Training Log Archive: rcro

MDC run from Taffs Well. By some margin the muddiest run I've ever done - so pretty slow going.

Up the muddy track to the Black Cock, over to the Wenallt by a new track that I hadn't been down - also pretty muddy. Back down through fields that were incredibly wet. Ironically the one dry bit is a segment called "wet feet".

Rain stopped as we finished. Great food after.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1337898485

Event: New Years Day Score
 

Legs a bit tired today. Started very easy and didn't have too much more to give. Not racing at all and letting people pass and get ahead. No attempt to sprint the finish.

Bit muddy under the trees but still fast (and short) if I was up for it.

50th place - of 203.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1335906331

Much muddier than on Saturday! Corners were slippery - especially the right ankle by the sawmills where nearly went flying on first lap.

Incredibly busy - 259 is about 100 more than usual, and was the most congested ever at the start. I guess lots of people who don't know the course well start quickly, then slow down quickly as they realise it takes a bit of skill...

Boxed in with no real prospects of overtaking for the first long straight and getting very frustrated. Managed to start passing towards the Worcester Walk turn and got a few on the single track into the mud but hard working - having to go through the deep mud to get past.

Legs had some life in them and was totally frustrated by the sawmills (1 mile in) that took the split to the right and ran the parallel, but longer and wigglier little "path" in the woods to get clear of a massive block of slower runners dithering in the mud and got the lot of them when rejoining at the right angle. Carrying in a bit too much speed as that time I didn't appreciate the lack of grip!

Free space from here so started pushing more and gaining places. Have worked out I'm slow on the straight because of the rocks, but it's mostly quick just mud from the hairpin at the top and was pretty quick from there on to the finish (10:15 - vs. my best ever time of 9:55 in pretty good conditions). Diagonal path pretty muddy and was in the deeper stuff overtaking on both legs and held the speed over the roots past the sawmills to be close enough to overtake 3 more in the last 300m.

Ended with a flat out sprint against Ben (R) to cross the finish side by side. Fairly appropriate - as we both said beforehand we were aiming for 25 mins...

Fairly good quality run. About 1:40(!!) lost in traffic, and assuming 40-50s slower due to conditions (particularly that I am cautious with ankle) - compares very well with my best ever times here :-) Just need to be able to go straight into 100% effort rather than ease in over 500m or so, so I can get into clear space.

14th (strictly 13th...) of 259
https://www.strava.com/activities/1335905374

The now traditional New Year's Eve long run - but this time a bit shorter and flatter than previously.

Simple footpath run from Gloucester cathedral to Newent school taking in Hartpury college on the way. Bits of rain, bits of flooding, huge amounts of mud. Lots of "temporary" footpath diversions, and lack of footpath signage - but I think this is the first run we've done where we've managed to stay on the path the whole time.

Nice easy pace, and legs feeling good for first 18k or so but started tiring after. Would say it's something to do with that extra 14k I did yesterday afternoon...

Was a very productive day as finished off with some exploring the new housing estate that's being built - so that I could do updates to OpenStreetMap and also sort out the proper map since it's quite a key field that's gone missing (both now done - just need mastermap to be updated again before I can do more).

Other key thing of note is this was the third most "useful" join to date (and biggest since April). With the other runs from this week means Stinchcombe is joined to Old Sodbury - so I can now leave Leg 7 of Cotswold Way right until the end! I hope Ifor is suitably impressed ;-)

https://www.strava.com/activities/1334743662

https://citystrides.com/users/2892/map#51.92539804...

Warm up sawmills loop to show Ben the route and check conditions

Very wet - but actually quite firm under the top layer. Completely boxed in on first straight and for half of the twisty bit - main problem was a man with a dog. cost 20+s. Otherwise moving reasonably well on the bits where I didn’t have to worry about ankle, and gained a placed on last straight.

Warm down jog over to edge of Sallowvallets with a couple of mins stopped talking to Ben Robbins at the road.

Run from Paul's with the Bristol Tuesday group. From Dursley around Stinchcombe golf course then down to Breakheart Quarry.

Feeling pretty slow after 8k in the morning, and really starting to tire for the last few k. But at least satisfying the Jim was slow too. Quite muddy.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1333203434

Event: SWOC Xmas Score
 

Joining up Yate and Chipping Sodbury. Really not much fun at all - ice everywhere so was barely able to even walk at times. The best running was grass - which was mostly 2-4in deep frozen snow so still hard going. If it were all grass would have been fine...

Have run out of things planned for the Christmas break so ended up doing the next nearest join from Usk to Llandegfedd.

Fairly big climb - but going quite gently. Starting to think fitness is coming back again. Only picked up the pace late on to get overall back under 6 min/k.

Plenty of snow on the hills around (but not where I was), and lots of surface water flooding in fields. Evil wind.

Storm kept me awake for most of the night.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1329023204