Sunday, 30 January 2011
Race 5
Race 5 - F3 MAXIFUEL WINTER DUATHLON SERIES 2011 - 23rd January
Hmmm ..... funny how some races are called things like 'Rampage', 'Brutal', 'Kamikaze', 'Grim', 'Beast in the East' - all which gives some indication of the potential suffering to be had. This one does exactly what is says - F3 (race organiser) multifuel (race sponsor), winter (season it's being held), duathlon (type of race - a run/bike/run), series (it's one of a number) and 2011!
It was held at Dorney Lake (basically Eton's rowing lake) - site for the Olympic rowing in 2012. Needless to say its a world class facility set in 400 acres of park land, only a stone throw from Windsor. It's a perfect venue in many ways as its pretty much traffic free and FLAT! None of those awkward leg-wobbling hills. The slight downside is that as it is totally flat there is a tendency for it to be pretty windy with little shelter - so at some point of the race you're running/cycling into the wind. I've added a couple of photos of the site and transition area (where you change from run to bike and then back to run) to show a bit what it was like on the 'wall' because for some techie reason they wouldn't load here (or, more likely, I was doing something wrong) And lets face it too many photos of me in various stages of suffering is just too much!
Back to the race. Got up at 6am as it was a 9am start - Sunday morning lie-ins might just be a thing of the past! Got there in reasonable time - well far enough in advance to have a cuppa. Both our race and the sprint (half the distance) start in a mass start and true to form I started near the back. There's something psychological about overtaking people that helps me get going. The downside if this of course is you have a great view of the faster runners disappearing into the distance - and wow - didn't they just disappear! Being a two lap 5k run meant you saw quite a few of the faster runners returning at pace before we'd even got to the first turn around. It was at the end of the first lap as the sprint runners were going into transition that the first though of "maybe i should have signed up for that one instead" crosses your mind. So another lap into transition and on with some warmer clothes, helmet etc. and off on the bike.
At this point I realised all was not well with the old limbs. Normally cycling is my strongest discipline and running is a chore, but however hard I tried, I just wasn't going anywhere. During the first four laps everybody was overtaking me which was a curious (and humbling?) experience - well everyone except those on mountain bikes and a rather upright lady on a shopper - with a front basket! However on the last two laps it was like a switch being put on and I was able to fly round - overtaking many who'd overtaken me - even into the wind! Don't know quite what had happened - possibly I had eaten well the day before and that had an effect but it certainly was odd. The drama of the bike leg wasn't quite over though as coming into transition trying to do a racing dismount I managed to catch and ladder my tights on the rear bottle cage. At this point I think I should clarify, these tights are the ones that you pick up in M&S near the checkout with a dernier rating (well I think that's where you get them but how would I know?). These are technical support hosiery called SKINS - compressive wear and v. expensive (so if there are any commercial sponsors out there....?) My needle work skills are going have to be called upon I'm afraid and I think the bottle cage comes off. it seems my aged limbs just can't clear it.
Back in transition - take off some clothes and off. The winners are just nearing their finish as I start the run! Its a bit of a plod and am overtaken by a few runners but also manage to overtake a few. By this time the sun is peeping out although the wind is pretty cold. Finish with (not much of a) flourish. As soon as I get home - onto the web and book the next race in the series (27th Feb) just to prove that the bike leg was a one off. When the results are posted - find that I did both runs slightly quicker than last year but the cycle was 10 mins slower - in fact the slowest I've ever done a 20k. Definitely do something about that at the end of February!
RESULT 63rd out of122 finishers in a time of 1:28:51
Race 4
Race 4 - RUN RAMPAGE - 16th January
As you can see from the date not my greatest piece of planning! Two races in a w/e was not ideal.... Being lazy will take the "sales pitch" off their website"A brand new 10k extreme cross country - multi terrain event. The venue is the MOD's Bagshot army barracks on the D1 and D2 alpine sites [which are explained in Probabilistic evaluation of snow-slab stability on D1Mountain slopes -http://www.igsoc.org/annals/26/igs_annals_vol26_year1998_pg303-306.pdf or in Hydraulic Jumps on Adverse Slope in Two Cases of Rough and Smooth Bed - http://maxwellsci.com/print/rjaset/v2-19-22.pdf - neither of which I understand except that they are STEEP! if anyone can explain please drop me a line or better still a picture] which are their vehicle testing tracks, and as the word alpine describes, expect some very, VERY steep hills! Uneven terrain, grade one and two hills, water, and thick muddy bogs you name it, at Run Rampage we have everything and we throw it at our competitors to test their skills to the extreme!
This event is only for the filthy minded as our runners will be tested, get messy and love every tough minute of it, so because of this, entrance is only open to people aged 16+. Come to run or walk to show your support for a more than worthy cause! How tough do you think you are? How much can your body take? Are you mentally going to be able to cope and are you mad enough?" Among those mad enough was Iwan Thomas MBE who finished 20th (50mins 22 secs). Cool guy - instead of doing all the prep like he'd normally do as a proper athlete - he posed for pictures and chatted with the runners.
