Training Log Archive: Jon X

Irish Champs 2011, long distance, M21E.

I entered this as I thought it was time I did some longer runs in readiness for marathon training. It did not disappoint and I even added on some extra distance.....

A bit worried about surviving the whole thing after not really any long runs for ages, so thought I would look to run steadily rather than try to race and see what happened. I should have realised that when I 'run steadily' I usually navigate abysmally! Trotted through the first two but with v heavy legs, decided to run along the slope to #3 and then cut through the main col to the control - sighted the col in the distance and decided to get into the running by just keeping going until I got there, pick up the navigation from that point. So it was a shame that I had sighted the col one further along the ridge from the correct one - I thought it took a while to get there!

So a painfully large error at #3 and into survival/jog mode thereafter, made a few more errors though and in particular couldn't find #19 for ages, not really sure why. Quite enjoyed the jog round and felt like I had got my value for money today :)

Run to the start. Quite uphill. Didn't feel the need to warm down....

M21E - Splits

Event: Irish Orienteering Championships
 

Irish Orienteering Championships 2011, middle distance, M21E

Got away with it today. Took 7 (!) mins for a 45sec leg to #3, which is far too long however dodgy the control site or map. But then someone else protested and they took out the leg!

So I leapt up from 24th place to 16th place (of 43) and (far more importantly) from 3mins behind Kyle to 3mins in front of him. Quite funny.

Actually ran okay apart from #3, lost around a minute at #6 where the map was also dodgy, and maybe 20/30secs at #17.

Ended up with race time of 41mins, Bill Edwards won in 34mins, 2nd and 3rd were 36mins/37mins.

to the start and back from the finish.

M21E - Splits

And yet more enjoyable morning running through Murlough in the sunshine. Me, Brad, Roger T and Will today, plus Elle and Liz for the first half.

More Murlough fun, on my own this time.

Morning run today. Gaz-Elle, MC, Brad, Roger T. Murlough beach/house/nature reserve. Very very pleasant!

With MC into the Mournes up the valley from Newcastle, through the col below Slieve Donard and onto Cove Mountain beyond. Met my parents lunching at the col, and also Gary/Louise/Heather/Dave C/Roger T on a similar walk to us. Then later on also met Geoffrey and Lindsey!

Stopped at the col on the way back to see if I could run all the way from there to the summit of Slieve Donard (which by now was free of cloud).

Never been in the Mournes before and they are fab - maybe even tempted by the Mourne Mountain Marathon sometime......

I could indeed run all the way to the summit from the col :)

Didn't go on the posse morning run as there would be the whole day available to go running......

JK M120+ Relay with Ben and Fraser, 3rd place. Last leg.

Mixed feelings. Pleased to be on the podium but should have finished second.

Ben ran well on first leg to get back in 6th just behind Rich Barrett for BAOC and less than a minute behind Martin W for SYO. Then at the spectator control on leg two I started to get nervous as Fraser had caught Charlie Adams and they were together in second and third! I was pretty confident they would pass the other team and started to think about heading out on the last leg together with Bill Edwards for SYO. Starting thinking about racing rather than navigating. In retrospect not the right thoughts......

Charlie came back in the lead and after a small miss after the spectator, Fraser was back around 1.5 minutes behind in second place, right with Roger for FVO Men Open, so I headed out with Marcus. Which was not necessarily a good thing as on the longish leg to #1, I let seeing Marcus affect my pace and kept losing touch, getting my place again, then losing it again. Fatally not in touch at the end of the leg and lost around 1.5 or 2 mins and got into a nasty rushed feeling instead of calm control, so was scrappy through the next few and shedding small amounts of time all along. Got better but then missed 45secs at the one before the spectator and (although I never saw him) Dave Rollins for BAOC got past on a different gaffle.

Ran okay round the last loop although much of it was quite stressful as I thought John Embrey for HOC was on our course, couldn't think how they could be in touch but had to work very hard to stay in front of him to the finish. In the end relieved to be on the podium and the race wasn't disastrous (2/3 mins behind the times Will, Ross and Ben all ran in the leg one posse) but a bit more clear headed and we could/should have been second.

Getting nervous