So this is Christmas

I should write. There's been a lot of running and racing since my last blog post back in April. I'm still following the 'Norwegian Singles Approach' to training. There's a Strava club for the method with a lot of posts and comments on how to implement the training. For myself, I've been typically doing sub-threshold running on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday with a mix of easy running or very easy intervals on the other days.

My most memorable races this year have included the Point Hut Pond parkrun 5k in 25:59, Customs Joggers 5k in 26:02, City to Surf 14k in 83:06 and Canberra Times 10k in 55:06. The ACT Masters' track season has commenced and I was pleased with an early 3000m race in 15:17.39. I have a goal of breaking 15 minutes and 26 minutes for the 5000 metres.

I continue to enjoy my regular lunchtime handicap group runs and weekly sessions with Geoff Moore and the Speedygeese. They're great fun and sociable with the group often meeting afterwards by the lake to celebrate a birthday or other achievement. I hope you're all doing well and looking forward to an exciting running year in 2025.

BBQ Stakes Christmas photo

Customs Joggers shirt in the Tuggeranong parkrun

The ACT Masters' 5000m Championships

 The track 5k is now my favourite running event (it used to be the Steeplechase but even the lower barrier height for 60+ runners is daunting for a soon-to-be 67-year-old). My lifetime 5k PB was achieved in the ACT Championship event in 1991 when I couldn't hold on to Brian Wenn and Geoff Monro during the 4th kilometre. Two weeks ago, the 4th kilometre was again my nemesis.

The race was held on 21 March and luckily the weather was kind, a cool 14 degrees and with a light breeze. There were 20 runners in the race (quite a big field for an ACT event). I positioned myself wide on the curved start line and settled in behind Michelle T, Jacki and Carol with Keng Yin up ahead. There was a faster group already breaking away, with the leader Ken Gibson off to a time-trialled win in 16:19. Not long after 1k (5:02) I passed Michelle, Jacki and then Carol (who would break the ACT W75 record in 27:15.92). Once ahead of Carol I tried but couldn't maintain 2-minute laps (5 minutes per km pace). 2k was passed in 10:06 and 3k in 15:15. I had no prey in sight and knew that I was in for a time trial to the finish. The fourth kilometre took 5:16, then I rallied to a 5:06 fifth as Nigel ahead appeared to be slowing. I couldn't catch him though and he finished 5 seconds ahead. My time for the 5000 metres was 25:36.90 in 14th place and second for 65-69s.

I'm happy with the race and although my time was 30 seconds slower than last year it's still a 25-something 5k! In other news, the sub-threshold training I talked about in my previous post is going well. I'm typically doing these harder days on Monday, Wednesday and Friday with easy run/walk intervals or easy runs on the other days.

After the race with lap-counter Rog on my left

Threshold training for 5k racing

 I've become fascinated by the recent trend towards threshold training, no doubt due to its successful use by the Ingebrigtsen family and other Norwegians. The basic theory is that the runner spends as much time as possible running at a threshold effort which is arrived at by measuring blood lactate. Gradually your speed at threshold becomes faster and along with that, your race pace. It's important not to run threshold sessions too fast or the accumulated lactic acid in the muscles extends the recovery time. Jakob Ingebrigtsen runs two days of 'double threshold' (a morning and an afternoon session) on Tuesday and Thursday with a 'special session' (often hill sprint repeats) on Saturday mornings with another threshold session that afternoon. His weekly training volume is around 160 kilometres.

Can the average recreational runner learn something from how Jakob trains and possibly adapt those methods for use in our own training? I think we can, and Irish 2:09 marathoner Stephen Scullion has produced a detailed video on what we can learn from the Ingebrigtsens. Jakob's older brother Kristoffer is a recreational runner and his training (you can find him on Strava) gives an insight into how an average runner uses a threshold training system to improve race times. Kristoffer runs around 105 km per week or for 8 hours 10 minutes and he doesn't do 'double threshold' days. His week usually consists of one rest day, three threshold days and three 'steady' running days, one of those being a long run. He uses a Lactate Pro 2 Meter to check blood lactate and make sure he is running at the correct threshold effort. His 'best times' on Strava include 16:22 for 5k, 33:09 for 10k and 73:43 for a half marathon, all very good results for a recreational runner.

