Eastside 5k: Race 3

I have found myself annoyed recently by the absence of race reports for various minor (...and a few more major...) races, so from now on I'll be trying REAL hard to blog each one, no matter how inconsequential it seems at the time. With that in mind, I present to you a very boring race report about race 3 (for me, 4 for others) of the Eastside 5k series.

Conditions: were OK. Phil thought it was a bit humid and a bit windy. I can't say I noticed either.
Numbers: were down on last week, probably up on the week before.
Key competition: Turquoise Hat (beat me in Race 1)
Feeling before: odd. We had just learned of the death of an acquaintance, and I was nervous about a big court hearing the next day. I told Phil a couple of times "I don't WANNA run fast".
Feeling during: Relaxed. Steady. Consistent. Semi strong.
Feeling after: Much better!
Time: 23:19 (18s down from week 2, 1:37 down from week 1)
AHR: 180 (up from week 2, down from week 1)
Splits: 4:40 (167) 4:42 (179) 4:48 (184) 4:52 (184) 4:18 (187) (the last k is always a teeny bit short, because I'm not too bad at running this course fairly tightly)
Comments: Turquoise Hat was there, but seems not to have raced. Darn her!
Place: 7th lady
Overall grade: A

Auckland Marathon Race Report Part 3: Yeah, I run (have I got a long way to run)

Part 1
Part 2

Leaving Ed helped me to focus. This was MY race, and if tiredness was the problem, I wans't going to let my job, my job I love, get in the way of the race I love. I opted for the magic music box to pull me through again, which was the best thing for me. I've really liked starting with company, then using music when it comes time for me to stop chattering. I'm not great at running in silence- like the sound of my own voice too darn much, and can never resist the chance to point out silly t-shirts (my fave: "42,195 metres to the next real drink station"; J's face: "you're the run that I want")

The first song on today was Sweet Caroline. Cheese is what works best for me. It makes me happy, swells my heart and that's what I need more than any beat, any tempo. Neil never fails. How can you not feel happy when the strings swell, the beat crescendos and "Reaching out, touching me, touching you" builds to "boom, boom, boom SWEEEEET Caroline"?? LOL. I can't believe I'm sharing my appalling taste with the internet at large. Please don't stop liking me!!! I really am very nice! I kept on at my slowish pace, pottering along slowly, but surely. Ed was a yellow blob in the distance, moving further and further away, but I was keeping up with my own new group. The problem with huge starts is you can never be quite sure whether people "should" be passing or not. I hurt quite a lot already, but I was smiling again.

The support was great along this part- you run around the bays to St Heliers, and by this time it was getting towards 9. People are up, having breakfast, enjoying coffees. [Actually, Auckland did well with crowd support this year- from the blearly eyed dressing-gowners on the Shore, to the capris and lattes crowd of Mission Bay, and then the exhausted but elated finishers and supporters who cheer us in as we complete the last 1-2ks.] hey're non-discrimination cheerers, everyone gets a clap, everyone gets a smile. My mind was fixed now. I felt like me again, even if a slow, sore, somewhat shuffly version of me.

Watching the male leaders coming to the end of their race when I wasn't even at 25k was awesome (in the literal sense ("awe inspiring"), and the more modern sense ("cool") too). Then seeing the female winner, who did not look like a marathoner, beaming behind her motorbike escort. It was disheartening to see the people in front of me without seeing the people behind me. I felt close to last, even though logically I knew I wasn't (even on gun time, I placed 48/118 in my grade, 108/? female, and 554/1000ish? overall- only preliminary results are up at the moment, so I can only see me, not the whole field). Fortunately, although I'd come off pace, I knew I was still running along nicely and was keeping under 6:00/k, which was the only maths I could handle at that point. Saw A when I was at 2:40, I guess 2.5kish from the turn around, so at 29-30k for me and 34-35k for her, and knew she was kicking butt. By my calculations she had an hour to do 7-8k and come in in a BQ time!* She looked happy and relieved to see me- I can't have been that far behind Ed, but she definitely expected me to have pulled ahead, not vice versa (Ed had a couple of bad-luck marathon attempts before today, and although he's a 21-22 5ker, his marathon pb was 4:23 or so, on the Auckland course). I also saw a colleague and waved at him excitedly (he was before A, actually, and did around 3:30).

Saw Ed on his way back and gave a big wave. He looked focussed. Or grumpy. I couldn't tell which at the time, and hoped he was not struggling. I know now it was focus, as if anything, he picked up pace on the way back. He couldn't have been more than a couple of minutes ahead of me at halfway, and he finished 5 minutes ahead. I am SOOOO pleased for him- he earned it! I got smily and tearyish as I crossed the turnaround. On the way home. I think Auckland is VERY well designed in this regard. The best way to conquer the 20-mile blues has got to be to put a turn around there. It turns it from the scary site of the ever-feared wall to the marker of the home stretch. Only 10k to go (it was actually a bit before 20- I hit it in 2:55, hit 32k in 2:58- fastest ever, just barely).

The last 10k is best described as "k-counting pain and trying not to pee my pants, deciding whether to take a pit stop, and considering peeing my pants.. would the tri shammy be like a nappy?". Oh, and hunger. I plodded along, trying to make sure I could go sub-4 even with 6 minute ks. At most markers I had 1-2 minutes fat, and I wanted to keep it that way. The soreness had long since moved from my calves and shins to my quads, glutes and hips. I was really "pleased" about this, as calf pain says "scary scary danger injury territory" to me, while quads say "running". J and I had Womens Refuge labels (like race numbers, but numberless- what would you use to describe these??) on our backs, and only one person commented in the whole race. It was an old dude, 60s-70s, wearing marathoner-speedos, with a matching singlet top, frizzy haired and toothless, but obviously pretty durn good. I passed him on the way back, and he said "hurh hurh, women's refuge- does that mean you're a refugee". I wasn't particularly impressed by this, but couldn't tell if it was a dumb joke, or a sexist anti-refuge comment, so I just said "just a fundraiser" and tuned back in. I ate some clif bar (OMG, I love clif bars), some jelly beans, and took in some powerade. I was hungry at halfway, which suggests I should have worked harder on eating the second bagel half. Or had lunch on Sat, or something.

I also passed my old friend Mr 4:15, walking on the way back. Would you believe he had no-one with him? Who'd a thought? (hmm.. is my sarcasm glaringly obvious enough to span the seven seas of the internet?). OOOH that man made me MAD.

Eventually, I plodded back into town, for the last 2ks. I knew I had it kinda in the bag, but that I couldn't relax. So I plodded on. There was no 42k marker, which is fine, but I was kinda expecting one, and it's nice to know when there really is 200m to go. As I mentioned, the support was great, so part way through Air Supply's "Every woman in the world" (both that song and Neil come from my days in department store retail... We weren't big on top 40...), I took my earplugs out and tried to get them into my pocket as I finally approached the finish! I saw my sister screaming for me and waved and smiled. Then a few paces along Ed called out. I was SO happy. I gave him a massive wave, then realised it was time to smile for the camera, and crossed the line. I stopped my watch (hopefully after the photographers had got me) and was relieved to be sub 3:59. That's a truly sub-4 time!

I walked over to the ambulance area, the only place I could see to sit and I sat.

**the oddest thing, she didn't- she came it at around 3:42, but said she'd had the best last 10k ever. I do not get it- I specifically remember it being 2:40, and even if I'm about where it was, which is not super likely, she MUST have been past 32k, so she can't have had more than 10k to go. That would make her final 10k slower than mine. SO weird....)

Auckland Marathon Race Report Part 2: Golden Slumbers

Part 1: The Final Countdown

The first half of the marathon course is hilly. Slightly hillier than I remembered, but nothing like the training I do here. Ed and I navigated a slow course through the throngs of ill-seeded people. SERIOUSLY LADY- THERE ARE 7500 PEOPLE IN THIS RACE. Did you REALLY think you were in the top 20% or so????? (this rant seems to be a fact of marathoning life, but it never ceases to amaze me). I m was surprised to see Mr 4:15 sticking with us. Uhh hello dude- we're on 3:50 pace here...? (we were pretty much on pace from about the third k). We overheard him saying he wanted to come in halfway at 2:00, which I didn't think was a sensible strategy for a hilly first half! Pacer Liz/experts out there.. any comments before I defame the pacers yesterday throughout the remainder of this report?? Also, if this guy was going for 4:15 GUN time, I think he needed to make that clear, as he would have crossed the line at 5+ minutes. What's the normal rule for such things??

