12.40 3000m confirms my momentum is slowly building

Sunday 6th March;
Ran about 16km in about 100min in the 3 hour track race. Photo above (thanks B for that) sees me in the red hat preparing to do a crouch start. The bloke wearing the Ireland top won in a record 43km!!!
I ran with him for the first 400m which was 1min 37, he held that pace all the way and went through the marathon in 2.52! I ran the first 2km in 10.21, backed off a bit to get to 10km in about 55min, then really started to back off and throw in walk breaks. weather better than last year with temperatures in the mid 20's instead of mid 30's but it still felt warm in the first hour. Humidity about 50% and about 27 degrees which means the heat index comes into play and the body experiences 30 degree conditions...headwinds and tailwinds too...fantastic nights running but I took the advice of Jane and Bernadette, (two people whom I greatly respect for their knowledge and experience with running) and scaled things down after 10km and decided to stop just after halfway at about 16km, so as to give me a reasonable taper option for 6 foot next weekend...spent my last 30 minutes lapscoring and enjoying watching the action...well most of it...

fantastic results
unofficial 2011 results;
Dave Kennedy: 126.12km
Susannah Harvey- Jamieson: 107.51km
Dan Kehoe: 105.8km
Tim Eva: 97.2km
Cliff McKinley: 20.4km

Geoff Reynolds won the 6 hour with 71km in a thrilling race from Mick Francis with 70.6km
Hunna Watson improves the womens 6hr record by just over 2km to 48.5?km.
Chris O'Neil won the 3 hour with 43.6km.


Friday 4th March;
Ran 3000m in 12min 40.7 secs HR 180? at end.
1k splits; 3.46/ 4.36/ 4.18 1500m splits; 6.00/ 6.40
After watching the inspirational efforts of Mottram and co in the 5000m the other night (via the Runners Tribe video see link on my blog), I was keen to get in some practice at sitting on a bunch of faster runners, and try and go sub 13 minutes before I get leg weary from the 6 foot blue mountains 45km trails race next weekend. So with a RHR of 39 that morning and the weight at an ok 79kg, plus the course PB 6k the day before I knew I was ready to have a race, and hopefully go a bit better this time. No intervals in the last week or two would ensure it wouldn’t be anything incredible, but I was confident that sub 13 minutes was an achievable target, and the plan was to back off in the first 200m a little resist the urge to lead from the front, and instead try and sit like a seagull on a bunch for the first 1km for a sub 4min first K, then hang on to hopefully 4.30per K to the finish. The black cockatoos were flying east and big clouds were building, so the humidity was high at the WA Athletics stadium, I reckon about 60% plus, but the temperature had dipped into the mid 20’s and a 2.6m/s south westerly was there for us to struggle into on the backstraight, and ride the tailwind in the front straight. First 200m was 40 seconds, which felt sooo easy, but then the headwind hit in the back straight and I tried to use some of the other blokes as windshields. 400m in 1.22 so very even 200m splits of 40 and 42. Felt toughish, but still felt like I had a lot in reserve.Got to 600m in 2.05 still sitting on the bunch, which was starting to feel a bit hard, and probably one of my quicker 600m splits in recent times. By 800m clock was up to 2.53, and I was sick of the back straight headwind already, and struggling to stay in touch with the 4 or 5 blokes in the slowest back bunch running at 3.30-3.45 per K pace. Hung in there (although they were starting to “gap me” in the front straight) as per race plan, to get to 1k in 3.46, and then let the bunch go as I tried to settle into something more sustainable, hoping for 1.50’s or better. Averaged right on 1.50’s for the next 2 400’s so was pleased to get to 2k in 8.22 and split the 2nd 1k in 4.36. 1400m split was 5.35 so extrapolating 25 second 100m splits I know my 1500m time would have been about 6.00. Pleased with that recovery 1k after the sitting on a fast (for me) bunch in the first 1k.. Finding it tough but got some encourgaement from spectators, and I knew I just had to hold on for another 4.30ish 1k and my sub 13 was in the bag. Pre-race delusions of a sub 12 and maybe even a challenge to my 11.11 PB were reminded once again of the reality at this point that I have not done the trackwork this summer I needed to in training to get there. Sub 13 was still very much achievable though and a worthwhile target, so hung in there, and as I got lapped, I tried to pick up the intensity a little. Got to the bell (2600m) in about 10.59? maybe so with only a sub 2min last 400m required it was going to be easy as long as I held it together. The headwind in the back straight fired up as usual, but found a half-hearted kick in the front straight on the back of the tailwind, and cruised over with a 12.40. Considered wearing spikes beforehand, but decided against it as my spikes are old and unstable/damaged, and the last thing I want is an injury before 6 foot. Spikes might have given me a 12.30 maybe.

So the easy target of sub 13min (sub 4.20 per K) was achieved, I got some sitting on a bunch at 3.35-3.45 per K pace practice for 1k, and I got to pretend I was Mottram chasing Lagat,Solinsky, Tegankamp, St Lawrence, Birmingham and Bumbalough for 1k. Also had a song in my head driving me on into the backstraight headwinds which I heard while at work earlier in the day on the radio.

A good track hitout, a bit of progress, and a better race than the 5k 2 weeks earlier. Finally feel like I am starting to get somewhere, although still a very long way to get where I want to get to. Looks like this summer season is almost over but there is always the winter track races, or next years summer track season. Time to get ready for some marathons again soon too, but first there is the 6 foot challenge to respond to……
Full results are @ http://www.waathletics.org.au/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=294&Itemid=239

Thursday 3rd March; Ran hilly 6km in 28min 47 seconds HR 183 splits 14.26/14.21
Woke up with a reasonable heart rate of 40 bpm and the weight under 80 kg for a change, so felt good, and was keen to celebrate the Melbourne track classic with a run. Decided since I felt so good, it would be a good day to target my soft street circuit PB of 29.39. Figured I should be able to get it down to low 29’s maybe even into the 28’s…So ecstatic to nail a good one here, with a small 5 second negative split too. First 1km is downhill but pushing into a stiff north easterly wind today, so was satisfied with a 4.14 for the first 1km. Then averaged about 5.06 per K for the tough long uphill climb to the “summit” of this course which in one place has a quick but magnificent view of the CBD in the distance. Hitting halfway in my fastest 3k split so far on this course of 14.26 (I think maybe my first one under 15 too), I knew I was on target to smash the course PB of 29.39, but also knew I would have to work very hard if I was to get under the 29 minute barrier. Worked hard on the small uphill into the north easterly headwind, and then held it together with momentum on the big downhill reaching 5k in 24.28 which was encouraging. I knew if I was under 25minutes that the 29.39 should be smashable, and to be under 24.30 suggested a sub 29 was achievable. Really wound it up in the last 1km and kicked pretty strongly for home on the uphill climb of the last 1km. Had the northeasterly as a tailwind, which probably helped a lot in me recording a 4.19 last 1k which I think is my fastest last 1k on this course. Smashed the course PB by 52 seconds and the 29 minute barrier by 13 seconds…so extremely happy with that run, and exactly the sort of momentum I wanted to come out of the Moneghetti camp with. Now to try and figure out how to take things up a level after I get back from 6 foot. Paying the rent and the bills seems so much harder at the moment than anything else, but when I have a mini-breakthrough run like this one, it gives me a mental boost, and a reminder that God rules and cares.