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Off the Fence....and looking to go sub 3 hrs

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Comments

  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,717 ✭✭✭MisterDrak


    Thanks for the casual "hi Dave" as you glided past !

    Nice time there, and I see you got on as a scored on the team !


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 6,121 ✭✭✭tang1


    Not a word did you heed.......... Super running M, great to see for you.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,447 ✭✭✭FBOT01


    Saw that earlier, brilliant result, very well deserved!

    Thanks J. Good to see you yesterday even if only briefly. You looked happy enough yourself both before and after.
    Very well deserved indeed !! The singlet suits you, congrats on the pb :)

    Cheers A. Thanks for the shout out on the run in. You guys were in the right place at the right time to give me a the prod I needed to finish it out.
    Thats a super time. You beat my PB by 2 seconds.









    Pity it was a short course. :pac:

    Thanks, A but 2 secs, is that all :p

    Nice to be able to get one up while you are on the way back up! Won't be long before you leap frog me again. Yesterday gives you a nice platform to go from.
    MisterDrak wrote: »
    Thanks for the casual "hi Dave" as you glided past !

    Nice time there, and I see you got on as a scored on the team !

    Thanks D. I think I would have been scorer if they had an O45 team but when they lumped us all in under O40 I was unfortunately a little off the mark.
    tang1 wrote: »
    Not a word did you heed.......... Super running M, great to see for you.

    Cheers B. I was just looking for a little confidence booster ahead of the big one next weekend!!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,379 ✭✭✭diego_b


    Well done and nice to catch you before the start! Best of luck for next weekend.


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,199 ✭✭✭denis b


    Well done M. Ya must be raring to go next weekend.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 2,447 ✭✭✭FBOT01


    diego_b wrote: »
    Well done and nice to catch you before the start! Best of luck for next weekend.

    Thanks D. Apologies that I didn't stop to chat but I was rushing to dump stuff in the car and to try to beat the crowd into the starter pen. I hope you had a good day yourself.
    denis b wrote: »
    Well done M. Ya must be raring to go next weekend.

    Cheers D. Next all out one for me is Ballycotton in March. Next weekend is an adventure race with Tang on me back :)


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,447 ✭✭✭FBOT01


    Monday (23/01)
    Planned - 6m Easy
    Actual - Rest

    Tuesday (24/01)
    Planned 10m w10x60sec Hills
    Actually 9.9m w10x60sec Hills

    Condition pretty good again this eve. Dry, calm and mild. Again focused on form and driving straight down and off the hard surface. Felt like the legs were stronger and working better than last week. All but the last rep were controlled. Needed assistance from the arm in reps 8, 9 and 10 but only in rep 10 was I flapping at the end. Right side showed signs of nerve pinching again with pins and needles in right toes after 3 reps and some spasm of lower back in the cool down. Settled after the run but was a little stiff when walking the dog later. S&C session tomorrow will hopefully address this

    Wednesday (25/01)
    Planned - 4m/6m Double Recovery
    Actual - 8.2m Easy (Avg Pace 08:12/Avg HR 126)

    Thursday (26/01)
    Planned - 8-10m Easy
    Actual - Rest

    Having decided to can Tempo Thursday with Raheny coming up on Sunday I ended up farting around with loads of excuses and no running. Did a half arse S&C session in the late evening. Better than nothing I suppose.

    Friday (27/01)
    Planned - 6m Easy
    Actual - 6.9m Easy w/1m of Strides (avg pace 08:08/avg HR 129)

    Straight forward easy lunchtime run mainly on grass along the seafront and in Fairview Park.

