Training Log Archive: Bash

STORM and 'Bent had planned a Hockley Loop so I invited Browner to join AdventureDog and me for a Hockley Provincial Park run. I figured we could get in some great climbs in preparation for the Dolomites but we couldn't do the entire Hockley Loop since we wouldn't want the boys to wait around. Well, I got half the plan right... :)

It was a surprisingly beautiful day on the trails. We had sunshine in spite of a rainy forecast, and our Kahtoola Microspikes worked well on the deadly skating rink hills. It was great to catch up with Browner. AdventureDog behaved really well.

I figured the guys would take longer than usual in the icy conditions, and since 'Bent's previous PR for Hockley was 2 hrs 40 min, we would need to add about 50 mins to the usual HPP run. So we checked out the 3rd Line hill, which is accessible from the Hockley trails; I've always wanted to record it on my Ambit. It turns out to be a 100 m climb in 1.5 km but it's a twisty gravel road so we had to watch for traffic - not that we saw much. Next time I think I would only do a repeat from the northern trail access (80 m climb in 1 km).

Then we headed back via Hockley trails. After all our climbing, the last 5 kms seemed to go on forEVER. (Sorry, Browner!!) AdventureDog was the only one who held his pace and I had to push to stay close to him to make sure he didn't scare any hikers on the ice. (It's surprising how many people are afraid of dogs so I always want to be close enough to call him back and grab his leash.)

Unfortunately (?) STORM and 'Bent set a new PR for the Hockley Loop of 2:29 (!!!!!) so they had a loooong wait at the parking lot while Browner and I hauled ourselves over the final few hills and dreamed of our upcoming brunch at the Black Birch.

We exceeded our goal of 600 m vertical by a lot, thanks to my over-enthusiasm. Looking at the GPS track, I can see ways to increase the average climb per km. We did 723 m in 20-ish km today. At Lavaredo, there will be 250 m more climb in 20 km on average. Yikes.

This was a heavy training week with a focus on hills - 2450+ m in the past 7 days, all within an hour of home. I guess there will need to be a lot more of that! Looking forward to an easy week coming up. :)

'Bent, Coach LD and I drove up to Highlands Nordic early to catch the cooler part of the day. The temperature was forecast to rise above freezing by 11 a.m. and stay up there until Monday night. Sigh.

Classic track conditions were variable - mostly hard, sometimes icy, sometimes blown in with powder since the wind was so strong. I had moments of good grip but mostly it was a day for good glide and lots of herringbone. For the last 6 km, I switched to waxless racing skis. They felt slow but it was a treat to be able to kick and glide with every stride.

Sudden, Lia, and Dr. and Dr. Tarno were there enjoying the snow. It was great to have company for our carpool. Thanks for sharing your snacks, Coach LD!

Tonight's Robbie Burns dinner featured a few Attackpointers, past and present.

Our hosts, Goose and Coach LD



'Bent and Mike



In addition to this fashionable outfit, I also had a plaid cape (aka our Christmas tree skirt).



Most importantly, Crash cooked the haggis!

'Bent and I went to Mississauga for a session with Jeff Stapleton, the running coach I saw last week. It was fun and we've got a bunch of exercises to work on. I got a full length pair of Barefoot Science inserts so now I'll be able to try them in all my shoes to see if they work for me.

Caron's Hard Core class

Class

Mrs. Gally was craving some winter and I was craving more hills so we did a snowshoe trek (with a little downhill running) around the Anderson Tract - the northeast corner of the Hockley Loop known for the *tches.

We mostly bushwhacked. In most of the forest, there was just enough snow to use snowshoes but they kept us above the woody debris and the big cleats were essential on the steep slopes where we were slipping and grabbing saplings. In this terrain, the Ambit distance measures low. I'll be interested to see what Mrs. Gally's Garmin recorded.

Note to runners: This part of the Bruce Trail is currently less icy than Hockley Provincial Park since it is less used. I probably wouldn't need Kahtoola Microspikes for traction in here right now, although they would be fine. I would want spiked shoes or Yaktrax for occasional ice patches on the steep hills.

We were aiming for 500 m of elevation gain but when we got to 535 on our way back to the cars, of course we had to go for 600 m because we like nice round numbers. We rewarded ourselves with a yummy lunch at the Hockley General Store. Hope Mrs. Gally made it back to work in time!

AdventureDog and I ran a different Hockley Provincial Park route, skipping the first side trail to get more elevation for the same distance. Earlier this week, there was a lot of rain followed by a freeze and a light dusting of snow.

As of today, parts of the Hockley trails are runnable in regular shoes but there are many patches of rock-hard ice, especially on hills, and enough rocks and roots have been exposed that it could really hurt to fall. I used Kahtoola Microspikes with Speedcross and had perfect traction. I don't think spiked shoes would have been enough for me on the worst bits.

I noticed the tracks of other trail runners ahead of me. A couple of them used Yaktrax - regular and running style - and someone appeared to have a pair of homemade screw shoes. I noticed some of their tracks slipping on steep hills but their dog had terrific traction, as did mine. :)

On the way home, I stopped for a couple of errands. AdventureDog slipped out of his car harness like a little Houndini and ate $10 of Gorgonzola cheese packaged in a large amount of Saran wrap. :( So now we're on "watch" for a few days.

Rain turned most of our snow into slush, puddles and ice. There were wind warnings nearby and we got some wild gusts for about 5 hours in the middle of the day. It's the first time in 1.5 years that I seriously considered the treadmill. But I want to be comfortable running in every kind of weather so I forced myself out the door and - as always - it really wasn't that bad once I got outside. The road was a mix of ice, goopy mud, slush and gravel - not quite a trail run but close, and safer on a windy day.

22 weeks till Lavaredo - yikes!

Instead of circuit training tonight, we did everything on the floor or on our mats, sometimes using sliders or Tabatas to up the ante.

I'd brought the Tree Hugger princess tiara from the Dollar Store, which we used to keep in a gear bin to remind us all to "suck it up, princess". It was a hit! Several of us took turns wearing the tiara for different exercises we found tough. It works best when people volunteer for it. When you're already wearing the tiara, you can complain as much as you want!

Ontario Ultra Paddling Points Series - cool!
http://oupps.ca/

On the way back from town, I tried my new skates at the Palgrave Mill Pond. I had the place to myself on a sunny day - awesome! I'll need thicker socks but the skates worked pretty well. It's been years since I've had freshly sharpened skates so when I tried my first spin, I went down instantly.

This is such a nice outdoor skating pond, managed by a volunteer in the community known as the Palgrave Angel with some assistance from the Rotary Club. There's a barrel full of hockey sticks, a container labelled "Pucks", a few benches, half a dozen nets on 4 cleared rinks, a skating loop, a few shovels and a porta-potty. I'll take some photos next time.