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Jonathon's Racing Attacks and Adventure Packs!

Amazing racing and training adventures on roads and mountainous/hilly TRAILS, freewaybikehike and triathlons. Dreams of a SIX FOOT 45km finish,(DONE 2011,2013,2014,2015!),then ULTRA-TRAIL AUSTRALIA (50km DONE 2016! 100km DONE 2018!!!), memorable Melbourne Marathon and Gold Coast racing. Over a decade dreaming of a SUB 3HR MARATHON, sub 18min 5k, sub 38min 10k, sub 90min Half marathon etc...(shattered? or still realistic?)

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Location: Perth, Western Australia, Australia


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42.2km SB; 2004; 3.55 2005; 4.02 2006; 4.18, 2007; 4.10 2008; 3.55
2009; 4.11 2010; 4.05 2011; 4.02 2012;3.49 2013; 4.12 ... 2014; ; 4.08 ...2015; 4.00
2016; 4.11 2018; 4.15 2019; 4.25 2020; 5.38 ... 2021; 5.44 ... 2022 DNF at 37km
More ongoing GOALS;
***PB's pursuit; 5k 21.49, 10k 41.01 21.1k 1.41, ...42.2k 3.49

MM and the G!...

In recent years I have been enjoying races like;
December; 6-INCH(46km offroad)2005;--6 hrs 25 min...
2006; 7hrs 04 min 2008; 7hrs 00min...2009; 6hrs 16min
...2010:--5hrs 49min..2011:---5hrs 30min..2013---7 hrs 24min... 2014--- 7 hrs 06min 2015--6hours 43min ...2016---6hours 41min... 2017--7hrs 3min?... 2018-7hrs ... 2020 8hrs 19 ... 2021 8hrs 51
October; Melbourne Marathon 2007; 4hr 10 . 2008 DNF at 23km..
2009 4hrs 11. 2010 4hrs 05min...2011;4hrs 02min...photos
2012; 3hrs 49min 52secs PB!... ..2013; 4.12 2014; 4.08 2015; 4.05... 2016; 4.53
Rottnest Marathon 2004; 4hr 32min ... 2013; 4hr 16min... 2019; 4hr 41min 59secs
August; City to Surf most years since 1997 see HERE for details,photos.
PERTH C2S PB's; 4K;17min 25 (2002) 12K;52min 52 (1997)
21.1K;1.54.20 (2007) 42.2K; 4.00.20 (2015) (2010 video..45secs into it)
Perth City to Surf Marathon finisher 2009,2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2019.
June/July;
GOLD COAST; 2012 HALF; 1.44 2013 HALF; 1.47 2014 HALF 1.49
2015 4.11 ..., 2016 4.11..., 2019 4.25
PERTH Marathon(42.2km)
2004; 3hrs55min
2005;--4 hrs 02 min. 2006; 4hrs 18min 2007;4hrs 33
2008; 3hrs 55 2009; 4hrs 41min 2010; 4hrs 30min
2011; 4hrs 12min 2012; 4hrs 6min 2013; 4hrs 19min 2014 4hrs 48min 2018 4hrs 15min
2019; 4hrs 28min
2021 5hrs 44min
May; Ultra TRAIL AUSTRALIA;
2016 50km 9 hours 50min 956th
2017 100km DNF CP4 57km
2018 100km 24hrs 33min 15 913th
2019 100km DNF CP3 46km 2021 CP2 DNF (severe back injury)
April;TWO DECADES of Bridges racing; 1997; 43min 43 1998; 41min 01
1999; 47min 29 2000; 46min 47 2001; (5km) 30min 01 2002; (5km) 22min 48
2003; 42min 40 2004; 48min 50 2005; 44min 40 2006; 48min 07 2007; 49min 16
2008; 50min 42 2009; 49min 54 2010; 48min 39 2011; 52min 55 2012; 47min 02 2013; 54min 45 2014; 48min 47 2015; 49min 53 2016 52min 20
March;6 Foot Track 45km;
2011; 6.53 2013; 6.54 2014; 6.47
2015; 6.14!!! 2016 DNF


As of October 2022; 37 road marathons finished (Perth x14, Melbourne x9,Perth City to Surf x7 Gold Coast x3 Rottnest x3 SunsetCoast x1)
Have also finished 20+ ultra races; 6 inch 47km ultra finished 12 times, six foot 45km ultra 4 times, Ultra Trail Australia ultras 2 times, Truth 50km ultra once within cutoff (and once outside cutoff), Lark Hill 50km ultra, 6hour track race, 24hr track race.
Also completed the Bloated Goat 31km (1500m Vertical gain) 2 times which is similiar effort to a 46km ultra.
DNFs in UTA100km, WTF50miler, WAMC40miler race, Truth 50km, Six foot and 6 inch.
The first 3 DNFs were after covering more than 42km, and with Truth one was a 25km DNF and the first one I finished the full 50km but was 19minutes outside cutoff battling an ankle injury for 36km.
In road marathons 3 DNFs one at 23km in the 2008 Melbourne Marathon due to severe ankle injury in the first 1km, and PC2S @ 30km, also 2022 Perth Marathon at 37km too fat and slow

