Edinburgh 2010: a backwards marathon training log

Seres

aero2k wrote: »

Thanks for the pics! Wish I could run as well as you can snap!

.:D

hope none of the other contenters take offence to this remark unless of course you are saying that woddle is EXCEPTIONALLY good at the snaps , like he should take it up as a career or sumthin .

id say woddle was aswrecked as the competitors by the end

besides that how does it feel to be the boards athletics champ of 2011 ?! , speech !

aero2k

Seres wrote: »

hope none of the other contenters take offence to this remark unless of course you are saying that woddle is EXCEPTIONALLY good at the snaps , like he should take it up as a career or sumthin .

id say woddle was aswrecked as the competitors by the end

besides that how does it feel to be the boards athletics champ of 2011 ?! , speech !

No offence intended - lots of PBs so everyone ran well, in fact it would be fair to say those that got PBs ran better than I did on the day.

Have you ever met Woddle? Anyone who has knows that he's exceptional in all sorts of ways.:D We got to see his indoor soccer and event organisation skills too - extremely exceptional!
Seriously - I'm no expert but conditions were pretty dull - great for running, not so great for pics. Top class stuff. (apart from the heel striking that I have to fix...)

Me make a speech? Nah, I think I'll just confine myself to occasional pontificating on boards - that way I can fool myself into thinking the audience is still awake. Woddle gave me the honour of drawing the ticket for the post-race raffle - if it had been live TV we'd have to have said "and we'll announce the winner after the break" to give my fumbling fingers time to unwrap the ticket. Speeches from me would be just as impressive. I'll stick to the running, it's simple, if not always easy.

I just noticed your post re. writing off the rest of the year. Probably a good idea. Does that mean no running, or just no goals / racing?

Git101

Nice win aero.... I hope there was a podium for the medal ceremony and a rousing rendition of the nation anthem played .

For someone claiming to be only running steady mile you managed to crack out a few very fast ones ..hmmm!!!! I'll have to keep my eye on you

BTW great photos ... well done woddle

aero2k

Git101 wrote: »

Nice win aero.... For someone claiming to be only running steady mile you managed to crack out a few very fast ones

Cheers Git - 100% honest about the steady miles - no bankers / politicians on this log:D.

The very fast is all relative - I sneak the occasional look at some logs of people with similar PBs and goals to mine - some of them do tempos faster than that "race". Scary...

seanynova

i know how you feel regarding the heel striking! i imagined i was converted but my photos from DCM have me extending like i have go go gadget legs!!!!

i to have an excuse, in that the balls of my feet were sore from the flats i wasnt used to wearing....but ill be working on it over the winter.....still not past 85 cadence rate though, and i was really only shuffling along the other day at 8:18m/m....maybe some repitition training will help me.....wont be looking forward to that!

well done the other day also!

tunguska

Just heard about the win Sean, well done. Great to start the season with a win.

aero2k

Okay, I've done 3 speed / tempo sessions since the Dublin half: the boards.ie time trial, the Jingle bells, and today's race. The times have been roughly similar - 18:10,(absolutely perfect conditions) 18:20 (I think my blood may have actually frozen during the race, it was slightly slippy underfoot, but a downhill course) and 18:18 (unofficial, almost perfect conditions and a fast course).

Surprisingly, despite the lack of progression of times, I think I'm getting better at these. Today's effort was my best to date in terms of even effort throughout, and I think just a slight loss of concentration - I had stupidly checked the Garmin at the 4k mark and was trying to do some mental arithmetic - stopped me hitting 18:10 or better.

Race report:

I had the usual early breakfast then headed out for just over 4 miles, including a lap of the course, around 9.30am. Conditions seemed fine, if a little cool. I picked up the number (actually numbers, unfortunately aero junior was too ill to race) at 11.45 and headed home to get ready. Out for a brief warm-up at 12.20 then home for the customary last minute loo stop. Out again 12:45 and was just about to tie my old t-shirt to a tree when I was greeted by Ral3 who offered to mind it for me - brave man, I'd already run 4 miles in it...

