.comment-link {margin-left:.6em;}

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?)

My Photo
Name:
Location: Perth, Western Australia, Australia


. .

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...

Sunday, January 24, 2010

65min run is damage control

Sunday 24th January 2010 AD 8pm;
Ran about 10km in 65min 56secs HR 129 at end.

Did just over (extra 200m) 11 laps of B. Oval on the nice spongy grass surface.
Which gave us about 7.9km. Added in up and down section of 1km steep hill (55m elevation rise on the up) Black Swan course, and another 100m of running in between the two...Low intensity night run, with some walk breaks, sweating heaps even though it was 8pm-9pm...No light, other than my watch light to check my time, and a few occasional street lights on the 2km road section. Felt, good, so and a solid but very short LSD style run/jog/walk.

A desperate eleventh hour attempt to salvage some base for this week, after failing to make it to Darlington on Saturday, and not getting out there Sunday morning. Did am event traffic controllers course sunday afternoon with a few Marathon club people, and some triathletes. So might be traffic controlling some WAMC events sometime this year.

Its been a tough week, where we really really struggled for money and sleep, especially after the all-nighter I pulled before day and night shift on Monday to get some important career development stuff done.... Never really recovered properly from that, and then I had chafing and dental issues Wednesday?, ripped my work shirt Thursday, so had to buy a new one, ...big cost time and money. Friday I was busy running around trying to make sure our direct debits were covered for this weekend for some bills that had t be paid for this week...hoping I can pay my phone/internet bill in time to avoid getting cutoff/disconnected...Hoping come next week everything will be better. I also had bruised heel Friday whichg meant another problem to deal with and made me wary of going to Darlington.

so not an easy week but still ,on track busyness...

Friday ran 17min 32 (5 laps of B. Oval. Mapmyrun has alerted me to the fact that my 800 m course from last year is actually 700m) for 3.5km had 10 minute rest and then a flat out 700m in 2min 41, less than a second slower than my best for this course.

Found it hard to get time,money and motivation.

Wednesday Tried out new 1km black swan course in very hot conditions into 25km/
h headwind, 55m elevation... 5min 21 secs HR 168

Hopefully next week will be s lot better.

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

MapMyRun.com - Hill Workout: Steep hill rep into 25km/h southwesterly headwind Heart rate 168 at end on 01/20/2010

This is a test post at importing data from MapMyRun directly onto my blog. However it looks as if it hasnt worked how I'd hoped it would, all its done is link to the relevant MAPMYRUN page, I hoped it would import the map and workout details directly onto the blog...maybe I'll have another play with it later...dont really have the time to be exploring this.....

It was 1km hill rep with 54m of elevation, into a about a 25km/h headwind, in 5minutes 21 seconds, heart rate 168 at end. Just testing out a new course.

MapMyRun.com - Hill Workout: Steep hill rep into 25km/h southwesterly headwind Heart rate 168 at end on 01/20/2010

Sunday, January 17, 2010

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.

Sunday, January 10, 2010

first 2hr run for 2010

Sunday 10th January 2010 A.D;
Ran/jogged/walked about 16km in 2hrs 12min 04 secs. Heart rate 120 at end.
Mapmyrun makes it roughly about 16km although its a hard one to measure even using the hybrid option...

Started off with my new hilly 2.5km summit course which has sweeping views of Garden and carnac Islands, Perth City and the Darling scarp. Never get tired of those views.
Inspirational.

Then headed back home, and through park, over hill, and through parks and roads, until I hit the rail trail, decided to go exploring the north western trail this time, and went down one section I haven't been on before, up to barrington. Then it got really sandy/soft under foot, so decided to head back and try some other options, had enough of the rail trails, so headed backthrough parks again, and readjusted the lacing in my new Saucony Hurricanes which seems to have fixed the problem of my feet slipping around inside the shoe. Have to say the ride in this shoes is so comfortable, its like running on a mattress. Just a little heavier than my Reeboks though, and not as snug a fit as my Reeboks. So headed for the Thomsons Lake trails which I have not fully explored yet, due to my fear of Tiger Snakes, and the fact that the bike path extends so far there, and discovered there is actually quite a lot of trails there very good surface to run on. Kept a careful eye out for snakes but the only one I saw was on the warning sign. very cool conditions tonight so only drank about 500ml of water, after a big drink before I started. Then headed up the steep bikepath all the way to the top, and then strode out a bit back home. All in all a slow, low intensity exploring type long run, to kick things off for the year, and getting my shoes adjusted to a better fit was very important positive outcome. I'd like to get my mountainbike out and go exploring for several hours see what other options there are as I am still discovering new options in this area that we moved into 12 months ago...

