Brain is still trying to sort out the images of that fateful day. Until then here are some photos to enjoy...
Monday, September 20, 2010
Thursday, September 16, 2010
How to get in trouble
This is how I'm feeling right NOW! (picture taken by 3yo)
Having friends that are phenomenal athletes who are also highly motivated and thrive on looking for adventure are great motivational aids to have in your life to help get out for an early morning run before work or the ocassional weekend foray into the local national park but on ocassion I receive a text message which leads to something a little more.
In this case the key player in this scenario is SLEEP TRAIN and goes something like this...
ST: Record attempt scheduled for next Saturday 18 September. I can only promise pain not completion, safety or victory, YOU IN? 17 hours is current record.
ME: I'll check my wife's schedule to check whether she has any clients due to give birth and get back to you. Shit I'd better ramp up the training. Long run tmrw then!
ME: Do we have a plan to break 17 hours? Is there info on the web? Any reports, maps, etc?
ME: What gear do we need?
ST: Sub 17 is the SOLE PURPOSE. Gear as per TNF100 minus a few things, but you will need your own map and know how to use a compass.
ME: So should I practice running up and down insanely steep hills with no idea of where I'm heading while randomly screaming your name?
ME: Or cursing your name!?!
ME (must have been a more positive mood): Sounds like fun. Luckily I had already started secret training to have a go at (removed information to protect the insane)
ME: Think I'm all clear for the 18th. Have you found any other suckers? Oops I meant participants?
ME: some random BS text about all the training I've put in to get ready for this operation. Thinking about upcoming training will hopefully have a placebo effect on my cardiovascular fitness and hill-climbing strength and turn me into a mountain goat.
ST: How you feeling for next Sat?
ME: Feeling sick just thinking about it!
ST: Yep it will be one tough day.
Discovered on morning run that there were no other takers for this challenge. It appears no one is talking to ST after the last BMMC weekend away. Fear grows!
ME: Have the day in the calendar but feel far from ready. YOU READY? Might have broken a bone in my foot kicking one of the kids toys. Test run on Monday.
ST: Make sure you have a map and compass, plus a basic survival kit. This time next week we may hold the record.
ME: Or I'll be in hospital. What maps do I need?
ST: Responds with maps needed. Asks about training.
ME: Will do. Nothing for me (my wife) was away.
ST: Are you ready for the toughest part of your life tomorrow? Lets meet at 345am at my place for 430am start...
ME: I was trying to think up ways out of it but now keen. My love of the Australian bush has been aided by the infected tick bites I scored from the weekend.
Sitting here with only 12 hours away from go time this is the sort of internal dialogue that is playing along in my mind.
MIND: You know you can do this. You've gone long before and been described as an endurance beast.
BODY: WHAT THE F*CK WOULD YOU KNOW? I do all the work out there on the trails when you just want to give up, go home, crawl into the fetal position and suck your thumb. Your legs and cardiovascular fitness are not ready for such an undertaking. We've also gotten fat since last time you put us through big training weeks before the TNF100. We told you to stop eating now that your done. Why don't you listen to all the stomach aches, bloating and post-carb feeding energy crashes that we have signalled your way.
MIND: But I thought when I was tired I needed more food and caffeine to top up my energy stores to get me through the day.
BODY: YOU THOUGHT WHAT? You stupid f*ck! You actually need to eat less and sleep more. STOP trying to overstimulate your adrenals and get some friggin rest.
MIND: If only you ran more and left me to do the work we'd have less problems. Now stop talking and get ready to go tomorrow. Besides I've loaded the pack up with lots of fruit, dates, dried figs, apricots, baked sweet potato and some other healthy snacks. We should be able to get all the water we need from the four water crossings that are along the way.
BODY: WHAT THE F*CK BRO. I WANT INSTANT CALORIES. YOU KNOW CHOCOLATE, ENERGY GELS AND BARS, LOLLIES, COKE, SPORTS DRINK. WE'RE TALKING SURVIVAL OUT THERE YOU F*CKING HIPPY!
MIND: OK settle, I'll pack some chocolate and an energy bar or two just in case.
BODY: Thanks!!
Time to rest...
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Training 5/9 - 11/9
i have written numerous blog posts in my head (even a manuscript or two) while out running but haven't actually felt like posting anything. i often get asked where my training update blog posts or race reports are but i'm better off reading through my sent messages on my phone to friends to find out what i've been up to lately. last night however after some messaging (SMS'ing, texting or whatever you call it) with Sean G i thought i might as well start focusing my training towards a goal (will settle on one soon and declare it in an upcoming post) and try and document my progress - well if sean's doing it again i may as well make a (re)start. at least i'll be able to reflect back upon my training and wonder where it all went wrong (or right?).
sun (5/9): pm- 20k run (~1:30), 15min easy cycling, 3 sets of leg presses - got bored with run. leg press weight was pathetic when i think back to my weightlifting days when i could almost bench twice that weight. i also weigh about the same now as i did then - WTF?
mon (6/9): am- 60min run w/ workout ? - 20min threshold, 2 x 800 + 8 x 30/30s - can't actually remember the details but i think it went something like that.
pm- 9k easy run in 41:05 - nothing remarkable about this run. hammies a little tight (from weights).
tue (7/9): am- 16k run (1:12:07) moderate - headed out about 30mins before usual 6am meetup with the BMMC to get in some extra distance. gave myself a flogging trying to catch them on the knapsack stairs 40 minutes later only to realise that i had mixed my tuesday run up with the thursday BMMC run. descended the stairs and maxed out going up mitchells pass to home. on my knees crawling through explorers estate hoping no runner would run past thinking i was an unfit newbie.
