Splits

Another easy run of 9.5kms in 39:58 (4:12's). Feeling tired - perhaps the track session on the back of the half was not a good idea. Talking of which, here were the splits:

Mile 1 6:16
Mile 2 6:09
Mile 3 5:36
Mile 4 6:13
Mile 5 5:42 (29:56)
Mile 6 6:00
Mile 7 6:22
Mile 8 5:43
Mile 9 5:48
Mile 10 6:17 (30:10)
Mile 11 6:59
Mile 12 5:54
Mile 13 5:55
Mile 13.1 0:35

Total 1:19:29

The less said about them the better.

Here is another photo I was sent from the half - I wasn't really getting much of a draft behind the lead cyclist...



















Snooker in the evening. One decent chance for a nice break but missed a straight black off the spot for 40...

3 x (1km/90 secs/400m/4 mins)

Back to the track. Was planning to take it handy but the coach thought otherwise saying the kms were to be run at 3km pace (2:57), and the 400's at 1,500m pace (say 68 secs). I'd give it a go and run on feel.

With the light evenings it was back to the pitches for the warm-up (3.5km), then a couple of laps of the track. Then copped a spray from the coach about how his 3km best was better than mine - even though he is 10 years younger than me. Some people have no respect.

The first km wasn't great (Owen calls it the pancake rep - you're never happy with the first one). Then bounced back and ran some decent times on tired legs (though the long recoveries helped). Here goes:

3:05/67/2:58/66/2:56/65

Perfect evening for running so that helped. Plus I had John and Christy to keep me honest which was great - good running guys, you're both flying and are in good form for Sunday.

Same warm-down around the pitches. All up 13.4kms.

Recovery Run

Another windy evening. After a couple of spring-like days last week it has resorted back to winter like temperatures. Anyway, the legs felt very sore and I took it nice and easy knocking out 9.5kms in 41:45 (4:24's). A good stretch afterwards.

Here's a photo of me celebrating the win a little prematurely (about half a mile) in the race on Sunday (thanks Jane). Note the Nancy boy gloves as it was a little on the chilly side. I think that was the last mountain I had just run over in the background...

Connemara Half Marathon

Out to the start of the half marathon bright and early after catching one of the coaches from Galway which are specially laid on for this event. A quick coffee and then a bit of hanging around for the start. It was very cold and windy and I had a horrible feeling that we would be battling the wind for the guts of the race.

I wandered up to the start about 20 minutes before the off and luckily for me I bumped into a friend who offered to take my gear from the start to the finish of the race which meant I could keep wearing extra layers of clothes until just before the start. I did a quick couple of kms warm-up, and watched the leader of the marathon coming through Leenane (half-way point), before heading back to the start. After some nice words from the MC and the Race Director the horn sounded and we were off.

I quickly took the lead and by the time we made the first turn left on the long climb out of Leenane I had already opened up a handy lead. At this point it became obvious that it was going to be a very tough run as I was already running directly into the wind, and to add insult to injury the first mile is nearly all uphill. Through mile 1 and I had the lead cycle to focus on and the uphill climb seemed to continue for most of the second mile. The next few miles the course flattened out and I seemed to have a decent lead so it was a case of remaining focused and keeping the legs ticking over.

Another very nasty climb up to 5 miles, and still no shelter from the wind, then a nice downhill section. More hills in miles 7 and 8 which I didn't recall from the previous year but running into the wind you seemed to feel every undulation. Just before 9 miles we took a right turn and then it was a very slow 2 mile grind which had me thinking every negative thought possible. The last couple of miles were still tough despite being mainly downhill and I was a very relieved person to reach the finish line in 1:19:29 for the win. I went a bit crazy coming down the finishing chute acting like a right pork chop. Not a good look for a nearly 42 year old....

Despite this being one of the toughest races I have ever done I think I enjoyed it. First class organisation and a truly unique experience running through Connemara. Lots of people to thank - firstly the support I was getting on the course from the walkers, the marathon and ultra runners that I passed. Plus a big GCH support crew just before the finish that gave me a real lift. Plus a big thank you to the organisers and volunteers who made this race possible.

Legs were very sore after the race - no warm-down, instead straight into the hotel at the finish for a massage where I found myself on the next massage table to Gary O'Hanlon who stormed to a win in the marathon in an incredible time of 2hr35 (note a quicker pace than my half!). A good chat with Gary and then back to Galway for a few celebratory beers.

All up 23.1kms for the day and 80.5kms for the week.

I'll post the sorry splits and a few photos over the coming days.

Runners ready

Well I've decided to give the half it a shot. My plan is to line up and see what happens. If there are some real guns on the start line then I'll use the race as a long tempo run. If there's a chance I could win it then I'll race it properly. The experience from last year was one to savour so I'll be hoping for more of the same. Therefore no run today to give the legs a bit of a recharge.

Into town in the morning to pick up my race number. A very professional set-up. A nice mini-expo as well with free drinks and food. Impressive.

My pre-race routine (of late) of 5 beers the night before the race has been reigned into 3. Lets see if that works...

Half?

9.5kms in 39:31 (4:10's).

I'm toying with the idea of running the Connemara Half Marathon on Sunday. It will be a last minute decision. The prospect of some decent running weather could swing it - plus if there's a chance I could win then it's worth a shot.

A game of darts in the evening down the local boozer. Total rubbish.

More of the same

Again another warm day. This time 11.1kms in 46:04 (4:09's). Feeling good.

A game of snooker in the evening at a new club that has opened - less than 5 minutes walk from the house! That's dangerous. The table was nice - my play wasn't. Highest break of 36...

Recorded "Judgement Night" at the Premier League darts to watch over the next few nights.

Warming up

Finally a bit of a warmer day - lovely for running and knocked out an easy run of 9.5kms in 40:16 (4:14's).

4 x 1600 off a big recovery

Track night - and the first time in ages that it didn't feel bloody freezing. With the clocks changing it was still daylight and after my normal lap of the block (3.7kms) it was down to the track for the session.

I bumped into Gary and he asked what I was doing (no plan). So I decided to jump in on his session which was to be 4 x 1.5 miles off recoveries of 2:30, 4:30 then 2:30. There was no way I'd stick with him for the full mile and a half so I decided to just run the mile (well 4 laps) and then drop out and take the big recovery.

Here are the times:

4:57/4:54/4:54/4:53

The long recovery flatters the times - it would have been a different ball game with say a 90 second recovery. I did run a couple of slow laps during each recovery to reduce the guilt factor. The reps felt pretty comfortable which was pleasing after a couple of poor race performances (perhaps I'm just not cut-out for running well in the wind).

A good chat with Gary afterwards and I've come up with a target for 2013. Having a blog I'll put it out there - a sub 32 minute 10km on the track at the end of July (target 31:40). There - I've said it (this isn't an April Fool - that was yesterday). Gary said that to do that you must be able to run 6 x 1600m off 90 seconds at target pace about 2 to 3 weeks before the race. So for me that would be 5:04 for my 4 lap reps which sounds tough but manageable. I love a challenge.

All up 16.2kms with warm-down and a perfect evening for running.

Bank holiday Monday

Easy local loop of 11.1kms in 46:11 (4:10's). Again felt pretty good.

More painting...

Easter Sunday

I ventured out at lunchtime into the cold and wind. Bloody hell this weather is pretty ordinary - still feels like the middle of winter and it hasn't climbed above 6 or 7 degrees for a couple of weeks...

An out and back run. I headed up towards Oranmore into the wind running 4:27's. I turned on 42 minutes and ran back home running sub 4:10's (slightly longer route). Total 19.4kms in 1:23:11 (4:17's). Felt pretty good considering I'd raced the day before.

That's 85.5kms for the week. The rest of the day was spent with the paintbrush in the hand - yes more decorating...then a beer in the hand - yes more drinking.

Colemanstown 10km

Twelve months ago I set my 10km road PB at this race. I felt I was in good shape and was certainly looking forward to getting under 33 again. Well that didn't happen and I ran a very disappointing 33:39.

Okay it was another tough old day conditions-wise. Very similar to the C10 from the previous week with low temperatures and a stiff wind. The first 4km were ran right into the breeze and after running a decent first km, I then started to struggle and by the time I reached 4km I had nothing left for the run home. Through 5km in 16:52 and despite all my efforts I couldn't get the km splits under 3:20 - even with the wind on the back.

