GFW 2012

pauldoo

Don't see a thread for this, anybody doing it this year??

Will be first time doing it. training is going well so far, did a 11km run yesterday followed by a 45km cycle, both on hilly terrain. need to get some hill runs in and some more of what i did yesterday

Hopefully the weather will be better than this crap at the moment

Rew

Yeah group of us in the 5.30am wave, our 2nd year doing it. Did 10.5k run and a bit of a cycle in the phoenix park Saturday to start getting down to some proper training.

woody1

il be there, first time for gaelforce, have done a few of the others..
need to get the finger out on the cycling, tons of running both on and off road done but sweet eff all cycling..
that said i was out on the course last weekend 23rd, did both off road sections and croagh patrick
plan to do the first run and cycle this weekend.
not looking to set any records in the race itself.. middle of the pack will do nicely
some good clips on youtube for anyone looking to get an idea of the off road surfaces in particular..

Rew

woody1 wrote: »

y
some good clips on youtube for anyone looking to get an idea of the off road surfaces in particular..

Those are probably mine, must put a few more up!

woody1

out on the course again at the weekend, started at delphi and cycled climbed and cycled again into westport
glad i got to see it, theres 2 mental downhills in it, so to anyone doing for the first time, make sure your brakes are working..
me poor bike seemed to take an awful shaking on the off road sections and then the last hill with bad road surface.. but i has survived, glad it wasnt expensive
otherwise i didnt find it too bad.. if i can go at a similar pace on the day il be very happy..
anyone else here doing it, hows yer training going, what times are ye aiming for..etc...

pauldoo

woody1 wrote: »

out on the course again at the weekend, started at delphi and cycled climbed and cycled again into westport
glad i got to see it, theres 2 mental downhills in it, so to anyone doing for the first time, make sure your brakes are working..
me poor bike seemed to take an awful shaking on the off road sections and then the last hill with bad road surface.. but i has survived, glad it wasnt expensive
otherwise i didnt find it too bad.. if i can go at a similar pace on the day il be very happy..
anyone else here doing it, hows yer training going, what times are ye aiming for..etc...

was there many inclines on the cycle??

my training is goin well, the last few sundays i have been doing a 15-16km run followed by a 35km cycle and i feel fine afterwards. doin both the run and cycle separately during the week too.

not too bothered about what time i finish in, will be happy to make it to the end

woody1

one serious climb bit less than halfway into the first cycle,
a couple of long drag type climbs on the bog road section close to cp and a couple of short sharp ones that wouldnt be bad if they were on road but because its on loose gravelly stoney stuff there just isnt much grip,
but mainly its the one about halfway into the first cycle,

you can see the profile here

http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/15913214

first climb around 25k, second one in the bog at about 42k.. didnt find that one as bad and we were cycling into a tough wind at that stage..

training going better than i thought based on the weekend, have to do a 150k cycle and climb cp for charity on 5th august, im hoping thatl bring on the cycling a bit more ( or else kill me ) .. and then probably 2 weeks of just ticking over til gaelforce,

havent ran and cycled together yet.. been concentrating on cycling for this charity thing and running before that .. the way things are going im not going to get many combined days in, will just have to wing it,
fair play 16k run and 35k cycle together is good going

pauldoo

cheers for that.

I hope we have a northerly wind on the day, would make life a lot easier.

woody1

we were fairly shoved along by the wind from delphi to the turn off back to croagh patrick for about an hour, but then we had to face back into it ( kind off, crosswind and then head on ) on the bog and with no hedges / cover for a lot of it it wasnt fun..
friend of mine has done it twice before said it blew the same way both years he did it, hopefully behind us but not as strong as the weekend maybe..

pauldoo

did you run through the boggy part?

hardCopy

7:30 wave for me. Did it in 6:53 last year but looking for a big improvement this year, have shed over a stone since then and have a marathon, 3 half marathons and a half ironman under my belt since then.

woody1

pauldoo wrote: »

did you run through the boggy part?

sorry bog road..so unsurfaced road, hard packed stone and sand and gravel, fine if a bit rough in sections, other sections, about 300 yards on the other side of croagh patrick are uncycleable in my opinion..sheet rock and big loose stones.. so yeah jogged.. and carried bike on shoulder.. but for the most part although rough its cycleable..

woody1

hardCopy wrote: »

7:30 wave for me. Did it in 6:53 last year but looking for a big improvement this year, have shed over a stone since then and have a marathon, 3 half marathons and a half ironman under my belt since then.

im in the first wave..friend going at the same time..will be at the back of it i imagine but anyway..
wary of predicting a time yet, didnt find the weekend too bad at all but that was all done on fresh legs..no run or kayak in it..

pauldoo

woody1 wrote: »

pauldoo wrote: »

did you run through the boggy part?

sorry bog road..so unsurfaced road, hard packed stone and sand and gravel, fine if a bit rough in sections, other sections, about 300 yards on the other side of croagh patrick are uncycleable in my opinion..sheet rock and big loose stones.. so yeah jogged.. and carried bike on shoulder.. but for the most part although rough its cycleable..