    Saturday (27/01)
    Planned - 8m Easy finishing with 22min pacing parkrun
    Actual - 3.3m Easy (avg pace 08:20/avg HR 126) plus parkrun 22min pacing (avg pace 07:08/avg HR 143)

    Struggled to get out of the bed so pre-parkrun run was shortened accordingly. Hip was giving me load of gip and as I ran over in my head I was giving up running and never running again. I didn't need this sh*t. Arrived at parkrun sucked in the atmosphere, donned my fancy new pacing bib courtesy of Olive's Room Cafe and thoroughly enjoyed my pacing gig. Not a peep out of the hip/glute when I got going or maybe I was just distracted so didn't notice it. Finished in 22min flat ;) Usual coffee and chats afterwards and my early retirement was on the back burner again :o

    Sunday (29/01)

    Raheny 5

    Official Time: 29:11
    Overall Position: 127
    Category Position (O45): 10

    Love this race every year and look forward to it every year. This year was no different. Training has been going OK. Good weeks and bad. Plenty of niggles that I am trying to manage. The aim for this race was to give me a marker as to where I am and to lay the platform for my first target race of the year which is Ballycotton 10 in March. The plan was to go hard and try to break 30mins. Given that my PB is 29:59 breaking 30mins would give me a PB to boot.

    Took the benefit of the late start to have a lie in after a late night at the annual GAA dinner. Met up with Ferris for the run over and got in a couple of miles of warm-up done taking in the last mile of the course on route. Plenty of boardies and parkrunners around the place and a great atmosphere at race HQ despite the rain.

    Quick change into the racing gear including my shiny new Raheny Singlet and a pair of DS trainer before heading back out for a few strides. I have never raced in anything other than my GT-3000’s so this was a bit of an experiment.
    Headed into the pen early to ensure I could avoid the normal squeeze at the start. I was right up at the tape but by the time the backfill was finished I was about 8/10 rows from the front just behind Caitriona McKieran. This is where I stayed until after the first corner. Then she headed off into the distance and that was the last I saw of her.

    Mile 1 was all about laying the ground work. A number of races in 2016 including Ballycotton 10, Frank Duffy 10, Charleville HM and most recently Waterford HM have taught me some valuable lessons. The key one being that no matter what kind of shape you are in if you can’t get your head in the game you are going to struggle but if you can get your head in the game sometimes you find that you are in better shape than you thought. So I needed to find a way to get my head in the game. And another lesson learnt over the last while is that for me this means finding someone to chase/race. I noticed in mile 1 that I was looking around a bit and daydreaming slightly. I then thought back to the recent XC and remember that throughout that I never looked at or acknowledged any support I just focus on the job and got on with it. I decided that was where I needed to be today so I start trying focus on the runner in front with a view to tracking or passing depending on how they were moving. Also decided not to look at the watch and just run.

    Mile 1 – 05:43

    Not long after the start of Mile 2 I was passed by a Crusader (P) that I know through parkrun. He is a decent runner and a regular top 5 finisher in St Anne’s. This was my chance to turn this into a race. I jumped in behind him and tracked him down Sybil Hill passed the Mile 2 marker. As we approached the mile 2 marker I thought about looking at the watch but questioned myself as to what seeing the time would do for me. I was making a decent effort so if I saw 12:30 or something like that then the head could drop on the basis that I was working too hard to be moving so slow. The alternate was I might see 11:30 and decide I need to back off and convince myself I was going too fast. In the end I saw P look at his watch and decided that he now knew what he was doing so if he is happy then I am happy to tag along as long as the effort felt right. I didn’t look at the watch then or at any other time during the race.

    Mile 2 – 05:44

    As we turned onto Mt Prospect I felt stronger than I had done during the first two miles and decided it was time to return the favour to P so I passed him and pushed on knowing full well he was going to come after me. I lead the charge until we approached the 3 mile marker. At this stage in my head there was only him and me running. I honestly can’t recall any other runner from this section of the race and don’t know if I was passing or being passed but I think it was the former as I probably would have taken note if it was the latter.

