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Moraghan Training - Stevie G
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So the stomach bug cleared off nicely now, not done much decent training so didn't really know what to expect from the Poole 'Round the lakes' 10k yesterday. I've entered the Chichester 10k in order to try and get V45 qualification for the final in Brum in May, where I need to get top 3 in that 'Southern qualifier', so I'm looking at sub 33 to make sure I think.
The folks live a couple of miles away from the park so had a nice jog down and legs felt pretty good. Annoyed I'd left my sunnies at home as it was quite blinding from the wet ground. So the race is in the same area as the park run, pretty much pan flat, but with two 180 degree turns in each lap. You start off towards the cricket pitch, once around it anti clockwise, then off around the lakes and cricket pitch three times. Plan was to hit 3.24's, get to 5k in 17 and eat into that second half. Went off steady in the top 10, had a bit of hassle with a couple of old fogies getting in the way, but managed to not knock them over. Kept missing the K markers but caught 3k at 9.55 I think, then 16.40 at halfway, which was OK and gave me a bit of confidence for the 2nd half.
At at this point I was running with one of the Southampton AC Costly clan (there's dad and two kids, Peter, Max and Sam), think it was Max, but I know Scotty probably knows them. Moved away from him and saw Sam a bit ahead. Time wise still going ok, think I hit 8k at 26.45 ish. Still felt ok and got past the other Costly with a K to go. One last time around the outside of the bloody cricket pitch and in to finish in 4th within 33.31. Won the first V40 prize, not sure what it is yet as my dads mate picked it up for me as I had to nip off to Bmth-West Ham.
So so happy with that, need to take 30 secs off at least in Chichester I would have thought, but good for a marker.
ie, for those who weren't there, bits on mud by the river that we were merely squirming along in road shoes, and almost took a few spills
An 8.28 on firm roads would feel a cruise, today's sludge not so much
Makes me wonder how 10min miling will go if I get a run with someone at work!
ps, one last Aylesbury one.
For any of you who have done it before, here's this year's start line. See how far back it is. Almost under the arch.
He's even got go-faster stripes on his! How's the foot?
7.5 crisp miles this morning. Nice morning, but too much time spent faffing with my new watch! My "12 screen" data field widget thingy was not easy to read in the semi dark with my failing eye-sight!
Goodness knows what the S0S is about. Good little one in Bus.
One look at my mop in the pics sent me out for a haircut. Always amazed the transformation from wide dome face to sleek oval headshape with a shear! Guy at my track said I must have "had an easy life" when quoting my age. On Tuesday he'd have probably said, you mean 46 don't you
Quick jaunt over to Datchet then for my first track session with them. They normally run them a very awkward Monday night, so a Thursday 10am was excellent.
6 laps supposedly starting at 4secs per lap slower than 5k, increasing by 2 secs each lap. Then 7mins (!)
Then 2x800 off 2mins, and 2x400m off 2mins.
So something different.
Track was a little bit icy for half of it.
Knew ending at 1.14 would be a bit of an ask for the 6 lapper, so thought i'll "ease off" and see what happens.
1.18 first lap! Whoops.
Eased it back down, and came out starting with(no roundings)
1.18,1.23,1.21,1.22,1.21,1.18
So not quite how it should have panned out, but a decent recovery from the way too fast start. Lapped everyone which was decent, but none of the fast guys there. It is still a working day I suppose. 12 or so there was a decent turnout.
Colossal 7min rest!
Then 2.33, 2.34 800s.
Then 1.14,1.13 400s
Usually would take less recovery for both 800s and 400s, but half the track being a little "skatey" made up for that I suppose.
Few laps cooldown, off to collect my new "small" Datchet vest (which is still longer and baggier than even the mediums of Marlow and Sandhurst...grrr), and a little 3mile pootle after to make the mileage for the day to 8.5
Finally got some new XC shoes after the "bottom splitting off" charade at Handy Cross
Inov 8 X Talon 225s. Colossal price in Apex of £110, but after wheeling out £55 of vouchers and club discount sub £50.
Just as well, as online apparently you can get them £60-70, albeit the "old" colour
But hey, first time in a new show never hurts to try it on, and the vouchers had to be used, and generally their price is high on everything!
Nice sesh SG, and even nicer shoes :-) Nice to see Apex are still a bargain outfit ;-)
Run home in a bit, then a day off tomorrow. Got to try and squeeze a run in before we head off to London for an overnighter with a load of family based activities thrown in!
What do you think of the further back start Simon? Certainly wider!
Although anyone to the far right realised they weren't actually covered by the mat, hence the guy shepherding them over!
I was taking my girls into Reading today on the train and running down the stairs to the platform carrying big open pushchair in one hand and a child on my shoulders was a bit much but I'd have missed the train if I'd waited for the lift!
