More miles mean more improvement?

ray lanigan

week 33
mon=14 miles x 7.50pace
tue=8 miles
wens=rest
thurs=20 miles(12 miles x 7.20pace am+ 8 miles x 7.11pace pm)
fri=10miles
sat=34 miles(24miles x 7.24pace 2404ft elavation gain and 10miles x 8.24pace with ian straight after(went 29miles on nothing to eat just one gel and fecking nearly collapsed,got another gel in at 29miles and was grand again,then 4 hours later i was in tescos and everything went black and i was swetting mad and got realy dizzing,just doing to much i suppose
sun=14 miles

total=100miles(so thats the training done for dingle,7 x 100 mile weeks,done the best i could do,taper starts now,felt like i have went down hill since 7 weeks ago but i havnt had a break,im sure this taper will have me firing come dingle 50miler)
ps.well done to dave and ian for getting the training done,we will have a blast in dingle,very proud of you lads:)

Insane1

Super stuff again Ray! Feet up now, the work is done.. Roll on Dingle, can't wait! You will tear the place up!!

liamo123

Savage last few weeks training Ray....Great dedication.... Ur in some shape for Dingle.... Cant wait 2 c the results

TFBubendorfer

Savage stuff indeed, Ray. See you in Dingle, but I don't think that I'll try and stay with you this time round.

ray lanigan

still trying to figure out what pace to run it at:),see you there,this is the first taper that im glad to be doing,a lovely brake from the bigger miles,i usually hate tapering,done my best in training,nothing more i can do now,just mad to get out on the course now and run:pac:

docjewel

Ray,that has been unreal running over the last few weeks,you won't know what to you with yourself with the free time during the taper period.
Out of curiosity, do you have a strategy in mind for the race as in go all out at the start & try & set the pace or just go with the flow & leave them all for dust at the end? How about fueling/eating ? will you rely on the food at the drop off station or will you have your own team to assist along the way?
Sorry about all the questions just interested in the background to how people approach these races.

ray lanigan

docjewel wrote: »

Ray,that has been unreal running over the last few weeks,you won't know what to you with yourself with the free time during the taper period.
Out of curiosity, do you have a strategy in mind for the race as in go all out at the start & try & set the pace or just go with the flow & leave them all for dust at the end? How about fueling/eating ? will you rely on the food at the drop off station or will you have your own team to assist along the way?
Sorry about all the questions just interested in the background to how people approach these races.

taper this week consist of 5 x 10miles,feels like i have gave up running with all the spare time:),my strategy for the race is not to race anyone until near the end,i have a set time in mind now and will run at that pace exact but hopefully save a bit in the tank for the end,at least then i have some energy for tactics,its my first 50miler so i have to respect the distance and build on it,if that time gave me 3rdplace or 10th place i dont mind,as long as i gave my all on the day is all you can ask of yourself
i done a 6hr track race and managed grand on just gels and water and ran close to 50miles so will just try that again,the only stop i will make hopefully is at the half way mark for a few gels and a quick freshen up,i wish i had someone with a bike handing me gels and water,that would make some differance on the day but we all in the same boat i suppose,looking forward to getting out there now and giving my all:),and meeting all the other ultra nutters,hope i answered your questions,talk to again

ray lanigan

week 34
mon=rest
tue=10 miles
wen=10 miles x 6.52 pace
thur=rest
fri=10 miles x 7.10 pace
sat=10 miles x 8.24 pace
sun-rest

total=40miles(was meant to do 50 mile this week for my taper but went of with the family on sunday and coulnt be arsed when i got home,have been feeling realy weak so the extra days rest will do me good,picked up a bit if a cold,so im sucking oranges and boroga boost for the rest of the week,roll on saturday,cant wait to get stuck in:)

docjewel

Best of Luck on Saturday Ray :-) ,

RubyK

Best of luck for tomorrow Ray, you're going to run a cracker of a race! Enjoy

ManFromAtlantis

hope goes well for ya ray. look forward to report.

liamo123

Best of luck Ray... Absoulely savage block of training.......Ur in tip top shape so give it socks man

Marthastew

^^^^ what they said:)

Looking forward to a super result and another one of your heartfelt reports Ray

ecoli

Best of luck man you have put in the work now time to reap the rewards

menoscemo

2nd Place is 6:11 Just 12 Minutes behind the winner Keith White.

