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Micilín's Mucky Miles
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Micilin Muc wrote: »Just checked the final results and I got a 60-second PB for Half-Marathon (1:55:53) and got a 45:55-minute Marathon PB of 3:56:09.
Of the four marathoners who passed me in the second half, three had a negative split, one of them by 4 minutes :eek:!
I came in the top 36% of the marathon field
, much better than my top 74% of DCM 2011!
Well done on a great race
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Thanks for the inspiration Vagga!
Distance|Current PB|Goal PB
5km|00:23:44 (26.12.11)|00:23:00
5 miles|00:38:24 (02.03.12)|00:38:00
10km|00:48:01 (02.03.12)|00:47:00
10 miles|01:27:00 (16.1.11)|01:20:00
Half Marathon|01:56:53 (04.09.11)|01:50:00
Marathon|04:42:04 (31.10.11)|04:00:00
Distance|Current PB|Goal PB
5km|00:23:44 (26.12.11)|00:23:00
5 miles|00:38:24 (02.03.12)|00:38:00
10km|00:48:01 (02.03.12)|00:47:00
10 miles|01:27:00 (16.1.11)|01:20:00
Half Marathon|01:55:53 (01.04.12)|01:47:00
Marathon|03:56:09 (01.04.12)|03:45:00
I have nearly decided on doing Dingle Marathon on 1st September. AFAIK there are 100 more metres of climbing there than on the Conn course Knocking 11 minutes off the marathon PB is daunting, but my 5km, 5-mile and 10km times all point to a 3:45 marathon on the McMillan calculator. A 1:47 half or faster would give me the confidence to go for it on the day. I don't have to make a decision for another few weeks, but I'm very tempted. I heard there may discounts available for Dingle this week through the Facebook page ... 0 -
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Monday
Spent a few hours in the hotel gym the day after Conn. Did a total of 4 lengths and spend about 45 minutes in the jacuzzi and sauna! No major muscle soreness.
Tuesday
Cycled 20km commuting to and from work. It really loosened the legs!
Wednesday
Cycle 10km to work.
Run 6km recovery home from work. No soreness at all.
Thursday
Cycle 10km home from work.
Friday
Worked from home. Ran another 6km recovery. Found it hard to keep the heart-rate/pace down.
Saturday
Cycled 36.22km up to Johnny Foxes via Pine Forest Road with a friend. Enjoyed passing a few cyclists on racers on the hills while on my 10-year-old mountain bike
Went around the front of Three Rock to cycle up via Ticknock - chain got wedged under the pedals so I had to freewheel 5km down to Joe Daly's to leave the bike in - must be karma for disrespecting the Freds
Sunday
Went out to do 8km recovery, did 9.64km with 6 x 100m strides up to Tymon Park and back. Wanted to get a bit of speed back in the legs for next weekend's Great Ireland 10km. Heart rate quite a bit higher than usual, have had a headache for a few days from a sore tooth. Must go to dentist.0 -
Monday
Did some core exercises from P&D. I'm weak.
Tuesday
Run home from work (10km). Did a kind of VO2 max session in preparation for the Great Ireland Run on Sunday. 2 x 1600m at 4:38min/km (target pace for this 10km race is 4:42min/km to bring me under 47 minutes). I hit the target, but felt crap!
Wednesday
Picked up my bike from Joe Daly's. It's like a rocket :cool: Don't know what they did!!
Thursday
10km cycle to work.
10km run home. No HRM, so I ended up just running around 6:00min/km.
Friday
10km run to work. No Garmin. It's a bit of a cliché to say that it's liberating to run without a Garmin, but it really was. Fantastic morning and run, very enjoyable. Will cycle 10km home later, after I do some work :pac:
Apart from the pure goal of getting a 10km PB, the reason I'm targeting the Great Ireland two weeks after Connemara is to test my recovery rate. I know I recover quite quickly after LSRs, but I want to find out if I'm the kind of runner that can get PBs in the weeks following a marathon. I have a feeling that two weeks may be too soon - I'll find out on Sunday! I have already gone over the mileage recommended by P&D for recovery after a marathon, but I'm feeling great.0 -
46:44 Garmin Time.
Plan was to run between 4:30 and 4:42min/km
First few kilometres were on target of 4:37. Got 4:35 going down the Kyber. Hit 5km in 23:04 (PB). Expected to slow down on the hill up Military Road, only slowed to 4:37. Couldn't believe people were walking at this stage. Slowed down quite a bit going up Upper Glen Road, hit 4:46. Was unpleasantly surprised by the route going down Lower Glen Road to the Furry Glen as it meant more hills to slow me down. A bit of downhill into the Glen and I hit 5 miles in 37:22 (another PB). Hit 4:53 split on this section coming out of the glen. I pulled out all the stops for the last kilometre, hit 4:27 (and extra 60 metres in 4:15 pace) for a third PB of 46:44 for 10km.