Down to the start on Furze road with 3 mins to go. I got a good start and despite the crowd I was soon running freely. I settled into around 5:35/mile and decided to try to maintain that for as long as possible. I rounded the tight turn onto Ordinance Road with a lot less difficulty and loss of momentum than anticipated, and I kept the pace steady up to Chesterfield Avenue despite the breeze - I think trying to hang onto the runners ahead helped. A nice tailwind on Chesterfield Avenue nudged me along to halfway, and I picked off a few runners at that point. Around 3k tunguska came flying past - I hadn't seen him at the start so I can only presume he made one of his legendary pitstops! By the time I got to say "will I, won't I" he was too far ahead to try to follow.

I hit the 4k mark on 14:20 by my watch, so I should have been on for sub 18, but at that point a guy I'd been running with - we had unintentionally bumped elbows a few times - had got away from me, and I think that messed with my head a bit. Anyway once I rounded the last turn I dug in for a reasonable finish. Managed to apologise to my erstwhile companion for the bumping - he was saying the same to me, so all good.
Garmin splits 5:36, 5:42, 5:53 and 5:37 for the last bit. I had the distance at 3.19 miles - I heard others suggest it was slightly long.

Nice to see misty floyd, chinguetti, menocsemo and Ral3 (still holding the sweaty but much-needed t-shirt) after the finish

Okay, in keeping with the whole New Year, new goals thing here's a few for 2011: (current PBs in brackets)

2m 10:46 (11:10)
5k 17:29 (17:53)
5m 28:45 (29:22 equivalent, short course)
10k 35:59 (36:52)
10m 59:59 (62:03)
1/2 79:59 (81:53)
M 2:44:59 (2:54:08)


Fairly arbitrary targets really, and some will be easier than others. I'll update on progress here.

tunguska

aero2k wrote: »

Around 3k tunguska came flying past - I hadn't seen him at the start so I can only presume he made one of his legendary pitstops! By the time I got to say "will I, won't I" he was too far ahead to try to follow.

No pit stop thank God. I was never gonna race this flat out from the start. That was the first time I've run anyway fast since the marathon so I took it very handy for the first 2k just to be sure the calve was ok. When I knew it was grand I took things up a notch from 2k to the finish. But by that stage a decent time was out the window. But now that I know all is ok I'll give the aware 10k a proper belt. Although I heard on the news today that the snow is returning on Thursday............
Whats the goal for DCM this year, 2:48?
Sarah had a cracking run in athenry on monday.

aero2k

I must try this "taking it handy for the first 2k" lark and see if I can make 17:45! Glad to here all is well - you looked very strong when you passed me.

tunguska wrote: »

Although I heard on the news today that the snow is returning on Thursday............
Whats the goal for DCM this year, 2:48?
Sarah had a cracking run in athenry on monday.

I had a quick glance at a weather thread and it looks like it won't be as bad this time.

DCM - a long way away, but maybe 2:44:59 by then.:D I'll see how Edinburgh goes first.

Yep, 41 is a great time for Sarah after all her frustration. Wonder if she knows we're talking about her?:) I'll wait till she puts up a race report then I'll pop over to her log and post some random rubbish as usual....

Seres

aero2k wrote: »

Yep, 41 is a great time for Sarah after all her frustration. Wonder if she knows we're talking about her?:) I'll wait till she puts up a race report then I'll pop over to her log and post some random rubbish as usual....

sarah lurks in many different corners of the boards , granted this is a hot spot !
Fair play on the 5km , imagine that tunguska managed to discipline himself and take it handy for 2k , Eoin is there a new years resolution you want to own up to ?

tunguska

Seres wrote: »

sarah lurks in many different corners of the boards , granted this is a hot spot !
Fair play on the 5km , imagine that tunguska managed to discipline himself and take it handy for 2k , Eoin is there a new years resolution you want to own up to ?

Well now aero, it appears as though the hi-jack is on the other foot......what am I talking about? I confuse myself sometimes.

