Recon Run #2

Sunday 27/11/05-Ran about 28km altogether, about 2 hours 54...Time and distance very! approximate....Very messy and a bit of disaster initially as I spent the first 90 minutes running and walking on the Munda Biddi and Scarp Rd, trying to find Daves campsite, visiting his campsite, and then getting some of my gear back to the car (It started off being very cold and a big windchill factor, but by 0600 it was too hot to wear tracksuit pants and a jacket.) Then Dave and I set off from Whittakers following the MundaBiddi for about 7-8km and 40minutes at the turn, and finished back at Whittakers in 1 hour 24 minutes after about 14km....

Anyone for Tennis

Saturday 26/11/05 60minutes or so of tennis with KL...

Four sub 4's in the twilight

21/11/05-Monday Ran 4x1km reps 3.53/3.57/3.54/3.58. Heart Rates at end of each one (using my usual 10 second carotid pulse routine); were 171/186/186/189. 5 minute rests. Average time 3.55.87 Total time for 4km; 15.43. My second best effort ever! for this particular session.

Started after 1900 so it was getting dark, and had to use the light on my watch to see my splits which were mostly very even (held back a lot on the first rep) with 500m splits all in the 1.55-2.02 range. Struggling a bit on the last one, so put the pedal utterly to the metal in the last 200m finishing my last 200m in 34 seconds, and my last 100m in about 15 seconds.

Was NOT feeling like doing this session for a lot of reasons, but it was actually a great way to release some of the frustrations of the day...so yeah I took out my frustrations on the poor unsuspecting reps...well something like that. Didn't have time to do a longer session really, and I felt I needed a speed session, so this was a good option, even though its probably one of the easier reps setups I have done...

Very happy with what I was able to do tonight! Good start to this week...

To Hillarys and back with or without the Southerly.

20/11/05-Sunday Cycled 36km on the mountainbike in 1hr 44minutes From Joondalup area to Hillarys Boat Harbour and back. Pushing into some tough southerly winds most of the the way in and absolutely flying! along at about 50-60km/h? on some of the way back, I splitted 54.22/49.46.

Rode the black repco bike I gave my Dad again....seems I am riding alot more than he is at present. Back was a bit sore I think from working hard up hills into the strong southerly headwind on the way in. The gears on the repco are a bit tricky so takes a lot of concentration to ride this bike well especially with the headwind/tailwind to adjust to, but the advantage is that this bike has large wheels, which means top gear has a pretty good top speed much better than my other bike I think. Will have to fit a speedo to the repco as well so I cam see what sort of top speeds I am hitting on this thing, cos it feels like "breakneck speed". Saw lots of Kitesurfers as I rode along the sunset coast cyclepaths taking advantage of the strong southerlys. This bike has a good bell which was very useful as i threaded my way through pedestrians and slow cyclists...trying not to run over anyone on the narrow cyclepaths.

Saw a dead tiger snake on Lakeside drive back in Joondalup. Pretty happy with that 36km ride, but I need to be doing something like this every second day I think from here on, plus start crankin out some 50km-100km stuff once a week I reckon in the late charge to 6-inch which is only a few weeks away now.

Tennis and 4km run with my sweetheart

19/11/05-Saturday AM; Did 300 Ab crunches while watching the cricket on TV.
PM; A Quick hit of tennis at Arena Joondalup and a 4km run (partly on my Arena 2km course) with my sweetheart KL....About 57 minutes in total, with a short 15 minute break in between. Pretty low intensity for me, but a lot of fun, and KL was starting to hit a few good shots in the tennis...I think she has a killer forehand waiting to be unleashed.

8km @ Arena

17/11/05-Thursday; Ran 8km in 40min 40 HR 180 by end on hilly! 2km course, with some very gusty southerlys Splits were; 9.17/10.26/10.51 &10.06 Tough to get out there and felt a little death incarnate afterwards, but very glad I made it tonight, feel so much better now...Onward...

Following the other sheep

I have decided to follow the trail set by Plu and 2P's and start using BLOGGER...I must say its probably quicker to do a quick post like this than to go all the way through the many screens of Geocities...

but I still prefer my Geocities setup and that will remain my main BLOG I think, but its good to explore another version of my blog...

