Sub 3h15

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  • On the subject of racing, last weekend saw me take part in the Race to the King, a 53.5 mile trail run from Arundel to Winchester mainly along the South Downs Way with plenty of undualtions resulting in a total elevation of about 5,500ft showing on the Strava profile. Only a couple of the hills were what you'd call really tough in isolation, but after 40 miles or so, even running over a footbridge feels like climbing Snowdon.

    I was lucky to find myself running next to one of the leading female runners and when we got talking it turned out there were lots of things to chat about and one of the great things about Ultra running is that while it's painful on the legs, the pace is normally such that conversation is possible. As a result we stayed together from about mile 5 to the end, supporting each other through the tough stretches. Turned out that she's at Poacher and Madbark's end of the sanity spectrum and was taking advantage of having time between finishing a first degree and starting a PhD to train for a 100 mile race in the autumn.

      

    As I mentioned previously, it was a tough final 10-15 miles - not sure whether this was down to delayed recovery from the previous weekend's London to Brighton Bike Ride, temporary tiredness (work and other commitments have meant that I've probably been averaging less than 6 hours sleep), the heat or just a lack or fitness / training but it felt harder than I was expecting and tempting though a 100 mile run might be, I definitely wouldn't be up to it at the moment.

    So, onto the next and final race in my Summer of Madness series with an early start (8am) for The Picnic tomorrow morning - it's billed as Britain's Hardest Marathon with about 6,500 ft of elevation over the 26 miles. My two PWs for marathons have been on this course (both around 4:55) so if I can go sub 5 tomorrow I'll be delighted but as the temperatures are forecast to climb to 28 degrees by 1.00pm I'm not that confident - a slow and sensible start will definitely be the order of the day.

  • OO54OO54 ✭✭✭

    Blimey Lorenzo you really are getting hardcore- and just a few degrees away from BB I'd suggest- a 53 mile trail run followed by one of the toughest marathons- good heavens! And you are wondering why you might be tired!

      

  • PoacherPoacher ✭✭✭
    ((MsE)) you totally don’t deserve that, it must be so frustrating. Feel the recovery vibes coming from the rest of us.

    Lots of good racing going on, it’s so tough in the heat. Lorenzo’s challenge season is excellent stuff, and it’s true that when you get up to 40 or 45m, ultra is a different sport and arguably more enjoyable that the short stuff. Certainly more sociable. 

    The Picnic sounds about the same as Huddersfield in terms of ascent, what is the terrain like?

    Still no prospect of a run here but keeping fit on the bike + working outdoors.

    given the weather and the footy I dont suppose there will be many watching the athletics today, but if you’re in front of the TV just after 3pm do cross fingers for Poachette (very petite, white Tonbridge AC vest) in the 5k at the GB champs. She’s up against pros/Olympians - biggest day of her career no doubt so hoping it’s a memorable one.
  • Poacher - all chalk based trails up, down and around Box Hill. Have just remembered that they've made the course trickier (more elevation) than previous years so no chance of a sub-5!

    Good luck to young Poachette. 
  • GerardMGerardM ✭✭✭
    Lorenzo - Good luck, sounds brutal but you've got the endurance to get through it. 

    Birdh - Good luck for your 10k. Hope you enjoy it! 

    Poacher - I've got the athletics on my planner. I'll watch it later. Hope your niece has a great run. 

    Its pouring down here. Not ideal conditions for the triathlon and thundery. I was thinking it might be cancelled but haven't heard anything to suggest it will be.  
  • edited July 2018
    GM - it was brutal! Temperature hit 28 degrees and while it was quite pleasant in the shady parts, there were lots of exposed stretches.

    As predicted earlier, there was no chance of a sub-5 today and this was confirmed when I got to the halfway point (it was 2 laps so I knew exactly what was coming in the second half) in about 2:35 and I ended up finishing in about 5:38 so a PW by quite some margin, but as I crossed the line someone said I had finished in 15th place although I'm a bit surprised if that is the case. The winner was around the 4:45 mark so it gives you an idea of how tough the course was - only a few stretches that were even close to flat so I walked up the hills and by the end was shuffling gingerly down them as well.

    That said, it's a lovely area to run in and as well as having successfully completed the set of challenges I set myself (London Marathon, cycling from London to York with younger Lorenzito, the London to Brighton Bike Ride, last weekend's 53 mile Ultra and today's race) I'm up to about £1,700 in my fundraising exploits as well.

    Will be putting my feet up for a bit now.



  • BirchBirch ✭✭✭
    more insane brilliance, Lorenzo - big kudos to you - nice camaraderie apparent, too . . .
    do you have a target for your fundraising?  
     