    Mile 3 – 05:48

    Just after the mile 3 marker P passed me and pushed about 5m ahead but I didn’t lose him and dug in a forced myself to hold the gap and stay in the game. Mile 4 was where I had lost it last year and slacked off I had no intention of doing the same this year and I had P there as a target to make sure I didn’t. As I entered the park I felt like I was going to throw up but I agreed with myself that feeling like I was going to throw up wasn’t the same as throwing up so until I actually threw up there would be no backing off. I didn’t throw up and in the mind over matter stakes I think my mind just told the matter it was staying in for another while so to sit back and enjoy the ride. Headed up the Avenue and I wasn’t getting any closer to P but wasn’t losing ground either. A couple of people passed me here so I took note and made a conscious effort to push back. I could see the leaders coming the other way but just staying focused on the job at hand. When we turned on the Avenue I now had about 3/4 runners between me and P. As I ran back down the Avenue I got a couple of shout outs from people coming the other way but just keep looking straight ahead and the only person I actually saw going up the other way was AMK. His bright singlet and St Topaz coated shoulders were hard to miss :p

    Mile 4 – 05:57

    Into the last mile and as we approached the end of the Avenue section I was passed by two more. That was the signal to start pulling things back. I slingshot through the middle of these two guys as we rounded the corner and headed towards the dog park. P was still there but looking strong and not coming back to me at all. I tick tacked with a couple of guys on the incline pass the dog park and out onto the road again. As this was a local race I got loads of shout outs all the way around the route. However, none were more welcome than along here and the Raheny singlet now was paying dividends with shouts of “Go Raheny” coming from all sides. My focus moved from P to those between me and him and in particular to an East Antrim guy and a Mullingar guy who were just ahead of me. The Mullingar guy had started right beside me and looked about 18 with the smooth flowing running action that goes with youth. After we rounded the first of three corners in the final run in I was really feeling under pressure and for a split second wondered if I was going to be able to stick with these guys. Then I was hit by the cattle prod in the form of shout outs from aquinn and AGYR who were perfectly placed with about 200m to go. I focused on sticking with the two guys around the next bend and then teed myself up for the final push. I hugged the inside line on the last corner tight and kicked off it, taking both lads before they had even got back into their running after the bend. As I looked up I could see the clock reading 28:xx. Sub 30 and a PB was in the bag now it was about by how much. Pushed on as hard as I could with an eye to my left shoulder to ensure the guys didn’t come back at me. They didn’t. Job done or so I thought until about 10m from the line a completely different guy came from nowhere and passed me on the inside. I hadn’t seen him coming, had no time to react and he got me good :o First time in 7 running I have been successfully passed by anyone in the final straight in Raheny (Ferris would say that this is because I wasn’t running hard enough for the previous 4.9m on any of the previous outings :D). I’d like to think I’d have found something if I had seen him but will never get to find out……lesson for the future is to hold a tighter line so all comers have to come at me from the side I am monitoring.

    Mile 5 – 05:54

    P finished 4 places and 3sec in front of me. Congratulated and thanked him afterwards as well as acknowledging the good runs by the lads before and after me. Was quickly joined by a not unhappy Yaboya and a few others for the walk back to the GAA clubhouse. Met up with a happy Ferris before heading for a cuppa where we were joined by loads of happy boardies and parkrunners with plenty of PBs and strong runs being recounted. Finished off in a local hostelry with the usual suspects for some PB beverages.

    Another great day in Raheny………thanks to all involved organising, volunteering and supporting as without you guys it just doesn’t happen. Last but by no means least thanks to Denisb for the flapjacks, top notch as usual. Hopefully see you all SAME TIME SAME PLACE next year.

    No problem with the hips, glutes, etc during or after the race. In fact legs felt better on Monday morning than they have in a while.

    Now it’s back to the grindstone. Moving from this to a sub 60 in Ballycotton is a big jump but all I can do is keep training and trying!!!

    Oh yeah least I not forget before Ballycotton there is the matter of a little pacing gig in Trim which I have now actually entered :)
    .