Despite a poor run I still managed to claim the win, with GCH teammates Owen and Gearoid in 2nd and 3rd place. Okay so not the time I was looking for but I won't let that detract from this great event. It's a real gem and great value with each competitor receiving a head-torch. Plus a spread afterwards that was fantastic.

All up 15kms with warm-up and down. I hope this event goes from strength to strength and I'll certainly pencil this race in again for next year. Fingers crossed we get better conditions!

Here are the splits:

1km 3:16
2km 3:20
3km 3:24
4km 3:34
5km 3:18 (16:52)
6km 3:20
7km 3:23
8km 3:21
9km 3:22
10km 3:21 (16:47)

Total 33:39

Good Friday

No running today.

Followed my normal pre-race routine of having a beer. Well 5 to be exact...

Mixed bag

A longer run today. Again I was feeling pretty good. I got as far as Carnmore Cross and someone was waving out at me from a car. Not wearing my glasses it took me a while to recognise that it was my brother-in-law. I ran a bit further down the road and he had doubled back and pulled the car over to meet me. I must say I was quite glad of a few minutes break as there was another stiff wind today. Next thing I'm meeting his work colleagues having my photo taken (he's a Dublin based newspaper editor). Quite bizarre really but helped to break up the run!

All up 14.7kms in 1:02:13 (4:14's). No more running now until the race on Saturday.

I played 4 frames of snooker in the evening. Lots of small breaks but I couldn't get beyond 30...

Sky

Another easy trot - legs felt good today so that's a good sign. Total 11.0kms in 45:47 (4:10's). Cold as.

The new TV/darts/play room is just about done. Just waiting on some furniture. The Sky subscription has gone through the roof as we now have the HD package, plus an extra box, plus additional channels so I can watch the snooker on Eurosport. Watching darts in high definition is the way forward...

12 x 400m and 1 x 2km

A trip to the track. Numbers were down as most people had been racing and I took the opportunity to run a session in cruise mode rather than all out. I decided on some 400's off a minute and thought that if I could get round in 72's feeling good that would do. Here's how it went:

76/73/73/73/72/72/71/72/72/72/72/71

I had to work a bit harder than I would have liked to get the times down so I guess I was still recovering from the 10 miler. After completing the set I jumped into a group for 5 laps (2km) at sub 3:30/km pace which felt nice and easy.

Another freezing cold night but no wind so pretty good conditions. All up 15.9kms with warm-up and down. The plan is to race again on Saturday (10km), then I'll run the National 10km in Dublin on April 14th at the Phoenix Park as part of the Great Ireland Run. Yes my new plan is to race more...

Back to the drawing board

An easy run today to flush out the legs after yesterday. Still absolutely freezing cold - I can't remember it being this cold at any point through winter. Time 40:31 for 9.5kms (4:16's).

Here is a great shot courtesy of Francis at Eirefoto. It's one of those rare moments when I'm actually in front of Michael Shannon. I should mention he missed the start so it was basically a handicap start...

Craughwell 10

This race report is going to be short and sweet. Arrived to very cold and windy conditions (as was expected). Only 3 degrees and with the wind chill factor it was effectively below zero. I did a shortish warm-up with Sean down to the start (approx 1.6kms) and soon we were all lining up ready for the race.

The horn sounded and I settled in behind Gerry Ryan and Mick Clohisey for the first 400m. They soon started to work away from me and by the time I hit the first mile marker they were well up the road. With the wind on the back and the downhill start it made for a very quick pace but I knew in the back of the mind that the second half of the race was going to get nasty.

Just after the mile and Mick Shannon came flying past me. He had missed the start and was running everyone down. I tried to stay with him for a mile but was fighting a losing battle so I went back into running solo mode. As each mile ticked by I seemed to be slowing and by the time I went through 5 miles the wind started to become a real factor.

I tried everything to keep the pace up - changing which side of the road I was running on to try and find shelter, shortening the stride, bending lower. Nothing seemed to be working. It's a great advantage having long legs but on a day like today I was doing my best impression of a sail and I was tacking along at best.

Through 10km in 33:20 so still good at this point but with the benefit of the wind I should probably have attacked more and gone through in sub 33. The last 4 miles were very difficult and I fought a losing battle with my motivation and concentration. A bit of shelter from the wind down the country lane between 8 and 9 miles but really struggled on the long uphill climb to the school to the finishing line eventually crossing the timing mat in 55:13 for 4th place.

One of those days where it didn't happen for me. The only positive is that the shin seemed fine and I don't think the race has taken too much out of me. The conditions didn't seem to bother some people with some fine PB's recorded. Chris, Sean and Dee all fell into that category with some great performances. Well done.

For the record Mick Clohisey won the race in 51:16, Mick Shannon was 2nd in 52:19 and Gerry Ryan 3rd in 52:38 (then a big gap back to me!).

A 2km warm-down and a quick dash home to climb into the warm shower. All up 19.7kms for the day and 58.4kms for the week.

Here are the splits:

Mile 1 5:03
Mile 2 5:14
Mile 3 5:18
Mile 4 5:19
Mile 5 5:36 (26:30)
Mile 6 5:39
Mile 7 5:44
Mile 8 5:47
Mile 9 5:43
Mile 10 5:40 (28:43)

Total 55:13

Heart screening

No running today.

Myself and the good wife went into town for a free heart screening test. All went well with my resting heart rate at 42 (lowest of the day). BMI of 22 and in the words of the doctor "if everyone was as fit as you I'd be out of a job".....

Did tell a few fibs though on daily alcohol consumption...

Still bloody cold and windy.

Windy Miller

Another very easy paced trot - 9.5kms in 42:21 (4:27's). No sharp pain in the shin to report but you'd expect that at the slower speed. I fear that could be different when I hit full flow in Sunday's race.

Weather has been far from ideal the last couple of days. Bloody windy and wet - these conditions would rule out any quick times on Sunday. Perhaps I'm best of forgetting the race on Sunday and going on all-dayer instead...

Sore shin

I noticed a sharp pain at one point in the front of my left shin at track on Tuesday which I chose to ignore. I could then feel it again yesterday. Today it's still there and is starting to give me cause for concern. I hope it's not a dreaded stressie but that's probably just me fearing the worst. I took it really easy today and just knocked out a very sedate 6.7kms in 30:01 (4:29's).

On closer inspection there is certainly a very sore spot on the inside of my left shin which has me wincing if I press it hard. Hopefully a few easy days and it will come good...

Moving on

I bounced back after yesterday's below par performance and felt really good today. The legs felt fresh and you wouldn't know I'd done a session the day before. Strange. I'm still coughing away but hopefully the lungs will clear in time for the weekend. All sorts of germs flying round in our house with the wife and kids both struggling the last week so I guess I may have copped a bit of it also.

9.5kms in 39:26 (4:09's) and perfect cool conditions for running.

6 x 800m off 2 mins

Some quick running at the track to sharpen up before the 10 miler on Sunday. The plan was to start out around 2:24 for the 800's, and then work them down to sub 2:20 for the last couple.

A warm-up around the block and a couple of laps of the track, then into the groups with me running with Keith. I was to take out the first lap, then Keith would take over for the second one. Conditions were pretty good - dry and a bit of a stiff headwind on the back straight. One problem is that the floodlights had failed on the final bend so you were basically running in the dark - didn't bother me though but there were some understandable safety concerns!

Here are the times:

2:26/2:20/2:23/2:22/2:20/2:21

I never felt good during this session despite the long recovery. The first one was poor but bounced back nicely for the second one. But after that I seemed to die after the first 400m and had nothing left to bring it home (especially the last rep where Keith left me for dead). I was coughing up all sorts of nasty stuff and my right ear seemed blocked so I'll put it down to me not feeling great and move on. Not the confidence booster I was looking for before the race but the times were still pretty good - just not what I thought I was capable of after a decent block of training.

Another warm-down around the roads to give me 13.0kms for the day. Easy running for the rest of the week with another rest day planned for Saturday.

Taper week

No running today. Still painting...

I conveniently forgot to mention the final of the Clare River Darts League that was played out on Saturday night. We played at a neutral venue (Keanes in Athenry) and the final was a slightly longer format of best of 5 legs for the 6 x singles and 3 x pairs.

