Gaelforce West 21/8/10

watergal

snailsong wrote: »

I'm guessing that the finish is at the football pitch down at the 'Point'. That's where the start, finish and transition area for the Westport 25.5 triathlon was. It worked out fine I hear. The road closure notices were in the local paper this week, no mention of the Quay.

for the mayo boys - is the castlecourt near the finish ?

Along as it's not more than 10 miles away I'll be ok and make it back eventually for a shower & some beers

Bugsy2000

spurscormac wrote: »

Are you not likely to overheat with a Goretex ?

*Though I suppose for a serious competitor like yourself, this will be top of the range breathable stuff.

I was considering the same gear I wore in Connemara Challenge, ie UnderArmour shortsleeve base layer, shortsleeve cycling jersey over it, with a lightweight waterproof jacket stuff in the jersey pocket in case of rain.

Whats your opinion on something like that - is it sufficient in case of bad weather, or should I have an alternative option just in case?

I wore similar kit to that last year. A long sleeved base layer and a light cycling top with a light rainproof top in the bag for CP. I also had a light cap and gloves too (but that's just me, my hands go blue when running). I wore NikePro running tights throughout too. You won't overheat in them but it gives you that little bit of cover for CP. Overall I was happy with the gear I had and will be using similar again this year.

Not much training happening at the minute. I'm posting this from the maternity ward, baby on the way anytime soon, although after 40hrs of contractions we just want it over with.:eek:

Roll on the 21st. If I don't beat last years time I'll be heartbroken. All these little additions to the course have me worried. Gutted about the hill omission from run 1 though, it was these obstacles that made GF what it is.

watergal

rebelreded wrote: »

Really looking forward to it now but same as most here, feel that I am massively underprepared.
Cycling will be the easy bit as I cycled 60km up and down the Vee (btw Tipp and Waterford) last week and I have run up to 13km before but climbed the reek a few weeks back and found it very tough, had to stop a good few times on the ascent. Even though it is smaller than Galtymore, it is way tougher, imho anyway!

O crap - I attempted GM once and stopped half way and got paralysed with fear. Had to be helped down hand in hand by two friends ..

It was Feb though and very icy and windy -that's what I'm telling myself.
For CP it's just going to be a case of get off the bike and go for it up and down the path all the way ( or as far as the path goes ..)

Dibber is located at the church at the top of CP to clock your up time

snailsong

watergal wrote: »

for the mayo boys - is the castlecourt near the finish ?

Along as it's not more than 10 miles away I'll be ok and make it back eventually for a shower & some beers

The Castlecourt is right in town so 1.5 km or so from the finish. On the bright side only 250 metres or so to the bus pick up point in the morning.

watergal

snailsong wrote: »

The Castlecourt is right in town so 1.5 km or so from the finish. On the bright side only 250 metres or so to the bus pick up point in the morning.

smashing ! thank you. A nice walk back to losen the legs after the finish !

healthygirl

got my 1st puncture yesterday in Blessington, on a gatorskin no less. 2 tubes and 45 mins later I was back on the road - hope to jaysus that doesnt happen on GF.

Didnt realise quite how difficult sorting out a puncture on the side of the road can be. Those presta valves are new to me, didnt realise the valve screw had to be loosened, for anyone that didnt know that well there u go!

Puncture proof tyres my arse!

Wonkagirl

watergal wrote: »

Dibber is located at the church at the top of CP to clock your up time

that's a new development- last yr we collected purple wrist bands at the top as evidence of our summit (nobody ever checked my wrist band incidentally!)

The introduction of the dibbing at top of CP definitely a welcome one- at least from that yr on we'll be able to compare our splits a bit better...

this time 2 weeks it'll all be over!;)

elchupanebrey

Was up the bog road today again, 4th time up there now. Got a puncture for the 1st time up there. I didn't think I was ovrdoing the speed. Bit of a mare. Only got 60 psi into the new tube before I broke the valve on it, Luckily it got me home.

Was up CP too, plenty of traffic up there today. Met a lad running up the zig zag quicker than i was running down. He's hardly in the walkers section anyway.:D:D

toomuchdetail

elchupanebrey wrote: »

Was up the bog road today again, 4th time up there now. Got a puncture for the 1st time up there. I didn't think I was ovrdoing the speed. Bit of a mare. Only got 60 psi into the new tube before I broke the valve on it, Luckily it got me home.

