Training Log Archive: Bruce

This year's late December epic was a couple of days earlier than last year. A very hot day in Adelaide, so I started early.
Waterfall Gully, up to Mt Lofty, Crafters, Belair, Mitcham, Waite, Glen
Osmond, Hazelwood Park and back up to Waterfall Gully.
There were quite a few bushwalkers on the Mt Lofty track at 7am in the morning, although almost all of them were coming down. I don't believe that they had already been to the top - rather they had probably been dropped off and were walking the down track only.
The trek back down the hill from Belair and around the foothills was a bit longer than I expected, and the last 5 kms was a bit of a struggle uphill.
My route was probably a bit over ambitious, but it was a great scenic route, and I enjoyed the first 140 minutes.

C • Google Earth image 1

Sandhills at Largs Bay snakepit.
25 min warm up on the beach at Largs Bay, Adeliade.
Then 6 circuits of the 450m sandhill course with about 2 mins rest in between.
On the warm up and first lap I was feeling very very flat (after sitting around watching cricket for a couple of days and visiting relatives). Then I pushed a little harder on each time in an effort to break the 2 minute barrier.
2.30, 2.10, 2.05, 2.03, 2.01, 2.03
Then back to the beach for a cool down and recovery in the cool water.
Hot conditions, so thankfully it was not too bad at 9am in the morning.

Dion's Cobbler Creek run from Golden Grove. Dion called me and said that he ate so much on Christmas Day, that he thought he should go for a run.
All downhill for the first half hour, and then a big climb back up hill.

Xmas day with the kids. Heaps of presents for the kids and lots of time with my family in Adelaide.

Para Vista to the top of Anstey's Hill and back again.
A solid first half, mostly up hill, particularly in the recreation park.
I felt great in the second half, and I increased the tempo to around 4m/km pace on the slight downhill on the way back.
Good views down the ridge track over Adelaide and St Vincent's Gulf. Some great mountain terrain, but much too steep and thick for orienteering. Parts of Anstey Hill are ok, but it requires very careful course setting.

warm up with Anne on her training run

A good couple of long runs completed, so I can enjoy Christmas Day with the kids. Merry Christmas everyone!

Started out from Para Vista, north to the end of Nelson Rd and then through the numerous hills, gullies and spurs of Wynne Vale. I eventually reached Cobbler's Creek Recreation Park (previously known as Kelway Park orienteering map 20 years ago). At the far side of the park, I found a giant new dam which had flooded some of the tracks in the past few days, so I had to make my own way around the dam on the hill sides. Finally the tracks emerged again, and I climbed up to the suburb of Greenwith, where my sister lives. I almost called in for breakfast, but it would have been too hard to get started again.
Instead I ran the length of The Golden Way. This is a suberb stretch of undulating windy road with grass/parks parallel to the road for most of the way. After climbing to the Golden Grove shops it was down hill for about 5kms, and I put in a good stage of sub 4m/kms for about the last 45 minutes.