Our team went 3-0 down, with yours truly playing next and I managed a win to get us back into the match. We also won the next game to get us back to 3-2 but then we lost the last single game meaning we had to win all 3 pairs games to win the match. I played first with Sean and we managed another win to get us back to 4-3 but then we lost the next match in a deciding leg which meant we ran out 5-3 losers. A great night though and I'm sure our team will be back to have another crack next year.

Ding Dong

A not so long Sunday run. A total of 14.6kms in 1:05:09. Bloody windy and tough going.

That's a total of 96.4kms for the week. Not quite cracking the ton...

Out in the evening to watch the snooker final between Ding Jinhui and Neil Robertson. The Aussie raced into a 3-0 lead only for Ding to fightback and win the match 4-3. An absolutely incredible standard of snooker with Dung recording a 99% pot success rate. I think there was a 50 break or more in every frame with Ding making a 130, plus a 98 in the decider (he went in-off the black after potting it for 105). A great night.

5 x 5 mins off 75 secs

The aim was to run the 5 minute efforts at around target 10km pace (3:15/km). I was to run locally and on a breezy day I was to use my normal course which consisted of 3 x downhills with breeze behind, plus 2 return uphills into the wind.

A longish 20 minute warm-up and it was straight into it. Here are the stats for each 5 minute effort:

1 - 3:12/km - 1.56kms
2 - 3:19/km - 1.51kms
3 - 3:10/km - 1.58kms
4 - 3:19/km - 1.51kms
5 - 3:08/km - 1.59kms

Happy enough with that - though the uphills (2 and 4) were a real effort.

A total of 15.6kms with warm-down. Back to the decorating...

Long weekend

More easy running. This time 13.9kms in 1:00:04 (4:19's).

A long weekend here in Ireland - I'm decorating the darts room so photos to follow when it's ready.

PTC Galway

15.2kms in 1:05:47 (4:20's).

Watching a bit of the snooker on the TV which is on here in Galway at the moment. I have tickets for Sunday's final so looking forward to that.

Midweek

11.1kms in 46:56 (4:14's).

Legs not too bad after yesterday's track session. Normally I'm struggling to break 4:20's after a tough session.

5 x (1km / 60 secs / 400m / 90 secs)

The last big track session before the Craughwell 10. Good conditions - bone dry and only a bit of breeze around. Very fortunate to have the help of Gary tonight (again) for the kms, plus Keith for the 400's.

Usual warm-up around the block then a couple of laps of the track. Straight into the session and sat behind Gary for all of the kms. That's no help to him whatsoever but hopefully I'll keep improving and will soon have the confidence to take out a few of the reps. The times were very consistent and it takes all of the hard work out of it as Gary drags you round at exactly the right pace. Basically one less thing to have to think about.

These were the times:

3:02/72/2:59/70/3:03/69/3:02/69/3:02/67

Another very pleasing session. That's 3 weeks on the trot now where I've really nailed it on the track and I feel like I'm in PB territory. Hopefully I can carry this form over onto the road in upcoming races. Perhaps I could have pushed the 400's a bit more - the coach said I should be down around 67's but that aside the times for the kms were really pleasing. Averaging 3:02's and it felt a lot more comfortable than the previous week. Pleasing signs. I should add that I used the 90 secs after each 400 to take a very slow 200m walk/stumble/jog back to the start line ready for the next km.

A warm-down of 3.7kms to give me 16.2kms for the day.

Late

A late evening run up and down the N17. Time 41:41 for 9.8kms (4:15's).

Still not feeling great - the running seems to be harder work than it should be. I'm sure I'll turn the corner soon.

Sunday long run

A 1pm start today. It was absolutely freezing cold with an Arctic wind to keep you honest. I ran around 6kms and met up with Owen. We ran one of the local laps together (approx 11km), before going our separate ways back home. I took the short route home after leaving Owen as I was knackered.

All up 21.1kms in 1:34:15 (4:28's). Pace pretty poor but it was all I could muster today. In summary a great session on Tuesday with some very tired running all around that. That's 100.8kms for the week so a decent volume. One more week of this and then an easy week to look forward to.

Went to the pub later in the afternoon to watch the Spurs game. The less said about that the better...

10km tempo

A really chilly and windy day. I decided on a 10km tempo and this time there was no cheating with a rolling downhill start or wind behind. I started off slow with the first 3km straight into the wind - really tough going. I picked up a bit after that going through 5km in 17:49 and I was still confident I could get under 35. That never happened though and the last couple of kms were again into the wind and I eventually clocked 35:33 for the 10kms. In terms of effort it felt like I'd run a minute quicker so despite the disappointing time, it was a good tough workout. All up 17.6kms with warm-up/down.

I should add that I'm still not feeling 100%. Low on energy and still a bit of a cold. More beer required...

Darts semis

A windy 11.1kms in 46:59 (4:14's). Still not feeling great but I'm sure I'll turn the corner soon.

The evening was the darts semi-finals. Having not picked up a dart for 3 weeks I practised for a bit during the day and they were going alright. I was 4th on in the singles and we were 2-1 up going into my game. I managed a tight 2-1 win to give us some breathing space at 3-1. After the 6 singles we were 4-2 up so we just needed one more win going into the pairs. I was first up with Sean and we played well together winning 2-0 with me hitting the winning double (double 3!) that takes the team into next week's final. Looking forward to that one.

Wadey

Slightly longer run. Just crept over the hour - 15.0kms in 1:03:48 (4:15's). Still tired - hope this changes soon as it is a real grind at the moment.

Some great darts in the evening in the Premier League. Good to see James Wade back to his best and his performance was the pick of the night (106 average).

Potting for fun

9.3kms in 40:50 (4:23's). Legs shot after yesterday's session.

Evening snooker session. Played well and hit a couple of decent breaks including a 38 and 42.

8 x 1km off 200m jog (75 secs)

Finally the weather had turned. After the longest dry spell in Galway history, it was juicing down nicely for tonight's track session. To make matters worse it was a brute of a session...

Felt tired going into the session, so wasn't sure what to expect, but during the warm-up we were joined by Gary who was making a return to the track after a couple of months so it looked like I would at least have someone to try and hold on to.

I took out the first rep, then Gary took the next 7 (as I was too slow!). Here are the times:

3:07/3:05/3:04/3:07/3:05/3:04/3:04/3:03

Very pleased with that session. The legs felt heavy and it was like I was running in my heavy joggers. I thought I'd blown on the 4th rep, but somehow I managed to bounce back and run the second half quicker. The 75 seconds recovery isn't much as you basically have time to slow jog 200m back to the start and you're off again. A very tough session but the times were good - especially considering the wet track and the amount of traffic to dodge. Had I have been doing that session solo I'd say I would have been at least 5 seconds per km slower. That said I would still have been pleased to average 3:10's but instead I managed 3:05's. Just goes to show the difference it makes when you have someone to hang on to.

All up 17.2kms with warm-up/down and a very good session in the bag for Craughwell.

Here we go again

Easy paced run of 9.5kms in 40 minutes flat (4:13's). The plan is to get a decent couple of 100km weeks in, then wind it back for the Craughwell 10 miler. I dare say I'll be doing some longer speed sessions to build up the endurance.

Oh when the Spurs!

Felt knackered today. Went out for an easy paced run around lunchtime and managed 18.5kms in 1:19:41 (4:18's). Even more knackered after that.

A quick shower, some lunch then sit down to watch Spurs beat the arse 2-1. Great stuff.

Only 63.5kms this week and still carrying a bit of a cold. Back into it for the next 2 weeks.

Here are a couple of photos from the race courtesy of the Kinvara Facebook page. The first one is at the start of the race, probably somewhere after the first km:























This one is during the second half of the race. Where is everyone?!?

Kinvara 10km

Today was a family outing to Kinvara for the race. So the added pressure of having the kids watching. I asked the eldest how he thought I'd do and he said I'd come last. I was quietly confident I'd do a bit better than that.

Weather was perfect - still and dry. Arrived at registration about 40 minutes before the race start only to be told that it had closed and that late registration was to be down at the quay near the finish. I finally got my number about 10 minutes before the race was due to start so that wasn't ideal and it was basically a short jog round to the start line and that was my warm-up.