Super Stuff Ray. Enjoy a little break now!!

ray lanigan

just back in the door a hour ago,would of loved to have red all these good luck messages before i left,thanks everyone,it helps alot having support from fellow runners,it can be a very lonely sport at times,thanks so much:)

ray lanigan

week 35
mon=rest
tue=10 miles x 6.48pace
wen=rest
thurs=8 miles x 7.20pace
fri=rest
sat=50 miles x 7.26pace(dingle ultra)
sun=3miles x 8.48pace

week total=71 miles(2nd place in the dingle 50mile ultra,plan was to run 7.30 pace and try and beat the course record of 6hr22,managed 7.26pace beat it in 6hr11,but superman(keith wyhte)turned up a set a new one in 5.59:eek:,got to run with him for a few miles,what a lovely lad,respect,and some great fantastic running from all the rest of the boards runners,will put race report up soon when the head returns to normal

Insane1

C'mon, where the race report Ray????:D

ray lanigan

DINGLE 50MILE RACE REPORT
part 1,the journey
the day started (friday)with me,ian and dave heading of in a camper van,all headind to dingle to tackle our first 50 miler,i have ran very close to 50miles this year but daves longest run was 32miles in a training run 4 weeks prior,and also a 50k race 8 weeks prior,i new he was in great shape as i had done a program for him and ian 8 weeks ago witch they followed almost 100%,but this was going to be a real test,ian has run connemara twice and a 50k so he had alot more experiance to what lie ahead,his plan was around a 8hr finish,his marathon pb is 3.56,so it would be one hell of a achievement if he could,daves plan was a 10hr finish,pretty impresive considering his limited experiance in running long and the more impressive that he would be wearing a pair of vibrams five fingers the hole way(i still cant get my head around that one),my plan was anything from a 6hr40 to a 7hr finish around 6 weeks ago but with plenty of miles and hard work and the help of a friend called anthoney whelan,he made me believe in myself and we done a real good work out together at 7.30 pace x 31miles over some good hilly coast roads,so my plan changed to try and beat the previuos course record of 6hr22min(7.44pace).
the journey down to dingle was a long one,as a few major roads were closed witch ment some back roads all the way,not ideal for a monster left hand drive camper van,all we talked about on the way was the race ant the pasta party,so we were saving our belly for that,i comented on ken charging 100 euro for the race,next year he will charge 120 as i will eat so much food,he had planed to stop at a few petrol stations for grub but there was some dodey looking ones so only eated out of one of them,we got to dingle very hungry and was getting late now around 6.30,we had left at 12.40,then headed to our camp site and got lost trying to find that,we managed to drive all along the dingle coast but it was also the dingle marathon route,it realy put our minds at ease that there wasnt any major hills,but we hadnt seen conors pass and one other major climb,we arried in the campsite at 7.30 and checked in and straight away followed the smell of pasta to dingle town,i would have usually eating 5 meals at this time the day before a race but only twice so far,so saying i was hungry was a understatement,as we headed back into dibngl i could picture the lady scrapping the pasta out of the end of the pot saying thats all thats left lads as it was closing at 9,we got there at 8.30 put they had a massive spread on,i done a sub 4 min mile to get my plate,topped it as high as possible with pasta,and got a cup of soup,sat down and relised the pastas where all stone cold,pasta is my favourite dish but only hot,i coulnt stomach it cold,i went up and asked the girl would she be kind enough to heat it up,but she said the prepared the food earlier somehere else and coulnt heat it up,then i sat down a worried man as i had to eat something for tomorows race,brain wave9please dont try this at home kids)hot veg soup on top of the pasta,yes it was rank but had to be done,the boys had no bother eating there cold dish and even a second,i had 4 cups of soup,bellys full time to get back to the campsite for some well deserved sleep,got back and done some last minute preps for tomorrow,then noticed the time almost 12 oclock and we had to be up at 4oclock,i would normally sleep m8 or 9 hours aday ,12 only for the kids,but 4 hours sleep the night before our biggest challenge to date,so of we went i closed our eyes to dream of what lie ahead in 7 hours.
part 2 and 3 to follow:D

