Leader Of The (Mid) Pack

Wubble Wubble

Fri 1/6 - Rest

Sat 2/6 - Porterstown parkrun

After a very wet warmup lap, a decent crowd appeared for this one. Unusually, a good few from the club were lining up. I tried to keep it reasonably steady in the very humid conditions. First two laps weren't too bad, but just as I thought I might catch one or two clubmates on the last lap, I started fading as well. Even so, I had a bit of energy for a sprint at the end, but didn't bother as I wasn't going to catch anyone or be caught. 21:25, 18/91, 4th age cat. Two away from the century

Sun 3/6 - Club run, Phoenix Park

A run of two halves on a very warm Sunday morning. The first 8 o'clock stint was fast (sub 7:30) but I wasn't too bad until I got dropped on the Khyber, and ran most of the remainder of this stint alone. 7:44 for the first 5 miles.

Onto the trails at 8:45, and after a mile of this, the group pulled clear as we worked around the outside of the OS grounds. After 6 out of 7 sub 8:01 miles, my pace fell off the cliff going through the more hilly and tiring terrain, and even a return to flatter ground on the Acres brought no respite in the warm sun. It didn't help that I decided not to eat in advance of this LSR. Plus I was getting a bad stitch on the way up to Castleknock Gate, so I decided not to run the OS/Furze/Chesterfield triangle before finishing.

11.83 miles today, so it wasn't my longest run this year. However, 38.4 is my highest weekly mileage this year. Possibly that came into it towards the end. Anyway, overall I'm happy enough with my progress. I'll try and increase the mileage a little bit more next week, before the summer racing starts. Thanks for reading. J.

Wubble Wubble

Mon 4/6 - Rest

Tue 5/6 - Nothing. Best intentions and all that. The car service turned out to be a lot cheaper than was feared, so we decided to eat out somewhere rather than driving straight home

Wed 6/6 - Club session, Porterstown Park

Another very warm evening in D15. 1.6 mile warmup from the house including easy laps of the grass track, then three laps of the hedges where I pushed hard on the uphill while keeping it very easy on the downslope. This meant I didn't have as much energy for the main part; 14 mins at 5k pace, which this time was split 5/5/4 with 2 min jog recoveries. In 18 minutes overall I didn't quite get to 4k. 1.9 mile cooldown to finish off.

Thu 7/6 - 9.55 miles @ 8:37/mi

Although the temptation was there to try and chase some of the lost miles from Tuesday, I stayed along my planned route. Even going through the S bends and up the Khyber I was keeping in the 8:20-8:45 pace range, which is quite pleasing going back over it. My wife rang me just as I was at the top of the Khyber, which is why those of you following on Strava will notice a sharp drop in pace at that point I initially found it hard to get going again in the heat, but even so I managed my quickest ever climb up White's Road. There would be another bonus to follow. My wife guessed correctly that I would take the shortest way home, and was waiting for me with just over a mile to go. Lazy, spoiled or both? You decide

Fri 8/6 - Rest

Sat 9/6 - Club session, Polo Grounds

Thankfully I had the car this morning, as opposed to having to run over 2 miles to meet the coach at White's Gate. Call was made to head to the Polo Grounds. I'd never run here before, and to be honest I wasn't looking forward to clipping around in the heat. Similar to Wednesday, except there were three jog recoveries; however the recoveries were shorter (about 90s). First 2 minute stint felt ok, but I was really flagging after the next 6 minute run. 4 was tough, but then I took off hard from the stands down the long straight for the last 2 minutes. Thinking we would finish at the corner, I pushed up through the gears, before almost completely stopping while Paddy P and Keith passed me, with still about another half a minute left. Ouch.

About 5.7 miles in total, including strides, warmup and cooldown between White's Gate and the Polos. I was half tempted to jump in a parkrun afterwards, as there was still time to do so, but common sense for once prevailed, so I missed aquinn and P's Porterstown visit, as well as fletch finishing first on his 100th in Hartstown.

