Training Log Archive: blairtrewin

This was the longest planned run of this cycle, somewhat later in the morning than usual after not getting to bed until 1.45 this morning for obvious reasons (has anyone watched a more bizarre race than the last leg of the women's relay?). A very nice day for it, cool and sunny; headed along the Yarra initially as far as Templestowe, then back across Doncaster.

This wasn't one of the floating-through-two-hours-on-a-cool-winter's-day runs that I've had on occasions. It was hard work at times, with hamstring soreness occasionally a nuisance from about 50 miutes onwards, and quite tired after a big climb out of Ruffeys Creek at around the 1.45 mark. This, though, was about taking myself out of a recent comfort zone and that mission was accomplished, although I wouldn't have wanted to be going much further (but then I often think that in the later stages of longest-runs-for-a-while irrespective of what the actual length of the run concerned was).

Saw a couple of work colleagues in the last 10 minutes, but was sufficiently deep in the zone that I didn't recognise them until I was almost past them.

The other activity of the day was turning up to vote for local Labor conference delegates. There were apparently some shenanigans and unpleasantness earlier in the day but it seemed to have settled down by the time I turned up (either that or the alleged protagonists realised that getting up to funny business within the sight of someone with a reputation as a stickler for proper processes and with good media connections wouldn't be terribly smart).

I'm making trips up to Bendigo at the moment due to a lack of other racing opportunities (missing the relays meant I wouldn't have had a bush event in August otherwise). A very sketchy start suggested that I was in need of some technical training - lost time at four of the first six controls (although only #2, where the map could have used an extra formline, was significant). Settled down after that. Running OK although not brilliantly; the Achilles felt uncomfortable at the start but wasn't an issue during the race.

The southern end of Devonshire Reef burnt on Black Saturday and has regrown quite strongly - most of this area was light green at least, with low visibility, and made for a few fairly slow controls between 6 and 11. Unusually for an event on this side of Bendigo, I didn't see any of the local talent in action - maybe they were all preparing for the Holden muster at the racecourse tomorrow.

Pool running session at Fitzroy. Drizzle had mostly cleared by the time I got in. As usual a reasonably relaxing session, although my right foot hurt a bit in the later part for no obvious reason.

Good to see Victoria's gene pool is in good hands:

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/ten-kids-in-cras...

C • Reminds one of the old joke 2

C • Outback dangers? 7

I'm not used to doing this. The Thursday morning long run has been a part of my routine, most of the time, for the last 25 years, so it was definitely a change to do it in the afternoon - thanks to watching the WOC long distance online and not going to bed until 1.15 (which would have made a 5.15 start a bit challenging).

I wasn't sure what to expect, heading out around 5 from work (and with both a morning tea and lunch during the day which introduced considerable potential for overeating). Ended up settling pretty well, on a day which didn't feel like a sparkling run but was simply an utterly routine accumulation of kilometres - it's good to be back at the stage where two hours can be a routine accumulation of kilometres. Achilles troublesome at times; a calf massage is overdue.

Finding a route for a two-hour run from the central city in peak hour is a little limiting (at least if you don't want to spend 30 minutes of the two hours waiting to cross roads). Started out through Fishermens Bend, which isn't terribly attractive (and takes one past Melbourne's largest producer of toxic waste, the News Limited printing works), but does at least have not much traffic and very few road crossings; then down the coast to Point Ormond and back through Albert Park. The mission of avoiding traffic was accomplished - I didn't have to stop for traffic once in two hours (although I did have to stop to get rid of some of the aforementioned lunch).

Following WOC has meant rearranging my personal time zone for the week - it felt very strange to be setting an alarm for 7.30 - which meant doing a longer run at lunchtime than I normally might. This one took me from work out around the back of the MCG and along the river as far as the railway bridge, before coming back up the Walsh Street hill and around the back of the Tan. Walsh Street was a reasonably regular route for me in the days when the Bureau was in the eastern CBD (it's a bit too far away to be in range on a normal lunchtime run), being one of the better hills in inner Melbourne. It's also infamous as the scene of a notorious murder, although that was at the southern end which I didn't go down.

(Something that was in the news a bit a couple of weeks ago was the property for sale in Collingwood which was advertised as "part of Melbourne folklore in earlier generations" - it was actually the scene of another infamous murder).

This was a pretty reasonable run, flowing quite well once warmed up. Light rain throughout which sometimes threatened to get heavier but never quite did.

Cruised around street-O at Warralong Heights, an area in Watsonia with enough small hills to keep things interesting. Felt comfortable after the first couple of controls. Was sitting about 50 metres behind someone (who I didn't know) for much of the run. I decided to lift my pace with three controls left and went past him, but he decided to lift his pace too and ended up doing me in the sprint.

Going along the southern edge of the map to 18, then back to 14, meant not approaching 14 from the south, which meant I didn't see the allegedly psychotic woman who was making a nuisance of herself in that area. Last I heard the police had been called but I'm not sure what happened next. It's a while since we've encountered crime in a street-O: I think you need to go back to the 2004 Deer Park event where a drug deal in progress was interrupted by the arrival of the A-course lead pack.

Back on the traditional fartlek circuit, which has acquired a bit of new bike path since I was last out this way - which was a help as the bit of path it replaced would have been a bit muddy, judging by the mudbath that the local football ground has turned into. (It hasn't been an especially wet winter, so that's a bit surprising). Fastest loop 10.03 which has been reasonably standard for me this year, still well below par.

I was doing this a bit later than usual after an IOF Foot Commission hookup last night which went past midnight Australian time (whichever meeting is responsible for discussing the Senior Event Adviser's report for WOC 2011 might end up going all night). This put me on the Darebin Creek bridge around 8.30, a less perilous activity than it would have been at that time yesterday when a cyclist was run down, apparently intentionally from reports I've seen of the incident. It seems the driver's registration number was taken and if reports are correct they might find themselves enjoying some quality time as a guest of Her Majesty.

MFR Monday night run from Ilka's with a small crowd, out around Princes Park and back past the zoo. The rain stopped in time for us to have a dry run but still plenty of mud underfoot (which wasn't that easy to see in the dark). A reasonable run without being anything special. Had to dash off straight afterwards for an IOF Foot Commission hookup (although as it turned out said hookup was delayed by an hour - I'm still waiting for it as I write).

Perhaps I'm feeling more relaxed now the Victorian Relays are out of the way, and more significantly now that the international team which was out here reviewing my project last week has produced its draft report. I'm not sure whether I'd rather have been demonstrating being the best in the world at something in France this week rather than in Melbourne last week, but since the former, if it was ever a plausible dream, ceased being one at least 15 years ago, I'll settle for someone else thinking the latter.