Anyway back to the race. I'd got there early as I as still feeling the effects from The Grim. At this point I think I'll start name-dropping "kit" & "gear" - who knows product placement may result in sponsorship and freebies! Normally after a race like The Grim, I'd spend the next couple of days with stiff legs walking like John Wayne (which a number of my so called friends - Bec in particular - never fail to laughingly point out). However compression gear like Skins or CompresSport ('veino-muscular compression technology' no less!) coupled with an 'aromatic massage gel' called Jointace (you see it advertised on the back of London buses) - seem to lessen the agonies. So I turned up with only stiff calves. Spent half an hour jogging (mainly to the loo and back) without much success but as soon as the hooter went adrenaline takes over, pain is (briefly) forgotten - wait until those D1's & 2's! - and we're running down some pleasant forest trials, under the M3 motorway (unlit underpass - bit spooky) and the up a slope, down a slope, back under the motorway - you get the idea - just a nice, pleasant cross country run.
Then at the 2k stage it all changed. Some of the feedback on the race has already mentioned a sadist of a designer. Well from 2k to 5k all we did was run up a D1/2 slope (straight up - none of the zig-zagging manoeuvres to lessen the slope) turn a corner then run back down - turn a corner and then run back up - then turn a corner and run back down - turn a corner then run back up - turn a ....... you get the idea? One thing I'm really proud of is that i didn't stop running - though it often wasn't much faster than those walking up. To be honest i can't remember how many times we went up and down and even looking at the course map doesn't help.
After 5k it all changed and they introduced the water! Well they couldn't do it any earlier to be fair, as it was all slopes. Wet, muddy, cold - we pounded the forest trail - there was four of us in a group - unable to quite catch the runners in front but adament that those behind wouldn't catch us. Three more kilometers and then a long gentle slope down - giving lungs and legs a bit of relief. Didn't give the mind any relief as what runs down ......yep, has to run back up! Last 1000m was nearly all up hill - and yes there were chirpy marshals saying you're nearly there + a photographer at the top. Just a sprint finish to the end (well a sprint jog more like) - couldn't catch the person in front but the person behind couldn't catch me - so result!
Over £4000k raised for Help the Heroes - amazing event, great people, wonderful support + more brutal than Brutal 10k, grimmer than The Grim - I'll definitely do it again!
Result - 31 out of 188 in time of 52:34
Race 3 -THE GRIM - 15th January
One of my favourite events as I've been doing it since 2005. Was meant to take place in December but it was postponed - not because of the condition of the course which was merely "more interesting" it was issues of actually getting there. Re-organised (which unfortunately meant I had to miss hockey) the race went ahead following a week of pretty heavy rain. The course is on land used to test Army vehicles and is described on the website as "interesting!" - that word again! After the mass start you reach a long hill where those who have gone off too fast or have realised that their charity costumes are incredibly heavy when wet, start to walk. Then you descend eventually reaching a water filled ravine. Then running over exposed heath where the wind really bites as you are soaking wet and muddy; on "puddle-strewn paths" their description - but does it count as a puddle if its knee deep water that you're running through? Also they forgot to describe the slippery cattle grids and the general all round muddiness. Before having to crawl under camouflage netting over a muddy ravine - at which point I managed to drop my glasses. With nothing clean or dry to wipe them with meant that I ran the rest of the race through a sepia type haze. It was like running through one of those old photos of a WW1 battlefield- ironic really considering the location. You eventually reach some man-made mounds (one described by an incredibly chirpy marshal as "the big dipper") before arriving at and running through some rather large puddles (a masterly understatement). they warn you to expect to get very wet! - duh! Finally you run on to the fast vehicle driving circuit (fast for vehicles maybe but this time more of a snails pace!) where it is rocky underfoot. This brings you to some more large areas of water and the finish area.
Two things you begin to learn quickly on these type of events - the photographers are always positioned at points of maximum difficulty/pain/water/mud/discomfort ...... and the chirpier the marshal the more difficult/painful/wet/muddy/uncomfortable the next bit will be! No pictures of this one as they're not a pretty sight - if you're interested you can go on the website and put in race no. 4966.
Result - 168 out of 1948 in a time of 1:11:56 (20 seconds slower than 2009 - I must be getting old!)
Race 2
RACE 2 - BRUTAL 10K - 3 January
From their website they said - "Be warned: this event is going to be gruesome. It has steep hills, energy-sapping climbs and mud by the truckload. If pounding through the forests dripping with sweat and nursing aching limbs is your game, then this event is perfect for you. It will require mental toughness and and raw grit.The route has now been finalised and the race director is rubbing his hands with glee. This gruelling event will be muddy, gritty and downright knackering. So, a word of warning: this ultimate run should only be attempted by serious runners who love a bit of hard work!"
