Werrington Blogger

Frostbite League, Bushfield - 2nd

2005-11-13T20:59:00.000Z

I finished second today in the second race of the Frostbite League, at Bushfield Sports Centre, Peterborough. My previous highest position inthis league was fourth and, on the face of it, second is a pretty good achievement in a league which has in the past shown some quality. However, the first two races of this season have been disappointing in terms of turn-out at the top end.

I sensed there was a lack of quality when no one seemed to want toe the line at the start of the five-mile race. Once under way, Pete Galpin (BRJ Huntingdon), a multiple past winner, was on his own by the first mile marker and the race for second was on. A conservative starter, I was very confident of second throughout because the head of the chasing group were never very far in front. I know if someone's not going away from me 30-40 per cent into a race, I have a very good chance of beating them. I saw a non-runnning, supporting clubmate at about 1.5M when I was about seventh and I very nearly held up two fingers (palm politely facing away from me) and mouthed "second" to him in reference to the position I knew I was going to take.

I took a clear second at three miles and hung on for a real confidence-booster. Only one second quicker than last year (time 27:48, according to my watch as opposed to the inaccurate official results),when I was 10th, which perhaps shows how the standard has deteriorated, although I'm not sure how careful they are with the course.

The last three races have, position-wise, represented by far my best ever series of results but I don't think I'm in particularly good form. At least, there is no reason why I should be - I haven't done any speedwork since the beginning of September. I've just been putting in some solid mileage and I seem to not have lost much fitness since the summer.

long time, no posting

2005-11-13T20:54:00.000Z

Many miles have come and gone since my last post but I'm back and plan to write little and often from now on. In particular, I will also upload my training diary (in Excel format, link on the right) more often.

I will also go back over my last few races since the summer because it's been worth writing about.

Fenland 10 - 1st 57:21

2005-10-30T22:00:00.000Z

This race incorporated the Cambridgeshire Championships and the main reason for doing this race was to try to win a county medal for the first time. It was a major shock then to take my first open race win since the Run for the Loo (nothing to do with a typical runner's mid-race longing but rather a low-standard five-miler in to raise funds for a church toilet).

Best of all is the prospect of now being known in the local rag as the Cambridgeshire 10-mile champion rather than, as before, the Run for the Loo winner.

Peterborough Evening Telegraph"

Frostbite League, St Neots

2005-10-16T21:56:00.000+01:00

4th 28:32
Cross country five miles
Equals best Frostbite League result yet.
Peterborough Evening Telegraph

Middlesex 10km 11th 34:23

2005-09-11T21:45:00.000+01:00

Middlesex 10km 11th 34:23

Main target for the season as far as peaking was concerned. Was on for sub-34 for the first half. It confirmed I am slightly slower this summer than in the spring. I'm not sure why - I thought I'd been doing everything right, from training twice a day to doing circuit training, to following the excellent-looking training programme in the book Daniels' Running Formula.

Image link (I'm in the yellow vest): http://www.dwknight.co.uk/index.php?event_id=244&photo=5efd7682

Nene Valley 5km - 8th 16:37

2005-08-31T21:38:00.000+01:00

1 503 00:15:42 D Pettit Peterborough AC M 19
2 531 00:15:44 A Barber Newham & Essex Beagles M 31
3 524 00:16:05 A Taylor St Edmund Pacers M 30
4 561 00:16:25 J Pike Nene Valley Harriers M 30
5 917 00:16:28 L Athersmith Peterborough AC M 0
6 489 00:16:31 M Axton Peterborough AC M 24
7 499 00:16:33 I Aunger Nene Valley Harriers M 42
8 507 00:16:37 P Halford Werrington Joggers M 31
9 547 00:16:40 B Corleys Peterborough AC M 31
10 898 00:16:44 S Beard Nene Valley Harriers M 39

