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Year 4: "It's a game of inches"
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Some last minute team selections through the week as ambitious as it was our 3 mile runner had not recovered from marathon a week previous (who would have thought) so after deliberations with el capitan we finally settled on pulling one of the lads up from the B team to run my 2 mile leg and I would do the 3 mile. Once this happened we knew the pressure was off. Last year we managed 6th in this but we were now missing our top 2 guys so it was always just gonna be about a respectable run and hopefully wouldn't be in no-mans land by the time my leg was finished
Our first 2 mile guy had his race of the year and this was followed up with a solid 1 mile leg. It helped the field was largest I can remember but we were sitting in around top 20 teams, not the worst considering.
Got the exchange just shortly after a Clonliffe runner I recognized from XC and set off to take chase. Managed to curb the usual enthusiastic starting 200 that usually happens in this race (mainly because I knew 3 mile leg was a different ball game and last thing I needed was to blow up. Managed to catch him at first turn which was ideal as we faced into the wind. Tucked in behind and took it quite conservative. He tried a few erratic maneuvers to try shake me but I was happy to let him do the work (plenty of other races to be selfless when you aren't running for a team
) Once turned down back towards start at about 800 I started pushing on and was joined by 2 SLOT runners who had the same idea and were tucked in behind us. Pace picked up significantly here (between downhill and wind on our backs) and came around the first lap to see a solid split 5.12 (perfect)
Second lap and I tucked in again behind the SLOT runners as the Clonliffe lad had fallen back a small bit. Was running well although pace wasn't as well salvaged in the second half this time as I came around to see a 5.25 on the watch. The SLOT lads had also broken away a bit and pushing on.
Start of the third lap and the Tom S from Clonliffe had managed to catch back up and 4 of us were still in touch with each other but the group had fragmeneted with one of the SLOT guys falling off and me not too far behind him while the other two kicked on. Came around the last bend and dug in for a strong sustained finish (5.25)
Finishing time: 16.09 (Though official results seem to have added 23 seconds to my time from our last 2 miler
Thoughts:
Overall ran to form and probably about on par with MSB. Considering the last min change in distance I will definitely take that. This was more about the club than individual performance as we managed to get 10 teams out in total which we were delighted to get (largest turnout for the club ever in this event which is normally a high priority for the club). In terms of the Senior team also a very optimistic result. With one lad from club moving abroad (1.48 800m guy) and missing our regular 3 mile guy (sub 14 5k) we were down 3 minutes in last year before we started but managed to finish closer to 2.30 behind our time from last year. Shows an improvement in overall club and not just at the pointy end.0 -
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Myles Splitz wrote: »Thursday PM 3*(600,400,300,200 w/2 min rec) 4 min b/w sets
Splits:
1.45, 68, 47, 30
1.44, 71, 49, 31
1.45, 71, 50, 31
Nice splits on the session.
Might borrow that one sometime. Good session for promoting a strong finishing kick? 0 -
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KielyUnusual wrote: »Nice splits on the session. Might borrow that one sometime. Good session for promoting a strong finishing kick?
I have done this session once every year for the last three (much like last Tuesday's one) find it great for generating speed on tired legs. For me not so much to promote a kick but rather just to get my legs used to running 1500m paces while tired because I don't do enough of that training early season0 -
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The Second part of the Trilogy
Originally not on the radar this year but since I moved to within a mile of the start and follows routes that I have trained on over the past 3 years it would be rude not to :P
1st mile got underway and I was running wide behind Feidhlim K and Catriona McKiernan however this was short lived as I spotted a familiar Raheny singlet of a guy who had been ahead of me all XC and road season by narrow bit and thought he would provide a perfect marker for where I wanted to be. Turned down by Bushy Park and a group was forming around him including Paul F who coaches one of the younger lads in the club so I thought ideal.
Hit the 1st mile in 5.20 a fraction quicker than I was targetting (5.25) but perfect as I knew fast start would be perfect place to get a bit of a cushion for small climbs later in the race. Second mile was a little slower but we were into the wind so I wasn't worried too much, feeling controlled though the body was still feeling a little sluggish so tucked in where I could as we came up to the one drag on the course. Coming up to the 2nd mile mark I slowed up a little being conservative on the hill. Felt I was running within myself and wasn't worried as the lads pulled ahead as I would make it back on the downhill. Second mile was 5.33 but didn't panic as I knew it was the slowest part of the course.
