Back to back tempo runs....

And the flavour of the week is Temp Runs! Took it indoors again before work and did a 15K run , 14K at a 4:55 pace then a 1K cool down.

Longer Tempo Run

Did a 12K tempo run at a 4:55 pace with a .5K cool down before work at midnight. I haven't ever done regular tempo runs with specific goals in mind. After doing some research I realize that this hasn't helped me in the speed department. Its probably too late to make a difference this year but it is something that I am definitely going to do going into the next season. In addition to my weekly 3 hour LSD I will start doing a 90 minute tempo run.

LSD Monday

31K LSD done at a 5:36 pace. It was just one of those days when it was hard to get out the door. Heavy rain in the am made me delay my start until the afternoon. When I finally headed out it had stopped raining , temp was around 20C but it the air was very humid. 7 through 10K were done at what I hope to be my Marathon pace , 4:59/4:52/4:40/4:50... this is the first stretch of relatively flat terrain in my long run. Backed it down in the 11K , did a gel and then picked it up a little. When I hit town I did a few more "faster" Ks , 15 thru 19K were 5:16/5:16/5:20/5:33/5:00 then I back it down again when I hit the park. At 20K I started to get the heavy tight cold chest feeling. I had been wearing a compression shirt ... added a long sleeve tech T over it and I quickly warmed up .... actually way way warm. By 24K i took off the second shirt ... I was really over heating but the lungs were better, Tried to pick it up a bit on the run back up the 2nd. Last 7K were 5:25/5:20/4:57/5:21/6:21/5:34/5:34 . I got a rather bad stitch approaching 30K , time for for Electrolytes but I didn't have any.

All and all a pretty good run , my LSD route isn't flat but its not too hilly either . Garmin said +617/-628 meters. I have a ways to go if I want to do a 3hrs30 min 42.2. I recently realized that I need to stretch the tempo runs to 16K. Working mids this week so I am going to have a chance to take it indoors.

After the run I was quiet light headed! I believe i dehydrated a bit , only drank 2 water bottles in 31K and I was sweating pretty good. After a good dinner I laid down for a 3 hour snooze before going in to work for the midnight shift.

Tempo Friday

Wasn't sure what , where or when I ran today ... I just know I wanted to do something. It was grey and windy and a bit cooler this afternoon so I decided to take it indoors. For the first time since the late winter I wore my heart rate monitor. I did a 12K run , 1 K warm up , 10K at a 4:55 pace and then a 1K cool down. A year ago that sort of pace would have meant a heart rate in the mid to high 150s, today I hung out a around 135 ... a full 20 bpm less in a year! I was just getting into the run when I had to shut it down and quickly shower and get to work! Next week I am working mids and I think I will try to do the same run but double the distance one evening before I work.

Something different!

I felt really strong today , legs are almost 100% after Haliburton. Did my 11.1K trail loop , time and pace unknown as I intentionally left the Garmin at home. Things I like about running GPS free..... didn't have to wait for it to lock up at the start, didn't have to worry about pausing to take a stone out of my shoe, didn't have something rattling around on My wrist, didn't have to Download and Charge it after the run and I didn't have any data to compare to previous runs!

Back at it!

Working Eves this week , took it indoors at lunch this evening for an easy 5K @ 5:30 pace. Quads are still complaining after Haliburton on Saturday but it felt great to be running. I am entering the final stages of my roofing project so tomorrow I will be roofing , not running!

Haliburton Forest Trail Race

The Haliburton OUS race is a must do if your run Trails in Southern Ontario. The event takes place in the Haliburton Forest http://www.haliburtonforest.com/index.html, bordered by Algonquin Park to the North. The race is legendary for its rugged terrain , natural beauty and wild life!

There was a 26K , 50K , 50 Mile and 100 Mile events. I tossed around the idea of doing the 80K but decided to do the 50K instead. I am comfortable with this distance and wanted to add a bit of speed to the run before I started going longer. I looked at results ahead of race to get a feel for the course. Most years anything under 6 hours would get you a top 10 finish. My best day prediction would be around 5hrs30min.

The race starts at 6:00 am so I had no choice but to drive the 280km the night before. The trip took about 3hrs30min arriving at 10:30 PM. I wasn't sure where to go but when I pulled into the parking lot there was about 20 cars with foggy windows , I knew I was in the right place! I was driving my Durango so I had lots of room , I had an air mattress and sleeping bag and was able to fully stretch out. After a quick snack I crawled in around 11:00 for a short sleep , alarm was set for 4am. When woke up I had a couple of Oatmeal to Go Bars , OJ and a Yogurt. Picked up my Race Kit and Coffee at 5:00 am then it was time to get ready!

At 5:40 the Bagpipes started calling everyone to the pre race activities. There was a role call for the 100 milers , a prayer and then we all walked a couple of hundred meters to the start / finish. It was still dark at 6:00 am and we were off. First 30 minutes were on a gravel road so I decided not to use a light , many were. Bumped into lots of folks that I know at the start , wished Stephan and Kinga Miklos good luck with there 100 Mile Race and caught up with Kevin from London doing the 50 miler. My strategy was to go out at a reasonable pace and then pick it up later, running with someone going longer kept me from going too fast. I chatted with Kevin for the better part of an hour then I picked it up a bit. About 10K in I bumped into the legendary Doug Barber , ran with him for a bit until we met up with Ron Gehl. At round the 20K mark heading for the 50K turnaround I started to pick up the pace a , ran some of my fastest Ks between the 20 and 30K marks. Nearing 30K it started to cramp just a touch so I downed some Electrolyte Replacement pills and it seemed to work. I slowed it down a bit after 30k but I was still running everything with the exception of the steeper climbs. I held a pretty constant pace through through 40K and wasn't feeling too bad. Did a GU2O at 40K to beef up the electrolyte's. The stomach felt a bit queasy and I was starting to dehydrate . I was trying to keep the fluid intake up but I really didn't feel like drinking any more! Past the 40K mark I was beginning to really fatigue but managed to keep pace. The last 7K was on a gravel road and I kept thinking about how I could pick it up a bit at the end! Last 5k on the trail were 7:00, 8:06, 8:09, 7:30, and 8:06. When I hit the road I was able to pick it up, last 7K were 6:27, 5:38, 6:07, 6:54, 6:22, 7:12 (big hill) and the last K was the fastest but I forgot to turn my Garmin off for nearly 2 minutes while I was on all fours being sick!

I always judge my race on how many folks I pass vs how many people pass me in the last half! From about 25 to 40K I passed a few but no one went by me. With about 10K to go I was passed by two runners, one who was just edging me out and then another who blew by me stating he got lost and added 6 miles to his run ... he was really fast. In the last K I gave up another 2 positions...I was giving it my all trying to keep up with these guys but it just wasn't there!!!!! After the race I learned that the guys that passed me in the last K were doing the 26K race .... d'oh!

My Garmin data said I covered 47.79km +2877/-2879m with a total time of 5:36:52 , minus the 1min43sec that I forgot to turn the Garmin off it put me in at 5:34:53. I haven't got my official time or position yet but it should be close to my estimated Garmin time.

Offical reults ...I will post them when I get them!

Garmin data.....