Of course I'm very happy with the three PBs on a not-so-flat course. I felt closer to giving up the race during this 10km than over the Connemarathon two weeks ago which is very surprising!
Got a nice t-shirt, medal and goody bag. I don't have any complaints about the race 0 -
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Tuesday
7.5km recovery home from work.
Wednesday
Swimming: 24 lengths. Long time, no swim.
Run: 8km recovery to work.
Cycle: 10km home from work.
Thursday
Cycle: 20km commuting
Friday
Run: 10km recovery to work.
Saturday
9km walking, including cliff walk from Bray to Greystones
Sunday
Run: 14km recovery pace up to Bushy Park, along the Dodder to Clonskeagh and home again.0 -
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Tuesday
10km cycle home from work.
Wednesday
Swim: 30 lengths with a break each 6 lengths.
Cycle: 10km commute to work
Run: My first IMRA race tonight - Bray Head in the Summer League. Can't wait I don't expect to feel well tomorrow! Conditions should be interesting. 0 -
Micilin Muc wrote: »Tuesday
10km cycle home from work.
Wednesday
Swim: 30 lengths with a break each 6 lengths.
Cycle: 10km commute to work
Run: My first IMRA race tonight - Bray Head in the Summer League. Can't wait I don't expect to feel well tomorrow! Conditions should be interesting.
good luck... it'll be fun in that weather:) More bragging rights when the weather is so bad0 -
A baptism of fire for my first IMRA race!
The weather was mental arriving in Bray. Waiting in the Martello before jogging down to the start line kind of made me more nervous just looking at the waves hitting the beach! Unexpectedly met my cousin so it was nice to have someone to talk to.
I started off with about 30 people behind me. From the start up to the first summit was slow due to the congestion. I managed to pass about 20 people from the trail up to the cross. From the cross to the turnaround at the second summit was grand - about 10 people passed me. I couldn't believe seeing the leaders going the opposite way about 2km in! The wind wasn't too bad along the ridge but was hit a wall of wind at the turnaround. It didn't really matter as I was nervous enough of my footing descending from the turnaround. The wind probably saved me from falling.
A really bad stitch set in about the 3km mark. Just under my ribs on my right side. It slowed me down a lot as I couldn't lengthen my stride without hurting. I thought it would pass with some deep breaths but it wouldn't go away. I lost loads of places from here to the cross.
Coming down from the cross I lost even more places due to my slow pace - the roots from the trees were very slippery, even in my trail shoes. It didn't stop other people from hurtling past me The stitch was still killing me.
Finished in 39 minutes, in 120th place out of 176 (top 69% or bottom 31% :pac:)
Despite the killer stitch, I absolutely loved the race!
I have to do something about my crap downhill running. Maybe some downhill repeats or something to practice the faster cadence?!!
Garmin Link0 -
Micilin Muc wrote: »A baptism of fire for my first IMRA race!
The weather was mental arriving in Bray. Waiting in the Martello before jogging down to the start line kind of made me more nervous just looking at the waves hitting the beach! Unexpectedly met my cousin so it was nice to have someone to talk to.
I started off with about 30 people behind me. From the start up to the first summit was slow due to the congestion. I managed to pass about 20 people from the trail up to the cross. From the cross to the turnaround at the second summit was grand - about 10 people passed me. I couldn't believe seeing the leaders going the opposite way about 2km in! The wind wasn't too bad along the ridge but was hit a wall of wind at the turnaround. It didn't really matter as I was nervous enough of my footing descending from the turnaround. The wind probably saved me from falling.
A really bad stitch set in about the 3km mark. Just under my ribs on my right side. It slowed me down a lot as I couldn't lengthen my stride without hurting. I thought it would pass with some deep breaths but it wouldn't go away. I lost loads of places from here to the cross.
Coming down from the cross I lost even more places due to my slow pace - the roots from the trees were very slippery, even in my trail shoes. It didn't stop other people from hurtling past me The stitch was still killing me.
Finished in 39 minutes, in 120th place out of 176 (top 69% or bottom 31% :pac:)
Despite the killer stitch, I absolutely loved the race!
I have to do something about my crap downhill running. Maybe some downhill repeats or something to practice the faster cadence?!!
Garmin Link
Long runs on hills is best for descending. When you get to a downhill, dont accelerate just pick out your steps carefully and in a relaxed way. Concentrate on this for all of every descent. By the end of the first long run you will be amazed at the change in speed without actually appearing to speed up. Its all about getting the eye in. We are all born with the innate ability to descent.
