Training Log Archive: Magic

IW. Lovely mild morning and the work at Radyr weir is yet to commence so no diversion to follow. Sometimes simple things make the world a happier place.

HFW. Perfect temperature to be out and about (not so sure that tomorrow will be as enjoyable). Nice and easy until the 'hill' up to Tonwynlais when I pushed on a bit.

Need to get back into doing this - just a few target ankle and core exercises and some foam rolereringing tonight.

Event: Harvester Relays / After Harvester Event
 

Harvester relay, Rushmore, Leg 3, 8.5km, 21 controls.
Area description from the clubs website: "Roughly three square kilometres, it is remote and mostly very runnable but has an extensive path network. There are a number of penned areas allowing for forest regeneration and it is mainly deciduous with undulating contours. A very nice area." Has whoever wrote this ever been to the area????

Team: Will, JonX, me, Ross, Roger, JonM & Daniel. Steady runs from Will and Jon put me out in about 4th about 5 minutes down. Had been warned about the vegetation and to run extra distance around paths before so stuck to that. Unfortunately it made little difference once in the circle as there was still nettles and brambles all over the shop.

Started slow but clean enough (scary 2m nettles to get through on the way to #4). Realsied soon enough that many of the tracks (big and small) were very hard to find in the dark, which was a bit of an issue as once you lost them you were consumed by undergrowth. Took safe routes but lost several minutes at each of #6, 8 and 10 as well of bits of time at #9 and 12. Was running with A SLOW guy all this time as just couldn't get a bit enough gap to break away before hunting for the next control.

Things got worse at #13 when a huge umapped track completely through me, losing time on the leg and then hunting in the bracken for a pit. Caught the SLOW guy up again at the spectator (#17), lost a bit on #18 and got a bit of a lead by #20 but then knocked my head torch off on the way to the last control and consequentially missed it.

Hugely frustrating run, just couldn't find anything cleanly, lost in the region of 8-10 minutes and came back in much the same position as I went out. On the positive side there was lots of easy running as I was actually moving reasonably well on a lot of it and I still managed to enjoy Oing in the dark, but while I appreciate all the work that went into this event, why can't someone put a Harvester on a decent map that's not full of nettles and/or bracken for a change?

Thankfully the competition ran out of depth later in the night allowing JonM to overturn a big time difference and to give Daniel a safe enough lead, which he them smashed to give us a clear win.

Map

Easy trot with Grump, RogerG and DanielS in the hills near to the event. Planning on 20-30 minutes but route was a bit longer than planned, so we extended it a but further... Feeling a bit tired starting but grand once warmed up. Cracking day all in; good company, banter and weather.

Some good memories of WOC 99 (thanks TIO) - not sure about the going blond bit this year though....

This was dead easy, didn't feel like a long run at all, maybe that's because I haven't run since the weekend? Not the most exciting of routes but the promised wet morning was sunny and the promised dry afternoon was wet so as I watched the sun disappear into the cloud I opted to run from home rather than venturing to the hills. Mad humid, but not all that warm, odd.

IW. Passed a sign saying that a part of the Taff Trail is going to be closed from the end of the month for 40 weeks! The only possible diversion here is on dirt tracks which will be rough and wet in the winter and the only other alternative is a long way round on hilly roads :-( Not pleased.

C • WOC selection 4

C • Taff trail 2

Started off very slowly, enjoying the sunny evening and in no rush, but somehow I got progressively faster as I went on, so I was properly ragging it by the end. Don't know why.

IW. Sunny with a following wind, traffic at the end screwed me but otherwise beasted it.

HFW via a massage. Quads felt better for it but my previously non-sore calfs were hurting after. Nice and easy home.

IW. On the road bike as planning on a cycle after work, sooo much smoooother and quicker.

HFW via Bassaleg and Draethen, taking it nice and easy on a lovely mild and sunny evening and very nice to be out, shame that there was so much traffic about. Legs tired on the hills.

C • Route 1