Most races October 2009-October2020; >
30/10/2020 50th John Gilmour 10,000m track race 58min
20/09/2020 XTR Sunset Coast Marathon (#36) 5.38
30/08/2020 Fat Lamb PTS 20km
02/08/2020 Perth Half Mara 2.04
11/07/2020 Jumbuck PTS 3.39
08/03/2020 Darlington Half Marathon 2.07
01/11/2019 John Gilmour 10,000m Track race 51min
06/10/2019 Perth Marathon 4hrs 28min. #13 see here
01/09/2019 Rotto Biddi 3hrs.09.44
25/08/2019 City 2 Surf Marathon 4hrs 48min
17/08/2019 TW Parkrun 5km 24.29 (5th)
3/08/2019 Truth 50km DNF (at 25km in 4hrs 26min)
28/07/2019 RunMelbourne Halfmarathon 2hr 03min
21/07/2019 Champion Lakes R2R Halfmarathon 1hr 55min (32nd)
7/07/2019 Gold Coast Marathon 4hrs 25min
16/06/2019 Rottnest Marathon 4hrs 42min
18/05/2019 Ultra Trail Australia 100km DNF at 46km (CP3) 8hrs 58min
17/03/2019 Fat Lamb 20km 3hr 29min 49th of 70
02/03/2019 Lark Hill 25km 3hr 54 (Night race forgot headlamp)
24/02/2019 Swissmurdie 2hr 35
09/02/2019 Busselton Half marathon 2.13 (Late start actually 2.05)
20/01/2019 Chi Gong 1hr 58 134th of 158 finishers
16/12/2018 6 inch 47km 7hrs (12th finish)
21/10/2018 Rottnest Half 2hr 03 min
16/09/2018 Fremantle Half 1hr 58min
04/07/2018 Truth 25km 3hrs 11min 55 (PTS)
24/06/2018 Eagle 22km 2hrxx(59min officially, but 43min on my watch as started late)
17/06/2018 Perth Marathon 4hrs 15min
19/05/2018 Ultra-Trail Australia 100km 24hrs 33min 15secs 913th of 964 finishers
218 withdrawals
03/03/2018 Lark Hill 50km
17/12/2017 6 inch 48km 7hrs
06/08/2017 Truth 50km 8hrs 22min 59
16/07/2017 Jolly Jumbuck 21km 2hr 54min (94th of 129)
02/07/2017 King of the Mountain 16km 1hr 41min
20/05/2017 Ultra-Trail AUSTRALIA 100km DNF (at 58km and 10hours 38min)
26/03/2017 Bloated Goat 30km 5hr 18min
18/12/2016 6 inch 48km 6hrs 41min
16/10/2016 Melbourne Marathon 4hours 53min
25/09/2016 WTF 50 miler DNF at 55km
14/08/2016 Truth 50km DNF at 25km
3/07/2016 Gold Coast Marathon 4.11
14/05/2016 Ultra Trail Australia 50km 9 hours 50min
3/4/2016 My 20th consecutive Bridges fun run 10km 52.20 (hammy strain)
12/3/2016 Six Foot Track DNF at 30km 5 hours.
---------------------- 20/12/2015 6 inch 47km 6 hours 43min
15/11/15 Bloated Goat 30km Trails race (1600m Vert) 5hrs 43min
18/10/15 Melbourne Marathon 4.05
13/09/15 Fremantle 10km 47min 22
30/08/15 Perth City to Surf Marathon 4 hours 00min 20 secs.
05/07/15 GCM 4.11
24/05/15 R4R Half Marathon 1hr 46min 13secs
12/04/15 Bridges 10km 49min 53secs.
04/04/15 Perth Trail Series Truth & Consequences 50km ULTRA 8hours 49min
14/03/15 Six Foot Track 45km 6hrs 14min 11secs Smashing PB!!! (32min)
21/12/14 6 inch Trail 47km 7hrs 06min 30secs
12/10/14 Melbourne Marathon 4hrs 8min (8th fastest marathon in 25 finished)
14/09/14 Fremantle 10km 49min 26 (first K 3.47 5k split 23.02)
31/08/14 Perth City to Surf 42.2k 4hrs 34min
06/07/14 Gold Coast Half Marathon 1.49
15/06/14 Perth Marathon 4.48
01/06/14 Elleker Half Marathon 1.59.
21/04/14 40 miler DNF (28miles)
06/04/14 18th Bridges 10km 48min 47secs...since 1997
08/03/14 6 Foot Track 45km 6hrs 47min 02. (824th) A PB!!! :-)
09/02/14 Snakes and Ladders 15km 2.05
15/12/13 6 inch Trail Ultra 7.24
27/10/13 Rottnest Marathon 4.16.41
13/10/13 Melbourne Marathon 4.12.55
25/08/13 Perth City to Surf Marathon 4.13.28
11/08/13 Perth Half Marathon 1.54.05
28/07/13 Fremantle 10km 50.06 (very sick but first 1k in 3.55)
07/07/13 Gold Coast Half Marathon 1.47.29

16/06/13 Perth Marathon 4hrs 19min 55secs
My 10th consecutive Perth Marathon...Click to see -> how I became a SPARTAN...

19/05/13 Joondalup Half Marathon 1hr 58min 26secs 310th of 495.
07/04/13 Bridges 10km 54min 45seconds.
09/03/13 6 Foot Track 45km 6 hours 54 minutes 20 seconds. 740th of 804...blog post or ...photos! page.

