Training Log Archive: Stijn

Legs still a bit tired and knee caps a tad tender from Friday's run.

Comrades quote of the day (1924):
"Newton was awarded first prize, a silver tea service. Believing that he, as a farmer, had had more time to train and consequently an unfair advantage over his rivals, Newton (as he had done the previous two years) declined the award in favour of the runner-up. A local newspaper commented: 'One cannot but admire this spirit of running for the honour of winning and not for the prize attached thereto.' "

Busy reading the Comrades Marathon history by John Cameron-Dow. Quote of the day:

"Over the years, followers of the Comrades Marathon have witnessed achievements by those who were not athletically gifted, but whose personalities would be engraved in Comrades folklore. The second running of the race (1922) produced one of its legendary figures, C. 'Big Bill' Payn. In those early days, pre-qualification was not required, and Payn, a Natal cricketer and Springbok rugby player, was persuaded by a pre-race guest, none other than Arthur Newton, to enter at the last moment.

If the story is to be believed, Payn's Comrades was an extraordinary event. He ran in rugby boots, enjoyed a breakfast of eggs at Hillcrest and stopped at Botha's Hill to share a meal of curried chicken with his friend and fellow runner, 'Zulu' Wade. After the two had each downed a beer at Drummond, Payn left his friend behind and reputedly consumed 'about 36 oranges, water, tea and even a glass of home-made peach brandy' en route to an eighth-place finish in 10.56. The following weekend, according to legend, he played rugby barefoot as he was unable to put boots on his blistered and aching feet."

C • Now thats nutrition 2

Monster run using day 1 of the Easter 100 (47km) plus an extra 14km home by myself. Some big hills, including running straight over the top of Northcliff. Kept it very social and easy the whole way and popped a gel every 45-50mins. Felt pretty strong all the way which is a major confidence-boost for Comrades!

Time excludes short stops at waterpoints.

C • beast! 1

Easy run but methinks I'll take the next 2 days off to let the joints rest up before the 60km on Friday.

90min course with Neal. We started a tad fast and eased off significantly after the first half-an-hour. Had a pretty decent route, collecting all the high-pointers to the North and East but got a 50-pointer wrong which cost us 100 points. Ended in 5th on 1160pts.