I did actually make a resolution after the marathon to be more sensible in 2011. In fairness I took it too far in the 5k on new years day, went off way too easy. It took a collosal effort to hold back at the start though, people were flying by me and my ego was screaming at me to haul ass. But I resisted and by the time I got to the 2km marker I was like a caged animal. This year on whole will be more calculated and economical. Learned a lot last year and so this time round I think I have it sussed.
Now hows that for some quality hi-jacking for ye........

Jewelsmousey

Ive signed up to do the Edinburgh Marathon 2011 as my first marathon. Im not a huge runner having completed only a half marathon last year in 2hours 30. However, everyone is freaking me out saying that Edinburgh is really tough with hills etc and I picked the wrong one to do. :(:(:(

seanynova

Jewelsmousey wrote: »

Ive signed up to do the Edinburgh Marathon 2011 as my first marathon. Im not a huge runner having completed only a half marathon last year in 2hours 30. However, everyone is freaking me out saying that Edinburgh is really tough with hills etc and I picked the wrong one to do. :(:(:(

tell them you know about the big hill......but, then tell them that you start at the top! i ran this last year, no hills to worry about, but the first 5miles are down hill.....maybe a loss of about 50m or something like that...otherwise its flat enough and is billed as britians fastest marathon....you will be fine!

aero2k

Jewelsmousey wrote: »

Ive signed up to do the Edinburgh Marathon 2011 as my first marathon. Im not a huge runner having completed only a half marathon last year in 2hours 30. However, everyone is freaking me out saying that Edinburgh is really tough with hills etc and I picked the wrong one to do. :(:(:(

seanynova wrote: »

tell them you know about the big hill......but, then tell them that you start at the top! i ran this last year, no hills to worry about, but the first 5miles are down hill.....maybe a loss of about 50m or something like that...otherwise its flat enough and is billed as britians fastest marathon....you will be fine!

Jewelsmousy, either someone is yanking your chain or they're sadly misinformed. Seanynova has it bang on - there's a teeny drag around 17 but you do a u-turn so you get a corresponding downhill. The rest is as flat as you'll ever get, though I have to admit I felt every little change in incline over the last 4 or 5 miles - I was fading rapidly at that stage.

aero2k

Seres wrote: »

sarah lurks in many different corners of the boards , granted this is a hot spot !

tunguska wrote: »

Well now aero, it appears as though the hi-jack is on the other foot......what am I talking about? I confuse myself sometimes.

... people were flying by me and my ego was screaming at me to haul ass. But I resisted and by the time I got to the 2km marker I was like a caged animal.....

All welcome here!

tunguska - one man's holding back is another man's gasping for air and legs falling off!

I have to admit I hesitated a little at the start - still, plenty of time left for suffering in 2011!:D

aero2k

When I entered this I intended it to be an all-out blast at sub-60 for 10 miles. Less than a week before the race I wouldn't have bet on me making the start line. When I turned up it was a case of "see how it feels, and hope for a PB".

So let's get the excuses in first: Here is the lead up to the race.

Jan 16 Abandoned MP/tempo session after a few miles.
Jan 17-20 incl. no running, far too much else going on in my life.
Jan 21 6.7 miles easy - okay run but left knee a bit dodgy
Jan 22 3.5 miles @ 9:34/mile, knee very dodgy
Jan 23 12.5 miles - was meant to be approx 18 with MP and tempo miles, but packed it in as the knee and now hip were acting up
Jan 24 1.7 miles - had to walk home as knee very painful
Jan 25 7.4 miles - Knee still dodgy. Sports massage in the afternoon - a world of pain, my left ITB was the problem.
Jan 26 18.7 miles with 13 @ 7:05-7:29
Jan 27 5 miles - legs a bit tender
Jan 28 8 miles - legs a bit heavy but no pain
Jan 29 4 miles - a few strides which felt ok

Race day

I arrived early with Git101 and got a good parking space at the sports hall. We had a quick cup of coffee then I headed off to jog to the start line just to see where everything was, and then had another jog back to the car. After much agonising over will I / won't I wear long sleeves I eventually decided that even though it was only 1 deg C, it was sunny and very calm so a short sleeved t-shirt and Penny's best fleecy gloves were the order of the day. My nearly new Ron Hill shorts and DS Racers were getting their first race outing too. A few strides and, while not exactly flying, I felt I was ready to have a go.