24/02/13 Perth Trail Series Qi Gong 14km 1hr 37min 04 Placed 79th of 117 finishers.
09/02/13 Busselton Half Marathon 1hr 51min 58 secs 219th. full Busso results here
02/11/12 John Gilmour 10k track 47.17 ..see here
14/10/12 Melbourne Marathon 3hrs 49min 52secs ..(777.)
16/09/12 Fremantle 10km 47min 16
26/08/12 City to Surf Marathon 4hrs 42min 41 secs
15/07/12 Lake Joondalup 10km 47min 30.
01/07/12 Gold Coast Half Marathon 1hr 44min 49 secs. 1668th of 9035 finishers

17/06/12 Perth Marathon 4hrs 6min .. (post and photos here)
20/05/12 Joondalup Half Marathon 1hr 47min 01secs. (151st of 313 finishers)
15/05/12 Masters 5000m 21min 58secs
13/05/12 Bunbury Half Marathon 1hr 46min 45 secs. (76th of 240 finishers)
22/04/12 PTS Ellis Brook 21.8km trails race 3hrs 12min 28secs. 39th.
01/04/12 Bridges 10km 47min 02
25/03/12 17.3km (690m ascent) Swissmurdie trails race 2hrs 19min 17secs 54th of 60.
20/03/12 MastersWA 1500m in 5.56, 100m in 14.3, 400m in 76.4, 5000m in 23.33.
26/02/12 WAMC Swan Twilight 5km 24.32
26/02/12 Perth Trail Series Qi Gong 14km 1hr 44min 08 secs 70th of 102.
04/02/12 Busselton Half Marathon in 1hr 49min 31 secs.
18/12/11 6 inch 46km 5hrs 30min PB!
09/10/11 Melbourne Marathon in 4hours 02minutes 49secs...photos...

12/09/11 Fremantle 10km in 45minutes 50 secs.
7/8/11 Perth Half Marathon in 1hr 47min 46 secs.
17/7/11 Lake Joondalup 10km in 46min 33secs.
19/6/11 Perth Marathon in 4 hours 12min 54secs (351st of 547.)
12/6/11 Lake Monger 10km in 48min 09secs
22/5/11 Bunbury Half Marathon 1hr 51min 44secs 109th of 261 finishers
10/4/11 Bridges 10km 52min 55
12/3/11 6 foot 45km in 6hrs 53min 07 secs...819th...of 877...33 DNF's...4 outside 7hr cutoffRace Report and race photosPre & post race photos,initial ELATION
Note; Completing 6 foot is a major goal achieved which I have had in mind since 2005!!!!!!!

4/3/11 3000m in 12min 40 (19th of 19 finishers)Momentum building a little,sub 13 done! :-)
18/2/11 5000m in 23min 31 (20th of 20 finishers...4 DNF's)..results
5/2/2011 21.1km Busselton Half in 1hr 51min 41 secs for 124th of 218 finishers.
19/12/10 46km 6 inch trails race in 5hr 49min (63rd of 79 finishers)
10/12/10 5000m in 22.43 18th of 18!
5/11/10 John Gilmour 10,000m in 47min 36. (23rd of 31)
10/10/10 Melbourne Marathon 4hrs 5min...2895th of 5027 finishers...
12/9/10 Fremantle 10km in 46min 53...a big SB and my best time since 2005!
29/8/10; 42.2km in 4hrs 15min for 537th of 830 finishers...my 6th best of 12 M. finishes.
19/8/10; 5000m in 22min 06.0 secs (SB by 0.6 of a second, & Stan did a SB also that night)
22/7/10; 5000m in 22min 06.6 secs. (SB and 17secs off my track PB)
20/6/10 Perth Marathon in 4.30.
13/5/10; Masters 2000m 7.55 (first sub 8min run since 2005) & 5,000m 22.42
22/4/10; Masters 800m 2.46 & 5,000m 22.29!~(2nd best ever track 5,000m, track PB is 21.49,)
3/4/10; Australian Masters 35-39yrs; 4th in 1500m 5min 34secs. see here...
28/3/10; Bridges 10km in 48min 39secs. 388th of 1646
25/3/10; 300m in 47.6, 600m in 1.57.0 100m in 14.6
18/3/10; Masters 1500m in 6.03 & 10,000m in 49min 35
28/2/10; 4th place in 6 hour Track Race at Coker Park; 45.003km
6/2/10; Busselton 21.1km in 1hr 52min 50 secs
20/12/09;6 inch 46km 6hrs 16min
15/11/09; Peninsula 5km 22min 5225th of 73.
6/11/09; John Gilmour 10km 48min 39
11/10/09; Melbourne Marathon 4hrs 11 min 33 secs
4/10/09; Freo funrun 5km in 22min 53 secs
... ...
2011; 5hrs 30min 6 inchPB!! 2012; 3hrs 49min PB(Melbourne Marathon)!!2014; 6hrs 47min PB! @ 6 foot!

The next big things racing wise maybe;


6 inch 47km
on 20th December @ 0430hrs, countdown (activated a few days before?) is;


Kathryn and I welcomed our daughter K into the world May 2015 A.D.!

Kathryn and I welcomed our daughter J into the world June 2010 A.D.!
Kathryn and I welcomed our son J into the world in late July 2007 A.D.!
Our challenge is to be good parents with the Creator Gods help!



... 2004 ...2005 ...2006 ...2007... >...2008...2009...2010 ...2011... 2012.

but for the most important thing in life;
there is only 2 ways to live!...Bible Gateway...