For the big champ mountain races descents you need very very strong legs also. This is achieved through big mileage including some on hills. Dont worry about that yet, jusr keep the eye in and descend relaxed on those off road training runs.
Bray head is a tough one to start with tactically. It took me a few gos to ghet it right. You need to be able to run well from teh cross across to the true summit. That means running about 30s slower up to the cross. Thats the fastest way to run the course and Youll pass dozens of runners if you do that.
In general for Leinster League races, have a look on the route map a few days before. Pick a spot on the course where byou reckon you can run strongly to the end. Youre starting pace should be one which gets you to that point in a condition to run strongly to the end.
Also make sure you know where the track narrows and where a descent starts. Always better to be ahead of any runners around you at the top of a descent. You can see in front of yopu..they cant. A narrow track means the group runs at your pace if youre leading the group. So any nippy competitor who might have the edge on you on a flay section or climb must run at your pace because its narrow and loses his/her advantage.
Be on the lookout for any little tricks and study the map well (also use google earth etc) so you know the route well and how to run it. It all adds to the fun.0 -
Thanks a lot for that T runner!
I'm really interested in that tactic of picking a point from where I could finish strongly. Will definitely try it out for tomorrow night's race in Three Rock, especially since I know the trails/terrain there quite well.
Must get back into the hills for LSRs 0 -
Friday
11.64km run to work with 6km Lactate Threshold. Wasn't really sure what pace I should run at but it ended up being 5:07min/km. It should have been 4:52min/km. No harm done
Saturday
Had a bad hangover. Went swimming (12 lengths) and to the sauna. What a great hangover cure.
Did a 5.72 km run up to the family home in Rathfarnham. Was going to run back but got lazy.
Sunday
Didn't do any long run.
Monday
21.84km home from work - stopped at Dundrum for birthday present for my sister, dropped the present off in Templeogue and then ran to collect my bike from the city centre. A very productive commute home
Again, I wasn't sure what pace I should run at, but it ended up being bang on target for both HR and LSR pace for 3:30-marathon training (156bpm average and average pace of 5:37min/km. Very encouraging for post-Connemarathon recovery and for my training for Dublin starting in June. Still a long way off though :mad:0 -
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A great race last night
Was tired all day yesterday and had a splitting headache. A few coffees at 5pm perked me up nicely.
I was probably looking forward to this race the most in the League as I know the trails quite well around Three Rock. There were 3 climbs (of which two descents were on forest road/tarmac) so it suited me well as a runner. I intended to start off further up the field of 252 runners than last week, but the logging truck's disruption made it harder. Probably started with about 50 people behind me.
The first climb again was quite congested and I was reduced to walking for the narrower sections. Managed to gain a couple of places whenever I had the opportunity. The first descent was interesting - lots of rocks so I had to concentrate very hard on my footing as T runner recommended. I couldn't say I was relaxed though, I'm sure I was cursing a lot but I did enjoy it! There were some parts were I felt like I was flying (literally) as some of my foot placements weren't for propulsion so much as for balance - hard to explain!
The second climb was very hard. I descended this trail before when I described it here as "too steep, narrow and rocky". I saw nobody run it, but surprisingly I did find the strength to pass out a good 20 runners or so - did 80% walking/20% 'running'. A good ten runners passed me on the descent towards the southern end of the course, although I was deliberately holding back as T runner recommended I do until I felt I could finish strongly.
The third climb wasn't as hard as I expected and I again passed out a good 15 people. I only did this climb once before in training and said I'd never do it again! The trail across the side of Fairy Castle was a new one for me but identical in terrain to the one I run on the far side of the mountain. A lot of muck and puddles and I fell into a bog hole on the descent down towards Three Rock. I had a brief moment of 'oh cr*p' before I looked at the bloodied face of the runner beside me :eek: Looked like he split his forehead open. A mucky leg is nothing to complain about in comparison!
I opened up the speed when coming up to the masts and had a top speed on the final section of road of 3:17min/km - fast enough for a 2:20 marathon :pac: I actually passed a few people on this descent - had never done that before. Had difficulty seeing the ground entering the forest but thankfully didn't fall. Kept up the speed all the way to the last 100m and did a sprint finish.
9.46km in 63 minutes.
123 out of 252 runners (top 49%), although apparently percentage of winner's time is a better indicator of performance in general, 144% compared to last week's 151%).
Garmin Link
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Sunday
14km walk around Howth Head.
Monday
Running: 3.6km. My shortest run in a long time - just doing a few errands around Rathmines and bringing my weekly (Monday-Monday) mileage up to 77km.
Swimming: 750m
Tuesday
Running: 10.38km @ 141bpm.
Wednesday
Swimming: 750m. Only took two 1-minute breaks
Cycling: 10.4km to work.