  • Registered Users Posts: 743 ✭✭✭Ferris B


    FBOT01 wrote: »
    and the only person I actually saw going up the other way was AMK. His bright singlet and St Topaz coated shoulders were hard to miss :p


    .

    Was he using petrol or diesel?:D


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,447 ✭✭✭FBOT01


    Ferris B wrote: »
    Was he using petrol or diesel?:D

    Probably leaded to get the darker tone :P


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,831 ✭✭✭Annie get your Run


    FBOT01 wrote: »
    Then I was hit by the cattle prod in the form of shout outs from aquinn and AGYR who were perfectly placed with about 200m to go.

    Super report! Sound like the perfectly executed race which gives a good confidence boost for Ballycotton. Of course, you couldn't have done it without us :D


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  • Closed Accounts Posts: 6,121 ✭✭✭tang1


    Great report M, your approach to racing is always great to read.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,447 ✭✭✭FBOT01


    tang1 wrote: »
    Great report M, your approach to racing is always great to read.

    Cheers B. You'll be getting the up close and personal version on Sunday :p


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,447 ✭✭✭FBOT01


    Super report! Sound like the perfectly executed race which gives a good confidence boost for Ballycotton. Of course, you couldn't have done it without us :D

    Thanks AM. Credit where credit is due......well timed shout out was defo worth a few seconds and absolutely cost the East Antrim and Mullingar lads a place :D


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,921 ✭✭✭Kennyg71


    Great report M, some good racing tips in there, really well raced again.


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,355 ✭✭✭Bungy Girl


    tang1 wrote: »
    Great report M, your approach to racing is always great to read.

    +1. I need to borrow some of that mental focus for my next race! Super job on the race execution and the PB. Enjoy the pacer gig in Trim.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,883 ✭✭✭Younganne


    Congrats on the PB FBOT and thats a great report. I love the way you can focus, and reason out your focus with yourself when running. That's a great skill to have for racing. See you on Sunday for a catch up.:D


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,839 ✭✭✭hot buttered scones


    I enjoyed reading that. Great race and well done on the PB. How did you get on with the DS trainers? I'll be trying a pair out for racing for the first time myself this weekend.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,447 ✭✭✭FBOT01


    Kennyg71 wrote: »
    Great report M, some good racing tips in there, really well raced again.

    Cheers G.
    Bungy Girl wrote: »
    +1. I need to borrow some of that mental focus for my next race! Super job on the race execution and the PB. Enjoy the pacer gig in Trim.

    Thanks G. You have plenty of mental focus when you want to have as Murph found out to his detriment not so long ago ;)
    Younganne wrote: »
    Congrats on the PB FBOT and thats a great report. I love the way you can focus, and reason out your focus with yourself when running. That's a great skill to have for racing. See you on Sunday for a catch up.:D

    Thanks A. See you Sunday.
    I enjoyed reading that. Great race and well done on the PB. How did you get on with the DS trainers? I'll be trying a pair out for racing for the first time myself this weekend.

    Thanks M. No problem with the DS Trainers. Felt less clunky than the GT-3000s. Had tried a couple of tempos in them recently and they felt/sounded slappy but on Sunday all was good. No resultant niggles other than a bit of tenderness on the ball of my left foot which may be related to different cushioning resulting in a harder impact on the ball of my foot. Be interested to hear how you find them at the weekend. Best of luck with the race....ENJOY!!!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 2,379 ✭✭✭diego_b


    Echo the compliments on the race run and the report written, definitely taking away some ideas from that. Good job!.


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,355 ✭✭✭Bungy Girl


    FBOT01 wrote: »
    Thanks G. You have plenty of mental focus when you want to have as Murph found out to his detriment not so long ago ;)

    Ah yes, if only I could persuade Murph to join the women's meet and train league I'd be killing it :D:D


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,015 ✭✭✭jake1970


    Great racing M, congrats on the PB.
    Best of luck with the pacing gig on Sunday.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 6,121 ✭✭✭tang1


    Will you have the Raheny belly top on Sunday M?