The course was pretty congested to 10kish, and wasn't exactly sparse after that, as we ran to nearly 21k with the halfers. After one drinks station the guy in front of me completely cut me off and I nearly crashed into a van. I was pretty frustrated, and semi-jokingly shook my cup at him. Unfortunately, I misjudged the amount of pressure needed to make a joke, and ended up chucking a cup of water over his back. Not deliberate, but not entirely accidental either. Feel pretty bratty and embarrassed, though it was quite funny, and he laughed too. He was with Mr 4:15, which irritated me, as he should not have been in front of me. As I type this, I realise how irritable I was. I really was having a good time, commenting to Ed that it was so much more fun to be marathoning instead of half-marathoning. But the fact that I was getting so irritable suggests that my hypothesis may be correct. I was not well rested enough to do my best.

I was feeling OK over the hills, even if they were bigger than I thought! I worried about J, even though I knew her H***-power legs would see her through. She needed to get to the Bridge by 8:30 to avoid being bussed, and although we knew she would, I wasn't sure how long it took her to cross the start line, so I kept her in my mind a lot. I knew I wasn't feeling as good as Ed though, and tried to remember this time in Rotorua. I think it felt easy there, but it was hard to imagine speeding up at all, if that makes sense. So, I think my effort levels were roughly equivalent, though I may have worked a little harder, since the first half of Auckland is on balance harder- if only because the hills go down a lot more.

The Bridge was also harder than last time. I think the reason for this is that last time, a half in 2005, I was powering up hills. I expected to be tired, and I got to pass others who are less strong on hills than I am. This time, I'm trying to keep it conservative, trying not to power, so it feels harder, because when we try to pull back, we expect to feel easy. But hills rarely feel easy. They're hills.

After the Bridge, there's some random corner turning to make up distance. Also some overlap, so you can see those who are a bit in front of you. Mr 4:15 was there, sure enough. And, rather surprisingly, Ms 2:20 half. WTF????????? I'll tell you know, we ran into her at 18km, and passed her there. This would have been at about 1:40ish. So 1:45ish, gun time, to be fair. 3k left, and 35 minutes. Hmmm. We said something to her at 18, and she seemed PLEASED to be 15 minutes ahead of schedule. Umm. RIGHT! This woman was supposed to be MY BABY SISTER'S PACER! I was SO glad J didn't find her, because she could have completely ruined her race!

Around 18-19, I started fading. E saw it immediately, and started giving me a pep talk. Technique, shoulders back, watch your gait etc. I know he meant well, but it just upset me. I didn't WANT a pep talk at halfway. I wanted my pep talk to be getting me over the finish line in 3:54:xx, or 3:49.xx, or talking me through the tough ks from 28-33 (those are my worst- bored and sore, but nowehere near done)! But all I wanted at 18k was to nap. My calf was a little tight, and my foot a little uncertain, but if I';d felt strong they'd have been mere niggles. But the thought of turning off the half-M finish, running through, catnapping for half an hour, then cheering my sister in was pulling me strong. I bitched inside. Goddamn work. Goddamnit. Goddamn tired. Too much goddamn walking yesterday. Then I reminded myself that this is a mental game- I remembered one of my super readers (Lana? was it you?) feeling she's lost the mental fight when she first saw a sub-4 hour goal disappear, and I knew I didn't need to lose sub-4, just because I didn't have enough juice to haul way-too-many-pounds of me around 13 more miles at sub-9 pace (sorry for the km/mile changes.. I change the way I think at different times, since I'm basically bilingual now!). And I decided to flip a mental switch. I told Ed, "I was home by 7 every night last week, where I ate sensible, nutritious dinners. I'm not tired, I'm well rested. I slept well last night, and I've had a textbook taper." It didn't work. I was amazed by what a conscious process "mental strength" was for me. I've never called on it before, not in the way I did yesterday. Usually I either go, or give up.

So at half way, when Ed suggested trying to get to 25k by 2:xx (I don't think I ever heard or computed the goal), I told him it was time for him to leave. I knew the only way I could turn myself around was to be with myself, and think only of me. It was hard, and hard for him to do it guilt free, but that was the deal. He looked sceptical when I told him I was still going to be coming under 3:59:59, and said "well, this is pace!" and bounded off. I was irritated (I know he didn't mean it badly, but I didn't need him to lose faith in me too!), and decided I would stick to myself and prove him wrong!



OMG- my computer just CRASHED 2 minutes before pre-sales to BON JOVI went on sale!!! But a frantic call to P and we were in. Thankfully, as by the time I got my baby up and running again, the site was pretty much closed! I'm LIVING ON A PRAYER BABY!

Phedippidations World Wide Half race report

Today I ran the Phedippidations World Wide Half along with people all over the world!

My programme had a 13 mile PMP run on schedule for this weekend, so it was perfect timing! I have done a few PMP tests now, so was interested in pushing a teeny bit harder, and trying to come in under 1:55.

I planned to do a coastal half marathon loop, which I've done 3 times as a race (1:50, 1:49 and 2:07 pacing C) and dozens of times in training (sometimes 13.1, sometimes longer). It's flat, picturesque, and you're bound to run into a few other runners and cyclists out there. The only problem with picturesque coastal routes? You guessed it- the wild wet Wellington wind (reference to a poem I remember from primary school, fortunately I mostly missed out on the "wet" bit today). Ahh wind. My mortal enemy. I really should start tagging wind posts and counting the times I bitch about it (or applaud myself for rocking on through it!)

Not long after I started, I decided to change my route a bit, and to do an out and back to the half way point. That's the good thing about a race with a field of one. If you feel like an out and back insetad of a loop, then out and back it is! My rationale was a bit flawed, in hindsight, but those damn headwinds were so strong I decided I was entitled to some respite on the way back! I didn't really have any idea of splits, but I thought I was roughly on track (a little ahead of pace, actually) at Scorching Bay (about 5 miles in), and I reached half way right on time, at 57:31. I was pretty tired, and more than a little wind worn, and I was starting to see the error of my ways.

See, the route was very windy, as well as being very exposed and thus very windy (*pause* while you reread that sentence). So, on the "way out" you have a mixture of things- strong headwinds, strong tail winds, and oddly quiet bits where there's a bit of shelter for a few hundred metres. Which means that on the "way back" there's actually still a fair bit of headwind. So much for cruising back! The worst thing? It was the first mile or so of the way back and the last mile or so that were the worst. I struggled along. Mostly OK, but a bit tired, and my right calf was a little bit tight (will be giving that guy the stick!!).

The last mile was pretty hard, and I was a bit worried that I wouldn't break 1:55, but I pushed on, one landmark at a time, and got to the finish at 1:54.19, just a few seconds faster than my first half, back in 2004!

I was/am feeling a bit concerned by this. Yes, I made pace (and, if mapmyrun is to be trusted at all, I think the halfway point may have actually been a little off- I may have done 13.5, which is rather different, and would mean my pace was 8:28, not 8:43!), but it was quite tough. Not race pace tough. But not "I could do this twice" either! So send some reassurance this way!! Anyone who's ever said "marathon pace is easy on race day, even if it feels hard in a solo training run in the wind two weeks out", now is the time to say it again!!!

(Other runs this week- I've been slack:
13ish mile hill run with Ed on Tuesday evening (sloow, 2:25)
5 mile tempo treadmill run on Saturday (39:19, and man I hate that evil mill)

Manawatu Striders 10k (subtitle: just not that fast)

Today was perfect (apart from the no milk- but at least I had all night to adjust). The drive up to Palmy was cruisy. The weather played ball- sunny but too not hot, no wind. Gorgeous, perfect race weather. My belly played ball, and so did my hormones.

I ran strong for 6.2 miles. At some points I felt slightly less strong and at others slightly more so, but there were no dramas. Sometimes I found myself slightly irritated by slow walkers and trudging half marathoners (like you two who cut me off at the turn around- cheers...) but there was no congestion. No dastardly headwinds, no bullets of hail. No grinding hills (though the rise at the end was harder than expected). This was a textbook race. So why did I just barely break 48? (47:54 give or take a few seconds) Why did I positively split by nearly a minute (23:35, 24:19)? What am I even doing running over TWENTY FOUR minutes in the second half of a 10k? Take away the horrible headwinds and I gain EIGHTEEN measly seconds??

I know, I know. 47:54 is nothing to sneeze at. It's a solid PB. It's sub-48, just like I wanted. A twenty four minute 5k would be a dream for lots of people (and the straving kids in Africa would appreciate that gross casserole...)

BUT ALL THE OTHER GIRLS ARE FASTER THAN ME AND IT AINT FAIR. Even the ones who used to be slower.


Forgive the self-indulgence. It's my blog and I can whine if I want to. Don't think for a second that I'm not glad to have been running a PB on this glorious Palmy day. That I'm glad PF hasn't sidelined me. That I get to run marathon number 2 in just over two months. That I've just come back from practically a paid vacation (give or take 8 hours a day). I know there's lots to be grateful for, and plenty to be proud of. I know I'm moving in a consistent forwards direction (apart from my last 5k, which was a tad slower than the one before, but they're just glorified training sessions, all of my races have been faster than the last), and that I can't expect to get back to where I once belonged instantly. But I saw it coming, and I got greedy.