MultiNATIONAL? blogging or something like that

Note; To view the photos click on the title (Jonathons Marathon Assault) to go to my homepage version of this blog or just click on where they should have been to goto larger versions.

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JONATHON's MARATHON ASSAULT 2005!!! BLOG

email Jon...There are only 2 ways to live!.......*******WAMC messageboard!***....CR msgbrd (comchat thread)

This is Jon's BLOG about; ENJOYING and improving my running.....
2005 goals;....1. sub 1.40 Half (failed; did 1.41), 2. sub 38min 10k (44min 40 in Bridges my best in 05 so far)
3. sub 3.30 marathon...(failed; did 4.02)...GOAL 4. finish 6-inch track marathon sub 6 hours....

Jon's 2004 Perth Marathon race report ....2004 MARA BLOG ..24/10/04; Rottnest Marathon experience
GUESTBOOKracing 2001-2005pages...Comments/Feedback FORM section here ...Latest Sports News .

RAN 2005 Perth Marathon; 4hrs 2min(5.44 per km) 172nd of 277 finishers
Click photos below/ or go;-> HERE for LARGER photos...Results @ WAMC

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photos via; FUSE PHOTOGRAPHY...*->->Joondalup Jaguars Running Club concept on hiatus/suspended...

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WEEK 3 (14/11/05-20/11/05);

Volume; min Sessions; Best RHR; Sleep; ( hours per night) *
OD/LSD/LFD sessions (At least 60min);
Races/Time trials;
Reps sessions; Ab Crunches;

momentum...(trying to build some...) ...

15/11/05-Tuesday Ran 5.5km Good solid run with some faster surges thrown in. A night run (Did not start until 8.30pm), was reasonably warm/hot during day, and then I got sidetracked onto the computer. Would have run further but I only had about 30minutes to play with, had to get back home...Want some much better sessions this week, but its a start. Just got to make sure I build on it this week, and make the most of the fact that this a pay week, maybe get mountainbike fixed this time....

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WEEK 2 (7/11/05-13/11/05);

Volume;303min Sessions; 4 Best RHR;48 Sleep;43.5 (6.21 hours per night) *59
OD/LSD/LFD sessions (Minimum 1 hour duration); Ran 12km (9/11/05),Ran 28km (12/11/05)
Races/Time trials;NIL
Reps sessions;NIL Ab Crunches; 250 (8/11), 350 (11/11)

Easing back into the Saddle......

