Training Log Archive: blairtrewin

At North Melbourne in the name of logistics later in the day - first time I've been there a while (it hasn't changed much). Felt pretty good in the pool and seemed as if I was working OK, sometimes a challenge for me for a session in the water.

Spotted a place during the day by the name of the Melbourne Sports Medicine and Anti-Aging Clinic; amongst the services they advertised were "sports pharmacology" and "sports performance peptides". I suspect that ASADA might have a certain amount of interest in their client list should the opportunity arise.

I'm probably still a bit away from running (as confirmed by the physio later in the day), but this was a reasonable morning in the pool, on a day which threatened to be hot but never quite managed it (I think it would be fair to say that we've been admiring the numbers coming out of NSW and the ACT, whilst being grateful that generally speaking we haven't been subjected to them ourselves).

C • Numbers 11

Shortish ride up the Maribyrnong from Footscray on my way to pick the street-O controls up from Margi and Ted's place. Once I'd picked my way through the non-obvious detours around a couple of building sites, got onto the river path, which seemed OK in theory but is rather narrow and attracts a fair bit of pedestrian traffic on a sunny Sunday morning (some of it on four legs and, predictably, illegally off-leash). Never really felt as if I could relax and settle into a rhythm.

Did manage to get a few things done today - met with Aston and Max to do the on-paper checking of the courses for the Vic Relays (they're setting, I'm controlling), then went on to check control sites for Wednesday night's event. Also managed to fit a few hours work in between that (wondering in the process what's happening at Festival Hall which led to a steadily growing queue building there throughout the day).

And, just to prove that more than one government can do ridiculous things, the Russian parliament has voted to decriminalise domestic violence (unless it's done more than once a year).

C • Reminds me of that obnoxious old hillbilly song 1

An out-and-back along the Koonung path (bits of which I'll see more of in the next few days because I'm setting a street-O in the area on Wednesday). Felt all right but noticeably slower than last time I did this. Lots of people out (mostly on foot) despite being out earlier than I usually would be on a Saturday; sometimes they took a bit of dodging.

Trying not to get too perturbed by the latest goings-on on the other side of the Pacific. So far they seem to be going after the regulators more than the science agencies themselves (and - unsurprisingly - a lot of what's happened so far seems to involve management second-guessing what Trump wants rather than any actual directives from the administration), but no guarantees that that will continue.

In the pool. More comfortable with the belt set-up this time, and a fairly smooth session on the whole. Feel as if the hamstring problem area is improving, slowly, although not totally out of the woods yet.

Heading out on the bike to get something a bit longer. This was actually a bit longer than I'd planned (out to the Ring Road path at Watsonia, across to the top end of Reservoir and then back south) but not complaining about that. Broken up a bit by traffic lights in the last third, but not a lot of vehicles around (in fact, sometimes the problem was not having any vehicles to trigger the aforementioned lights), as you'd expect for 8am on a day that's a holiday for most.

An earlier-than-usual start. Steady early, seemed to be drifting out of it a bit later but did find something for the end. I'd rather be running, but that's going to have to wait for a bit.

Like yesterday, heard words at an intersection on the way home, but this time it was someone trying to convince people to repent (accompanied by someone else handing out leaflets to the same effect).

C • Repent? 1

Morning session based on Merri Creek. Fairly similar session to the last two with a bit of minor niggle most of the way which became a little more prominent on the few small climbs. It will be my last run for a bit, though, because the physio (who I saw tonight) is not entirely comfortable with my progress and wants me to back off running for a week or so, so I'll be taking to the bike and the pool for the time being - hopefully that will be a short-term phase, if only because I suspect Geneva in February is a suboptimal cycling environment (even if I can get hold of a decent bike).

Riding home, someone pulled up next to me at traffic lights and opened their window. I was wondering what I'd done to upset them and was preparing for a torrent of abuse, so I was a little taken aback when what he actually said was "you have really good calves". (Given the trouble I've had with them in recent months I'm not sure I'd agree with that). They do look more impressive than they actually are, partly a legacy of my 2002 compartment syndrome surgery.

C • really good calves 2

At Fitzroy, after having had something resembling a proper night's sleep for the first time in four nights. This was the first session with the new flotation belt and I haven't quite got it set up right to fit in the right place (given it's more buoyant than the last one), which resulted in a bit of chafing. Not a bad session though.

