Off road (Red Kite Challenge and Ras Y Diafol, 2013)

I have run on roads a lot more this year than ever before, and this has been hard, both physically and mentally. Road running is starting to grow on me a little bit, I think, but the transition back to softer ground and hillier surroundings has felt really good.

A couple of weekends ago, I ran the Red Kite Challenge (trail half-marathon) on Saturday and then the follow-up Ras Y Diafol (17M) on Sunday. Both of these races were really fun, but in a somewhat bitter-sweet way. The bitter part was that I ran much better (4^th in 1:29 on Saturday, 1^st in 2:01 on Sunday) than I would have expected, given that this was only a week after a goal marathon race. I knew this already, but the weekend was another reminder that I did not get the most out of my fitness in Manchester. Then again, I am not going to complain about winning a race, even if Ras Y Diafol is a pretty small and low-key event. And the prize was a pair of Salomon shoes!

Red Kite Challenge – this picture even made the local 

newspaper, and I am now officially a celebrity!

Ras Y Diafol – once a WV Mountaineer…

Cader Idris tomorrow – it is looking like the heat is not going to be an issue this year!

On the right track

I think. Just not moving quite as fast as I was hoping.

Manchester marathon yesterday. First, a few words about the event. Pretty well organised overall, fast, flat course and the Iconiq water pouch is a genius idea (first time ever to be able to actually drink in a marathon). But if you are planning to run this race, beware that there are no mile markers (I personally didn’t mind) and the road closures are very extensive, so extra planning may be needed for getting to the start line. Race results were also a bit slow to post, but I will chalk that up to teething problems that are likely to be worked out by next year.

The story of my race is pretty simple. I felt good and in control for 16 miles, probably pushing just a bit too hard into the headwind. Then, out of the blue, I started cramping. Hamstrings first, then pretty soon my entire legs turned into a mess. Clearly, I was not fit enough to sustain my projected 2:38 pace for another hour. This is not that surprising, given that my winter and early spring training was unspectacular at best. Once in damage control mode, it was just a matter of how much I would slow down and if I would manage to block the negative thoughts of quitting or walking it in. In the end, I was pretty happy with my 2:43:17.

Lessons (re-)learned:

• Road marathons are hard and running them faster does not make them easier; 
• Need to do my long training runs a bit slower. I have been vaguely aware of this for a while, but by the time I checked by looking at my heart rate data, it was too late to correct it; 
•  A two-week taper may be too short, especially while doing intense field work; 
•  More speed sessions needed (I know I keep saying this…)

2013 race schedule

It is the last day of February, and I feel like it is time to commit to some races: 

1. A flat marathon (or two?). Probably Manchester (28 Apr). But  if I continue to be as uninspired about speed training as I have been in the last few months, this may have to be postponed until the fall, in which case it would probably be Chester again (6 Oct). Overall, this is the goal that I am least fired up about right now, but this may change, as the weather gets warmer. It is still possible that I end up running both of these marathons. 

2. Local fell races (mid and North Wales). I will run a few of these, but the two that are going to be my focus are Cader Idris 10M (18 May ) and Welsh 1000m Peaks ~20M (1 Jun). I am curious to see what I can do at Cader without having run the gruelling Brecon Beacons 40-miler one or two weeks before. And as for the Welsh 1000m, I would be happy to just get to the start line and run the full course this year, but will probably give it a fair effort. 

3.  Man v Horse ~22M (8 Jun). A local classic that I am curious to try this year. 

4. Vitosha ~100K? (21 Jun). I am still not sure if I will be able to make it for this one, but it is also hard to imagine missing it.

There you have it. Not nearly as ambitious as in previous years, as far as distance is concerned, but hopefully it will be a refreshing change of pace (pun intended).

Here we go again…

I am finally back to running regularly, after an agonisingly long winter layoff. Here are the highlights from my first couple of weeks of more consistent training:

• Tarren Hendre (9 Feb 2013, 0:58:50, 10^th). Fun carpool with Aber AC club-mates Cameron and Lauren (despite Cameron’s reckless driving). Decent ascent (4^th at the top) and even worse than usual descent.  To be fair, I lost several positions to not knowing the best line and deciding not to take chances in the fog. But I am also still scared to run the open fell descents hard, especially in wet conditions. Tried to start practicing that on my lunchtime run last Thursday, but just ended up on my back, to the amusement of my training partners at work. Anything to cheer you up, guys!

  My first ever fell race in rainy weather!

The Flying Scot (why can’t I have a beard like that!)

• The beautiful weather last week has inspired me to run more frequently to Moel Y Llyn – my new local favourite.

 

http://v-g.me.uk/Trips/G0052/G0052.htm

• Time to plan out the season – nothing is set in stone just yet, but will probably stick with the plan of racing shorter and (hopefully) faster.

Learning to run fast(er): ruminations on 2013 racing

"Why should I practice running slow? I already know how to run slow. I want to learn to run fast."

Emil Zátopek

Ironically, after what was probably my best season of ultrarunning, I have been mulling over this famous quote a fair bit, and the appeal of long, slow runs seems to be almost completely gone. Without having a clear racing plan for next year, I think I will be focusing on shorter races. So I am going to have to learn to run quite a bit faster. Here are some of the goals that will hopefully keep me going, when I am already sick of track sessions, fast hill repeats, and tempo runs:

1.     Become competitive in local fell races: these rarely draw more than 50-60 runners, but the intensity of the competition among the top 5-10 is fierce. So far, I have mostly watched this from the middle of the pack, but I am curious to see if I can be part of it.

2.     Run a low 2:30s marathon: that’s a pretty lofty one, given my current 2:47 PR (Chester, earlier this month), but I have never focused on a marathon for more than 4-5 weeks, and I think I am ready to give this a try. Yes, Phil Turk, I am the guy, who was trying to persuade you to forget Boston and focus on UTMB! ;)

3.     Break 8 hours in the Vitosha 100K: another silly one, I realize, especially given the way I looked and felt during the second half of the race this year, but I do think it is possible. 

Can I do all or any of this? I have no idea – if I knew, trying it would not have been nearly as enticing as it is. 

Running as fast as I could during this year’s Welsh Castles Relay  – not an entirely comfortable experience, but something I would like to learn more about.