I certainly won't be doing a double Parkrun as part of a marathon though!
Nice session there SG, I have the X-Talons and they have awesome grip.
I ordered a pair of Parkclaws before I did my ankle in, they are, like Phil's shoes, supposed to be trail/road shoes but I am not sure when I will get tp try them out now. Although I hope to be running again within two weeks I think it will be all straight lines and roads whilst I do some strengthening exercises as it gave way like I was made of rubber due to previous occurrences of the same injury.
Our arranged lift back from the airport was a no show (car broken down).
Damned if I'm stumping up £75 for a taxi so caught the train. Cost £17. Used my modest running ability to get home from the station in order to collect a car in which to go back and collect the others plus luggage.
Anyway, two garaged cars (rented lock ups if wondering) and neither started - must be catching. Neighbour came to the rescue, so ok.
Good to see the foot is on the mend Reg.
SG, to be sure I'm not going to get evangelical about running/training issues right now as for myself, being able to run properly at all would be acceptable. Hardly in a position to pick holes in good work.
Something else from New Zealand. They tend not to be too sensitive when it comes to issues which upset them. How about this for the front page of their national newspaper?
Different eh!?
🙂
What do you get flying past your house?
🙂
Bugger about the cars Ric! I've got one on my drive that hasn't moved for a month, so I may find the same!
Reg - difference with the Parkclaws, is they should be ok on wet tarmac/concrete as well. I'm tempted to get a pair, but need to get rid of some of the dozens of other shoes first!
Started on road this morning as I wanted to do some form of speed work. After about 300m and slipping all over the place I abandoned that idea and went off-road! 6.6M of slush, mud and the occasional slide! Getting used to the new watch now and, despite never wanting such features, actually like the heart rate and cadence functions!
Right, off to London in a mo - it's very big Matt
Must admit, I thought that was just a common seagull at first glance of Ric's pic!
Dachs - they finally sorted the XC county champ fiasco. Apparently your gang managed to enter 4 different variants of Reading Road Runners!
As well as all sorts of messing about with seniors in vets, and vice versa (not sure which club did this)
It's really flying past a light house on the Otago peninsular.
Down the road, around a corner, there was some running action.
The one on the right looks like he can run.
The one on the left looks like he's been run over.
🙂
Ok, I've got a few mins before forcing myself out for my first double in a week (!) It really is so much easier when you have the limits of work to structure it for you, even though it should be much easier.
Therefore, with just 2 more days of 2017 to go, very shortly we'll have all had our last run for the year.
Therefore, as is MTSG thread tradition, I propose the below template for the award winning (ed - don't exaggerate) end of year reviews!
Get your last run done, then we can enjoy a scroll through as always
- Total amount of races in 2017
21 including parkruns.- Different distances raced at
Parkrun, 5.2k road relay, 10k, 8.5m fell relay, 10m, 1/2, 20mile, marathon.- Year's mileage (versus last year if you like)
Up to now strava shows 3990 but I'm probably just over 4000 miles. Didn't put a few runs on post manchester marathon as I was told to rest but that would've been silly. ;-)- Pbs
20 mile, 2 x marathon PBS and a parkrun pb :-D- Race wins/prizes/awards - team or individual - anything from the World Masters, to the "Cock n Biscuits shorter of 2 races, offroader against a bunch of kids" (ahem), to parkruns.
I've run 11 parkruns officially and been first finisher on them all. Won a half marathon, won a 20 miler, got the team prize at Manchester marathon which was a bonus and was in the money at Yorkshire marathon. 4th.- Highlights of the Year - as many as you like, broad as you like - simply enjoying it again, specific or new races run, through to being voted Most legendary handsome don in your club
Race wins were nice but running pbs at the marathon probably trumps it. Knowing you've put all your eggs in one basket for 3 months or so and you manage to hold it together on the day. If I have to pick one it'd be Yorkshire marathon. It felt far too difficult even before 10 miles and I was on my arse by 14 miles but I learnt a lot about myself in that race to run 21 miles of a marathon as a solo time trial. Never had to dig so deep and talk myself out of throwing the towel in for so long. Physically I'm over it but I'm not sure I could do it again.Keeping my running streak going from May 2016. Averaged over 10 miles a day since.
Running a decent 10mile race (55mins) after running a 58 min 10 mile training run the day before which was a 17 mile day. Also doing a 12 mile warm up before the north west road relays but running a decent leg on a shit course.
- Lowlights / regrets / challenges from the year
Probably not racing enough but I'm not overkeen on it. Especially doing some decent mileage with the marathon being the target.- 2018 Targets, as many as you like, specific times, races/distances to run, keeping enjoying it, whatever you like.
