Training Archive: blairtrewinIn the 7 days ending 2008-09-21:
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| M | T | W | H | F | S | S | |||||||
Sunday Sep 21 | ||
| Run race ((orienteering)) 1:30:41 [4] *** 12.6 km (7:12 / km) +420m 6:10 / km | |
| spiked:17/19c | ||
| Queensland Championships. Another day, another fifth (and another close race with Darren Ashmore - after a dead-heat yesterday he beat me by 5 seconds this time). Probably a better run than yesterday, but a long race in the heat was a tough proposition and for much of the second half I felt like I was on the outer edges of what I was capable of sustaining physically. Only one mistake of any size, 45-60 seconds on 9 in the green.
The area was greener than what I was expecting before the start of the week, although not as bad as initial reports from the early starters suggested - in particular light green on the creek flats was quite runnable. A lot of people struggled today. Thought I was going through Eric out of 14 but it was actually Steve Todkill; also caught Bruce (who's coming off a long layoff) towards the end. A bit frustrating to narrowly miss the placings again, but if the breakthrough comes next Saturday I won't be complaining. Thought Simon might have been a bit more than 6 minutes ahead of me. It was a good day for the old men again, with four of the top five eligible for M35 (Grant, Craig, Darren and myself). Had a glitch at the start - picked up two maps and hurriedly dropped the second. I don't think I can claim it cost me 5 seconds. Did a bit of scaring of small (well, mid-sized) children on the way to the start, by telling the group of Queensland W16s I was running to the start with stories of Kapamahunga. This was prompted by someone commenting on a brief downhill en route - I responded that they didn't know what a downhill trip to the start looked like. (Kapamahunga's was something like 200 metres descent in 1k). | ||
| C • Telling stories of the old days, huh? 2 | ||
| C • Was it just me ? 8 | ||
Saturday Sep 20 | ||
| Event: 2008 Australian Championships | ||
| Run race ((orienteering)) 41:31 [4] *** 6 km (6:55 / km) +225m 5:50 / km | |
| spiked:14/19c | ||
| Australian Middle Distance Champs. Not the best physical race I've ever run - was feeling the heat (28) despite the modest distance, and certainly appreciated the drinks control. A reasonable race technically; a few wobbles (some of them not entirely unintentional in an area where aiming off when heading for the creeks and erosion detail wasn't a bad strategy), but nothing bigger than 15 seconds or so. A more interesting area than I was expecting, with lots of low visibility around the creeks. Reasonably happy with the result (5th); only 32 seconds away from the placings, and will hopefully have a few shots at minor placings in the longer races (although Simon looks untouchable). | ||
Friday Sep 19 | ||
| Note | |
| (rest day) | ||
| Travel day up to Queensland, first Brisbane and then Hervey Bay (via a visit to our Brisbane office). We're used to bumping into familiar faces all the times at major orienteering events once you get to (insert whichever small town is the host), but I wasn't quite expecting to see any at Brisbane Central in the middle of the day (the Doyles). | ||
Thursday Sep 18 | ||
| Run 1:01:00 [3] 12.3 km (4:58 / km) | |
| Around the Yarra from Hawthorn pre-massage. Not for the first time this week, took a long time to get into any sort of running rhythm but improved as it went on, with a pretty good last 15 minutes. A nice morning for it (if not particularly useful for Queensland heat acclimatisation), and a reasonable final hit-out before things get under way in Queensland.
The only thing that surprises me about today's events in Swanston Street is that it's taken this long for a cyclist to get killed there. It was my usual route when I was living in Albert Park and I crashed twice there (once being my (in)famous 1998 altercation with a horse and cart). For those who are unfamiliar with it, cyclists have to take their chances alongside tour buses that use it (mostly legally) as a car park, trams, couriers and delivery vehicles (mostly illegal), out-of-town drivers who don't realise they're not supposed to be there, wandering pedestrians, and the occasional horse. The council has been talking about moving the main hazard, the tour buses, out for years but has continually buckled in the face of pressure from business interests - perhaps something will finally happen now. One would hope that if they had a conscience said business interests won't sleep well tonight, but as not having a conscience is generally part of their job description I suspect they will. | ||
Wednesday Sep 17 | ||
| Run race 13:46 [4] 3.83 km (3:36 / km) vdot: 55.3 | |
| The Tan. About the only positive thing that could be said about this run was that it was faster than last time, as it should have been, given that there was at least a semblance (if only a semblance) of an opposition this time, the conditions were perfect and nothing else got in the way. Got off to a slow start, passably strong up the hill but no real pace after that. On the 9%-behind-PB benchmark par for me at the moment should be somewhere in the 13.20s, so this was a long way outside it.
Made it in time for the 12.25 bunch this time but discovered that it wasn't much of a bunch - I was leading it by 1k (although got overrun by a couple at the end). In times gone by you'd have been 30 back going at the sort of pace (or lack thereof) I was. I found out afterwards that 12.30 is the new 12.25. Km splits: 3.35, 3.43, 3.37, 3.34. | ||
| Run warm up/down 30:00 [3] 6.5 km (4:37 / km) | |
| To/from the Tan. Felt pretty reasonable warming up, which makes the subsequent performance a bit harder to fathom. | ||
Tuesday Sep 16 | ||
| Run 1:20:00 [3] 16.4 km (4:53 / km) | |
| A run of two halves, flat and listless for the first half, flowing increasingly well in the second. Hopefully the second half is a more representative sample of what's to come than the first. This was the last run of any significant length before Queensland.
The far point of this run (which started near work) was Windy Hill, which is in somewhat better shape than Glenferrie (presumably at least in part because VFL and first-grade cricket are still played there). Something I wasn't expecting to see was a queue outside the Essendon social club which had clearly been in place (with chairs) for some time (and getting the full force of the westerly in the process). I presume they were in search of preliminary final tickets but wouldn't have thought you would need to go to those lengths to get them (especially at a club that didn't get anywhere near the preliminary final). The short ride from my parking spot in Arden Street (I've got something on in the area tonight) to work had more obstacles than usual, ranging from flooding on the Moonee Ponds Creek path - probably a storm surge backing up from the bay as there was little rain - to a later part of the path being dug up. Didn't have to dodge anyone jumping off the roof of the National Australia Bank building. | ||
Monday Sep 15 | ||
| Swimming 32:00 [2] | |
| After having ventured into the Hawthorn pool for the first time last week, I was there again today, this time because tonight's run is in that direction. The pool has seen better days (as has the adjacent Glenferrie football ground - it's hard to imagine that it ever hosted matches in the old VFL), but it's decrepit in an endearing sort of way, and a nice enough spot to swim. On a day as windy as today, the collection of gum leaves on the bottom was also reminiscent of swimming in the backyard. Felt quite strong, but not especially fast. | ||
| Run 44:00 [2] 8 km (5:30 / km) | |
| A new venue for Monday night, from Susannah (and Owen)'s new place in Glen Iris. This is not quite unexplored territory for me - I occasionally find my way here at the far end of long runs - but still not especially familiar. It is unexplored territory for many others (and still is because a few of the regulars didn't make it).
It would have been more interesting had it been a couple of hours earlier (and I would have got the chance to see what a 109 km/h tailwind feels like on a bike). As it happened it was quite a nice run after a slow start, with no sign of stiffness from the weekend. Spent a fair bit of it giving James a crash course on how to argue with climate-change denialists (whose influence might be a bit less now that Malcolm Turnbull is Liberal leader). | ||