I lined up about 4 rows back from the start with the intention of trying to run approx 6 min/mile for as long as I could. With the recent leg trouble and the fact that my tempo runs have been few and far between, and even then only around 6:10 / mile, sub 60 was probably a long shot, but no harm in having a go as long as it felt okay.

With the wide start there was no panic when the gun went off, and within 50-100m I was running comfortably with no hindrance. I waited the customary minute or two before glancing at the watch - 5:57 felt fine at that stage. A gentle bit of weaving through the crowd and before I knew it the Garmin was beeping for a 6:02 first mile, coinciding almost exactly with the official marker and timekeeper (great to have someone calling the time at every mile). The next 3 miles were 6:00, 5:58, and 6:02, and I was delighted to reach the 4 mile marker at just over 24 min.

I'm not sure what went wrong in mile 5. I had started to put on a bit more pressure to catch two lads who I thought were from Raheny - turns out they were from West Limerick AC. I came up to them and we all kept a nice pace for a while, but when I tried to up the pace a bit more it seemed there was nothing in the legs. The breathing was amazingly comfortable, not much harder than MP, but that little zip that's there in the legs on all the best days was conspicuously absent. That mile took 6:07 and when the timekeeper called out 30:10 at halfway I think I subconsciously gave up hope of a sub 60. I think the knowledge that 6:20 a mile from there on would give me a PB was probably a bad thing.

I took a drink at the first water station - it was freezing! I just rinsed my mouth and spat it out. I kept up with the Limerick lads for the next while, but then just after the very sharp left at around 5.5 miles one of them stole a few metres on me over a very short distance. Some time after that Rathfarnham lad passed me. Once more, despite hearing the patter of approaching feet, I couldn't seem to find the extra bit of zip I needed to hang on to the overtakers. I was still running okay, with 6:05, 6:03 and 6:10 taking me to the 8 mile mark, but by then there was nothing left in the legs.

I tried to make myself suffer a bit more, but now it was just a case of getting to the finish without damaging anything. 6:25 and 6:18 were pretty poor miles to finish on that course, in perfect conditions, however 61:21 was a PB by 42 seconds, so given the previous 2 weeks I was happy to take that. (Note to self: The two Limerick lads went sub 60 and the guy from Rathfarnham went close - maybe worth digging in a bit next time.....)

It was a wonderfully well organised race, on a lovely route - the gentle undulations might actually be easier than a perfectly flat course - in perfect running weather, and all in all I reckon it was one of the most enjoyable races I've run - I certainly suffered less than any other time.

Yes, I'd love to have gone sub 60, but I got enough evidence to show that that's well within my grasp with a bit more training.

It was great to see Ral3 putting in a spirited finish for a PB, and Git101 not far off his best despite recent illness and lack of training. Beepbeep67 recognised me - must be the distinctive "go-faster" haircut - and we had a nice chat - great PB with a flying last mile from him. Sorry to have missed Sosa, tisnotover, and seanynova - next time lads.

I didn't expect to be able to eat much afterwards, but I wolfed down a pile of sandwiches, biscuits and fruit bread in the company of a 2:09 marathoner. I would have asked him the secret of success, but since I can barely manage 100m at that pace I decided to leave it for another day.:)

Git101

Well said and well done.

Any day that results in a PB is a good day but all the sweeter for overcoming the troubles leading up to the race.

This is certainly one to put in the diary for next year.

theboyblunder

aero2k wrote: »

Beepbeep67 recognised me - must be the distinctive "go-faster" haircut -

Great report aero 2k. Laughed out loud when I read the sentence above. I havent broken 3h yet (training for barcelona at the moment) and your DCM 09 report is saved on my laptop desktop - required reading for sub 3 hopefuls IMO.