Was up CP too, plenty of traffic up there today. Met a lad running up the zig zag quicker than i was running down. He's hardly in the walkers section anyway.:D:D

Cycled the bog road today and its a dog , couldnt get speed up , went across the skelp too , no punctures so delighted.
Met 1-2 real runners (not like me breaking into and occasional trot) today on the reek, visibilty poor and conditions under foot not great but happy enough.

toomuchdetail

Cycled 25k to the new cycle route on GF today and it was a real eye opener , for some reason I expected this to be easier than the hill route previously taken but its not , it can be cycled pretty well but the speed for me was very slow , some tricky areas for handling also-more opportunites for punctures. Think this will add to the overall time sooner than lower the time . I would recommend that anyone traveling up the Thursday/Friday should drive this if they can to be prepared .
The reek was fine , big lesson for me today on the reek was dont try to pick your path across the bog (to avoid water), go in a straight line to the path as you will end up getting wet anyway!!.
Very slippy on the path .
I walked/ran the skelp last year with the bike but cycled it today for all but 400m, alot of wheel spin on bike due to the conditions.saved 15+mins on last years time back to westport on the skelp by cycling.
The road down from there is terrible and is in bad condition,a correct line is important as there is grass in the middle of the road in places and pot holes on the edges .
Would recommend getting a bike service or at least breaks checked , i did it this week and was relived I did.
Also decided today that toe clips and trail shoes are definately the way to go for me as feet were in and out of the pedals too much.
As we all have the same course to compelte with longer/different sections I think a time improvement will not be a marker for performance , I am going to aim to finish 25-30% higher in the placings than last year (1000+ to 600/700+)unless the std is higher :mad:.

healthygirl

Bugsy2000 wrote: »

I wore similar kit to that last year. A long sleeved base layer and a light cycling top with a light rainproof top in the bag for CP. I also had a light cap and gloves too (but that's just me, my hands go blue when running). I wore NikePro running tights throughout too. You won't overheat in them but it gives you that little bit of cover for CP. Overall I was happy with the gear I had and will be using similar again this year.

Not much training happening at the minute. I'm posting this from the maternity ward, baby on the way anytime soon, although after 40hrs of contractions we just want it over with.:eek:

Roll on the 21st. If I don't beat last years time I'll be heartbroken. All these little additions to the course have me worried. Gutted about the hill omission from run 1 though, it was these obstacles that made GF what it is.

Can running tights be worn with tri/cycle shorts. Was gonna invest in a pair but I dont want to sacrifice bum padding for the cycle!

yop

toomuchdetail wrote: »

I walked/ran the skelp last year with the bike but cycled it today for all but 400m, alot of wheel spin on bike due to the conditions.saved 15+mins on last years time back to westport on the skelp by cycling.
The road down from there is terrible and is in bad condition,a correct line is important as there is grass in the middle of the road in places and pot holes on the edges .
As we all have the same course to compelte with longer/different sections I think a time improvement will not be a marker for performance , I am going to aim to finish 25-30% higher in the placings than last year (1000+ to 600/700+)unless the std is higher :mad:.

Were you wearing the bike shoes today on Skelp? Did you find it hard? Thats savage that u saved 15 mins!
So you cycled the whole way up except for that really bad section was it?

A1 idea re the placings as regard the timings, its near pointless now since they have changed the route about.

toomuchdetail

yop wrote: »

Were you wearing the bike shoes today on Skelp? Did you find it hard? Thats savage that u saved 15 mins!
So you cycled the whole way up except for that really bad section was it?

A1 idea re the placings as regard the timings, its near pointless now since they have changed the route about.

Time saved was more a reflection on poor time last year 45m++, wore trail runners on toe clips today- needed them as the back wheel slid twice and if I was in bike shoes I would have been on my arse.
Biggest advantage of these today (apart from reek) was that on the tough section on the skelp I was only getting 7/8kph on the bike due to terrain and conditions , when I got off and ran the speed was about 12/13kph so a little saving there , I think the same could happen in places on the bog road.

yop

That section was wud be the only reason I wouldn't use cleats but I fear the cramps will kill me if I go back to toes clips.
I think at this stage I will just have to run with the bike as I can't take the chance of cramping again.

The section from skelp on the road is very dangerous, so it will be well worth while to take it handy going down there.

snailsong

yop wrote: »

That section was wud be the only reason I wouldn't use cleats but I fear the cramps will kill me if I go back to toes clips.
I think at this stage I will just have to run with the bike as I can't take the chance of cramping again.

The section from skelp on the road is very dangerous, so it will be well worth while to take it handy going down there.