Sun 10/6 - Club run, Phoenix Park

I arrived at 8 for this one. Seven of us headed away from Castleknock Gate. A suitably chuffed with himself AMK (following Friday's 5k PB) and some of the other speedsters took off down Chesterfield, while I stayed back with, among others, a new lad and a clubmate who ran the Edinburgh Marathon two weeks ago. 7:26 and 7:37 was too quick for the first two, so we eased off while the fast lads disappeared over the horizon, to the extent that we couldn't see them from the top of the Khyber :eek: 8:02 average for the first 5 miles.

Onto the trails for the second stint. The first mile of this was a too fast for me 7:50, so I peeled off the back of the group a little earlier than intended, and headed along Furze Road having climbed the hill out of the Furry Glen. The rest of the run was more to "my" pace. 8 miles for today @8:05/mi; under 30 miles for the week. I'm racing the 800 and mile in Trinity on Wednesday, so we'll see what impact a shorter Sunday run will have on proceedings Thanks for reading. J.

scotindublin

Good stuff J.....the heat was shocking on the Polos yesterday that's where we are most Saturdays over the summer.

Murph_D

800 and the mile, eh? Which one is the priority (so I can target the other one).

Wubble Wubble

scotindublin wrote: »

Good stuff J.....the heat was shocking on the Polos yesterday that's where we are most Saturdays over the summer.

Thanks C, not the easiest introduction! I'm a winter runner; this warm weather doesn't agree with me at all. I still feel as if I'm a little bit behind where I'd like to be with races coming up, but the next few weeks will tell a lot.

Murph_D wrote: »

800 and the mile, eh? Which one is the priority (so I can target the other one).

Definitely going after the 800. I don't think there's much point in holding back in that one, when there's only about an hour to the mile anyway. Since I'm now standard 14, it doesn't look like we'll be in the same races this time. That said, from what I remember of the last two years, there's not a huge difference between 11-13 and 14-16.

Both PBs are soft (2:46/6:03) but with rain forecast for Wednesday, it'll probably be asking a lot to crack them on the wet grass. Sure we'll see who turns up and give it a go :pac:

Wubble Wubble

Wed 13/6 - BHAA Trinity Track, Trinity College

Pre Race(s)

After the extended dry spell, it was something of a surprise that I ended up walking through the rain from work to Trinners. I'd forgotten that we all get moved up one in standard for this races. So although my BHAA standard is 14, I got moved to 13, which ensured that I was running in 11-13 (Group 4) and not Group 5 (14-16). As I predicted, these races were much the same level anyway.

While warming up with John Todd, I saw Murph_D arriving. RedRunner was there as well, with two decent Group 5 outings on the night. Duanington also made an appearance, but purely in a supporting capacity. I mentioned to DD beforehand that any Boardsie smackdown would be very one sided. Talking myself down, or speaking the truth?

800 metres

There must have been about 30 at the start line for this race. Unreal. Certainly way more than last year. Position would be vital, I thought. However, with these races being so short, you can't spend too much time pondering.

The opening 200 metres were ridiculously slow - as if nobody wanted to be in front. My old DCM 2016 buddy Bill B was near the head of affairs at this stage, with me in about 6th. D moved to the outside heading around the top bend, so I moved out around Bill to follow him. As we reached the bell, most or all of the field were probably still in very close proximity.

The fun started as we went around the bottom bend, as the pace shot up, and there were a fair few elbows out and lads nearly tripping over each other. While all this was going on, for some reason I didn't engage at all. More and more runners passed, and yet I didn't really respond. In fact, as I crossed the finish line, I was convinced I was last. To my immense relief, there were still 5-10 stragglers coming down the straight as I looked behind me.

Mile

Nearly an hour later, I decided to go to the front at the start and see where I ended up. 200 metres in, a Lucan Harrier went ahead and I stayed on his heels. At the end of the first lap, I was second and working hard, but that's what you expect in a mile race. Two more passed me on the second lap, but I was still close and I hadn't given up on redeeming myself. The BHAA twitter has this part filmed, but not the bit at the start where I was leading :rolleyes:

Lap 3 was where the hurt started to kick in. Come on, only 3 minutes more(?) of this! MOVE! This time mentally I'd a lot more interest, but the speed I needed to get back to the front wasn't there. D moved ahead as we turned onto the home straight, and try as I might I couldn't stay with him. 7th with one lap to go.