Hoping I can get to the Saturday Hills group or some other option soon, but didnt like Aaron, BB and Rob's plan of doing Eagle view trail , (even more petrol and time than going to Darlington for me, plus some high risk snake spots and too much steep technical stuff on that course) and besides I slept in bigtime the last 2 days...would have liked to have made it to the Saturday Darlington group, maybe next week...

Saturday 9th January 2010 A.D.;
Jammed in a 2.1km jog 14min 41 on part of the hilly summit course, before going off to the night job. MY first run in the Saucony Hurricanes, and twice I had to stop to tighten the laces, feet felt like they were slipping all over the place, but the cushioning is awesome...

Sickness this week;

Have been sick most of this week, went about 4-5 days pretty much without eating as had troubles with diahorrea for about 4-5 days, gave doctor stool samples, still awaiting results of tests, but by Wednesday, I started to feel a bit better, and by Friday I was greatly improved, and Saturday eating normally again. so hopefully its just the one week that I am sick. Not really sure on what the cause was...although I think my over indulgence in lemonade may have made things worse.

General thoughts

Also was trying to get used to metering again (first week back since late November), and money is so, soooo, tight, still. Has been for almost 2 months now, hoping we will start to catch up on bills a bit, in the next few weeks...

So hoping that my second week will be a whole lot better than last week. Yet to work out my plans for the year in detail, although I have a rough idea what I want to do. Happy I got the 2hr run done though as thats important with it being a few weeks since I did 6 inch on 20th December now. Probably good for the body to have a few easy weeks after the 6hrs 16min slog that was my 6 inch PB on 20th december. Best heart rates have been 46 and 47 bpm this week, and sleep a bit better this week (just over 6 hrs a night), than the horrendous couple of weeks preceding that. So nothinbg to write home about but still solid, so primed and ready to hopefully go hard next week....

Saturday, January 02, 2010

Saucony Hurricane XI maybe or maybe not the chariot for 2010

Well, with my meter reading starting up again next week, I am going to retire my light blue Reebok Premier ROADPLUS KFS VI's, (which have been an excellent training and racing shoe for City to Surf Marathon, Melbourne Marathon and 6 inch 46km. So I used the voucher from my lawyer brother for Christmas to buy a pair of Saucony Hurricane XI's, certainly the most expensive shoe I have ever had, probably even more so than the 1989 NIKE AIR SKYLONS... I got the last time I bought shoes from Athletes Foot in the early 1990's...When I was first racing at Nationals as a racewalker...

Interestingly My Reeboks weigh only 10 OZ's (or 284 grams)according to HERE, while the Saucony Hurricane comes in much heavier at 12.9 OZs (or 365grams) according to HERE, so maybe I should buy another pair of Reeboks for big races...since they are 81grams lighter (1 OZ = 28.35grams)... we shall see...

Interesting link from my Brother in USA who ran his first Half-Marathon a few weeks back...
Roadrunner sports...seem to hear a lot of positive stuff about them in recent years...

This week I have done a few 20-30min runs up to "the Summit" on the new roads near the lookout near our place. The views up there are awesome, can see Garden Island, Carnac Island, Perth CBD, and the Darling Scarp almost a 360 degree panorama, , so I might extend my hills reps course which I first tried out a few days before 6 inch, as the road to "the summit" only opened this week. The land up there is going for $500,000 on some of the blocks, probably cos of some of the best views in Perth...

This weekend I think I have a gastro wog/virus, so cant eat today (Saturday), and may have to wait until Sunday or Monday to try out the new shoes...While I have been sick today, I have started reading a book my Dad got me for christmas called championship Fathers, which seems pretty good, written by a bloke who was a chaplain for the USA Olympic team at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, and a lot of NFL teams, and is the CEO (Chief Encouragement Officer)hahaha of the Kansas city based National Centre for Fathering. Its affiliated with the Focus on the family group which I am a little skeptical/wary of, but is recommended by the late Billy Graham, so should be ok. As a new Dad trying to learn how to be a good father to my 2 year old and use my running interests in that, (for example some of my runs this week I have done with Jacob in the pram) its an area I know I have lots to learn about being better at, and with another baby due in May for my wife, I figure now is a good time to learn as much as I can. I often talk to my Dad for advice about everything and have for all my life, and that is a good source of guidance for me, but of course Our Father in Heaven is the Master of all wisdom...