It sure is. There's also the chance of meeting a car coming the other way. There were a few accidents there last year.

toomuchdetail

healthygirl wrote: »

Can running tights be worn with tri/cycle shorts. Was gonna invest in a pair but I dont want to sacrifice bum padding for the cycle!

Wore them today with tri shorts and it worked fine .

Enduro

healthygirl wrote: »

got my 1st puncture yesterday in Blessington, on a gatorskin no less. 2 tubes and 45 mins later I was back on the road - hope to jaysus that doesnt happen on GF.

Didnt realise quite how difficult sorting out a puncture on the side of the road can be. Those presta valves are new to me, didnt realise the valve screw had to be loosened, for anyone that didnt know that well there u go!

Puncture proof tyres my arse!

There is no such thing as puncture proof tyres. Only puncture resistant tyres, which is a big difference.

Before you do any big cycles its worth knowing (a) how to fix punctures properly and (b) how to remove broken chain links. Neither is complicated, and neither take too long to do once you have the basic tools required. There's plenty of places on the internet which explain both procedures, and both are worth practicing if you're not confident that you could do them reasonably quickly out in the wild!

pc11

What do people think about tights or shorts? Was going to wear cycling type running shorts but now I'm thinking of longer, maybe full length tights or even buying 3/4 length tights - are these really girly??

I suppose it will depend on the weather, but say assuming weather like today, i.e. 15-18 degrees, showers with sunny spells?

Also, compression shorts/leggings?

ThisRegard

I think tights are a bit much, but that's just my opinion. If you are thinking about wearing them get a few runs in to see how you get on with them first. One of the reasons I wouldn't is that they will get wet and add that chill factor when you hop back onto the bike before they dry out again. With shorts, apart from the depths of winter when I do wear them, I never suffer with cold legs once I was warmed up.

But as I said get out there with them a few times and see how you get on, I wouldn't wait until the day to be the first time I wore them.

pc11

ThisRegard wrote: »

I think tights are a bit much, but that's just my opinion. If you are thinking about wearing them get a few runs in to see how you get on with them first. One of the reasons I wouldn't is that they will get wet and add that chill factor when you hop back onto the bike before they dry out again. With shorts, apart from the depths of winter when I do wear them, I never suffer with cold legs once I was warmed up.

But as I said get out there with them a few times and see how you get on, I wouldn't wait until the day to be the first time I wore them.

Thanks. I wear full tights all the time in winter so I'm well used to them, it's what to wear in GF I'm wondering about. Probably best to wait for the weather forecast really. If it's colder than 15 degrees then tights will be attractive. The point about getting wet is relevant, maybe that's a reason to consider 3/4 length then, assuming the bottom of the tights will get wet. But, I would need to buy 3/4 tights as I've never worn them, they're more common for women I guess.

g0g

Apologies for sounding like a moron, but this will save me a trip to a shop to ask someone hopefully! Is there a huge difference between windproof and waterproof? Everywhere I look at "windproof" jackets online it seems to be saying they're more convenient and they're grand for in the rain anyway? I'm just thinking that this is € 30 less than this, and I don't want to spend the money on something potentially heavier/bulkier when maybe the more basic one is more suitable! Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated!

Thanks again for the Camelbak Octane recommendation - first run with it today (cycle went grand also) and it was REALLY comfortable on my back!

One last question for the locals - is MJ Henehan's far from bus or finish? And yes thanks I realise I'm going to be (or trying to!) sleeping above a late bar!

Mountain Rescue

so cycled to the reek today,first time doing the route on racer,found the new route up towards the base tough,i cycled it a few months ago but to me it got a lot worse up there,CP was its usual tough self,path is really taking a hammering specially on the first bad bend on the cone,you really have to be confident with your foot placement,followed the zig zag up and down took me 56min,was taking it steady on the way down,last section of CP is really wet and really slippy,stayed on the bike over skelp,wont be strapping my feet to the pedals going over it again came close to coming of the bike,

snailsong

One last question for the locals - is MJ Henehan's far from bus or finish? And yes thanks I realise I'm going to be (or trying to!) sleeping above a late bar![/QUOTE]


Centre of town so around the corner for the bus, 1.5km home afterwards.

snailsong

Mountain Rescue wrote: »

so cycled to the reek today,first time doing the route on racer,found the new route up towards the base tough,i cycled it a few months ago but to me it got a lot worse up there,CP was its usual tough self,path is really taking a hammering specially on the first bad bend on the cone,you really have to be confident with your foot placement,followed the zig zag up and down took me 56min,was taking it steady on the way down,last section of CP is really wet and really slippy,stayed on the bike over skelp,wont be strapping my feet to the pedals going over it again came close to coming of the bike,

Did the same myself. 56 is good, I took 1 hr 18 but i realise I'm no world beater. First clear day on top in a while. I could clearly see the 'Point' at the quay (where I think the finish will be). If it's clear on the 21st this will be a welcome sight. I could also make out Inish Deigil which is very close to the start. Put it all in perspective.