Last lap under way, and this is hurting more and more, as runners are continuing to pass, although at least this time I finished ahead of Bill, so I've still got some bragging rights in Porterstown On the home straight three or four passed me. A tough outing, 13th overall, and for what it's worth, about 12 or 13 seconds behind D. Like I predicted, a very one sided Boardsie smackdown!

Thu 14/6 - 5.29 miles@9:06/mi

Shuffle pace around Carpenterstown and Porterstown.

Fri 15/6 - Rest

Sat 16/6 - Castleknock 5k - Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before

Pre Race

Fair enough. I insisted here and elsewhere that I'd no intention of racing this. However, after my performance in Trinity, I was deliberating about taking another course of action. After a nice relaxed warmup lap of the Castleknock College pitches with Paddy P, I was feeling good and (kind of) ready to go.

Here's the thing. Even talking to AMK (pacing 23 here) at the start line, in my own mind I hadn't committed to racing it. Himming and hawwing, giving myself too many outs.

Km 1

Off we went, slight drag from the main Castleknock College entrance to the crossroads, then right down the hill on Tower Road. The skipper was pacing 20, which in theory should have been perfect for me if I wanted to go hard here. I guessed he was banking time on the downhill, so I sat back and ran with Bernard for a minute or two, before letting him go as we reached the 1k marker.

Km 2

Still fast downhill as we passed Mount Sackville before turning into the Phoenix Park. I was feeling comfortable as we entered Knockmaroon Gate. Now would be the time to start pushing if that sub 20 was to be a possibility. So what do you think I did? Tear off after those who'd passed me earlier? Nope. Switch to cruise control, and don't be annoyed if a guy who finished ahead of me in both races on Wednesday passes me again.

Kms 3 & 4

Much the same here, as we passed along Ordnance Survey Road before turning left and through Farmleigh. In these two kilometres, I was passed by 8-10 runners, while only passing one or two back. In my head, I'd settled for this. Sure 21:xx wouldn't be too bad. There was the usual wind tunnel going through Farmleigh, but although I thought some runners ahead were slowing, I wasn't making much impression. There was a guy calling out positions at the 4k marker. 53rd says he. I was 40th last year.

Km 5

Slight downhill before we exit the back gate of Farmleigh and turn right, back up the hill we came down in the first kilometre. Surely I can do better than 53rd. Can't I ?

A Cru runner ahead (who won her mile race on Wednesday) was fading fast on the hill, and I didn't meet with much resistance as I made up one place. Considering the severity of the hill in the last kilometre, I felt like there was plenty left in the tank. However, although there were probably 4 or 5 more places to be made up from here if I went eyeballs out, I only managed to catch a Donore girl on the slope down to the finish line.

21:04. 50th overall, as yer man in Farmleigh counted the pacer. 14th M40.
Last year 20:49, 40th overall, 12th M40.

This was the first time I didn't get a course PB, having taken part in all five of these races. K reckoned I looked very comfortable as I finished. Hmmm. She wasn't wrong. It didn't stop me tucking into the goody bag, as well as numerous other treats on offer, before heading home.

Sun 17/6 - Club run, Phoenix Park

Between this week's races, and dinner and drinks with my wife last night, this had the potential to be a tough one. Surprisingly, I felt well able to keep the pace up, under 8 for the first four miles (including the Khyber) before myself and Bernard eased off (8:16) for the last mile of this stint.

I was feeling good after this, so I decided to stay with the 8:45 trail runners and see how long I could hang on. I actually shocked myself by how well I was able to stay with the group. Probably better than I've ever done in fact. Even though the pace was high enough for me (7:51/7:36/7:32) there was plenty of chat among the group, which definitely helped. I even went to the front for a few minutes, before I peeled away after we'd completed the trail around the hospital, and turned up the Acres Road for some WW paced running (8:16/8:15) on my own to finish off. 9.88 miles @7:50/mi average. Which proves that I didn't give anything like my best yesterday. Even so, I'm delighted to have this run under my belt.

