Training Log Archive: blairtrewin

A pretty disappointing effort - I was hoping for a 36 and expected something under 37 as a minimum. Didn't feel too bad, just ran slowly. Can't blame the conditions (perfect) and can't blame the course (just about dead flat). Might be able to blame overdoing it a bit yesterday but that's self-inflicted. Also a rather thin field, but spent much of the second half trying to run down the person ahead of me (and, after finally succeeding 1.5k from home, he went through me again in the last 100).

Km splits: 3.40, 3.42, 3.47, 3.44, 3.45, 3.45, 3.53, 3.53, 3.51, 3.46.

Two laps of the Yarra Bend terrain loop with Bruce and Rob Lewis (for the first loop). Wasn't going too hard because I've got a 10k to prepare for tomorrow. Felt good on the first lap but lacked energy on the hills the second time around - despite this ended up doing the same time for each loop (43). Bruce decided to go for it on the second loop and ran away from me.

Didn't feel great before I started, but gradually built into it and got better and better over the course of the run, particularly after halfway. Had several patches in the last 40 minutes where I was flowing and felt almost detached from the surroundings, a sign that a run is going seriously well. A definite boost to confidence after a few so-so days.

Had my first significant encounter with a magpie for the spring, in the somewhat unlikely setting of the West Heidelberg industrial estate (perhaps it was attracted by the smell of the Chocolatier Australia factory). They are neither as common nor as dangerous as Canberra magpies (Collingwood supporters are another matter altogether).

(if you're wondering why I was running in the West Heidelberg industrial estate, a few hundred metres spent traversing it is the price paid for several very nice kilometres in Bundoora Park and Latrobe Uni).

Clocked up 98,000 career kilometres this morning - hoping to crack the six figures sometime around January/February. My car's on 95,000 so it's touch and go which will get there first.

C • Major Service.. 6

Another not-particularly-inspiring run in a not-particularly-inspiring week. Hip a bit more of a nuisance than in recent days.

The Tan, 13.24. Km splits 3.31, 3.38 (uphill), 3.30, 3.27.

Again felt a bit on the flat side, particularly in the first half. Fought it out pretty well in the end (7 seconds behind the time from two weeks ago at 2k, but only 8 seconds down at the end). Definitely a loss not having Bruce there to chase - fell between two packs and was on my own for quite a bit of it. Mild again which meant plenty of people to dodge again (seemed to be an inordinate number of pram-pushers today, not sure why as school holidays aren't until next week and most of the kids visible weren't of school age anyway), but I don't think that has any real impact on times.

There was a bit of wind, but not as bad as I'd feared - I was expecting to hit a brick wall at the Shrine but it didn't happen.

C • Tan time 2

Running to/from the Tan.

Didn't feel especially fluent at any stage, but 9.08 per loop is still quite a respectable pace for this, if not quite on the level of two weeks ago. Lovely morning, brilliantly clear and 4 degrees or thereabouts.

MFR Monday night run based from Suse's in South Yarra - the men were definitely in the minority tonight. Didn't feel any more energetic than I did on Sunday, particularly on the hills.