Training Log Archive: blairtrewin

Wasn't all that confident before the start of this, but I can usually tell within the first few minutes whether today is a reasonable day, and knew within the first few minutes that today was a reasonable day. Headed up initially through Bellfield, venturing as far as the Bell Street bridge (the path to the footbridge further south is still closed for works; Bell Street itself is not the dividing line this far east that it is on the west side of the creek), then south again. Quad started feeling a bit troublesome at this point and I thought I might have to work to get to an hour, but a traffic stop at 50 minutes settled it down and I did an extra loop west with a view to getting to 75. That mission was accomplished (although tiring somewhat in the last 10 minutes), which further lifts (slightly) the longest-since-September-2018 benchmark.

Quads definitely told me afterwards that they had been doing some work, and generally pretty tired in the afternoon, but it's nice to be tired because you've been doing some work (even if it's only half of what would have been routine on a non-orienteering Sunday 15 years ago).

Headed to Darebin Parklands with the intention of doing two loops based on the permanent course - first the odd numbers, then the even ones (good way of changing the legs on a map where the controls themselves are mostly pretty straightforward), but knew early on this wasn't going to work out. Got far enough to work out that getting to 7 is problematic when it's been raining (the ditch on the map between it and the main parklands has become a main channel of the creek). I'd also forgotten how muddy some bits of the area get in winter (which, for mud purposes, it now is).

Saw a couple of people (who I didn't recognise) at the start preparing to do the course with maps on their phones - happy to see that.

After the morning false start, went for a ride in the later afternoon after watching today's flavour of football nostalgia, the 1999 Essendon-North game (the best game I've ever watched in person). A false start because it started raining on the way out of the driveway so I thought I'd better go in to get my jacket, whereupon it had stopped by the time I got it on (but restarted again within a few minutes and continued with sleety drops for most of the rest of the ride, so I got that one right). On the Koonung trail as far out as Elgar Road; not as many people out as there would have been on a nicer day, but still a few. Felt OK riding, but the recovery time on the watch (15 hours) is unusually long for a ride, so perhaps something isn't quite right?

C • Watch recovery time 6

A change to the routine today - back in the office for the first time in weeks (mostly to do a media conference on the cold, but also took the chance to get various other things done which are more easily done in the office than from home). The change in routine didn't suit training too well though - original plan was to go out during the day, but realised that fronting up in front of the cameras post-run might not have been the best of ideas (especially had I encountered one of the day's numerous icy showers).

Plan B was to go out once I got home, later than planned because I'd forgotten that in the early part of the evening peak trains that stop at Fairfield only run every 20 minutes and I missed one by 30 seconds. (The trains are still running their normal schedule and are consequently very empty; there were five people on my carriage this morning). And then when I finally did get out, it was immediately clear that I shouldn't have bothered....

Still, I did get to have an in-person conversation with someone I know (the forecasting colleague I did the media conference with) for the first time in six weeks.

Thought this was going to be another failed morning attempt in the first 10 minutes, and had decided to give it away (after getting a look at the swollen-again creek), but after a couple of minutes walking decided I'd have a go at a restart. It worked fine and the next half-hour passed without incident (if still a bit weak and slow), so maybe I should try this again in future if having trouble?

Lunchtime ride after continuing to struggle with morning running. A bit shorter than some of my rides as I had work to get back to, managing to more or less find the gap between rain periods (it was pouring within 10 minutes of my return). Harder climbing through Ivanhoe this time with the lack of a tail wind, but generally a decent ride. The temperature contrast on the front (which I rode through about 10 minutes from the end) was very noticeable - felt like it dropped about 5 degrees within 100 metres, which the observations would tend to back up.

A German word which definitely needs to be introduced to English - from something I was reading today about recent changes in German traffic laws: "Unnecessary noise and exhaust emissions (known as Autoposing in German) will also carry higher fines - up to 100 euros, instead of 20 euros as previously".

Back still rather troublesome today so I wasn't quite sure how this would work out, but the first set of exercises seemed to mobilise it and things functioned more or less OK from there.

The postponement of the 3-Days at least means a year longer before the risk of a chance encounter with the resident of Orange who was reported as attributing the poor growth of trees in her street on 5G. I wonder if anyone's told her that (a) there's been a drought and (b) 5G has not actually made it to Orange yet?

C • 5G 2

Had hoped that the Pilates session would mobilise my body enough to be able to manage a run and it did, just. Definitely in minimum viable session territory this afternoon.

Just in case you thought that Trump followers had a monopoly on stupidity, it was reported today that several hundred deaths in Iran have been attributed to methanol poisoning amongst people who drank bootleg liquor in the apparent belief that it would cure coronavirus.

Back still not recovered today. Hopefully today's massage (and a subsequent meeting exercise walk with a colleague in the Merri Creek parklands) will help.

On the way home, I spotted a flyer 'Free Antifa and Antigovernment Protesters From Russian Prisons'. I support the sentiment but am sceptical that Vladimir Putin is going to pay a great deal of attention to something stuck on a power pole in Preston. (Meanwhile, numerous flyers, without attribution, have gone up in Station Street attacking the council for planning to spend lots of money on the Northcote pool).

Today's distraction-from-historical-weather-research-by-seeing-court-reports goes to the 1952 appearance before the Canberra magistrates of someone described as a "powder monkey" for creating a public mischief. Given his occupation you probably won't be surprised to learn that the public mischief in question was a bomb hoax. (Those who have seen the forecast for later this week can imagine why I might have taken an interest in the last few days of April 1952).

(Update - looks like that link isn't static so try the map instead.)

C • Powde Monkeys 1

C • last few days of April 1952 5