This morning's IOF session was even earlier than yesterday's (starting at 5). This meant in turn that I was ready to run earlier on Sunday than I normally would be (except on really hot days), being out on the streets by 7 on a gorgeous morning. Hamstring was at niggle level throughout (a bit worse on the few hills) but didn't seem to be impeding me at all - perhaps I was just enjoying myself in the nice conditions.

It's fairly full-on at work at the moment (I'm trying to get a project finished before heading off on 6 February), and I've worked through this weekend - my one concession to its being a weekend was stopping off at one of Fairfield's numerous cafes on the way to the station. (The plus is that you get more done with no distractions, the minus is that the view out over the bay on a sunny day is a constant reminder of what you're missing out on). I've probably got at least one more such weekend, perhaps two, to look forward to - may well end up going close to a month without a proper day off.

Early start after an IOF Foot Commission meeting. Decided to try running again even though I hadn't seen many signs of improvement when sitting down or doing other activities which aggravate it. Worked out more or less OK - noticed a bit of a niggle, but nothing which got in the way of running too much. Made sure I chose a dead flat course - will give it a few days before testing myself on anything more ambitious, given past experience with this injury.

Didn't sleep terribly well overnight, mostly because heavy rain was forecast and I was paranoid that I'd have leaks again like after Christmas (although in reality, the rain rate was probably closer to 0.2mm/minute than the 2mm/minute we got in that event).

The serious rain had cleared by the time I got to the pool, but it was still showery enough to keep most people away. The plan was a pool running session but when I got there I discovered the belt wasn't in the car - must have left it behind the last time I did such a session - so a swim it was instead. Reasonably steady session although drifted out of it a bit at the end.

Recording a video interview on bushfires and climate change took a couple of hours out of my morning, so it was a bit of a pity that it doesn't seem to have seen the light of day - presumably overtaken by events (the reporter who recorded it turned out to be on the scene at Bourke Street a couple of hours later). The events of the afternoon were very sad, and so was the willingness of too many people to jump to conclusions about them in the absence of any evidence, or to use the tragedy as an opportunity to push their political barrow - whether it related to guns (Leyonhjelm), law and order (Hinch) or Muslims (too many to mention).

Morning hit-out on the Yarra Boulevard, feeling as inadequate as I often do at this venue. Felt very sleepy to start with (wouldn't have been the easiest of runs, I suspect, despite the excellent conditions), but gradually picked up.

Still not ready to take to the trails or the pavements; in the water again, a bit later than usual after a late night at the cricket last night. Some goggles-related annoyance (as well as one coming together with a somewhat disoriented backstroker), but a decent second half.

I suspect the pool would have been somewhat more crowded had it been in Sydney, where it was 36.5 degrees at 9am - easily a record (by 2.8 degrees if you only consider the daylight savings era).

There was also the news that the renovations to the Fitzroy changerooms (which we've been expecting for a while) are starting in a couple of weeks. This might mean I visit here a bit less often while the works are on - if the temporary facilities during the Ivanhoe renovations are anything to go by, they won't be up to much. Should be good once it's done, though.

Read a story in the Economist today, about China's relationship with Sri Lanka, which made reference to the Sri Lankan Minister for Ports, one Arjuna Ranatunga. One wonders if any of the sledging he gets in the political arena matches up to what he got on the cricket field (those of a certain vintage will remember Ian Healy's "you don't get a runner for being a fat c**t").

C • What's the difference... 8

Thought after yesterday's discussion that it was worth trying a flat run. The hamstring was OK on completely flat ground (although I didn't feel brilliant otherwise) but hurt on the first small bump it hit. I want to get this right so think it best to give it a bit more time to settle down.

I may be feeling somewhat frustrated at the moment on the injury front, but some correspondence I got today placed such #firstworldproblems in perspective - in the form of a report from the direction of the national climate service of a small African country. She apologised that the report only covered January-November and that she didn't have December information because she'd fled the country, in fear that civil war will soon erupt. (The should-be-former President was defeated in an election a few weeks ago but has refused to accept the result, and the winner has said he's going to go ahead with the inauguration next week anyway. Could get ugly, depending on which horse the people with the guns back).

Hamstring somewhat improved today but still a bit sore. Didn't consider running pending a date with the physio, instead taking to the pool. It was a little sore there initially, too, but improved once going. Brilliantly sunny morning with lots of glare.