Anyway, weve never met but I remember seeing a picture of you on here once, and when I saw the "go-faster" haircut ahead in the final mile stretch last sunday I charged after you (the distinctive head, along with being a 2:54 runner makes you quite a target ). Was going to say hello but it wasnt a good time for either of us and I wasnt 100% sure it was you

Congrats on the PB, especially given the crappy luck with training in the last few weeks. Will say hello next time.

aero2k

theboyblunder wrote: »

Great report aero 2k. Laughed out loud when I read the sentence above. I havent broken 3h yet (training for barcelona at the moment) and your DCM 09 report is saved on my laptop desktop - required reading for sub 3 hopefuls IMO.

Thanks for the kind words - that seems like so long ago now! I've got so much from this forum it's nice to be able to give a little back.

theboyblunder wrote: »

Anyway, we've never met but I remember seeing a picture of you on here once, and when I saw the "go-faster" haircut ahead in the final mile stretch last sunday I charged after you (the distinctive head, along with being a 2:54 runner makes you quite a target ). Was going to say hello but it wasnt a good time for either of us and I wasnt 100% sure it was you

Did you pass me - quite a few did. Not a nice sensation tbh, I don't mind the last 100m as I've never had a sprint, but I like to hold my own over the last mile.

theboyblunder wrote: »

Congrats on the PB, especially given the crappy luck with training in the last few weeks. Will say hello next time.

Ah, I don't want to blame bad luck. I made one major bad decision a few weeks back - I won't go into it here - that resulted in me missing 4 days running in a row, and probably trying a bit too hard after that. I actually considered myself lucky to have made the start line at all, and even more so to finish in relatively good shape. I reckon it it was all thanks to an excellent sports massage on the Wednesday before.

Do make sure to say hello next time- it usually takes a minute or two after the finish for me to be any way sociable.:)

Best of luck in Barcelona - great city for a visit.

theboyblunder

aero2k wrote: »

Did you pass me - quite a few did. Not a nice sensation tbh, I don't mind the last 100m as I've never had a sprint, but I like to hold my own over the last mile

Yeah, just about! Right before the turn for the finish (I did 61:07). We can both have a crack at sub 60 in the summer.

aero2k wrote: »

Do make sure to say hello next time- it usually takes a minute or two after the finish for me to be any way sociable.:)

Will do. Im the same, usually consumed by a overwhelming need to eat all the crap in the goody bag asap.

aero2k wrote: »

Best of luck in Barcelona - great city for a visit.

Thanks!

Krusty_Clown

You're in great shape Sean (I'm very envious). Are you planning another go in Ballycotton? Don't think I'll be at full speed by then but looking forward to running the course anyway.

aero2k

Krusty_Clown wrote: »

You're in great shape Sean (I'm very envious). Are you planning another go in Ballycotton? Don't think I'll be at full speed by then but looking forward to running the course anyway.

Thanks Gary,

I'll do a more detailed review / preview in the next few days, but I was just talking to Git101 the other day and saying that even though I'm not much faster than last year, any given pace feels a bit easier. If I was to be hard on myself I'd say the recent 5ks and the 10 in Dungarvan should all have been done in much better times, but in every case I felt fresh afterwards rather than the states of near collapse I've experienced before. While I couldn't go any faster, I've felt I could have managed a few more miles at the end of each race - probably not a bad feeling given I'm training for a marathon.

I'm only just getting into tempo / interval work - I've had a few half hearted sessions like yesterday where I abandoned a 6 mile tempo after 2 miles due to a very tight right hamstring - but I think I'm beginning to feel the benefit of all the nice, easy running I've done since the half in September.

Unfortunately I won't make Ballycotton - best of luck there! The next race I've entered for is the 10 in Craughwell in 20 March, though I might give the Dungarvan 10k a lash on the 27th Feb. The main goal is Edinburgh again on 22 May, so I'll be treating all the other races as training sessions i.e. no special taper for them, and run them as hard as I can without taking too many injury risks. I also got a free entry for the GIR on 20 April so I could hardly turn that down as it's on home ground.

aero2k

Okay, I promised Krusty, and myself, a review of sorts, so here goes.

I decided to take it easy for a while after the Dublin half in September - while I was considerably faster than at the same stage of 2009, I felt I wasn't getting anywhere near the times my level of fitness suggested were within my reach, and the whole running thing was beginning to feel like a bit of a chore. I took a few days off and then began several weeks of easy running.