And today, well I just needed to b*tch!

PS: my super little sister raced today too. She looked verty strong coming up the last hill, so I told her so and made her run. We sprinted towards the finish until we got stuck behind some walkers (nice ones, who very graciously moved out of our way), and the moment was lost. But once she gets her long runs up and her endurance down, that sis is gonna be a force to be reckoned with!

I've had better.

I'm sorry. I know someone else in blogland has used this in a post recently, but I can't think who, so I can't give proper credit.

That's my summary of tonight's race. Race 1 in the Loaded Hog 5k event series. The series includes around 9 races (I think) and goes through til October (then a new series starts). It's casual, well run, fun. Plus $6 entry gets you a free beer and the chance to win spot prizes. I'm really hoping to race every time I'm in Wellington this series, but we'll see how that goes. I'm missing two for travel already!

My goal for tonight was to run smart, to run fast and to run hard. Of course! But the focus for me was on seeing where I am at, and not seeing where I can push myself to. I hoped to record a solid time (hopefully 22.xx), not to set a PB (which would pretty much need to be 21.xx- argh!) My speedwork's not been up to scratch recently, even before the PF, so I was not feeling super duper confident. But pretty confident that I had a strong race in me.

There's not much to say really. No story. Arrived. Registered. Chatted. Warmed up. Chatted. Shivered. Waited. Poised. Listened. Started. Ran. Ran some more. Passed. Got passed. Turned. Puffed. Waved. Ran. Pushed. Finished.

I was pretty much alone for the second half, chasing two rabbits I should have been able to catch, but whose dust I was well eating the whole way. I just don't think it's fair that I can lead these dudes up a hard hilly run (see Saturday's post), and then get so royally smoked. Watch your backs boys ;-)

Finished in 22.45, an OK time (my 5ks over the past year or so go 22:35, 22:06, 23:xx, 24:56 (!!), 22:21 and no 22:45). Some 500m splits were wiped off, but I have some:

1.5k- 6.36 (500m average 2.12)
2k- 8:50 (500m average 2.12-13)
2.5k- 11:07(500m 2.17)
3k- 13:26 (500m 2.19)
3.5k- 15:50 (500m 2.24)
5k- 22:45 (500m average 2.20)

Hmm- maybe not the most well executed race! But a 30s positive split over 5k is not too bad for the first 5k in several months. I felt much better and stronger for the second half, which is something I've been noticing recently. I'm starting to think it's just because I'm not going so fast, and not because I'm better warmed up. Hmm.

The lack of an attainable prize meant I don't think I pushed quite hard enough on the way back. But it's doing me and everyone else a disservice to make it look like I was slacking, or not having an "on" day. I ran quite hard, quite fast, and quite well. And I am pretty stoked to be in a place where an average pace of 4.33/k or around 7.20/mile is "ok".

My goal for the rest of the series is to FINALLY get that 21.xx when I stop my watch.* I'm pretty sure I can do it, I just need to be perseverent, and I need to turn up to race every Tuesday.

(oh yeah, and to beat Ed and Paul)

Update: Blimey- what a competitive field (though it's a very friendly uncompetitive race)!! Out of 70 runners, I came 53rd. There were 54 runners under 23.00. 62 runners (88%) finished under 25 minutes. The top 4 women were all under 20.00 and the top 11 men were all under 18! Wow!

Update II: 3 wines and too much curry is not the best way to recover from a race. Made my run this morning interesting, in any case!

A B-? Well, maybe a B+...

Weather conditions looked perfect for this morning's race- fine, chilly. I woke around 7, and was glad of the sleep in. Usually I hate late race starts (I really am a born triathlete), but after wasting too much time reading and mucking around last night, and a few nights in a row of frequent waking, I liked it today!

I had porridge with dates and brown sugar and a cup of coffee, and read a little and checked out some blogs before getting ready. Decided I'd probably be warm, despite the antarctic chill, so wore a new singlet and a thin poly with my snazzy new tights (which I am completely in love with- thank you my wonderful honey!!) This was definitely the right plan - in the end I lined up and raced in the singlet, and didn't once regret it.

P dropped me at the station, and I jogged up to the start. I soon realised that the chilly sunniness was hiding a deceptively strong wind. Crazy strong! (a little stronger than the wind that stopped my plane landing on Friday!) I arrived at the event at about 8:45 (I think?), and soon managed to find my sister (and squeeze behind her in the bag check queue- sorry gods of queueing karma). Went to the bathroom (again...) and then headed outside. I realised I was quite far back, so pushed up to what I thought was a reasonable place (it was- it took me 25 seconds to cross, which should be right for someone finishing near me in a medium sized race. But of course I'd underestimated the sheer IDIOCY of racers. I don't know how many times I've seen posts like this, but if you are going to WALK or PLOD or SHUFFLE the first k of a race then you start at the BACK! It's not rocket science, just common courtesy. And I think race organisers should be more emphatic bout this- even if it's "only" a 10k, there should be some staggering, even if it's just corraling the walkers to the back (they did this in my last half, which was great, even though not 100% effective).

The first k was a little slow, at 4:50 (about right really, given the stupid start, but it's a short k- I always hit it way ahead of pace and freak out, so was expecting a bit faster). I really should have had a decent warm up- definitely getting more reliant on the warm up now that I'm getting more experienced, as I just couldn't make my legs move for the next wee while. Was shocked and appalled to hit 2k in 10:07, but then hit 2.2 in 10:27, so something was screwy there- I did not run 200m in 20s! (the 2k was ours, the 2.2 was the marathoners' 40k mark). From that point on I picked up a bit, and although I was struggling, I started to hit each k marker at under 8:00/pace target time (just that every marker was +0.2, so I hit 4.2 in a little under 20, I think- maybe it was 19:40). I started catching up to and passing some of my "marks", and my legs gradually settled in (I'm jumping ahead, but it wasn't untik 7kish that I actually felt like I was really running!)

I was still under 20mins when I saw the top women returning- I was surprised to see how slowly they were moving and was pretty confused. They didn't look like they should be so far ahead of me- but hey, who am I to judge on appearances? Then I saw a local elite coming up behind them, and realised that there was no way they were in the lead. We figure they probably started with the half, 15 minutes before us! It was heartening to see some seriously fast people ahead of me, and although there were LOTS of ladies (and I knew I'd get a somber look for C who was counting for me and who knew I had top-20 aspirations...), most of them looked like they belonged there. The tail wind swept me around the turn around (23:37!), and before I knew it I'd sailed past the girl I'd had my eye on for the last 10 minutes or so. And the one who'd snuck past us both a little earlier.

Then I ran straight, smack bang into an impenetrable forcefield! I bitch about the wind a lot, but this was something else. My earbuds came out, my eyes watered and my peripheral vision was screwed (fortunately none of the people I was looking out for passed me during that time- I had no waves in me). In hindsight I pushed a bit too hard- I was tireder just after that bit than I was at the end of the race! I saw my sister, who was looking great and gave her a big wave, then a bit later saw C and J. C made exactly the face I'd expected- she'd counted THIRTY FIVE ladies ahead of me!!

I was still making ok time- can't remember when I hit each marker but I knew I was still sub-8:00 pace, and thought I was looking towards a high 47s/low 48s finish. I felt pretty strong, and I was passing a lot more than I was being passed. From 1k to go I ran alongside two speedy women and we took turns edging in front (one of them beat me to the end (just), but my time was a fraction quicker ;-)). My playlist was just perfect- I skipped the third to last song, and when Don't Stop Me Now played, I really was having a ball, and this time I WAS like a rocket ship! We ran up into the stadium (Final Countdown started..) and I was chuffed to see that the course had changed, and the mind-f*ck last 100m had gone, so all I had to do was round the corner and start my finishing sprint. My watch read 46:xx, and I knew I was cutting it fine to finish sub-48. As I neared the end, I saw 47:41, and I kicked into my real sprint, edging out the old dude next to me.

I didn't quite make it. The final sprint took 30s, and I crossed in 48:11 by me, 48:12 by them. Ah well- a 1-minute PR is ok, given my sketchy training, the awful start and the awful wind (I'm sure those two things are worth at least 15s each!!) I didn't quite make my place goals either- had hoped for top 10 F18-34 and top 20 o/all female, and was 13/235(ish) F18-34 (runners) and 22/460(ish) o/all women. So, I beat 95% of people. Not bad :-)

I watched finishers and chatted to mates for aaages. I'd forgotten how much fun this race is, and I love my buds on the Welly-town running scene. My sister came in a little over an hour and I screamed for her to sprint. Well- it's clear that that girl takes after her big sis (or, rather, we both take after our Dad). When I said sprint, she really did- I was chasing her on the other side of the spectators, and she beat me in (she did have a head start, and didn't have spectators to deal with, but WOW!). Talking to her later, I found out she'd really motored up the wee *hill* and had passed everyone in sight. Just like me :-)

Waited around for A who came 9th overall and 6th in her AG in the full, in a smashing time of 3:43. GO A!! We went out for brunch, then I met C (oh crap, I have two Cs now.. )for a quick swim, before dawdling up the hill to write this race report, do laundry and watch Gilmore Girls. I'm feeling a bit more like the old me. I think I might like racing after all :-)

Oh- and guess what else? I counted back to figure out when to start my Akl Marathon sub-4 training plan, and it's LAST week. So will ease into it this week, and start for real next week- yay! But I'll have to base the paces around a 48 10k- that sounds hard!