Sorry meant the 3km boggy run?if so,is it bad?

hardCopy

pauldoo wrote: »

Sorry meant the 3km boggy run?if so,is it bad?

From (not entirely reliable) memory, the off road section of the first run and the approach to the reek were the muckiest bits.

The section between the bike drop and the start of the zig-zag path up the reek was very mucky when I ran it a few weeks ago.

woody1

pauldoo wrote: »

Sorry meant the 3km boggy run?if so,is it bad?

nah sorry didnt do that run..took me long enough to get there, couldnt afford to be looking around for the start, ive heard its seriously mucky for about 1k of it though..

woody1

hardCopy wrote: »

The section between the bike drop and the start of the zig-zag path up the reek was very mucky when I ran it a few weeks ago.

didnt find that too bad last weekend, suppose depends on point of view...did a lot of hillwalking years ago so im kind of used to it and worse

Peterx

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/108310353
Garmin Profile of the 2011 course for anyone that wants it.

The boggy run is indeed boggy, depending on the previous weeks weather your foot will possibly sink past your ankle. However, it is only about a kilometre and your feet are already soaked from either the first run or getting into the kayak.

Do not, under any circumstances, wear shoes which have a goretex layer. It's like wearing wellies, you'll be shloshing around all day. Fast draining trail shoes, a good pair of socks and forget about your feet until the finish line.

hardCopy

woody1 wrote: »

didnt find that too bad last weekend, suppose depends on point of view...did a lot of hillwalking years ago so im kind of used to it and worse

Yeah it'll probably depend on the weather the week before, we did it on a dry day but it had been raining all week.

As Peter said, forget about your feet until the end.

Last year I remember trying to hop from dry spot to dry spot on the first bit of off-road until I hit a little puddle that ended up being a shin-deep pothole.

Skilgannon79

Peterx wrote: »

http://connect.garmin.com/activity/108310353
Garmin Profile of the 2011 course for anyone that wants it.

The boggy run is indeed boggy, depending on the previous weeks weather your foot will possibly sink past your ankle. However, it is only about a kilometre and your feet are already soaked from either the first run or getting into the kayak.

Do not, under any circumstances, wear shoes which have a goretex layer. It's like wearing wellies, you'll be shloshing around all day. Fast draining trail shoes, a good pair of socks and forget about your feet until the finish line.

Was up at Croagh Patrick last weekend, went straight up the side and found it wet alright but not too bad, if the weather stays any bit dry I'll be taking that route. Came straight off the side then and made it down in no time, I've Inov X-Talons and they're brilliant for that kinda terrain. Made it up in just under 26 mins after cycling out from Westport but it'll be a different story on the day after the run and a longer cycle. Some poor sod broke his leg or something up there, mountain rescue were on the way up to him.

After you come off the rough off-road section of the Western Way (the rocky bit) where you join back up with a small road and start the downhill........ this section of road is in pretty bad nick this year. There are a lot of pot holes and some of them have been filled in with loose chippings. And you know the result of loose chippings, thin wheels and high speeds??? Hopefully no-one will get hurt along there this year, maybe someone will go out with a brush before the big day and sweep them off!

woody1

Skilgannon79 wrote: »

After you come off the rough off-road section of the Western Way (the rocky bit) where you join back up with a small road and start the downhill........ this section of road is in pretty bad nick this year. There are a lot of pot holes and some of them have been filled in with loose chippings. And you know the result of loose chippings, thin wheels and high speeds??? Hopefully no-one will get hurt along there this year, maybe someone will go out with a brush before the big day and sweep them off!

agreed that hill is shocking ! had both brakes on and was still belting down it, between the ruts and holes on the sides, the grass and gravel in the middle and in the holes its unreal, the hedge is well out on both sides too on whats already a narrow road, my back wheel was hopping all over the place.. i was wondering what it would be like with a few bikes on it all weaving to find a decent surface....dog at the bottom decided to chase me..nearly put me in the effin hedge..

