Devonport Busted

Off to Devonport last night to watch Buster Mottram run the Mile.

The big fella ran 3:59.1 on grass to win by about 30 metres. He hit the front just under 300 out and it was all over.

Some other big names in the race included Collis Birmingham (10m) Lachlan Chisholm (scr) and Irishman David Campbell (20). None of them got close. Buster had dropped Chisholm by the end of the first lap and Collis never looked like taking him on.

On a sad note, there was a MASSIVE crash in one of the cycling events that caused a 2 hour delay to the program. 7 riders came down, one breaking his Collar bone after hitting a light pole, and another guy (Shamus Liptrop) fracturing his skull, and breaking his Jaw and Femur after being thrown over the outside fence. He looked like a rag doll as he was flung off his bike.

He was later airlifted to Royal Hobart Hospital for emergency Brain Surgery.

We were sitting about 150m away and could hear the impact of the guys hitting the fence. The silence afterwards was shocking.

Unfortunately, track bikes often contribute to the seriousness of a crash as they have no brakes, and are fixed wheel, so when the s#*^ hits the fan in front of you theres only one thing thats going to happen......... OUCH.

Tell me why I gave up cycling again???

Mottram was a class act. The first thing he mentioned when interviewed after his race was the crash, and he thanked the crowd for their patience and hoped that all the riders concerned would be OK. Like I said, a class act.

Hopefully young Shamus makes a complete recovery. Whether or not he ever rides a bike again is another story. A crash like that has to leave more than just physical scars.

Happy New Year

Well Santa has been and gone for another year and yet another Xmas Day survived.

I even managed a rep session after lunch on Xmas Day!!!!! I made sure I didnt eat too much at lunch and then headed out late arvo for a run.

My Parents thought it would be nice to by Jack a Drum Kit for Xmas!!! Nice one. Like he doesnt make enough noise already.

The rest of the week has been pretty laid back. Ran a 1500 at Heritage Forest yesterday and then ran a 3km 10 minutes later. Happy with times, they were quicker than last time I did this session. The only problem out there is the wind, unless you're running less then 400m there is no way to avoid it. Still, if you take that into account when you're reviewing your times then I guess you still get a pretty good idea of where you're at.

Having a BBQ at home on New Years Eve with some friends. Nothing too over the top as New Years day is a Tuesday which means another Rep session.

We are heading to Hobart next weekend as I plan to run the 5km event at the Cadbury Marathon. Hoping to start 2008 off on a positive note with a good run. Given my training of late I am looking forward to getting out there. I know that leg speed is lacking as I have only been doing longer reps, or stuff with short recoveries so it will be good to see what time I end up with. My 5km tempo runs @ 85% max HR have been around the 17 minute mark and I have been finishing those with a bit left in the tank. Having said that, thats about as hard as I have been pushing too so the body doesnt know what its like to dig in yet. Time will tell.

Happy New Year to all, and a safe and successful 2008.

Ho Ho Ho

Santa comes tonight!!!!!

I spent about half an hour yesterday putting together Jacks new bike. How is it something so small can be so fiddly to put together??????

Lunch with Robbies folks tomorrow and then a run followed by a BBQ with some friends. Very much looking forward to a few quiet Coronas tomorrow night, its been a while since I had a beer and me thinks its a little overdue. Time to relax and enjoy myself a bit. Of course I do plan to run on Wednesday morning before heading to Latrobe for a day of Cycling and running at the Latrobe Carnival so will limit my alcohol to just a couple.

Will head to Devonport on Saturday night to see probably the best Mile field ever assembled in Tassie. Mottram, Birmingham, Hoffman, Gregson and Irishman Dave Campbell are all lining up in the Devonport Mile and I reckon it will be a cracker. Mottram has been quoted a saying he wants to better the time he ran here 2 years ago, 3:58 on grass. Cant wait.

I saw the Handicaps earlier this week and Buster will be giving away 335m to the front marker.

Will try and get some photos to post on here next week.

Merry Xmas to all and I hope the New Year is full of rewards.

Getting Stronger

Completed my first one hour run on Sunday. I have been adding 5 minutes to my Sunday run each week for the last 6 weeks and finally got the hour on Sunday. The plan is to add 5 minutes each week until the end of January when it should be around 90 minutes and then keep it at that.

My Tempo run on Saturday turned into a flat out TT. I just missed 17 minutes and I know exactly where I lost those few seconds. I was 2 seconds ahead at 4km but lost it in the last k. My HR was 181 for the trip which is a lot higher than the planned 175, but at least I know where I need to improve.

The next 2 weeks will all be long reps @ tempo with short recoveries, and I will increase my weekly tempo run to about 30 minutes.

Ran the 6 x 1 minute with 1 minute float tonight and made it back to the start (out & back course) which is a good sign. Last week I missed the start point by about 50 metres. I also felt a lot better this time around. This is another session I will increase over the next few weeks.

Unfortunately the Vic Champs fall on the same weekend as the Tas 3000m Champs here in Launceston. I was hoping to run the Tas Champs and then try a Steeple at the Vic but its not to be. Given that the actual Tas T&F Champs arent until the week after the Nationals in March, it looks like I wont run a Steeple until then. Maybe an Interclub before that but not too sure. See how things pan out.

The Cookie Monster

Caught up with Cookie on Tuesday night for a run.



Thats Cookie on the left of the pic. The bloke on the right is some guy called Mottram. Apparently Mottram has run a few sub 13 minute 5kms!!!!!

Cookie had wanted to do a track session along the lines of 600, 500, 400, 300, 200, & 100. Due to the local Interclub being held that night, I took him to Heritage Forest for some rep 500's instead.

So, the plan was for 6 x 500 with 90sec recovery. Standard stuff, and I told him that the plan was to run 95sec for each rep. No worries he said!!

Rep number 3 was sub 90, as was rep number 6 (88). Thanks Cookie.

It was good having someone to chase. Especially the last 3 reps when I was hurting a little. And of course Cookie made it look easy, as he always has.

The rest of the week has been pretty cruisy. Easy runs have been no longer than 30 minutes as the last 2 weeks mileage has been a little more than the body has been used to, therefore whilst still doing the quality sessions this week, I have kept the easy recovery runs short to keep the k's down.

Off to Heritage tomorrow for a 5km tempo @ 175bpm. Hoping to go sub 17 minutes with a bit left in the tank.

State 3000m Champs are just under 2 months away and I reckon I will have a crack. Top 3 or bust.