4:04 and I am stoked!

Well, I finished!!! Don't I look chuffed in this pic??!

And NOTHING went wrong (well, apart from running 10 secs per mile slower than I had planned, but I'm putting that down to inexperience and the fact that this is the hardest course in NZ and I'm absolutely not letting it faze me)

And I can't wait to sign up for number 2 (October '07).. where I will smash 4:00!

And I'm coming back next year when the course will be IAAF certified, and you know what?? I am going to BQ!**

We drove up to Rotorua on Friday- the car loaded with bagels and bottle after bottle of water. It was a relaxed drive, and we were running a little late when we arrived. The expo had run out of pretty much everything in my size, though I did find a nice new pair of shorts. We drove around the course as it was getting dark. The hills didn't look too bad, but some went on for quite a while!

After we finished our pasta dinner, I started to get nervous. About the rain, about the course, about hitting the wall, about everything. I don't know what was so stressful-either I'd finish, or I wouldn't! Slept fitfully and lay awake from 3:42 to 6:00 listening to the cars driving past and the rain beating down. I tried to take comfort on the rain- the more it rains now, the less it rains tomorrow, right????

Ate two half bagels (one plain with PB, one cinnamon raisin with jam) at about 6, then sat reading my book and collecting myself while C napped, and the boys slept. At 7 I had my coffee and got ready. I got dressed, prepared three baggies to carry on the course- food, MP3 and emergency supplies- and packed my bag for after the race (my biggest mistake of the day). P stuck Phiten patches all over my legs, I forced down a banana (retching slightly at every bite!) and filled a bottle of water to take to the start.

We lost C and F (her boy) at the start, but found some of P's colleagues who were looking at similar times to me. I was the only newbie though! It was good to chat with them while P was away and meeting their husbands properly meant I had bonus support on the course (one of them even got a cool video of me going past). One last loo stop, and we went off to line up. I decided at the last possible second to run without my poly- the first of my many good decisions! It wasn't that cold, and I really didn't need the extra bulk.

I lined up around the 4h sign. It was great to turn around just before the start to see P again, for a couple of last goodbyes. I gave him a quick kiss, told him to cheer for C from me, then we counted down, the gun went off and we were off.

The *biggest* marathon in NZ had 1400 entrants (running), so it only took me 1:xx to get over the line. Less than 500m in, I found a friend of ours, K, and we decided to hang together as much as we could. We were 30s over our goal pace at 3k, and we decided to try to maintain the gap, rather than to make up time. Mostly we succeeded- some ks were a bit fast, and some markers were off (like there's no WAY we did ks 18 and 19 in under 10 minutes total), but we ended up hitting halfway in 2:00 exactly! At about 9 or 10k, the rain picked up a bit- it was pretty hard, but we were used to being wet by this time! At 14k, we saw the lake for the first time (the race is round the lake, but the roads are pretty silly in Rotorua and very few front onto the lake) and the sun came up. It was actually warmish, and since my shoes had been soaked for nearly an hour anyway, I wasn't that excited about the sun!

I realised just past halfway that I was unlikely to break 4. I felt pretty good, and we were still chatting away, but it was starting to get a little harder (we'd done some reasonable climbs, but the hills were far from over), and I didn't quite feel I had another 2:00 half in me. K was fading too- it was at about 24k that she suggested I push on. I told her there was no way I was feeling strong enough to pick up the pace, especially with 18k to go!

The road was closed for a big part of the middle of the race (from sometime around 16? to about 24/25 k), so it was great to reach 25 and see people again. I saw C's partner F and the guys I'd met pre-race, and knew I would finally be seeing P soon. I was so excited to be passing him strong!

Soon after we saw P, I knew it was time to step up. I reached for my secret weapon, the magic music box. I had asked P and the rest of my family to nominate songs for me to run to. The best idea I have ever had!! It meant my family was with me, and I was able to think of how much they all mean to me as their songs came on. The songs didn't help me pick up the pace or distract me from the pain, but they invigorated me and inspired me. I lost K soon after that- I had a bit more juice in me (hardly surprising- I'm not sure if she ingested any calories during the race, and I managed to eat 150-odd calories off granola bar as well as some sport beans!!) It got hard at about 28k. I kept running, but the soles of my feet hurt, and my transponder felt like it was cutting off circulation in my ankle. I started walking the drink stations, as I knew I hadn't taken enough liquid- not by a mile, I later realised (TMI, but I didn't "go" until nearly two hours after my finish).

Between 28 and 38 I counted ks- and it took forever for each marker to come around (even though my pace for the second half was still under 9:30/mile, and was only 10s/k slower than my first half). Instead of passing everyone, I started getting passed, though I kept passing too. At 35k I saw P again. The photo he has of me shows that I was still definitely "running"- not shuffling like I thought. It also shows just how happy I was to see him.




I was listening to Annie's Song, by John Denver, which means a lot to both of us. I sent him on to the finish line and dug in for the hard part. There's not a lot to say. I put one foot in front of the other and thought about how impossible the last 5k were going to be. The task ahead seemed insurmountable, even that far into it!

At 38k, 4:00, 4:01, 4:02 and 4:03 were a distant memory, but I set myself a new mini goal of doing the last 4.2k in 24 minutes, to finish around 4:04. 38-39 was horrible, but at 39 it felt possible again- 4k is nearly 5k, but 3 is just over 2! My power song played, and although I did NOT feel like a rocket ship on my way to Mars, there was by that stage, no stopping me! I couldn't lift my pace, but I maintained it. I got some high-5s from neighbourhood kids, and I beamed and waved at spectators. I was nowhere near as emotional as I expected- here I was finishing my first MARATHON, having run all but 2 water stations, and I felt nothing! Me- the girl who gets choked up on training runs!!

My MP3 player had misplaced faith in me, and played The Final Countdown just before 41. It was playing when I hit 4:00! If it had played any earlier, I'd have had to skip it, but I reminded myself "this is a freakin marathon, Kate- the last 1.5 K IS the final countdown!" I picked up a bit, and passed a few people in the last k. We were in the park now, enjoying the home stretch. The finish line looked close, and I knew it was only 350m past the Princes Arch. I wondered if I could break 4:04, but realised that while the START gate was 100m away, the finish was a fair bit further! But I pushed it, and ran to the line with P running behind the crowd alongside me.




I collected my finisher's shirt and relaxed for awhile with P's colleague, who had done a PB of 3:56. We waited in the back for K and P's other colleague to come in (K did 4:14 and V did 4:17), then headed out front to wait for C. She was injured and came in at 5:44, so we watched for an hour before we gave up. I saw my blog buddy Mike come in without realising!! We also saw the Mask finish. Unfortunately, I missed seeing the dude who did the WHOLE THING IN CROCS because he finished in something like 3:20!! IN CROCS!!!!

I think it's time to leave this post now- it's rambly enough as it is. There's a really cool summary of my results here, just enter 461. Some (seriously unflattering- my hips are like chipmunk cheeks,stuffed with food and music- it's not all my pudge!) pics are here.

I'll be back soonish, with a "lessons learned" report, and some aftermath, and pics. But, in short- I don't hurt too badly at all (I hurt LOTS, but I was expecting worse- maybe the Phiten patches worked?!), my worst injury is the rubbing and bruising from the transponder band and overall, I'd say I came out well!!

Thanks everyone for your good luck wishes and your support over the past few months. This blog has meant SO much to me! I was going to name names, but you actually all ROCK!

**it's my day today- let a girl dream...

Guess who opened a huuuge can o' whoopass?

Someone opened a can of whoopass today, and it wasn't me. Before I tell the story, I'll get to the punchline. A big fat PW. 1:59:05. 4 1/2 minutes slower than my first. 16 1/2 slower than my best.

I don't have an explanation. I didn't blow out. I didn't misjudge my RPE and take it too easy (there was nothing left to kick at the end- nothing). The start was slow, and I tried to make it up slowly, but it wasn't happening. After 7k, each k got longer and longer and I saw my target slipping further and further away even though I felt strong(ish) and I was still passing people (including this trainer from my gym who has never beaten me- I plan on keeping it that way!) I said goodbye to 1:45 when I hit 10k in 54 odd minutes, and realised I was exactly 1k behind plan when I hit 11 in just under an hour. I thought of Jodi and Rachel, 70.3ing today and hoped that some of my lost mojo was making its way to them!


