Yesterday I completed my last long run in preparation for the Six Foot Track 45k trail run. The group started from Molonglo Reach and ran around the golf course at Duntroon and up to the saddle of Mt Ainslie and Mt Majura.
It was blessedly cooler than last Saturday but again promising to be a warm morning. Everyone was still pretty much together up at the horse stile 4.5k into the run. For me this had been a bit of an effort as we'd been running at 5:35/km pace - quicker than I like on an early morning long run. Steve, Elizabeth, John, Zel, Gordon and Carol were running easily and looking strong.
Thankfully Steve had decided to do an easier run and we didn't climb to the summit of Majura, stopping at the '4-ways' to admire the fantastic views to the south-east. Once back at the base of Ainslie I let the hares run off ahead while I plodded on at a more civilised and comfortable pace. Surprisingly the stragglers were still admiring the view and drinking from the tap when I reached the summit of Ainslie. The last 8k of my 28.3k run was difficult. My running pace had slowed to 7:00/km while the kilometres I walked were around 9:00/km pace. Still, the run bore no comparison to last week's disaster.
So, for me, it's goodnight to the long runs. Next Saturday Steve has said we'll run 15k or so around the base of Ainslie then the following Saturday a leisurely 45 kilometres through the beautiful Blue Mountains west of Sydney.
In the afternoon I was still 'living' so I rode the GSX out to the track to watch the ACT T&F Championships. It was a warm and windy afternoon - less than ideal for the 1500 metre events. Some runners ran surprising PBs while others were perplexingly slow. Ben ran a brilliantly paced race to win the U20 event in 4:08 off a 3-week preparation. Many of the younger runners from Calwell ran exceedingly well in both the 1500 and 400 metre races while one of the older ones was disappointed with her 5:10. I just said "the good days will come, besides, there's always the 800 metre race tomorrow".
7 comments:
Ah, the magical taper :-) Enjoy it!
Its a nice feeling when you can say hurrah to the loooong runs. Its not long to go now - enjoy the taper.
Woohoo! The hard part is over.Now relax and enjoy the taper and the big day ... i am secretly jealous of all you six foot legends!
Go get em!
Wow - great run. Now relax and enjoy tapering. You have done all the hard training. Now you can reap the benefits. See you tomorrow at PH.
Forget all about running...give me the GSX way any day!
Enjoy the taper, but keep up the good work. You don't want to lose any form from too much rest!
Sorry can't send any of our recent rain down your way as we need every drop. Dams are still way down.
As for not being able to buy a jumper in Qld, that is true. But if it ever gets cold enough to need one the State Emergency Services hands them out to avert the crisis ;-)
Good luck at 6ft.
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