Friday, April 25, 2008

Training on the Emu and Kiwi weekend

ANZAC Day this Friday. ANZAC stands for Australia New Zealand Army Corps of course, and I heard John Williamson singing a song on TV on Anzac Day about a Kiwi and an Emu, and "if you pick on one, you pick on two"...which was a reference to the Anzacs, and Australians and New Zealanders fighting together...Thats where I "plagiarised" the idea for my blog post title from this time...

Sunday 27th April 2008 A.D.;PM; Did 200 Ab crunches. Kathryn did 4x50 (4 different varieties)

Cycled for 33min on exercise bike to the lovely intense sounds of my cassette tape of Tourniquets 1990? Stop the bleeding album, songs like Tears of Korah, and You get what you pray for, and finishing with Somnambulism. Forgot to take heart rate but estimate around high 140's, low 150's...
Also went on a brisk walk with Kathryn and Jacob to shops and back, Kathryn jogged the last few minutes pushing the pram. Left forefoot still a little tender after long run yesterday, and some tightness in left hammy tonight...

Saturday 26th April 2008 A.D.;
AM; Ran 33km in 3 hours 43 minutes 54 seconds. (6min 47 per Km)
Heart rate 132 at end, probably higher earlier on...
Splits; 1hr 42/2hrs 01 minute.
Is a PB for this Darlington to Mt Helena course by about 4 minutes,
although not really going allout, and carrying a 4kg Hydration pak (2L water+ 2 gatorades) as per usual.

A little cold and windy at the start, but perfect conditions really.
Probably drank too much fluids, and only used one of the Gatorades.
As per usual I woke up after about 4 hours sleep thinking "you must be crazy Jon" to myself, and I even had the Crazy Johns tune in my head from hearing it on TV :-) *LOL* hahaha. But I brushed aside such thoughts sorted out the cats and headed for Darlington.

Arrived just in time to run at the back of the A-team but they were going in another direction to where I wanted to go. So I ran with an injured athlete for a few km, had a good chat then pulled away, (had the first of several No1's toilet breaks, and started to feel good, ready to push the pace a bit. When I made it to Mundaring (9.5km) in 59.05 (and saw Tim Bradley heading back) I knew I was set for a good day and my initial thoughts of just doing 22km today evapourated. Great Eastern Hwy (11km) soon loomed up and the new $10 watch I got from Kmart on Thursday said 69min 40. I knew that I had to go for my preferred target of 27km...Still felt a million dollars at 13.5km (83min), and decided to take the plunge and go all the way to Mt Helena, since I figured (a) I might not get the chance to come to the Hills next week (I expect I will have very limited petrol money for one thing),(b) I felt really good, (c) I am keen to start getting the 33km+ long run stuff on the board regularly with the Perth Marathon only 10 weeks away now...Had Deliverance instruMetal song "Thistles" still playing in my head from listening to it on the way to Darlington a lot in the first 90minutes especially.

When I arrived at Mt Helena in 1 hour 42minutes I knew I was a chance to beat my best time for this course (although I couldn't remember what it was, as beforehand I had only checked my times for 22km and 27km on the Darlington Railway Heritage Trail course. Decided to scull my first Gatorade at this point. The very cool conditions meant that fluids were not a high priority, plus I was pretty relaxed. Figured I was an outside chance to finish the run in the 3 hour 30's at this point...Started to get some of Grave Forsakens "horror and sadness" song in my head a little at this time...

When I saw the sign by the trail saying 10.1km to Darlington, my watch said
2hrs 24min.58. So I knew that 6.30 per km would get me to the finish in 3hours 30.
At that point I figured I was a chance. Then I started to get minor twinges in my left hip, and decided to take it easy as I don't want any knew injuries to manage, and got to Mundaring in 2hours 32min with 9.5km to go. My time of solitude which continued for most of the run, was up to 90min now, and in a lot of ways I was enjoying it a lot. Prayed a little.

Saw dozens of those black "rainbird" cockatoos at one point, and they were throwing lots of branches and green honky nuts on the trail...Was a surreal experience running along the trail surrounded by a massive bunch of them on both sides of the trail an in the trees above for a few minutes.

Walked a few times to sort out the sore left hip, and had to take a couple more no 1's toilet breaks, and was now forced to take it easy due to the sore hip, so now more trying to push the pace under 6min per km. In the last 6km (27km mark) I started to stiffen up, and started to feel a bit of "grind planetarium" mode sort of mode, where my breathing was very easy, but the legs were getting very heavy.
From there it was slow progress as I could only manage well over 7min per km, but was pretty happy with the whole run.

Friday 25th April 2008 A.D.(ANZAC DAY);

PM; Ran 2km in 8min 45.25 (4.22 per K). Heart Rate 168 at end.
Hull Park course PB for me, beating the 9min 07 I did on 6th January this year.
The speed per K is pretty slow really, but the distance is approximate and involves a lot of road crossings and terrain changes, although its mostly dead flat. Probably should be able to go well under 8 minutes, but its more a loosener/recovery run type course for me. Was inspired by the Dockers winning the first half against Geelong Cats, so decided to get in a quick run at halftime. Felt solid but pretty relaxed for a run that short. This is reflected in the heart rate which is high intensity, but not really in maximal zone (that would be 170's/180's). Nice little gallop to make today an easy double session day.

AM; Cycled 40 minutes on exercise bike. Heart rate 156 at end.

