2hrs 56min as I try to get into High Gear for 2010

Trying to get intoHIGH GEAR for 2010, runningwise and other ways...
This melodic metal classic, featuring the guitar talents of WHITECROSS legend Rex Carroll was their album title in 1992. I have this one on cassette tape somewhere amongst my stuff, and I listened to it endlessly in 1993, which is when I did my current 10km walk PB of 48min 28 secs....

Still haven't had time to plan training for 2010 properly, its just going to have to wait until I find the right time. However I figured that the key thing is to get the long runs ticking over, as once that is in place, I can easily work out the rest of it in more detail and refine my mid-week stuff... besides a stack of unknowns this year with my job/s, the new baby coming in May, and an interesting calender of races in Western Australia this year. I have however done my new 2010 blog command webpage, and a webpage with the 6 inch rankings for 2005-2009...So those too should get me thinking along the right lines a little, plus Ive summarised some interesting stuff that many Kenyan runners do which I saw on Slingrunners Blog, and I hope to incorporate some ideas from that into my training this year to add a new exciting and hopefully fruitful dimension to my training which might be one of many ways to give myself an extra edge this year.

So enough thoughts about training, what training did I actually do this week. The answer is still not that much although the long run was a good slab of base in place, which positions things nicely for the next few weeks, and combined with the 2hr run last week, ensures I build on 6 inch, instead of wasting it. Did about 26 hours this week on the meter reading which was a half-decent week for a change. Some significant hills with glorious views of Fremantle Ports for some of it too...

Saturday 16th January;
Ran about 27km in 2hrs 56min 48 secs, with the hills group C-team in Darlington.
Went up through Mundaring then down towards the North ledge, heading in the Mundaring Weir direction before back up the powerlines, the last bit of Phils Hill and back down the easy Rail Heritage Trail to Darlington.

I got up at 0400, but didnt get away until 0500, and the 32min drive from my place near Bibra Lake, was not one I'd take my wife on. Also glad not to see any flashing blue lights, as I dont want another fine. Must leave by 0445 or 0430 next time. When I got there at 0532, the C-team was just leaving, and by the time I got ready, it was about 0540, so I knew they had gone up the trail. Ran hard for about 3km before I spotted them leaving Glen Forrest, and then I knew I could catch them. Was running a lot faster than them, so rather than slow down, I ran to the front of the main group and said hello to Jane, Rob, Richard and others. Then I was feeling it, so I backed off and just tried to stay in touch with the main back group. The pace seemed fast, but I knew there would be a "hug break" at Mundaring 9.5km mark, so I downed my Gatorade as I arrived there in a 53min split, which is possibly my quickest for that first 9.5km ever on that entirely uphill trail. I seem to remember getting there in 56min-62min in the past.

Chatted with Rob a bit, and then a minute or two later we were all off again, and this time I was finding it a whole lot easier to run with the group. I think some of the faster people pushed up behind me, and some of the core group people (i don't really consider myself a core group C-team member, but Ive run with them a lot more than many of the peoiple that were there this time), and it was getting cramped on a narrow trail so I passed Jane and John, and ran ahead on my own. John came with me, which I was glad for as I din't really know which way Jane wanted the group to go in this section towards the Weir. John seemed to know where we should go, so I followed his lead, and had a good chat about races this year. I was feeling very comfortable on the flattish/downhill section here.

