I wasn't thinking about running !

Got sick on Tuesday , a flu bug hit me hard and its taking some time to recover! I am working this weekend and just had an opportunity to do an upper body weight routine and a 1K run. Weather looks great for the week ahead and I am working evenings so there should be some great opportunities to get out.

Ron.

No time to blog or run but hey I made time ! haven't been sitting idle, when I am not running I think about running.

Did my 10.2 K road run on Sunday, 53:54 then on Monday I did the 16K loop in 1:31:11..

Its funny but no matter how far I run it seems like I have nothing left at the end, 10 , 16, 21 or 25 I AM DONE ! Part of it is pacing but I think a bigger part is mental. I have no idea how far I can go and how long it will take to get there but I think I am up to a 50K.

It was pretty warm on Sunday for the 10K run , heat was a bit of an issue and so too was o2 ! I didn't run since Tuesday and it does make a difference when I don't get out .... its going to be a long winter!

Mondays run was magical , time of day , weather and the time of year had everything to do with it! I went out at about 6pm after working all day. Temp was 26c which is really warm for this time of the year. First 1K was in 5:11 , good pace for the start of a longer run. Everything felt good but I knew I was going to feel it in my legs a little latter and I was right. The run was very picturesque, the leaves are starting to really turn colour and the sun was low in the sky! For awhile I had the Sun directly at my back , being low in the sky I had a running companion... my shadow! I was this giant with huge legs and a small body , when I went up hill I became shorter and going down I was Mr. Stretch all the way. Anyway it was fun watching my shadow ! About 40 minutes in I did a gel pack , first mouthful went down the wrong way making me choke. I kept going but had to slow down until I could breath again , it was at least another 10 minutes before I stopped coughing. Passed a total of 3 cars, counting cars has become somewhat of an amusing pastime , it reminds me of just how fortunate I am to live where I do and how laid back life really is in West Grey ! I have a huge hill to climb at about the 12K mark , I really felt a burning in my legs. Not enough to slow me down or make it uncomfortable but they sure were trying to tell me something. The last few K have a good 2K of gradual down hill through a very thick forest ... love to give er through this part of the run , especially when its starting to get dark ... sure makes you feel like you are flying ! The last 1/2K is a pretty good hill , climb about 20 meters and its always a sprint to the end !

may get out tonight , may wait and do a 21K tomorrow. Have to wait and see how the weather holds out or what the family is up to.

Ron.

Great day for a run...

Working 12 hours days today so I had a chance to do a 10K Road/Trail run today in about 50 minutes . Heat was a bit of at 25C ! Concentrated on the breathing today and have been for awhile now. Trying to breath from the diaphram bringing air deep into the lungs vs breathign shallow from the chest !


Ron.

Nice day to run

Did my 21.5 K loop yesterday , 02:00:01 ! Tried like the devil to break 02:00 but hey I was very close. Temps were great , 14C and the sun was out with a steady Southerly Wind.

First 10K was a breeze . I usually feel the fatigue start to set in around the 4-5 K mark but it didn't happen until much later in the run. I suspect that there were two things that contributed. First and foremost I believe that the cooler temps were a huge influence. Also I only did two 10Ks last week Tues/Wed
( I didn't blog Wed run but it was almost identical to Tues at 49:49 ). So I was well rested , weather was great and I was keen. Turned it up a notch in the last 3 or 4 K . After a bit of a coll down I grabbed a big glass of milk and headed to the hot tub for a 40 minute soak!

The 21.5K course is a mix of back roads and tractor trails. The "roads" are mostly wooded with a few open areas where there is pasture land. I ran between 14:00 and 16:00 on a Sunday afternoon and only encountered 7 vehicles. The air here is very clean, I often wonder how tough it would be to do this sort of thing in an Urban Environment.

Thinking of doing a 21K trail race this weekend but I am not sure if I can put it together. More then likely the next race I enter will be a month from now . In the meantime I will try to get as much outdoor running in as possible before winter comes.... here's hoping for a long dry moderate temperature Fall !

Ron.

Ran indoors today , rain and cooler temps

Fall is definitely around the corner .. rain and cooler temps forced my run indoors today. Better get use to it ! Just did an easy 10K in 49:38 , played with the elevation throughout the run , trying to somewhat simulate running on an uneven surface to try to minimize the repetitive nature of running on a flat hard surface. Also played with speed , 0-3.3 K 11.5 kmh , 3.3 to 6.6 12.0 kmh, 6.6 to 9.0 12.5 kmh, 9.0 to 9.5 13.3 kmh then a wee bit of a sprint to the end around 15 kmh.

Was thinking allot about form again , this time I tried lifting my legs up more towards my but instead of a shuffle that I have a tendency to do . I can see that it is a way to cover more ground in a shorter time but its also more taxing on the muscles and knees ! I always get a kick out of watching other runners form , there is allot to be learned .