    Poacher - yes, I'd remembered that Poachette was running today - saw the race (although it was a shame the BBC didn't show it completely, interspersed as it was with other events.  I've seen the results, too - I hope she is well pleased. Fantastic to compete in a National Championship - big kudos to her also    
     
    Gerard - thanks, but no, I didn't enjoy anything about the Owston Ferry 10K itself, although was a good family day out with my daughter and son :)  
    Suffice to say it was hot (but I'm loathe to complain, in view of Lorenzo's exploits in similar).  Ran as hard as I could, but this was proof, as I've alluded to before, that after nearly 33 years of competitive running, my legs, to use the vernacular, have "gone" .

    To give context 

    2015  (age 60)  half mara  1:29  (6:50 pace)  marathon 3:18 (7:35 pace)
    2016  10K  45:02  (7:15 pace)   
    2018 (today)  10K  50:47  (8:10 pace)  - a massive drop off 

     
    there's plenty in Noakes and elsewhere re "the ageing runner who has been running a long time", and I fit a lot of the criteria (but this isn't an Over 60 forum, so I'll not go into all that here).    
     
    So, the bare facts - 50:47, placed 81/254  &  3rd VoGit from 8 . 

    My son bagged the win (and £100 in vouchers), daughter 4th woman.   I think the heat played its part, though, as they each were slower than their capabilities . . .   
  • GerardMGerardM ✭✭✭
    Lorenzo - Sounded like a brutal run alright, way too hot for a run like that but you dug deep and got it done. Well done! 

    Birch - Sorry to hear, as above, IT sounded like the conditions played a big part in today but still, a great family day out and well done to your son on the win and your daughter just missing out on a podium. 

    I watched the tri run this morning, thunder storms at the start and very windy. I thought it might be cancelled but it went ahead. Great event and some cracking performances by a few pals of mine. My son's footie team had a 6-1 win over one of their close rivals and apparently he played really well, he was very happy with the way his team played. I dropped my boy at his mum;s house for a few hours, so went out and did a 20k run. Very warm here too, 24c, but really muggy and so windy in parts. Ran 10k on the trail path and 10k on the road. The soles of my feet were really sore on the trail path and I could feel every little lump and stone as I put one foot in front of the other. 7:16mm average and 150 avg HR. I was planning on doing a harder effort but I didn't feel wonderful and was rather irritable quite early into the run. I put that down to feeling really tired and the heat too. No ways would I have liked to do a long one today. Hoping for better things this coming week. 

  • Birch - the original target was £1,000, then £1,500 and it's now sitting at £2,000. Not sure I'd read too much into your performance today - see how things are in more benevolent conditions.

    Good pace on the 20K run GM - after about a month without any rain, I'd quite fancy some here at the moment.

    Back to the Picnic - I did come 15th which I'm really chuffed about. The previous times I've run it (swearing I'd never do it again!), I came 30th (2009) and 23rd (2011) so a definite improvement.

    And yes, that medal is as big as it looks - a full 10cm in diameter and now the latest addition to my medal hanger!
  • Gul DarrGul Darr ✭✭✭
    MsE - really hope that's the last of your injury woes and you'll come back strong after the recovery.
    Leslie - excellent effort in the heat - feel you are progressing well.
    DT19 - good training - hope you enjoyed the beer.
    OO - well done to Mrs OO on her PB.
    Badbark - impressive miles for the first half of the year. I haven't heard MT for a long long while, but must try and listen to last week's!
    Lorenzo - some great ultra-running. 15th place is excellent. In fact, just finishing in that heat is quite an achievement.
    Birch - congrats to your son and daughter. Must be hard to see your times declining, but you still beat 5 vogits and hopefully you're still enjoying the running.
    8 miles this morning with 5 x 1km reps off 400m recoveries - 3:34, 3:34, 3:34, 3:33, 3:36. Pretty chuffed with that. (BTW I am 99% sure it's slightly less than 1km, no idea how much by, but it's the same loop I use whenever I do 1km reps so it's consistent).
  • PoacherPoacher ✭✭✭
    Good medal for Lorenzo and well deserved, that must have been painful. Excellent finish too.

    Birch - you are still a VOG podium-hogger.  I witnessed part of a 100 mile bike time trial in Cheshire yesterday - a fair few grey haired VOG types were giving their all and clearly not ready to retire just because the younger guys on posh machines were passing them.

    Nice reps Gul, although drone footage indicates that it's only a 600m circuit.