The race started a little late and the horn sounded and we were off and running. I went straight to the front with another guy with me who faded after about 400m. That left me out by myself and by the time I had gone through the first km I had opened up a decent gap. It was going to be a time trial.

I had the lead car to follow and another km up the main road it was time to take a left hand turn into the smaller country lanes. The surface of the road wasn't great, but I tried to keep the legs ticking over as best as I could but I didn't feel like I had the zip in the legs that I was hoping for. The detail around this section was a little lacking but there seemed to be more downhill than up in the first 5km which leaves the lingering doubt in the mind that the second half of the race will be tougher. Also the km markers were all over the place - this was very disappointing as much smaller races can get it right and this was a sold out event with 1,500 people registered in both the 10km and the half.

I went through 5km in 16:05, and tried to push on but I was struggling. There were a few climbs and I recall a nasty one up to the 7km marker. At 8km I was 26:05 so I thought I'd still run sub 33 comfortably. Another climb up to the 9km marker and despite running a strong last downhill km I only managed 3:28 for the last click! The time as I crossed the line was 32:57 so at least I'd broken 33 and a nice win in the process.

It turns out that was a course record for the 10km by about a minute. I was pleasantly surprised by the course - it was certainly easier than I expected hill-wise, and the weather certainly helped, but on the downside the surface of the road between 2km and 8km wasn't great. Perhaps that's why it's called the rock and road! All in all a great event in a beautiful setting but perhaps a little bit more work needs to be done on improving the organisation of the race.

Another shortish warm-down after the presentation. I'll put it down as 12kms for the day. Great to have Owen, Timmie and Billy finishing 2nd, 3rd and 4th - all runners I train with regularly at the Tuesday track sessions.

In summary it was nice to get back running sub 33 but to be honest I though I'd go at least 20 seconds quicker. Perhaps my cold took the edge of me today as I never felt full of running - hopefully there are better things to come when I race again at the end of March.

Photos to follow. Here are the splits:

1km 3:15
2km 2:55
3km 3:20
4km 3:23
5km 3:12 (16:05)
6km 3:25
7km 3:17
8km 3:21
9km 3:21
10km 3:28 (16:52)

Total 32:57

Out in the evening with the wife to celebrate our 6th wedding anniversary. A lovely meal out at Barna where I made a complete pig of myself. And why not.

No bottle

No running today - rest day.

I had one frame of snooker with the oldest on his 4 foot table. I potted 10 reds and 10 colours, then yellow and green before missing an easy enough brown by a country mile. The break ended on 80 so a missed chance for a (debut) century...

I've picked up  bit of a cold which isn't ideal. I wasn't feeling myself and only managed 2 beers in the evening instead of my customary 4 before a race...

Easy #2

Same weather as yesterday and the same run. This time 39:29 for 9.5kms (4:09's) with the legs feeling a good bit better. That's it now, no more running until Saturday.

I watched the Premier league darts in the evening whilst indulging in one too many beers. Robert Thornton averaging 109 and change was very impressive in his win. Plus a great game between James Wade and Phil Taylor that ended in a 6-6 draw (both averaging 102).

Easy #1

The longest run of no rain in Galway that I can remember. Still and cold - perfect running weather.

The legs were a bit sore after yesterday's 800s - so I took it really easy. Total 9.5kms in 42:13 (4:27's).

6 x 800 off 90 secs

I was really looking forward to this session. The conditions were perfect, and the aim was to run them around 2:25 or better and feel in control (get used to running quick whilst remaining relaxed/no straining).

Quite a long warm-up of 5.7km, then waited for the groups to form and we were off. I went straight to the front and that's how it stayed for the session. Again lots of traffic and a near miss on the 3rd rep as I almost had to stop to avoid runners on the start line as I was half way through my rep. All for the good as that gets the juices flowing in an effort to get the time back. Here are the times:

2:23/2:22/2:23/2:23/2:20/2:18

The 90 second recovery was a complete luxury. I would have been a few seconds slower each time off a minute. The coach (Matt) was running around offering words of advice and encouragement to all the runners and his one comment to me was to keep the feet in control. I forgot to ask what that meant at the end of the session. Perhaps when I plant my feet they don't remain stable and tend to move laterally a little. I'll follow up on that one.

A great session. I'd say that has to be my best set of 800's on record. All good now for Saturday with a couple of easy days to look forward to and a rest day on Friday. The course at Kinvara sounds tough but fair. Certainly a fair few hills to deal with. I hope I have some company as I want to lay down a good time marker.

All up 14.0kms with warm-down.

Start of an easy week

Rest day today.

Nothing too much to report except for a quick dash to A&E after the eldest decided to swallow a coin. Three hours and one X-Ray later we were good to go to let nature take its course. Paranoid about getting sick waiting in the hospital. I must have used the hand sanitisers at least a dozen times...

Costa Del Galway

A lovely sunny day and a barmy 7 degrees. Great for running. I drove part way into town and started my run from the new junction which replaced the roundabout on the N17. Down to Terrylands, then on to Dangan via the river. Then joined the Cathedral route. Lots of pedestrian traffic running back into the city along the prom, and by the time I got to the Spanish Arch I was looking for the quickest route back to the car as I was spent. Up to Eyre Square and continuing straight back to my starting point. All up 23.9kms in 1:42:12 (4:17's). It felt like I was running 4:25's so similar to yesterday another pleasant surprise.

That's 105.2kms for the week. Another good week in the bag including 2 decent sessions. I feel like I'm making some good progress at the moment and just hope that translates into a good race on Saturday.

6 x 4 mins

Off 1 minute recovery. Still bloody cold but very little breeze. Used my local course for this type of stuff and what breeze there was I was running into on the slight uphill outward leg. So a much easier return. Here are the paces per km for the 4 minute efforts:

3:15/3:10/3:13/3:08/3:13/3:07

Didn't look at the watch to see how I was doing speedwise until after the session. It felt like I was around the 3:15/km mark so pleasantly surprised by the results. Encouraging.

The Kinvara 10km is one week today so apart from a longer run tomorrow, and a track session on Tuesday, it will be easy running/rest for me. The aim will be to get back running sub 33 which I haven't managed since June of last year.

More Breaking Bad in the evening. Very addictive if you fancy watching some decent TV. Respect the chemistry.

When Aunty Ducky....

...danced with Donald Bradman, she said that was the best day of her life.....what was your best (sporting) day?

Today was another day where it felt easy. Total of 11.1kms in 45:25 (4:06's). Out in the evening with the family for some food then back to watch season 4 of Breaking Bad.

Gotta love John Williamson!

Touch of winter

I thought we'd seen the back of the cold weather - well I was wrong. Today it was bloody freezing - the wind would cut straight through you. I struggled with my 16km run - the usual 4kms start running straight into the wind and the legs never got moving after that (probably due to frostbite). Run time of 1:10:22 which is a rather poor 4:25/km pace.

Watched the darts in the evening whilst camped in front of the fire. Love the new format of the Darts Premier League - great to see all the players every week. Wade looks to be coming back into form.

State 3km

11km in 47:07 (4:15's).

I was reading one of the Aussie blogs I follow (Easy Tiger) and was reminded of the New South Wales State 3km at the Olympic park in Sydney back in 2009. Here is the video:



I ran 9:05 and put a few of the Mingara boys to the sword in the process who I used to train with. Namely Arnold, Bowd and Partridge! Ryan Gregson won the A grade race in 8 minutes flat...

4 x 400, 3 x 1600, 4 x 400

Another beast of a track session. I wanted to push myself tonight and conditions looked to be good tonight being dry and very cool.

A longish warm-up of 6km including a few strides then time to go. The first 400 was pathetic, then slowly got going. I reset my watch when I got home so all of these are from memory but it went something like:

75/72/72/71
5:03/5:01/5:01
70/70/69/66

Happy with those. I felt comfortable on the 4 lappers and the last one felt the easiest of the lot. A bit disappointed not to run a few sub 5's but I was running solo and with over 70 people on the track there was a fair bit of overtaking/running wide.

Nearly forgot to give you the recoveries - 30 secs between the 400's (blink and it's gone), 60 seconds between the 1600's (tough but fair) and 2 minutes between the sets (lovely).