Continued to climb on the third mile to the roundabout and saw 5.50 pace on the watch, way too slow but convinced myself that was just because had only clocked off a mile so pace hadn't settled. Turned down towards templeogue and had broke the back of the worst of the course so now was time to kick on. Only one problem....... the watch didn't seem to be responding despite upping things couldn't seem to get the pace going. Slowly came down by Bushy again to hear shouts for an old boardsie from the home club. Just after Terenure college he passed me and I immediately tucked in, despite no wind on this part of the course it was habit. Mile 3 - 5.42
Mental arithmetic was to the fore and immediately I knew PB was gone, the questions was by how much. Coming around by the Garda station and no one seemed to want to take on the wind. Heard a female voice talking about us kicking on to realise it was 1st female (S Doherty) I was still not really hurting so I kicked on a bit with her in toe Mile 4 - 5.45. My mind was made up to kick like my life depending on it as I felt I wasn't hurting as much as I should at this stage of a race especially with the efforts I had to put in for the likes of GIR and even the 5k this week. Came around by KCR and the stomach starting playing up, a small bit of dry wretching, my body seemed to be building these up however as each wave seemed to become more intense. Took last turn with 800 to go and I just shut off completely and started running easy.
I was plodding along at this stage and suddenly things improved again and I pushed on. Was making ground on the few who had passed me during my little recovery jog though still was not really working too hard. Saw the line up ahead with the clock running into the high 27s. Upped pace a small bit but by no means a kick and crossed the line (Mile 5 - 5.44) in
Official Time: 28.08
I could make excuses like the race during week, heat getting to me, or other on the morning factors but I was never really there today and was just a going through the motions type of race. A PB that I should have been able to give a good rattle stays for another year atleast. Not gonna beat myself up about it as there plenty more races (including my next one Tuesday night). I was overdue a bad performance so glad to get it out of the way and still manage to do my bit to get a solid placing for the team (4th Senior team I think)0 -
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A super 5 mile coming uup in dunboyne with plenty of competition for you if you want another go at that pb... G'wan, ill hide the good cake for ye
As tempting as it may be it would be Sandwiched in between 2 big ones (Dublin 10,000m Champs which is the target and Leinster Seniors Outdoor if I get day release for it) Will be dependant on how body reacts as would mean 6 races in May (7 if you include my tempo effort in our club race)0 -
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ultrapercy wrote: »I always feel sluggish and tired this time of year. I usually struggle through and pick up again in the autum but sometimes it's a real battle and all my best races are from spring or autum. I'm beginning to think it's pollen allergy even tho I have no outward signs like itchy eyes or runny nose. Typically on any run in summer I have a feeling that I'm not getting in enough oxegyn even though my breathing is fine. Someone told me that this is a particularly bad year for pollen because of late growth. Just something to consider. I know how a sub par 10k track race can destroy you so well done on not DNF.
That's an excellent point.
The pollen count has been quite high and I found myself struggling to get up and generally tired throughout the day. It really does effect people in different way and not always in the usual runny nose and tear filled eyes sense. I can suffer very badly, even going on a very strong case of (legal) steroids a few years back to help me live some sort of life. This year has been different but still very noticeable. Definitely something all athletes should be aware of.
Simple steps like properly (!) cleaning your house and car can really help. All that dust doesn't help! Close all the windows when home or in the office etc.0 -
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As vice captain in the club this year I had agreed to assume control of the men's team for this one. Between leaving Cert, injuries and International competition team was fairly decimated so after running around for 10 days trying to assemble a team (including the odd crash course in field events) managed to assemble a team. This event is my usual steeple pilgrimage each year so I knew that was in order and the walk simply because I knew from last year I had enough technique to hey around without getting DQ'ed which would be enough to earn a decent amount of points (managed 4th last year in Premier Division with arm in a sling simply by not getting DQ'ed)
From the time I got out there I knew it was gonna be a hectic day. Last minute niggles, injuries, no shows etc meant the team was constantly shuffling and trying to chase people around the stadium trying to ensure we had enough events covered as well as trying to do on field injury management for some to try and see could they get through their events.
3000m Walk
1st up for me was the walk. Didn't really warm up too much for this given that I was chasing around the team but figured it would act as a warm up for the steeple. Gun went and we took off. It became quickly apparent that their were a couple of walk specialists of a decent standard so left them off. Never seem to be able to open out my stride enough for this to cover ground as well as I would like but foot fall is okay. Hit 400m in around 2.20 and immediately I knew I was going to be a damn big improvement on last year.
As the top three whizzed by me lapping once,twice, possibly even 3 times (lost count) I was actually going well and working hard. Technique seemed to be improving each lap also, first relaxing the body, then correcting cross body arm swing then getting a bit more out of stride length. Last year I came last by a good 7 minutes. This year I was actually pulling away from a guy behind me, so much so that he was being closed down with the possibility of lapping him looking like it was on the card (Saw 200m between use which increased to 300m over the second half of the race).
By the time last 600 came along the legs were burning. Distance runners don't use their shin muscles this much in a marathon block never mind one 3k race. Looked at the watch and saw that our club record could be in jeopardy (not sure of the exact time). This record was something that had significant meaning as my old house mate actually held this record so taking it would be all too sweet (not to mention the fact that I will never get withing touching distance of clubs distance records :P ) I dug in and put it what could only be described as a kick (not to offend the chain of command around here as I know its a contentious point atm) I bust my gut working soo hard to go as fast as I could without breaking stride and running.
Crossed the line in 21.23 for 4th (14 seconds under club record) and about 5 minutes quicker than last year.