ray lanigan

PART 2
the start and the middle
ring ring,ring ring,feck of alarm,yep 4 oclock,i cant get up i just want to sleep,why did i start ultra running and not take up golf,but we all had a job to do,up we all got and had some porridge,washed and changed and headed to dingle town at 5.15 to catch the bus to bring us to the race start,i dont realy get nervous leading up to the races but on the morning of them i feel sick with nerves,because you no you have to do something that requires 100% effort and your waiting around for this to begin,you no your a ultra runner when theres a que of ye ****ting in a field and we having a chat to each other:D,so bowels empty and we all stood at the start line,got to talk to thomas b(i was very keen to shake this mans hand because 8 weeks before he had mixed it with the best in ireland in a 24hr race and came 2nd,byby seeing his improvement he has giving me hope and belief to push on,as we only finished minutes apart this year in the connemara ultra.
then i noticed a lad in the irish kit,i reconised the face as supermann(keith whyte)and my nerves got worse,i had also seen a foreign lad sprinting up and down the road warming up and i new there was going to be a tuff race on today.
my plan was to go hard for the first 2 miles as i had worked on this in training,to bag some time and then relax and maybe mess with a few heads:D,so the gun went off,and i went and nobody came past me,so planis working so far,then this motor bike comes flying next to me and then in front of me,whats this about i said to myself,o feck your leading the race,i had never pictured this in my plan,was a bit sureal to say the least,the first mile was a bit uphill and then a good downhill stretch,mile 2 came and i was clipping along at 6.25pace and it felt so easy,my plan was to ease of hear into 7.30pace,but keith whyte had raced longford ultra only 6 days ago,so i thought if i kept this pace going for another mile or two he might say,feck this lad in the lead is going well so i might ease of and have a eady day at the office,mile 5 came and he was still about 100 meters behind me so i played a little game,i was jumping up and down of the footpath and running in and out of the white lines in the road and loosening out my hands andarms,so he might look and say this lad is having a ball in front of me and running in the low 6.20pace,but keiths a different breed of a runner and wasnt going to fall for my games.
he won the four nations not so long ago,he repersented ireland on his own and took on the best ultra teams in england,wales,scotland and beat them all,he has also ran for ireland in this year world champs,but i kept the pace going,at mile 5 we turned into a head wind and i kept pushing,then at mile 7,keith caught up with me as i had eased the pace to 6.40,i congrads him on his recent wins and we had a good chat about how we train for the next 3 miles,i told him at mile 10 i would ease of into my plan,but said to him i will come on strong in the later stages so he would always be looking over his shoulder,as soon as i eased of keith was going away quick and a runner in 3rd i could see a good bit back,i think when i eased of it gave him something to chase down,as he was getting nearer i noticed it was the foreign lad that was warming up at the start.
it was mile 13 now and he caught me and gace me a quick nod and went straight passed me,he didnt say a word but the look he gave me and the nod i could see he was showing me he was ready for action,then i had a quick look at my watch and it was 1hr28min at mile 13.1,feck im on for a marathon pb and i have 37miles left to run,cop on ray,slow down,so i tried to keep the pace around 7.25 and the slovak(ivan)went further ahead.
when ken the race director gave us a race briefing i thought he said conors pass wa at mile 21,but a mile 17 i seen a wall in front of me,jesus i said whats conors pass going to be like after,ken didnt mention this.i quickly relised this was conors pass.
i was amazed at the leg muscles on the foreign lad(ivan)and said to myself he will chew me up on the hills,so i put my head down and ran well into the now blowing hurricane,now my miles on conors pass wher almost 9min,but half way up i seen ivan and keith ahead,yes i was closing now fast on him,them leg muscles must of been from weights not hill running,head down again and pushed on,i gaught him 3/4 of the way up,this time we exchanged words,maybe we had more respect for each other now,as he was a faster runner on the flat but i was the stronger on the hills,what a game of cat and mouse,he told me he ran 2.52 in cork this year so i new he was the faster runner,so i had to make a move,a minute later i kicked hard,i was running 7min pace near th top of conors pass,in the louds,took a quick look over the edge and god dizzy,got to to the top and the wind was unreal,it was blowing me all over the place.it was a crazy moment,in the clouds,wind blowing and top af a mountain,and 30 miles ahead of me to run and a mad slovak just behind me,then he came flying past me on the downhill stretch,i didnt think i would see him again but we passed each other 5 times over the next 12 miles,i got to the drop of point and a quick freshen up and my gel belt ant of again,i got to the 26.2 point in 3hr8min.
part 3 to follow:)