Greaney was flying tonight. Suddenly he has found another gear and ran a much improved session. Christy also improving week on week and a big race is now due. Great to see.

All up 17.5kms with warm-down.

How?

Felt great today. Not sure how that can happen after the poor run from yesterday. No logical explanation. Again windy but I managed 9.5kms in 38:16 (4:01's).

Forgot to mention last week's kilometer-age - 100.9kms. Since the New Year I've got into the routine of doing a couple of decent weeks training, then winding it back (freshening up) for a race. Firstly for Tuam (91/100/65kms), then for the Indoors/Maree (100/102/53). I'll continue that routine in the build-up for Kinvara 10km a week on Sat (another 100 this week, then easy next week). Then a couple more decent weeks of training before the Craughwell 10 miler on March 24th. Easy innit?

Overtaking

Not so fresh after the gallon of Guinness from the previous night and eventually out of the door mid afternoon for a long solo wobble. Very windy again and I was feeling very tired from the get go. The first 4kms were straight into the wind and I was hardly moving. I didn't really get going at all after that but somehow managed to keep going for 21.1kms (half) in 1:33:05 (4:25's). Felt like a marathon mind...I overtook an old man riding a bike, 2 horses, lots of dogs, a couple of snails.....

Stephen Maguire won the Welsh Open in a very high standard final beating Stuart Bingham 9-8. Great viewing.

Windy 10km tempo

I left the run late and didn't get out until 4:30pm. Today I was down for some quicker stuff and with the wind blowing a gale it wasn't going to be pretty. On my warm-up I decided to run a 10km tempo and similar to a few weeks back I decided to get a rolling start with the wind behind and the lovely downhill of the Rock Road.

I went through 5km in low 17 minutes and then it got a lot tougher as I hit the wind. I finished up running the 10kms in 34:56 and given the conditions I was happy enough with that.

All up 15.7kms in just over the hour.

Out in the evening for more darts with the next door neighbour. I started well (2nd leg 14 darts) and gradually faded as the night  wore on. I think that had more to do with the alcohol consumption...good night nonetheless.

Darts night

11.1kms in 47:01 (4:14's).

Out in the evening for darts. We were playing away at Keane's bar in Athenry. Lovely pub, nice throw, but my darts were very ordinary. Having said that I somehow managed to win both my singles and pairs 2-0. Overall another 7-2 win to consolidate our top of the table position.

Ten in old money

Squeezed in a bit of a longer run today. Total 16.0kms in 1:08:46 (4:18's). I suppose the next big target race-wise will be the Craughwell 10 miler at the end of March and I'd love to give my PB a rattle. The pace I need to target is 3:20/km. Three hopes of achieving that - Bob, Maurice and the Cape of Good....

Lucky

The same run as Monday. A bit quicker tonight knocking off the 10kms in 43:18 (4:20's). Legs still feel tired. After blowing a gale most of the day the wind had eased off in the evening so quite nice and mild for running. Perhaps a touch of spring in the air?

Pyramid Session

Back to the track tonight. The intention was to take it handy enough as 3 tough sessions in 4 days is probably not recommended.

Tonight was a pyramid session. Here goes: 400/600/800/1000/1200/1200/1000/800/600/400. Total 8kms. The recovery was mainly 90 seconds, except after the first 400/before the last 400 where we got 60 seconds. And a generous 3 minutes at the top of the pyramid between the 1200's...

Here are the times:

400 - 1:16
600 - 1:53
800 - 2:34
1000 - 3:10
1200 - 3:50
1200 - 3:48
1000 - 3:11
800 - 2:28
600 - 1:47
400 - 1:08

I sat in with the lead group which included Scott, Christy, Owen and myself. Nice to run the second set quicker than the first, though by the end of the session I was toast. All up 17.0kms with a longish warm-up (5.5kms) and warm-down (3.5kms).
I almost forgot to mention the weather - damp and breezy! Typical Galway...

Recovery run

A late night run of 10.0kms to shake out the legs. Time 43:45 (4:23's). Great evening for running but the legs felt very tired. Early night to catch up on some sleep.

Thanks for all the comments from the weekend. The more I race the luckier I get and all that...

Maree 8km

A double race weekend. This time only a short drive to Maree which is just near Oranmore. Conditions looked good - a bit of a breeze but nice and dry. A good chance to see what was left in the tank after yesterday's lung buster.

A good crowd in attendance of over 300. As always the organisation was very good and I was keen to try and win this race for the 3rd year on the trot. Around a 3km warm-up with Owen and then we changed into our racing gear and lined up at the start.

The gun sounded and I went straight to the front, swapping the lead with another runner who I didn't recognise a few times as we covered off the first 500m. I settled into my running and he soon dropped off leaving me running solo following the lead motorcycle. Through 1km and then a long gradual climb up to the 2km marker. Back down the hill the other side and then the long run out on the flat peninsular (into the breeze) until it was time to double back just before 4km. At the turnaround point I'd opened up close to a 30 second lead and with the legs feeling pretty tired I was wishing for the race to be over.

After about a km of running against the oncoming traffic it was time to take a right-hand turn tracing the waters edge until it was time to tackle another climb just after 5km. The road at this point wasn't great - more like a tractor track with a muddy/grassy median strip and lots of puddles either side. Just after 6km there was another nasty climb but with that behind me it was time to make the run for home.

The last section was much easier - fairly flat and once through 7km you were greeted with the countdown with every 200m marked until I had the final run up to the finishing line. I must have been struggling at this point as some young kids were running up to the finish just in front of me and I couldn't keep up with them! Anyway, I crossed the line for the win in a time of 26:19.

Happy with the time as it felt like I had run 26:40 - and it's a tough course. Just looking back I ran quicker than last year (26:22) so that's another good sign as my legs weren't right today.

I finished up with a 6km warm-down with Owen, Niall and Billy. I'll put that down as 17kms for the day.

A few photos courtesy of Francis at Eirefoto. The start:
























The podium with Owen and Niall. I'm wearing my City of Norwich top as the GCH one was in the
wash from yesterday.....:


































Here are the splits:

1km 3:08
2km 3:17
3km 3:16
4km 3:21 (13:02)
5km 3:16
6km 3:23
7km 3:20
8km 3:18 (13:17)

Total 26:19

A total of 53.5kms for the week. To top the weekend England won the rugby and so out in the evening for a few more celebratory beers and a game of darts!

National Masters Indoors 3,000m

I grabbed a lift with Paul for the short drive to Athlone (around 40 minutes). Upon arrival we were greeted with this wonderful new facility - I have to admit to a few butterflies as I stepped out into the arena - it looked absolutely amazing.

I was scheduled to race around 2:50pm but with lots of races being split into heats to accommodate the numbers everything was running late. I eventually ran a bit of a warm-up outside with Paul and Gerry around 3:30pm - 5 laps of the outside track before moving indoors to the mezzanine level where there was a 100m section of track overlooking the main 200m track where you could run some strides.

Still a fair bit of hanging around and eventually we were all called to the track for some race details. Again with lots of runners the race was split into heats and I was lucky enough to get in heat 1 which looked to be the quickest heat. Somewhat strangely, each heat contained a mixture of age-groupers so we were faced with the unusual situation of people in my age group (40 to 44) being spread in heats 1, 2 and 3. So basically it was all going to come down to time - the quickest times of the day in each age group irrespective of what heat they were run in would determine the medals.

I lined up at the start with 7 other runners. The beep sounded and we were off. I used the first few laps to get a feel of the track. I'd never run one of the banked bends before so wanted to get used to these and I found myself in 5th position. The pace certainly wasn't slow mind - and I was working had to stay in touch with the runners in front.

I think I went through the 1,000m in about 2:57 and it was around this point that I moved up a couple of positions into 3rd place. I wasn't feeling comfortable and the lungs were already starting to burn. The good thing about the 200m track is that the laps click down really quickly - I was hanging on to 3rd place and settled in as best I could. I was getting some great support from the crowd and that helped and as we went through 2,000m I made my move on the back straight to take the lead. That was great but my immediate thought was that I was going to blow up as I had the best part of 5 laps still to run!

Funnily enough the last few laps seemed to tick by very quickly. I was hurting but I knew from the feedback I was getting that I had opened up a decent gap and I wasn't going to let it slide. I hit the bell and enjoyed the last lap as much as I could crossing the line in 8:53 for the heat victory.