Ron.

New Road/Trail Run

Yesterday I got to give my new 21.5K course a try ! It was a great day , temps around 20C and Sunny. Did the first 1K in 5:30 , a great pace to start a long run ! Felt very relaxed and had lots of energy for about the first 8K , at the 40 minute mark I did a gel , this was also the point where I headed off on the new leg of my run . There was a guy doing Target practice at about the 10K mark , I didn't like where the target was in relation to the road I was running on so I yelled to them "Runner on the Road" , they stopped while I went by . There was a new really big hills at about the 14K mark . All and all the hills defiantly came into play ! Finished the run in 02:07:31 , seems slow to the 25K Race I ran in 2:10 a week ago but hey , there just wasn't the big hills and it was after all a race !
I do allot of blogging in my head when I am running that doesn't make it here. One thing that I always ponder is my technique ! I would say I am a heal striker that doesn't get up on the toes and more or less shuffles the feet along. Now and again I do tilt the hips ahead a wee bit more , land more on the balls of my feet , roll to the toes and then lift my leg as it move back! Sometimes its not good to change the "Natural Stride" but I believe its good to be aware and also practice some of things that I know I should be doing !

Ron.

A warm run but glad to be out ...

Did may first run after Saturdays trail race , did about 10K in about 50 minutes. Never intended on running outside today but I had 1:15 for lunch , the weather looked great ... or so I thought.
Got about 500 meters out and I had a pain from an inadequate band aid cover a blister on my left heal ... PAIN. Turned around and went back and got one .... much better!
I checked the temperature a short time before I headed out and it said 22C ..... nice ! Got going and realized that it was somewhat warmer and about 100% humidity , boy was it hot! (Upon return it was 29C ... now that's one of the warmer runs I did) . Anyway today I battled the heat monster , it slowed me down a little .
The run was 4K Tar and Chip / 2K Gravel and 4K trail at the Allan Park Trout Pond ! The run to the trail was 3K but worth it when I got there ! I havent been on these trails for a dozen years, I use to Mountain Bike them . This was the first time I have ever ran them. Anyway I will be back , way way way better then running on a treadmill in the Gym... at least until the snow flys .
Dread the winter months , I was looking at a couple of races before the end of the year. Think I will do a 10K Thanksgiving , Mon Oct 8 and then a 6 Hour Ultra Trail Event on Oct 27 . The 6 hour one is where you go as far as you can in a 6 hour time span ... my goal is to hit 50K , hope I can do it !
Probably get another 10K in Thurs or Fri then I will do my long run on Sat or Sunday , I have a new 21.4K route .... Looking forward to it , maybe it will be a little cooler !

Ron.

Paradise Lake Trail Run , Sept 1 2007 .

Had a great race " 31 227 Ronald Irwin 2:10:39 HM 26/44 26 5:14 Durham " . It was allot of fun and much easier then my last trail race !

Started the morning at 5am , an hour before the alarm was to go off . Only had about 5 hours of so so sleep but I was ready . Had a breakfast of Oatmeal , English Muffin / Peanut Butter , Coffee and Milk . Jumped in the e hot tub for an hour and then it was off to Waterloo . It was about a 90 minute drive , had a hard time shaking off the tired sleepy feeling but I knew that wouldn't last . Consumed a gel pack on the way !

Arriving at the run , 08:30 the weather was beautiful , sunny anda bout 15C . Didn't do too much to warm , more or less just picked up the race kit , suited up and then realized in the sun . Race started at 09:30 , the 5K, 10K and 25K runners all started together ... 200 +.

The run started up a lane way , bit of a hill ... didn't change pace but I could tell that it would get bigger as I approached the 25K mark . After running back to the start we dropped into the woods. There wasn't any huge hills but there was lots of a few meters up and down . Trail markers were a little tough to follow in the bush but I was just following the other runners on the first loop. The course was a 5K loop done 5 times . I wasn't sure that I would like it but I figured that at least you would know what was coming up . Did a gel pack on the second loop at about the 40 minute mark ! The race thinned out after the 10K mark as there were only 60 runners on the 25K . Passed the 10K mark at 50 minutes , a 12Km pace or 5:00 min/K ..... I was happy and figured I should be able to keep it up ! The next 5 or so K were pretty easy , I was having fun and didn't feel tired . When I passed the start/finish for the third time or 15K mark I was starting to feel a wee bit tired but was keeping pace . Did another Gel Pack at about the 1:20 mark . The 4Th loop I was really staring to feel it but managed to keep the 12 km pace going . The last 5K I really started to fatigue , I am sure this is where I started to loose a bit of time . Anyway I had a good finishing kick in the last few hundred meters and finished in 2:10:39 , I felt good !

Going forward I am going to take my weekley "long run" up a notch to around the 20K mark . Not sure on the next race but I am looking at another 25K trail race at the start of October.

Ron.