Next

Irish Runner 5 Mile next Sunday morning in the Phoenix Park. There's a 4 year old PB (34:08, Terenure 2014) that really needs to be lowered. However, it won't happen if I just go through the motions. If I can't, or won't, take myself out of my comfort zone, it's likely to be another mediocre outing. I'm feeling confident about this one all the same. 35 minute pacers, and familiarity with the course, should be to my advantage. Will this be the start of a summer of PBs? Thanks for reading. J.

Murph_D

Why no response in lap two of the 800, J? You surely had a bit left after the slow first lap? It’s not an easy distance to get right, mind. No time at all to think!

Wubble Wubble

Murph_D wrote: »

Why no response in lap two of the 800, J? You surely had a bit left after the slow first lap? It’s not an easy distance to get right, mind. No time at all to think!

Short answer - I gave up when a few pulled ahead.

Really, I had more than enough left to go with the second lap surges, but wasn't willing to go into the red to do it. I should have been expecting bursts like that, given that the first 200 in particular was slow beyond belief. So much so, that I think my second lap might have been even slower than my first. It was telling, when chatting just after the 800s, that yourself and R (who had had an extra 3-5 mins to recover) looked like you'd pushed yourselves, whereas I didn't really feel anything. It's only the second time I've ever raced an 800 (last year's Trinity 800 being the first), but to be honest that's no excuse for what happened. Time to start getting these "expected" improvements out of myself!

OOnegative

All the best tomorrow WW, run wel!!

Damo 2k9

Best of luck tomorrow J, if I see you about ill give you a shout, and likewise if you see me!

Wubble Wubble

Damo 2k9 wrote: »

Best of luck tomorrow J, if I see you about ill give you a shout, and likewise if you see me!

No worries. AFAIK I'm the only one from the club lining up ðŸ‘

Wubble Wubble

Mon 18/6 - Rest

Tue 19/6 - 6.00 miles@8:22/mi

Carpenterstown & Porterstown loops; not notable in themselves, but I had to head out early (3 PM) for these, as I had a GAA match in the evening. Unbelievably sweaty conditions!

Wed 20/6 - Club session, Porterstown Park

I decided to run up from the house, and after a few slow laps of the grass track, it was straight into the hedges. Four of these, where I was quite happy with my pace. Interesting to note that in each case I was at my fastest at the little kink to the right (6:17/6:12/6:10/5:38!) The 14 mins at 5k pace wasn't so good (4/4/3/3 with 2 min rec) I started well enough, but then Shane pulled away, and I was running on my own for a long time, until thankfully John Todd caught up, and I had someone to run with for the last few minutes.

Thu 21/6 - 5.04 miles@8:56/mi

Carpenterstown loops. I didn't quite complete the third one, as I caught up to a clubmate walking his injured bike home, and stopped the clock as I decided I'd done enough.

Fri 22/6 - Rest

Sat 23/6 - 2.42 miles @9:52/mi

"Just an easy shakeout" says he. I shoehorned this one in between walking the dog, the Wurdled Cup, and my second GAA match of the week. It certainly didn't feel easy, even when I wasn't in the middle of my 5 x 10s strides. Stifling heat. Again.

Sun 24/6 - Irish Runner 5 Mile, Phoenix Park - Happiness Is A Wine Gum

Pre Race

Hot or not, this would have to be a push at beating a PB from ancient history (Terenure 2014). Last one I raced on the road was Raheny 2017 (35:17). I don't count the RTÉ 5, as I was so drunk/hungover that it was purely about finishing, nothing else.

I got there early and had a chat with the clubmates setting off on their 8:45 trail run, before I wandered down to the start, took care of essentials, and then had an easy warmup around the Furze/OS Road/Chesterfield triangle before finding some shade for stretches. All the while the sun was beaming down. This was going to be tough. After I got a few strides in, I was pleasantly surprised to bump into clubmate Podge. We lined up beside the 35 min pacer, and after the usual announcements, we were all set to go.