Insane1

ray lanigan wrote: »

got to to the top and the wind was unreal,it was blowing me all over the place.it was a crazy moment,in the clouds,wind blowing and top af a mountain,and 30 miles ahead of me to run and a mad slovak just behind me

Lol, classic!!

ManFromAtlantis

Keep it coming ray. You're reports are certainly unique and a good oul read. Ur still mad tho.

ray lanigan

part 3
the battle to the finish
so i passed the marathon point in 3hr8min still chasing the mad slovak and noticed he was starting to slow alittle,this made me up the pace again and by mile 31 we where side by side,but i was starting to feel realy fatigued and ivan was aswell,we were now running 8.34pace,i was giving myself a right telling of for going out to hard,but it was my plan to hold of on the gels to the later stages,i had one at mile 10,15,20,25,29,32,35,38,41,44,47, a shorter gap in the later stages and just drank a half bottle of water at most stops,myself and ivan ran together for the next 3 miles a i questioned if i would make it to the end,i was realy worried now that we would get swallowed up by the rest of the ultra runners,then i thought about the long miles i put in training and i said right the next hill i come to im going to brake this slovak once and for all,im going to run up it as past as i can and when i get to the top ivan wont see me amongst the now other marathon runners,the hill came and i belted up it as hard as i could,6.10 pace,looked back and he was gone,and went down the other side just as fast,and then eased the pace back,i thought that pace would be 8.30s,but i was shocked to see 7.20s and it felt easy,unbelivable how the body responds,there i was spent and now flying again,i kept this pace going and mile 39.3 came,i ran connamara ultra this year and was on for a sub 4hr50 finish but for a mistake with my watch,and i was so happy when i looked at it today to see 4hr49min,i was feeling fresh as a daisy,cant wait for next year up there in conna,i kept this pace up until mile 44,this is where the wheels came off.
i almost came to a standstill,my legs and body were shutting down,screaming at me to stop,i was at the last climb,2 miles to the top,all i wanted to do is walk up it,there was a lady next to me walking the hill and i was running at the same speed as her,i was screaming at myself i will not walk,no regrets ray,if you walk ivan will beat you and 2nd place was gone,come on ray this is your day,now i didnt give a ****e about what finishing time i could get i just wanted to finish,i shouted out loud get up the fecking hill,i still cant figure out what happened but a steward shouted to me its all down hill from hear,i looked at him and said what about the 2 mile hill and then looked at my watch it was now almost 47mile,i cant explain what had happened,it was like it all went blank,i went up to another stewart and said is it all down hill from here,yep she said,i put my arms in the air and shouted yes,im going to do this,and next thing i was flying down towards dingle fresh as a daisy again,this is were i started to get hot feeling going up my right leg every minute or so,so i just kept the pace steady as i new there was something up,i usually have a strong finish i could of knocked a couple of minutes hear but i wasnt going to risk it,i later found out that it was the start of bad cramp(i deffintly wasnt drinking enough fluids).
all was ahead of me now was the long staight road to dingle,my plan for this was to look only at the ground and start counting,if i looked up i would give myself a 10 sec penalty,i would count to 200 and end up counting to 250 with the penaltys,and start again,i past the 4.15pacer here,he gave me a great shout and smile,that gave me such a lift.
now i could see dingle town in the distance and gave myself a pat on the back,you have done it ray,50 miles and second place,here comes the finish line,through my hat in the air and the emotion came flying out shouting come on,yes,come on.
then johnny 50 questions gabbed me on the micro phone,so well done ivan he said to me,nope im ray,i looked at the sheet he had in his hand and i could see keith wyhte first,ivan second,ray 3rd,o sorry did you pass ivan,yep 17miles ago,then i said to myself maybe he flew past me on the last hill when i fell asleep,then johnny said yep your right ivan is still running,he came in nearly 12 minutes after me.
so over iwent got changed,eat,had a chat with some of the ultra runners,and waited for my friends ian and dave as there where still out there running.
i got word saying the prize giving was at 4 oclock so i had plenty of time to wait for the lads,ian came in 8hr2min and dave 9hr17min,im really proud of the lads preformances as i saw the work the put in in the 8 weeks leading up to dingle,my own time was 6hr11min,if i kept that pace going for another 2.4miles,that would give me 2back to back 3.15marathon,so im excited about racing a 100k now,keiths time gave him the second fastest 50mile in the world this year and mine the 3rd fastest,im not sure about them stats but its giving me more belief now to improve more next year, i can defintley run faster as i did in dingle,if i can wear something to protect my hamtrings as they were tight at mile 15,and took on alot more fluids,thats without the more work i will put in to improve more,speed work,nutrition etc,i will defintly run faster,so cant wait for my next race,well done to every one on the day,some realy amazing achievment,50 miles of running:eek:

