Yearly Review 2013

I managed to squeeze in a bit of a session today - a 20 minute tempo run on the treadmill at 3:24/km pace. A minimal warm-up or down and a total of only 8.5kms. Felt awful. Moving on, here's a quick summary of my races from this year:

 
Nothing to write home about in there. Only one PB and that was my 3,000m on the indoor track in a distance I'd rarely race.

I made a decent start to the year on the road clocking a sub 16 minute 5km and a sub 26 minute 8km in January. But I didn't really build on that and never really got on a good roll. I ran a few decent 10km times in Kinvara, Annaghdown and Ballinderreen where I clocked sub 33's, and I guess my most enjoyable run of the year was my 2nd placing in the Norwich half, plus my win in Connemara on a very windy day.

I put a lot of focus into the track 10,000m in July, but a bout of tonsillitis put pay to a decent performance there, plus my left knee has been troubling me for most of the year and that has taken away some of the enjoyment from training. Hopefully I get on  decent roll in the New Year and can get back running well and injury/pain free.

Happy New Year to everyone. Here's wishing to health and happiness and a few PB's in 2014!

Burning the candle both ends

A long morning run with Fintan. Not feeling the Mae West it was always going to be a tough one. The first hour wasn't too bad, but from then on it was a tough slog. The legs were heavy and I was counting down the last few kms. All up 21.0kms in 1:28:37 (4:13's). That pace wasn't too bad as it felt like I'd been running 4:30's.

I doubled up with another trip to the pub in the evening with my snooker partner. Another 1:30am finish, and when I got home the wife was having an impromptu party with a few friends so it was more boozing. Not my greatest move as I woke up the next day feeling like a house beginning with S!

Game of jam tarts

Another solo run - this time my route was the Thursday morning one. A total of 14.8kms in 1:03:48 (4:19's). I didn't feel as good as yesterday but when you get to my age you generally don't get 2 good runs on the trot!

A total of 71.7kms for the week.

Feeling a bit better I made the call to visit the pub with the next door neighbour. Lots of beer and darts and home by 1:30am. My darts was generally pretty poor but my double 10 hitting was James Wade-like.

A bit better

A longer run today. I was feeling a good bit better and I seemed to have a bit more bounce in my step. All up 15.2kms in 1:01:22 (4:02's). Progress.

Soldiering on

A recovery run - 11.1kms in 47:15 (4:15's). Wet and blustery and I was coughing up all sorts of nasties. I'll keep battling on as it can only get easier.

Fields of Athenry 10km

This is one of the big 3 races in Galway and is one not to be missed. Conditions looked spot on - cold and still, and the race organisers got their decision to delay the start of the race spot on to allow a few patches of ice on the course to clear.

I wasn't feeling great - I'd picked up a cold and I was coughing and spluttering but I'd made the call to give it a go (I would have always been wondering if I'd stayed at home). I ran a very short 500m warm-up and then lined up at the start for the off.

The siren sounded and I made a poor start. The first 100m I was dodging and weaving trying to get into my running and when I finally found a clean line, Mick Clohisey and Kenny Rogers had already made a considerable break on the chasers.

A guy made a move for third spot, and I tried to go with him but I had nothing. The breathing was very laboured (40 a day smoker-like), and the legs were heavy. By the time we hit the first km marker he had gotten away from me, leaving me alone in 4th. The next couple of kms were getting tougher and I was ready to step off the course. As we approached 4km another runner went straight past me and I was now down to 5th.

I wouldn't say I backed off at all, I just kept plugging away - but there was no speed or rhythm to my running. Through 5km and I was still considering the easy option of stopping but I could still see 3rd and 4th ahead so that at least kept me focused. The next 5km was a real struggle and I was aware of another runner closing in on me. The km markers were slowly ticking by and by the time I reached 9km marker I knew that I'd hold on to 5th place. That's how it remained and with a friendly finish I eventually crossed the line in 34:02.

I spent the next few minutes coughing up some really nasty stuff and then went over to congratulate the podium getters - Mick running 30:48 for the win, Kenny in 2nd in 31:50 and Declan Fahey 3rd in 32:48.

No warm-down - I just went back and grabbed my top, got a quick cup of hot drink, and then it was off home for a hot shower. All up 10.5kms for the day. Well done to all the organisers for putting this race on. Everything was spot on and the good conditions made for lots of PB's. Well done if you were one of these!