I was delighted with the time as I couldn't see myself breaking 9 minutes. The track was superb and must be short - that's the only conclusion I can draw! I then watched the next couple of heats which were slower so it turned out that I posted the quickest time of the day - across all the age grades! Another national gold medal and a 5 second PB in the process!

A shortish warm-down of 1.6km so around 7kms for the day. I'd certainly recommend anyone to go along to Athlone to have a look at this facility - it's first class! It's open to the general public so everyone is welcome to go along and give it a try. I'll certainly be back!

Here are a few photos (Thanks Jane!). The start:

























Taking the lead:

































The finish:

































A few celebratory beers in the evening!

Second rest

No running today.

Tried to get my new laptop working - no joy. Seems Windows 8 and my router don't like one another...so that drove me to drink. Just the 3 beers to aid sleep. Looking forward to tomorrow...

Done and dusted

Same run as yesterday. Felt great today and was ticking along very nicely without pushing it. Time 38:30 for 9.5kms (4:02's). That's it now, no more running until Saturday.

A few beers watching Breaking Bad in the evening.

Brazil nuts

Easy local loop of 9.5kms in 39:59 (4:13's).

England beat Brazil 2-1...

6 x 600 off a rolling 4 mins

Longish warm-up loop around the block then a few laps of the track. Conditions were cold and wet and the wind kept picking up making the last 50m of the back straight and the start of the final bend bloody tough.

The main group were doing 8 x 1km but myself and Gerry wanted to do s session more specific to the indoors and we were told to run some 600's. The target pace was 3km race pace (for me 9 mins equals 1:48/600m). Try and run nice and relaxed and if you can find a second or 2 then that's all for the good...

Here were the times:

1:47/1:49/1:49/1:49/1:48/1:49

I have to say they felt far from comfortable. I was working hard to get them down to near my target time. Okay conditions weren't great and there was a lot of traffic to dodge but tonight certainly didn't act as a confidence booster. Hopefully on race day it will all click on the new super quick Athlone track.

A short warm-down of 3 laps to give me 10.5kms for the day.

I raced home, had a quick shower, then out with the old man for his last night in Galway before he jets back to Blighty. He'll certainly have his tail between his legs after I whopped him 15-11 at darts scoring 4 x 180's in the process. I think I'd go better if it were a darts tournament in Athlone on Saturday...

Resting

No running today - been feeling a bit niggly the last week so a rest day was in order. Listen to the body and all that...

The plan this week is to do a light track session on Tuesday, then easy running for the rest of the week before the indoors on Saturday.

Another ton

Planned to take it very easy today as I could feel the quad a bit. The plan was to run around 20kms to get me up above 100kms for the week - a stupid mentality really. I ran solo and local and covered parts of all the loops I run here in Claregalway. All up 20.9kms in 1:33:21 (4:28's). The leg seemed to behave so looks like I have dodged an injury bullet. I'll take a rest today tomorrow (planning an easy week anyway) just to be on the safe side.

102.1kms for the week.

Out in the evening for some more darts practise with the lads. Watched England retain the darts World Cup!

15 mins and 3 x 3 mins

Perfect weather for running today - but feeling a little under the weather (self-inflicted) so that meant I delayed the session until late afternoon. I decided to copy the Harriers session which was a 15 minute tempo, then 2 mins 30 secs break, then 3 x 3 mins off 1 minute.

I used my normal route for this type of session. I ran the 15 minutes in one direction (slightly uphill), then turned and ran the 3 x 3 mins the other way. Stats as follows:

15:00 - 4.46kms - 3:22/km
3:00 - 0.93kms - 3:14/km
3:00 - 0.94kms - 3:11/km
3:00 - 0.93kms -  3:13/km

Finished up with a warm-down to give me 15.0kms for the day. Fairly happy with the session running solo but upon arrival home it seems like I have picked up a slight thigh strain. Nothing too serious I think - a couple of easy days and I'll be good.

Last of Christmas

10.8kms in 44:31 (4:07's). I lifted the pace on the final few kms to home with the wind on the back.

Legs generally a bit sore still after that track session  - especially the hammies. Will try and get a massage in before the indoors.

Out in the evening for our darts team's Christmas do. Lots of booze and home by 2am. Good fun had by all.

Surprise

The plan today was to run around an hour or so. Up by the airport I bumped into Owen so I doubled back and ran back to his workplace along a new route at the back of the airport which brings you out on the coast road. By the time Owen peeled off to go to work I still had another 7kms to home. I ended up running 19.6kms in 1:26:02 (4:23's). The wind is still around so again that explains the slower pace.

Out in the evening for a game of darts with my old man. I dished out a 15-11 hammering. That's better.

Back to windy

11.1kms in 48:12 (4:21's). The strong winds are difficult to run in and must cost you around 10 seconds per km. At least it wasn't raining...

10 x 400 off 60 secs

Bog standard session - perfect for my build-up to the indoors a week on Saturday. A longish warm-up of over 6km in what turned out to be very favourable conditions. Very lucky really as for most of the day it was wet and blowing another gale...

The session was to be 10 x 400 (some people did 12). I planned to run them all hard tonight to see where I'm at. Here are the times:

72/70/68/68/68/67/66/66/66/64

The first one was again a bit of a warm-up but then I wound up the pace. At halfway the coach (another Matt) mentioned he wanted me to run the second half of the session quicker - finishing with some 65's. I was already feeling it so wasn't sure that was possible but managed to find something. The last one I was pushed all the way by Niall who looks to be coming into some great form. I finished the session absolutely spent - I can't recall pushing myself like that for a long time. Doubled over gasping for breath at the finish and all that...

Another great session. The group goes from strength to strength - well over 50 runners (again) and everyone looking to be running well. Very lucky to have a group like this to train with.

All up 13.8kms with warm-down. I'd say I'll be sore tomorrow as I'm not used to running at that pace.

Galeforce

Bloody tough going today. My bread and butter local loop of 11.1kms in 49:47 (4:29's). With conditions like today the pace goes out of the window - a struggle to stand upright at times. Struggled through and one of those days where there is no enjoyment in running - more of a chore. Hope the weather improves as it has been desperate lately...

Didn't spot one other runner

More miserable conditions for running. I was about to head out the door and a hail storm hit so I waited until it cleared. Then I got going and I encountered everything the elements could throw at me - wind, rain, snow, sleet, hail - and even a bit of sun for about one nano-second.

The same route as 2 weeks ago running up to Oranmore, then the Coast Road, up through Doughiska, along the Monivea Road, then back to Claregalway. The wind was so stroing along the Coast Road I might as well have walked. All up 22.2kms in 1:40:26 (4:31's). Pace was poor but it was a good workout.

That's 100.4kms for the week.

Enjoyed watching the snooker shootout on the weekend. Martin Gould winning the title and £36k in the process. Not bad for 6 frames of snooker...

Another 10km tempo

The weather has taken a real turn at the moment. Windy and wet and generally not very pleasant to run in. I decided on another 10km tempo - after a 2km warm-up I went straight into it using the wind behind and the nice downhill on the Rock Road to give me a flying start. At about 6km I hit the N17 and was running directly into the wind and that was very tough going. Upon reaching the church in the village I decided to turn right as that would give me some respite from the wind for the final mile. I was pleasantly surprised with the time after 10km of 35:24 as it felt like I had slowed a lot in the second half. A further 3.4kms warm-down to give me 15.4kms for the day. That was that.

Lost again

10.8kms in 45:34 (4:13's).

League darts in the evening. I was rested in the singles to make way for the old man (read dropped). Eventually played my pairs around half midnight by which time I was full of beer and excuses. Lost again in a deciding leg. Overall the team did manage to chalk up a 6-3 win so not all bad!

Lost

More local running of 14.8kms in 1:04:05 (4:20's).

A game of darts in the evening with the old man - I lost 13-11. Never got going...

Smelly

I ran local and there were lots of agricultural smells in the air ranging from the disgusting to near vomit. Clocked up 11.1kms in 46:11 (4:10's).

Another (better) photo of the new indoor track at Athlone:























Picked my Dad up in the evening as he is over for a couple of weeks.