However I was conscious of the fact that Jane and Richard (who was at the back of the group) were the leaders, and wanted to make sure we were going the way they wanted to go, especially as I have not run this bit before. It soon became apparent there was some disagreement/discussion between Jane and John as to which way to take the group. Knowing how experienced Jane and Richard are in the hills group, and the fact that is her and Richards group anyway, I knew I'd be better off paying close attention to where they were going.
John persuaded her about something and the trail started to go steeply downhill. Saw a sign saying North Ledge 2.6km and made a mental note to visit that some day in the future. About this time we saw Kangaroos several times... A strong cooling breeze was keeping us very cool, and after all the hot air in my car the last few days, my handheld 750ml of water felt colder than when I started, which was very welcome. Plus we were well shaded by the trees a lot of the time. The group had spread out a lot by this time. I pushed ahead a few times, but then Rob,Nigel John and some others got well ahead, and I dropped back with Jane, Kate, Steve?, and a few others. Then we came to some Powerlines, which looked like a cool trail to run on. Again John wanted to go off into the bush a different way than what C-team leader Jane wanted. Richard was too far back at this stage I think? This time Jane was adamant that the Power lines was the way to go. I was happy to follow her lead, as (a), the power lines trail seemed like more fun to run, and (b), I figured I'd be better off following one of the group leaders, especially as I've not run this part before. Rob was way ahead by this time, and John and one other went their own way. As Jane pushed up the Powerlines trail with a few runners, I found the pace too hot on the uphill steepness, and decided to give my tired self, and my dodgy knees an easy time of it. Didnt have much water left and we had been out there for more than 90 minutes. Ended up chatting and run-walking with Kate for a bit, which turned out to be a good thing as some of the others missed the Phils Hill turnoff, and had to double back. AURA vice president was there wearing a Cool Running hat ( I think he is speaking at Kates Ultra Running Seminar maybe, Mighty Mick Francis certainly is thats for sure...)...Jane was getting a bit stressed cos some of the runners were getting a bit spread out and not staying with the core C-team group people.

Then it was up the last bit of Phils Hill and down the road until we hit the Rail Trail again. Easy running with Jane,Kate, and later on Richard and others...About this time many of the faster non-core group people got back onto the trail and pushed ahead. ...As we got past the 2 hour mark I was feeling it a bit, and took it easy for the last 3km after stopping to throw water over my head from a tap at Glen Forrest. Solid pace into Darlington with some of the stalwarts of the group and the AURA vice-president who is visiting Perth this weekend, and who also seemed to see no point in going any faster at that stage...

Overall a good solid LSD/OD (Long slow distance/Over distance)run, which takes things up a gear in a big way from the 2hr long run last week, with some faster 5-6min per K surges during some parts of the run as well, as the slower stuff, so I think a very worthwhile run, that lays a good foundation for February.

Was very flat out with day and night jobs on the first few days this week, and was keen to get out and start metering before 7am this week to beat the heat as much as possible, as I can work faster, and with less drink stops when the weather is under 30-35 degrees...but by Wednesday night I managed to get out for a night 6km on my hilly summit course while my wonderful wife was at her Mums...

Thursday 14th about 0615AM;
Ran 4000m in 20min 04secs Heart rate 156 at end.
1km splits 4.52/5.08/5.17/4.47

Went down to grassy S. Park early to get a higher intensity run in before I went off to metering for the day. Knew I had to start early to beat the heat, and also cos I prefer to start my metering work by 0630-0800 if possible. Weather was good, and not many people there, so ideal. First really intense hitout in the new Saucony Hurricanes and they seemd to go ok, although I still think maybe the Reeboks are a better option for races, but I'm tossing up between the two... First 100m was 22 secs, and first 200m was 45 seconds, which is average speed for me at the start, felt pretty comfortable. 400m split was 1min 46, which is a little slow, but still felt easy, and comfortable, then in the back straight, about 20 high powered sprinklers popped up directly in my path, like something out of the cartoons..., and I tried to run in and out of them...but lost a stack of momentum...and totally lost focus on my time goals, decided to do some direction changes as about 250m of the 400m track was not full of a minefield of high powered sprinkler shooting 3 metres into the sky...While I was figuring out how much distance I had covered with a few direction changes, I lost momentum big time, and couldnt get motivated to attack. In the end I decided to run through the sprinklers, instead of trying to avoid them, and as the day warmed up this became more and more welcome. My last 1k I was starting to get back on track, although the very low heart rate of 156 (should be 20-30 beats higher), shows how the intensity I had aimed for on this run was simply just not there.
So I was nowhere near my target time of going under 18minutes, and trying to beat the 17min 44secs I did on the Belmont track in 2009, or the 16min 11 secs I did on the dodgy (probably short by 200-500m, but I am still not sure on that one, maybe I should try MapMyRun on it...)B. Oval course last year...