The physio thinks that the hills on the weekend were what set it off (I'm guessing the increase in speed at the end of Saturday may also have contributed). Should be OK to do at least something on the flat. It's a bit frustrating to have a string of injuries like this, but looking at Shep's log reminds me that things could be worse.

It is going to be a big week on the climate front - the official global temperature figures for 2016 are coming out on Wednesday night. No idea why NOAA and NASA might be so keen to get their numbers into the public arena before Friday.

C • Black Friday 3

The upper hamstring twinge from late yesterday made its presence felt overnight - it's never a good sign when something hurts enough to wake you up during the night. I wasn't particularly confident, but it felt sort of OK warming up on the flat so I decided to start and see how it went. Knew within the first 1.5km that I was in trouble, but thought I'd get to the top of the hill (in this part of the field, you mostly have to walk the steepest parts whether you like it or not, because of congestion on the single track) and see if it improved at all once over the top. The answer was that it didn't really and was uncomfortable on any sort of slope both up and down - felt like the sort of thing that I could probably struggle on with if it really mattered, but not worth it for what was clearly going to be a poor time, even compared with expectations.

It's getting frustrating that a new injury seems to pop up each time it looks like the last one's fixed. (It's also a pity to waste conditions as good as you'll ever get in January). I know that's part of getting older but not everyone falls apart. Seeing the physio tomorrow so will see what she thinks.

C • Dam 5

C • Its only the fortunate that don't fall apart 8

Event: Melbourne PAS Surf Coast Series 2 - Point Lonsdale
 

Surf Coast series event at Point Lonsdale, (sort of) on the way to Two Bays. Started out on the sand dunes and beach before going back into the town. Felt like a struggle for the first half, but gradually improved and the competitive juices got going in the last 15 minutes as I tried to fit as many controls in as I could (although the top of the right hamstring produced a signal when I sped up a bit). Still not too sure about tomorrow, but we'll see how it goes.

Initially planned my route more for scenery than points (it was a score event), but did end up getting all ten 15-point controls, mostly leaving out areas in the north which were more suburban and not particularly high-scoring.

By being on the Bellarine side of the bay this afternoon, we missed the opportunity to partake of the Portsea Polo. This is one of Melbourne's more notable festivals of poshness - the sort of place where you're definitely slumming it if you arrive in your own vehicle (a chauffeur-driven one is acceptable, but those who really count make their entrance by helicopter). Coming off the boat at Sorrento, we saw two stretch limos in rapid succession disgorging occupants in a range of states of inebriation.

Back to Fitzroy for this session for the first time in a while, getting moistened from above as well as below (although only lightly for the most part). A reasonably routine morning; felt like something was threatening to cramp at the end (as it occasionally does in this session) but not too bad.

There was a large and rather obtuse climate sceptic ad in today's Australian on behalf of somebody calling themselves the Climate Study Group. I'm not quite sure why you'd pay good money to publish such an ad when the Australian is already printing plenty of their stuff for free.

From Fishermans Bend (car being serviced today) down to St. Kilda. After the first couple of kilometres, a consistent run without reaching great heights, on one of the better mornings we've had for a while (i.e. temperature and dewpoint were both close to January averages). Not exactly a good replica of what's to come in terms of its topography (the only "hills" were going over the footbridge opposite the Espy, and the bump on Fitzroy Street which feels big when you hit it at the 37k mark of the Melbourne Marathon but is inconsequential at any other time), but at its best in the last couple of kilometres which is encouraging.

Better than yesterday, which I guess is progress (it was a little less humid, which helps). Took to the terrain this time on Aranda Hill/Black Mountain - moving reasonably smoothly through the terrain, without a lot of speed or taking on much in the way of serious hills. Wore a few spider webs, but no grass seeds, which meant my advance planning was unnecessary (I'd brought a pair of socks full of holes which I was intending to throw out).

Not one I'll put in my list of highlights - felt sluggish throughout and especially so on any sort of hill (and the hills on this one were reasonably gentle - lower slopes of Black Mountain - although numerous). Something which may or may not be connected is that I felt very sleepy last night and could (and perhaps should) have gone to bed by 8.30. Will certainly want to be in better shape on Sunday, even though getting to the other end of the course without completely falling to bits is pretty much the limit of my ambitions.