Another good week under the belt

4 x 1km along the river on Thursday night with Kim and the gang. Recovery after each rep was roughly 2:30, but handicapped so that if you finished the previous rep 5 seconds back then you got a 5 second head start next time around. Good idea, kept everyone honest.

My times were all within 5 seconds so thats a good sign that I am moving ok. A drastic drop off in times towards the end would have been disappointing but it wasnt the case.

A longer session today at Heritage Forest. 1500m with 10 minutes recovery followed by 3000m. Times were ok but the last 1600m of the 3km was into a pretty stiff head wind, and it didnt help. 3:10 thru the km and turned at about 1400m into the wind and almost stopped!!! Still, another good session under the belt.

Interesting session, I guess if you wanted a different effect you could run the 1500 last therefore running at a faster pace while fatigued from the 3km. Either way, its still a tough session.

Its been a good week training wise. Feeling a little tired now but a couple of easy days now until my next effort so hopefully I will pull up ok. In fact due to Xmas Parties etc this week it may just be easy running until Thursday night.

Young guns

Decided that I liked punishment so I met up again last night with Kim Gillards group. The menu featured 6 x 1 minute with a minute float in between.

The idea was to run out and back turning after the 3rd float and see how close you got to the starting point at the end. The run obviously ended with a float and I missed the starting point by about 50 metres. Close but no cigar. Very tough session though.

Still, I felt good and thats all that matters right now.

I have now put together 12 days straight which is the most in a very long time. Best of all, I am feeling stronger everyday.

Kim is coaching a group of junior runners and theres some serious talent there. One dude just set a State junior record for his age group over 300om, and 2 others have run close to 2 minutes for 800. All are 17 or younger. Young guns.

Easy 40 minutes tonight at Heritage Forest and apart from feeling a little tired all is good.

Whos been a busy boy then?

Me of course!!

The last few weeks have been very busy. I have a new role at work which means I no longer have to sit in a car all day long. The down side is I am on my feet all day instead. Of well, some you win some you lose right? Still, a change is as good as a holiday and I am enjoying it.

From a running point of view things have not progressed at all. I have had 2 very ordinary races and a week off with some calf soreness. The calf was fine after a few days but as work was busy I took a whole week off just to be sure.

Last Sunday saw the inaugural running of the "Run the Ridge" fun run at Tamar Ridge Winery just outside Launceston. 10km all within a Winery. The course was awesome. All off road on grass and dirt roads weaving in and out of the grapevines. Magnificent. Next time however I will drink more fluid in the days leading up to the race. When you're standing on the start line feeling thirsty, and the temp is in the low 20's, its gunna be a very long day!

I backed up last night and ran a 3000m at Interclub and decided the only thing to do was go balls to the wall from the gun. First km was quick, the next 2........ not so quick! Still, its all part of growing up. I did however manage to finish 2nd overall, so I guess theres some consolation. Did I mention there were only 6 in the race?????? I will say that I beat Kim Gillard though, even if he was just pacing a junior!!!!! Sorry dude, but I guess a win is a win ;-)

Kim was telling me during our cool down run about an incident at Falls Creek a couple of years back involving a dead snake in the bed of a certain star middle distance runner. No names will be mentioned but I can say that if it were my bed then I'd have been sleeping in my car!!!!

Bye for now

Smokin'

Arrived at the track tonight at 5pm only to find that one of the local Private schools were in the midst of their aths carnival.

I had spent all day thinking about running some 400's off 2 minutes only to have to think of something new to do.

So, off to heritage Forest for a tempo run. The plan was to do 5km with the HR around 175bpm. I did this 2 weeks ago and was surprised to see how much fitter and stronger I am now.

My ave HR tonight was only 1 bpm higher than last time yet I ran 40 seconds quicker. VERY HAPPY. 40 seconds faster in 2 weeks with the same amount of effort. Cant complain about that.

Given that Interclub and Little Aths will take up the track on Saturday, it looks like some 500's are the order of the day @ Heritage.

Sad to read that a runner (Ryan Shay) died during the US Olympic Marathon Trials on Saturday in New York. Just goes to show that it doesn't matter who you are or how fit you are, when its time to go........

Delays

Instead of sitting here writing this Blog entry, I should be at the airport about to board a flight home to Melbourne. However, the lovely folks at Jetstar rang to say that there is a delay and that my 6:40pm flight is now not scheduled to leave at 10:25pm. Nice one.

So, here's how it works. I fly out at 10:25pm, land in Melbourne at 11:25pm, jump in a car and drive an hour across town to Mum & Dads. Therefore all going well I should be tucked up in bed just before 1am. Nice one.

Poor old Robbie now has to kill time between her landing in Melbourne @ 4pm (I got a later flight due to work commitments) and me @ 11:30ish. She is currently battling the Flu so I can only imagine that this has made her feel heaps better!!!!!!!

The work commitments I mentioned early were in the form of a "State Sales Conference". I had originally booked on the same flight as Robbie, but when I heard about the Conference I was forced to change my flight.

The 2 days spent at the Conference was very beneficial. Hopefully we can put our new skills to practice, and more importantly, Management will offer the support required to do so.

Managers should be leaders and motivators. Just once I would like to walk out of a Sales meeting and be looking forward to getting amongst it. Instead all we ever hear are negatives. Margin is down, sales are down. Why, why, why??

Enough said me thinks............

Chewing the Fat with "Rev Rick"

Its been a good week. In fact the best in a long time.

Whilst I still had 2 days off running, the other days were very good. The 2 days off weren't planned but at the end of the day definitely did no harm. My mileage for the week was slightly more then 10% greater than last week so the rest helped in that it stopped me from doing too much too soon in terms of k's. I want to stick to the 10% per week increase, so if that means a day off then so be it. Naturally I want to get back to running everyday but easy does it.

I used a local 6km fun run this morning as my weekly tempo run. The idea was to run at a solid pace keeping my HR below 175. My average ended up being 176 so spot on. It also earned me 7th place. I felt pretty comfortable and felt that I could have kicked it down toward the end if need be but I was pretty well clear of the dude in 8th so no need.

Looking forward to running a 3km on the track next week in Melbourne and again wont be going all out. Just trying to get some rhythm happening and gain some strength by running at tempo but feeling strong as opposed to busting my balls and feeling like crap. The body's not ready for that yet.

Robbie dragged me along to her Church on Friday night for a little gathering they call "Friday Night Church". Its aimed at, as they say, "Those that hate Church!" I cant say I hate Church but wasnt brought up in that environment. It was a relaxed setting just chatting, some music, lattes, and a good feed.