noon: 12k run (48:02) hard - wow what a rebound. ran solid thinking i was running conservatively but at the turn around (25mins) i decided to hit the gas running back in 23mins.
wed (8/9): noon- 38:33 struggle-fest - don't know what i was thinking when i headed out at lightning speed (ok more appropriately relatively fast pace). crashed at the 10min mark and survived the loop back to work.
pm: workout 10 x 400m on 2mins (session goal 80sec on/40sec off)
warmup: 1200m in 5:17 - felt ordinary so decided to just get into it. when tired, run fast!
session: 10x400m on 2min
1 - 79" (40" rest)
2 - 80 (40)
3 - 79 (41)
4 - 79 (40)
5 - 78 (40)
6 - 79 (40)
7 - 78 (40)
8 - 77 (41) - put the music on
9 - 79 (41)
10 - 79
cooldown: 14mins on the road
- parked at the oval on the way home with thoughts of either doing a session or running on the trails. felt lethargic and tired during the warmup so decided to just run some fast 400s and get it done. while i didn't have time to run an hour of quarter repeats (ala sleep train workout) i decided to run them at a hard-moderate effort and keep the recoveries to half the time of the repeat until i ran 10 or slowed down. mission accomplished made the 10 repeats under goal time and happy to finish feeling like i could keep rolling them out at that effort but i was starting to get tired. felt better during the cooldown than the warmup and was on a high all night.
thu (9/9): noon- 1h10 easy run - looped through the hills of leonay. had an ordinary patch just after 40mins which lasted a few minutes but then felt great over the rest of the run.
fri (10/0): noon- 11k easy (~48min) - planned to make it out for 60mins but felt tired and called it quits as the loop passed close to work. put it down to a serious lack of sleep.
pm- 30min easy run w/ 4x400m hard - planned easy run on the grass on the way home but decided whether a good thing or not to run some hard 400s. struggled against the wind but still managed to run them a little quicker than the other day. knocked them out in 78, 77, 74, 72sec. nice easy cooldown around the streets and i started feeling quite fresh. headed home with a need for food (or fruit smoothie)...
sat (11/9): recovery day - don't think anything will be logged while my wife is out of town.
total:
sun (5/9): pm- 20k run (~1:30), 15min easy cycling, 3 sets of leg presses - got bored with run. leg press weight was pathetic when i think back to my weightlifting days when i could almost bench twice that weight. i also weigh about the same now as i did then - WTF?
mon (6/9): am- 60min run w/ workout ? - 20min threshold, 2 x 800 + 8 x 30/30s - can't actually remember the details but i think it went something like that.
pm- 9k easy run in 41:05 - nothing remarkable about this run. hammies a little tight (from weights).
tue (7/9): am- 16k run (1:12:07) moderate - headed out about 30mins before usual 6am meetup with the BMMC to get in some extra distance. gave myself a flogging trying to catch them on the knapsack stairs 40 minutes later only to realise that i had mixed my tuesday run up with the thursday BMMC run. descended the stairs and maxed out going up mitchells pass to home. on my knees crawling through explorers estate hoping no runner would run past thinking i was an unfit newbie.
noon: 12k run (48:02) hard - wow what a rebound. ran solid thinking i was running conservatively but at the turn around (25mins) i decided to hit the gas running back in 23mins.
wed (8/9): noon- 38:33 struggle-fest - don't know what i was thinking when i headed out at lightning speed (ok more appropriately relatively fast pace). crashed at the 10min mark and survived the loop back to work.
pm: workout 10 x 400m on 2mins (session goal 80sec on/40sec off)
warmup: 1200m in 5:17 - felt ordinary so decided to just get into it. when tired, run fast!
session: 10x400m on 2min
1 - 79" (40" rest)
2 - 80 (40)
3 - 79 (41)
4 - 79 (40)
5 - 78 (40)
6 - 79 (40)
7 - 78 (40)
8 - 77 (41) - put the music on
9 - 79 (41)
10 - 79
cooldown: 14mins on the road
- parked at the oval on the way home with thoughts of either doing a session or running on the trails. felt lethargic and tired during the warmup so decided to just run some fast 400s and get it done. while i didn't have time to run an hour of quarter repeats (ala sleep train workout) i decided to run them at a hard-moderate effort and keep the recoveries to half the time of the repeat until i ran 10 or slowed down. mission accomplished made the 10 repeats under goal time and happy to finish feeling like i could keep rolling them out at that effort but i was starting to get tired. felt better during the cooldown than the warmup and was on a high all night.
thu (9/9): noon- 1h10 easy run - looped through the hills of leonay. had an ordinary patch just after 40mins which lasted a few minutes but then felt great over the rest of the run.
fri (10/0): noon- 11k easy (~48min) - planned to make it out for 60mins but felt tired and called it quits as the loop passed close to work. put it down to a serious lack of sleep.
pm- 30min easy run w/ 4x400m hard - planned easy run on the grass on the way home but decided whether a good thing or not to run some hard 400s. struggled against the wind but still managed to run them a little quicker than the other day. knocked them out in 78, 77, 74, 72sec. nice easy cooldown around the streets and i started feeling quite fresh. headed home with a need for food (or fruit smoothie)...
sat (11/9): recovery day - don't think anything will be logged while my wife is out of town.
total:
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