More eating and drinking in the evening. Not my greatest day on the roads but at least there was a reason. Next year!

Here are the splits:

1km 3:16
2km 3:13
3km 3:20
4km 3:27
5km 3:34 (16:50)
6km 3:23
7km 3:26
8km 3:28
9km 3:31
10km 3:24 (17:12)

Total 34:02

Here is a photo of me approaching the finish (thanks to Eirefoto):

Xmas Day

Happy Christmas to one and all!

No running today - instead it was a day of building Lego, drinking and eating. My kind of day really. The bad news is that I've picked up a cold. For someone who never gets sick, it seems to be one thing after another lately. I'll still run tomorrow, and to give myself a fighting chance I've laid off the booze for the evening...

Xmas Eve

A 10.0km run on the treadmill in 42:48 (4:17's). Left quad still really tender after the rub. I'll rest up now until St Stephen's day and I'm sure it will come good.

Family around in the evening - but not before a quick visit to the pub for a few pints.

Massage and session

A massage at lunchtime. The whole rub was spent on the inside of my quad muscle on my left leg. It was a real mess but felt a lot better afterwards. It's going to be tender now for a few days so what better way to aid the recovery than to do a session....

Yes a 20 minute tempo run on the treadmill in the evening. A 2.1kms warm-up, then 20 minutes continuous at 3:24/km pace, then a 2.1km warm-down. All up 10.1kms. It didn't feel at all comfortable running at the tempo pace - probably due to the earlier rub. Still I wanted to get at least one session in before the Fields 10km on December 26th and after last week's write-off, it had to be today...

69

A long run to finish the week off. I ran from home up to Carnmore - Ballybrit - Doughiska - Oranmore and then back to Claregalway. The weather was miserable - hail, sleet, snow, rain - it had the lot. I was running along the Coast Road in Oranmore and it started laying which was quite dangerous as it was bloody slippery. I survived and ended up covering 22.2kms in 1:34:45 (4:16's). Glorious weather by the time I'd finished...

That's 69.3kms for the week. A week to forget to be honest. I have a massage booked in tomorrow to try and get this bloody knee sorted. It would be lovely to start the new year running pain free.

Holiday time

An early morning run before work. The weather was not great, and neither was I. A total of 11.1kms in 48:20 (4:21's). Left knee back to being painful.

A few beers in the evening as I'm now on holiday for the next couple of weeks. Getting into the Christmas spirit and all that.

Power Cut

No running today. Feeling generally much better and the throat is just about back to normal. Okay I've missed a few days training but the big concern is no alcohol in 5 whole days. I dare say I'll work on that over Christmas.

Watched the darts in the evening. A great match between the Power and Michael Smith (the World Youth Champion). Taylor didn't look right all match and was offering up chances which Smith was gladly taking. In the deciding set Smith took out a brilliant 128 bull finish to win the match. So that opens things up a bit with MVG now the stand-out favourite. I'm still looking elsewhere - but not sure where yet!

Luckly lull

Early morning run with Owen and Sean. The horrific stormy conditions overnight had just about cleared and despite a bit of wind it was very pleasant to run in. Lots of chat and the run was soon over before sunrise. A total of 15kms in around 65 minutes. Just as we finished the heavens opened and it was hailing and raining. A close shave.

Still feeling a bit under the weather but the fresh air certainly did me good. Not happy with my left knee again so I'll get a rub before Christmas.

My Dad's 65th today so bought him some Lego. It's the gift that keeps on giving.

Missing sitters

Throat still no good so another rest day. I still had a game of snooker in the evening and was feeling a little better afterwards - helped by the fact that I hit breaks of 44 and 45. Two good chances to go beyond 50 but missed a couple of sitters....

Who's your money on in the darts?

Throat

Sore throat time. Lots of drugs to try and get on top of it. Hope it's not another bout of tonsillitis...

I'd planned a rest day today so no damage done.

Recovery Run

A long recovery run with Fintan. The plan was to take it fairly easy so was surprised to look down at the watch at the halfway stage and see that we were tipping along at around 4:12/km pace. Finished up doing the same run as the previous week - a total of 21.0kms in 1:27:49 (4:11's). The legs were quite sore and you'd certainly know you had raced the previous day so was looking forward to getting this over with.

Developed a bit of a sore throat later in the day so that's not good...