Full results

Werrington 5km 10th 16:34

2005-08-17T21:35:00.000+01:00

Werrington 5km 10th 16:34

1 15 7 Neil Addison SHAFTESBURY BARNET MS
2 15 27 Matt Blunden NOTTS AC MS
3 15 35 Andy Barber NEWHAM & ESSEX BEAGL MS
4 15 42 Andy Taylor ST EDMUNDS PACERS MS
5 16 12 Michael Ward PETERBOROUGH AC MS
6 16 15 Alan Williams NENE VALLEY HARRIERS MS
7 16 24 John Pike NENE VALLEY HARRIERS MS
8 16 30 Ian Aunger NENE VALLEY HARRIERS MV40
9 16 32 John Solly BOURNEVILLE HARRIERS MS
10 16 34 Paul Halford WERRINGTON JOGGERS MS

Full results

Stamford 5km 16:24

2005-08-03T21:54:00.000+01:00

I'm quite pleased with 16:24 on a tough, hilly course. Four seconds under my PB, which was set last summer on the perfectly flat Nene Valley 5km course. However, I'm surprised there were six that ran quicker in what traditionally tends to have the weakest field in the series. On the other hand, this was only my second race since the middle of May and this was confirmation I'm on for about 16:10-16:15 on a good course.

7x1 mile (60s rec)

2005-07-28T19:36:00.000+01:00

Not quite as quick as last Saturday and not as easy but still not a bad session around Werrington playing fields.

Average was 5:28, compared to 5:25 last time, but I did an extra rep.

7x1200 (3 mins rec)

2005-07-26T21:56:00.000+01:00

Another good session. Each interval at 3:53. That would be around 16:10 pace for 5km and it didn't feel out of the question I could maintain that for 12.5 laps.

My thigs have been burning when I run for the past few days, which is unusual for me.

6x1 mile (60s rec)

2005-07-23T23:14:00.000+01:00

I had my best session for a while today. 6x1 mile at lactate threshold pace (5:25) with 1 minute recovery and it felt so easy. The last couple were actually getting quicker and I reckon I could have done a couple more.

It feels great to be able to knock out miles so quickly. Surely I can do three 5:10s on the trot to run 16:05 for 5km?

Seven miles easy - feeling good

2005-07-20T23:43:00.000+01:00

IT'S amazing how great I felt after two days off completely and a week of generally easy running. Maybe I should have raced today after all.

It's made me think I should perhaps experiment with having two clear days off before a race.

2005-07-20T23:11:00.000+01:00

Tonight's Peterborough 5km Series results

I chose to miss this one because of stomach bug on Monday. I think I probably would have finished seventh. Just beaten by a second or two by John Pike at the last 5km but I don't think I could have done the same tonight with him running 16:08.

Having said that, after my 34:03 in April, I would have hoped to have been in close to 16:10 shape by now.

The results make interesting reading. I had thought my time at Eye converted to around 16:35 for 16:45 for a "true" 5km. However, comparing times of those who ran at Eye and tonight (I think I've done it for everyone who finished below 17;30. I'm pretty sa when it comes to stats like this!), everyone ran only 20-30s slower tonight. This suggests I could have ran 16:05-16:15 on this course - a big advance on the shape I thoight I was in.

Stomach bug

2005-07-18T23:40:00.000+01:00

THIS was supposed to be my day off looking around Marrakech but instead I spent most of it in bed with a stomach bug. No wonder I caught something the numbers of flies in the restaurants over there.

I hardy ate at all Monday and didn't feel great Tuesday so I decided to pull out of the 5km Wednesday. It means I have to do both remaining races in the series to count in the series.

Morocco

2005-07-17T23:33:00.000+01:00

I WENT on my fourth and final run while in Morocco (July 12-July 19). I'm quite pleased I managed to do that much as I really struggle to run when I'm away from home, perhaps to do with the change of schedule, but also because I like familiar routes.

I found one route which had very few junctions on it so I kept to that mainly. The roads and pavements were quite busy even at 6.30am.

Considering the locals in Marrakech stare at Westerners around the city anyway (we are so lucky in Britain to have so many different cultures around we don't treat foreign visitors like extra-terrestrial creatures), I didn't get too strange a reaction running through the streets.