If I'm to train similarly to Kristoffer Ingebrigtsen but at 6.5 hours per week, it seems I need a way to judge threshold effort correctly so I can recover sufficiently with one steady running day between threshold days. This will call for some experimentation as the key to good recovery is to run threshold effort 'just right' erring on too slow rather than too fast. I'll use heart rate as a guide. I race 5k at an average heart rate of around 146 (my maximum HR is close to 156). For a start I'll try threshold effort runs/intervals with my heart rate between 130 and 139. General and easy running days will be under a heart rate of 130. My days of the week will go: Monday a variety of threshold running with the Speedygeese group, Tuesday a steady Lake Stakes, Wednesday a threshold BBQ Stakes fartlek, Thursday a steady 65 minutes of running, Friday a threshold Customs Joggers session, Saturday an easy parkrun, Sunday an easy short run or bike ride. Sometimes I'll run the Customs Joggers 5k as a race effort if there are no suitable local races. That's the plan until Masters' track racing starts in October so I'll report back before then with how things are going.

A few of the Speedygeese group at the Coombs parkrun

Running even faster!

It's hard to know where to start with the ACT Masters' 5000m Championships, held last Thursday evening in Woden. Coming into the race I knew my form was good, having run the 25:47 parkrun in December and 14:57 for 3000m in March. My goal was to improve on my last 5000m track race, 26:04.67 in 2021 and be under 26 minutes. I reallly didn't think I'd be close to 25 minutes. How did that happen?

We nineteen starters were blessed with good weather conditions, a light breeze (tailwind in the home straight), a temperature of 13 degrees and low humidity. I knew the form of my competitors and thought Jacki, Dale and Gordon were good for a 26-minute 5k. At 7:15 PM the starter's gun fired and we were off. I settled in behind Jacki, with Geoff, Dale, Gordon and Robbie up ahead. After two laps I passed Jacki into the 15 metre gap to Geoff. The clock at 1k read 4:57 and I was feeling okay, but thinking maybe the pace was too quick.

During the next five laps I concentrated on not letting the distance to Geoff grow larger and was surprised when he began slowing (due to a pre-race calf injury). My time at 3k was 14:59 and I thought 'that's quick, can I keep it going?' I passed Geoff and spent the next three laps closing the 25 metre gap to Gordon. I sensed my pace was slowing down (the 4th kilometre took 5:11), but Gordon was slowing more. I was excited that a finishing time close to 25 minutes was happening. I just had to maintain the pace. I passed Gordon and ran the final two laps as fast as possible, finishing in 12th place with a time of 25:07.60. 'Wow, that's good!' was my immediate thought on crossing the finish line. When I got home I checked my previous 5k results; the last time I ran faster than this was in July 2019, 24:51 for the Runners Shop 5k. I'm excited for the rest of 2023.

The winner of the race was M40 Jeff van Gangelen in a fantastic 16:49 ahead of M50 Steve Rohan-Jones in 17:30 and M45 Grant McKay in 18:39. The first lady was W55 Ann in 23:27 from W55 Jacki in 26:00. Dale ran 24:40, Mark 24:46, Robbie 24:46, Gordon 25:22 and Geoff 28:56. There was also an Australian Record for W80s run by the amazing Caroline Campbell, 28:52 to break Norma Wallett's equally amazing time of 31:11.58.

A few Speedygeese, including Caroline in the red cap

Finishing 2022 with a fast parkrun

It's been a long time since I rock and rolled
It's been a long time since I did the stroll
Ooh, let me get it back, let me get it back
Let me get it back, baby, where I come from

This is the first verse of Rock and Roll by Led Zeppelin where Robert Plant sings about the long, lonely time since he walked in the moonlight with his love. For me it's been a long time since I did the full effort stroll at a parkrun 5k. It was way back on February 22, 2020 at Tuggeranong where I placed 99th in 26:33.

On December 10 I decided to make amends for my inattention and see if 'having a crack' would carry me back to the days of fast times at parkrun. My confidence was high, having trained well with the Speedygeese and resuming racing on the track with the ACT Masters, recording a 14:50 3000m on the Thursday prior to parkrun.

I arrived early enough for a good warm-up with strides, then lined up next to Kenny, not too far from the front. Start was fast and after 500 metres I was happy to find myself behind Adam (a consistent 25-26 minute runner). Crossing the footbridge just before 1.5 km I eased ahead of Adam and followed a young lady, Rachel, towards 2 km. It was about here that David flew past (he would run 24:52).

My legs were still feeling good after the 2.5 km turn. Go legs! I knew I was running fast enough to run under 26 minutes as I was maintaining my position in the group of runners. The little down slope after the footbridge is perfectly placed before the 4 km mark. The effort was now hard and lonely, the finish a long time away! 5 minutes feels like a long time when everything hurts! Finally, the parkland finish was in sight and a final sprint to the line. 61st place in 25:47. Yeah-hey, ooh yeah!

The 1 km splits were: 5:27, 5:12, 5:06, 5:14 and 4:48 at an average heart-rate of 143, maximum at the finish was 152. Bring on 2023!

