Training Log Archive: wilsmith

Another set of 4x4. Back in the saddle again, after a week of overwork and generally being busy.

These were an honest effort. Did them on the 3000m course, starting at each km marker. The first 1000m for each of the first 3 intervals were: 3:01 (downhill), 3:22 (uphill), and 3:01 (downhill). So quite a decent effort, despite legs feeling a bit heavy from not being used for much other than staying on my feet for prolonged periods at work this week.

For the above, including recovery.

Work day, spent all day in the hospital, at the behest of the ER crowds. Yuck.

Time spent feeling guilty about not training today. Intense.

Feeling way too beat up from last week plus the weekend races plus the travel plus the ER shift. And haven't spent nearly enough time at home with Katarina and Mia, enjoying the new renovations (nearly 100% complete for this phase anyway).

So not training, and relaxing instead, seemed wise. I almost should have a category for "Relaxing" - I think it actually aids performance as much as (or even more than) many of the other forms of training that I and others tend to log on Attackpoint.

Rest day - if you can call a gruelling 24-hour shift in the ER a rest. Home by 0200, slept a few hours, then off to the salt mines. Crazy weather - something like 5-10 cm of SNOW today. What gives? I don't think my new medical student is all that impressed with the weather thus far (though to be fair, it's only been a day and that day was snowy and sub-freezing - in late May...).

Saw the map from today's US Team Trials long distance - just as well I missed that one. Running up and down vague, diffuse green hills like that just doesn't turn my crank all that much. Sprint and middle looked to be much more enjoyable courses IMHO - though I wasn't there on the long distance so it may have actually been a real joy to behold in the forest.

C • long 3

US Team Trials, Day 2 - Middle

A good performance on a very nicely-set race. Excellent course, fairly technical area - intricate contour details in relatively diffuse, subtle terrain. So many form lines that you wonder if a 2.5 m contour interval might have been appropriate.

I started first, some 30 min before the Team Trials runners, in an ultimately unsuccessful bid to catch a flight out of Newark in the early afternoon. Strange to be in the terrain all alone, but at least you get to see what you can do all by yourself. It was a tough enough race that I expect there would be significant contact amongst runners, probably having some effect on the results. Apparently a bear was sighted near our 8th (?) control by the pre-runners, but I hadn't heard about this until the end of the course and certainly didn't see it myself. Just as well.

Some small mistakes, maybe about 2 minutes in total. Felt physically decent, only really felt heavy coming up the big hill after the road/river crossing, and up the gradual slope to the penultimate control.

Had to leave before the results were in, but I felt that people could run 30-31 minutes with a good race. However, many people were experiencing big blowups, so perhaps my time would stand up to a top-3 finish. Will see what happens once the results are posted.

Felt good to have a decent middle distance race, particularly after not running well in the sprint yesterday (I still really, really haven't figured out how to force myself to run HARD in the sprints - pretty much default to a middle-distance pace, despite being physically capable of running much faster). Want to get in as many middle-distance races as possible before the WOC.

Sad not to be able to race the long distance tomorrow - but am scheduled to be on call in the ER, so have to fly home overnight tonight (crossing my fingers that my re-vamped flight schedule will actually work...).

C • 'Sneak pre-view'... 11

For the above.