***UPDATE tried MAPMYRUN on it, and it seems to be a 700m course not the 800m course I thought so that 2.40 I did was for 700m not 800m, and the 16.11 was 3.5km not 4km, and the 1 mile reps in 5.54-6.15 or whatever were actually 1400m's...but I sort of suspected my course distance guestimates were short anyhow...***

Still a good speed drills and fitness workout, wont go astray, but I want to work way, way, wayyyy harder than that in future weeks...So how to beat the sprinklers, either run through them as if they arent there like I did in the last 1km, or start even earlier, say 0545hrs at the latest, so I can be finished before the sprinklers come on...

Wednesday 13th January 2010 AD about 8pm-9pm;
Ran 6km 36min06 secs HR 150.
Very fartlekish, with some sprints on the oval to start with to see how the new Saucony Hurricane XI's felt at high speed on a softer surface...seeme ok... but not sure yet..., then settled into some walking and slow running on my hilly bitumen summit course which I have run a few times already in 2010. Did two 2.5km laps to add the first 1km down onto the oval, and my 2.5k splits were 16minutes 00secs, and 14min 33secs...with my last steep *downhill* 500m in 1min 46 secs (3min 32 per K pace), where I pushed out the stride and cadence significantly and attacked a fair bit...Felt good especially the sprints on the oval and the last 500m. Was pitch dark on some of the roads, but I knwo them well, as IVe run them enough times in the last few weeks. Didnt feel very motivated or fit this night, so a good way to get things ticking over.

Overall a reasonable weeks training there, although nothing incredible. The 27km long run was probably the best session, although something gained in all 3 sessions, plus the fact my meter reading work has seen me sweating out for close to 30 hours a week, and my weight has dropped from 81kg to 79kg, so thats a positive step also..
As a family money is extremely difficult challenge to find any at the moment, although paying the rent was a bit easier this time, bujt a lot of the bills I have delayed since early December are starting to mount up, and I am really struggling to figure out how to clear them until my income picks up in the next few weeks hopefully...Tough times. Add to that the fact that my wife Kathryn is now 22 weeks pregnant and the hotter weather (its 39 degrees at 6.30pm now)in a house that doesnt have air conditioning, is tough for her, and you bein to understand why I feel a bit of angst at the moment.

Young Jacob is talking lots, and I think he will enjoy having a younger sister (or brother) just before his 3rd birthday. Had a good laugh with Big Kev and some of the guys at Hills group on Saturday at the bakery after the long run, as we joked about Big Kevs plans for a few of us to get on TV in the Melbourne Marathon next year (just joking or are we?...it worked at the City to Surf marathon last year, so maybe try it again???, no seriously I will be going for a PB, not 10 seconds of fame, or maybe both???...no I dont think so), and discussed how I can blog while I am racing and training...multi-tasking, blackberrys and the like...hahaha...I'm sure my Cousin in Switzerland would know all about the blackberry apps out there...Speaking of people I know who spend a lot of time overseas, had a look at Raf Baughs page just now and I see he is now ranked number 3 in the world, and found a link to an interesting article about Duathlon in general and a race in particular in Arizona, Raf has totally spiced up his main website and he is fiar dinkum about trying to become the world champion. Like the boxing kangaroo in the top right hand corner...

But some signs are good that by February things will be looking rosy again hopefully, and my training will hopefully be back into high gear...Hopefully with a similiar focus to what I had for Melbourne Marathon, so I can start attacking the PB's like I did in Melbourne Marathon 2009 and 6 inch 46km 2009.