High Jump
This was not on the cards initially but unable to get our 2 of our 3 resident HJ'ers in the club had no choice. The plan was simple. Clear a height, get some points and be done in time to warm up for the Steeplechase.
Got over to the officials and we were running 15 min behind (despite track events being 20 min ahead) typical. In my hayday I had a 1.60m PB so when the lads were just having a few practice jumps of 1.90/2.00 I knew my chances of a underdog Miracle on the Ice style scenario were not gonna happen. Skulked over to the officials on the sly "Right lads, realistically what starting height you gonna allow here?" Thankfully they saw the panic on my face and said they would start at what ever height we wanted. Music to my ears. As I waited for the looks while they ran through check in and starting heights ; 1.70, 1.80, 1.70...... 1.30, looked around, was someone answering for me? Thankfully not and another lad looking like he was in the same position as myself.
Plan quickly changed. If I could beat him would be a successful day. Didn't expect too many jumps so as such didn't measure my run up properly and had a rough idea. Slí Cualann guy went and missed 1st height. I followed up with a 1st time clearance. It was coming back to me a bit. 2nd height cleared easy enough again but so to as Sli Cualann seemed to be coming into his own.
3rd height - 1.40 and completely misjuded and never looked like clearing the height and nearly came down on the bar but luckily avoided that to save my back the pain. Came back and cleared without too much difficulty on the second time round but thought this had ruined my chances of winning on countback if Sli Cualann managed the height.
Next height and things went to muck, 1st attempt jumped too early, second one caught with shoulder after take off on the way up, third time and a bit of an improvement but not enough and I was out. Figured that was it and headed off only later to find out I had managed to beat your man on countback.
7th in 1.40m
3000m Steeplechase
With the unexpected competition in the high jump the warm up for this was non existant. Few drills and one or two practice jumps and was ready to go. With all the running around all day and the other events I was loose atleast
My usual partner in crime for this event Timmaay rocked up and figured he would be the main contender for this dependent on how much he was gonna save for the 5000m he had later. Gun went and took a conservative start. 2 of the lads in our division took off with the premier guys though I figured they had never done the event and would come back and Timmaay on my shoulder (no doubt with the same idea)
Hit 1st lap in 79, steady given only 3 barriers in 1st lap. Timmaay began to pull ahead and a Wexford lad was up on my shoulder. Focus was lacking and a few of the barriers I came to pretty close to the lads and my strides were all over the place, a few stutters to the barrier, some reaching strides and even having to step on one due to misjudging stride pattern (normally one of my strong points). Hit 800 in 2.52 which was relatively ok but lads were pulling ahead. Legs weren't feeling good though and the day was taking its toll. Hit 1500m in 5.12 still in line for a PB but I was fairly flat now and new I wouldn't be able to sustain it. 1st mile was 5.36.
Second half and pace dropped, fatigue set in and I was having to stand on majority of barriers (which normally only do it possibly once in whole race due to fatigue. I was in a world of hurt but just kept trying to tick on and not give in. Slowed big time at about 2200 but with 800 to go I knew I was nearly there (Mentally felt like a short race given I had already done a 3k in the day which took double the time of this one :P) Last 400 and dug in just to finish strong but it was a hollow victory.
Crossed the line in 5th - 10.51
Was kinda surprised that the time wasn't worse given how I felt. In previous years I have finished in around this time fully fresh and well warmed up so all things considered not a bad performance.
4x400m Relay
This last one was another last minute as a last minute withdrawal due to injury after previous even on the day meant we had to have someone fill in. The options were me or a lad who ran the Race Series 5 mile in the morning and the 5000m here for us. As team captain I bit the bullet here.
Thankfully unlike 2 weeks ago I didn't have to worry about blocks as I was on the second leg. Our 1st lad had won the 400m earlier so I knew it would put us well up at start so pressure was on for Simon Slow twitch to not F$&k it up
Got the baton in 3rd (despite a poor changeover on my behalf) and went out hard. We were in lane 3 so as came around the bend I just wanted to make sure that I did everything I could to hold that till the break atleast. Half expecting lads to come by on the inside, no one so far....... maybe they pulled up??? as we broke Finn Valley lad had a commanding lead then Louth with me holding my own in 3rd.
No signs of cramp coming on so I was pushing as hard as I could half expecting the sledge hammer to hit coming off the second bend, No sign so far now was the time to drive it home. Started emptying the tank as much as I could and tying up a bit before remembering the golden rule of trying to stay relaxed (very hard when you hear a lad coming up on your shoulder). After busting my balls for so long I was not gonna give it up in final 30m and handed off still in 3rd less than a second ahead of an Antrim athlete. Job done and definitely the run of my life in terms of sprints anyway
We ended up 4th in the end and Chivito came over with a hand time split of 58.5 (very rough) for myself)
Body didn't thank me for a day like today but definitely one of the most enjoyable days of athletics I have had in a long while and definitely a grass routes competition which shows just how great the sport is as a whole.0
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