Get back into racing regularly, I'd love to run sub 2.30 in London then have a good crack at some shorter races.- Thread poster of the year
Reg.Ouch Reg bloody painful!
Good racing SG and SC !
SC - Yes the Costley clan, saw your result as always picking up info from races with work these days. Sam is younger and looks alot younger with darker hair, both impressive for their age and will run good times over the next 5 years, low 30 10km.
2017 -
Mileage : 877m I think about 750 of that was done by April when I got injured . I think with my two ops last year I 22 'zero' weeks so it's been a piss poor two years
Races : 2 official, 3k and 1500, both PBs at 9:09 / 4:20. Mid April times and 1st track races for years. I should have smashed those times
4 others, 1 parkrun tempo at the start of the year and 3 with work in the last few months, low level trail races I won all 3 and hadn't ran for months.
Highlight - Birth of my baby boy and seeing him and Inesa battle through the last 3 months. Heroic. Proud seeing Mia lead singing at her Christmas play too. Running nothing.
Lowlight - Injury again but becoming lazy, putting on 12KG and accepting not to go back to serious competitive running / training.
Poster of the year - Ric
One to watch out for - Matt ( His London run)
Goals for 2018 - Balance time with Mia and work, I see Lucas at home but I've committed deeply with work and I need to make time for her. I want her to get into a sport or activity this year.
Overall pretty crazy year looking back. Becoming a dad again was awesome but hasn't come easy. Spent our first Christmas Eve and day crashed out in hospital beds after Lucas was rushed in Christmas Eve again after passing out and stopping breathing again, pneumonia. Never felt so scared seeing a floppy body, hysterical girlfriend and having to do mouth to mouth on your own son, which is a moment that will never leave me. Have never been so grateful for the NHS on that night and having everything set up in the flat giving oxygen and treatment it was like a damn movie scene. Walking down the stairs to the ambulance with the paramedics cradling him gently and silently sends shivers through me still.
Thankfully he is home now and doing ok, I managed to see Mia late Christmas day and we had boxing day together
A few runs in December but absolutely blowing a whirlie everytime and finding I need about 5 years to recover after a 8m/m 5km
Different distances raced at
powerof10 lists 51 for me in 2017 plus one XC that isn't there for 52 races: one per week! Obviously, 46 of those are parkruns and not all of those are raced so 6 others: 1 mile, 1 leg of the 12 stage, 3 XC and Reading Half.
Yet to run tomorrow but the planned 8 will get me to 2,068. Last year 2,249 so down a bit but my lowest monthly total was 152 and that is the highest low I have ever had so more consistent. I'd like to stay at about this level, so just over 2,000 per year.
None
None
The lows and the highs are pretty much the same. The lows are the realisation that I am too old (slow ;-) ) to play with the big boys any longer and the highs are the fact that I can still run and enjoy doing so. I do like using WAVA as a comparison tool but head to head is where it is at. I remember doing the Burnham Beeches Half one year when it was the master's champs race and I passed a guy and he asked me how old I was and he said he wasn't racing me. Like f**k he was: we started the same race with the same gun and whoever crosses the line first is the winner. I am no longer competitive in the open races so won't be racing many and I am not going to hunt down closed races just to race other 50-year-olds.
Keep ticking along and knock off a handful of races with decent WAVA ratings but out of the running for glory. Sub-20 for parkrun should be possible for a few more years and sub-90 half (but that is harder).
I always used to put Dachs up for this but he has gone off the boil a bit this year so I will give it to SG for the post-a-mile race reports plus one extra for parking.
Other musings
There always used to be the performance of the year and one to watch.
Performance of the year goes to Matt for his gutsy Yorkshire marathon solo run and he is the one to watch at London when he has company.
Honourable mention also goes to Reg for 2:45:41 at a windy Abingdon. For a guy who swims and bikes way too much he is a half decent runner and with a bit of planning and execution, he will do well.
Behind me, this thing emerged from the waves.
As for the review of the year.
One race, a 10k,
1030 miles,
Pws likely, wins not.
Highlights: Work related mainly.
Lowlights: Posting things which should never have been written to start with. Spending myself free wheeling around one injury to another most of the time.
Targets: Consistent training.
Top thread poster: Has to be Scott, for all sorts of reasons.
🙂
Hard to call with the performance of the year with SC and Deans medal haul from Denmark but Dachs 69 half marathon sneaks it for me.
A long time back, one edition of AW listed that years 70 minute and under HM performances. It clearly regarded the time barrier as merely a good club runner standard.
There was over 700 names on that list!
For those of us who aimed for sub 80 minutes... forget it.
Running well has it's uses. It depends on the conditions presented.
How about this one?
The wave from the Cascadia fault line will hit this place in 14 hours.