Humid by Canberra standards.

At Northcote, where even the outdoor pool was at 29.something degrees after the weekend's heat. A consistent swim if not particularly fast. Didn't feel very awake when I started but better later on.

A new one for me - joining a recently established lunchtime running group from work (I don't do a lot of running at lunchtimes and even less in the last few months), down to Port Melbourne and back. Felt like I was moving reasonably well once warmed up, although dropped into a bit of a hole in the group coming back because the fastest few wanted to go faster than I wanted to go on a recovery day. Still worth doing.

Up in Canberra now for a couple of days (again for work). Took a somewhat unusual route into Canberra (over Wee Jasper) because of storms over the Snowy Mountains.

C • Wee Jasper 3

Great moments in sports governance: from Wisden 2016.

"Formerly known as Seeduwa Raddoluwa, the club were taken over in 2011 by the Sri Lanka Ports Authority, whose chairman, Priyath Bandu Wickrama Munige, became their president and had played two first-class matches for them with the aim of qualifying to compete for office at Sri Lanka Cricket. He could have captured a wicket with his first delivery, on debut against Colombo in 2012-13, aged 39, but dropped a return catch offered by Nimesh Perera".

(I seem to recall that sometime in the 1990s, the Brisbane Bears organised for a 40-something to sit on the bench for Southport in the last game of the season in order to qualify his son for father-son selection under the rules that existed at the time?).

Organisational teams are fairly common in the subcontinent. The Pakistan Power and Water Development Authority are pretty useless at their core business of supplying electricity and water, but their cricket team's good...

It was Melbourne's fourth-hottest night on record. I wasn't sure how I'd respond to the conditions (nudging 30 at 6am), so decided to commit myself to an hour or so and then see how it felt after that. Didn't feel too bad running initially, but was clearly losing water faster than I could put it in, and weakening noticeably towards the end. Would have liked to have got another long run under my belt, but at least last Sunday is in the bag, and the conditions next weekend will be a lot kinder than this.

Hasn't been the most enjoyable of weekends, thanks mainly to being beaten up (metaphorically speaking) by a couple of climate change sceptics as a result of an article I wrote which was published on the Conversation on Friday. One of them is up to 35 comments (and counting), at least a few of which are possibly bordering on defamatory, but I've got better things to do with $100K than spend it on legal fees putting that to the test.

C • Are you doing two bays? 7

I've just posted some of the best long-term National League performers. As you'd probably known I also have a taste for the obscure, so here's a list of all the Australians who have won exactly one senior race each:

Men - Bryan Keely, Chris Naunton, Gareth Candy, Jock Davis, Michael Derlacki, Stephen Craig.

Women - Aislinn Prendergast, Alix Young, Belinda Allison, Bridget Anderson, Danielle Winslow, Ljubov Simson, Orla Murray, Sophie Barker, Susanne Casanova.

Bryan and Aislinn were perhaps the two who surprised me most on that list. (Jock and Ljubov's best years were mostly before the NOL started, and Steve spent most of his elite career in Sweden).

Cassie has the family bragging rights - she has three wins and I have two.

C • NOL 7

A warm morning. Did some exploration along the Darebin Creek on opposite sides to those which I usually go on (which involved a few fairly rough tracks and one scramble up an embankment). Nondescript start, but by the last 15 minutes I was moving as well as I have at any time since returning from injury - an encouraging sign for tomorrow, although the degree of difficulty will be considerably higher tomorrow both in conditions and in distance.

Out early with thoughts of doing anything from 60 to 90 minutes depending on how I felt. Back was pretty marginal for the first 20 minutes and I thought seriously about turning around, but with no hills on this route in the first 5.5k (down to the Gipps Street bridge) I decided to press on and see how it went. Was a bit apprehensive about the Walmer Street hill, but handled it OK - this must have done something for my confidence because the last 20 minutes felt pretty good (although still rather slow).

With an 8am media engagement (annual climate statement day) it would have been hard to find enough time for a long run even without last night's issues. Took to the pool instead, feeling through the first half as if trying to go for a run wouldn't have been an especially pleasant experience, but woke up eventually.

You learn something new every day: amongst the offences which led to Ned Kelly's first prison term was sending a cow's scrotum through the post. (Apparently he was trying to send a message to a neighbour with whom he was aggrieved).