    11th for Poachette in the GB championships 5k yesterday - she was in the main pack until near the end when 2 double Olympians and a Commonwealth medallist sped off like rockets to contest the medals.  She's dead chuffed and had a memorable day out.

     
  • PoacherPoacher ✭✭✭
    Big medals are great but memories are better - Comrades 2014 v. Portsmouth 2016.  The Pompey one might double as a ninja weapon if I sharpen the edges.


  • BirchBirch ✭✭✭
    less is definitely more in that instance, Poacher
     
    delighted for Poachette  :)
  • JoolskaJoolska ✭✭✭
    Well done Lorenzo on such a great placing: that race sounds like very hard work!

    Birch: I agree you shouldn't read too much into your pace in hot conditions.

    Well done to Poachette - I must have seen her on the telly!

    1st lady for me on my stage of the Cotswold Way Relay on Saturday, and then 14.5 miles steady yesterday to bring up another 50 mile week.
  • OO54OO54 ✭✭✭
    Fab miles Jools and a confidence booster.
    I’m sure you can still go lower Birch in a better race.
    Missed the athletics Poacher but hope she enjoyed the experience 
  • GerardMGerardM ✭✭✭

    I saw Poachette on the telly and she ran brilliantly, what an experience for her.

    Jools - Well done, coming back into some goof form and consistent miles.

    5k easy run on lunch with a pick up in face in the last 2k. 25c and muggy. Should have gone for a swim too.

  • G-DawgG-Dawg ✭✭✭
    Great running from Poachette. What an experience!

    Good form and miles, Jools. Well done!

    The Comrades bling looks like a war medal. I bet it felt like a battle earning it too. 

    Up up early for another beat the heat session this morning. Out the door by 05.30 to chalk off 7 miles at 7.15 pace. Legs were a tad heavy after last night's warm 10 miler at the same pace. Felt more like a double day with just 10 hours between runs.

    Had a half decent 15 miler on Saturday. That was at 7.58 pace but felt a lot slower. A good sign, I guess.

    Already got pre-match nerves for the England game tonight. I just hope we go out putting on a real fight, that's all I ask. Come on Lads!!!

  • Gul DarrGul Darr ✭✭✭
    Poacher - shame I missed Poachette - sounds like a real talent.
    Jools - congrats on the relay stage win. Build-up coming on nicely.
    GM - can't be easy to run with a pick-up in your face ;)
    GD - some good sessions in the bag there. I'll be watching the first half of the England game live tonight, but will have to record the second and watch it later - hopefully the meeting won't last too long and no-one will give the score away!
    6 easy miles this morning.
  • DT19DT19 ✭✭✭

    Well done to your niece, Poacher, 11th in a field at that level is good going. That comrades medal looks proper no frills but no doubt has pride of place. For context, is the Portsmouth medal gigantic? I cant quite work out if that is the case of if comrades is smaller than the norm?

    Jools, well done on the stage win and the other mileage

    Good work g-dawg. I am debating getting out early Saturday morning for my long run but by that I mean 8am!

    Nice reps yesterday and easy today, Gul.

    Lorenzo, well done on the picnic and the fundraising. That must have been brutal in this heat!

    Birch, well done to your son and daughter. As said above, it must be frustrating as and when this happens. It'll come to us all in time.

    well done on the hot long run, Gerard.

    Badbark, that's crazy mileage. A consistent 68 a week over 26!

    My mara schedule started yesterday. I jumped into week 2 as I have 15 weeks left, though i'll have to drop another week later on as I have a 10 day holiday in August. Started out with 5 miles easy over lunch at 7.56. As I hadn't run or really trained since Friday my legs felt good. Therefore I decided to get my interval session done last night on the treadmill as it was only 4 x 800. It was quite pleasant running in a heavily air conditioned gym. I started off conservatively ish with a 2.49. For each rep after that I hit the speed button up one notch so the final rep was 2.46. With hindsight in terms of effort that's where I should have started. Got straight off the treadmill and into my usual Monday spin class to round off a productive first day.

    Today I am planning 5 at mp over lunch which will be unpleasant. I have an offsite 4pm meeting close to home and if that finishes by 5pm I'll get home and get a 3-5 mile recovery in before picking up the kids at 6.

  • PoacherPoacher ✭✭✭
    Yes and yes DT. Portsmouth medals are always unusual - one year there was a built-in bottle opener - but that one is a whopper, 13cm wide and weighing 180gm.  Comrades was started in 1921 by South African WW1 veterans to commemorate their fallen comrades. It is said that to respect their bravery, they decided to make the medal smaller than a Victoria Cross. That one is 3cm and weighs 6gm.  Occasionally the size is increased for a special occasion, like the 90th race in 2015 - must be one of those on Lorenzo's medal hanger.