So what was it like? Well it was BRUTAL and it was 10K - pretty much says it all really. Bank Holiday Monday was just above freezing, some small flurries of snow over the Longmoor army barracks in Hampshire. Looking on the website before the race (one of those teckie Garmin thingies that show elevation, speed, distance, the colour of your eyes ....and everything) I did realise that it was mainly uphill or downhill - there seemed to be an absence of FLAT! Well that notion was put to rest after about 1.5k because we came upon some flat. So flat - that we queued to get across - that's because it was a lake - with ICE on it!. So soaking wet we ran/staggered up the next hill - then repeated, repeated etc. until we climbed (well it was hardly running by this point) up the largest "incline" to be welcomed with panoramic views over Hampshire probably best not appreciated when you feel you might be breathing your last! There was some new terrain within the last 1k - sand dunes! Running on sand at the best of times is hard work but cold, wet and knackered? Anyway the event lived up to its name!
Result - 69 out of 210, time 59.39
Race 1
RACE 1 - SPAM MTB 50k - 2 January
From the website "The Winter Challenge is Salisbury Plain's biggest Mountain Bike Event - perhaps the biggest nationwide held at this time of year. The event which had been running for over 15 years, the 50km route, although not terribly technical, is designed for more experienced riders, the challenge being the distance and terrain in the potential adverse weather conditions. Just under 700 riders blew the Christmas cob-webs away The course, often described as a bit 'safe' was generally regarded as just right for the slightly damp weather conditions.
As predicted the muddy sections were a bit claggy as the recent cold snap had given way to milder temperatures, but they were broken up by sections of hard pack tracks and challenging climbs to keep the body temperature up on a chilly January morning!"
I particularly like the bit about it being a bit "safe" as true to form I failed again to finish a MTB race without falling off. This time I managed in full view of the finish line! The bit about it being a "bit claggy" was spot on - both the bike and myself were covered by (mainly) mud.
Its a great event, well organised with a really friendly atmosphere. At the finish the home-made cake and tea offered by the volunteers from Dorothy House Hospice was to die for! For those of you interested SPAM is not the processed meat product - it actually stands for Salisbury Plain Area Mountain biking.
Result - 105 out of 300+, time 2h 44m (45 mins better than my 2010 time!)
PS - I did purchase the photos but after two attempts to get them through my firewall ......
Mid-life crisis
Hi, thanks for visiting my page.
1961 was a significant year as The Beatles performed for the first time in the Cavern Club; black and white £5 notes ceased to be legal tender; USA was involved in invasion of Cuba (Bay of Pigs); Tottenham Hotspur were the first club in the 20th century to win English league and cup double (and never reached those dizzy heights again!)
Among those born were Diana, Princess of Wales; Suggs (lead singer with Madness); Peter Beardsley (footballer); George Clooney; Boy George; Ricky Gervais; Carl Lewis (USA runner); Barack Obama (USA president); The Edge (U2); Arundhati Roy and me! To save you doing the maths that means I'm turning 50 this year.
To celebrate this historic landmark/ mid-life crisis, I decided I had to do something memorable. Thought about getting an open top sports car - but practicality prevailed, as where would I put the hockey kit, or tri-bike? And the thought of the wind whistling through what little hair I've left meant I'd have to invest in hats! Second thought was some lavish holiday - but to be honest I've been to some great places, met great people and again being practical, what with the recession maybe I should think of something closer to home? So next thought was hey I could start dating much younger women! Certainly this has many attractions and I'll probably keep it as a back-up plan. However what I eventually decided was to undertake 50 events in my 50th year. These will be a combination of triathlons, duathlons, trail running, adventure racing etc. Now obviously I don't just want to do these for fun
1961 was a significant year as The Beatles performed for the first time in the Cavern Club; black and white £5 notes ceased to be legal tender; USA was involved in invasion of Cuba (Bay of Pigs); Tottenham Hotspur were the first club in the 20th century to win English league and cup double (and never reached those dizzy heights again!)
Among those born were Diana, Princess of Wales; Suggs (lead singer with Madness); Peter Beardsley (footballer); George Clooney; Boy George; Ricky Gervais; Carl Lewis (USA runner); Barack Obama (USA president); The Edge (U2); Arundhati Roy and me! To save you doing the maths that means I'm turning 50 this year.
To celebrate this historic landmark/ mid-life crisis, I decided I had to do something memorable. Thought about getting an open top sports car - but practicality prevailed, as where would I put the hockey kit, or tri-bike? And the thought of the wind whistling through what little hair I've left meant I'd have to invest in hats! Second thought was some lavish holiday - but to be honest I've been to some great places, met great people and again being practical, what with the recession maybe I should think of something closer to home? So next thought was hey I could start dating much younger women! Certainly this has many attractions so I'll probably keep it as a back-up plan ;-)
However what I eventually decided was to undertake 50 events in my 50th year. These will be a combination of triathlons, duathlons, trail running, adventure racing etc. Now obviously I don't just want to do these for fun
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