I spent most of the night chatting to "Rev Rick". It turns out that we have a bit in common. Both Geelong supporters, both lived in Geelong at some stage in our lives, and both enjoy cycling. He has invited me out for a ride sometime and given my habit of hitting the deck I'm not too sure if its a good idea!!

I must admit it was weird sitting there "chewing the fat" with a Minister of Religion. I even swore in front of him and he didn't bat an eyelid. In fact he later referred to someone as a "bastard". As soon as he said it he looked at me and said "Am I allowed to say that?" To which I replied "you tell me?" He justified it by saying "Hey, I used to be a builder". Fair enough.

This guys alright me thinks. Apart from a mate of mine who is now a Minister himself, I guess I always thought that people in that position were squeaky clean. Maybe they're are human too!!!! ;-)

New Boots

Got some new shoes in the post today. Saucony Grid Type A. They are supposed to be a racing shoe but more like a lightweight trainer. I guess if you were gunna run a half marathon or go the full 42k, then they would be an awesome alternative to a pure racing flat.



Im gunna use them for longer reps off track and tempo runs.

Decided on an easy 20 minutes thru the Gorge this arvo to try them out and I am impressed. Lots of cushioning and VERY bright too!!!

The only problem with tonights run was some soreness in my calf. I had wanted to do about 35 minutes but cut it short instead. It seems I am cutting a few sessions short lately for one reason or another.

Otherwise things are progressing nicely. The Cadbury Half Marathon is coming up in January in Hobart and Im thinking that entering would not be such a bad idea. The theory is that by having to train for a half means that I need to get some mileage happening therefore building a solid base in which to progress off at the start of next year.

Once the race is out of the way then it would only take 4 - 6 weeks to get some speed in the legs before events such as the Nationals and State Champs.

I will see how the next few weeks go training wise before committing to it.

1km Reps & Management "Run In" update

Off to heritage Forest this morning to run some 1km reps and again I had to cut the session short.

The plan was to do 3 x 1km with 1km recovery in about 3:20. The first was spot on, but the 2nd was 3:30 and terrible. I felt as though my arms weighed about 15kg each. Very heavy and just lacking any rhythm at all. I figured there was no point busting my arse trying to do a 3rd rep as it would probably do more harm than good at this stage.

Stu Mac asked yesterday what had happened in regards to a previous post I wrote titled "Run in with Management"? Well, first I received a written warning. Then when I said I would like to pursue it further given that I felt our Manager was out of line in asking us "outside" and in doing so was trying to intimidate us which is totally against the Company harassment policy he decided that only a verbal warning was required. Therefore nothing more than a slap on the wrist and no record on our Personnel file!!!! Some you win, some you lose.

Anyway the case is now closed and I certainly wont be opening up any tabs in the near future without prior authorisation. ;-)

Tummy Bug

Have been suffering the effects of a tummy bug over the last few days. Been feeling very tired and run down, in fact I went to bed at 5pm last night and then woke at 6am this morning!!!

Feeling heaps better today and managed to squeeze out an easy 6km. Felt ok, but I now that I need to replace the fluids I have lost as well.

Its yet another set back which I would rather not have to have but surely my luck has to change sooner or later.

I ran into Rob Gillard (brother of Kim) on Tuesday and he gave me a flyer for a new 10km race he is organising on November 25th. Its called "Run the Ridge" and its a 10km race thru some local wineries in the Tamar Valley region just north of Launceston. Check out www.runtheridge.com.au

I told him I would run if he could guarantee there would be no snakes!!!!

Despite the dangers of the slithery variety, I am actually looking forward to it. I now have something to focus on which will make training so much more easier.

Now that my tummy has settled a bit hopefully I can get out a rep session on Saturday. Plan is for some 1km reps @ Heritage Forest.

Shithouse TT

Pulled the pin at the 2km mark of my TT today feeling absolutely shocking. Very heavy in the arms and the 2nd km was 10 seconds slower than the first. Splits were 3:10 & 3:20.

I was feeling ordinary after the 1st km but I was on pace so I kept going but at 2km I was never going to make up the time and was only feeling worse with each step.

Very disappointed but at least it shows me where I am and what I need to be doing.

Will add some long reps into my training as of this week. Most likely quick 1k's with a decent recovery on Tuesday and rhythm 2k's with a shorter recovery on Saturdays.

Its been a bitch of a week and hopefully it all settles down from now on.

TGI Friday

Jacko seems to be on the improve. He is showing signs of his old self. Today he jumped on his bike and went "broom broom" which is something he definitely hasnt been doing lately. All we need now is for the little bloke to pull all the DVD's out of the TV cabinet and then we know hes back to normal!!!!!!

Did my first run since Monday tonight and surprisingly felt pretty good. The plan tomorrow is to do a 3km TT around Heritage Forest and see where I am at. Track season start here next week so I figure the TT will give me some indication of what needs to be done. I will get each KM split and see if I lose anything in the later stages or not. If I can break 10 minutes I will be happy and based on Mondays effort when I ran 3:07 for the last KM then 10 minutes is not out of reach.

Work today was a pain in the arse. I spent all day fixing problems that arose due to me having 2 days off this week. Its a shame that you cant go away and rely on others to back you up.

What a Week its been.

My return home from Melbourne last Sunday night was very short lived. As I said in my previous Blog, Jack was a sick little boy when I left.

On Tuesday when I was about 2 hours out of Launceston working, Robyn called to say Jack was going to Hospital. Within 3 hours I was back in town and on a Plane to Melbourne.

The little fella wasnt very well at all and there was bugga all the Hospital were prepared to do for him and they sent him home. Later that same night, about 1:30am to be precise, we had him back in Hospital again.

This time they did a little more than simply take his temperature. Just as well cos I dont think Robbie was in the mood to be stuffed around again. Who is at that time of morning???

The little man is now back home and still not 100%, he spends most of the time sleeping and when hes not sleeping he is very grizzly. Things can only get better I guess.

Needless to say I havent run since Monday night, but I cant say Im too fussed about that.

Trip to the Zoo

Spent the weekend in Melbourne with the family and decided yesterday that we would take Jack to the Zoo.

Poor little man wasnt feeling too good so we thought it might cheer him up a little. We hadnt got 20 metres inside the gate when he decided to empty the contents of his tummy all over the place. Gastro does that I guess.

He did seem to enjoy it though, every animal he saw prompted a "woof woof" from the little bloke. Somehow I cant see how a Gorilla looks like a dog but who am I to ruin his fun?

On a training front I have only been getting out every second say lately as I am trying to build up slowly to protect my Calf. Every now and then I feel a twinge which is concerning but resting every 2nd day seems to be working pretty well so far.