Had some Tourniquet songs from Vanishing Lessons and the Test for leprosy (Stop the Bleeding) playing on cassette tape while Jacob played in the high chair.
Fired up,cranked up the intensity a bit to get the higher heart rate with some vintage thrash metal riffs, and Ted Kirkpatricks usual maniacal but intricate double bass and cymbals attack drumming, with stuff like, K517,Drowning Machine,Acid head,Pecking order,Bearing gruesome cargo, and finally Test for Leprosy,Ready or not, and Ark of Suffering. I just love Tourniquet. Afterwards I stretched and felt a whole lot more happier about the world in general...
Also got Kathryn my wife to do 16 minutes on the exercise bike too.




WEEK 6 (21/04/08-27/04/08);

Volume; 306min + 19hrs MR work. Sessions; 4 +MR

Best RHR; 52 bpm Sleep; 44.5hrs (6.36hrs per night) *48


OD/LSD; 33km 3hr 43.

Races/Time trials/LFD; NIL

Reps sessions;NIL

5-point strategy measures;
1-long run/ride etc done?-yes 33km 3hr 43
2-2x reps/race/timetrial sessions done?-no failed.
3-Abs done?-yes 200x1.
4-cycling done-yes 40minute high intensity ride, and 33min ride.
5-swim done?-no failed



Comments;...
Need "more reps" (just for my fans), long run was a nice one to get done and the 40min ride,33min ride and to a lesser extent the 2km run were great sessions to get done this week. Really enjoyed my long run this week. Acutely aware of the need to avoid new injuries.
Maybe good to get some more shoes in May or June, or I can race and train in the same pair for a couple of months as per usual (probably what will happen)...
I feel I am on the cusp of something good if I can just breakthrough the other issues in my life during May somehow (with God's help), or if not, well so be it.
I think this could well be my last Perth Marathon for awhile if I don't break through to another level (sub 3.30 at least) this year, I am not going to grind it out doing 4hour marathons year after year, I'd rather do something different. If however we can get a bit closer to my ultimate goal of a sub 3 hour marathon, then I will persist, otherwise I might just become
a feral trails runner/mountainbiker/hiker/mountainclimber or something, and focus more on maintaining fitness for good quality health, and recreational family reasons, which at some point I think I will do anyway. Don't know if I want to race competively every year for the rest of my life...

So a good platform to go into May with now with my longer efforts this year so far being;
January; 26/1 27km 3 hour run.

February; 2/2 33km 4 hour run

March; 1/3 37km 5 hour run, 24/3 46km 5 hour race run.

April; 5/4 2 hours on exercise bike, 13/4 21km 2 hour race run,

26/4 33km 4 hour run.
Significant shorter stuff has been; 5km race, 2x10km races, 5.25km trails time trial, Major trackwork; 10k reps session,5km ladder,5x300m,5x200m.

Overall nowhere near what I want in 4 months (or 6 weeks of trying to get something going towards the Perth Marathon), but enough high quality stuff, to be building some much better momentum than last year. Hopefully can put together several good training weeks in May and June so that my 5th Perth Marathon is a good chance at a big P.B. I wont get very far in these dreams unless a lot of my life takes some major turns for the better I think...But hey some positives there to hopefully build on.





Thursday, April 24, 2008

A state of Crisis mode is declared!

Once again my employer has (for more than a month now)in my opinion failed to pay me in full for the work I have done. I think this is the 4th (fortnightly pay) time this has happened in the last 5 months, and the 3rd time in a row my pay has been $100-$200 short of what it should be.

Unfortunately it seems I have joined Kevins (like Brucey McAv and his description of AFL action as "clever" (or "special")(count how many times he says that in his commentary, I think the people who made "twelfth man" could do him (Edit; looks like they have its called "Bruce 2000"...but it is based around Sydney Olympics rather than AFL...)...and Kevin quite well...)infamous "working families" bracket, because "when it comes to" ("and on the question of") "core values" my employer doesnt seem to have many. This includes no paid holidays for more than 18 months and a pay that has dropped from $500-$600 a week to about $400 a week. Of course our rent, petrol, food expenses, and of course baby expenses have all increased this year. Is it any wonder I am worn out physically,mentally, and emotionally from continual slogging my body walking around streets 6-11 hours a day 5-6 days a week for 19 months...and still struggling to make ends meet. Yesterday I once again compounded the problem by spending the last few cents my parents had given me trying to juggle my work with consecutive days interviews in the Perth CBD, trying to snare an elusive better permanent position. Of course I was told that they did not think I was confident enough in my ability to progress to the stage 3 interview. Oh well at least this ime I was able to speak to the actual employer direct than get rejected by a recruitment company.
Plus they were very amiable to deal with, changed their interview time for me, and were very frank, and welcoming. I respect the high standard of their interview and wish them well. It still is frustrating and hurtful to miss out again, something that has happened more than a dozen times for me this year.

Unfortunatly due to my poor referees status, related to my poor work history, my vicious circle is a hard one to break at the moment. I need a few miracles fast.

Until then its a case of;
-all expenditure is subject to severe review of the "need to be spended or not" basis.
-all thoughts of running holidays are suspended iuntil further notice.
-all races are suspended until further notice.
-training is a very low priority.
-praying is a very high priority.

I can keep trying but its getting harder and harder to keep going, and I just don't know how to arrest this downward slump/spiral in a lasting manner just now...its starting to become a major ongoing concern.

I have been through similiar times in the past several times, and thanks to God I came through, and hope myself and my wife and almost 9 month old son can do so soon.

My weight has dropped to 76kg, so I suppose that is a positive. Less weight = faster times???

