I definitely had no Plan B.

Enjoyed the open area to the East - running freely across the grass. My thing! Very quagmire-esque in other areas tho.....

5th. No idea how Rhod Buffett did 41:23. Clive 91 seconds ahead - ah well! Zac Hudd pips me 2 days in a row - dammit!

Good Blue course by Tommi Grover - thanks Tommi! Given conditions, this was as good as it could have been. Nice one, BOK.

Results: http://www.bristolorienteering.org.uk/results/bok-...

Routegadget: http://www.bok.routegadget.co.uk/rg2/#110

C • Thanks 2

Pomphrey Hill Parkrun

Cold & wet - the hill (3 times) was just a quagmire, worthy of a grim XC race. The rest was paved paths, so my Terraclaw was a good idea, the best, but not ideal on 80% of the course. Ran on some verges at times.

Started "slow", but immediately horrendously boxed in, so it totally backfired on me, wasted energy & time extricating myself, then charged after rapidly disappearing "leading" group, inc Zac Hudd, apparently.

1st km in 3:44, about right. and in 8th, catching a couple, but not really bothered.

after 1 lap, I was in 7th, and dropping the 8th guy.

Put "boot" in slightly to get the 7th bloke. then he tore up 2nd hill so fast! took me another 500m to re-catch him. went past.

SOmehow reeled in more guys, til only Zac was left possibly as a target, but I had nowt left so just ran in as hard as I could, so not a flat out race, but definitely a 5 for effort. Last muddy hill I was lapping people , we were all just sliding!

Very pleased with 4th - thought I was in 5th, but heh. the winner reckoned it was a minute slower than usual - I'd say 45 seconds?

Sian did OK, her 2nd time on this course.

Kms 3:44, 4:11 (hill mud), 4:13 (hill mud), 3:38 (quite reasonable), 3:50 for last 911m (hill/mud) (Garmin says 4.91 km - eh?) Whatever.

results: http://www.parkrun.org.uk/pomphreyhill/results/wee...
- 1st in age/grade?

https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1008634...

Very muddy run from gym. Up some reasonable hills, but no "efforts". In yellow mud claws - up from gorge to ashton court (wet; bad patch at 20 minutes), then across to leigh woods, then realising I'm going to be out for way over an hour, down nightingale valley (getting sore now), then last 1.5km really quite grim - walked a bit of it. / bonking a bit due to lack of food due to worsening diabetes :(

Left calf seemed on the cusp of knotting - mental? no Achilles pain.

http://www.mapometer.com/running/route_4222675.htm...

then shower & sauna / big stretch - not sure if this is too little too late - need to get a stretching program in place, or I will start getting calf / Achilles issues. I NEED TO ADDRESS THIS.

ParkRun tomorrow? Hmmm. may just pace it to 20 mins.

Had intended to train today.

But, body was saying, no no no.

Felt really hot & sweaty on my rubbish run yesterday, so decided to rest up & take it easy.

Glad I did.

Steady run round streets of south Bristol.

Felt pretty tired.

Lazy day. Yeah.

Woke late & hungover,. as is right.

Easy / steady moors run from Malham tarn field centre , up & over some hills I ran in 2011/12. Nice; tired a lot in last 10 mins. No biggie.

"Long" run; yet shorter than yesterday's race! :)
https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1004348...

Horrific drive home - nearly 6 hours - accidents on M6. all that way for only one full day & 2 nights - ah well.
It was good!

Tim tett's Malhamdale fell race - my first time racing it. no idea why I watched in 2012 & didn't run.

Good run, though. Good start & dropped Tim on first hill.

Tim re-caught me after he took better route off first hill - well he does know the course! I timed the gap & reckon I'd lost at least 45 seconds. Reeled him in - slowly.

Still together at no 3 - top of Cove - as he was better at dropping down to the bottom than me - some things never change.

Put boot in from there to drop him & attempt to catch Neil N. Forlornly, but going up the Scar I could see Neil looking shaky. I also had a bad patch just before the waterfall. Left calf started cramping. Luckily the ice cold water & scrambling helped me a lot.

FInally got him near the bottom of the last hill, and Alistair pedley was walking up it. Gave it my all but all that happened was I ended up in the mist alone & nervous with no compass. Held it together for the descent & finish, in a good time, only 1:39 off Tim T's Vet50 record (71:10). With perfect route finding, I reckon I could under 72. Next year? Hmmm.
https://connect.garmin.com/modern/activity/1004348...

Winning times around 66mins - Phil W 2nd again by another small margin!
Beaten by both Pattens... easily!

Mikey Adams ran well but don't think his routes were optimal.
Lizzie Adams did this course in 67 mins a few years back - that's the Adams record for this course! :) amazing.

Nice bit of nostalgic bonking after finished, - had to wrap myself round radioator with cups of tea & food - ah, must be the north! Shower & bed.

Travel to Malham

Gig last night good - ended 12:30am; still in bar at 2am talking to singer & her chap; home 2:40; blokes chatting in street outside my house at 2:55am... you know the story.

All quite normal I guess.