Training Log Archive: Dolf

Event: 6 Inch Trail Marathon
 

Went into this pretty relaxed not knowing how my calf would behave but not really worried about my time.
I did have a rough plan if everything felt ok and after feeling a bit tight for the first 15km my calf eased up and felt pretty good after that. I went through the first 10km pretty much spot on 6:00/km pace feeling comfortable and decided to keep it at that intensity for the next 10, I was keeping an eye on the pace and was able to take a few walk breaks & stay on target. I felt good coming into aid station 1 (other than a slight stomach pain), better than the last 2 years and managed to still be within 30s of a 6:00/km average after crossing the conveyor belt at 28km.
At the 30km mark I had a pretty severe cramp in my left hamstring, pulling me up very quickly. A couple of runners nearby thought I'd strained it but after a stretch & quick swig of pickle juice I was back running and only a few minutes down on my pace. At this stage I knew that I could keep close to this up until the big stonking hill up to aid station 2 where I would lose quite a bit of time but as I was still feeling pretty good and taking a few walking breaks I thought I might be able to make up most of that time during the last 10km. I was hoping for a time around 4:45 at this stage & feeling ok considering the building heat. I had started pouring plenty of water over myself to keep cool & I thought it was working ok.I had to call a few runners back who had missed the turn off after the first powerline section.
Climbing the big hill sucked, I lost a bit more time than I expected there. It was good to see how other runners were doing here, Andre was coming down as I was heading up and Nicki was at the top after leaving the aid station.
I filled up my bladder, 1 bottle with water & 1 with Heed electrolyte mix, asked for coke but forgot to drink it and grabbed a handful of ice to put under my cap. Going back down the hill was fun. I nearly had one stumble but managed to save myself. Back near the start of the out & back section I saw Jacko who was struggling with the heat. At this stage I had changed my time prediction to just under 5:00. I was feeling ok and thought that I could manage close to 6:00/km again for the remainder of the run.
Then on the way up the last main climb at around 39km I suddenly felt like I was hit by a truck. I was walking at the time & just didn't feel I could start running again during a flatter section, then the next flatter section I was still really struggling and really feeling the heat more than before. After a while the 5:00 finish time was out the window and it was just a case of running what little sections I could. When I could run my legs actually felt ok but my breathing and concentration was pretty much shot. I had run this last section during the WTF nearly 10 minutes quicker than today, and that was after 73km.
Overall I was happy with the majority of the race today. The calf behaved itself and with limited running in the last month I was running pretty comfortably for most of the race.
Well done to fletch for a top 10, Andre & nicki for running well in tough conditions and Jacko for struggling through some very tough times and completing the race.
Legs feeling ok, a couple of blisters and bruised toes but one massive headache this evening.
Good times.

Event: ADVENTURETHON ALBANY
 

Event: Albanython
 

Event: Adventurython
 

Event: Appealathon
 

Event: Adventure World
 

Needle torture session with some bonus massage torture.