2nd last stage completed in 1:00:46 a 6:04 pace. Beat 2024 time by 2 seconds, 1:00:48. Held the HR to the high 130's through the first 5K then let it climb into the 140's the second half. The start was a little tentative as a result of running all week but it came around a few laps in and I put forth a moderately hard effort...no walk in the park!
Stage 5 at Baden didn't disappoint, 1,000m vertical more or less 20 hill repeats. Its a 2.6K loop done 10 times. I thought I had a good hydration plan until things got allot harder doing the 8th lap. I was 3 hours into the run and had only consumed 1.5L of water , I was 0.6L behind. It was getting warm as the race progressed heading out on the 9th loop I upped the water intake and took an extra S cap. Consumed a GU and an S Cap at the start of laps 3,5,7 and 9. The 10th lap was a tiny bit better crossing the finish line in 3:54:49 a couple of minutes faster then my 2024 finish. So an OK day, felt harder then it should have been then again nothing has been easy...that why I do it.
17.8 at the start , 27 at the end...should have run faster and finished sooner!
Stage 4 went better then anticipated , it was a 4K look done 4 times. First loop was a little rough however things smoothed out quickly and I just had a dun laps 2,3 and 4. Walked the uphills and ran super fast on the down! Temps were s wee bit arm but felt better the Mondays Stage 2. Hydrated with water from the AS , no fuel. Finished in 1:56:01 A 7:12 pace a wee bit better then I thought.
30K stage 3 done in 3:49:34. It was 6 5K loops, total elevation came in somewhere around 600m, felt like a wee bit of climbing! Wasn't into the first loop at all , ran super slow. About half way through the second loop I felt more into it and by third it was trail business as usual. Watched the HR through the run , high 120s, lots of 130s and the occasional 140+. I wasn't able to reel in the pace very well in stage 1 and 2 more or less running my 6:30ish pace. I was really looking forward to a lazy 30K trail run and that is what I did.
A bit of a tough slug with better then expected results. The temps were low 20's but the humidity was super high and there was no breeze. The Sport and Ultimate were combined , it was a mixed field going out. It was super having everyone on the course. The only detriment was the chase wasn't there...it usually moves me along a wee bit quicker. It was a 2 hour cutoff , 8 Min pace required. After yesterdays half I had no doubts about getting it down.
Finished in 1:37:12 good for an average 6:29 pace/9.3 kmh. All the treadmill work done over the past few weeks has been at a 6:30 pace. I tried to pull back again but I couldn't...super odd turning out 6:30 ish Ks.
And so it begins!
Stage 1 is in the books , 21.1 km in 2:22:01sec 6:44/K pace...I'll take it!
2024 2:16:41
2023 2:14:14
2022 2:25:51
2019 1:59:50
2018 2:03:12
2017 1:59:05
In 2017 I was 56, 2026 I am 65...
I wasnt feeling super ready I havent been logging many ks missing a few long runs. Over the past couple of months I upped my almost daily runs on meal breaks from a 7:30 pace to a 6:30 pace. The longest I held the 6:30 pace was for 10K a couple of times a few weeks ago.
When I headed out today my naturally achieved pace was 6:36 ish I would say a moderate effort. First two laps were solid grabbing a gel and a cup of water going through the aide station. HR was mostly in the 130's , sustainable for me. On the third a final lap the HR climbed into the 140's. Normally no big deal I could push into the 150's in the last K or two however there are anther 6 races to go this week so I pulled it back a bit. The weather was perfect , mid teens to start low twenties to end. There was a bit of sun exposure so I was feeling a bit warm on the last lap.
So it was a good start a bit of a "I can do this" confidence booster. The field is small around 30 Ultimate's and I am the oldest...how did that happen!