Mile 1

I decided to go out hard, ahead of the pacer as we headed down Chesterfield Avenue. Bit surprised that we were going right around the Phoenix roundabout before turning on to Odd Lamp Road. Not to worry. Keep it steady through here, nothing dramatic. The bit of tree cover here helped. I had to up the effort a small bit on the North Road, but overall, happy so far.

Mile 2

Still climbing past Phoenix Park school, up to Ashtown Gate before losing the tree cover and a bit of a breeze in our faces coming down to Castleknock Roundabout. I'm feeling very much in control here. Breathing is good, shoulders for once relaxed, stride is even, keeping the head up. We actually reached the roundabout before the leaders reached it on the other side. Freddy the Kenyan had a challenger at this stage. I didn't actually see the mile marker here. I'm guessing it was at or near the turnaround point. Still well ahead of the pacer as we turn, and now I'd caught up to the Donore girl who I passed on the line in Castleknock.

Mile 3

Slight drag up Chesterfield, made harder by the u-turn. Even so, I recovered fairly quickly and continued to push on. Stay with this. Still a lot of work to do. Left at Castleknock roundabout, and I get another shout from Dave C, who'd stayed behind to support. Along OS Road, there were no hills, but even in the shade I was beginning to struggle. I grabbed a water bottle just after the Ordnance Survey, but then I had to stop for a few seconds to take some fluid on board. Back out of the shade as we went into the dip on Knockmaroon Road, and now it was starting to hit hard. Several lads had stopped already. I was determined that I'd have to be carried off to be a DNF this time!

Mile 4

I'd passed back the people who'd got ahead of me at the water stop, but even the descent into the Furry Glen wasn't providing much relief. I tried to keep my stride steady through here, but the hill back out was to apply the coup de grace. The only people I passed here were a couple of lads wearing the IR5 T-shirts. Nice tops to be fair, but wearing them in a race you haven't yet finished is the sign of a newbie Not that I could laugh, as my pace had seriously slowed, so much so that the pacer group was closing rapidly as I turned around the hairpin bend.

Mile 5

Just after we got through the twisty tree lined section, the pace group caught up, and try as I might I couldn't hang on. Podge was still with them, but as we headed towards the long finishing straight, he'd fallen off the back as well but had got a few seconds ahead of me. Ok, there's about a kilometre left. Just me and Podge, it seems. A rare chance to get some club bragging rights :pac: Going through the middle section (regularly used for 400 reps) I sensed Podge was fading, and picked up my pace to get back ahead of him. The pacer was calling back to us, but although I was catching up to the back of the group, I was a little bit off. As I guessed, he was a fair bit ahead of 35, but it mattered not, as I'd missed my target.

Time: 34:33 (34:23)
Position: 152/1509 (27th M45)

Post Race

I badly needed to sit down in the shade at the finish. Nice chat with Podge and Ian (who, although he'd the fastest chip time of the three of us, missed the start) Surprised that I enjoyed the cucumber/lime concoction, but the chia seeds and date/raisin/seeds thingy, as well as the crisps, went straight in the bin when I got home. I had to stop in a shop on the way back for post race treats I'd actually like. The joys of being a fussy eater

Next

A reunion with an old friend, in the form of the Clontarf Half Marathon, my first HM long ago in 2013. My PB is soft here as well (1:37:30), but I could do with it being a bit cooler on the day. Thanks for reading. J.

Baby75

Well done J, sounds like last year with the heat I remember it being very hot as well so great running in those conditions

OOnegative

Good stuff WW, well done on the PB on a less than easy route.

Wubble Wubble

Baby75 wrote: »

Well done J, sounds like last year with the heat I remember it being very hot as well so great running in those conditions

Thanks N, being a winter runner I always find these tough. Hopefully there'll be a fast 5 miler later in the year so I can have another shot.

OOnegative wrote: »

Good stuff WW, well done on the PB on a less than easy route.

Thanks B, not quite a PB, but my second fastest ever 5 miler. Great to be back racing hard again!

Murph_D

Looks very decent under the conditions, J, well run. Glad I’m not racing this week!