    Today: harvest gooseberries - 32m hills on the bike - weigh medals - watch footy. The joys of self employment!
  • OO54OO54 ✭✭✭
    I’m jealous Poacher. Will watch the footy in Swiss. Already got my miles in today.
  • PoacherPoacher ✭✭✭
    When you are fully retired you will be able to be as lazy as I am being today.
    Not looking happy for the Swiss with 6 min to go...
  • GerardMGerardM ✭✭✭
    Gul - Haha, I hadn't noticed that! 

    DT - Thanks for the HR info. My max is 206 but usually high 170's for a raced 5/10k so I reckon I should be looking at similar avg for mp effort. I tend to aim for low 130's or under for recovery though. Hope your mp run went well. It was a muggy one here again today. 

    Birch - I bet you could take at least a few minutes if not more off that 10k time on a better day. A friend of mine raced in Brum on Sunday.........a half and he blew up big time and ended up jogging in 1:43 when he is usually comfortably under 90. Please don't despair. 

    Poacher - Great mini history lesson there re the Comrades. It was the theme for my lunch run today. I used to have a brilliant book from the 70's about the race but sadly the ex took it with her but it was her Dad's originally, so I forgive her! :wink:  Will you do another comrades? 

    5.5 miles for me on lunch today, all very easy running with a nice sociable group of lads. One of is from SA, so we mainly chatted about biltong, rugby and the Comrades. 




  • DT19DT19 ✭✭✭
    5 at mp over lunch was steady going. 160 got 6.43mm. the last mile got hot and the wind was a swirling degree of randomness. I'm confident when the weather returns to gloomy and 15c that'll be coming in at 6.30mm. 

    got an early work finish so followed up at 5 with 4 at recovery. 

    Gerard, my hr gets to 130 very quickly into a run. it's very rare, even at 9mm for my hr to be sub 130. 

    Droitwich 10k next Wednesday at 7.30pm is looking somewhat perilous in view of England's win tonight. I suspect it'll be a very poorly attended race if England win Saturday. On bet 365 England are currently their favourites to reach final. 
  • Poacher - agree with you about memories vs medals. My Bill Rowan medal from Comrades is framed and hangs in a place where I can see it every time I come out of my bedroom - I couldn't persuade MrsL to let me hang the medal in the bedroom so this was as close as I could get.  ;)

    I'm sensing that GM is thinking about Comrades for next year.

    Good start to your autumn campaign there DT

    I've had a restful last couple of days, although I think that had I been wearing a HRM this evening, it would have gone off the scale. :)
  • Leslie HLeslie H ✭✭✭
    Lorenzo nice to get all those boxes ticked with plenty of the year left yet.
    Birch Its only one race you will turn a corner soon.
    DT nice bit of mara pace 

    Club session in the heat, 26c again ! :

    8x800m with 90's static recovery and 3 mins after the first 4 reps before doing the second 4. Pace was a round 6:20 for most and getting very tough at the end.

  • Gul DarrGul Darr ✭✭✭
    DT19  - yes, good MP in the midday heat and windy conditions too.
    Leslie - good reps, especially in 26C.
    Didn't get to see the second half, extra-time and penalties till late yesterday evening, so not much sleep before getting up to do 6 miles with 16 x 300m / 100m. Didn't take splits for 300m reps, but avg pace over the intervals and recoveries combined was 6:20 m/m.
  • DT19DT19 ✭✭✭

    Nice fast session, Gul.

    Leslie- nice 800s. Eventually this weather will end and everything will seem much easier.

    Lorenzo, it'll probably be much the same on Saturday afternoon!! Fortunately not being English, whilst I was keen for them to progress, I don't have the same degree of passion as most others will have.

    Just some strength work tonight, before runs Thursday-sunday. Hoping to tip into a 50 mile week this week. Shouldn't be a problem as having done my two harder sessions already I am feeling pretty fresh for it.

  • StevieWhStevieWh ✭✭✭

    Some good racing and sessions going on here, plenty to catch up on!

    After four days on a stag in Magaluf I kicked off the Abingdon campaign yesterday with an easy 5 to sweat some beer out! Also first day of coaching which is exciting.

    Got the On Cloud X's yesterday which I was really impressed with very light and responsive. Looking forward to testing them over some faster runs.

    Got 12, 6 and 10 inc 6m tempo planned for the rest of the week.

  • DT19DT19 ✭✭✭
    who did you go with to coach you? Is it purely with a view to preparing you for a particular time in Abingdon?
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