Insane1

Massive congrats ray! I can't think of anyone more deserving for a podium finish. Some massive first places on the horizon in the very near future.. Exciting times ahead, well done!

ray lanigan

week 36
mon=rest
tue=rest
wens=rest
thurs=more rest
fri=even more rest:eek:
sat=10 miles x 8.02pace
sun=rest
weeks total 10miles(think im missing a 0 there haha,was lovely to do no running for a change and eat crap food and enjoy it without feeling guilty,except for today i was eating my 5th take away of the week,i felt guilty,so from tomorrow the hard grind starts again,dublin pacing for me next month and then will train hard for the double marathon the month after,im not looking forward to the early mornings again but it has to be done:) to get to where you want to be.

liamo123

well done Ray..ur an animal!!! Enjoyed reading ur reports...... I know its a long way off but ur going to give Conn Ultra some pasting next April :eek::eek:

opus

In one of those 'it's a small world moments', the "mad slovak" Ivan is married to one of my work colleagues!

Great run & report!

ray lanigan

liamo123 wrote: »

well done Ray..ur an animal!!! Enjoyed reading ur reports...... I know its a long way off but ur going to give Conn Ultra some pasting next April :eek::eek:

thanks liamo,myself you and thomas are at the same level,theres no reason why we cant go up there and mix it with the big boys,all we need to do is train like demons for 3 or 4 months,miles ,hills ,and more hills and more miles:D

ray lanigan

opus wrote: »

In one of those 'it's a small world moments', the "mad slovak" Ivan is married to one of my work colleagues!

Great run & report!

i got to meet his wife after the race,hes a lovely lad,cant wait for next year to run against him again,tell his wife to tell ivan the mad paddy says cat and mouse.:)

ray lanigan

week 37
mon= 10miles x 7.06 pace
tue=10 miles
wens=10 miles x 7.29pace
thur=rest
fri= 20 miles x 7.24pace
sat=rest
sun= 21 miles x 8.00pace
weeks total= 71 miles(just starting to get back into it now,will start knocking the 100milers out for the next 7 weeks for the eddie murphy double marathon,feeling realy fit at the moment,i think the best thing i ever done was almost taking a hole week of after dingle ultra,it would usually take me 3 weeks to get over a race after going back running to soon,roll on dublin pacer duty)