All I can say is that the trails kicked my butt- they opened that can, and instead of standing up to them, I stepped back and I took it. I struggled with running on an uneven surface and on a slope. I really struggled clambering up a sandy hill (but I didn't walk, like one of the guys I passed. Phew!) I struggled with the humidity, and the absence of my usual nemesis, wind. I would love to run in that forest again- a long training run, perhaps- expectation free. That way I could really enjoy myself. I would love to buy me some trail shoes and get into trail running. I know trail running is a different kettle of fish compared to road running, but I was expecting a fast, fun run today and just scraping sub-2:00 only a few days after my 5k near-PB is a touch demoralising. I am MARATHON training, yet for the first time ever both my 5k and my 10k are BETTER than my half time???

I found out after the race that the course had changed significantly since last year. I think the winning man was 13 minutes slower, and the winning woman (who I know is a faster runner than last year's winner) was I think 6 or 7 minutes slower. My friend K finished in 1:34 last year, and 1:46 (I think) this year. We don't know if it was longer, harder, just a slow day. I saw a girl who I've seen finish in 2:10ish finishing after 2:30. This made me feel better at the time, but it's not helping much now. Right now I'm feeling a little sad.

BUT. Onwards and upwards. We spent a lovely day reading on the deck and lounging on the beach. Right now I'm eating filled pasta and drinking a quiet G&T by myself (Cheers, Wes!). Then, when P gets home we're off to a party- theme is S&A. I was thinking "athletes", but I'm now leaning towards "sunburn". I still can't wait for Rotorua, and I still don't feel like sub-4 has completely slipped away. If my 20-miler goes badly, I will reassess seriously, but for now...

PS- one interesting observation: I ran sans-tunes today, and noticed just how much harder the people with music were breathing compared to those who weren't. Not being able to hear your breath is a great distraction!

A lesson learned and a pb?

Tonight I was excited to be able to run the local 5k I missed out on last week. I felt amazing yesterday, so I couldn't wait, though my legs felt tighter as tighter last night and today, and I started getting insanely nervous at about 3pm! My stomach churned and I could feel my heart beating far more wildly than I expected. Speed always makes me nervous- I stress out before speed and tempo runs, and I honestly think I was as nervous before this 5k as I will be before my marathon! (we'll see) I'd packed a couple of alternatives, but decided to run in my Scottish singlet- if I couldn't run fast, I'd at least look serious!

I registered and chatted with friends before the race started. Should have warmed up, but didn't. They told us the course was changing, so there would be a detour and the turn around would come sooner than usual. Yay! Definitely a psychological boost! I took off a little fast, but settled into a conservative pace and watched people get further and further ahead of me. My goal was about 22:30 (my first "old Kate" 5k time) but I would have been happy to go sub-23. I had my eye on a colleague of P's who's times suggested she'd be doing about that pace. She was miles ahead of me early on, but I could see A near her, so I told myself she had gone out too fast and that I would catch up. I glanced at my GPS very occasionally, and checked my watch at 500m, and saw 2:17. OK if I kept that pace, but slower than my usual first 500m! I kept on.

I was really feeling my legs, and I was pretty knackered already! Saw P and A on their way back, both looking good, and sure enough P's colleague wasn't far ahead when I finally got to the turn around. I was shocked to see 10:44 a few seconds on from the turn around- I felt like I was picking up, not like I'd rabbited off. I kept trying to catch up to P's colleague. We were both working hard, and the gap was only closing very slowly. But other people had stopped passing me, and I felt strong (strong in a completely shattered sort of way anyway!)

Coming up to the 4.5k mark I looked at my watch again and saw 19:xx. I knew I would take around 2mins to finish and was so excited to think I was going to beat my goal and smash my pb (which is 22:04). Breaking 22? A dream come true! I was gaining on my target, and she knew it, so she picked up. I sat on her tail, then kicked out. We sprinted together to the end, with girl guides screaming us on (very random, but tons of fun). In the end she passed the line a fraction ahead of me. I'm not fussed- she's uber-competitive, and I know she wasn't expecting me there, and that I threw her a bit. It came down to the fact that I couldn't face making a sideways movement to get past, so it was all elbows! Plus I couldn't quite find the finish line. Moved to the side, checked my watch- 21:40!! (minus a few seconds at the end) Was that course short? No- P did the same, A was slower than last week... So I broke 22, a killer PB- all in all a brilliant come back race??!!

Until....

Cut to 15 minutes later, A and I standing with P's colleague and a new race buddy (E). A toasts my new PB. E asks for the time and I tell him. He says "But you were behind me" I twig. As E is saying "I don't want to burst your bubble, but..." P's colleague says "Wow- if we'd done 21:40 I'd be amazed!"

I was using my HRM and had been looking at the "exercise time" function instead of stopwatch!!! D'OH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Actual time was somewhere below 22:34 when I stopped my watch. I am hoping the official time comes below 22:30- I think it should.

I am still pretty happy with this race. Sub 21:40 never seemed right to me, even with the 10:44 first half. My first half would actually have been closer to 11:30, which means my second half was pretty darn good! I used my GPS and HRM but didn't focus on the numbers. My max HR was only 193, which was surprising, but my average was 183, which to me suggests that I was fairly consistent (in RTV last week my average was lower and my max was higher). Listened to Freddy Mercury on the MP3 and finished on my theme for the season- don't stop me now.


I'm a shooting star leaping through the skies
Like a tiger defying the laws of gravity
I'm a racing car passing by like Lady Godiva
I'm gonna go go go
There's no stopping me

I'm burning through the skies Yeah!
Two hundred degrees
That's why they call me Mister Fahrenheit
I'm trav'ling at the speed of light
I wanna make a supersonic man of you

Don't stop me now- Kate is BACK!


PS- Go Wes!!! You have been such a great support to me and I am so excited by your first half!

Update: official time 22:21- cool! 5th= overall woman (very small field- I was guaranteed top 10!)

Round the Vines 10k race report

Man, I need to update that sidebar!

Today P and I, my friend A and her colleague M set out to Martinborough (a gorgeous little town about an hour's drive out of Welly) to compete in one of its major events, Round the Vines. It is a fundraiser for the local school, has 21k and 10k run and walk options, and features wine, grapes and other yummy fruit at the drink stops as you run through vineyards and along the roads (which I have never yet been able to enjoy- I always "race" it). Last year our team won, which was awesome! I had an abysmal race as it was hot and yucky and my tum was going bonkers. It was the first time I walked in a race, and
actually marked the begin of my training troubles from last year.

This year my goal was to race smart and to break 50. It's been so long since I did a standalone running race (Harbour Capital half in June last year!), and I find the course quite slow, as it can be windy, there are lots of sharp corners and a lot is offroad. I decided to see how running with GPS and HRM worked for me- an experiment to decide how I kit myself for the half in a couple of weeks and for the big-M next month (eek!).

The race ended up being windy and rainy, which was awesome for me. I definitely achieved my goal of racing smart- possibly too conservatively! The k markers were all out of whack (3:58 for the first k? Yeah right!) and they show a terrible positive split (try 4 minutes!) but this was not right at all. The ks came out something like this (I wasn't using the lap function):

1- 3:58
2&3- 14:38
4: 19:xx
5: 23:04
6: 28:00
7: 32:25
8: 37:25
9: 43:02
10: 49:02

I KNOW that I did not run the first 5k in 23 and the second in 26! I also know I did not run the last k in 6 minutes- I had set my GPS to beep when I fell below 5:00/k pace and it didn't beep once in that k. This was quite frustrating for me, as I felt confident in my ability to come in under 49 when I got to the 8 and 9k markers. I should have used my GPS distance more, but it sits on my upper arm, and it was much easier just to check the pace. I also should have looked at my watch over the last 200m. I could easily have shaved those 2 stupid seconds. On the whole I liked using my GPS. It mostly only beeped on corners, but every so often I would slack off and have to pick up the pace and I did find it helped. Especially with the screwy markers. I will use it again at the Great Forest- probably set the beeps for a 1:50 pace, which is a little conservative, I hope! I might try to use the lap function too.

I didn't really feel warmed up until about 5k, and I passed people consistently from then on (mostly 10kers, though there were some slow half-ers in there too). Passing people from 7 to 10 felt great, and I felt strong and smart, if not fast.

