2 x 10km

Yes last weekend was the TMC a 38km trail run I was going to run, Yes I was on the mountain, but only taking pictures (see last weeks post).
Now weekends don't end on Saturdays and Sunday saw the running of a new race on the Cape Town running calendar, the Vlei 10km. My leg was holding out and I decided I would have enough time to run it and still pick my wife up from the Airport!!!

Yes Dawn's plane was landing at 08h00 and the race started at 07h00 so I had 40min to run and 20min to get there... It's all about timing!

I started the race with a friend of mine, Candice, and I set the pace at just under 4min/km knowing that I didn't have the legs to run any faster and running slower would get me in trouble with the wife!!!  Things went well till about 6km when we started to lose a bit of time. With 2km to go I kicked for home leaving Candice and some other guy who had been running with us.


I want to say I changed gear and the running of old was back... it wasn't!! I thought I would be able to put in 2 3:45s for the last 2km but I had to settle with 3:54. (3 weeks of almost no running will do that to you!)


I finished in 39:45, and without stopping I head for the car and the airport. I was on time, but Dawn and her 88year old Mom (she had taken her to England and Scotland for a holiday) took another 40min to to emerge with their luggage.


Role on this weekend and the Cape Town Marathon... A marathon was never on the cards, but I was up for another 10km, and with a week of running under the belt I set my sights on 38min. I didn't have the best of starts and only caught my wife, Dawn, 150m down the road, Mr Garmin was telling me I was running at 3:37/km and I was going to blow... lucky for me we turned and the pace settled. I found myself running with Jo-Jo a 40+ lady!!! I didn't get away from her till 5km and at this stage I could see the leaders heading back they had past 6km in about 17:30 and were flying...


I could now see one of my athletes ahead of me and I just focused on not losing him. Then at 8km he lost it and I started to close in and with 500m to go I had him. The clock was ticking and I was running flat out crossing the line in 37:59!!!

The race was won in 28:45 with the leading ladies finishing in 33:20, with the Marathon won by a Kenyan in 2h15:55 (a little slow in comparison to Berlin's 2h03:38!!!)

SOME PICTURES OF TMC

 Saturday saw the running of the Table Mountain Challenge, and yes I was planning on racing, but Mr. Spider had other ideas... So I popped onto the route and took a couple of pictures:

Leaders at 1st leg: Will, Allan, Killian, and Greg is hiding.

Ladies: Sue left and Anna right

Allan still in the mix

Will starting to feel it...

Bruce taking it easy

Ryan Sands

Working

And having fun...

Anna in the lead, Sue had taken a tumble

Anna running down the men!!!

Some-one running through the bush

Killian kicked butt...

WE HAVE STARTED

With my leg still all strapped up I went for a little run last Sunday. I wanted to know how my leg would hold up and since I had been back at work and was walking ok I had to get out... (Real reason: I was heading for a zero week and we can't have that, can we!!!!)

I ran up to VOB, about 2km from home and headed for the rugby fields. With the help of Mr Garmin I ran 5 x 200m: 56.4  46.8  46.2  42.8  40.4 (This in not on a track but a rugby field which is rougher than some trails I've run on. It was also my first run in 12 days, and I just wanted to try my legs at a faster pace.)


My legs were working I could head home and start planning my come back...

Day 1 Monday: easy run (this week only 6km) followed by 4 x 200m at 1km pace (this week it was 1km pace alright, the pace I run 1km intervals at...) 39.4  39.1  36.5  39.1.

Day 2 Tuesday: it was raining and I didn't want to get my leg wet. That said I did have 5 guys (OK one was a lady) doing the 400s

Day 3 Wednesday: nothing went right I didn't run.

Day 4 Thursday: Still not up to to much running, so I hit the track:
1km warmup 4:16,
then 4 x 200m 35.6, 37.2, 33.9, 35.9 (a little better tan Sunday attempt, grass a little slippery)
then 4 x 50m 8.3, 8.1, 7.8, 8.2 (I decided it was also my style that had gone to pot...)
I then joined the guys for 1000s, 4:03, 3:53, 3:53 (just controlled running)

I don't really know what the weekend hold, but I hope to be watching the race I was to run, and then Sunday I have to pick my lovely wife up from the airport.

Let the weekend start...

IS IT TIME

For the last couple of years I've been running and racing on the mountain:

Running with friends

Racing

 I love my mountain and I will always run on it, in fact I will run on any trail I can find...
Now the other day a friend of mine shared on Facebook OK it was more of a question:

Why do we run? Well there were a lot of responses, and it got me thinking...
Why do I run?

Now there are 100+ answers to that question, but I will start with "Walking is too slow" Yes I have a need for speed and back at school I ran track 400m, 800m, 1500m, 3000m, 5000m, Steeple Chase. I ran it all.

I don't run to loss weight, I don't run to keep fit, those are by products of a need for speed. I want to be fast, and I want to win... I don't like lining up at a race and just jogging, when I know I should be up there fighting for a podium!

Now for the last number of years I've been running a lot of trail races, and every time I lined up I thought I could win... (sometimes I was lucky). I think it is time for a change... One of my athletes run track, masters track, and I think it is time to join him and head for the tartan!

No not that TARTAN

That is better.. 

Now I haven't run for 12 days and tomorrow I'll put on my 5-fingers and see if my leg is ready for a little jog around the block.

Wish me luck...

MY PLAN IN BROKEN!!!

So it was Monday and I was ready to start training, but Monday is an easy day and an easy 10 in the forest. followed by 5mins on the stairs at the club house. This was day one and I could put a tick in the training box.

Now late last week Dawn had noticed I had a couple of "flea" bites on my leg, they didn't go away...

Flea bite wasn't a flea bite...

Tuesday my foot was a little swollen, but I made it through work... Not just any day at work, but I was in training and come lunch I took the stairs (3 x to the 15th floor). 

Now I know we had a session on the cards for that evening, but the weather was bad, both windy and wet, so I switched the session to Wednesday and we headed for the forest. Top Gate, 15km, forest out and road back. My swollen foot was working well and we came back at 4min/km (it is down hill). 

Wednesday morning my foot was still swollen and I ended up not running that evening. I called my sister-in-law (she's a doctor) and she said I needed drugs!!!!!

Thursday was very hard for me... Dawn called a Doctor and got me an appointment to see him. Why is that hard? I haven't been to a doctor in about 15 years and 15 years before that...

What my leg looked like!!!

All rapped up

All I can now say is:  I had better be running soon or the wine will run out. (Good thing I was able to buy 2 cases on the weekend)

My leg is still sore, but it's a whole lot better...