Dec 16 photo with the Friday Customs Joggers runners

Running faster

2022 is turning out to be a good year for running. I've entered a new age-group, the 65-69s, which means a new pack of runners to race on the track and at parkruns (although we all know that "parkrun is not a race!"). In recent years I've concluded that if I can finish in the same times as the previous year, that counts as improvement. Physical decline as one ages through the pensioner years is real!

I've raced two 'peak' 5k races this year (and plenty of low-key events). Both have been improvements on the same races in 2021. Back on January 8 was the Athletics ACT Stromlo 5k road race in which I placed 41st from 50 in 26:13, an improvement of 2 seconds from 2021. I had the incentive of racing my mate Jim and a few other Masters runners. On July 23 was the annual Runners Shop 5k held on an out/back course beside the Monlonglo River. I was very motivated to run under 26 minutes (my goal for this year). I had Jim for company early, then caught and passed a lady around 1.5k. For the rest of the race there was a gap of around 150 metres to another lady which I couldn't close. I could hear the steps of a man from behind in the final kilometre. When he kicked past I couldn't stick with him, finishing 12 seconds back in 20th from 29 runners. My time of 25:33 was very pleasing, faster than the 26:15 I ran in 2021.

For the second race, new shoes contributed quite a bit to the improved time, new Nike Alphafly racers being a faster shoe than the Nike Pegasus Turbos I normally use. Still, I'm running faster than last year, which is quite exciting. The hands of time can't be stopped but they can be slowed! Consistency in training is making a difference this year. I'm hoping to continue that trend into 2023.

Training with the Speedygeese at Parliamant House

Finally, we're back racing again!

Hopefully for good! Various states of Australia were in Covid-19 lockdown in the middle of the year, which meant it was impossible to plan with certainty for running in 'big' fun runs. At the beginning of August the ACT also went into lockdown (getting around 20-40 cases per day) for three months. In the early stages we were able to exercise with one other person for 60 minutes per day and had to wear masks outdoors. Gradually restrictions were eased and in early November smaller local races resumed with parkrun commencing on 13 November.

I've enjoyed this freedom, racing twice per week. On Tuesday evenings in the Canberra Runners 'Spring Series' and on Fridays at lunch time in the Customs Joggers 5k Handicap run. The other days of the week are easy 'MAF' effort runs or Easy Interval Method runs for around 70 kilometres per week. My fitness is slowly improving.

The 'Spring Series' races have been particularly enjoyable (this event has been held continuously since the late 1980s). I've varied my participation between the 5k and 2k races. The short race is quite challenging as the fields mostly contain younger fast-starting children and slower 'broken down' masters. The 5k Barrenjoey cross country race was sandwiched between two 2k road races. In both the 2k races I battled to catch youngsters, ran with them for a brief time, before finishing with a sprint. Good fun! My times were pleasing, a 9:47 and a 9:40. In the 5k race I started conservatively, catching my rival Jim at the end of the first of 3 laps. I then chased a few other runners (feeling like 5k was a long way), finally placing 32nd from 44 in a time of 26:17. The variety of participants evident in that the winning time was 16:49, first female 21:20 in 14th, last place 34:19, with runners aged 10 to 71 taking part.

This will be my last post for the year, so all the best to readers for the season, holidays and 2022.

Runners in the Black Mountain Peninsula 'Spring Series' 5k

Lush grass showing the wet and cool weather we've been experiencing

Canberra Marathon Festival 5.45k Fun Run

This race was held on 11 April and to fit the course in with the half marathon and 10k events we raced over 5.45 kilometres. It was sure to be a PB as I've never raced that distance before! There were large fields for all events, these being the first 'mass start' races since Covid-19 restrictions started in March last year. There were 702 runners in the 5.45k race.

My start position was good, about 10 metres back from the line. After the initial rush I settled in behind my rival Jim, following him around the first bend before easing ahead. I was more or less maintaining position on the gradual climb up to Parliament House (first kilometre in 5:26). Around the back of PH I passed a few of the fast starters and was feeling fairly comfortable with the pace. The second km (a bit of up, then flat) took 5:20 then we enjoyed the downhill from the other side of Parliament House — 5:06 for that split. There was plenty of space to run now as we headed towards Lake Burley Griffin. I was sticking with the nearby runners pretty well and feeling good. The next two kilometres passed in 5:01 and 5:13, then 2:13 for the 450m to the finish.

I was pleased with the result, 65th place and 1st in the M60-69 group, and how I felt during the race. Average pace was 5:12 per km, so a better result than the 26:04 track 5000m, considering the hill early in the course. I'm looking forward to the Autumn/Winter races with their typically calm and sunny conditions.

