Training Log Archive: blairtrewin

I'm not sure if it's the normal practice for some of the real business of IOF meetings to be done on the pre-meeting run (I suspect not given the current composition of IOF Council, although Havard Tveite lifts the orienteering standard level considerably if the Map Commission's also there). It would have been a chilly affair had such been the case: the temperature in Helsinki this morning was -29.

It certainly wasn't -29 in Melbourne this morning as I headed out (and there was a hint of Gippsland bushfire smoke in the air), my body clock somewhat mucked up by the aforementioned IOF meetings (I proceeded to spend significant parts of the afternoon semi-asleep in front of the cricket or tennis). This was the longest run I've tried so far. Didn't exactly feel full of energy and still a long way short of where I would want to be on a not-excessively-warm Sunday - 2 1/2 hours would certainly have been a serious challenge today - but making progress, slowly. Do seem to be a little bit ahead of where I was at the same stage in 2010.

Those who followed the discussion on Prue's log will know about the world record set at Summernats in Canberra for the largest simultaneous burnout (and the bushfire-like smoke cloud which it created). It turns out that this exercise was sponsored by the National Tobacco Campaign under the slogan "burn rubber, not tobacco", although you'd have to wonder which smoke cloud was more carcinogenic.

Up at 5am for an IOF Foot Commission hookup (we go round again at 10pm tonight; I'm in for a rather sleep-deprived weekend). Went for a run after the hookup was over, a somewhat warmer exercise than it would have been for any of the people at the IOF meeting themselves who chose to do likewise (it got down to -29 in Helsinki overnight).

This started to get closer to a normal run, even if it was at the poor end of normal; some creaking muscles but not the rapid fatigue and weakness of Wednesday and Thursday (and on a hillier course too). Perhaps an indication of starting to turn the corner.

The speculated piece in the Australian ended up being watered down (assuming the rumours about its intended contents were correct) - ended up as just a fairly standard piece of News Limited Flannery-bashing and didn't mention us at all.

Keeping some riding in the mix to keep the volume up while I'm still not doing proper long runs on the weekends; headed out at the end of the day, on the sort of evening when summer becomes once again something to be enjoyed rather than endured (although, with no meaningful rain for a month and none in the forecast, there's starting to be a lot of crunchy brown grass out there). Struggling to get much energy for this, although improved in the second half, and seemed to get more than my share of red lights.

I didn't see the Lance Armstrong interview (and wasn't surprised by the reported contents). This morning was the first time I've discussed such things with my next-door neighbour, who was a promising American cyclist a couple of years behind Lance (and a contemporary of Tyler Hamilton). In the end he saw what it was going to take to get to the very top level, decided he didn't want to go there, and effectively retired at 22.

Swim at Fitzroy. Felt smooth but not at quite the pace that I've managed in some recent swims. More busy than usual this morning, although definitely not as busy as it would have been 12 hours earlier (or 800 kilometres northeast).

My quads felt as if they'd run about twice as far in the preceding two days as they actually had. Normally they would have run about twice as far.

Didn't get quite as much of what I'd planned to get done at work as I'd anticipated - got sidetracked by other things (i.e. hitting F5 on the current Sydney and Canberra observations pages every 10 minutes). Didn't do much media - mostly handled out of NSW.

Rumour has it that a certain well-known national newspaper is planning to run a hit piece tomorrow about us allegedly exaggerating extreme events to push the government's climate change agenda, or something like that. I really hope they go ahead with this - they'll come out looking ridiculous if they do.

Sometime I'll be back to breaking the 2-hour mark on Thursday mornings, but for the time being this was plenty, in the admittedly not-very-inspiring surrounds of Fishermens Bend (where I'd taken my car to get serviced). Felt sluggish throughout and distinctly tired in the second half - much as I normally would in the last 20 minutes of a not-very-good Thursday run in normal times. I keep telling myself that the first couple of weeks after a long layoff are always ugly and that this should feel much better in two weeks' time. Once again, no issues with the knee - a bit of lower back tightness early but that eased quickly.

I can't even blame the weather, as it started quite cool before starting its march towards 41 later in the morning.

Street-O comeback at Glen Iris. The good news is that the knee was fine on its longest non-terrain test so far, the bad news is that fitness-wise it was a real struggle - not as slow as I'd feared but didn't feel like I had much more in me, particularly on the small climbs which felt like mountains in the second half. The first couple of weeks of a comeback are always tough and this is no exception; in the absence of proper training I revert quickly to my natural state, which is probably indicated by my placing halfway down the field in the Year 7 school cross-country. Didn't miss anything and seemed to get a good route (and was disappointed to pass up the 'children's maze' control), but at the speed I was going I'd want to get the route choice right.

Slowly building my way back into running training with the plan of running 5 days this week, today not being one of them. Instead headed for the familiar grounds of Fitzroy. Working pretty well; sun glare a significant nuisance today.

For those who remember the 2004 Kazakhstan trip, it may be of interest that a place just down the track from the mountain lake we spent a couple of days at managed to get down to -59 in late December; I knew it had the potential to get seriously cold, but perhaps not quite that cold.

I've also had a chance to reflect a bit on the results in New Zealand in general. The World Cup results were probably about as expected (Fel making the biggest advance), and while it was disappointing to go so close in the Challenge and not break through for a long-awaited away win, we got closer than I think most expected. I was quite pleased with the junior performances in particular; we didn't win many classes, but after the first couple of days we weren't getting blown away either, contrary to what might have been expected from the results of the last Australian Schools.

Early-morning trip up Bluff Hill in Napier with Jenny before starting the drive to Wellington. Did this sooner after getting up (and with less in my stomach) than usual and thought I might suffer for it, but not too bad. Grinding up the steep climb but felt a bit stronger than in most of this week;s races. Knee also stood up to the steep descent on asphalt coming off the hill, which is pleasing.

Now at Wellington Airport about to head home.