The plan was to launch into a version of Jack Daniels' elite marathon plan in time for a marathon in late April or May. Now I don't consider myself to be in any way elite, but the coach has an impressive record, the numerical / analytical approach appeals to the engineer in me, the 2 hard sessions per week ties in nicely with the approach that's been successful on 2 occasions for me, and it has a nice bit of variety in terms of easy, MP, tempo and interval sessions. Being the wimp I am, I've watered it down a bit, so 10 miles at MP which equates to 50 min for an elite runner, becomes 40 min or so for me at a much slower pace. The aim was not to get too fixated on the paces, but to focus on getting comfortable with the workload.

Throughout the winter I just ran (almost) every day, 40-45 miles per week, mostly 8min / mile or slower at times. My only tempo runs consisted of 3 x 5 k races, where I managed reasonable times and finished fairly comfortably without threatening my PB. The snow didn't keep me from getting out, but it did deter me from making the early start I had planned on Daniels - I had considered spreading the 18 weeks over 22-24 weeks to allow for some rest periods or possible injuries. In the end I found myself starting with just two weeks to spare, and since then I've used up the two "spare" weeks: in one case because I let pressures of life intrude, and in the second case because the ITB trouble on my left side that I've since got sorted seems to have caused a few problems on my right side, and a really tight hamstring caused me to abandon Wednesday's planned tempo and today's MP run. (I did manage about 9 miles in the park including doing a perfect impression of a luge competitor when my feet went from under me on a downhill mucky trail. My white Dungarvan t-shirt is now suitable for a kiwi!)

So, the plan from now is:

• Most likely race Dungarvan 10k on the 27th, leg(s) permitting.
• Definitely run Craughwell 10 mile on 20th March.
• GIR on April 10th.
• Might consider Arc men's 10k on 22nd May as the last hard day before taper for Edinburgh.

Those three races will be PB attempts, but the primary aim is as training sessions for Edinburgh.

The main goal is Edinburgh on May 22. The "out-loud" target is 2:47:59: ambitious, and heavily weather dependent, but I'll train to give myself a decent chance of it, and hope for the best on the day.

I'll be including a lot more core work and some gentle stretching - recent experiences would suggest that I need to take better care of this tired old body. That said I'm really delighted with the general fitness - I'm relatively comfortable now running at paces that I wouldn't have ever dreamed were possible for me, so it's just a question of avoiding any more damage.

I'll update here after every race, and I'll also jot down any random thoughts that occur. As always, all advice, comments and feedback are welcome.

aero2k

Dungarvan 10k 27th Feb 2011

Key recent sessions:

10 Feb 6miles tempo - pace a bit slow at 6:16 (windy)
13 Feb 40 min MP 5 min tempo 20 min MP 5 min tempo total 15 miles
16 Feb 6 * 1000m pace very slow - should be 5:35/mile, did 4@ 5:52 + 2 @ 6:05
19 Feb 2* 2 @ 6:05 + 8 @ 7:30 2 tempo - 17.4 total
22 Feb 20.2 @ 7:24 (most miles approx 7:15)

The main goal for today was to beat my PB of 36:53 and also to run a good steady pace all the way. I also wanted to find out how the recent tough sessions had affected me.

I got off to a reasonable start and after 0.5 miles or so I was on 5:46 per mile, good enough for sub 36. I was a bit concerned, however, to reach the 1 mile mark in 5:56 feeling like I was working hard. I got to 2 in just under 12 mins, again battling the breeze a bit, and despite the nice downhill in mile 3 I could only manage 17:53 for 3 miles. I battled on at the same pace to the 4 mile mark, but I was fading badly after that, with miles of 6:18 and 6:16, and a last .2 at 6:35 to finish with an official time of 37:53.

A great race that deserved a better performance. So what went wrong? Well, I guess the wind cost me 30 sec or so, and I heard others saying they had struggled, but I really should be close to 36 mins at this stage. My breathing was fine, and my stride felt nice and smooth, so I can only conclude it's a lack of fast tempo miles and intervals, coupled with the accumulation of hard sessions as detailed above.

