Training Log Archive: rcro

A bit of making up for last few days. Glad of the break but felt out of practice.

Event: Summer Street Challenge
 

To Ross via Evesham to pick up car. Nice to have it back again. Have now learned to never follow lorries on the motorway as their tyres can explode...

Street-O from same car park as last year but heading south around Archenfield estate early on.

Navigation fine, and not huge amount of route choice - but my pace was slow again. The "new" path I took on 4-5 wasn't nice. nettly in the dip and trying to keep to the side was impossible and slid over several times. Barely walkable.

Remainder fine, had to work quite hard on the meadows towards the end.

https://www.strava.com/activities/625970533

BOK Urban around Bower Ashton and Cumberland Basin.

Weather pretty atrocious. Heavy rain, and against wind for long legs 1-2 and 7-8.

Not running well. Legs tired and just didn't get going until it became technical later on.

Time losses -
15-20s at start trying to work out how to get to 1.
30s+ on fence by 2 wondering where it was. Took road rather than field and happy with choice.
30-60s on 8 - in hindsight road to east was much much faster (and less rainy and muddy)
Minor time on 9 - thought field would be faster but road easier, especially after last leg where was clear that Charles had caught up a lot of time.

9-17 well planned ahead and confident I took best routes and executed well (but being very careful to avoid slipping into river!). Less good on 18 - valid route on paper, but did not appreciate I would have to climb up a steep and impossibly slippery paved surface to get up to subway adjacent to control - cost me 60s easily. Maybe possible in dry but should have gone around to north.

Fine rest of the way. 2.5 mins loss not too bad on this area (ironically none of losses in technical bit!), and maybe 1-2 mins from just being slow today. Despite rain enjoyed it, always fun puddle splashing, and caught out on return at how much deeper some had got!

https://www.strava.com/activities/624961515

Still rather sodden when got on train and left a very damp patch on the seat - it was the green-green train as well, so that'll stain...

Wanted to run, but so tired best option a complete rest day.

Another easy paced jog. Zig-zag down and zig-zag back

https://www.strava.com/activities/622767604/overvi...

What better way to celebrate my one year anniversary of living in Wales than to watch England get knocked out of Euros (and before "us")? :-)

Event: Harvester Relays
 

Usual recovery loop with Gaer Road and Ridgeway (x2) added on to make it a bit longer and hillier.

Light rain throughout - probably the nicest running conditions in a month.

https://www.strava.com/activities/621679873

Leg 1 from Chipping Campden to Stanway. Bit hurried morning

Set alarms for 4:50-5:00 last night, unfortunately it had decided to set these as "No Alert" tone - so woke up by text from Keith at 5:55 telling me he was at Stanway... An "oops" moment.

Apart from a few lorries and tractors, made good progress getting to CC - but wheel started making whining after Bretforton and thought I'd look when I parked. Luckily Hogweed Trotters' off duty fireman were on hand to help - brake calliper jammed pad on.

Arrive at start line at leisurely 6:55 having not eaten, drunk (much), taped ankles - and still with bib to attach etc. so not exactly prepped for running.

Did ok, took my own lines through some bits - for some reason everyone cut onto vehicle track on Royal Mile but I stayed on path - and gained ground. By Broadway Tower I was down into gully rather than rocky path on slope and again gained ground. Down middle of road in Broadway rather than pavement, and gained ground. More people following me each time as they realised I'd recceed.

Running with Dursley guy for last climb, gained on a few others to the drop, but seemed to lose him in Stanton. Overtook 2 or 3 more before finish. Better run than I'd anticipated.

https://www.strava.com/activities/620058529

Back to CC for 9.15, RAC arrived by 9.40 - car currently sat in Evesham waiting to be fixed and have all the other service/MOT work done whilst at it. Might get used to the tiny peugeot by the time I return it next week. At least should still make the Harvester...

Variant 7A (no idea how gaffled it was - but there were 7B and 7Hs).

By some margin, my worst ever Harvester run. Also, possibly not coincidentally, the loneliest leg 1 I've ever done - with no lights in sight ahead of me at all after 7 (although TVOC was a bit behind me for most of the way from there on).

1 - confused by what must have been extra gorse bushes at start so pushed further right early and into rough. 30s?
2 - not really matching map to ground. 60s
3-6 fine, but did have to take one sharp descent very gently due to rabbits sat where feet wanted to go.
7 - again not matching map to groun. 90s.
8 - fine
9 - fine, but maybe should have gone south of gorse patch. Ended up struggling with tussocks a bit on descent.
10 - fine.
11 - looking a bit too early but realised immediately. 30s
12,13 - fine
14 - long leg. Bearing was poor and made worse when I saw big clump of trees ahead. Only one clump of trees on map and should be to right of me - so went left. Realised error when I reached the masts - which were off bottom of map. On return found out that clump of trees were in field adjacent to map. 800m detour - 5 mins lost.
15 - long leg again with little to work off. Found intermediate gorse bush but then veered off wrong way and didn't realise for a while. Overcompensated twice and relocated off "the edge" - 60-90s.
Pretty much fine rest of the way

10 mins of mistakes not good - but navigation seemed very tough in the dark. Legs tired on all the climbs - but understandable after morning.

10th/15 competitive but results showed we'd climbed up to 7th by end of leg 5.

https://www.strava.com/activities/621213243