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,447 ✭✭✭FBOT01


    tang1 wrote: »
    Will you have the Raheny belly top on Sunday M?

    No club colours on Sunday, B.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 6,121 ✭✭✭tang1


    FBOT01 wrote: »
    No club colours on Sunday, B.

    Cool, will have the Candystripes on myself. Be floating around the start about half 11.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,632 ✭✭✭ThebitterLemon


    FBOT01 wrote: »
    No club colours on Sunday, B.

    You'll need your worlds strongest man T shirt, you'll be carrying that lad on your back from mile 9!

    TbL


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,447 ✭✭✭FBOT01


    tang1 wrote: »
    Cool, will have the Candystripes on myself. Be floating around the start about half 11.

    See you there.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,831 ✭✭✭Annie get your Run


    Good luck tomorrow!!! No pressure or anything...


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,831 ✭✭✭Annie get your Run


    Nice work :)


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 4,610 ✭✭✭yaboya1


    Congrats on the sub 64 pacing job :p


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  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,936 ✭✭✭annapr


    Love the Raheny report, M, great racing. The fierceness on your face in the final straight photos was reflected in your report!


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,447 ✭✭✭FBOT01


    My god that 4 weeks went very quickly. I have been ticking away with a weekly structure that sees me doing hill sprints on Tuesday, an LT Session on Thursday, a 10m including parkrun on Saturday and then a longer run of anything up to 2hrs on a Sunday with easy/recovery runs in between of 45-60mins.

    Runs of noted since last update were as follows:
    • Sunday 05/02 - Trim 10 - pacing tang for his sub 64 attempt. Great day and event as always. Pacing went well and tang put in good shift. At the rate he is progressing I think he will be pacing me next year :)
    • Saturday 11/02 - parkrun St Anne's 19:37, Decent effort progressive sub 20 at the end of a 10miler.
    • Tuesday 14/02 - 8x75secs Hills RI150. These were done on Sutton side Howth head. Including the run out and back this was a nice 13m+ midweek run.
    • Thursday 16th - LT 14/16mins RI120. Game of two halves. With the wind for the first rep (avg pace 06:01) but back into it for the second one (avg pace 06:33). Overall decent session.
    • Sunday 19/02 - 15m MLR (07:25 avg pace). Jumped in with Ferris for this. He is following the Hanson plan for London and the pace was set based on his targets. He had told me beforehand that the plan was 07:40 but broke the news to me as we started off that he had miscalculated :o A little tired towards the end but target distance or pace was never in doubt.

    Overall target for February was to continue to work on endurance and LT and to get weekly mileage up over 60m. Have gotten some good LT sessions in and last two weeks have been 60m+.

    Only negative is that I have not upped my game sufficiently on the S&C front and as such I am rolling the dice a little as the mileage increases. Dry needling and massage can only do so much. If I don't get my sh!t together pushing on for a marathon after Ballycotton would not end well.

    Two weeks to Ballycotton from tomorrow so more of the same in the coming week followed by a week of sharpening.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 1,839 ✭✭✭hot buttered scones


    Best of luck tomorrow. Might see you around the start.


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,355 ✭✭✭Bungy Girl


    Have a great race tomorrow !


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,601 ✭✭✭Wubble Wubble


    Best of luck tomorrow M, and of course ENJOY!


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,199 ✭✭✭denis b


    Know you will be getting your head in the zone and might not see the messages of support M, but they are there. All the very best.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 2,831 ✭✭✭Annie get your Run


    Best of luck M and of course ENJOY :)


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 6,121 ✭✭✭tang1


    Where's the race report? Give home a kick in the hole A will ya!!! Great running M, not that is surprising or anything & greatly deserved.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,119 ✭✭✭Mrs Mc


    tang1 wrote: »
    Where's the race report? Give home a kick in the hole A will ya!!! Great running M, not that is surprising or anything & greatly deserved.