So, I achieved both goals and got a standalone 10k PB (my PB was actually in a half!) I was a bit sad to be the slowpoke in the team (the others were between 44:50 and 45:50), but an entire team of fast men beat us all so I didn't feel I'd let them down. A ran 45:05 for second place, which is awesome, and also made me feel better. Last year she ran 43:44 for 4th, so maybe it was harder this year? 4 minutes over 10k is a lot, but A and P both have much faster 10ks in their legs. I also picked up a lot of pace on the road, so I think a road 10k would have been faster too. In any case, no more whining. I did good.

Race report: City of Wellington Half Marathon

Today I ran the City of Wellington Half Marathon with my friend C. The goal was was to help her break 2:00, but she wasn't feeling up for it, so my personal goal was to help her run a good race, and a smart race. I have run this course twice before- my first time was my second ever half, and I PR'd by 4 minutes, doing it in 1:50:35. The second time was a few months after my half PR in 2005 (1:42) and came in the midst of my first bout of marathon training. I rabbited off, lost it early on and finished, incredibly disappointed in 1:49:xx. Needless to say, today was my slowest run on this course!

C and I started the run slow, and hit the first k in 5:35 (about 9:00 pace). I have always felt that that first k marker is a bit short- I've hit it in 4:30 and 4:20 before, and I haven't been rabbiting THAT much! We kept an easy pace, chatting and enjoying the weather, and I kept a close eye on my HRM. I knew that if my rate started sneaking out of my aerobic zone, C's would have been at the "too high" level, and I wanted us to run an easy first half and a hard second. It's an interesting experience at the back of the pack. I sort of expected people to be friendlier, to enjoy it more, but they were generally just the same as the mid-pack runners. Serious, working hard. The only guy who was overtly friendly was the triathlete C knew who was trying to pace his wife to a sub2:00 (they failed too). There were some walk-breakers who we leapfrogged with for awhile. I took a bathroom break at about 2 miles in, and had fun running at race pace + to catch up, though I felt like a complete poser!

We hit the 5k at 29:43. I was OK with this, as I thought we would be able to make up for it later on. Just before the 10k, you run up the only hill in the race. We passed a number of people on the way up, and although we joked about getting passed back on the way down we didn't. So I said to C at the 10k mark "from now on I'm not talking to you- I want you to run. We probably can't break 2:00 [we were at about 1:00], but we may be able to get you a pb [her current is 2:03]" She seemed happy with that and we pushed on. The next half of the race was so much fun. It was hot, but it was still easy running for me, so I was having a high old time. We passed tons of people (ok-probably about 5, but this race is so small that those 5 people were covering about 500m). Then I got scared that I was running too aggressively for her, so when we approached a line of about 5 people (including our target, "white singlet woman") I held back. But C was feeling strong, and was rather psyched on the idea of passing people, so before I knew it, we were passing the next queue. For the rest of the race we continued like this. At one point I was leading a wee pace group, which was so fun! I think I will investigate being a 2:00 or 2:10 pacer for a race sometime.


We shared part of the course with a triathlon (the scorching series that P and I have competed in before). It was fun checking out the bikes and enjoying the atmosphere but I felt a little sad at times. My last chance for an oly race was today, and it was a beaut day for it- NO wind and not tooo hot. But I had a great time doing this race. And while we were watching the racers, I thought about how glad I am that I haven't had to kill myself on the bike for the last few weeks- I want to go sub 1:30 on my first Oly ride and I'm not ready for that yet (the Oly course has a loong hill and tends to attract maaajor wind). Instead, I'm looking forward to sorting out that cycling after the marathon, and avoiding any extra stress on my ITB. By half-IM day (I need to make some serious decisions on the details soon!) I want to be able to ride 90km in sub-3:00. I don't expect to do that on the day, but I want to work hard and keep a 30kph average.

Anyway, back to the race at hand. We hit 15km in 1:29. I knew 2:00 was gone but thought that 2:03 was within our sights. However, it was not to be. Although we kept running hard, I could feel C pulling back when I pushed her. We were picking up the pace for the home stretch when we got to a sign- 1 k to go. WHAT?? Completely threw me, and C too I think. This race has some of the dodgiest markers ever- I've thought so every time. It was hard to motivate C for that last k, and green top girl (the only one of our wee pace group who had kept with us) took off ahead of us. I actually think she owed us some thanks! She'd been drafting for quite some time. Ah well, sensible strategy! In fact, I think she would have run a better time if she'd lost us earlier.

When we got to the grass at the end I told C it was time to race. "You've got a sprint in there- come on!" It wasn't much of a sprint but she took off, and crossed the finish line just in front of me, in 2:07:30(ish).

Maybe I could have helped C break 2:00, or maybe she did have a pb in her, but maybe if I hadn't been there she'd have gone over 2:10. If we'd gone harder early on, we could have found those lost minutes, but we could have burned out, or we could have had less fun. I really hope that the race was a positive one for her anyway- maybe not the best number, but hopefully a good experience.

It was definitely a good experience for me. I liked running an easy half. I liked running 9:42 pace and averaging 160 bpm (not too far out of my aerobic zone). I liked crossing the finish line as fresh as when I started (well kinda- 13.1 miles hurts your legs a bit no matter how easy you take it). I don't know if I should say this, but I think I have a sub-4 marathon in me. It might not come out in Rotorua- I know the first marathon adds an extra 20 minutes (or whatever) and the Rotorua course has a couple of major hills- but I think it could well happen this year.

PS: So it turns out that running a(n albeit slow) half, hitting the pool for 500m before Masters then swimming short sets for an hour makes your legs really tired. Even if you do 45 minutes of yoga to stretch them out in between! I think my am spin tomorrow will be done at home with Coach Troy and the recovery dvd, and not at the gym!

Yay!

Today was one of my "B+/A-" races of the season, the Capital Classic event in the Ocean Swim series. A 2.8k swim in the harbour, out to the lighthouse and back.


I felt pretty daunted by this event when I signed up for it last year, but focussing on my swimming and a couple of short stroke correction sessions have helped me to improve my form and stamina immensely, so by this morning I was feeling pretty good. My super dream goal was to come under an hour, realistic goal was to beat a famous polititian who I knew was doing it (I panicked a bit when I read about the training he'd been doing with an elite triathlete over the holidays) and my "hmm" goal was to make it back before the cut-off.

P was volunteering at the race (sorry honey!) so had to leave at 5:30 while I slept. I was pretty nervous, and instead of my usual hearty pre-race breakfast, I struggled to get down cheerios and yoghurt. Hmm. I made some toast, but couldn't even face adding peanut butter, so chucked it out, added a banana to my bag and set about getting ready. It had started drizzling by this stage and the forecast predicted southerlies dying out so I was a bit nervous about the water on the other side of the harbour! My Miss Negativity training buddy wasn't helping at all (friends sure help increase your motivation, but not when you have to spend the whole workout trying to make them enjoy it!)

Listened to some power tunes, danced around the house and then walked down to the venue, collecting my thoughts and enjoying my nerves and excitement. There's nothing like a new race to really get the adrenalin pumping! Fortunately, once I could see the other side, I saw that it was calm, and that the fog was high. Although there was quite a current, visibility looked fine and I didn't think I'd have to put up with seasickness or waves breaking in my face. I was so relieved- I'd have been frustrated if the swim was hard, but was absolutely dreading the possibility of a contingency plan (1500m in 2 750m laps! boring!)

The water was quite cold, from torrential rain last night, but I'm reasonably tough in that respect (compared to my friend, anyway), so although I went for an extra cap, it wasn't too bad. I warmed up, working on keeping my stroke long and slow. Race briefing was boring (though I did find out that my man to beat was wearing a purple cap, amid the sea of baby blue), we seeded ourselves at the back, and before we knew it, we were off. I wandered slowly down, hoping that avoiding the adrenalin rush and "race" feeling would help me get off on the right track.

It was bedlam out to the fountain (the first major obstacle) but I was able to swim my own stroke most of the way. After the fountain I was in virgin territory- although I had done sea swims of over 2k, we had never felt safe enough by ourselves to head out that way (although we had done some sighting practice). I felt happy and free, and excited to be passing all sorts of "landmarks" on the shore. It was hard to tell what my position was or how it was changing, as everyone had a different view of what a straight line to the lighthouse was! The lighthouse seemed so far away, but it was steadily getting closer, and I had some people around me who I worked to stay with.

I sneaked a peek at my watch as we rounded the lighthouse and was blown away when I saw 24:31. Woohoo! I lost track of my buddies in the mass of arms and legs and headed back to shore. Time to pick up the pace! The way back was a little harder to navigate. There seemed to be people all over the place- miles out to the left and miles out to the right. I think I lost a bit of time zigzagging, but I soon found some new buds to stick with (unfortunately including sleeveless bumping man, who seemed to think the best place to swim was wherever I was..) and kept going, passing the buoys and looking out for the last buoy at the raft on the way back. Finally got there and tried to get a sprint, hit the ground and we all looked around at each other, kind of dazed. My calves cramped and my feet protested as I hit the soft sand, but it made it up the beach and through the long finishing chute, to see 52:54 on the race clock. A guy asked for my chip, but I pushed past him to P. What's the use of making your man volunteer if you don't get to have him take your chip ;-)

It seems that times were fast today, and I wonder whether the course was short. But I don't care- I blitzed my goal and I can wait to go sub-50 (or better?) next year. Mr Purple Cap came out of the water, looking absolutely overjoyed, about 10 minutes later and my friend finished in a little under 1:05.