I'm not too concerned - Edinburgh in 12 weeks is the big goal after all, and while I'm not really getting faster, running fast feels a lot easier. I got home this evening and started into installing sanitary ware in a bathroom - normally I'd be too mentally and physically smashed to attempt something like that after a race. I have two more races coming up; the Craughwell 10 mile on 20th March and the GIR on 10 April. I intend to give both of them a good lash, so hopefully I'll have a bit of speed in the legs by then.

On a positive note, I'm really starting to like my DS Racers.

Big thanks to Git101 who drove the round trip from Carlow and put up with my usual litany of excuses. Glad he got a spot prize for his trouble.

Nice to meet Sosa before and afterwards, and a great feed afterwards including a spot prize. I'll be back...

tisnotover

Nice running all the same aero yesterday, the best of luck with the training for Craughwell now!

aero2k

tisnotover wrote: »

Nice running all the same aero yesterday, the best of luck with the training for Craughwell now!

Cheers tno,

Even Sosa had a hard time, I think we're both suffering from recent efforts and raised expectations.

I felt good on my 8 miles today, so I'm optimistic for Craughwell.

aero2k

Craughwell 10 mile 20th March 2011

First of all, profuse thanks are due to Seres and RQ for encouragement during the week, tunguska who conveyed his message via fast messenger (looks like I'm a big girl after all!), my big sis for allowing two sweaty runners invade her nice new home, but most especially Git101 for doing the driving - he seems to have appointed himself as my one man support crew in recent times, and he's taking the role so seriously he's cut back on his running in order to be fresh for the long drives. He still managed to do a pretty good time...

Okay, more excuses are in order. Training has been a tale of two halves. The good half has been the long steady runs - my 21 last Sunday at 7:28 average wasn't my fastest ever, but it felt really easy and there were a few 7-7:10 miles near the end. I was also in great shape after it, no niggles, twinges or major exhaustion. The gels worked well too.

On the negative side, any recent attempt at tempo or intervals has been a bit of a disaster. Once the speed or effort goes past a certain point, the hamstrings are tight, the lower back is a mess and sometimes the knees are at me as well. I've had to abandon a few sessions too, which is a concern with 9 weeks to go to Edinburgh. Last Monday I visited an osteopath in an attempt to get my twisted pelvis sorted out. He caused more severe pain than I've suffered during all of my running career, however it was short-lived and I felt good since then, although there was no problem following his advice to take it easy for the week, 8:30-9:00 per mile being the order of the day.

Race day:
I went out for a short jog just after 10 to get a feel for the roads, the conditions, and to make sure my digestive system was okay. We drove to race HQ for 12pm and were very impressed with the efficient service. On with the number, a short loosen-up, a last minute pit-stop then off to the start with some strides along the way. I bumped into Seres with about 10 mins to go before the gun and we had a nice chat, which left me fairly relaxed. I had to push through the crowd a bit but managed to make it to 5 rows back from the front. I was pleased to see Pauline Curley just in front of me - I knew she'd gone under the hour last year so I resolved to try to keep up with her as long as the body didn't protest too much.

Soon we were off and with minimal weaving I was running unhindered. The road was narrow and there were plenty of runners alongside, but the pace felt right so I just decided to hang in. A glance at the watch showed it was a bit quick - 5:38 at one point, but it was slightly downhill so I didn't panic. By the time we hit the 1 mile mark, groups were starting to form, so I attached myself like a limpet to the back of Pauline Curley's group. Up the road a bit the guys in front let a gap open, so I had to put myself under a bit of pressure to get round them and close up to the group. I figured I'd get a slight rest once I got up close to them, and so it turned out. I was probably running a bit faster than I was really capable of, but I told myself I'd just hang on as long as I could. I was really enjoying running smoothly and free of pain or niggles, so I thought I'd make the most of it and let the time take care of itself. Splits of 5:50, 5:57, 5:52 got us to 3 in 17:39, a very satisfactory state of affairs.