    Gladly :)


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,447 ✭✭✭FBOT01


    tang1 wrote: »
    Where's the race report? Give home a kick in the hole A will ya!!! Great running M, not that is surprising or anything & greatly deserved.

    Real life getting in the way, B.

    Official time was 60:59. Rightly or wrongly I went for it and couldn't push on the way Mick C did. Couldn't even hang on:)

    Full report to follow.


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,447 ✭✭✭FBOT01


    4 weekly updates seem to be becoming the norm for me with real-life getting in the way of my interaction with boards. Way behind on most of what is going on around here I am afraid. However, a crap 6 nations match between Scotland and Italy provided me with the opportunity to at least pen some kind of update.

    As with the rest of the year to date I continued to tick away for weeks 9 and 10 with a weekly structure of hill sprints on Tuesday, an LT Session on Thursday, a 10m including parkrun on Saturday and then a longer run of anything up to 2hrs on a Sunday with easy/recovery runs in between of 45-60mins. Averaging +60miles weekly. Week 11 was race week for Ballycotton so I trimmed things back with my 2nd and 3rd rest days since Raheny. With the race on the Sunday I took full advantage of the excuse for an easier week. Week 12 is being treated as a recovery week with no sessions and I'll probably finish out with 30 something miles.

    Runs of noted since last update were as follows:
    Thursday 23/02 - LT 14/16/8mins RI120. Avoided the worse of the weather but it was still very windy when I got out. With the wind for the first & second reps (avg pace 06:15/06:25) but back into it for the last one (avg pace 06:40). Overall an OK session.
    Thursday 02/03 - LT 18/12/10mins RI120. Avg pace for the reps were 06:10/06:21/06:25. Another overall OK session.
    Sunday 05/02 - 16m MLR (07:22 avg pace). Jumped in with Ferris again for this. We headed to PP early to get this done. All went to plan and we hit all the markers and felt strong throughout even finished up the Kyber holding pace without any real problem. Much more comfortable than the 15 miler we did a few weeks before at similar pace.
    Sunday 12/03 - Ballycotton 10.....report to follow shortly depending on whether France come to play rugby or just to make up the numbers :)

    Still haven't upped my game sufficiently on the S&C front....MUST DO BETTER

    As at today the plan is to push on with a view to toeing the line in Cork in June. Despite the obvious attractions of the "TbL Thickness" approach, I will probably stick with a more traditional option and go with the guts of the P&D 55-70 12 week plan again :D


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  • Registered Users Posts: 1,921 ✭✭✭Kennyg71


    Best luck with this Cycle M, hope all goes to plan. Maybe I'll get a chance to tail you in October then.


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 6,632 ✭✭✭ThebitterLemon


    The "TbL Thickness" plan is the way of the future!

    And according to Mrs Mc you could hold seminars on the thickness part of the plan :)

    TbL


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,447 ✭✭✭FBOT01


    The short version.....warmer, windier and slower than I would have liked!!!

    |2017 | 2016|2015|2014
    Official Time|1:00:58|1:00:34|1:01:23|1:04:32
    Overall Position|132|113|126|210
    Category Position (O45)|14|6|9|48

    Slightly longer version…..

    Prerace

    Raheny 5 followed by this was always the plan for the early part of 2017. This was my fourth outing to Ballycotton so I have reasonable knowledge of the course and the set-up. As has become the norm on the morning of the race I got up early and had my usual breakfast. While sitting enjoying the view over the bay I reviewed my last year’s race reports. This refreshed my memory on the logistics and hammered home the point about congression, etc. at the start. Then I jumped onto Strava to review the splits from my previous outings. Had to find something to do to pass the time given the late start. This helped me to confirm my strategy in the head which was effectively go hard or go home. If I didn't commit from mile 1 all the sub 60 talk would have just been that talk and there would be no chance of even a PB.