The whole thing was won by a 16 year old (nicknamed GPS because of his amazing ability to navigate open water courses) in about 28 minutes (woo! another "goal" was not to double the winner's time), but the guys who impressed me most were the 12 year old he did 35 minutes with NO WETSUIT (it's coooold in Welly) and, of course, the two guys in the 70+ category (beat them, at least)

All in all, a great morning. I'm so happy that I've worked on my swim, and I really love ocean swimming. My only complaint? 2.8k just doesn't seem that long when you're doing it. Maybe I should find an IM team event for next season (I'm planning a half, but would love to do the 3.8k swim too)...

(Sorry about the lack of pics in last two race reports- camera is in the shop. Grr)

A very special guest entry (race report from P's first ever duathlon!)

The lovely Kate has allowed me a guest spot on her blog to write a race report from my duathlon on Monday.

First, some background about me. Although I play a lot of competitive sport, and am a semi-regular gym goer (not as regular as I should be) I am no sort of endurance athlete. Maybe as a consequence of being forced to run regularly while at boarding school, I shunned running, etc, for nearly 7 years. In fact, for at least 6 I stopped playing much sport at all, and got particularly unfit (and got to nearly 33 pounds more than I am now). I started playing reasonably high level sport again about a year ago, and have gotten relatively fit, although I still didn’t (and don’t) run much (probably less than once a week). I started road cycling about three months ago, and really enjoy it, but am still building up some sort of base fitness (including just getting my legs used to it). Also, I am far from ideally built for endurance events (definitely a fast-twitch type of guy, and I have a bit more upper body bulk than is ideal for running/cycling).

So, it was with some trepidation that I entered my first multi-sport event. The race was a medium length duathlon (I really can't swim very well, so a triathlon was out) which was run simultaneously with the medium length tri. So, instead of a 500 metre swim, I did a 2.5 km run, followed by a 20 km cycle, then a 5 km run.

I started the first 2.5 km (1.25 km out and back) at what I thought was an ok pace, but when I got out in there 5.5 minutes into a strong head wind, realised I'd gone a bit quick. Finished the first run in about 11 minutes, but felt pretty good.

I'd never done a transition before, but have watched quite a few, and did this one in about a minute or less, which I was pretty happy with, then was off on the cycle. I went out fairly well, but probably pushed a bit hard. I passed quite a few people on the way out, but was passed back on the way back. I was comparatively strong on the hills, but as soon as I hit the wind, lost a lot of speed (I have real trouble with wind, and I'm just not sure why - particularly given much bigger people than me were doing better). But all in all, I did ok, and finished in about 40 minutes. This was quite good, given the course (a coastal course which I've ridden a few times before) was MUCH windier than usual.

Second transition wasn't super quick, but not too slow (maybe 1 - 2 minutes), but I did manage to hit my back wheel on a curb as I wheeled it in, which I later realised had caused a puncture! As I took off for the second run, I realised that it was going to be hard. I had only once before run of the bike, and I found it REALLY hard. My first 2.5 km (same 1.25 out and back) was very slow, certainly slower than 5 minutes km. Partly this was because there was a slow guy in front of me, and I found it comfortable to stay at his pace. Then, at the start of the second lap, another guy passed me, and I realised I could keep up with him (legs started feeling much better). Then I realised I could go quicker than him, and eventually I was running very quick, and passing all sorts of people. My final 1.25 km would definitely have been my quickest of the 6, including a big sprint at the finish (the one advantage of my body type), albeit that the guy I caught up to and passed was actually heading to a second lap. I did pass another guy a bit earlier who clearly runs a lot, so that was pretty satisfying.

Final time, about 1 hour and 20 minutes. Not too bad at all given the lack of experience, training, and the mild food poisoning (more on this to come).

Kate was going to be doing the medium tri, but she was feeling really ill, so decided (given it was my first race) to be my cheer squad (which, particularly after the first run, was really appreciated!). I was also not feeling great (although a bit better than Kate) and decided (despite numerous trips to the bathroom and nearly throwing up a few times) to go ahead. Unbeknownst to me, Kate had emailed some of my friends to see if they could come along early in the morning (it was a public holiday, so they really should have been sleeping in) to support me. I'd seen one on the cycle (he was jogging along from the bus stop), and then two more were there at the finish line, which was great!

All in all, I'm reasonably pleased, but know that with even a modicum of training, I could do better. Having thought about it, I think I would like to do more events, so will train a bit harder next time (in any event, I'll certainly keep on working on my cycling). Having seen the results, I finished (including triathletes and teams) 31st out of 99, and was the 5th 25 - 29 year old male, so not too bad at all.

If you've read all the way to the end, sorry about the length!

GYGO New Year's Day (Bikini) Tri (and our summertime polar bear plunge)

I woke up on New Year's day feeling somewhat hungover, quite full, very tired and extremely hoarse after a night of too much beer and tequila, too much barbequed "Mexican" food (I added those "" for you, Wes!), too little sleep and too much David Bowie/Nirvana/John Farnham on singstar...It was incredibly windy, the pool wasn't open and the sea was choppy and ice cold. So I did what any shamefully lazy, summer holidaying triathlete would do and decided to take an official DNS and convert my intended super sprint into a supercalifragilisticexpialidocious sprint bikini/beach tri (and slightly muddled too..)

So I changed into bikini and jandals (flipflops), covered up with a mini and headed down to the beach, with P (fellow competitor and official race photographer) in tow.



The water was cooold but I ran in baywatch styles and plunged under, swam a few strokes (maybe 20?) and then turned back.




T1 was, for once very quick as all I had to do was get back to the beach and run up and down a few times, probably doing about 300/400m in total.



T2 was located a little further away than T1 (i.e. "home") so we trotted back, I put the jandals and mini back on, grabbed a helmet and my sister's hybrid (so I could keep the jandals on). Rode along the road and around the cul-de-sac a couple of times before I got bored and we called it a day.



So, that was my new year's tri. A little pathetic and, to be honest, not much fun. I had hoped to get everyone involved but that didn't quite happen.

We made up for our lack of activity in the morning (sort of) by heading up Mt Taranaki in the afternoon. Mt Taranaki is one of the most beautiful mountains in NZ (in my opinion), but its peak is often covered in mist, so you always feel very lucky when you get a glimpse.



For a long time, it was known as Mt Egmont, but its Maori name was eventually reinstated. The Maori legend of Taranaki is quite well known and also kind of cute so I thought I'd share it:

Te Maunga o Taranaki (Mount Taranaki) once lived in the centre of New Zealand's North Island with other mountain gods: Tongariro, Ruapehu and Ngauruhoe. Nearby stood the lovely maid Pihanga with her cloak of deep green bush, and all the mountain gods were in love with her.

What had been a long, peaceful existence for the mountain gods was disturbed when Taranaki could no longer keep his feelings in control and dared to make advances to Pihanga. A mighty conflict between Tongariro and Taranaki ensued, which shook the foundations of the earth. The mountains belched forth their anger and darkness clouded the sky.

When peace finally came to the land, Tongariro, considerably lowered in height, stood close by Pihanga's side. Taranaki, wild with grief and anger, tore himself from his roots with a mighty wrench and left his homeland.

Weeping, he plunged recklessly towards the setting sun, gouging out the Whanganui River as he went and, upon reaching the ocean, turned north. While he slumbered overnight, the Pouakai Range thrust out a spur and trapped Taranaki in the place he now rests.

According to some versions of Maori history, one day Taranaki will return to Pihanga and so it is unwise to live along the path between the two mountains.

When covered with a veil of mist and rain, Taranaki is said to be weeping for his lost Pihanga.

We chose a route that promised to take about 60-90 minutes and led to a series of beautiful mountain pools.



I have never been able to resist water. Such a water baby from way back (you'd think I'd be a better swimmer...) As a kid, I always seemed to find myself "just paddling" and "accidentally" falling in regardless of the water temperature and whether or not I had my swimsuit with me! On New Year's day, I proved I haven't changed much so I decided to strip down to my (fortunately quite decent) underwear to take the plunge. It was so fresh and invigorating that I coaxed P in too. Freezing but fun!

Too much splash and one fun dash...

I made it to Splash and Dash! Finally! (seriously- I've been meaning/trying/failing to get to one of these for, oh, two years or something!?) I finished work easily on time (after a pretty productive day) and the weather looked good too.

