Festina lente

10.55k in 51.56 (4.55 pace)

Easy run home from work, legs still a bit stiff. Summer is over...

September: 10/111.84
this year: 243/2691.26

10.1k in 46.32 (4.36 average)

Coach must have been reading this thread, because tonight we had a fartlek session

warmup
1500m in 5.43 (3.49 pace)
4 minute jog
1k lap (just under really) in 3.35
2 minute jog
1k lap in 3.42
2.30 jog
460m in 85
2 minute jog
480m in 96
90 second jog
680m in 2.32
2.30 jog
1k lap in 3.42
cooldown

Tough session, and I don't think I got it right really - apart from the 400m sections, all the running was in the same 5-10k pace range - but a good workout anyway. Easy running now until Saturday, give those niggles a chance to fade away...

September: 11/130.7
this year: 244/2710.12

RacoonQueen wrote: »

Ray. It's September.

You know what? At the club training session yesterday, it was getting dark as we finished. Freaky :eek:

(I like August!)

8.73k in 49.23 (5.39 average)

Another slow run. Legs feeling better, just some stiffness around the achilles and hip, should be okay for tomorrow...

September: 14/156.89
this year: 247/2736.31

Dublin half marathon (chip time 1.24.29)

Was running late this morning - a few minutes late leaving the house, a few minutes longer on the LUAS than expected, a few minutes slower walking up the park than I thought... so at twenty to ten I was just passing the polo grounds... Clothes off, jogged up to bag drop, and had only a couple of minutes to chat to clubmates before jumping into the pen. Quick hello to Krusty and Surewhynot, then ran up to the start of the pen - which was closer than I expected, so I ended up in the third row.
A couple of Mexican waves and we were off. I've never started this far forward in the race series before, and it's a whole different experience :pac: There were some people to pass alright, but no crush.
First couple of k were fast, steward called 5.55 to 6.00 at the first mile marker, but that was to be expected. A bit of a group was forming in front of me, but I spent more time watching my watch, 3.50 to 4.00 was fine, but every now and again it would be something over 4.00, especially on that stretch of the North road back towards Chesterfield, bit of wind there. Running into Farmleigh was nice, good to do a different part of the park, and as I passed the gates I realised I was running faster than I did in the Rathfarnham 5k last year, faster than I'd run in the K Club 10k in April... naturally I looked at my watch a minute later to see 4.16 pace - not the time to be resting on laurels :rolleyes:
Another nice section outside the park, and as we came back in I opened a gel. Don't know if it did any good but I've never had stomach problems from them so no harm anyway. Another wave for Mr Slow and a shout for the 1.50 pacers, then we turned on to Chesterfield. Stepped off the road at the water station to have a proper cup of water then off again. From this point on in the race (or even from earlier) I was being passed by ones and twos of people. My pace wasn't dropping, or not by more than a second or two per k, but other people had obviously paced it better. A bit annoying and disheartening, but I was still watching the Garmin, wasn't going to get into a race this far out.
The last few miles were tough. Into the wind on Conyngham road, and then onto the hills. I was watching the average pace, still at about 3.56 when we left the park so I knew I could drop about a minute on the hills . I was really tired at this point, thighs getting stiff, so I could make it up the hills at a decent pace but couldn't accelerate on the downhills, the speed just wasn't coming back. 20k and 21k were 4.22 and 4.03, so slow enough, but it got me around...

September: 15/177.99
this year: 248/2757.41