    As in recent years we had a house rented in the village for the weekend with friends. This year we had the new houses which were built in the field that used to be the bag drop so couldn’t have been better placed. Had plenty of visitors from 11:00 onwards including Ferris, Kennyg, Murph, Annapr and their crews and plenty of the St Anne’s parkrun crew. This helped to pass the morning.

    So 12 O’Clock came and time to start thinking about the job at hand. A couple of warm-up miles in the company of Ferris, Murph and kennyg among others before heading back to the house to get changed. After donning my Raheny vest and black bag I headed to the start area. We were in place a good 15/20mins before the start but all seemed a little busier than previous years. A quick hello from HBS and a lot of standing around followed. Eventually, the gun went and we were off.

    Mile 1 – 05:53

    I was lined up about 15/20 rows back by the time the elites joined in from the front before the off. Gun seemed to go off out of the blue and took everyone around me slightly by surprise. But the crowd start to move forward pretty quickly. I got into my running reasonably quickly and the requirement for stopping and starting or weaving wasn’t too bad. I had the same feeling as in 2016 when I felt like my HR was sky rocketing and couldn’t catch a breath. The fact I had read my description of this from 2016 a couple of hours earlier gave me the comfort to know it would pass pretty quickly. When we hit the mile 1 marker the guys shouting times called 6min flat. I knew that was gun time so that I would have a few second in hand. Good starting mile nothing to complain about.

    Mile 2 – 05:44

    As we turned at the bottom of the hill we were very exposed with the wind coming off the land to our left. This would mean miles 3-5/6 would be mostly into the wind and if I got isolated it would be game over. The group I was in was moving a little slower than I thought I needed but the next group was +20yards ahead and moving at pace. I decided to go all in and push to cross the gap to the group in front before we took the left turn into the wind. This resulted in my fastest mile of day but in my view was a necessary move. Caught the group with about 5 yards to spare before we turned the corner and settled into the back of the group to shelter and try recover and get the HR down.

    Mile 3 – 05:50

    Another quick mile just making sure I stayed with the group. Had made a decision before I even started that there would be no clock watching, it was all about getting the most out of myself and committing. The only time I looked at the watch all during the whole race was when I crossed the 10k mark. To be fair in Ballycotton you can’t avoid knowing how you are progressing as they have someone calling splits at the 1, 3, 7 and 9 mile markers. They also have a split clock at half way. As I hit the 3 mile marker the guy called 17:40……..whoops I thought to myself, as with a 5k PB of 17:42, I was definitely pushing the boundary. Banished the negative thoughts and focused on staying with the group.

    Mile 4 – 06:03

    Mile 4 sees a bit of climb and this combined with the head wind saw the group break up a little. This was followed by a little cat and mouse with two Eagle AC runner who really didn’t want to be making the running into the breeze. I unlike Krusty was a complete d1ck and took as much cover as was on offer. After all I am only a little guy so me taking up the running wouldn’t have helped anyone very much…….never mind the fact I was running closer to the edge than I would have liked.

    Mile 5 – 06:05

    Mile 5 was pretty much along the same lines as mile 4. Hit halfway at 30 flat so was happy enough with the time although the effort level had been high. I was going to need the tail wind to keep me on track on the way home.

    Mile 6 – 06:00

    Water station came in mile 6 and between that and the support around Ballymaloe I felt a got a very brief second wind but the group was pushing on again and I was struggling to hang on.

    Mile 7 – 06:07

    Mile 7 saw me drop off the back of the group but also saw me cross the 10k mark @ 37:16 some 25secs faster than last year. I was still in the sub 60 game just about and definitely still in the hunt for a PB. The 10k split helped to keep me focused for a little longer. This was the hardest part of the race mentally and I spent quite a while focusing on the ground 10ft in front of me and on my breathing to try to find a rhythm and to distract me from the negativity that comes from seeing a group pull away. A smaller group started to form and 3 of us (a Celbridge AC guy and a lad from Youghal AC) started to work off each other to keep the momentum. Call at the 7 mile marker was 42:20 or thereabouts. Again this was gun time so a PB was still potentially on.

