Robinph...you're in the well

hunnymonster wrote: »

- What are your short and long term athletic goals

Long term goal is now to try and beat 3:07 for the marathon, and I guess if I'm aiming for that then I should really have a go for 3hrs as well. The reason for that time though is that is one of my brothers times from Boston years ago, by the time I get round to having another crack at a marathon though he'll have been nearly ten years younger than me at the time he did that time so it will be a challenge. I'm fairly confident that I can beat that brothers time for the 1/2 as well when I find another one to do, but I just discovered over christmas that another brother* has a time of 1:09 for a half marathon so I need to aim for the marathon as my target for a family record as I know he's never run that far, I'd thought he'd never run further than a mile race actually.

* He's adopted so I didn't gain any matching genetics for his talent.

hunnymonster wrote: »

- How tough is it to manage you diabetes when trainining/racing

It is tricky to deal with the diabetes and running, but at the same time the running does make me pay a bit more attention to what the diabetes is doing to me than I would if I wasn't running. I do have to check sugar levels before any run and then guesstimate if I think I'll make it round the distance I'm planning on doing. This morning for instance I tested just before the start, and whilst the sugar levels were perfectly fine, I knew that I actually needed to take a couple of gels before hand or come the 3km mark Woddle would have been getting a picture of me sprawled across the road and behaving very strange indeed. That needing to take the gels though was down to a slight miscalculation with what I'd eaten and how much insulin I'd taken at breakfast.

hunnymonster wrote: »

- How competitative are you with brothers/friends?

See number 1.

hunnymonster wrote: »

- Best holiday you've ever taken?

So far probably the three weeks I spent traveling around New Zealand last "summer" with my skis. Did as many of the crazy activities that they have on offer down there as I managed to find, starting off with jumping off the top of the tallest building in the southern hemisphere within 5 hours of the plane landing on the first day, then followed by some sky diving and then another day where I did three different bungy jumps.

I did get a bit of skiing in as well, but not as much as I'd expected.

hunnymonster wrote: »

- (assuming you read this after cupids dash) That pink skort, can we persuade you for next year?

No.

Woddle wrote: »

Do you consider yourself to be a waster (private joke).

Yes.

Woddle wrote: »

What I really mean is will you not feel guilty for wasting an obvious talent when you put running on the back foot to go off and ski for the summer ?

I am slightly annoyed that I gave up with the running for so long now seeing the kinds of times that I'm getting these days. But I currently consider the running as more of a method of trying to bank some "staying healthy points" to offset the rest of my relatively unhealthy lifestyle, and also to keep the doctor off my back as I'll be due lots of more "fun" medical stuff coming my way in later years.

Woddle wrote: »

As lets face it your getting old

Kids these days, have no respect for their elders.

Woddle wrote: »

When do you see yourself atempting sub 3 and probably even better if not this year ?

Next spring would probably be my best chance of another bash at a marathon, assuming I don't break any more limbs between now and then.

Woddle wrote: »

How are the flowers doing ?

They have been sent to one of my house mates mum's as we figured they would die if kept here, they are doing well apparently and haven't died yet.

mp1972 wrote: »

How honoured were you to shake my hand today?

Highlight of the race for me. :P

BeepBeep67 wrote: »

What times do you think you could realistically achieve if you trained hard enough, for?
5k
10k
Half
Marathon

The 10k being the most recent that I've done at 39:40 I'm not sure that I'd be able to know much more off that. A flatter course would help though of obviously.

I've not done a 5k, but seeing as Woddle only just missed out on breaking 20mins at New Year I think I should be able to get that target.

I have vague recollections that I may have done 1:35 for a half in my previous running life so I'd hope to be able to beat that now I am actually training a touch more seriously than I ever managed before. The current time that I have down as a PB for the half is 1:54 from the 2006 one in the Phoenix Park. At that point though I'd only just started running again and wasn't at all sure how I'd survive the distance with the diabetes so had deliberately taken that race very slowly. I did the two halfs of DM08 in 1:44 and then 1:43 though so I think I should be able to knock a good chunk off what I have for my current "official" half PB easily.

Not sure what I could really manage for the full marathon, just want to beat the 3:07, but looking at the pace required for that or going under 3 starts to scare me a bit.

Myself and Woddle both actually have the same camera, Canon 400D, and lens, Sigma 70-300 APO, that we have used for the race pictures that you may have seen on Stupid_Privates site.

I do also have a several years old Sony DSC T9 that I would use more when needing something pocketable, or that won't hurt if I land on it whilst skiing as it has no protruding parts. Someone else was recommended the Olympus µ[mju:] 1030 SW by the good folks of the photography forum though as being a good sturdy point and shoot camera for use on the mountains or similar harsh'ish environments, like the pub.

Not entirely sure what I'd go for now myself at the p&s range though since I've gone towards trying my hand at the big bulky DLSR end of things.