This morning I ran at 8am because I was due to start work much later but the usual time had been 6.30am, when the temperature was more bearable.

Of the four runs, all were 6.5-7 miles, two were strides, one easy and one a short (25mins) threshold run. Again quite happy with that on foreign soil. And I get a rest before the 5km on Wednesday.

Intervals

2005-07-11T10:57:00.000+01:00

6x1200 in 3:55.5 (3 mins rec) on grass track at Werrington
About a second or so slower than same session last Thursday but I suppose I may have been a bit tired after two speed sessions, one long run and a race in the previous five days. I would normally have taken it easy but I wanted to get a good session in before tomorrow going to Morocco, where I will struggle to get much running in because of work and hot weather.

Long run

2005-07-10T12:23:00.000+01:00

15 miles 1hr45
Werrington, along Marholm Road to Ferry Meadows, which I went around for a bit before going back along the edge of Bretton.

The session after the race

2005-07-07T22:20:00.000+01:00

6x1000 in 3:54.16 (3 mins rec)
Only had 90s recovery after first interval

Tough session

Peterborough 5km Grand Prix, Eye

2005-07-06T22:16:00.000+01:00

AT THE end of my first race in eight weeks, I looked at my watch and saw I had run 15:43. I punched the air. I had dreamt of running this sort of time. I was in a different league now. It meant on an ideal course I could run 15:30.

Whenever I've run quicker than I expected, the words "short course" are always in the back of my mind but I never really thought I would be the victim of it. However, within a few minutes I gauged everyone had run faster than they expected.

Suspicions turned into the crushingly inevitable when someone pointed out we had been misdirected. According to someone's GPS, we had run 4.7km.

Very annoying but the race was supposed to me more about a good position. I finished sixth behind five runners who were all better than me. However, I felt I should have been in with a chance of fourth had I started off more quickly than 3:30 for the first km.

I would have been disappointed with the time anyway, having wanted low 16:25s.

Incidentally, I managed to do without caffeine until 1.5 hours before the race - as planned. Then I had two cups' worth of coffee out of a flask. It was too hot so had to water it down and my toungue was still hurting the next day. Trying a new method such as this is before a race is not to be recommended. One should try it before an easy run or at least speed session.

I've never had two cups of coffee straight off like that so I expected to encounter some noticed effect - adverse or positive. In fact, I didn't.

This was the second race in the Peterborough 5k Grand Prix Series.
Results

Needing caffeine

2005-07-04T23:02:00.000+01:00

I had been 48 hours without caffeine (see Saturday's post) but had to have half a cup as I was getting a headache.

Performance enhancing drug

2005-07-02T23:00:00.000+01:00

I PLAN to use a drug for the purpose enhance my my performance in the 5km Wednesday - caffeine. To do this, in order to gain the full effect, I have needed to try to first wean myself off a five-cup-of-tea-per-day habit. For the past few weeks I've been down to one per day and I'm feeling okay.

The story so far

2005-07-01T23:36:00.000+01:00

Started running 1996
First race: Newport 10km (45:45?)

Pre-autumn 1999: I trained pretty seriously up to 55 mpw but only got PBs down to 36:03/17:08.
The "barren years" of 2000-2003: Through injury (autumn 99), recovery and apathy, I kept running but only just - often just running back and fore to work four miles. I raced only one (5km in 17:57) because I thought I was in bad shape.

2004: I realised from my training at the very beginning of the year I was in a lot better shape than I thought. I had done no long-term speed work for years. Further, the only running quicker than recovery pace I was doing was a once-a-week "90 per cent" run for 9 miles yet I did a 5 mile cross country race which went well and then a 5 mile road race which told me I was only marginally slower than ever. I will never how. My best guess is that one can improve for several years doing just regular cardio work.

2005: Fulfilled a big goal of reprsenting Cambridgeshire in the Inter-Counties Cross Country Championships.