Pomplamousse

Well done on a great time in such energy zapping conditions!

Damo 2k9

Wubble Wubble wrote: »

Left at Castleknock roundabout, and I get another shout from Dave C, who'd stayed behind to support.

Jaysus, I had a feeling it was him! One of my lecturers from college, I remember him running on lunch but had no idea he was properly into it.

Tough day out there, that hill is a fecker! Agree with you on the goody bag, fairly dissapointed in it. Not a patch on Raheny :pac:

Wubble Wubble

Murph_D wrote: »

Looks very decent under the conditions, J, well run. Glad I’m not racing this week!

Thanks D, for once neither am I :pac:

Pomplamousse wrote: »

Well done on a great time in such energy zapping conditions!

Thanks C, legs are tired today, very draining indeed

Damo 2k9 wrote: »

Jaysus, I had a feeling it was him! One of my lecturers from college, I remember him running on lunch but had no idea he was properly into it.

Tough day out there, that hill is a fecker! Agree with you on the goody bag, fairly dissapointed in it. Not a patch on Raheny :pac:

Yes indeed, sure he had the college top on and all! A regular National Masters runner for us, both indoors and out. Well done yourself, that hill was cruel all right, especially coming where it did!

I thought there would be more in the bag that I'd enjoy. You're right, Raheny is the creme de la creme of goody bags. Perfect for that post race sugar crash

---

Not quite running related, but.....

Just chilling out at home today, when I noticed that a package had arrived in the post. Long story short....I passed my exams! :D:D:D

I'm delighted and relieved all at once here, as I finished the exams two months ago, and it was long enough to be waiting on them. Doesn't matter so much any more, oddly enough :pac: Hopefully my training will not be impacted too much in the near future!

Go dtí an chéad uair eile....

skyblue46

Congrats on the exam results J, well done!

ariana`

Sounds like a seriously gutsy race, well done, I'm sure that heat added a fair few seconds to your time!

Congrats on the exams too, great to have them passed.

scotindublin

Class J better than any PB.....well done!

Baby75

Brilliant J Well done on passing the exams

Huzzah!

Nice racing on a very hot day and well done on passing the exams. That must be some relief! I blame finishing a postgrad a few years ago for getting me into running. I'd so much extra spare time, I didn't know what to do with myself and started Couch to 5k.

diego_b

A fellow winter runner, the racing in the heat is a killer!
Big congrats on getting those exams passed, great result.

Bungy Girl

Well done Clever Clogs :cool:

Wubble Wubble

skyblue46 wrote: »

Congrats on the exam results J, well done!

ariana` wrote: »

Sounds like a seriously gutsy race, well done, I'm sure that heat added a fair few seconds to your time!

Congrats on the exams too, great to have them passed.

scotindublin wrote: »

Class J better than any PB.....well done!

Baby75 wrote: »

Brilliant J Well done on passing the exams

Huzzah! wrote: »

Nice racing on a very hot day and well done on passing the exams. That must be some relief! I blame finishing a postgrad a few years ago for getting me into running. I'd so much extra spare time, I didn't know what to do with myself and started Couch to 5k.

diego_b wrote: »

A fellow winter runner, the racing in the heat is a killer!
Big congrats on getting those exams passed, great result.

Bungy Girl wrote: »

Well done Clever Clogs :cool:

Thanks so much to all of you, you're very kind, like I say that news made this week all the sweeter

Time to bring the log up to date.

Mon 25/6 - 3.59 miles @9:36/mi

Easy recovery following the IR5 and another victorious outing for the Dubs.

Tue 26/6 - Rest

Wed 27/6 - 4.41 miles@9:48/mi

I was back on Inishbofin, for a few days of eating and drinking warm weather training. With the weather being so hot, getting out early (before 7 AM!) was imperative. I ran once around the main loop road, stopping near the end to fit in a few hill "sprints" on the same hill I tried last year. OH.MY.GOD. I picked a spot, and didn't *actually* stop till I reached it (roughly 35-40s). I felt like bailing out after one, but somehow I found the will to do four. Recoveries were the time it took me to get back to the bottom. Those were done at walking pace. If I'd tried to run down, I might have found it hard to stop myself from flying through the wire fence, such was the steepness at that point. Thankfully it was all downhill to finish off.