6 x 800 off 90 secs

In the middle of a cold snap here in Galway - a very cool 2 degrees at track tonight and despite some fears that the surface may be icy, the session went ahead as planned. It wasn't too bad once you got warmed up and with very little wind I didn't have many excuses at hand...

A massive group again - probably 50+ runners split into groups. The session was 800s off 90 seconds (we had to jog 200m in the recovery). As always with generous recovery we were expected to run the 800s at the same pace as the 400s from the previous week (which were off 30 secs). So I was looking at around 2:26 as a target.

The first one was pretty poor (as is the norm). I need to get out of the habit as using the first one as a warm-up. The rest were okay, a little up and down, and I have to say I was really feeling it today in the last few reps. Perhaps explainable only 2 days after Chu-am. Here are the times:

2:31/2:28/2:29/2:25/2:27/2:23

Happy enough - wet track cost us a bit of time so I think I'm near 3 minute/km pace which is always encouraging. A few more short-sharp session required before the indoor 3,000m. Talking of which here is a photo of the new track (thanks to Amphibian King):

























I can tell you the nerves will be jangling stepping out on that.....looks class!

All up 15.0kms with the up and down.

Start of a 2 week training block

Easy run of 11.1km to stretch out the legs after yesterday's race. Time 46:51 (4:13's). Legs a little sore but not too bad.

Forgot to mention a few things yesterday. Firstly the snooker. A great tournament - my tip John Higgins went out early in a deciding frame, and to be honest of the players left I thought that Neil Robertson was easily playing the best snooker. But somehow Selby just manages to grind out results even when he is well below par. Another great win for the Jester who must now be favourite for the World Champs in April.

Oh yeah, last weeks tally - a mediocre 65.5kms.

Tuam 8km

Just the 3 degrees which was a little chilly on the you know what. Bone dry and a bit of a stiff breeze that you'd only really notice when you are running directly into it. All in all it looked pretty good. A short couple of clicks warm-up and a couple of strides and we were lining up for the 2:30pm start.

A good crowd of over 500 runners. A lot of the usual suspects were there which was great to see. And then almost without warning we were underway. I got a terrible start and lost a few seconds whilst I woke up. The first km is very friendly with some nice downhill sections. Gerry Ryan took the lead with me and Paul Keane in hot pursuit. At the first roundabout Gerry nearly took a wrong turn and lost a few seconds and by this stage I was left chasing him.

I missed the first km marker but I had the feeling it was quick. The second km had a nasty enough section with a climb and I was surprised that Gerry didn't seem to be opening up his usual big gap on me. I looked at the split at the 2km marker and it showed 6:10 which meant the pace was definitely on. As we made a left turn it immediately became tougher as the breeze became a factor. I remained focused and tried to keep Gerry in my sights as I knew that once we got to the main road at around 4.5kms, the run back to town would be a lot easier.

I wasn't looking at the watch but I knew the pace had dropped. This section of the course is flat enough and it was just the wind that made it tough. Nothing really happened - Gerry wasn't improving on his lead and I had nobody close to me so it becomes a bit of a mental battle to try and keep the legs moving. Finally some reprieve after reaching the main road and then it was time to see what was left in the tank.

At this point I felt great. Straight away I felt much more comfortable and the 5 and 6km markers soon passed. Gerry looked around on a few occasions and I got the impression he was struggling and I'd certainly not given up on catching him. Up to the 7km mark seemed to be a gradual climb, and then at 7km you have to climb up and over the bridge. At this point someone shouted that Gerry had a 15 second lead and despite running a strong last km I'd left it too late crossing the line in 25:58 for 2nd position (Gerry won in 25:48).

I have to take a lot of positives from this race. It's the first time I've broken 26 minutes for 8km since 2011 (I raced this distance 7 times in 2012 and my best time was 26 flat in the Streets). Also I ran pretty much the whole race by myself which is also tough. Good signs for the year ahead. As I suspected Gerry was carrying a bit of an injury so no doubt that's as close as I'll be to him for a very long time.

After a warm-down with another Gerry (Carty) it was back to the hall for the presentation. A great spread and lots of prizes and this has to go down as one of the best value races of the year (€15 entry which also gets you 3 pairs of running socks!). A big well done to Tuam AC.

All going well so far this year. Nice to break 16 for 5km and 26 for 8km this early in the year. Another couple of weeks of decent training now (with 2 speed sessions thrown in each week) and then I plan to run the indoor masters at Athlone on Feb 9th. It's a brand new indoor 200m track and this will be the first time it will be used for competition. I've entered the 3,000m so it will be 15 laps of red-lining. I'd love to give sub 9 minutes a rattle (which may be a little optimistic).

Here are the splits for the 8km:

2km 6:10
3km 3:21
4km 3:25 (12:56)
5km 3:22
6km 3:14
7km 3:15
8km 3:11 (13:02)

Total 25:58

All up 14.6kms for the day. Upon arriving home I had the usual conversation with the kids: "How did you get on Dad?", "I came second", "Who beat you?", "Have a guess", "Gerry Ryan?", "Correct...!".

I then I switched on the TV just as Spurs equalised against United. That made my weekend!

Here is a photo (courtesy of Maree AC). You can just see me in the distance (I think this is the bridge just after 7km):

30 minutes

I couldn't decide whether to run or not today. In the end I ventured out for a half an hour trot. I ran the smallest of the local loops which was 6.7km in 30:05 (4:29's). Weird running at that pace, you'd think running slower than normal would be easy but putting the brakes on just doesn't feel natural.

A few beers in the evening and watched the snooker. A Selby/Robertson final. Should be a cracker.

Another loop

Same run as Wednesday, this time a bit quicker - 9.5kms in 39:52 (4:12's).

Darts in the evening. I was very happy with how I played winning both singles and pairs. Good scoring and no messing about on the doubles. Overall we recorded another 8-1 win to maintain our top of the table position.

Resting

No time for a run today. The rest will do me good.

A bit of decorating, a few beers and watch the snooker.

Rub required

Local loop of 9.5kms in a slow 40:55 (4:18's). Legs sore after yesterday's track session. Easy running for the rest of the week before the 8km on Sunday.

16 x 400s off 30 secs

Constant rain and 4 degrees - not too windy mind. Wasn't feeling the love (no mojo) as I did my warm-up with the lads.

A huge turn-out, the bad weather didn't seem to detract anyone so that was good to see. I think the session was split into 6 or 7 groups with the quickest group starting first. Here are the times:

77/76/75/75/74/73/72/73/72/72/71/71/72/70/71/69

A terribly slow start - just couldn't get going. I gradually worked up the pace and was pleased with the second half of the set which in all honesty felt easier than the first half. I should add that I wasn't sticking to the 30 seconds recovery - I was probably getting 35 secs on average in order to stay with the group. A tough session on a very damp track.

With warm-down I clocked up 15.2kms. Fingers were like ice blocks and couldn't wait to get home for a hot shower.

Still dark

10kms in 43:12 (4:19's). Evenings starting to draw out a bit so hopefully be back running in daylight hours more often soon.

Snooker & Darts

Another long run - out to Oranmore, along the Coast Road, then towards the city, right turn at the G hotel, then back to Claregalway along the N17 (that last section is very uppish). Total distance 24.6kms in 1:44:18 (4:14's).

That's 100.8kms for the week. Happy with how things are going.

The BDO darts final was very one-sided. Too Hotty winning easily as I expected.

The snooker started today - the Masters at the Ally Pally. I can't pick the winner of this one - too close to call. Okay, I'll get off the fence - John Higgins gets my vote (though I'd prefer Judd as he is more entertaining to watch).

10km tempo

Today it was time for a speed session. I'm not following a plan at the moment and I'm basically making it up as I go along. I started out with the intention of running 2 x 12 minutes (maybe 15 minutes if feeling good), but halfway through the first effort I knew the pace was slow (running uphill into the wind the first 5 minutes didn't help) so I decided just to keep going and run one long continuous effort.

I couldn't decide on a time - I just kept plugging away. I ended up running 35 minutes and in that time I covered exactly 10kms so 3:30/km on the knocker. Not bad going given the conditions.

All up 16.3kms with warm-up and down. Next week will be a track session on Tuesday and then race on the weekend.

Night run with a twist

I started off running as it was just starting to get dark. I decided on my nighttime route and added on another section of 100m or so to turn this into 10km exactly. Time 43:08 (4:19's).