Q7

Skilgannon79 wrote: »

Was up at Croagh Patrick last weekend, went straight up the side and found it wet alright but not too bad, if the weather stays any bit dry I'll be taking that route. Came straight off the side then and made it down in no time, I've Inov X-Talons and they're brilliant for that kinda terrain. Made it up in just under 26 mins after cycling out from Westport but it'll be a different story on the day after the run and a longer cycle. Some poor sod broke his leg or something up there, mountain rescue were on the way up to him.
!

That's some time - don't think anyone make it up CP in under 26 mins last year. Padraig Marrey who came 3rd was over 28 mins and he's one of the best. We'll expect you on the podium

Skilgannon79

I couldn't believe it myself when I stopped my watch but no doubt I'll be adding 5 mins to that time when you add the run and cycle into the legs! PeterX is safe enough, he won't have to worry about me! Sure I can't cycle for sh1t anyway!!

nerraw1111

The bog run is immediately after the kayak. It's about 1km long and a bit of a leg sapper.

Will the weather affect route choice for CP? Can't see it making much of a difference. Straight up will hardly be that wet?

Skilgannon79

Going across to the left from where you dib in can get badly flooded in spots, as in you could be knee deep in water but for the most part you can pick your way around it so unless its very wet that's the direction I'm going regardless!

pauldoo

What sort of training have you guys been doing??

Rew

Boggyness and mud is also dependent on the wave your in. The course gets trashed as more waves go over it.

woody1

Rew wrote: »

Boggyness and mud is also dependent on the wave your in. The course gets trashed as more waves go over it.

one of the reasons i was talked into going in the first wave, even if im going to get dropped. just hopeful that a few other fools like me will go for the first wave as well

pauldoo
training.. bit of everything and nothing very structured
running since the start of the year for a few different races, started to bring cycling into it only really this month but getting a lot done, doing one long 60 k + cycle a week as hilly as i can get and then at least one and hopefully 2 other short ones....lucky in that i live in mayo to start with and have been on the course twice , been up croagh patrick a couple of times earlier in the year and will be up at least once more before it as well...most disorganised training ive ever done..but getting the mileage in nonetheless...some weeks out 4 /5 days a week others 3.. guy doing kayak lessons / trips for a fiver down the road from me so i mite take advantage of that soon as well..

ThisRegard

Wouldn't worry about thinking you'll be left alone in the first wave, you'll have all sorts in with you.

Rew

ThisRegard wrote: »

Wouldn't worry about thinking you'll be left alone in the first wave, you'll have all sorts in with you.

Yeah we saw quite a few non-elite elites last year in Wave 1 while waiting for Wave 2 to start. I personally didn't find the bog run to be very boggy but the terrain was very strength sapping. You hit the road very quick and go down hill to the lagoon and main road. Its pretty flat from there to the bikes. The bikes were in one huge puddle last year so you might find that bit boggy!! I ran with the bike to the transition exit and got on there.

Enduro

woody1 wrote: »

sorry bog road..so unsurfaced road, hard packed stone and sand and gravel, fine if a bit rough in sections, other sections, about 300 yards on the other side of croagh patrick are uncycleable in my opinion..sheet rock and big loose stones.. so yeah jogged.. and carried bike on shoulder.. but for the most part although rough its cycleable..

In my experience it's all 100% cycle-able. Mind you, you do need to be able to ride your bike, rather than just sit on it and pedal (not being facetious... good bike handling skills are hugely beneficial in all sorts of ways).

Skilgannon79 wrote: »

After you come off the rough off-road section of the Western Way (the rocky bit) where you join back up with a small road and start the downhill........ this section of road is in pretty bad nick this year. There are a lot of pot holes and some of them have been filled in with loose chippings. And you know the result of loose chippings, thin wheels and high speeds??? Hopefully no-one will get hurt along there this year, maybe someone will go out with a brush before the big day and sweep them off!

Seriously??? Do you really think someone should be tasked with sweeping stones off a road before something that calls itself an adventure race comes through? Maybe they should remove all the rocks from Croagh Patrick while they're at it :rolleyes: Listen, you know the route, you know the potential dangers. You can choose the tools necessary to safely negotiate the course. If you choose inadequate tools for the job (like, say, thin wheels that you don't think are safe for the course) then you have nobody to blame but yourself for any consequences that arise as a result of that choice.

woody1 wrote: »

agreed that hill is shocking ! had both brakes on and was still belting down it,

Time for new brake pads I think (at minimum). One of the biggest single improvements you can make to your cycling speed, especially downhill, and even more especially on anything technical, is having better braking power. The more confidence you have in your brakes stopping you quickly, the faster you can go.