Races are back! With Jim (red singlet) for the Sri Chinmoy Cooleman Clip 5k trail race.

A 5000 metre race on the track

I have a soft spot for the track 5k — 100% accurate course, 100% flat, not having to deal with the crush of 300 people at a parkrun. On Thursday evening, 11 March, I raced in the ACT Masters' 5000m Championship race at Woden Field. The conditions were good for fast times, calm and around 17 degrees. I was hoping to run '25-something' as a stepping stone towards breaking 25 later this year.

With a field of just eighteen, I was able to start with my toe behind the curved start line, so no metres lost at all! At the gun, I settled in with Angel, Sue and Roger, Jim ahead and intent on also running "a 25" having been in the 26s at 5k parkruns. We were right behind Jim through the first 1000, 5:03 the split so perfect pacing. Jim started slowing after another two laps so Roger, Sue and myself went past, my watch showing 10:10 through 2k. I was finding the going tough, Roger forged ahead with Sue also stretching out 3 or 4 metres. I passed the 3k mark in 15:23, so 5:13 for that kilometre, not good! Roger was gone but I managed to hold the gap to Sue at around 10 metres. The fourth kilometre was covered in 5:20, slowing further! I rallied in the last lap, catching and passing Sue to finish 14th in 26:04.67. Roger ran a great race to run 25:14. At the pointy end, an excellent run by Bruce Graham (16:59.93 at age 59!) from Jacob (17:06) and Alistair (17:39).

For myself, it was a somewhat disappointing result — under 25 is still over a minute away. My recent form is showing improvement though which gives me confidence a '25-something' will be run soon. The photo below was taken at the Coombs parkrun last Saturday, demonstrating good running form, both feet in the air at the same time!

You are not walking if both feet are in the air

The RunACT Stromlo 5k Road Race

It's been a while! There wasn't much to report during the final two months of 2020. I was happy to be able to run consistently throughout the year, averaging 49 kilometres per week. My goal for the year was to break 25 minutes in a 5k race, so a fail there — my fastest 5k was back in July, 25:38 for the Runners Shop race.

For 2021 my goal remains the same, under 25 minutes for a 5k race. In my current form, that seems quite a difficult goal! The first test was at the RunACT Stromlo 5k Road Race, held last Saturday evening. The course was 5 laps of a 'AA-Certified' accurate 1k loop on the smooth bitumen of the criterium circuit. It was a relatively flat course, just a short rise into the U-turn at the northern end of the course.

I started out at what I estimated was 5-minute per km pace — my 'opposition' (Jimmy and Zoe), not far ahead. My first lap, in retrospect, was too fast for my fitness level, 4:57. I was already slowing, but still going fast enough to pass Jim and gradually catch Zoe. I moved ahead going into the third lap (5:09 for the second) but it was feeling hard already, far too early! There were around 65 runners in the race and there were a couple I slowly pulled in during the third lap (5:19). For the last two laps I tried to maintain pace but was getting slower, eventually crossing the line in 52nd (5:29 and 5:20) for a time of 26:14. A long way from 25 minutes, but I'm looking forward to the challenge of chipping away at that time during the course of 2021. I hope you are all well, and looking forward to more running events than were available last year.

Start of the Community 5k race at Stromlo, myself in yellow, Jim in blue singlet

The Easy Interval Method

Back in July of 2017 I wrote a blog post about my discovery of the Verheul method of training for running, following up with further posts about my experiences training this way. Last Christmas I received a book — Easy Interval Method by Klaas Lok (one of Verheul's original pupils). I was excited to read the book and find out if I'd been doing Verheul training correctly back in 2017.

The book has many examples of runners who improved and ran successfully using the Easy Interval Method, from 'average' club runners to Olympic and World Champions. An example of the former is Bertrand Maas who improved his 10k from 52 minutes to 44:21 and half marathon from 2 hours to 1:47 — of the latter there is Faith Kipyegon (gold in the 1500m at Rio) and Geoffrey Kirui (26:55 10k and World Marathon Champion in 2017), both coached by Piet de Peuter in Kenya. There are examples of Masters runners such as John van der Wansem who switched from high mileage (Lydiard style) training to the Easy Interval Method at the age of 35. John ran 14:21.6 for 5000m as a 40+ runner and 31:49 for 10k at the age of 51.