7/11/05-Monday I was still a bit disorientated by Cobbler? venom, but got Tetanus shot from Doctor, and had him check the wound to make sure none of the barb was still in the wound. By evening felt ok....
8/11/05-Tuesday did 250 Ab (abdominal) Crunches, meant to train but didn't get to it.
9/11/05-Wednesday; Ran a solid 12km in 71 minutes (just under 6 minutes per km), nothing incredible, but an important one to get on the board, plus it proved my foot was fully good to go and recovered from the Cobbler incident on Sunday. Had a pretty special night with KL afterwards.
10/11/05-Thursday; Cycled 18km in 51 minutes again on my Dad's black Repco (the mountainbike I got him), since my normal bike still needs repairs. Its a faster bike, almost (or perhaps is) a hybrid, has very big wheels. My 11km split was a few minutes quicker than what I rode 11km in on Tuesday last week, but nowhere near flat out, just trying to get the system functioning well again after a tough day at work. I think it did the job.
11/11/05-Friday Did 350 Ab crunches after a work, felt very motivated especially once I cranked up the DemonHunter...Been getting into some POD (Fundamental Elements of Southtown) in the last few days, enjoying songs like Freestyler, Rock the Party, Southtown,bullet the blue sky, Set your eyes to Zion and Tribal Warrior...pretty aggressive hardcoreish/rapcoreish stuff (think Korn) which suits my mood, and the sort of mood I want this week....A bit short on time with a work get-together on this evening, and ran out of time to get a ride done. Planning to be at Dave's Recon run bright and early on Saturday, hopefully no Saturday sleep in for me this week, its ""Good morning Vietnam" at 0400 for me again for the the 5th day in a row (it would have been 6 days if I had not been off sick from work on Monday)...
12/11/05-RAN (6-inch RECON RUN #1) about 28km (2hours 41 minutes) on the gravel trails of the Mundi Biddi mountainbike trail from Dwellingup almost as far as Oakley Dam. (Oakley Dam was the final campsite, for the SU Hiking Camps I went on 1987-1990.) Click on photos or link to go to my page about these times.
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6-INCH RECON RUN #1 REPORT;Didn't get to sleep until 0045, so wake-up at 0345 was a bit savage. Drove to Dwellingup got there early at 0600 was able to get organised and relax a bit before the other three 6-inch aspirants arrived. Dave and I set the early pace for the first 30-50minutes, which at around 5.15 per km was fairly comfortable, we took one wrong turn near the Marrinup POW camp but corrected that quickly, and then mostly fairly straight-forward along the Mundi Biddi. When Dave had a pitstop, Nate moved to the front. saw some kangaroos, and the amount of shade from the trees was very welcome. We crossed two gravel "roads", I think Grey Rd and Scarp Rd? (have to check my Mundi Biddi Map 2), and also went past a campsite near the Marrinup POW camp. The campers there were probably still in their sleeping bags and tents, although they were up having breakfast when we came back. Dave and Nate went to the front of our group about 50 minutes in I think?...I dropped back with Gm, as the distance was starting to tell on me a little as expected (Have not run more than 12km since the Perth Marathon 3rd July 2005), and Dave & Nate started to pick up the pace a bit. Made the turn at 1hour 16minutes to start heading back to Dwellingup, a little after Scarp Rd I think... Struggled with the hills on the way back, ended up walking a bit here and there and by about the 2hours 15minutes mark, was slipping into "extreme shuffle mode"/walk zone. Ran with Gm quite a long time, as Dave & Nate, were about 5-15minutes ahead of us on the way back...Dave and Nate finished in about 2 hrs 27, and came back to encourage me and Gm in the last 5 minutes...At the end had some fun with a mock sprint finish with Nate, and pretending I was winning a big race.... My left knee was a little sore near the end, and I did ice it later that day, but ok I think....Had some interesting chats with Gm about using GPS for course measuring, race Tactics, training, my racewalking background, injuries, cyclists on the road, and so on...Its always good to have people to run with, and chat with, as it is a good motivation/encouragement to stick at it, and try and maintain running, when I really felt like throwing in the towel. Tough run, but very rewarding enjoyable, and a feeling of fulfillment. Very nice to get out in thew forest, away from city!!!! Big struggle to avoid falling asleep at the wheel on the way home, but I took breaks every 30-45 minutes on the long drive home, and made it, Thanks God! I think I will try and get KL to drive me home after the 6-INCH Marathon race in December. Now have a good mental picture of how the last 14km of the 6-inch will finish...
13/11/05-Sunday Quick 19 minute walk with KL near the railway tunnel.

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WEEK 1 (31/10/05-06/11/05);

Volume; 183min Sessions;7 Best RHR;48 Sleep;41.25 (5.89 hours per night) *62
OD/LSD/LFD sessions (Minimum 1 hour duration); Cycled 22km
Races/Time trials;NIL
Reps sessions;NIL Ab Crunches; 150 (1/11)

NovemBer...hopefully a New Beginning?...

1/11/05-Tuesday; 11km cycle on usual course (cycle path near Freeway). OK.
2/11/05-Wednesday; Ran about 8km-9km with Dave in Kings Park; 44 minutes...hill up to DNA Tower,(up DNA TOWER itself once) and 1xJacobs ladder before (1min 26), meant this was a pretty good run, with some solid uphill stuff and could feel it in the calves the next day...My sub-standard cardio-respiratory fitness was tested out by all the hills work, but you get that sometimes...Better off for having done it! Terrain/surfaces (mainly grass and trail) and views were excellent...
4/11/05-Friday; quick night run with my girlfriend KL.....
5/11/05-Saturday AM; Cycled 22km (60minutes) on Burns Beach course, which has some good ocean views...headwind/tailwind..important session.....
5/11/05-Saturday PM; Ran 1 mile at night on the ArenA Joondalup Track (4 laps of 400m track) with my girlfriend KL....
6/11/05-Sunday AM; Ran 3.5km course and did a PB by 28 seconds for that course, (getting Heart Rate to 183 by end)...Wuhoo!....
6/11/05-Sunday PM; Caught a few waves with KL at North Mullaloo Beach until I stepped on a Cobbler?, (spiky Catfish etc) which put venom into my system, and gave me severe pain for about 5-6 hours...Put foot into hot water for 4 hours, and then switched to hot water bottle for 2 hours. Felt rather disorientated by Cobbler venom, slept 10 hours that night, and got Tetanus shot at the Doctors the next day