Plodded around Heritage Forest tonight and decided at the end to run the last km pretty solidly. 3min 07s later and the job was done. The last km didnt feel all that good but was a lot quicker than I thought it would be.

well done to the Western Aths boys who ran the Melbourne Marathon yesterday. Adam ran around 2h 49m and Adrian Jeffkins in around 3h 15m. (Apologies up front if I am wrong). Their plan was to meet up at the Transport bar afterwards and sample many of the 100 odd beers available. Good luck with that one fellas!!! Gotta keep the fluids up yeah??

Anyway, Im outta here.

Run in with Management

I have always said that respect is something you earn, not demand.

Last night at a work function, my boss decided that he was going to demand my respect. WRONG.

Myself and another Rep arrived at the bar early with 2 of our best customers and decided that we would start up a Tab in the Company name. We knew that this was the intention of Management to begin with so we didnt see a problem starting it up. When the boss arrived an hour later he wasnt happy that we had started it without first speaking to him.

He start by telling us in front of both fellow workmates and customers that we needed to show him some respect and seek permission first. Fair point and I understand where he is coming from. However, I did strongly reject the language in which he was using.

On 3 occasions I asked him not to swear at me and on all 3 occasions he continued to do so. When I gave him one last chance to stop he said "right, outside now" to which I replied "OK lets go". I took 5 or 6 steps towards the door and turned to see if he was following and guess what? He hadnt moved. I have no idea what would have happened "outside" but I refuse to take a backward step to anyone. Theres only one person I am scared of and its not him.

I admit that the whole situation could have been avoided if we had gone about the Tab differently, however I wont be spoken to like that BY ANYBODY.

I had a few people at work today say that he was way out of line and showed a total lack of control. At the end of the day it doesnt change what happened.

I didnt see him today and when I do, as far as I am concerned, matter over.

Stay tuned for any updates.

GO CATS!!!!!

Spent yesterday with the boys watching the Cats break a 44 year drought. I was planning on having a blinder but in the end only had 4 drinks for the day. I must be getting old or something.

Its a shame that the score was so uneven in the end. Yet again the Preliminary Final was more exciting than the "big one". With the exception of the 2005 & 2006 GF I cant recall another exciting GF unless I go back to '89. For some reason they all seem to be a non event in the end. Thats my opinion anyway.

On the running front, I have been a little lazy this week. I need to build some consistency if I want to run fast. I did an easy 20 minutes today and felt ok but need to start building it up again.

Did some Core work tonight with the Fitball and Ab Roller. Will now make that a regular part of my routine as well. Every little bit helps right???

250's

Back to the track tonight for a session.

Ran with a young bloke by the name of Josh Harris, champ has a 3000m PB of 8:53 and he's only 16 years old. He goes alright too.

Menu was as follows, 3(3x250m w/ 150m rec). I had no intention of doing the whole session but instead ran the 1st and 3rd rep of each set.

I felt ok, need to get on the track more but its a good start. Spikes were definitely out of the question.

Times were around 38s which I was very happy with.

Hopefully tomorrow wont see any problems pop up and things can get back to normal.

Even better, hopefully the Cats can get up on Saturday. Some knob jockey has invited us to an Engagement Party on Saturday at 12pm!!!! This little black duck will be leaving about 2pm due to a "prior engagement" .........WATCHING THE CATS!

Tan Relays

A weekend in Melbourne running the Tan Relays. My first race for Western aths since the XC Relays in April and a pleasant surprise performance wise.

I was expecting to struggle and run about 17 or 18 minutes. Instead I found it easy and ran 14:37.

I started out very easy and cruised up Anderson St, rolling thru 2km in 8 minutes and then it was all down hill to the finish. I reckon if I had had a decent crack I would have run a minute quicker. At no time did I feel as though I was out of my comfort zone. Even better, I had no trouble with my Calf and even did another lap as a cool down to finish off a very good day.

Good to see so many Western Aths runners out as well, as I have said before, the club has a good feel about it. Everyone seems to get along well, and shows genuine interest in their team mates.

Saw a couple of the AFL boys as well and it was good to catch up on the gossip.

Calf has pulled up well today but I will have today off and then an easy run tomorrow night after work at the track.

Hopefully things are on the improve and my injury troubles are behind me.

Deja Vu

Yet another week off with calf problems.

An easy run today and I only lasted 15 minutes.

Quite frankly I have had enough and giving it away is high on the agenda. This has gone on for far too long and I am over it. No matter what I do nothing seems to work, at best it offers some relief for a while then same shit different day.

Tan Relays next weekend may well be the last time my runners see the light of day.

Injury Scare

Decided to take today off as my calf is playing up. Hopefully with a hot bath, good stretch and some ice it will be OK tomorrow. Given that tomorrow I will be spending a good 5 or 6 hours in the car, it will be interesting to see how it pulls up afterwards.

The last thing I need right now is a recurrence. Track season is just around the corner and enough time has been wasted already.

Fingers crossed.

Scorpions & Track Sessions

Decided to have a clean up around the backyard yesterday and in the space of an hour found 5 Scorpions, all of which were about 3 - 4 cms long. I had a quick look on the net and discovered that while they give a nasty sting they are not poisonous. Thank f#@* for that!!!! The little buggas are everywhere around here, and any that venture to close to me can expect to die very quickly.

Headed to the track in the afternoon to do a session and rolled out 6 x 200m with 200 jog recovery. Felt pretty good throughout and felt I could have knocked over a few more. Average time was 34s which was about what I expected. Pretty soon I expect to be doing this session in 27s but its early days yet.

I ran into Kim Gillard at the track. He has had the last 8 weeks off with a Groin injury and is hoping to start back again this week. The plan is to catch up sometime this week for an easy run.

Pulled up well this morning with no soreness however I did have very heavy legs in my 20 minute run this arvo. I had planned to do 30 minutes but cut it short. Still, consistency is the key and running every day is a good start.

Off to the Track

Cruised around the Golf Course tonight after work and felt ok. Starting to add some undulations into my runs and so far have suffered no adverse affects. The GC isnt exactly hilly but its a start.

Plan on doing my first track session tomorrow. At this stage it will be 4 - 6 400's in around 72s wearing flats. Dont want to overdo it too early on, just let the body adapt gradually. When my legs get used to wearing flats again then I will work my way into spikes. Will be at least a couple of weeks before they make an appearance though.

Progress is good so far. Cant wait to get to the Tan Relays in a couple of weeks and see exactly where I am at form wise. Hopefully it will be a pleasant surprise.

Cheers

Tempo & Teething

After sitting on the car all day and travelling well over 300kms I laced up the shoes and headed out the door for my run.

25 minutes with the last 10 at a decent tempo. Felt pretty good when I picked it up but was starting to feel it by the end.

I will hit the track on the weekend and do a rep sesion and see how things go. Will be interesting to see how I pull up afterwards. Im not planning on doing anything silly just ticking the legs over at a faster rhythm.

Jacko is starting to learn more and more words every day. In the bath tonight he picked up the ducky and said "quack quack"..... well at least thats what it sounded like!!! Then again maybe it was his way of saying that this new tooth thats coming thru is really giving me the shits. Dont know what the duck had to do with that though.

I booked flights tonight to head back to Melbourne to run the Tan Relays. I was starting to feel a bit guilty that I havent been running for Western Aths as much as I had hoped. Then again, flights arent always cheap and when they are it seems that I get in too late and miss out. At least this time I'm in, albeit $200 lighter in the pocket. No point being the richest dude in the cemetary right???

Cheers

Fathers Day

The day started pretty well with a Darrel Lea Dads Bag that Jacko bought me. After polishing off the chocolate coated almonds prior to breakfast it was time to have something a little more substantial..........bacon & eggs YUMMO.

We had lunch with Robyns family and then spent the arvo watching DVD's. American Pie The Naked Mile. Come on, most of us have done a "nudie run" at some stage of our lives!!!!

I ran for 30 minutes today (clothed) and felt pretty good. I actually considered going further which is a good sign but given the last few weeks I resisted the temptation.

Things are looking good on the running side of things, everyday has seen an improvement. The calf no longer is a consideration but that doesnt mean that I will neglect what needs to be done to ensure it doesnt happen again.

Bring on Track Season.

Long Week

My first week back running and already 2 days off. Fortunately, they were due to work commitments and not soreness. Start in the morning darkness and finishing after dark that night really doesnt help your training. That, and the fact that work is really giving me the shits at the moment.

The company I work for recently bought out a major competitor in the Tasmanian market. However, the management of that company have now become the management of ours!!! How does that work. Morale is so low at the moment its not funny. People are leaving left right and centre, and those remaining couldnt give a shit about anything. They just rock up and get paid. Us poor Reps are out their working our butts off and getting no back up from our peers. Warehouse staff are leaving things off orders and customers arent happy. Of course, when a customer has a problem who do they take it out on??????? The Rep. I rang our Warehouse Manager earlier this week about an issue I had and his first response was "So! What do you want me to do about it?" Great attitude that one. For a start you can organise for the stock to be delivered as requested and then speak to the person who f@#*ed up and make sure it doesnt happen again. Simple really.

Now that I have that off my chest, I do feel somewhat better!!!!!

Over and Out.

AW

Long Time No Blog

Yeah, I know, its been a while since i sat down to right anything on here. Reason is my Computer has been playing up and an Internet connection has been near on impossible. I now have a new Computer and things are back to normal.

Not much running again over the last 4 weeks due to a re occurance of my calf injury. I was in Hobart earlier this month for the State XC Champs and didnt even make the start line. I manage to reinjure myself the day before and as a result have had another 4 weeks off.

I went and saw a different Physio this time around (someone who is actually a runner himself) and he diagnosed the problem as being nerve related. So, after some treatment and shit loads of lower back and hamstring stretching and various exercises I am good to go.

I have started running again this week and so far so good.

Hopefully with a slow build up and some patience (something I have been known to lack) I will be in decent shape come Track Season.

I was hoping to run a quick 5km at the Tas 5km Road Champs on the 16/9 but thats now out of the question. So is breaking 32 minutes at the Burnie Ten.

As for breaking 9 minutes at Zatopek in the Steeple........... stay tuned.

Some interesting viewing at the World Champs. Can anyone tell me what Benita Johnson is thinking???? She said after her race that she was feeling "very good" when she fell. Why the hell was she at the back of the pack then? Any decent cyclist will tell you that if you want to stay out of trouble you need to be in the first 1/3 of the pack as most crashes happen towards the middle and affect those behind (I should know, I have the scars on my chin from a Broken Jaw that I received in a bike race). She is supposedly a World Class athlete yet placed herself in a position which was never going to do her any favours. Even if she hadnt fallen, when the pace picked up she would have been 20 metres behind before she even started to chase. When was the last time you saw Buster Mottram position himself like that?

Also, can someone get Youcef Abdi some training wheels please?

Cheers

Chilly on the Willy!!!

Ran the Launceston 10 this morning and it was cold, damn cold. How cold? Well at the end of the race it hurt to piss!!!!! Check out the fog in the pic. Say no more.



Being an out and back course meant that we could get a good look at the leaders as they were coming back. Troopy was on the front doing his thing yet again, but unfortunately injured himself and didnt finish.

I finished in 37:32 and was pretty happy considering I have only had about 3 weeks training since recovering from my Calf injury. Things are getting better.

I decided to wear my Racing flats but took the precaution of putting another Insole in them to build the heel area up a bit therefore protecting my Calf. Good idea as I had no problems.

Next up is the State XC Champs in Hobart in 2 weeks. Not too sure what to expect but I guess my training over the next week or so will tell me. Will start adding a speed session to my training as of this week and hopefully that will add the spark which is currently missing.

See how we go.

Graveyard Run

Ran an easy 2 laps of Carr Villa tonight in the pouring rain.

For the uninitiated, Carr Villa is the local cemetery that has a 3.1km bitumen track around the outside. I had originally thought that it would be a good place for a time trial later on but after running it I have changed my mind. Its undulating all the way but some of the hills are a little steep to be running down at speed. It is a good spot for a recovery run however and some of the hills may come in handy when hill sessions find thier way in to my program.

I pulled up pretty well after yesterday, only some soreness in my quads and gluts to contend with.

Another easy one tomorrow then another hour run and some 500's later in the week before the Launceston 10 on Sunday.

Cruisy Week

A good week training wise this week. Still a lot of work to be done but the wheels are in motion.

Mainly easy running to get back in to the swing of things with some 200's on Tuesday night and another handicap race yesterday finished off with my first 1 hour run today.

Mon: Easy 25min
Tues: 4 x 200m w/ 200m rec. Ave 33's in Flats.
Wed: Easy 45min
Thur: Easy 20min
Fri: Easy 10min
Sat: Race 6km 22:49
Sun: Easy 60min

Started as the Backmarker yesterday due to most of the better runners at LAC running a seperate race against PCCCT from Burnie. The runner in front of me had 3 minutes head start and I never looked like catching him. Still, I was happy with my time over 6km and some improvement on last week was evident. My average HR was 8bpm lower than last week and I went thru 5km yesterday in the same time as last week also. The 2nd half was only 13sec slower than the first half where as last week it was about a minute difference.

I am running the Launceston 10 next Sunday and I have no idea what time to expect. I guess based on last week and yesterday I should finish in around 37 - 38 minutes somewhere.

Will get out another hour on Wednesday night as I wont get an hour in next weekend. Long runs from here on in are important as they help build the strength that I will need later on.

Will run some reps during the week, probably over 500m, and the some 150's on Saturday arvo at the Track.

Cheers

AW

Team Work??????? Yeah right!

Had my first hit out today after a fairly long lay off. Ran a 5km Handicap and struggled all the way.

My job wasnt made any easier by the fact that I ran off 2nd scratch and had the Backmarker start only 10 seconds behind me. I was hoping to break 20 minutes yet managed 19:09. Not a great time but at least I know now where I am at fitness wise.

My calf pulledup OK, some soreness in my Achilles but nothing too serious. Some stretching should fix this easily.

Training this week was going ok until Thursday and then I had Thursday and Friday off due to 2 very long days at work.

It seems I work with some people who lack the ability to take responsibility for anything that may go wrong. I had a delivery driver mix up some deliveries this week and when he and I fronted the Customer and she asked who was responsible I told her that I take full blame for it, afterall, some one has to right? I found out later that the Driver had already told her it was my fault. If he had checked his Run Sheets prior to leaving the Office that morning he would have avoided any mix ups and none of this would have happened. To think that he had the nerve to blame me for it is disgraceful. Whats even worse is that his Manager did nothing about it either, yet he admitted that it was the Driver who f#@*ed up. What goes around comes around and I will be waiting.

I asked that same Driver to do a drop off for me on his way home last night as a Customer (a Pub) in the neighbourhood where he lives needed some stock rather urgently. He told me he wasnt going straight home and therefore couldnt do it. Imaging my surprise when I arrived at this Pub to see the Driver sitting at the bar with a Beer in his hand. He knew thats where the Delivery was going but insisted he couldnt do it.

I guess sometimes when you want something done you gotta do it yourself. I know a Driver who is out of favours right now.

Enough of my whinging.

Jack Attack

My little man Jack had his first hit out at the Track last night and it looks like he wont be a sprinter anytime soon. The whole concept of staying in your lane went out the window quick smart.

He did however run across the track from Lane 8 to Lane 1, and once the results of the drug test come back hopefully the IAAF will ratify his effort as a new WORLD RECORD for his age group (Under 11 months)!!!!!!!!!! Yes, the boy can move!

Robbie did her best to jog a lap and then called it quits! Oh well, at least she did something.

I jogged around the Country Club Golf Course tonight and felt a little sluggish. Obviously lacking some fitness after the dramas of the past month or so. On a positive note, my calf felt very good.

Hopefully over the next few months I can get some consistency in my training and build up a base for the Summer track season.

Cheers

10, 9, 8, 7, 6..........

Counting down to all systems go!!!

Another 20 minutes at the Track tonight and felt very good.

Threw in a couple of 200's for good measure and ran them faster than I thought. 29.5 & 31.5 in trainers. Both felt very easy with some left in the tank.

If all is well tomorrow then it all systems go from now on.

20 days now until the Launceston 10 and at this stage I will have a crack at it but I am not expecting anything special. No long runs or speed work for a while so I have no idea where I am at fitness wise. I guess there is only one way to find out.

I noticed in the Herald Sun today that this years Melbourne Marathon finishes on the MCG. I given that its 2 weeks before the Burnie 10, I might enter the 10km event as a warm up, afterall, that too finishes on the 'G. Got to be happy about that!!!!

Cheers

AW

On the up.

Back down to the Track again tonight to do another easy 10 minutes.

Ran 5 laps then had a good stretch for about 20 minutes. For the first time in a while I ran with no pain or tightness in my calf. HOORAY!

The leg felt so good I had to resist a VERY big urge to run another 5 laps but decided agianst it.

Finally some confidence gained from a run.

The Launceston 10 is only 27 days away and I doubt whether I will be in any shape to run a decent time. However the Tassie XC Champs are on the 5th August and that might be a more realistic goal at this stage. At least I'll have a few more weeks training under my belt.

Bye for now.

Easy Run and some tightness.

My calf had been feeling good allweek so I decided to venture out this morning for an easy run.

Had planned to do only 10 minutes with idea being if I felt any soreness or tightness in my leg I would pull the pin. I got to within 200 metres from home and it started to tighten up so I walked the rest of the way.

I spent the day icing, massaging and stretching and it has started to come good. My personal Physio (actually my uncle)told me to rub some Hirudoid Cream into it as this will help break down the Scar Tissue. The instructions on the tube say to use twice daily. Pigs ring I will use it twice daily. I am using it every couple of hours, enough time has been wasted already and there is some catching up to do!!!!!!!

I will see how it feels in the morning and decide then whether or not I will run tomorrow. If not then I will hang on until Monday to try again.

Cheers

Frustration

My calf has been holding me back for a couple of weeks now, since May 22 to be precise.

It comes good and then when I put the runners backon it goes again. Physio has been a waste of timeand money. Hes not telling me anything I dont already now. Im sick of hearing "you have a tear in your calf, you better cme back and see me again in a few days time". Who retirement am I trying to fund, mine or his????

Considering taking 2 weeks off completely to allow the calf to heal. Wait and see.

On a brighter note, Robbie has started running again. I took her down to the track to help her get started. Apparently I am now her "coach". Her first run was around the St Leonards Aths track and I made her run the straights and walk the bends. I didnt bother counting the laps as it was more the effort than distance that I was after. She did alright for a "beginner". I say beginner because its been 17 years since she last ran.

She might be able to run but Human Anatomy is not her forte. She told me she used to have "Hammy" problems but as she was saying this she was pointing to her Quad!!!!Hmmmm.........!!!

Lucky shes a good Mum or Jacko might be getting fed via Suppository or something!!!

Speaking of our Little Man, hes walking now. 10 months old and hes mobile. Goes alright too the little bugga. Stay tuned for progress reports.

Cheers

Im back!!!

Remember me???

Have I been busy? Yes. Have I had nothing to say? No. Plenty to say but a lack of internet access has meant no posts for a while.

Have settled in nicely to Launceston. Enjoying work. Only a small amount of unpacking left to do (Robbie has done the majority of it) and bugger all running.

For the 1st 3 or 4 weeks I was here I had little time to run as I was trying to adjust to a new job in a new town that was totaly unfamiliar to me. Now that things have settled down a bit I have time to get out and run. Only one problem however, a calf injury that wont bugger off!! When I think I am on top of it it flares again. Running is restricted to 10 or 15 minutes at a time at the moment. There is a Golf Course 500m from home that looks awesome to train on but until my leg heals up I wont get much of a chance to explore.

I have tried everything from regular massage and stretching to ordering a new pair of shoes. Hopefully they arrive soon and I can tick that box also.

Tassie 10km Road Champs are on this weekend and I wont be competing. I was looking forward to getting out there but given my current lack of fitness not such a good idea.

The following weekend I am supposed to be running the Vic 16km XC Champs. Unless things turn around in the next day or so, that might be a non event as well.

Thats enough for now. Will make more posts on a regular basis from now on!!!

Cheers

Vic XC Relays

Thankfully the Weather Bureau got it wrong again as the predicted rain stayed away making the conditions ideal.

I ran the 2nd leg for our team and went out hard in the first lap and payed for it in the 2nd. Good part was I didnt pay for it as much as I thought I would. Ran the first lap in 10:25 and 2nd in 11:00. Very happy with the time considering it was an undulating course and it was my first race for the season.



Robbie was there taking happy snaps of the event. I asked her not to take any pics of the 2nd lap as I knew it wouldnt be pretty!!! Luckily she didnt listen and they turned out alright. Maybe she was a Photographer in a previous life!




Flying to Tassie tonight so this is my last Blog for a while.

Catchya.

Hill Session

Airlie St Sth Yarra, the site of many sessions involving pain.

6 Reps yesterday morning, only going half way up the hill but flat out with a walk down recovery. Felt good. Hills are one of my favourite sessions. The goal was to concentrate on getting the legs down quickly and using the arms the drive forward. I think I succeeded!

In between reps, Gruff and I were talking about the 1976 Olympic 1500m. He had to run 3:37 in the first round just to get thru to the second round. Awesome effort when you consider Round 1 was his first race since leaving Australia. They didnt get a chance to run overseas prior to the Games so it was straight to Montreal and into it.

Theres not many Aussie runners who have EVER run 3:37 let alone run it just to make the next round of major championship. I guess theres only one guy in Australia at the moment who could run that quick at will. Take a bow Craig Mottram.

I was pretty tired at the end of the session and almost fell asleep in the backyard at home in the afternoon. Had to drag myself out of my comfy chair about 4pm to go for another run. This time just an easy 6km to stretch the legs.

Woke up this morning feeling pretty good after a VERY good nights sleep. Easy run this arvo and same again tomorrow. Will throw in some strides tomorrow to roll the legs over before the XC relays on Saturday. Forecast is for rain on Saturday, cant say I like that idea. I guess the conditions will be the same for everyone.

Im running the 2nd leg for our team of 5. Hopefully I will have some others around me when I take off. The plan is to go hard on the first 3km lap and then hang on for the 2nd lap.

See how it goes.

2nd Day Syndrome

In my last Post on Sunday I wrote that I didnt pull up as bad as I thought after the Track session on Saturday. I TAKE THAT BACK!!!!.

2nd Day Syndrome has won again. You do a hard session and then wake up the next morning thinking that you have pulled up well and then BAM! the 2nd day you can hardly move.

When I got out of bed yesterday morning I could hardly walk. My Quads, Hamstrings and Calves were all tied in knots.

I did an easy 25 minute run last night and felt heaps better after it but I am still a little sore in the calves right now. Another easy run tonight and then a quick session tomorrow.

Had a look at the course for Saturday Cross Country Relays and there is not one flat bit of ground the whole way. The hills arent huge but it just goes up and down constantly.

Looking forward to a few days off before the weekend. Some time with the family, some training to be done, legs to be waxed etc etc.

Will catch up with a few people prior to the weekend and then I fly out Saturday night. I will return on Mothers Day weekend for my Cousins engagement party on the Saturday night. Sunday morning is the Vic 15km Road Champs at Latrobe University and then of course its Mother Day also. I guess I better take Jacko shopping to buy something for his Mum. Maybe he can just give me a list and I will do it myself!!!!!!!

Wait and see.

Silly Mistakes

I have been Asthmatic for as long as I have been breathing yet occasionally I still forget to take Ventolin before a run. This was the case this morning. Had planned to do an hour with Gruffy but got half way to his place and realised I had forgotten to bring my puffer. It was too late to go back so I ventured on.

Ended up getting out 40 minutes when I thought I wouldnt get much more than 10 or 15 before I had trouble breathing.

Other than that it felt pretty good. I pulled up a little sore from yesterdays track session but not as bad as I feared.

A nice cold bath when I got home should help relieve weary legs and prepare them for another week ahead.

This time next week I will be in Launceston and cruising around the Gorge on my long run for the week.

Next Saturday is the Vic XC Relay Champs and my first official race for Western Aths. Given my change in location living wise it will be the first of only a few for them this year. The next looks like being the Vic 15km Road Champs on Mothers Day. After that Im not too sure. One thing I am sure about is my membership staying with them. The club has a good feel about it as I have mentioned in a previous post and I will do what I can to help them win a premiership.

Easy day tomorrow and then pick it up mid week.

Caio for now.

On the Track

Did my first Track session today at Glenhuntly. I have raced on the track recently but not trained there.

Ran some 150s with a 250 jog recovery between each. I know Im gunna suffer tomorrow when my calves, achilles and hamstrings tie themselves in knots. Still, it was good to get out in the rain and run around. I must admit the session felt a lot better than I anticipated it would. Certainly got the legs down a lot quicker than I expected.

Off to a Trivia Night tonight, should be a bit of fun. Lets hope the people asking the questions actually have the correct answers. The last one I went to the people organising the show had no idea.

Long run tomorrow morning with Gruffy and Lex so hopefully will get rid of the soreness from todays efforts.

All up its been a good week training wise, some consistency is starting to creep back into my training which can only be a good thing.

Cya.

Kick in the Arse

Whats this? 2 entries in one day!!!!!

I will start by saying that nothing you read below is intended with any sarcasm whatsoever.

On Thursday April 12,I wrote some things here that in hindsight were very unnecessary and very out of line.

As a result I have edited that particular post and removed those comments.

At no time did I mention any names, whether it be a person or company.

However, those that I wrote about have since read the entry and expressed their displeasure.

I use this Blog for 2 purposes, firstly to keep those of you who read this up to date with the happenings of my running and secondly and a place to get things off my chest.

I have long had a habit of saying what I am thinking instead of thinking about what I am saying. This was a perfect example.

After a long and constructive conversation with the person referred to I can honestly say that my opinion HAS changed. When I received a message on my phone requesting I call this person back I must admit I expected it to be rather tense conversation. How wrong was I? I guess when you expect the worse you can only ever be pleasantly surprised. It seems that we agree on a lot of things and that whilst work needs to be done, it is underway.

This person has an extremely tough job ahead of him and I wish him all the best.

Whilst the majority of you who read this have no idea what I am talking about, that is somewhat irrelevant given that someone who reads has been offended.
Like I said, that post has been edited so no point trying to go back and find it, cos it aint there.

Again, I reiterate that no sarcasm has been used or intended in this post.

Over and out.

Dinner with Gruff

Had dinner last night with Gruffy. Chatted about numerous things including running & football. Both of us are Geelong supporters and have suffered through Geelongs inconsistencies for far too long.

On the running side of things my first task when I get to Launceston is to familiarise myself to the new surroundings find some places to train. Will need to find some places to run 2km reps, 500m reps and somewhere to do a run of about 20 minutes at tempo. The 5km loop I currently use at Brimbank Park for my tempo runs is OK but has this bad arse hill between 2 & 3km that gets me everytime. Its probably too steep to be trying to do a tempo run on but I guess you make do with what you have available. My 2km reps and 500m reps are normally done around the Tan.

There will be no shortage of hills in Launceston. In fact it will be hard trying to find anywhere to run that is flat. The upside of that is hills will become my friend.

Just over a week now until the XC Relays and I am very much looking forward to it. Will get on the track this weekend to get the legs ticking over and remind the legs of what its like to wear spikes! Its been a while and I know that my calves and Achilles will suffer later on. No pain no gain right?

Had an easy run this morning and felt good. Wont be running tonight as Robbie is out for the evening and I am in charge of babysitting duties. Come to think of it I think Jack will be in charge!!!!! He is fast becoming the boss at our place. Robbie bought him a T Shirt that says "Actually, yes, the world DOES revolve around me" and he has another one that says "Im kind of important around here" and its spot on. HE IS THE MAN.




Chat later.

2km Reps

Every now and then you do a session that boosts your confidence a more than others. That was the case last night at the Tan. The session went as follows: 2 x 2km with 2km rec.

Given the interuptions to my training over the last month or so, I wasnt too sure how I would go. I just wanted to get the session done and then improve on it next time.

1st rep was 6:33 with an average HR of 176 (91% max) and then the 2nd was also 6:33 with an ave HR of 178 (92% max). The conficence gained in this session comes from the fact that at the 1km mark of the 2nd rep I was 6 seconds slower than at the same point in the 1st rep. Its nice to know that I have that pick up available even though I have done nothing to develop this.

As you can see from the HR I was pushing a little. My max HR is 193 so to sit in the high 170's for 6 minutes shows Im not moving too badly.

Of course with more training under the belt I will cover this distance a lot quicker but at the same intensity.

Pulled up very well this morning with no soreness of note.

Will do an easy 8 - 10 km tonight just to stretch the legs.

Back into It

Feeling a lot better now after having a sore throat for most of last week. Might have got rid of it sooner had I not continued to run nearly everyday!!

Still having problems with a nasty stitch that will not go away. I have tried everything that I can think of to avoid it but to no avail. Different breathing techniques, eating and drinking at various times prior to training and nothing seems to work. The weird part is I only get it when I am cruising. Whenever I pick up the pace and my breathing starts to get heavy it is nowhere to be found. So do I just run flat out everytime I pull on my runners?????

Did an easy 20 minutes this morning before work and will head to the Tan tonite and run some 2km reps. 2 x 2km with 2km recovery is on the menu. Wont be going all out, just trying to stay relaxed and in control but at the same time not bludging either.

Got an email from Saucony this morning. They are looking for some photos to put in their next Catalogue. Looks like I'm gunna need to hire a make up artist!!!

See how we go.

Easy Weekend

Had a fairly easy weekend. Didnt run yesterday as I am still trying to rid myself of this throat infection.

The move to Tassie is coming along nicely. Had a quote today from a removalist and I nearly fell of my chair!! $3200 he said. This guy was supposed to be doing us a "good deal" because he knows Robbies Dad! I wonder what it costs nromally!!!!

Had a chat to the "supercoach" Gruffy yesterday about going to Tasmania. I was a bit afraid that it would mean that we can no longer work together. We are having dinner on Wednesday night to nut out a few things but he thinks we can make it work. I will have to get myself a Hurdles coach when I get there but other than that Gruff will still be in control of the running side of things.

Getting a new Coach would have been a pain in the butt. I have known Gruff for about 14 years now and he knows me very well. Probably too well!! Importantly, I also know him and what he expects of me. Learning how a new coach operates and getting to know them would take time. Im not getting any younger here.

It doesnt worry me that Gruff wont be there to oversee each session because I know I will do the work. Results will show if I dont. I just need to report back to him the details of whats been done and wait for feedback. Communication will be vital. I have started up an Online Training Diary so that Gruffy can log in and see the details ie: times, distances and HR's and how I felt generally.

I cant wait to start cruising around the Gorge in Launceston. Sensational place to run and no doubt I will discover new places along the way also.

Picking up my new Polar RS200 HRM from Frredom Machine in Prahran today. I no longer ride for the boys but they still look after me. Maybe a "Freedy" logo needs to be placed on my running shorts. Will look into that one me thinks.

Anyway enough said for now.

Sad News

They say that only the good die young and today I found that out for myself.

TFM Mechanic extraordinaire, Mal Hill, lost his son over the Easter break in an accident. He fought on for a couple of days but lost his fight on Easter Monday. RIP Bro. Our hearts go out to Mal, Alex and family.

Didnt run today as I have been battling a throat infection all week. I am hoping that a day off will help it settle down a little.

Off to Brimbank Park tomorrow for another 5km hit out. I hope its a lot better than last weeks effort. Could it get much worse? Goal is sub 19 this time. 19 minutes is still not that crash hot but given the toughness of the course and my fitness at the moment its a start.

Tried to look up the Winter Calender for Athletics Tasmania yesterday and its still not posted so I dont know whats coming up and when. The only race I know of so far is the Tamar 10 on July 22 which is the day after the Vic 12km XC Champs which I was hoping to fly back for but wont be now.

See how things pan out.

Over and out.