For ACT Masters runners, track racing has commenced again (there have been no Covid-19 cases in the ACT for a number of weeks). Last Thursday night I ran the 3000m with no expectations besides putting in a solid effort. I found myself racing Roger and Thea in the early laps. After 1k I passed Rog and tried to keep the gap to Helen ahead from growing larger. This was a successful strategy and I placed 10th in 14:52.16, with Helen running 14:36.58. The winner (M30) Adrian ran 9:22! I will continue to race on the track for the remainder of 2020 with perhaps a parkrun 5k if we get started again (Tasmania is starting on October 17 so it's likely we won't be far behind).

Easy Interval Method book by Klaas Lok (available on Amazon)

The ball is still rolling

 Is anybody out there? The title for this blog post comes from the coaching philosophy of Tom 'Tinman' Schwartz. Tom tells a story about building a snowman as a boy and rolling a ball of snow for the base of the snowman. His mum calls him in for lunch; he returns and is disappointed that his ball won't budge from the frozen ground. The first 'rule' of good distance running training is to 'keep the ball rolling' — avoid superman workouts that might leave you too sore to complete the following day's training. Build day upon day, week upon week, year upon year and your running will improve. Interruptions from injury and illness will be minimized.

My ball of snow has been carefully rolling since the hamstring injury which followed the City to Surf last August. Weekly distance has been hovering between 50 and 60 kilometres. Races have been few and far between with large fun runs cancelled although there are plenty of local events (limited to 100 starters at the moment). No parkrun 5k runs which is a bit sad.

The racing goal this year is to run as much under 25 minutes for 5k as I can. The one 5k I've raced was the YCRC Runners Shop 5k (road) on 18 July, finishing 50th in 25:38. The field was composed of mainly fast juniors (the winning times were 14:52 and 18:32). I was running alone very early on, with Speedygeoff disappearing in the distance to run a good 24:12 at the age of 72. It looks like parkruns won't start up again until next year so my 5k races will be on the track from October or on the road at the weekly 5k Customs Joggers run. I hope you are all well — I'll catch up on blog reading over the coming weeks.

Geoff with some of the lunchtime Speedygeese runners

Injury and fitness recovery

Dear readers, I'm sorry for not producing a blog post since the City to Surf back in August! I suffered a hamstring injury (strain) shortly after that race, I think due to a combination of running that event off inadequate training, and sprinting at the end of a handicap run in the week following City to Surf (inadequate recovery). I eventually rested from running during September, substituting brisk walking and cycling, then resumed running at the beginning of October.

I started with light Verheul intervals, running with walking recoveries with a first continuous run of 3k on the treadmill on 6 October (5:55/km pace). My first 5k was on 11 October, 30:32 at an average heart-rate of 140. So slow, so hard! It was sobering how unfit I'd become. On 19 October I ran 28:17 for the Tuggeranong Parkrun at an average heart-rate of 144, so an improvement in speed but a very high heart-rate (my recent recorded maximum is 160). Prior to the injury, on 20 July, I raced 5k in 24:51 at an average heart-rate of 145. My last full effort race was in the Canberra Times 5k on 10 November (a hilly course), running 27:42 at an average heart-rate of 144. My fitness is returning, but very slowly.

My strategy for regaining fitness is to build mileage to 60 kilometres per week (or a little more), with adequate easy/rest days, and most of that running being low heart-rate (very easy, HR 125 or less for me), easy Verheul intervals, and short races (2k to 5k) being the only 'hard' running for the time being. My weekly mileage has progressed since the beginning of October: 23k, 29k, 31k, 33k, 41k, 50k and approximately 60k this past week. So far, so good! I hope you're all doing well and looking forward to good running and racing in 2020, year of the Tokyo Olympics!

Traditional ice-cream follows the Lake Stakes lunch run

Sydney City to Surf #35

On Sunday I ran in my 35th City to Surf — it was the 49th running of Australia's biggest fun run. I had no goals or expectations for the run apart from enjoying it, not getting injured and recovering well from the effort. I wasn't expecting to 'run well' due to the missing long runs and hill training in my preparation. Since the Canberra Half Marathon in May my longest run has been 11 kilometres — weekly mileage has been 50-55 km, not enough to be at my best for racing 14 kilometres.

I travelled to Sydney with Jim on the Saturday and met up with Trevor and Roger on Sunday morning. Warm-up was a jog from the train station to the toilets then a little jogging in the 30 minutes remaining before the start. Trevor was in the 'Red' group (for sub-70 minute runners) and would run 67 minutes at age-67! Jim, Rog and myself were in the 'Green' group (2nd group to start, sub-90 minutes). We employed the same tactic as last year, starting near the back of the group and waiting as long as possible. This gave us a sparsely populated road for 3 kilometres which gradually filled as the race progressed — by 10 kilometres it became difficult to overtake runners.

I ran with Rog through the Kings Cross Tunnel then Edgecliffe and Rose Bay, passing 5k in 27:02. I was feeling pretty good at this early stage of the race. There were a few short walks on the steep corners going up Heartbreak Hill, that kilometre covered in 7:12. My legs and energy were still good and I was growing more confident about completing the race at the same effort. We were still overtaking runners with a few speedsters from the Blue group weaving past. Rog dropped back on the run to 10k, I passed that mark in 56:25. It's always a drag from 10k to 12k where the course finally drops away down to Bondi. I was happy to maintain position down the hill, still overtaking when possible. I caught up to Liz around the 13k mark, then we were on the 'flat' of Campbell Parade, the U-turn and the final gentle down slope before the last corner and 150m sprint to the finish.

My last 3 kilometres according to the Garmin were 4:58, 4:54 and 4:36. Finish time was 76:10 for 13,656th place out of 70,000+ finishers. Happy with that! I think this result shows that having no expectations prior to a race can be a good thing. I was happy with how I spread out my effort over the course, just running by feel. The weather had been good for running, less than 10 degrees and the blustery wind not a problem running in such a packed field. Roger finished in 77:05 and Jim in 86:18 to stay 'Green Group' qualified for 2020. See you there!

With Jim and Roger after running to Bondi Beach

Racing 5k in 25 minutes

Since my last post on 12 March I've been gradually increasing my weekly mileage and racing the 5k regularly. I'm now at close to 60 kilometres per week, which seems to be producing slow fitness gains. My 5k race results since early March have proceeded thus: 28:11, 26:34, 26:03, 26:06.01 (track), 25:11, 25:49, 25:37, 24:36, 24:59 and 25:31. The 24:36 on 12 May was in the Mother's Day Classic 5k, a big fun run in Canberra. It was a harder effort than races since then, average heart-rate of 145 compared to 141 for the 25:31 Tuggeranong Parkrun.

There was a big fun run atmosphere for the MDC in spite of the cold (5 degrees C) and calm conditions. My mate Jim called me towards the first 'pen' of runners — we were only about 6 rows back from the front. Jim bolted at the gun and I spent the first 800m or so pegging him back. At about the same time the 25-minute pacer went past — 'Okay, this is good, I'll try and stick with this group' as we passed 1k in 4:58. The pacer opened up a gap of 20 metres as he ran over Kings Avenue Bridge. I ran hard on the down slope of the bridge and passed 2k in 10:04. I never caught the pacer but the small group I was with were overtaking runners who had started faster. My third kilometre was 5:01, then 5:03 over Commonwealth Avenue Bridge. I ran hard down the bridge and to the finish, 4:33 for the last kilometre but still not quite catching the pacer! I was very happy with my finish time, good enough to win the 60-69 age-group. Jim came in about 90 seconds later to win the 70-79s, a solid run and one of his better recent races.

Looking forward, I plan to continue racing regularly while maintaining mileage at 50 to 60 kilometres per week over winter. I'm feeling confident about improving the 24:36 5k time towards 24 minutes. I hope to run faster than 24 and will have a good idea if that's possible after a few more months. I hope everyone is enjoying their running — until next time, be well!

Jim (left) has run over 300 Lake Stakes lunch runs

A long time away from running

I've been coughing and spluttering my way into the 2019 running year, much like a learner driver kangaroo-hopping down a suburban road, nervous clutch foot, a parent offering calm advice from the passenger seat of an ancient manual Holden.

A 20-day break in January was followed by a week's running, then another 33 days of zeros in the diary. The cause, a 'medical condition' which I'm confident is in the past. I'm up to 2 days of running in a row — yes! The details of those runs: 1k in 5:24 followed by 4k of easy walking at the Coombs Parkrun then on Sunday evening, 2k at 5:40 per km, puffing along with the expected high average heart-rate of 139 (my maximum is about 160).

My intention is to very gradually increase the daily distance over the coming weeks until I'm somewhere near a goal volume of 60 kilometres per week. My long-term racing goal for this year is to run 5k in a time yet to be determined, something 'respectable' — in the vague range of 22 to 24 minutes. I'll stick my neck out in due course, but even 25 minutes seems lofty when out of shape. I hope all readers are having a good 2019 so far — a shout-out to Mark, who recently ran a big marathon PB of 3:08, an excellent result, achieved with clever coaching from young Scott Brown. Until the next post, be well.

Lake Stakes runners celebrating after the weekly 6k handicap run on 1 January

Break on through to the other side

Obviously this is my last post for 2018 so I'd like to say 'thanks' to readers and wish you all the best for achieving your running goals in 2019. For myself, I didn't quite get there in 2018 — my goal was to run faster than 23 minutes for 5k and my best time was 23:10 at The Runners Shop 5k in July. I had been targeting a 5000m track race in December but the meeting was cancelled due to storms. I haven't had a full race effort since the Wagga Parkrun — I've been waiting in vain for a cool night or morning.