Thu 28/6 - 3.99 miles@8:57/mi

One easy paced lap, in the opposite direction but without any sprints. Very hot again!

Fri 29/6 - 13.51 miles@9:47/mi

I did an identical run to this last year. However, that day it was much cooler. I got myself out the door just after 6:30 AM. Mercifully, I had some respite in the form of a sea breeze, but the length of time being out would be a challenge in itself. For those not familiar with it, "Bofin" is a very hilly little island off the Connemara coast, so the variances on my mile splits were quite considerable. However, this one was all about covering the distance, and getting time on my feet with the (somewhat flatter!) Clontarf HM in mind. 2 hours and 12 minutes later, I'd covered three full loops and a half loop to finish. Delighted with my longest run of the year in terms of both time and distance, although by the end I was so sweaty that my t-shirt was like a second skin.

I really enjoyed the latest few days of running there. Next time, it'll be for real. Inishbofin HM 2019, here I come!

Sat 30/6 - Rest

Sun 1/7 - 4.65 miles@8:46/mi

We decided to stop off at Renvyle to break up the journey home. I'm a big fan of Renvyle anyway, but this trip gave me another opportunity to reenact a favourite run of mine, from the hotel to Tullycross and back. Another very hilly one, where I made no attempt to run at anything close to race pace. Just over 30 miles covered for the week, which IMO isn't too bad for a holiday.

June Review

Bit of a mixed bag, but some signs of progress. The month began with parkrun 98, but I didn't improve on this total subsequently. I still haven't quite decided when 99 or 100 will be, although Porterstown will be the venue for the century.

I expected a lot more from myself in the Trinity races. Basically giving up in the 800 was very disappointing - so much so that I think my second lap may have been even slower than my first. The Castleknock 5k was a bit of an improvement, in the sense that I got close to a course PB without overly exerting myself, but switching to cruise control before 1k, instead of going after a fast time, was a bit of an easy way out.

The Irish Runner 5 Mile was where the real progress came. Not the PB I'd hoped for, but in spite of the very hot conditions, I managed to dig in better than in many recent outings, for my second fastest 5 mile time. With a successful few days of running in the West finishing off the month, I'm feeling more confident that I can lower my 1:37 half marathon PB next week. Thanks for reading. J.

The Black Oil

Exam results come in a package, since when? :pac: Happy Summer! Inishbofin. Good luck with the half.

Wubble Wubble

The Black Oil wrote: »

Exam results come in a package, since when? :pac: Happy Summer! Inishbofin. Good luck with the half.

Not really. A4 envelope, since you mentioned it. I decided to use a bit of dramatic licence there :pac:

Inishbofin looked amazing last week. Another great thing about it was being able to have a dip in the sea to help with recovery from Friday's LSR.

It's shaping up to be a scorcher on the seafront this Saturday. Hat, shades, sun cream and water compulsory. Well done yourself in Docklands, that was a great 5k time in such conditions.

Wubble Wubble

Mon 2/7 - Rest

Tue 3/7 - 5.87 miles@8:47/mi

I decided to fit this one in between World Cup matches. Not very well, as it turned out. First three miles were way too fast (8:32/8:38/8:41) which resulted in the remainder of the run being closer to 9 minute mile pace. As well as that, going out with no sun cream wasn't so wise, and to top it off, I ended up with a nasty little dose of chafing. Wonderful :rolleyes:

Wed 4/7 - Club session, Porterstown Park

Grand on the four runs around the hedges, in fact way better than I've done before. The second part of the session was 14 mins around the grass track at sub 5k pace, with 2 min jog recovery between each stint. These turned out to be 5/4/3/2. In general I was holding my pace reasonably well, although not speeding up enough as the intervals got shorter. Trouble was, I'd eaten too close to the start of the session, and my stomach was acting up big time. Painful.