Mountain Rescue

snailsong wrote: »

Did the same myself. 56 is good, I took 1 hr 18 but i realise I'm no world beater. First clear day on top in a while. I could clearly see the 'Point' at the quay (where I think the finish will be). If it's clear on the 21st this will be a welcome sight. I could also make out Inish Deigil which is very close to the start. Put it all in perspective.

i was at the summit bout 3or4 visability was down to 15 meters and very cold,had to drop about 100 meters to clear the cloud,weather changes so quick,BEWERE

healthygirl

g0g wrote: »

Apologies for sounding like a moron, but this will save me a trip to a shop to ask someone hopefully! Is there a huge difference between windproof and waterproof? Everywhere I look at "windproof" jackets online it seems to be saying they're more convenient and they're grand for in the rain anyway? I'm just thinking that this is € 30 less than this, and I don't want to spend the money on something potentially heavier/bulkier when maybe the more basic one is more suitable! Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated!

Thanks again for the Camelbak Octane recommendation - first run with it today (cycle went grand also) and it was REALLY comfortable on my back!

One last question for the locals - is MJ Henehan's far from bus or finish? And yes thanks I realise I'm going to be (or trying to!) sleeping above a late bar!

Hi g0g, I've the DHB jacket, its grand as far as im concerned and is very good for the cycling in terms of water repellance. just beware, there is only a rear pocket - no front/side pockets.

toomuchdetail

g0g wrote: »

Everywhere I look at "windproof" jackets online it seems to be saying they're more convenient and they're grand for in the rain anyway?

I plan on using a running jacket bought in Aldi for about €15 (wind and water resitant -not waterproof ), I can understand its advantages and safety benefits on the reek but apart from that if its wet/raining no matter what you wear you will get saturated.

Orion

healthygirl wrote: »

Can running tights be worn with tri/cycle shorts. Was gonna invest in a pair but I dont want to sacrifice bum padding for the cycle!

They can - but wear the tights over the shorts. I've got both full length and half-tight skins. I'll decide which to wear on the day depending on the weather. And they'll be worn over the tri-shorts.

Wonkagirl

healthygirl why dont you get a padded saddle overlay for your saddle? then you wont have to wear the padded shorts at all?? just make sure you cover it in plastic when you deposit your bike the nite before, save yourself getting a wet arse when you arrive at your bike

the countdown is ON

Training plan from now:

Tonight: 20km cycle
Tuesday: As above
wednesday : Hellfire duathlon
Thurs eve: 6km slow jog incorporating some hills
Fri: wedding- on the piss in cork
Sat: hen- on the piss in athlone
Sun: recover
Mon: 5km light jog
Tues 10km light cycle... wed/thurs/fri complete rest.

rebelreded

Wonkagirl wrote: »

healthygirl why dont you get a padded saddle overlay for your saddle? then you wont have to wear the padded shorts at all?? just make sure you cover it in plastic when you deposit your bike the nite before, save yourself getting a wet arse when you arrive at your bike

the countdown is ON

Training plan from now:

Tonight: 20km cycle
Tuesday: As above
wednesday : Hellfire duathlon
Thurs eve: 6km slow jog incorporating some hills
Fri: wedding- on the piss in cork
Sat: hen- on the piss in athlone
Sun: recover
Mon: 5km light jog
Tues 10km light cycle... wed/thurs/fri complete rest.

That social life of yours is fairly hectic......two nights on the piss the week before GWF.....I wish I could do the same but wouldn't even make it as far as the kayaks if I did.

Had a good weekend of training:
Fri: 8k road race 43mins (not fast but better than I had hoped for)
Sat: Rugby training and 45k cycle straight after
Sun: Walked/Ran up and down Galteemore (walked more than ran on the way up and ran all the way down, 10.5k altogether)
Taking today off but will tear into it again for the next few days

Anyone any idea what is the best strategy for next week? Training, Food, etc..