I still remain excited about the possibility of running a 'good' 5k so that will be one of my main goals for 2019. Time-wise, I'd still like to break that pesky 23-minute barrier. There are a few reasons for my excitement and I'll talk briefly about two of them in this post.

1. I've started reading the book by Alex Hutchinson — 'Endure: Mind, Body and the Curiously Elastic Limits of Human Performance.' In chapter 1, Alex talks about his own running breakthrough, having had the goal of breaking 4 minutes for 1500 metres since the age of 15. He eventually did so, unexpectedly, at an obscure indoor meeting when the split times were read incorrectly and he ended up running 3:52. Having broken the mental 4-minute 'barrier' he continued to improve and ran 3:44 to qualify for the Canadian Olympic Trials. Prior to the breakthrough, Alex tried to replicate training that preceded good races, something I've always done, having kept detailed running diaries since the early 1980s. Running well is organic and mental rather than mathematical.

2. A podcast by Steve Magness and Jon Marcus where they also talk about the unpredictability of breakthroughs and the importance of trusting the process (of training) and 'racing the race.' I tend to get hung up on running even splits (especially in track races) when I'd give myself the chance of running faster if I raced the race.

The lush track at Dickson, venue for the 2018 ACT Beer Mile

A 3000m race and a 5k Parkrun

I've decided to write about races in a little detail as a record of my progress towards racing 5k in under 23 minutes. Since the last blog post there have been two full effort races, a 3000m on the track and a 5k Parkrun at Wagga (strictly not a race, but a 5k timed run which many treat as a race). I also raced the Fisher's Ghost 5k a little off full effort (wary of the hilly course) in 24:29, 11 seconds slower than I ran in 2017.

ACT Masters' 3000m, 8 November — I was hoping to run a season's best and dip well under 14 minutes but I had one of those awful races where the second half feels like you're running through ever-deepening mud. It was an unusually cold night at the Woden track, not my favourite weather, about 9 degrees celsius. Helen was running and had been good form, recently breaking 30 minutes for the hilly BBQ Stakes 6k lunch run. I started a little faster than customary to take up a position following Helen for the first 3 laps, passing 1000m in 4:34 (13:42 3k pace), Dale and Roger just behind. Then it all started going wrong, the elastic to Helen breaking as Dale and Roger gave chase. I continued to fade, running the second km in 4:44 and third in 4:53, finishing 11th in 14:10.4. Roger way ahead in a good 13:40 followed by Helen in 13:51 and Dale in 14:06.

Wagga 5k Parkrun, 17 November — A much better race! Three members of the Speedygeese were running, Geoff (chasing the M70 course record), myself and Lisa (returning from injury). It was a beautiful morning, calm as we warmed up (which turned into a very gentle breeze), perhaps a fraction warm at around 17 degrees celsius. The small field of 124 runners and walkers allowed us to take up position close to the front on the wide start line. Geoff took off purposefully (I knew he was aiming for under 24 minutes), and his pace felt just about right as we moved past a few overenthusiastic starters. "Sub-5 pace?" enquired Geoff after a few minutes. "Definitely!" The 1k split was 4:37 and we were still catching people. I eased ahead of Geoff on the rough section at the north of the lake, setting my sights on catching a lady running about 30 metres ahead of us. The split for the second k was 4:41 and I knew Geoff wasn't far behind (hearing his loud breathing, which continued all the way to the finish). I overtook the young lady (she would run 25:03) before the turn on the out/back course. I tried to keep the speed up running back and it felt like I was, even though the next two splits were both 4:48. I had another bloke to chase for the last kilometre as a young runner flew past, making us both look slow! A final sprint for the line and 24th place in a time of 23:42, Geoff not far behind (smashing the M70 record by 2 minutes) in 23:50 and Lisa having an excellent run with a course PB of 25:09. Good race!

A calm Lake Albert, perfect for ducks and geese

A lot of running and a rare win

The 2018 goal of breaking 23 minutes for 5k is still motivating my training. I think I can do it! I've raced regularly since The Canberra Times 10ish k but none have been 100% flat-out efforts. My weekly mileage has also been consistent, averaging around 100 kilometres per week. I feel fit and just need a calm and cooler day for a fast race. Cool and calm days haven't been as common as warm and windy days of late.