Double-edged sword this weekend, public holiday Friday (Anzac day), means a chance to recover from work, maybe train a bit, get a few things done around the house,figure out how we can juggle the bills like Houdini this fortnight, do some more job hunting, ask my parents for more crisis money, and then try and make up for the money lost by not working on Friday next week, plus juggle useless job interviews again, so by this time next week unless I get some serious good news I suspect I will be officially depressed again.

My name is Jonathon and I have a problem with work/family/bills/pathetic job conditions balance. In my ongoing battle to avoid bankruptcy, "until debt do us part" and associated nasty pasties, my wonderful parents and the Creator Triune are the main things that keep me going, along with my wonderfully easygoing wife, and adorable (and very energetic) little son. This is my story. Thankfully its also part of HIS STORY. (Gods), and like Job (at least I don't have 8 children for starters!) I will try to keep trusting him, and fighting on...

thus ends the written therapy session. *LOL* :-) Or does it...
reminds me of a funny sign I saw on a door while meter reading yesterday, it said;
"if thou doest beeth selling religion or other products and services, doeth not enter here", thats slightly different to the common "its the cats/dogs/kids house, we just pay the mortgage", "my house was clean yesterday", its almost as unusual as (or perhaps more so) "improve your image be seen with cats"...

Watching david letterman on TV last night before a bit of the Indian 20/20 cricket league came on to see andrew symonds get smashed for 35 runs in one over, and the usual collection of 6's then out at the end of the 2nd over. Although there are exceptions...Liked lettermans "obama vs osama" thing...interview with actress helen hunt was interesting too, she is the star of the movie "Twister"(watch out for the annoying popup spam/spyware that comes with that link) which is one of my alltime favourites...Reminds me of Tourniquet instruMETAL song Viento Borrascoso (Spanish for Devastating Wind) from the Psycho Surgery album. See HERE for audio clip.

Please feel free to email all "financial donations" and "potential job opportunity option ideas" to jontheroadrunner@rocketmail.com, as Jon the "roadrunner" attempts to outrun the "wile e. coyote" of creditors for another few weeks...

Sunday, April 20, 2008

Jacobs first visit to the Track

Sunday 20th April; Ran 5x200m reps @ Noranda.
Total time for 1km; 3 minutes 02secs .22.
Times; 33.92,35.20,35.78,39.14,38.18.
Heart rate was only 177 at the end of it, but I'd had enough.
Did about 2-4minutes jog recovery in between each one.

My wife Kathryn wrote down my times, which made it easier for me to concentrate on keeping the 200's ticking over. She did 3x500m with 4-5minute rests first up. Maybe a bit intense for her first reps since October 2005 (when she was training for the Rottnest 5km), but I wanted her to be able to compare where she is at now with where she was at then...Probably in hindsight, she needs to develop her aerobic base more yet, but this session I hope will make her fitter and more inclined to do the things that are needed to develop that aerobic base, and if she does the 500's again in say a few weeks or a few months time, hopefully she will have a big improvement.
This of course depends on whether she wants to do that...

I took Jacob (almost 9 months old now) for a spin in the McLaren pram to encourage her on the first one,and then he went to sleep for the rest of our time there. So I think maybe Jacobs first assessment of the track is that its all a big yawn! *LOL* :-)

Taking Kathryn and Jacob to the track was a rather adventourous move which
I have been wanting to do for a few weeks now. Keen for my wife and young son to share in some of my running/outdoor/crosstraining/sports/recreational experiences in a more active way, so hopefully this is the start of a return to more of that sort of thing in the future, as Kathryn and I did back in 2005, before getting married, and having Jacob, made it very difficult.

As a result I didn't want to take on anything too hard today, as my main focus was giving Kathryn the opportunity to be part of things, without the need to get a babysitter for Jacob. My aim with this session was simply to do a little bit of easy speedwork, and a bit of cardiovascular work, just to sharpen me up for hopefully some more intense sessions later. (If I ever get to them of course.) So happy with that. Was thinking before of doing 8x200m or 10x200m, but decided I can save that for next time.

I am back in "Bills induced Training hiatus" mode again this week, but perhaps next week, or the week after that, or the week after that...things might improve. I am so "whatever" about it now...but as the Newsboys song I hear on Sonshine 98.5 FM radio says just now; something like;"I've got to stay strong, we've come too far now to lose our way, this race can still be won"...exact lyrics here....

Sunday, April 13, 2008

Exploring the Darlington Half Marathon

Sunday 13th April 2008 A.D.;AM; Ran Darlington Half Marathon in 1 hour 56minutes 05 seconds. Heart rate 159 at end. Splits 58.59/57.06 (uphill/downhill)...(5min 30 per km)

Nice to negative split even if it was on a steepish constant downhill.
I did my usual thing of getting off to a decent start in the first few km and then settled into a grind up the hill cos (a) I didnt want t spend all my pennys energywise on the uphill, and (b) after waking up with a resting heart rate of 59! today, I knew I was not going to run well. I decided yesterday anyway that due to my lack of training lately I would treat it as a fastish training run anyhow, (have a Win for the day personally in my "grand master training plan" in spite of what the field of runners did), and not worry too much about my time except to try and go under the 2 hours. Obviously if I had turned in 50-55minutes then I would reassess my target time, but I wasn't expecting much, given the way I am feeling...hope I am not getting the flu.

