THE DATE

With African X only 2 weeks away my partner thought it was time for the 2 of us to get together... We have never run together, and only raced against each other a couple of times and the last was over 2 years ago!!!

We had to be careful, this friendly run to get to know each other could become a clash of testosterone, two alpha males going for it on the mountains:

We met at UCT and headed off on the gravel roads to Kloof Neck through Deer park... When I planned the route I thought the gravel roads would be a good idea as a start so we could run next to each other and chat about the up coming race! This only work to some degree as neither of us would let the other lead, or even be half a step in front. This I like to think was our way of showing each other that we were up for the race that lay ahead. I can tell you now I don't normally start a 3 hour run that fast, but... This was my mountain...

From Kloof Neck, we took the Pipe Track to Kasteels, Single track, so I took the lead. To lead the way, this was my route, way would I take the lead to slow the pace!!!

The bottem of Kasteels was half way in distance, but with the mountain still to cross we would need more than the 75 mins it had taken us to get there. The glove were now off as we climbed the 440m to the top of Kasteels:

Smiling after hearing that was the top

Now we needed to get back to UCT, so we headed straight over the top with Nursery Ravine in our sights. Things were civilized on the road next to the dams, so I decided to show Chad why I run on the mountains, and it's not to race...

It was a date, we had to look at flowers!

After a slow run walk along the aqueduct we turn right onto Smuts track and headed for Nursery

Top of the world

Then is was a knee breaking decent to the contour path before the run back to UCT...

Things had gone well and after 3 hours on the mountain we were still talking and running, maybe this African X thing is going to work... Are we going to win? well I think the kids are going to keep the old men out this year, but if one teams slips up we will be there to pick up the pieces! what about the old mens race? That my friends is going to take 3 days of hard racing to lift that crown, it looks like all of us are going to find ourselves on the start line Zimmer Frames and all!!!

With Chad back home and Sunday morning on us I found myself at the start of the Milkwood Half... I was putting in a weekend of training to see if the old body was us to 2 hard days before the race... After a beautiful on the mountains it was road, road and 21.1km of road, but not just any road, the wind swept roads of Kommetjie and Scarborough:

Note my hair... (Good Picture Peter Kirk)

The four of us ran together till about half way when Richard and Byron (my athletes tucked out of the wind behind us) dropped off... I won't ly I know I had run the day before, so I let Warren take the wind most of the way back and we finished 8th and 9th (2nd 40+) in 83:11...

This weekend is easy on the legs and then it's time to TAPER (yes that swear word) and race...