Ballinderreen 10km

By some miracle the weather was great. The strong winds had died down and the heavy rain stopped just as I arrived for registration. I bumped into Fintan and after the usual stuff it was time for a few kms warm-up. The field today looked to be very strong - the stand-out was Gary Thornton who has run 29 flat for 10km, plus the likes of Mike O'Connor (30 flat), Peter O'Sullivan, Fintan, Julio Castro and some old soak from Norwich who were all sure to feature. I often get comments that it must be great to win the races but my response is always that you'd prefer a good race pitching yourself against the best, rather than having a solo time trial. Well today promised to be a cracker and was one of the best local line-ups in a long time.

The race started and Gary hit the lead with a group of us chasing. Nobody was going to stick with Gary and so we settled into a nice group of 5 chasers. We were running at a good clip and through the first km in 3:10 feeling pretty good. Gary was working up a nice lead and no moves in our group as we went through the second km. Around this point Mike pulled back leaving the 4 of us to fight it out.

Not much was happening. I think Julio took up the running at one point, but we remained in touch and as the km markers ticked by it was starting to look like it could be a last km shoot-out. Through 4km and then shortly after we started running on the main road. I took up the running on the newly re-surfaced tarmac and was feeling good. It was only a surge of about 500m but it seemed to string us all out a little. As we turned off the main road and went through half-way, it looked like Peter and Fintan had lost touch leaving me and Julio. The pattern of the race for the next few kms was me running at the front, I would be closed down on the uphill drags, and then I would get away again on the flatter sections. More on the course, I have to say it was very friendly, some slight ups and downs but it was predominantly flat, and with good conditions it made for good running. I suppose the only downside was that there were lots of puddles to avoid but considering what the conditions could have been like you'd have taken it every time.

I glanced at my watch at 7km and it was 23:09 so I knew I had a good chance of sub 33. But first I had to shake off Julio. I think it was around this part of the course that there was a long straight road and I could still just about see Gary a long way ahead I pushed as hard as I could and by the time I hit 8km I had opened up a little bit of a gap.

The last couple of kms and it was all about remaining focused. There were a few small climbs but I still felt strong and by the time I hit the 9km marker I upped the pace for the run home. I eventually crossed the line in 32:54 for 2nd place which I was very happy with. Gary ran an incredible 30:29 for the win, with Julio 3rd in 33:05 and Mike somehow finding something in the last 5km to finish 4th in 33:11.

A few kms warm-down with Fintan and Sean who both had great runs. That's around 16kms for the day. I have to say that's one of the most enjoyable races I've had in a long time. A great course, good organistion and plenty of hot drinks after. It was a real gem of an event so much kudos goes to South Galway AC for putting on this great event.

Here are the splits:

3:10, 3:19, 3:15, 3:25, 3:18 (16:27), 3:23, 3:19, 3:20, 3:20, 3:05 (16:27). Total 32:54

I think that's my quickest 10km this year - so I must be doing something right. And I'm only running 5 days per week at the moment so just goes to show what you can achieve if you get your quality sessions in.

A total of 81.9kms for the week. I'll try and keep it around that level for the rest of the year and perhaps increase the pace of my tempo runs slightly. A man with a plan!

2 Nine Darters

Another rest day. Busy at work and then home for a takeaway curry and 4 pints of Guinness. That's how I roll on the night before a 10km race. The weather is pretty horrendous so it looks like it could be a tough one tomorrow.

Two 9 darters at the world champs today - by Terry Jenkins and Kyle Anderson. Great viewing.

The Ally Pally

13.8km in 58:39 (4:14's). Windy out there - I need the wind to settle down before Sunday if I'm going to race. Plus my left knee needs to improve...

Cricket was crap with England letting the Aussies of the hook.

And in better news the world championship darts starts tonight. That's my Christmas TV sorted out right there.

Too hot in winter

Early Thursday morning run with Fintan and Owen. I had double layered with beanie and gloves but that was a big mistake as it was an unbelievably mild 14 degrees at 6:35am! Didn't feel great today - I  must have aggravated my left knee on the treadmill yesterday as it was sore all run. Another massage required...

All up 15.1kms in 1:07:03 (4:26's).

I was planing to stay up and watch the cricket tonight until I realised that it wasn't starting until 2:30am. The best case scenario would be England somehow scraping a draw but can't see it the way they are playing...