Mentally I am a bit broken anyway, just sick of work mucking around with my pay, and the constant struggle to try and make ends meet, and my lack of success in finding a good new job, its all getting to me a bit, and I am starting to get into a "going through the motions" attitude, because I can't do half the things I want to due to lack of money, plus its starting to affect my wife and baby negatively, so just trying to keep the ship on an even keel and heading in the right direction hoping for more favourable winds in life soon...At the end of the day where I am with God is what matters the rest is not very important by comparison.

Yeah back to the race/hard training run. had a few chats with people like Nathan and others. Found out that the Swiss bloke who shouts Ole Ole is actually called Silvio, and he said he is going to visit Zurich and some other places there in 2 weeks time.
He works at MichelAngelo Hair Salon...

Started on road, then went on the trail I often run Saturday mornings with the Hills
Group for about 2km, where I was passed by many of the people I know, and started my struggle up the hilly roads, which continued all the way to Mundaring. Some guy on a trailbike kinda scared us a little at one point, he expected all the runners to dive off into the bushes or something when he was coming through...lucky there wasn't a tragedy with people like that on the road. Overall while a very scenic course, and the Marshals from WAMC did an excellent and very important job, it was a bit hairy at times trying to share the road with cars on a narrow road. Also on the way back about 30 cyclists came roaring down the hill too.

Near the Mundaring turn I encountered the "abusive marshal from hell" ...who gave me a "bit of a spray" *LOL* :-) I tried to "run a bit faster" on the downhill leg and it seemed to work a little...

I ran with one Gatorade,which I rationed about 400ml at 50minutes and the remaining 200ml at 90minutes. Struggled all the way and most of the way I was getting passed rather than passing others, but I am used to that scenario.

Was stoked to get across the line under 2 hours and get another half marathon finishers medallion (I'd forgotten that WAMC gives out those, so it was a nice surprise when I crossed the line...) to to take "straight to the pool room" with my rather large collection of trophies and medallions over the years, one day Kathryn and I can have our own house with stuff like that, a pool table, her Eagles memorabilia,photos, and so on all set up nicely when I am well and truly in "the older I get the better I was" state, hopefully I can get out of that state one more time in the next 5-10 years or so.

Overall pretty happy with the run, which is important in keeping the fire burning in my Perth Marathon plans for July this year.

Aftre the race I found out my old Racewalking coach Stan has cancer and being in his 80's he may not live long. Heard that Tina Major (top WA marathoner) ran a good time to finish 2nd in Canberra Marathon, ad sampled some of the juice and croissants that the wonderful WAMC had on offer. So about what I expected, happy with the run, glad I went. Hopefully soon we can step up the training a bit despite the ongoing juggling act.

Saturday 12th April-AM;
150 Ab crunches while sharing looking after Jacob with my wife Kathryn.
PM; Cycled for 40 minutes on Exercise Bike Heart rate 120 at end, while feeding 8-month old Jacob pasta, and picking up his toys when they fell on the ground. Put old Rachel Rachel cassette on while I was doing it. Same setup as for 2 hour ride last weekend. Solid.
Wednesday 9th April --50 Ab crunches while looking after Jacob.




WEEK 4 (07/04/08-13/04/08);

Volume; 156min + 24hrs MR work. Sessions;2 +MR

Best RHR; 49bpm Sleep; 41.5hrs (5.93hrs per night) 50*


OD/LSD;NIL

Races/Time trials/LFD; Darlington Half (21.1km) 1hr 56

Reps sessions; NIL

5-point strategy measures;
1-long run/ride etc done?-yes 21km 1 hour 56min
2-2x reps/race/timetrial sessions done?-halfway there Darlington Half M.
3-Abs done?-yes 50 W 150 Sa.
4-cycling done-yes 40minutes on ex bike
5-swim done?-no failed



Comments;...Again marginally better on the sleep stakes, and overall an easyish week at work (not really my choice) still managed to get a sub 50 resting heart rate although the last few days of the week, I think my general cardio-respiratory fitness has lost the plot a little... I have a long way to go to be training the way I want to but the mediocre darlington Half marathon run keeps me operational. Thankfully there is still 12 weeks to go before Perth Marathon, so plenty of time to turn things around, and I have had some occasional good runs so far this year...So overall a satisfactory week thanks to my slow Half Marathon run, but need to really step things up in the next 12 weeks if I am to smash my marathon PB and make significant progress deep into 3 hour marathon territory on July 6th later this year. If I can get to a much more "happy place" work and billswise, then God willing I think we can step things up and still be a good Dad,Husband etc...Otherwise its going to be a case of heavy weather living on the edge struggling to get into position for about a 3.45-4 hour effort if all goes well again. be very easy to just give up, but thats not want I want to do. The whole relationship with God,marraige,family,work,bills,life,training races mix goes together I think, so to use a phrase from my old racewalking coach, if I "drop my bundle" or "work myself out of it instead of into it" on any of these things the rest will suffer, so I think I need to be patient and persisentent and the opportunities will come again when God allows them...Many thanks to my parents for helping us to keep going financially time and time again...

Sunday, April 06, 2008

My 12th Bridges funrun is a bit of a wipeout.

Sunday 6th April 2008 AM; Ran Bridges fun run 10km in 50minutes 42 secs. Heart rate 183 at end. 5k splits 24.04/26.38.

1km splits;
4.01/4.43/about 5.06/about 5.06/5.08
5.49!/5.29/5.12/5.24/4.44.