Just as well. Considering how flat the surrounding areas are, if the warning was only 5 minutes the only survivors would turn out to all be members of the Fell Runners Association.
🙂
Total amount of races in 2017
Different distances raced at
Not much 2 Marathons (Abingdon & The Wales Marathon), 2 XC, 1 club 10k which was just a tempo run and 2 Parkruns.
A few triathlons, most notably 1 Ironman, 2 Half Ironman and the Long Course Weekend.
1073 (1412)
Just the marathon PB but it was the only attempt at a PB.
Twice second place in Parkrun, a couple of podiums in triathlon and an age-group win in the Cotswold Classic half Ironman.
Most of my highlights were on the triathlon front this year. Qualifying and going reasonably well in the European championships was great but I was just getting back into the running. The 9:48 Ironman was about par for what I expected but it was good to realise that. My best performance was the age-group win in the Cotswold Classic half ironman race, I finished 5th overall out of just over 800. Probably the most fun was the Long Course Weekend for which there was a highlights programme on Channel 4 and getting my name on telly was probably my 5 seconds of fame assuming millions got up at 7am to watch it
I was pleased and disappointed with the Abingdon marathon, I felt like I could have gone 2:42 if conditions had been better and I hadn't had a dirty cold.
The lows were just the injuries, four months lost to running and a niggling knee problem that plagued my cycling all year but I didn't really talk about as I was able to carry on. This ankle has also been sprained twice or three times in 18 months. Added to that bad backs and various other minor niggles have been a constant threat.
Running sub 2:40 at London is my only target at the moment as I am struggling for focus and motivation. I'd assume a bunch of other PBs would come with that too. If I go to the European Championships in Ibiza (Tri) then I'll be targeting a medal there.
I would say Scott but some of his posts have made me feel quite queasy so I'll go with Bus for just generally being positive and encouraging and not doing quite as many puns as in previous years!
Other musings
One to watch is difficult, I think provided he can focus on a specific goal race and maybe change things up a little and challenge himself a bit more in sessions, SG could get back to his best and threaten some of those long-standing PBs, particularly 10k and HM.
Matt, that is an incredible year to hit 4k miles! Not to mention averaging 10mi a day since you started your streak!
Not much running from me since posting before I went to Bristol - trip away didn't go all that well with my girlfriend suffering a bug beforehand and me feeling flu-y whilst we were away.
Managed to get out for short runs yesterday and today, just over 4mi a piece - and super slow. Fingers crossed I can actually get some consistency in the new year.
- Total amount of races in 2017
20 races on Po10, including 14 parkruns- Different distances raced at
parkrun, 5mi, 10k, HM and 16mi- Year's mileage (versus last year if you like)
1477.7Given I'm new to the thread this year, my others are 1831.1 (2016), 1172.9 (2015), 247.6 (2014)
- Pbs
10k in 38:59, although Po10 claims I had a HM PB of 86:40, due to my previous being classified as HMMT.- Race wins/prizes/awards - team or individual - anything from the World Masters, to the "Cock n Biscuits shorter of 2 races, offroader against a bunch of kids" (ahem), to parkruns.
One win - Tamar Trails parkrun- Highlights of the Year - as many as you like, broad as you like - simply enjoying it again, specific or new races run, through to being voted Most legendary handsome don in your club
Really enjoyed running Reading, and very chuffed with my time given that I did no speed work in the build up. My favourite race was the Combe Gibbet to Overton 16 - one of the longest races I've done, and easily the hardest due to overcooking it!- Lowlights / regrets / challenges from the year
Lowlights are mainly the lack of consistency and racing - in hindsight I should have raced more in my build-ups and recovery to fitness. My aim for 2017 was to hit 2000 mi.- 2018 Targets, as many as you like, specific times, races/distances to run, keeping enjoying it, whatever you like.
Mileage target of 2000, but to also maintain consistency across each month, as I've had 6 months with less than 100mi. I'd love to achieve a race-time that is equivalent to a 28:19 5mi, which would mean I'm back to peak fitness- Thread poster of the year
Scott. However I have a particular fondness for SG's parking fiascosWeird parkrun today. Ridiculously windy at Rushmoor and affected everyones times. Did 19'06 so 20 seconds slower than on the same course on Xmas Day but that seemed ok compared to most. Felt very sorry for my daughter struggling through conditions she has never experienced before.
7th of just under 400 but not top age grade for me as those honours went to the 2 guys I just beat into 8th and 9th. One is 59 and has recently run an 81'xx half at Gosport and did VLM in 2'53; the other is 60 and has recently gone sub 30 at Victory 5 and only just over 37 at Fleet 10k (beating me by over a minute but thankfully being too old for the v50 prize