Practised my darts for an hour or so in prep for the league match. I hit 8 x 180's and was throwing well. In my singles I started like Phil Taylor hitting 140 the first 3 darts - eventually missing double top for a 15 dart leg. I went on to win that leg but then in the next leg I started playing like Elizabeth Taylor. Not good. I somehow managed to win 2-0 and also won my pairs later in the evening. Our team won 8-1 and we are running away with the league. Home by 2am.

62 minutes

Managed to squeeze in a daylight run today. A total of 14.8kms in 1:02:00 (4:11's). Going nicely at the moment and I feel like I'm coming into form. My next race will be the Tuam 8km on Jan 20th and it would be nice to get a sub 26 on the board early in the year.

Enjoying the darts at the Lakeside. I can't see anyone touching Scotty "too hotty" Waites though. He'll win it then switch to the PDC before the end of the month.

5,000m WR

Another nighttime run - 9.9kms in 42:05 (4:15's). As non-descript as ever.

I was sent this Youtube clip (thanks Colm). It's the 5,000m world record ran by Bekele in 2004. It's a must watch for any fan of athletics (commentary not in English but don't let that detract). Here it is:



Jaw-dropping stuff. Running 60 second laps and making it look easy. Plus Bekele basically ran the second half of the race by himself. Great to see the Big Mazungo in the same race.

Here are the splits:

1km 2:33.24
2km 2:32.23
3km 2:31.87
4km 2:30:59
5km 2:29:44

Total 12:37.37 (eventually rounded down to 12:37.35)

That's how to run a 5km - gradually wind up the pace!

8 x 800 off 75 secs

The weather had turned again - a glorious dry sunny day and by the track time rolled around at the new start of 7:30pm, despite being very cool, conditions were spot on. The normal 3.7kms warm-up around the roads before running a further 4 laps of the track with Timmie and Niall.

The session was 800's. A great group tonight with everyone running well. The first one was pretty poor (I should have done some strides) but then the pace was gradually cranked up. I kept stuffing my watch up and had to rely on others for 2 of my splits but despite that I felt strong throughout and was ticking along very nicely.

Here are the times:

2:37/2:28/2:30/2:27/2:27/2:27/2:25/2:23

I was probably averaging around 80 seconds recovery to stay with the group. Great to see some new and old faces at track tonight. The standard at the front is really improving with Owen running very quickly - only a matter of time before he has a big breakthrough run. Niall also ran very strongly - he'll be a sub 16 minute 5km runner in no time.

A 3.7km warm-down again around the roads. All up 15.4kms for the day. Home for pizza and chocolate. No beer mid-week starting as of this week - after 19 consecutive drinking days over Christmas it's time for a bit of a break...

Popped In Souled Out

Hammering down all day - no avoiding it. Got drenched running my 9.9kms in 43:19 (4:23's). Pace was slow but legs were tired after the weekend.

Wet Wet Wet

Another long run today. Very wet conditions and I decided to get the worst part out of the way by running into the wind for the first half of the run. My route took me from Claregalway to Carnmore, then on to Oranmore, then the Coast Road. Then up through Doughiska, before taking the Monivea Road back to Carnmore. Then the final stretch for home. All up 22.1kms in 1:35:12 (4:18's). Absolutely soaked come the end.

That's 91.4kms for the week (with one rest day). From here on I'll start doing more speedwork - I'll probably settle on 2 speed sessions per week as 3 is too much. So Tuesday track and then either Thursday or Saturday depending on what best fits.

Forgot to mention that I played darts again last night in the pub - not the normal 501 but a game of cricket (which I've never played before). Teams of pairs and a fair bit of strategy involved - very enjoyable.

Lily-Mae

Today was a bit of a struggle - decided to head out mid-afternoon as the rain subsided. As I ran up to Carnmore I was greeted by a huge convoy of runners running in the opposite direction. Turns out it was a fund raiser for Lily-Mae, a local girl suffering with a rare childhood cancer. Everyone looked to be having fun and fair play to anyone who covered the entire run from Ballinasloe to Claregalway which must be in excess of 60kms. Great to see.

Well this gave me just the motivation I needed. I was wearing new runners (Asics 2170) and you really notice the difference after wearing old trainers. I ended up covering exactly 20kms in 1:24:58 (4:15's). Felt surprisingly good after last night.

I then got home and read a text from Fintan that he'd done 35kms at the same pace. My bonfire had just been p!ssed on...

More fun

Squeezed in an hours run just before it was getting dark. Distance 15.1kms in 1:04:35 (4:17's).

Out in the evening with Fintan, Owen and Timmie for food and numerous beverages. Home by 3am. How Fintan made it into work for 6am beggars belief...

Lets Play Darts

Same run as yesterday - well almost - I did the route in reverse clocking up 9.87kms in 40:25 (4:06's). Surprised by the pace as the effort level was the same as the day before.

More darts starting on Saturday - the BDO World Champs covered by the BBC. The standard isn't the same as the PDC but still worth a watch. It's basically the feeder system for the PDC as any good players soon make the switch across to chase the big money.

Back to nights

My 10km night run. Measured it with the new Garmin and it turns out it's 9.84km (time 42:32 at 4:19/km pace).

In my haste to get yesterday's race report up I forgot to mention the darts final. I decided to watch it in the pub with the darts team. A great game with Taylor winning 7-4 to clinch his 16th world title. Van Gerwen wasn't at his best which was a shame as I would have loved to see this one go all the way. Needless to say I think we'll be seeing the Green Machine in many more finals over the coming years.

Resolution Run 5km

I kept a lid on the celebrations yesterday evening and awoke to a glorious day - very still and sunny and looked to be just about as good a day for racing that you could hope for.

The race this year had been moved from Renmore into the centre of Galway. Upon arrival I ran the guts of the course with Sean and Timmie and I have to admit I did have my reservations about the route as there were lots of areas where traffic could be a big issue. In what turned out to be a superbly organised event, the marshaling on the day was first class and I didn't hear of any problems. Well done as it must be a logistical nightmare to put on a race like this in the city centre.

A good turnout with over 300 toeing the line. This race has very fond memories for me as I have managed to win it the last couple of years so I was keen to put in a good performance. The gun sounded and Kenny Rogers went straight to the front leaving me and Damien Landers from Clare chasing.

The first km was into a slight breeze but the pace was quick. I went through the first km in 3:02 and Kenny had already opened up a slight gap. As we made a right hand turn just after 1km I was already feeling the pinch and I was trying to hang on to Damien without much joy. There was a slight climb at this point as we made our way through a few back streets before crossing the main road and then taking a left hand turn along the canal. Damien was still just in front and Kenny had opened up a decent lead. Somewhere along this section I closed in on Damien and I think we swapped the lead a few times.

A right turn at the end of the canal as we ran round the back of the Cathedral. I was now in second position. I was feeling a bit better and tried to force the pace but that proved fruitless. A few more turns and we were then to make the climb up to Eyre Square. This is the part of the course I enjoyed the most - especially the run up the pedestrianised section along Shop St. Despite it being slightly uphill, we were getting some great support from the crowd and it had a really nice vibe about it.

Upon reaching Eyre Square it was time to push for home. I was still in second and Damien was still in touch and I could hear that one other runner was fast approaching. Running down by the docks I missed the 4km marker but knew that it was going to be a quick finish. The last section along the Long Walk was hurting. With about 500m to go Paul Buckley went past me but I managed to summons up a sprint finish as soon as I spotted the Spanish Arch and thankfully I managed to regain second position crossing the line in a time of 15:54.

Pleased as punch with that. Nice to get under 16 and some more good racing in the process. Kenny won the race in a super 15:35 so he was in a different class today.

The first 4 of us ran the course again as a warm-down. All up 14.5kms for the day. I really enjoyed this race and I have nothing but positive feedback. A real treat to be able to run around the city today and the great weather was a bonus.

Here are the splits:

1km 3:02
2km 3:18
3km 3:16
4km 3:14 (estimate)
5km 3:04

Total 15:54

Here are some photos courtesy of the race's Facebook page.

The start chatting to the opposition (Paul #305, Kenny #312)




















And they're off:




















The finish at the famous Spanish Arch:




















Another one at the finish where I look like an old man: