Claustral Canyon Revisited Sunday 30th Dec 2012

The path we followed

 

A step back in time as Ed and I went back to Claustral which we had first visited in 1985 and now his son Rowan was joining us.
We did some last minute research about the new entry track, and called into Springwood police to log a walk notification and pick up an EPIRB (because I couldn't find mine)
So we didn't start till midday. Then we missed the entry track and spent an hour and a half bush bashing till we found the well worn entry track.
After that it was plain sailing. Through the three abseils and up under and around the many obstacles to the exit point.
We had a brief rest and refuel at the exit point and then powered up to the Camel's hump. I remember in 1985 this hill was a killer but today it was stiff climb but OK. After a few photos and a Chocolate on top we crossed the saddle and descended back into the canyon.



Ed with Yabbysaurus

We noticed the exit point for Dismal Dingle marked by a stone cairn but we pushed on to our exit point that would go up to the base of Mt Bell.
It was nearly dark in the canyon so we were pushing on.

Ed and Rowan on the Camels Hump

We had a couple of swims to do but didn't worry about wetsuits. We found our exit and started up. It was a trouble free hike up and we made the car at 8.15pm.
We noticed on this trip a lot more yabbies including a few monsters, also the tracks were quite overgrown and leaves covered all surfaces. The rocks in the creeks were also very mossy. We put all this down to the lower numbers since the entrance was closed.
It was a great day.

Update before B2H

My ankes! I never really imagined that I would ever be so troubled by my damned ankles. The achilles in both feet are so sore. Over the last month I have been resting them but as soon as I head out for a run the pain comes right back. I have been doing everything that the physio has recommended, stretching, icing, cross training (biking) but not really any improvement.

But I have found that if I grit my teeth then after 6km the pain disappears. I have manged to run a few good 30k runs this way but then I pay the price next day.

So with B2H almost here, I have decided to just do the best I can and not stress about it. If I can run it I will, if not, then no worries. I have rented the house in Mt Beauty anyway so I will be there either as a competitor or a spectator.

Middle Harbour Picnic Star 23/9/2012

A pleasant morning for running on a very picturesque but challenging run.

Just four of us (Tony, Mark & Paul) starting from beside Roseville Bridge then up to the Warringah Plateau. I found a spanner on the road at the top of the hill and carried it for the rest of the run. I was so whacked at the end I left it at the finish. D'oh.

Then it was along the Great Nosh track to Seaforth Oval and down the backstreets to the Spit. Then up Parriwi to Spit Rd, down Awaba to Balmoral, up to Mosman shops, then down the backstreets of Mosman, up and over Military Rd, down the other side and up to Cammeray, then down to Northbridge and up the hill from the bridge, then  finally through the backstreets of Roseville and down the big hill to the start.

It was hard. Much harder then last weeks marathon. Very whacked.

Still I ran OK and the ankle coped with all the uphills but hurt quite a bit in the last 5 k.
Thirty km all up in about 2.25.

Friday & Sat 21/22 Sep

On Friday ran 5k to work then sat in office all day then 5k back
Sat ran Parkrun in 19.02. A slow time as I died in the last k. Picked up several younger runners and was passed by one in the first 3k then ran by myself for the final 2. Afterwards did another slow 5k with Greg L.
Ankle gave a little pain but definitely improving.

Malabar to Kingsford Tempo

Another cracking day in Sydney. Mod NE winds temp 23. The three girls wanted to go to Mama Theresa's our old haunt and I agreed provided I could run there.
Felt great and ran on my toes all the way to get there in 30mins. Slight ankle pain but tolerable.
Sitting in the restaurant now but they haven't even left!

Lapa circuit Wed 19/9/12

Beautiful night. No wind, warm and a sliver of a moon. Ran down the golf course to the NSW golf links then down the road to Lapa.
Bumped into Horrie and Tim at Malabar and then ran back to Little Bay with them.
Then back past Sonny's take away where I bumped into Dave P and had a catch up.
Pleasant run about 15k. I had stabbing pains in the right ankle especially up hills. At least I was able to run on it.
The balls of my feet are very sore from the marathon.

Sydney Marathon 16/9/12

Volunteered as 3.15 pacer. Great conditions. Some problems with kilometer markers in the first 3 kms led to me to going a bit fast early.
Slowed down a bit going through the domain and with Stuart the other pacer we ran to 32k right on target pace of 4.37. Then I dropped back a couple of minutes to encourage those who were dropping off.
As usual the pack thinned out rapidly during the next 10k and by 40k none of the 3.15 hopefuls were left with us.
I had no trouble with the pace. I could feel the right ankle but all the massaging over the last few days had worked.
After finishing I ran back to find Mike who was having a tough run. I found him at 39k and we ran back together. He finished in 3.50.
Had a funny experience on the way to the marathon, I gave Amy and her friend Lara a lift to Redfern station to get to the half marathon start. As we were walking to the station Lara revealed "OMG I don't' have Amy's bib" So then it was a drive back to Maroubra, then Little Bay, then to North Sydney. We made the start of the half marathon with 6 minutes to spare.
Rushed back home after the marathon to fly out to Uncle Mikes funeral at Coffs at 2.40. Busy day.

Parkrun Sat 8/9/12

Looked for every excuse not to go but made it. Ran comfortably in 18.55. Sixth place. Two young guys overtook me after 1k but they both faded and I picked them off.

Sunday 9/9/12. Really tired this morning. So ran from home to Bondi, Bondi JN! Centennial that straight home. About 28k all up. Met a lot of people. Probably walked another 4k. Beautiful day. Ankle a bit sore at the end.

Bogong to Hotham entry

Well for better or worse I have entered. Got some new Salomon XA3D shoes on ebay today. Only $90. Took them for jog to Lapa along the golf course.
I really like the rapid lace system. They ate quite stiff. Reinforced toe pocket is good. And the grip is excellent.

Thursday Intervals

Ran 10 by 500m intervals round lower Pioneer. Felt good. First one in 1.48 and last in 1.35.
No issues with ankle after giving it a good massage before hand.

Marathon entries

Tomorrow is the Bogong to Hothan entry and on Tuesday at 7am the Boston Marathon opens. Looking forward to entering.
Checking the entry requirements I am now 34mins under the cutoff. And I can qualify in the 18-34 category.
Eat that Paul Ryan.
Also thinking of entering the West Wyoming

Fitting it in

No run Monday. Tuesday up at 5am to drive boat to office then run back and get ute before 6.30. Then another run home later in the day.
Wednesday run to work, then in evening run Lapa loop. A wonderful warm night. Ran OK but ankle started hurting after 8k so I walked for a couple of k's.

Avalon to Brookvale

After a lovely visit to Owen and Patti I ran along Pittwater road to Brookvale. Not sure of exact distance probably about 15k. Magnificent afternoon and despite some minor ankle pain felt great.

Best Fathers Day Ever

Honor and Serena surprised me by coming in to get me up at 5.15am and go for a run. Then they had a picnic arranged with Michele on Malabar headland to watch the sunrise.
It was a great sunrise with a full moon setting in the west at the same time.
A really thoughtful gift. Great daughters.

Striders North Head

I was looking for any excuse not to go this morning. But I had none so I fronted up in cold but ideal conditions.
Funny delays at the start, including two fire engines.
Finally underway and I knew I would suffer. All the way I wanted to stop but fortunately nothing was actually hurting.
Ran reasonably consistently to come in at 39.17 which I am quite happy with.
Afterwards went to 45 spin class with Serena then kicked the ball around with Geoffrey Kate and Neil for an hour at Centennial. Great day all in all.
Ankle seems cured touch wood. Now I can start doing intervals again...yahoo!

Kip Litton

I read the extraordinary article about Kip Litton in the New Yorker magazine (Aug issue) today.
Wow, a lot of similarities to me, same age, male, self employed , running bug...but cheating...really?
Poor guy I really feel for him. What could drive a man to cheat so systematically. And what for, to cheat in a marathon, what's the point?
I may not be fast, but I have certainly run every step of every marathon I have entered.
The poor man must be very deeply troubled.

Mixed bag

No run Mon Tue. Just no motivation, even put on my jogging clothes but just sat like a zombie on the couch. OK there were some extenuating circumstances... H was crying over bf troubles and S needed homework help...
Got home early on wed and went for an 18k run, or it should have been but my ankle was so sore I had to walk most of it. Then on Thu I kicked the footy with Neil and Geoff at Pioneer. It hurt at first then all the pain went away and I went on an 11k run afterwards. Minor pain only.
Then fri No pain at all and I went for a brisk run from office to Kingsford then Eastlakes and back. No pain. Go figure? Will try and get up for the striders run tomorrow.

Malabar to Homebush 26/8/12

After a tiring day at work on Sat followed by watching the Swans at the SCG I was very tired on Sun morning.
It was a beautiful cool sunny day so I combined my social life with training.
After a delicious home made breakfast of poached eggs, spinach, smoked salmon and tomato I ran to Tempe to meet the Castros and watch Rohan win his footy grand final.
Then I ran along the Cooks River to Olympic Stadium to meet Neil, Bruce, Janet, Charlotte and Geoffrey to watch Souths crush Parramatta.
I can take or leave the footy, but the run there was magic. A wonderful sunny day but not hot. I am almost over the flu that I picked up last weekend and my right ankle while still troublesome has improved and is responding really well to massages.
Now I am on the train back to the city to meet Michele for dinner. A 30k + run always builds up an appetite

At Anthony's

Arrived at Anthony and Kerry's on Left Bank road at 4pm Saturday. They made me really welcome and we had a great meal together that Kerry whipped up. Anthony also ran me a bath with epsoms salts. Heaven.
I was very happy to get to bed but I could sleep immediately because my legs were so sore.
Next morning Anthony made me a great breakfast of scrambled eggs from his own chooks. The yokes were golden.
Later we all went to the C3 church on the Gold Coast which was an unusual experience for me, it featured faith healing, speaking tongues and a rock band.
Afterwards Anthony dropped me at Gold Coast Airport.
A great weekend.

The pipeline pass

This pipeline runs down a convenient pass from Lake Kerry to the Banana Plantation next to Anthony's. It was steep and I fell over twice as the legs stopped working

Lake Kerry

The suspended lake above Anthony's place

Teale's Lookout

On top of Koonyum Range only 1k straight down to go. Feeling rooted. Having seniors moment.

Koonyum Range Retreat

Finally on top. In sight of Anthony's. Incredible resort house.

Going up Koonyum Ridge Road

Its only 4k but super steep

Into the wild

Found this abandoned hippy bus in the bush. It was a Bedford On the side it said "Pauls Timboon Crossing School Bus". The area had been inhabited once. There was a small shelter and a lean to dunny. It was about 1km below the Wilson's Creek Saddle

The saddle bw Wilsons Ck and Tweed Valley

Wilsons Creek Saddle

Met some other hikers who advised Mt Boogarem was impassable so changing route to go down wilsons creek and up koonyum range rd

Magic brook on nightcap trail

Water just when I needed it!

On top of Mt Nardi

Got here just before 10am. Stiff hike from Nimbin left at 7.40. On to Mt Jerusalem

Almost on top of Mt Nardi

Nimbin

I flew into Lismore at 5pm and started running the 33k to Nimbin at 6pm. Magic calm night. Very dark with lots of stars. Wonderful smells of cooking as I left the township. Stopped briefly at a classic workers pub in Lismore to go to the loo. Every second word inside was F*** or C*** or both. Funny to hear it was so over the top.
There was  a lot of traffic for the first hour and I had to be careful not to get run over. Then it quietened down and I was alone with my thoughts and constant repetition of my footsteps.
Arrived Nimbin just after nine. Beautiful night. It was a tough run especially the last 5k. Drum festival in main street. Very Nimbin.

Lapa circuit Thu 16 Aug

First tim e on this loop for while. Ran freely. Minimal pain in the ankle. Coming up Howe St was tough with so few hills in my legs lately. Off the Nightcap tomorrow.

C2S 2013

Lined up with Alex at 7.15. Cold windy conditions with occasional light rain. Felt pretty good. No trouble with ankle after the rest and lots of voltaren massages.
Come through 7k at 29mins and 10k in 41mins. Really came good after heartbreak and was holding 3.50s OK.
Looking good for sub 56 when a blind runner with a guide took me out like a bowling pin just before the turnaround on Campbell Parade.
It took a lot of skin off and took the wind out of my sails.. I lost about a minute. Came over the line in about 56.40 gun time.
Serena and Lily were a great cheer squad coming into the shute.
Alex ran a great 54min and Dave 64min.

Slow jog Sat 11th July

Easy jog to Little Bay then up through the old hospital and back along anzac and austral. Ankle is sore. Then went to 45min spin class with serena.

Ankle very sore

No run mon/tue/wed. The ankle is very sore but also had to work an emergency night shift on Monday night when a ship didn't fit in the Dry Dock.
Saw tim austin on wed and he advised light running with lots of stretching, ice and voltaren. Went out for a gentle 11k to Lapa and back. Ankle was sore all the way. I had to walk the hills because that's when the pain is worst.

Ankles issues still

After intervals at Heffron the peroneal tendon was very sore. Skipped fri and went for a 14k run to Cape Sol and back instead of the Striders 10k. Then went to 45 spin class with Serena. The home to mow the grass and get ready for BBQ with Castros and Leamons.
Sun morning watched Olympic 10k rather than go to star and then had slow run to cape sol and back. Ankle very sore afterwards.

Run cycle run

Ran to Maroubra then 2k on treadmill then 45min cycle class then run home.

Intervals at Pioneer

My legs were sore from Sunday but not too bad. The ankle was a little sore so I dropped the strides and did 7 untimed 500m intervals. I had planned 10 but once the ankle started hurting I stopped. Bloody cold at the moment.

M7 Marathon and Ben Hall's Huts

I ran the second half of the M7 relay in 88.50, five minutes off my best. An OK result considering that I was working night shift this week and the ongoing ankle issue. Mike  recorded a great time of 96.17 for the first half. A PB for him. In fact he took us by surprise as he appeared around the bend. The smart money was on him running 100+.
I saw Tim Austin through the week and he diagnosed a strain of the peroneal tendon in my right ankle.  His advice was very good and the ankle started feeling better quickly after doing his recommended stretches.
After the run I drove up to Katoomba and bush bashed my way down the Devil's Hole gully. I lost the track half way down and went cross country eventually coming across the pipeline track. Then I headed down to check out the huts from the Ben Hall TV series in 1975.  Remarkably one of them is still intact and "furnished" 37 years later.  I remember the show, I was 13 when it screened on the ABC. It had a great theme tune from the Bushwackers band.
Only one hut is still standing but the remains of all the others (seven in total) are still there but collapsed. A very interesting "walk down memory lane"

Afterwards I ran/hiked back up Nellies Glen and then along the Cliff walk  to the car at Devil's Hole.

Ben Hall's Hut from the 1975 TV series

Here is a link to a Women's Weekly article at the time of shooting. 

http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/page/5799095?zoomLevel=1 

A shot from the article. The hut is on the right.

And here are two other photos of the hut taken during filming from Douglass Baglin Photography at the National Archives .

For a total nostalgia trip for my generation check out this youtube clip of stills set to the opening theme.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nWDbIr6cKJk

or the opening titles are here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OWQyis_Xgg

Great North Walk Star 9-7-12

Ran with Sean and Georgie just like last week but felt much better. Did not have any trouble running the entire 30k plus and my ankle troubled me much less.

On the Saturday I paced the 45min 10k group with Mike finishing just ahead of me.

Tue Intervals 3-7-12

Monday I spent at the ocean outfalls diving and was totally zonked that night so no run.
Tuesday I finally made it out at 7pm and ran down to Pioneer. All the lights were on but no footballers. I had it all to myself.
Full moon and no wind, but bloody cold.
I did two sets of strides then attempted to run the intervals but the ankle said no. I started off several times but a sharp pain in my right ankle kept stopping me.
It was such good conditions that I felt I should do something, So I persisted until I realised that I got no pain if I stayed on my toes.
Eventually I did 10*300m with 5 pushups after each.

Welcome back now die! 1/7/12

Thats how I felt after running the North Head Star this morning. Its scary how quickly you lose the edge. I was running these easily before Canberra. Now after two months of low activity it was a big struggle. The 6.20 group moved a long at a quick pace,and I kept up without trouble till the end of Manly Beach when I started feeling the strain, then I felt the wheels really come off above the Spit Bridge. My ankle had become sore and I was dead on my feet as Georgie and Sean skipped away down the hill.
On Saturday I ran the Parkrun 5k in 19.20.
Well hopefully the only way is up!
Mike and I have agreed to run the M7 relay together. He thinks he can do a 97 so if I do and 83 we might keep it under 3 hours.  Well at least it gives us a target to train for.

Redledge Pass Narrowneck June 24th 2012

On the spur of the moment I was able to get away from work and meet Mike and Stef at the Woodford to Glenbrook Run. Just like last year, I had a very pleasant 25k run with Mike but coming in a bit slower than last year. That suited me as I was still nursing my right ankle.


On Top of Narrowneck above Redledge Pass.


Then I went to Katoomba for another bucket list hike. Down Redledge Pass then up Devil's Grotto. I would have only just enough time. Arrived at the locked gate at 3.30pm and started to run down Narrowneck. I had a set of track notes on my BB. After a bit of searching I found the quite well worn track marked with a small cairn of rocks. The sun was setting in a cloudless sky with a moderate westerly wind. Perfect conditions.

Looking towards Nellies Glen from redledge Pass

After a scrub bash through the plateau I crossed the creek and arrived at Redledge Pass. Magnificent views. The scramble down from the cliff line was easy but adventurous with loose scree and leaf litter. I mostly slid down. I stopped at a mine adit which was crawling with leeches. I had to spend several minutes plucking the blighters off me.

Looking along the Redledge Pass in the Cliffs

Lower down I came to what I think was a cutting for the trolley way. By now the sun had set and I found that both my torches had packed it in. So I decided to head towards Nellies Glen track rather than up Devil's Grotto which could be a bit tricky without a torch.
The weak moon provided just enough light to see, and it was in the North West so I just headed straight at it. I guessed that I had about 2 to 3k of bush bashing to get to the road. Despite the darkness, the going was pretty easy as the ridges ran in the same direction as my heading. So I just stayed on top of  a ridge. Eventually I hit a dirt road. But it was so dark that I couldn't be sure that it was the right one till I found one of the little "red hiker" markers. Yep the Six Foot Track.

The Mine Adit crawling with leeches

Now I sat down on the road to fix the torches as there was no moonlight under the tree canopy along the track. After ten minutes I got one going feebly and set out at a good speed up Nellies Glen. It took 40 minutes to go from the old settlement to Explorer's Tree. It was bloody cold on top of the plateau at Katoomba so I was sorely tempted to duck into the Arjuna Indian restaurant for a curry! But I ran on down Cliff Drive and then Glen Raphael Road to the locked gate. I arrived at the car at 7.30 frozen and famished and happy. Even better I had left plenty of food in the car including a Cadbury Hazelnut Chocolate. Yippee.

Leg Issues

Since the Canberra Marathon I have had an ongoing problem with a strained right achilles and a shin splint on the left leg. So I have been taking it easy and giving them a chance to recover. It seems to be getting better but slowly.
On Saturday 26th I ran the Parkrun slowly with Greg who ran a personal best and then the next day I ran the Airport Adventure Star with the 6.20 group to tbe 20k mark and then jogged the last 10k with Mike.

Yerranderie Weekend

A fabulous weekend of family, friends and adventure. And the weather was sensational. What a great place to have a reunion staying at the Yerranderie lodge. Cecile and I went on a short run around the "town" and later a bunch of us climbed up the Peak. Afterwards Martin and I explore the Colon mine site.
Later we had a big campfire meal and a great dinner cooked by Michele and Kelly. It was also Neil and my 50th birthday so it was great time. We had the Kroghs, the Leamons, the Loyds, the Castros, Derek and Charlotte, Randall and Karin, Janet, Honor, Michele, Kate, Geoffery and Serena.
Next morning Greg Moinica and I hiked up the Peak at 5.30am for dawn and we were rewarded with a magnificent sight. The horizon was overcast and as the sun struggled through the clouds, shafts of golden light played out over the Blue Breaks and Axe Head range.

Dawn at Yerranderie Peak

Then an amazing thing happened. About 10 minutes after first light a mournful howl came up from the wilderness, then another from somewhere else, soon there were half a dozen howls joining the chorus. A dingo chorus. Then suddenly they stopped and it was silent again. Magic moment.
Later Neil and I went down to the graveyard and then onto the Tonalli River. He was on the trike and I was on foot. Getting up and down the hill was a mission but it worked out OK so I ended up running about 12 k. Then it was a long road back to Katoomba where a local had reported me missing to the Police! After sorting that out we had dinner at the Arjuna Indian and then home.

Katoomba to Yerranderie

Ed and I set out at 8.30pm from the beginning of Glenraphael Road for the end of Narrowneck and down to Medlow Gap. On the way we passed through the flagging for TNF 100 and the impressive ladder work at Tarros.

The View from Mt Cookem

We crashed under the little information shelter about 11.30pm. It was bloody cold with a heavy dew. Fortunately I was warm in my -5 sleeping bag and ultra lite thermorest.
We got going about 8am after checking out the hut just down the road, and headed down the fire trail to Cox's River. It was a very pleasant walk.
At the Cox's Ed thought the crossing was shallow, so I stripped off starkers and walked in. It was about 1 degree C. Very quickly I was up to my armpits and freezing! As IU came out in my birthday suit Ed said "I didn't realise you were so fat!" Ha ha ha. He spent the rest of the weekend apologising, as if I cared.
We then found that 20 metres downstream the creek was only ankle deep.
Then it was up the hill to Mt Cookem. Once on the summit we were rewarded with the most fantastic views back to Katoomba and the Wild Dog Mountains.
Then it was on to Yerranderie 45km away along the Scotts Main Range road. This is a wide super smooth dirt road which is quite monotonous but passes through some beautiful country. After 15k we came to the Catholic Bushwalking lodge and we called in for lunch. It was deserted when we arrived but a group was clearly staying there but were out fly fishing from the looks of their gear laying about. Ed cooked me up a savoury rice and a cup of tea. After half an hour I was ready to get going and set off at a slow jog for the last 30k. Ed was feeling stuffed so he was going to stay the night and come along in the morning.

The view from Yerranderie Peak

I had come 15k when a 4wd came along the road and there's Ed in the passenger seat getting a lift! One of the fisherman came back and was driving up to pick up his mates and gave Ed a lift. So I hopped in and we got a lit another 4k up the road. Then it was another 11km trudge along the road in the dark to Yerranderie. Finally got in at 7.30pm and were welcomed by our family and friends at the lodge.

Puffing Billy Race May 5th

This is a terrific event and I am glad I came. The race is run against the tourist steam train called the Puffing Billy, starting at Belgrave and finishing 13.2kms later at Emerald in the picturesque Dandenong Ranges.

The Drivers fill the Engine with Gatorade!

Entries were limited to 3200, and the event was very laid back compared to the C2S.
All the vols and train staff were super friendly and clearly look forward to the event. It was well organised.
The day was cool with drizzling rain. Perfect for running. After Mike Brady sang the national anthem we were off. The first 2ks were downhill before a  long uphill. The hill was long but not steep. I got to 5k in 18.40. Then there was a long flat section before another very long hill.
All the time you could hear the steam train coming closer, its whistle echoing through the valley. Really motivating. Michele, Honor and Serena were on the train, and they reported that at the start the driver ran the length of the platform with a start bib on to the cheers and delight of the passengers.
I reached 10k in just over 40 minutes going up the big hill. The train normally gets in to Emeral around 51 to 53 minutes so I was quite confident that I would make that easily. The train was coming up a cutting alongside us and I slowed down a bit to watch it. It was struggling with wheel spin which produced a terrific high speed chuffing noise. But I was too busy watching the train to realise that there was a level crossing on top of the hill! Uh oh!!When I realised what that meant I started sprinting but too late,  a vol pull a mesh barrier across the road to let the train through. Ha ha. That'll teach me to loose concentration It worked out well though, because as I stood waiting the train passed and Michele, Hon and Serena saw me and we exchanged cheers. That was fun. It took several minutes for the train to pass and I knew I need to be at Emerald station 3k away in 10 minutes to sure of beating the train. Fortunately it was mostly downhill.
Thankfully I felt good and was soon overtaking runners as we left the downhill road and ran along a level foot track for 1.5k. Then we came into a park area and a very steep muddy downhill. I went for broke and rocketed down the slope. Finally there was just 500m to go, round a few bends then a short uphill pinch. Across the line in 52.55. Great fun.
I ran out to the end of the platform and waiting for the train which came in about 3 or 4 minutes later.
After a cup of tea we caught the train back together to Belgrave and then had a very pleasant lunch at the cinema cafe. Then we spent several hours exploring Fitzroy and Melbourne CBD.
Very enjoyable event. Look forward to breaking 50 minutes next year.

Parkrun 28/4/12

Fine cool day. First quick run since marathon. 5k in 18.40. Legs felt surprising good. Just a niggle in my right ankle. Ran a second lap as a cool down.

Splendour Rock, Anzac Day 2012

An awesome, painful spiritual experience.
I left home at 8pm and arrived at Narrowneck at 10.30pm. Fell asleep on the airbed in the back of the car till 3.45am. It was bitterly cold and the wind was blowing gale force from the west buffeting the car as I dragged myself out of the sleeping bag.
My aim was to make it to the Dawn Service at the Bushwalker's War Memorial at Splendour Rock about 25km away. I made steady progress to Tarro's Ladder in the pitch dark and arrived at Medlow Gap about 5.45am. At this rate I should have made it about 6.45am just after dawn.

The View from Splendour Rock

Once I turned onto the foot track I hit the mud, ankle deep mud and water all the way to Mobbs swamp. Very appropriate for Anzac Day, I was in the trenches! There was no way that I could run through it, especially in the dark. I ended up getting to Splendour Rock at 7.30am just as the Dawn Service ended.
It was a beautiful, cold, clear, windy morning with almost unlimited visibility. The entire national park could be seen from Mt Solitary to Kanangra. I spent half an hour at the small campfire chatting to the campers and took off my tights, beanie and gloves. I still felt pretty good and I was looking forward to the trip back. Set off at 8am.

Campfire at Splendour Rock

Partly by accident, I found the alternate exit path that leads along the ridge line over the Wild Dog peaks. No mud! And dramatic views over the cliff edge down into Burragorang Valley and the full lake. I passed through a variety of beautiful eco systems from dramatic rocky outcrops, to hanging swamps, quiet rainforests, and one gum tree which had been freshly blown apart by a lightning strike. I was all alone, bathed in a silvery morning light, and ever present roar of the westerly gale. Magic.
I didn't know where the faint path that I was following led, but since I had  cliffs on either side of me, there wasn't too much chance of getting lost. When the ridge ended I almost attempted to climb down the exposed cliffs, but fortunately I found a cairn marking a hole in the cliffs, and then made my way down the steep slope to Mobbs swamp.

The magic pass through the cliffs

I had a rough plan of getting back by midday, and so far so good. But the mud on the way back took it out of me, and when I got back to Medlow Gap at 10am I felt stuffed.
I decided to take the long way up Mt Debert and followed the Sydney Water road around to the east. It was very peaceful and scenic. I filled my water bottle several times from the crystal clear streams coming down the slope. On the road up to the transmission tower I passed some magnificent stands of  Turpentine. One of them must have been 2.5 metres thick.
I passed three lady hikers at the transmission tower and then suddenly I started feeling faint and wobbly. I recognised the signs of low sugar and ate my last gel. I think I underestimated the energy required for 7 hours of hard hiking and running in freezing conditions. I was a bit wobbly going up Tarro's but slowly came good after a little rest on top.
Slow jogged and walked along Narrowneck and arrived back at the car exhausted but happy at 12.50pm. All up 8.5 hours of hiking.
Looking back I loved it, solitude, wilderness, adventure, wild weather and extreme exertion. Next time I need to leave at 3am to get to the Dawn Service on time.

Easy week

I had very little DOMS after the event. No trouble going down stairs.
Straight back into work on Monday morning at 4.30 for work in Newcastle inspecting a ship and didn't finish till 11pm. This included a 2km hike along the freeway embankment to search for a lost video unit.
Then more of the same Tue and wed.
Got out on Thu for a slow run to Lapa and back. Legs stiff but OK.
On Sat took Serena/Kate/Geoff/Kath/Lilly/Riki/Mon and Greg to Parkrun and had super slow walk/run around Sydney park. Later in the day I had a moderate run to Jellicoe and back 10k.
Late night at Ed's eating Stefica's fabulous choc and hazelnut slice. Meant to have a long run this morning but my left calf was way to sore and stiff to run on, so walked 8k round Malabar in the fog. Then helped Serena with her project the rest of the day.

Canberra Marathon 2012 Finish Gratuitous Photo

A Very Satisfying Moment

Canberra Marathon 2012 Splits

KM	Time	Elapsed Time		KM	Time	Elapsed Time
1	4.09			22	3.49	1.31.54
2	4.11	8.2		23	4.09	1.36.03
3	4.08	12.29		24	4.12	1.40.16
4	4.14	16.43		25	4.01	1.44.17
5	4.11	20.55		26	4.09	1.48.27
6	4.10	25.05		27	4.11	1.52.38
7	4.09	29.15		28	4.12	1.56.50
8	4.02	33.17		29	4.13	2.01.03
9	4.08	37.26		30	4.04	2.05.08
10	4.04	41.3		31	4.11	2.09.20
11	4.10	45.41		32	4.22	2.13.42
12	4.23	50.04		33	4.10	2.17.53
13	4.00	54.04		34	4.06	2.21.59
14	4.08	58.13		35	4.23	2.26.22
15	4.09	1.02.23		36	4.09	2.26.59
16	4.14	1.06.14		37	4.08	2.34.40
17	4.14	1.10.51		38	4.21	2.39.02
18	4.12	1.15.04		39	4.10	2.43.13
19	4.08	1.19.12		40	4.09	2.47.23
20	4.13	1.23.26		41	4.14	2.51.37
21.1	4.38	1.28.05		42	4.59	2.56.36

Canberra Marathon 2012 Official Time

Knocked the bastard Off. Canberra Marathon 2012 2h56m36s

Up at 5.30 and had corn flakes and a banana. Then massaged my calf with voltaren Very nervous.
Last night I got my gear ready. I pinned three gels inside the pants and put 20 glucose tablets in one pocket and 20 party mix lollies in the other.
Had a brief chat to EJ and PT on the start line. PT summed it up when he said the only excuse I would have for not breaking 3 hours was LOA. "Lack of ability".
So off we went. Perfect weather, no wind and clear skies. Temp about 8 deg.
First km in 4.09. Lots of other runners because the half marathon started at the same time. I planned to run 4.12m/k or 21min/5k.
As usual I felt the strain in the first 5k as I warmed up. Once we got around Parliament House I started feeling better and found a good rhythm.
I reached 10k  in 41.30. All the nerves had gone and I started feeling a bit confident. My legs felt strong. The k's were coming easily and my breathing was calm. I made a point of always having a lolly in my mouth and forced down the first gel at 10k.
I got mouthful of water at most of the drink stops but I never felt thirsty.
Got to 15k in 62.23 just before the half marathoners turned off. Suddenly I was by myself. Down to the bottom of the hill to the turn around point where I saw the three hour pace group about 2 mins behind. So far so good. Back up to the top of the hill to the half marathon point in 88.05. Right on target which was a confidence booster.
I had been following a fit looking guy in a blue shirt from 10k to 21k. The gap had remained constant  but suddenly he started getting closer, and then I was alongside him, we exchanged a few pleasantries and then he fell behind. Cool.
When I crossed the Commonwealth Ave bridge we merged with the back of the pack half-marathon runners. I was  calling out to them, "coming through on the right" but what can you do when an exhausted back runner staggers across in front of you with their Ipod on full blast. You run into them. I bumped into about three people. Their ipods were so loud that I could hear them from a metre away. One guy came to a dead stop  in front of me and I slammed into him. He was OK and fortunately he didn't slow me down much.
At the turn around at Telopea, we parted from the Half-marathoners again and the road was empty. In 2009 I remember this is where I fell off the pace. Psychologically it's tough to run away from the finish, but today it was different, I was still holding myself back. The 4.12's were still coming easily.
I heard a faint "Go Al" as I passed the turn around. It was Michele, I raised my hand to acknowledge her but according to michele I had "my game face on", and didn't look back. Its true I was focussed in making every step count.
As I passed over the Kings Ave bridge for the second time I reeled in several runners.  Some of them I recognised but had  never beaten them before. Passing them was very motivating. Soon I was passing the 30k mark which came up at 2.05.08. That was 50s faster than the SMC 30k three weeks ago. More motivation. I had 55 minutes to run 12.2k. That's 4.5m/k. Surely I could do that...I was starting to believe that I might do it.
Soon I was at the far turnaround and climbing back up the hill. I was still pulling in runners but I hadn't been overtaken. Now there was less than 9k to go. "Just count them down" I said to myself, "Just concentrate on one k at a time".
I got to 35 k in 2h.26m. Seven and a bit k's to go in 34 mins. Now I was a believer I was definitely going to do it!
I crossed the Commonwealth Ave bridge for the last time and ignored the drink station on the bend.
As I came in front of Parliament House a lady runner who had been looking good suddenly stopped at the 39k mark, I called to her to pick it up and keep running. She ran with me for 50 metres but then she stopped. I powered on.
I got to 41k in 2.51.37. Now the moment I had imagined so many times was at hand. The long straight by the school seemed to go on forever. Then finally I was at the turn into the home straight. Woo Hoo. I ran the last 1.2k in 4.59.00.
I heard Honor's voice call out "Run Forest" from the crowd, so as I crossed the line I gave the Hunger Games salute to tease her back. Needless to say I had a huge smile on my face, and then it was over. I had finally run under 3 hours. Time on my watch was 2.56.36.
Honor, Michele and Serena were at the finish and I shed a few tears as I thanked them for the tremendous support they have given me over the last 7 years of marathon running.
Afterwards I had shower at the motel room and we went to the glass works and markets. My legs were little sore, but overall I felt great and just kept on grinning.

Ready. What more can I do?

One hour to race time and I am nervously checking everything...gels *3 Check, glucose pills Check, lollies check, bib check, taping feet and nipples check, rested check, right pre race meals check, laminated race pace card check, disposable jumper check, months of consistent training check, times of recent races on track for 3 hrs check, weather perfect check.
So excuses ...none.
Worries heaps.
Main worry is that my left calf has been strained in the last few days. There is a ball of tender swollen muscle there which I have been massaging with Voltaren. Its tender but not unbearable. I just hope it will be OK once its warmed up.
So my plan...just run 4.12ks for as long as I can. That's 21min per 5k. I must focus on keeping the pace constant and maintaining the flow of energy. Also have to make sure that I keep the energy supply up with a gel every 10k and sucking the glucose and lollies. The first half should be pretty easy. It will be 35 to 38k where the race will be done or undone. And as usual I will be racing that guy with the patch. He is a tough competitor but prone to giving up..

Striders 10k Lane Cove 7/4/12

Mon  - 12km at 4.5min/k to Lapa and back
Tue - Strides and 5 * 800m Intervals at Pioneer
Wed - 18km MLR Malabar - Office - Port Botany - Lapa -Malabar
Thu - 5k to office
Fri - no run - ROV on the Encounter with Neil, Dave, Graham, Geoffery in Sea Hunt
Sat - Striders 10k Lane Cove - I thought I was going slowly as other runners like TA, and SA pulled away from me. Kept saying to myself "Just get up the hills without killing yourself" At the summit I felt OK, & on the run down  started gaining on the group ahead. Was able to increase the speed in the last two km. Finished in 38.42. Then went to big working bee at DD's house. Didn't finish till 8pm. Tired.
Sun - Homebush Hustle - Arrived late partly due to RBT. Ran at MP to about the 22k mark when I caught Mike and we did the last 8k at 5.5k. Had an Easter Egg and a nap at home before going to see the Harry Potter exhibition with Serena

Tourist Trot Star 1/4/12

Bonus hour due to daylight savings gave me time to have half a tin of creamed rice and an expresso. Seemed to make a difference as I had above normal endurance today. Took a gu at 12k. Never ran out of energy and left the group behind, not on purpose but got dragged along by TF who turned off later. All up 29k in 2.10.