    Mile 8 – 06:13

    Hanging on throughout this mile. Can’t remember a huge amount about this mile.

    Mile 9 – 06:18

    Was passed by a couple of lads just after the 8mile mark and jump in behind them to try to build momentum for the hill that was coming. Rounded the corner and hit the hill trying to maintain pace. I was working hard and feeling the cumulative effort that it had taken me to get to here. Memory is a little more hazy here than usual and don’t have clear recollections of who passed me or who I passed. I do know that I finished the hill neutral in terms of places as I was very conscious of this at this stage. Guy calling splits gave me 54:4x at the 9 mile marker which was pretty similar to last year. However, it felt like I was working significantly harder than last year. Sub 6min mile needed just to PB now. Ploughed on regardless chasing down the bodies ahead as that was all I could do at this stage.

    Mile 10 (.08) – 06:13 (04:32)

    Last mile was less than vintage and my legs and lungs were both begging for it to be all over. As I approached the middle of the village and the 800m mark I was flagging and I was really hoping that some of the crew had parked themselves somewhere along here….. and to my great delight there they were in full voice just when needed. Thanks to Annapr, Mrs Ferris B, OB and the crew for the much needed lift. Back in the game now and the last job of the day was to push for home, not lose any more places and if possible, to pick off a few extras. I was passed by two lads as we moved between 400m and 300m to go but they didn’t do a convincing job and I hung on to their coat tails. Then came the Bay View and a huge shout from my house mates for the weekend. I hit the gas and emptied the tank. Truly rinsed myself over the last 150m and left the two lads for dead and think I got one extra in the last 20m. Exchanged congratulations and acknowledgements with those who finished around me and headed back around to the Bayview to join the crew and cheer in the rest of the field. Loads of strong performance if not as many PB’s as we would have liked. Heat and the wind played their part.

    Overall Thoughts

    I didn’t get any closer to going sub 60 or to getting one of the famous top 100 t-shirts than I had in the previous year and failed to even match 2016 in either time or performance. However, I wasn’t unhappy. I had given it a go and come up short. No shame in that. I will be back next year for another go. There will need to be a little more focus in the training for the early part of 2018 with as much specific 10m training as I can get during that period.

    In summary another great day in Ballycotton. Great event, well organised and run. Thanks to all involved.

    Finished off the evening with a nice few drinks in a couple of local hostelries in good company.

    Finally, I crossed the line at 1:00:58 on the clock and 1:00:49 on my watch. For some reason my official gross and net time are both the same at 1:00:58. This is definitely wrong and my watch time is probably more accurate. Either way it was short of a PB so no real point is hassling the organisers to fix it for the sake of it……….roll on Ballycotton 2018!!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 10,553 ✭✭✭✭Murph_D


    Agree with that - not much more you could have done. Last year you were in the middle of marathon cycle and possibly a tiny bit sharper but not much in it, and conditions a bit tougher this year anyway. Well raced and well done on the difficult finish - I wouldn't like to be trying to stay in front of you at the end of any race of any distance!


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 6,121 ✭✭✭tang1


    Murph_D wrote: »
    I wouldn't like to be trying to stay in front of you at the end of any race of any distance!

    He wouldn't even let me finish ahead of him when he paced me in Trim, threw in a kick right at the end to stop me*. Great performance M, conditions appeared to be a bit more difficult than years gone past. A mighty fine building block going into Cork training.

    *Did not actually happen!!!


  • Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 3,883 ✭✭✭Younganne


    Well done FBOT great running and sounds like you gave it everything for the whole race. Great finish and You're sub 60 will come. Just keep the faith!!:D


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,606 ✭✭✭RedRunner


    Well done in BallyC M. Best of luck with rest of training fro COrk


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