Somewhere after 3 miles I made a fatal error. I had thought the guys immediately in front of me were not pushing as hard as I'd like, and I had considered passing them, but just then someone clipped Pauline Curley's heel and there was almost a pile-up. I stayed where I was, and when we hit the drag I was so focussed on keeping a nice steady pace that I didn't notice that 3 of us were off the back of the group. Soon the gap was 10m and widening, too big to try to close on the hill. I hoped the lads in front would up the pace a bit but no luck; as we crested the hill I pushed on past them and made up time on the downhill, but there was no hope of closing the gap. The group in front were running at a pace I might manage to sustain if I was with them, but I knew the effort to catch them would finish me and I'd be crawling for the second half of the race. I was now in no-man's land and I ran the last 6.5 or so on my own. 6:03 and 6:14 got me to halfway around 29:56, but it was a tough battle to maintain the pace from there. I found it hard to judge the gap in front and even though I wasn't too uncomfortable, I wasn't going fast enough. Still, I was happy enough with the way I stuck to the task, and if I slowed on the little drags I managed to get the legs going again on the way down. The second half splits were 6:02, 6:12, 6:03, 6:14, 6:16 (I've added 3 sec to my garmin miles to make them tally with the official miles) and my Garmin says I did the last .08 at 6:00 pace so not too bad. Also, I was only passed by two people in the last 8 miles or so, which for me is something of a record.

Official place and chip time 60:43, 30th place male, 32nd overall, PB by 38 sec.

Yes, I should be quicker, but I was happy to be able to run at all after the recent struggles, and I reckon I'm 3 min quicker than this time last year. Also, I wasn't too wrecked after it, which bodes well for Edinburgh.

Once again, my DS Racers seemed a perfect choice - I forgot I was wearing shoes after the first few metres.

Well done to all the organisers - a particularly nice touch was a series of signs out on the course along the lines of "Craughwell welcomes Sligo AC, Craughwell welcomes Letterkenny AC" etc.

Git101

aero2k wrote: »

but most especially Git101 for doing the driving - he seems to have appointed himself as my one man support crew in recent times, and he's taking the role so seriously he's cut back on his running in order to be fresh for the long drives. He still managed to do a pretty good time...

You've let me down, I packed up my training, I've done the driving, I even offered you my sunglasses and after all that you couldn't find 45 seconds in the last mile to hit the sub 60 ...wtf

In all seriousness, you got hammered by a bone setter type, cracking bones are probably not great sign, certainly not days before a race.
To hit a PB after that type of week is a testament to your mental and physical toughness.

Well done aero.. I think Edinburgh will be a cracker for you, despite your doubts..

Seres

Hey aero2k

great report , nice to see you again ,id say one more crack at the whip will bring you sub 60 , you were very fresh when i met you at the finish line , you def would have gone under the hour with a different race tactic Im glad to see you were very prompt in writing up your race report and
look forward to seeing you at GIR , oh by the way Eoin was very pleased to hear that you now aknowledge yourself as a big girl ( also another incentive to go sub 60 as soon as possible )

aero2k

Git101 wrote: »

You've let me down, I packed up my training, I've done the driving, I even offered you my sunglasses and after all that you couldn't find 45 seconds in the last mile to hit the sub 60 ...wtf

Well, I reckon I did find the seconds, unfortunately I lost them again in the second half!

Seres wrote: »

Hey aero2k

great report , nice to see you again ,id say one more crack at the whip will bring you sub 60 , you were very fresh when i met you at the finish line , you def would have gone under the hour with a different race tactic Im glad to see you were very prompt in writing up your race report and
look forward to seeing you at GIR , oh by the way Eoin was very pleased to hear that you now aknowledge yourself as a big girl ( also another incentive to go sub 60 as soon as possible )

Thanks Seres, nice to see you too.

I've been sneaking up on the 60 barrier in ninja fashion, but now that I'm close I'll just smash through it next time. The Frank Duffy in August will be my next crack at the distance, it's a tougher course but the big entry means there'll always be someone to run with. Hopefully I can get back to being a man then...

Yes, I was surprisingly fresh and even more so today. I wasn't flying on my recovery run this morning but I had none of the general tightness I'd often experience after a race.

Looking forward to the GIR now.