The race was a bunch of fun. The swim was pretty awful- at one point I thought I was coming dead last (I wasn't..), I was struggling to navigate and the start was much more crowded than my last two races. I splashed around and breathed atrociously for at least the first 500m of the 730m swim! I was pretty disappointed with myself after my swimming on Monday- I really need to learn to chill the f out in race swims! I also need to come to terms with the fact that other women who don't look fast are often better swimmers than I am! .

I stumbled up into T1 to the sea of discarded wetsuits and made a beeline for my shoes. Unfortunately my calves were cramping so badly that I couldn't put my shoes on. I was putting my feet towards the shoes, angling them in and then recoiling in pain. Ow! I could see P looking at me with concern and (maybe) pity (he always looks so shocked when I come out of the water! It's funny, but can be a little disheartening. I think he thinks I am one of the speedy ones, and he gets quite confused when I don't come out with the leaders Confusion turns to concern, then to downright worry "Why's she last????". I have now informed him that although some women who shouldn't be beating me are, the leaders, even in races like this, are NZ AGers, junior champs, Kona AG competitors and even the odd elite)and I decided not to run and to change my entry to a very pathetic swim only. No dash. I was about to climb out of transition when I decided to give the left foot one more go and it went in. Right followed suit and we were off.

It was great to be running, though confusing seeing people going the other way and not being sure just how far they were in front of me (2 lap course). I was also watchless, so had no idea how bad or not-so-bad things were. I felt like I was keeping a good pace, and only super fast guys seemed to be passing, so although I could see plenty of women ahead of me, I just wanted to keep working. I ended up passing a couple of decent bunches, including some men (who had started a minute before us, and on the way back the second time, I realised that some of the people "in front" of me were behind me. I didn't manage to take out Mrs Red Top, which is shocking, as she was in my reach for so long. I should have passed her at the 500m to go mark and let her be the driver on the way back. Instead I delayed, eventually saw the gap growing and couldn't find the kick to beat her. Grr. I think if I had passed and she had passed back my finish sprinter would have come out- next time Mrs Red Top. Next time.

Not sure of time yet. P thinks my swim was 16ish (yuck), and I finished at 6:55 having started at 6:21. So that suggests a good solid 4k run (18ish mins?), but we might be a minute or even more off. Official results won't have splits, but I should be able to figure some better guesstimates out!

Healthy eating went out the window again, when P surprised me with fish and chips on the beach. I could hardly say no, and they were PERFECT! (plus, given the race and the 600 cals I burned at spin this am, I'm ok calorie-wise)

Tomorrow is yoga. We have brand spankin new matching mats. Yay! R&R week has been a little lacking both in R and in R, but I still think it'll be about half last week in terms of time, especially with a cruisy weekend planned, and at much lower intensity so I am not kicking myself too hard yet. I feel awesome. Knock wood.

Race Report: Pre-Christmas Scorcher

I woke up today to the sort of weather that actually makes you want to leave the house! Unlike my previous tri (and du) race days,the sun was rising over the hills, the sea was (mostly) flat and there was a slight layer of cloud. We were running bit late, but the race start was delayed, so had enough time to warm up and muck around for awhile.

My goal for the (500m) swim was reasonably conservative; sub-10. One of the hardest things about sea swimming for me is not knowing where you are. I find it hard to pick off victims and pass them. I think I was a little conservative in the swim, and I really need to practice sea swimming more- I still do this awful hyperventilating style breathing and splash all over the place! Also- when the water is as nice as it was today, there's no hurry! Still, I was happy to see 9:29 when I came out of the water!

T1 was much better than last time. No idea on the split- 2:30ish I'm guessing- maybe a bit more when you include the run up the beach (which was slow- the beach is quite rocky etc and I am nervous about re-slicing that toe!) I mounted easily and took off.

I stuck to my strategy on the bike- keeping the legs moving and the gears average. I average a good speed for the first 5ks or so, passed a bunch of people up the hill (most of whom passed me back on the way down) and kept a good cadence up for most of the first half (though some sneaky headwinds got in my way coming up to the turnaround). A young girl came off her bike in front of me (drinking, I think) and I slowed and considered stopping. I kept going though, as there didn't seem to be anyone immediately behind me, and I wanted to get a marshall ASAP. Still- I felt incredibly guilty. Fortunately, the marshalls were not far ahead and I know they got to her very quickly. She was OK, but unsurprisingly very upset. The more I think about it, the worse I feel actually, but I honestly felt like I was making the best decision for the right reasons at the time. On the way back I realised that she was my transition neighbour and felt even worse. She and her mother seemed quite nervous, and she had been doing really well. Luckily, I saw her parents waiting for her on the way back so I called out to them. I hope it was the right girl, and that I didn't cause them a lot of worry for nothing.

I had my eye on a woman who had passed on the downhill. I think a problem with the ride was that there were not people immediately in front of me the whole time. I also used the woman as a pace-keeper and as an excuse instead of as a target! Instead of thinking, "Ha- she's slowing, get her now!" my brain said "Uh-oh. I'm feeling slow. But look, the gap is slowly closing. She's slow too. It must just be a hard bit. That's OK." No Kate, it's not OK. RIDE! I need to get that killer instinct! I have a teeny bit when I run, but the rest of the time, I cruise too much, especially on a nice day when it's fun to be on that bike. I also need to rethink my strategy. I kept it easy, but didn't drive enough, and saved my legs too much! I did pass her on the way back, but too late. She was not wearing cycle shoes (exactly- I should have passed her WAY back!!) and beat me into (and out of) T2. "Not for long, honey" I thought to myself (OK. Some killer instinct). Not sure how long the total bike. With T1 and T2 it was a little under 50 though.

I came out of T2 reasonably quickly (well, not TOO slow) and headed onto the run. A two lap run, which I was not happy about. I've done lots of 2.5k legs at that course but never more, so this was my first time having to do the stinky turnaround instead of crossing that wonderful finish line! You also have to run on a lot of gravel. I passed red and blue lady pretty quickly, but kept the first 1.25k easy. There's a bit of headwind on the way there, and it was disheartening seeing WAY more people going the other way than I had remembered seeing the other way on the bike! I think my first half was a little slower than I would have liked. I definitely prefer the out and back- going out on the 2nd loop I felt like I had much more to go than I would after the turn on an out and back 5k!! I started feeling much stronger in the second lap, about half way through the first 1.25k. But, again, I cruised a little. The only people passing me were little boys who I knew I couldn't keep up with. That's my other problem. If someone (male OR female) passes me and I judge that they look "better" than me I tend to leave them to it. That's a GOOD strategy at the beginning of a 10k, but not so smart in the last 750m of a 5k! I should have pushed MUCH more. I finished strong, but not with the mega sprints I have been pulling out recently. I really need motivation for those- either some other racer trying to pull away at the end, or a spectator giving me a kick. I saw 1:24:xx which was enough motivation to keep it under 1:25, but I didn't really need that, as I came in at 1:24:35. I felt pretty normal, not like after New Plymouth, where I was about ready to puke! Darn it. Work harder next time.

Not the best for perfect conditions, but a good race, more lessons learned and a fabulous experience. I have so much FUN in triathlons. And this one was so stress free. It was also the first tri where I have not done anything silly. Mounting and dismounting were smooth, no issues with clipping in and out, no chain problems, etc...

Every time I come into T1, I think, "I HAVE to do an Oly." Unfortunately, in between races, I tend to think, "I HAVE to do a marathon." I know I will do both, but this season they are mutually exclusive. I am planning one more tri in this series- 22 Jan, I think. I'm also trying to convince my honey to do the Du!! I could do the Oly then. I will have finished Round the Mountain and will theoretically have a lot of solid bike and swim training. I should also have enough time to get some running in between 2 Jan and 22 Jan. BUT, the 2.8k swim is only 6 days later. AND, I like the idea of doing the rest of the sprint series (there are two more after the Jan which I could enter) to see if I could break 1:20 (should be able to take at least 30s off the swim, 4 mins off the bike, 1:30 off that run) Arrgh. I'll put that it the too hard basket, and head off to brunch with my sister, who's starting her first big grown-up job (out of town) tomorrow.

Happy weekends everyone!

Footnote: There are no official results yet, but since my AG up until Feb is small and uncompetitive, I see my time would have placed me 1st, 4th, 2nd, 2nd and 3rd in my AG in the past few races! Yay for being 20-24 and boo for turning 25 soon!

Update: Checked prov results, and was second in AG (out of THREE-hehe). My T1 was much slower than I thought- I know I came out of the water at 9:29, but I left T1 at 13:59!!! Bike was MUCH better than I thought- bike + T2 were 43:50 in total! Run was worse than I thought- 26:44!! Appalling. Ah well, I knew I was cruising for some of it- but 2 minutes slower than NP, when I actually felt MUCH better. Need to pick up those run legs!