Thu 5/7 - Rest

Fri 6/7 - 2.47 miles@9:27/mi

Just around to Tír na nÓg for a shakeout. Plan was four laps with 5 x 10s strides. 4 & 5 were on the last lap. Pleased with these, although I had to go onto the grass for all bar one, due to the straight part of the triangle being clogged with walkers.

Sat 7/7 - Clontarf Half Marathon - Lucky For Some

Pre Race

This was my 13th actual half marathon (although I covered HM distance in Wings For Life) and my 6th time to run this version. It was also my first HM, way back in 2013. Conditions were hot that day, but nothing like today. Early arrivals, myself included, made sure to grab a bit of shade beforehand, and some easy stretching had me ready for the off. With barely a cloud in the sky, off we went just after 10 AM.

Out

"Are you happy, are you satisfied?
How long can you stand the heat?"

I left the 1:40 pacers at a safe distance as we headed towards the Bull Wall. During the first couple of ks, I chatted briefly to two lads from the Sphinx AC in Coventry. I never got around to asking them what the connection was between Coventry and ancient Egypt. Google leaves me none the wiser. Maybe there's a riddle in there somewhere
Anyway. No respite from the sun as we battled through the soft sand and onto the beach. Even so, I managed to keep a good tempo going through here, although my effort levels were going up a bit along the short drag away from the beach at the Raheny end. I lost the Coventry lads heading down the causeway towards the crossroads, and the pacers were pulling away a bit, but I wasn't panicking yet, as I was passing a lot more than were passing me. Turning right towards Sutton, I was starting to drop back again, hanging onto the water bottle, drinking some while pouring more over my head. The leader passed just before I reached 9k, and later my clubmate E would go whizzing down the other side too. She went on to surprise herself (but not any of us) by finishing 2nd F.

In

On the turnaround, I hadn't given up on catching the pacers. Beating my PB of 1:37 seemed unlikely, but a four year old 1:39 course PB still seemed beatable. It wouldn't take long, however, before such illusions were obliterated. I was having to take on more and more water just to keep going, while more and more runners were streaming by, and I didn't have the energy to respond. It was time to just switch off and enjoy the scenery. At the top of the causeway, I stopped and walked at the water station. Only 4 miles left.

The beach was a real struggle on the way back. Although the temperature had dropped somewhat, the extra breeze more than compensated. I wasn't really sticking with anyone, let alone making up any places. Off the beach at 17k, and the soft sand was an awful struggle through here, followed by a short little climb to some café which I don't recall seeing in previous years. Just past this, was the final water stop. Just over 2 miles to go. I stopped again to take on as much water as I could. Energy draining away. 1:45 pacers got me before the wooden bridge. No point trying to hang on. My wife was at the end of the Bull Wall. So relieved to see her. I said as I passed "I'll get there" With only a mile and a half left, with no hills and no sand, surely I couldn't fail.

Only thing was, I was basically exhausted. I stopped at a wall about a quarter of a mile back along the promenade. Come on, get up. On I shuffled, until I had to make a sharp change of direction to avoid a loose dog at the sailing club. Sit down again. Lots of encouragement from people passing, but this is proving to be extremely challenging. Up again. Just get past the 4 mile sign (from the 5 mile race). Less than one to go. Come on! But after an hour plus of the energy slowly draining out of me, I had to sit down on the wall again. Few seconds. Take a breath. Up. Staggering now, like a boxer out on his feet. There's a few seats beside the grass. Thankfully they have backs on them. I tried once more to get up and go again, but with two lumps of jelly beneath me, it was time to call it quits. Fortunately, the 1:50 pacers passed seconds later, and one of them stayed with me while he phoned the Civil Defence folks.

Long story short. Blood/glucose was low. HR was high. It took a few minutes but matters improved. My wife drove me home, with me wrapped in a gold coloured space blanket. That got a few looks all right, but I didn't care. Bath and couch for the rest of the day. I'll be grand. Long term, I just don't think my body can handle racing in such hot conditions. I can barely walk in such heat a lot of the time. :pac: Give me a freezing, wet XC race battling through slop over this any time. Thanks for reading. J.