Wednesday, August 29, 2012

WEEKEND ON THE TRAIL

So this is what I do most weekend:

Some weekends I run from home, but when I don't it's in the Bakkie and off to the Nek (or where-ever I am starting my run from...

On the way there I warmup Mr Garmin:

Looking for Satellites
So by the time I stop I'm ready to run:

Sunny day = lots of people
I'm often alone, but the mountain is full of hikers and other runners it's not a problem! I do like to run with other guys, but that means setting a time and getting up early... sleeping in can be nice!

On the cards was an easy run up to Maclears beacon a loop and back, I only really plan on time out on the trail, yes Mr Garmin will tell me the distance, but I like to tell Dawn I'm be running for 2 hours and then heading home (8km down the road).

From the car park it climbs straight up to the Dams, on this day I took the gravel / concrete road up wanting to run!!! not climb the single tracks! I also wanted a little more distance for the time. In the back of my head I have set a time of 1 hour to Maclears Beacon, but I know that would be fast and taking the long way up (the road) maybe a little to fast, but the clock is running so I pushed on...

At the top of Nursery
It was perfect day to be on the mountain and I wasn't the only one up there:

Can you see the group of runners I passed in the middle of the picture?
It's been a couple of months since I was last on this route and I couldn't remember the splits, so I didn't know if a sub 60min was on the cards...

The closer I got the more I thought about it... the clock then ran out and I was well short, so I then started to wonder just how much quicker the single track up is... I would find out the next week as I took it up and was about 6min faster.

1hour 6min highest point on Table Mountain 1088m
Didn't just turn round and head back, but took a loop round and headed back through Echo Valley and past the Dams:

Long way to go...
getting closer
With the rain for the last couple of week the dams are full and looking good, I finished the 20.2km in 2h13:24, but with 1000m of climb I was really about the time on the legs. That said I did run 22.5km on the road on the Sunday and that was a little quicker...
 I like the one day on the mountain and one day on the road weekend, and I think it's paying off as I'm starting to feel fitter.

8 comments:

  1. Beautiful. Great run, too! i can't believe how full the damn is. Here in the states, we've been suffering from droughts!

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  2. Great run (as always) and beautiful pics (as always!) Hope your wife is doing well and recovered.

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  3. Great pics as usual, glad it was a good run!

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  4. What a great run!!! I always feel like I'm breathing fresh air when I read your posts.
    Thanks Coach!!!

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  5. Why would you run anywhere else?!! It's just beautiful. My favourite runs always take me past water - either a lake or a river. There's just something about water that's so uplifting.

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  6. Nice run... love the image of the dams full

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  7. I've got a race this weekend!!! It's gonna be awesome! I'm meeting my Running Team there! It's gonna be off the Hook!!

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  8. Great to see some pics of the Cape, thanks! Nothing better than weekend time on the trails.

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