The words forgettable, and pathetic spring to mind. Basically the last few days I have been wondering if it would be worth doing this, and in the end I did it mainly because (a) I wanted to keep my streak of 12 Bridges in a row alive, and (b) a forlorn hope that somehow I might be able to pull a rabbit out of the performance hat and do a good time. In a nutshell "it wasn't to be". Even in the first few km when my splits were ok, it felt very hard to keep going.

Felt very humid (Edit; Just checked http://www.bom.gov.au/products/IDW60901/IDW60901.94608.shtml and confirmed that humidity was between 92% and 98% throughout this race which explains some of the weariness, perhaps also my 2 hour ride Saturday contributed also (maybe even the 46k race on March 24th (2 weeks ago) still affecting me a little)...and then there is lack of speedwork in recent weeks...) and a bit warm in the last few km, after perfect conditions in the early stages. Just had no energy and felt very unmotivated.

In the last 1km or 2 if I had pushed harder I probably could have gone under 50 minutes, but just couldn't be bothered finishing off strongly. So just cruised in with a 4.44, with a little bit of speeding up to get past a few people in the last 100m as the competitive juices finally started to energize a little again... Sleep deprivation biting me a lot today too. Shoes were great but one sock was a bit worn. But overall I think I am borderline chronic fatigue at the moment, just wasn't up for it today Had trouble with toilet stuff a little today, but sorted out most of it.

No point in racing again I don't think until I (a) rest up, get into a better sleep/pay the bills type balance, and (b) get some good trackwork/speedwork going again, and (c) improve diet at home as well...

Depressing post, but hey sometimes you have an awful day...

Had a good chat with "flying fossil" from Cool Running before the race, saw Shaphan Cox (Canning Districts Athletics, Riverton Baptist and trains with world class dualathlete Raf "Radar" Baugh I think sometimes who went to my school for 1991/1992 -Willetton SHS) won the 5km in about 15.30ish I think from Todd Ingraham (sub 2.30 marathoner,he ran for Rossmoyne SHS in state u/17 schools cross country back in early 1990's, the same year I was running for Willetton, and Todd has run New York,Chicago, and London all under 2.40 I think. He also did 2.29 in Boston Marathon to be in the top 20 Australians in 2007 see here)...Return of Ray Boyd to running...so some positives from the day...


WEEK 3 (31/03/08-06/04/08);

Volume; 171min + 27.5hrs MR work. Sessions;2 +MR

Best RHR; 50bpm Sleep; 41.5hrs (5.93hrs per night) *17


OD/LSD; 2 hour long ride on exercise bike.

Races/Time trials/LFD; 10km Bridges race 50 minutes 42.

Reps sessions; NIL

5-point strategy measures;
1-long run/ride etc done?-yes 2 hour ride.
2-2x reps/race/timetrial sessions done?-1x done-10km Bridges race.
3-Abs done?-no failed
4-cycling done-yes 120minute at times very intense ride.
5-swim done?-no failed


Comments; Something is better than nothing but really shattered disappointed just now with my Bridges 10k time, just have to get back on the horse next week...and hope I have a better race next time. Not really getting there with training although the 10k run and the 2 hour ride should ensure I don't lose too much ground, and am still well positioned to get somewhere if I can put together some good training in the coming weeks. If I do that this will have been a consolidation/easy week, which is sometimes a good thing, although I can only afford to do that every now and then. I am probably a bit weary from the 46km race on March 24th, and only getting 3.5 hours sleep before the Bridges 10k probably conributed to my negative state of mind after the wipeout of a time...So still well placed to build towards a good Perth Marathon in 2008! I did the 30th Melbourne Marathon last year, and I hope to do the 30th (and my 5th consecutive) Perth Marathon in a big PB this year.

Saturday, April 05, 2008

2 hour long ride on exercise bike

Saturday 5th April AM; Cycled for 2 hours on exercise bike Heart rate 135 at end, but much higher at times, where I threw in a surge while listening to a compilation tape I did of some favourite songs for my 30th birthday back in 2004...

Had young 8 month old Jacob in high chair next to me playing with his toys for about 45 minutes of it. His toys were tied onto highchair by ribbon so when he thows them on the ground I could grab them and put them back on the chair tray table without getting off the bike every 2 minutes. My wife Kathryn was able to have some much valued baby-free time, and go and do some other things for best part of an hour. So worked well. Its the first time we have tried this, but could be a regular occurence, as its a win-win situation for all three of us...It poured with persistent rain the whole time, so better than getting my shoes wet before tomorrows Bridges 10k, where I will be wearing number 916, in my 12th consectutive Bridges fun run. the sub 45 minute plans for the 10km are still on the radar, but I am not very confident as I have not done the reps sessions I wanted to do in the last few weeks since my Matilda Bay 47minutes 47 effort...But other than that I feel ok, so maybe if I attack enough I may still pull it off...Bit of a long shot though. As long as I go under 50 preferably under 47minutes, I wont be too unhappy...
Be very disappointed if I cant go better than last years 49minutes 16 see HERE Bridges thread on Cool Running getting some traffic from Perth people this year which is good see HERE

Note;
Oh yeah I just did this blog entry while keeping young jacob occupied with toys on the floor and now I am feeding him pasta in his highchair. so today he has had lots of excitement teaching him about heavy rain,christian metal, exercise bikes, and of course a bit of pasta, good diet if he ever decided to come on training runs with me in a decade or two...:-) *LOL*...hahaha