C • Cows don't have scrota. 3

Another night of frustration - the back/hamstring/buttock issue (which the physio has pinpointed to the top of the hamstring) may be fine to run on in the mornings, but it didn't like trying to run on it after a day spent sitting at a desk (which may indicate I need to do less sitting). Can't say I was really in the mood to start with on a night when the humidity is back, although Mooroolbark seems like it would be a nice area to run on a good day.

The course was certainly one to keep you thinking - I was still trying to pick between several possible options at the point when I pulled out.

This is territory I don't venture into terribly often. Stopped in Croydon to get some milk on the way home and saw a sign on exiting the centre car park 'please come back soon'. I think it's something like 20 years since I was last there - whether it will be another 20 years before I'm back is an open question.

Least surprising news of the day: the limited edition Dave Warner Century Before Lunch commemorative bat is already on sale. Didn't check whether they cost more or less than an OLED TV.

From the south end of Northcote up Merri Creek, taking in lots of flood debris (including a big tree across the bike track - somehow I don't think a tree across a road would have stayed untouched for four days), then back through the suburbs.

Didn't feel that great before starting, after a late night getting home from Geelong last night, but worked out OK. Similar to Sunday, not sparkling but fairly steady, taking advantage of the least humid conditions since before Christmas. Again a bit of DOMS in the quads early on - part of me is saying that it's a positive indication of a good day's work on Sunday, another part of me is wondering what it's going to be like after the first big downhill in two weekends' time.

Different world department: was reading today about how after Dick Reynolds won his third Brownlow Medal in 1938, Essendon weren't sure that they would be able to keep him because he'd lost his (day) job and they hadn't been able to find him another one - in similar circumstances in more modern times you'd think that club sponsors would be queueing up to offer him a job (probably not one involving actual work). In that era, and for some time thereafter, the VFL had a strict maximum on player payments (one too low for being a professional to be a viable option), and it was relatively common for players to move interstate or to the country towards the end of their careers - one of my great-uncles, a premiership player at Essendon in the 1940s/50s, retired to take up a better-paying offer to coach in the Ballarat league.

Northcote on a drizzly morning - swimming in the outside pool (something I don't think I've done before here) with the indoor area being crowded. Felt OK for the most part but rather slow. The dreaded foot cramp made a brief appearance later on.

Made what's becoming an annual trip down to Geelong for Melbourne Victory's annual match there (the locals must think soccer's full of goals - last year it was 3-3 and this year it was 4-2). Original thoughts involved one of the local beaches but it wasn't really a beach day, so instead meandered around back roads, taking in the Brisbane Ranges - perhaps surprisingly my first trip there. This was one of the earlier orienteering areas in Victoria but hasn't been used since the 1980s because of access issues related to dieback; we'd heard on the grapevine that the authorities might be receptive to parts of it being used again, but I didn't see a lot that inspired me (much of the area close to the road was burnt out in about 2007 and has grown back thickly).

Ended up doing a run in Torquay along the coast to the east - mostly on a track which turned into a dirt road, out to Point Impossible. It turns out that Point Impossible is a nude beach but no nudity was on display - it was far too cool for Australian nudists (I doubt if German ones would be deterred). Original thoughts were to come back along the beach but the tide was up, so returned the way I came. Felt a bit sluggish and quads tight early, which reflects that this is the first post-long run run for a while.

Got off the mark for 2017 by hitting two hours for the first time since September (rogaines excluded) - not going through to midnight last night had its benefits, although I didn't sleep that well in an unfamiliar bed. (The carpet's still drying out in my normal one, although it should be OK by tomorrow).

A solid morning's efforts without getting much sparkle, initially along the river and then up through the bottom end of Macleod and Rosanna (seeing in the process the evidence of the flooding on Salt Creek a couple of days ago - must have been at least a metre over Lower Plenty Road from the debris marks). Had a bad patch around 12-14k, coinciding with the warmest and sunniest period of the run, but came good and did a reasonable job of grinding up the biggest hill of the day coming out of Rosanna. As to whether I'll be up to finding another 45 minutes or so in two weeks' time - I guess we'll find out on the day.

No significant injury issues on the run itself, but the sore buttock sitting down was a bit sorer than usual post-run.

C • You have carpet in your bed? 2