IMRA Scalp tonight (Lead Mines, Carrickgollogan, Barnaslingan).0 -
The conditions looked nice for this race until we got to registration when it started raining. Registration was 2km from the race start so it was a good opportunity for a light warm-up. I realised I had no heart rate monitor about 200m into the warm-up but was too lazy to go back and get it.
I placed myself further up the starting field this time as I knew the trails were narrow. My cousin made me go up further again and was about eight rows from the front. It worked out perfectly as there was plenty of space in front of me a few hundred metres into the race. Having no HRM meant I had to run on feel.
I passed a good few people on the relatively flat section towards the first major climb at Carrickgollogan. The descent was quite tricky because of the short switchbacks but I had a bit of confidence here from having run it before. I got a stitch/cramp in my shoulder (had one last week too) from here to Barnaslingan but it didn't bother me too much. The second climb was quite hard - there was a cloud of steam in the woods here from all the runners - quite epic!
I managed a sprint finish towards the end and finished in 128th out of 246 (top 53%) and within 144% of the winner's time. Very enjoyable but the shorter distance put me at a disadvantage I think.
5.71km in 34:43.
Garmin Link
Next week is Slogger Jogger's race on Carrick Mountain
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Saturday
Running: Was brought to Dubrovnik in Croatia on holidays. I found a beautiful, hilly 10km loop on Garmin Connect, uploaded it to my watch and set off at 6.30am. Uphill was tarmac, downhill was very rocky. See Sunday run below for proper report of this loop.
Swimming: Went on a day boat-trip to the Elaphite Islands and spent about 45 minutes swimming in the sea - bliss!
Sunday
Running: Got up at 6am and did the same 10km loop twice with a few extra kms, but took the rocky trail uphill and tarmac road downhill instead - a lot more enjoyable than Saturday.
Dubrovnik is at the base of Mount Srd whose 400m-peak is just over 1km from the sea - a 40% slope! The most difficult part of this climb is the steps up Ulica Bernarda Shawa to the entrance to the woods. The climb from the woods up the trail is so rocky that I needed 100% concentration for my footing. There are 15 switchbacks on the trail which made the climbing a lot easier. The cable car to the side of the trail was interesting to look at!
Once at the top of the mountain I could see the border with Bosnia-Herzegovnia to the east, the Montenegro border to the south, and thought I could see Italy over 100 miles to the west! The view of Dubrovnik from the mountain is spectacular. Coming down the peak towards the village of Bosanka I had a very steep tarmac road and right in front of me coming into the bay was the Costa Favolosa cruise ship, the same size as the Costa Concordia.
Once I reached home (at sea-level), I had a few glasses of water, stretched, put on sun cream and went out to do the loop again The second loop was easier for some reason and I found myself at the top of the mountain again in no time. I did a bit of exploring this time and came across a herd of mountain goats, some horses and a few hares. I didn't hold back on the descent and finished 22.81km in 2:33:17 with 861m of climbing. Realised once I got home that I had no breakfast before my run :eek:.
This was probably one of the most enjoyable runs I ever had The hill profile is nice too!
Garmin Link
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Sunday
Swimming: 45 minutes or so in the sea.
Tuesday
Swimming: about 60 minutes. Water was very cold but warmed up after about 10 minutes I was comfortable enough being out of my depth, but I didn't like doing the front crawl as I couldn't see the bottom. Did a lot of back stroke. 0 -
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Arrived in Dublin Airport at 3pm so I had no time to check out the map of the race or the forum, or even think about the race. My knee was still quite sore from Sunday's run in Croatia, despite the extra day's rest on Tuesday, and I had no proper lunch and was quite dehydrated. I knew from the warm-up that I wasn't in top form so I just thought I'd go out at a moderate effort and not worry too much about not feeling good.
I mistakenly started out a good bit up the field and got passed out by quite a few people in the first 1km uphill. About 2km in I had a stitch in my side and in my shoulder and started walking. Lost about 50 places. Funnily enough, once I got to the second climb, I found myself going at the same pace as everyone else - walking up the steep hill! This hill was brutal (in the positive sense of the word
).
Coming to the more runnable sections, I couldn't go very fast and had quite a few wobbles on my ankle. At this stage, getting to the end was more about damage limitation than having a decent finish. The stitch in my shoulder never went away and my ankle just got sorer and sorer. The fast and furious descent that everyone was raving about was hell for me. I probably could have climbed it faster than I descended it.
Finished in 151st out of 184. The percentages are way out in the results, but by my own maths it's about 160% of the winner's time, my worst performance.
On a positive note, the race was very well-organised, from the markings to the cheery marshalls - fair play Slogger Jogger! Would love to do this course when I'm in better form.
Garmin Link0
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