With my future training I plan to only run 'hard' on two days per week and I'd like to make those days very hard. One day will be a race, most likely on the track at the Thursday Masters' meetings. I will race the 3000m or 5000m most likely, with an occasional 1500m. On 18 October I ran a 5000m, placing 2nd in 24:14.2, a long way from 23 minutes but it was a warm night and I wasn't motivated to 'go to the well' that evening. Last Tuesday afternoon I ran 23:59 on bikepaths in 'The Boathouse' 5k. Once again it was warm and we were running into a headwind for the second half of the race. My legs felt good and I was moving well so that was pleasing.

Back on Sunday 21 October a large group of Speedygeese headed out to Tarago for the annual 'Run with the Wind' Fun Runs. I entered the 5k and knew there were only a few old blokes entered in the 60-69 category, my mate Jim one of them. The course was out/back on a smooth gravel access road to the giant wind turbines and over challenging hills. The start was crowded and I had no idea of my place until the leader and those following him came back from the turn. Most were obviously young and fast but I was on the lookout for the wrinkly skin and grey hair of ancient runners. Nothing! A couple of runners looked to be around 50 but I appeared to be racing for the win. Good fun! All I had to do was stay ahead of Jim and Jeff and I'd be on the top spot of the podium! I ran back to the finish (walking a couple of times on the hills), pacing myself with teenagers and 20-somethings, not concerned with the time, just winning. And that's what happened. Racing without concern for the finish time is liberating and enjoyable. I like racing!

Speedygeoff won the 10k 70-79 category!

Spectacular views from the 10k race turn

The Canberra Times almost 10k

But not quite. I last raced The Canberra Times 10k in 2016, placing 402nd in 52:01. On Sunday the organisers introduced a new out/back course, hillier in my estimation with a climb up to New Parliament House at the 6k mark. The old course was point-to-point, no sharp turns (a net downhill run) and reasonably fast depending on wind direction. My certified road 10k PB was run on that course. For the new course I was hoping to break 50 minutes but thought it would be close, due to the new extra hill and turns.

I did a trial run on August 30 and my thoughts at the time were 'this is going to be hard!' — it was also a fraction long by my Garmin, 10.2k, but I didn't know exactly where the finish would be placed. On Sunday the U-turn at the southern end of the course was earlier than expected and Strava data from runners shows that we did in fact run a short course. I recorded 9.88k and saw distances between 9.8 and 9.9k, most around the 9.86k mark. The person who set the turn up must have placed the cone early, in my estimation between 60 and 75 metres, thus making the course between 120 and 150 metres short. This is annoying for runners going for a road 10k PB, especially on a course that's supposed to be certified accurate. Short (and long) courses were common in the 'old days', so much so that I count my track times (10k and under) as my PBs even though I ran a faster '10k' on the road.

So how was my race? In a word, great! I ran 47:19, which should have been just under 48 minutes if I'd run the extra distance to make it a true 10k. I wasn't expecting to run that well, especially on the new course. We were blessed with the weather, cool (6C) and calm for the 7.45am start. I lined up next to Jim and just behind Trevor and Craig, about 10 metres back from the starting arch. The road narrows to one lane after 400 metres or so but there wasn't too much elbow bumping going on — I followed Jim through there before edging ahead. I knew we were running quickly (didn't bother with the watch during the race but the first 500m was at 4:20/km pace). The 1k (flat running) split was 4:42. I was fortunate near the Carillon to find myself next David, who was running with his daughter Maia. Following them up Kings Avenue, the pace felt just about perfect — relaxed yet quick. I wasn't stressed on the long but gentle rise and was conscious of keeping something in hand for the hills.

Running down State Circle we could see the leaders coming back (a good feature of the new course). Will caught me at the U-turn and again at 6k while David and Maia got away by 20 metres back down the State Circle hill before I passed them just prior to Kings Avenue. I gathered myself for the dreaded climb up to New Parliament House. That 500m was my slowest of the race, at 5:16/km pace. From there it was gentle down or flat running and I was feeling good, the New Balance Beacon shoes nice and light, soft on the road. Back over the bridge I was surprised there were sometimes gaps to the person ahead, with odd small groups running together. My legs felt good! I was relaxed knowing that the speed throughout had felt fast enough to be under 50 minutes. I took a quick look at the watch for reassurance running beside the lake and saw 45:XX with the finish line in sight. Wow! A late sprint to the line, with James flying past showing me how to really sprint! Good run! But oddly disappointed that the course had been short. 47:59 would have been much better! This had been my best 10k race since Melbourne in October 2015 — 47:39 that day, which preceded a 5k the following week in 22:46. Looking good for sub-23!

With Jennie (PB) and Ruth after the race

First Braidwood Parkrun on Saturday (J Harding photo)