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Towards 6-inch Track Marathon...(45km on steep! gravel tracks)
October 2005 review;In recent weeks; Did one 40km cycle, ran a solid 7km & 8km on consecutive nights, did a few 11km cycles, lots of 3.5km runs, also ran with S near North Beach, and took K through her first ever experience with reps sessions. She has got me doing some Ab-crunches again in the last 2 weeks. Did 150 at 0330hrs before work on 25/10/05. Abs work is good for my back and have not done any for about 6 months, so hopefully can build some momentum with that. tried out some gyms, but I dont like the environment, I prefer to be out in the fresh air.
Have struggled to adjust to 4am wake up 5 days a week for work, still going to sleep at 2300hrs-0000 for 4am wakeup which means 4-5 hours sleep on most nights. Have to get to sleep earlier somehow and get sleep average over 6 hours a night.Pretty keen to get my main mountainbike operational again. Just been way too busy with various stuff also.
Biggest concern though is some injury niggles with my left foot since the Rottnest 10km.
23rd October 2005;Raced the Rottnest 10km Funrun to finish 50th of 215 in 46 minutes 54. Two photos coming soon. Really nice to see girlfriend K improve her 5km time on the much tougher Rottnest course! See www.wamc.org.au/results/results_2005/ROTT2005resultsFUNRUN.pdf  Watched D improve his marathon time, and N do his debut marathon (3.44!) all on the same day!
1st & 2nd October 2005;Did 10 hours of Hiking with my girlfriend and my Rottnest Marathon friends on the Bibbulumn Track. However have decided against a last minute charge at Rottnest Marathon 2005, its just been too hard to train in recent months, so just going to take it easy with a 10k, cheering on my friends, and helping my girlfriend improve her 5k time....Only other marathon possibility for me this year is Dave's inauguaral off-road 45km '6-inch Track Marathon" on December 16th...(inspired by the 6-foot marathon in the Blue Mountains,NSW which we hear so much about on Cool Running)....So plan to reactivate my BLOG as I try to get training going again, ***consistently!*** in preparation for the 6-inch Track Marathon! wuhoo!...

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Where to now?....

BUSY! with new job (40hours per week since 22/8/05), my girlfriend K (for over 5 months now), have done over $1000 worth of much needed repairs on my car! still not happy with it, and its essential for me to get to the 5am starts at work. The mountainbike is out of use for now, will fix it soon. Have recently bought some much needed new shoes. Can retire the pair I ran my first 3 marathons in. Tried out my new shoes in the 2005 City to Surf 12km on 28/8/05, did about 57 minutes.

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WEEK 16 (25/06/05-03/07/05);

Volume; 554min Sessions;7 Best RHR;49 Sleep;47 *34
OD/LSD/LFD sessions; Cycled 34km
Races/Time trials;RAN Perth Marathon in 4 hours 2 minutes (5.44 per km)
Reps sessions;NIL

You can't go back, you can go on..........

Sunday 3/7/05; Ran Perth Marathon in 4 hours 2 minutes (5.44perkm)
(Half splits 1.45/2.16)...172nd of 277.
Great to see one of the legends from the WAMC messageboard out there, and Dr Dan also...Tough headwind as I expected from Raffles Bridge (31km) to Narrows Bridge (36km)...A bit warm at times, but overall apart from headwind for that 5km stretch, pretty good conditions....
10k split 45.48, 15k 70.42, 30k 2.41 36k 3.19...
Wonderful,special to have my girlfriend K and my brother from USA, as well as Dad there as my support crew, doing drinks, made the experience all the more special.....

Official results @ WAMC,photos @ fuse photography....

My lack of distance work and sporadic training in general mean't that by 18k-20k I knew the sub 3.30 was not going to happen...