A quick bank holiday blog.
I decided a few weeks ago to slot Melmerby 10km into the race diary. For no other reason that is filled a weekend in my pre marathon training "mini speed block". It was a new race for me as I've not done this one before but an undulating course, country lanes and tea and cakes in the village hall was just too tempting. But it was a B race......not one that I specifically targeted and therefore off the back of a fairly normal week. Tuesday a decent 10 x 800m session, Wednesday a steady 8 miler and Thursday a run out at the North York Moors AC 4 x mile relay at Stewarts Park ( a very well organised and enjoyable event next planned for 28th August - www.nym.ac) meant just an easy Friday and Saturday "ease down".
The race started at a very leisurely pace with team mates Shaun O'Grady, Tristan Learoyd, Paul Dalton and Paul Cook from Darlington and a few Harrogate/Ripon vests in a pretty large group all running together for the first km or so. At the front of the pack it seemed there was a huge number running together and made for quite a surreal experience as we approached the first "undulation" when eventual winner Shaun O'Grady attacked and at that point effectively won the race.
After the first mile (5:19) I found myself in about 6th place and working my way comfortably through the field in the next mile (another 5:19) settled into third place with Shaun about 30 seconds or so in front and eventual runner up Andrew Grant from Harrogate about 10 seconds in front of me. Looking back occasionally it seemed the gap behind was never going to be pulled back so it was a clear 1-2-3. I tried to pull 2nd place back but he was just too strong and ended up clear. Mile 3 (5:27), Mile 4 (5:30) and Mile 5 (5:29) meant a 27:12 clocking at the 5 mile split. Still feeling strong I had a final attempt at pulling back 2nd place but it was clear the gap was widening and at that point thought I would enjoy the run back into Melmerby secure in the knowledge it had been a decent race and my time would be a seasons best on a fairly challenging course.
I think because I hadn't set a specific time target I wasn't really focused on my time and the first few miles felt like a "proper race". So to stop my watch at 34:11 was a nice pleasant surprise and much quicker than I had hoped or expected.
Based on my last blog this then becomes the best road race I have ever done (based on the WAVA Rankings). It clocked an 85.01% age grade which exceeds any of my previous performances including all those from 1994/95 when I set most of my all time pbs.
Using this age predictor it predicts a marathon time of 2:34.20! I've been in the game for too long to think that sort of time will be easy and there is a huge amount of work to be done but maybe just maybe that could be done!
Whatever the predictions say I know that sometimes things just go well and a "stellar" performance can just creep up on you without you noticing. Sometimes just being relaxed, enjoying your running and letting things just flow can work wonders! Sometimes you can just work too hard and that's a lesson Ive learned only too well in the past!
Next week its the Middlesbrough 5km. Its a super loaded field and there are loads of people throwing out predictions some wild and some achievable. Me... I'm staying quiet about mine....I'll let the running do the talking next week. Another 85% er would be nice though!
Monday, 26 May 2014
Tuesday, 20 May 2014
Its all about percentages!
At some point in your running career you realise that you are never going to run the same times as when you were at your best..especially over the shorter distances. I reached my peak as a "youngster" when I was 24. Most of my pbs were set in the 95/96 season so using WAVA http://www.howardgrubb.co.uk/athletics/wmalookup06.html
I thought it would make an interesting comparison. My peak at 24 compared to now at 43 years old. It was also prompted by a question someone asked if I was running as quicker than ever before. The answer to that on first thought is a resounding no but maybe the age grading might tell me otherwise.
As a younger running I never raced upwards of the half marathon.
My 5km pb set as a 24 year old (15.11) is an 84.96% WAVA age grade. My best as a Vet 40 is 83.98% set at last years Middlesbrough 5km. My WAVA target therefore is 16 mins 26.
My 5m pb set as a 24 year old (25:17) is an 84.38% WAVA age grade. My best as a Vet 40 is 83.50 set at Locke Park 5 (27:39) giving me a target of 27 mins 22.
My 10km pb set as a 24 year old (32:26) is an 82.79% WAVA age grade. My best as a Vet 40 is an 84.74 set at last years Leeds Abbey Dash (33:58). Thats one to the new me!
My 10m pb set as a 24 year old (52:26) is an 84.65% WAVA age grade. My recent best as a Vet 40 is an 83.54 set at the Thirsk 10 this year (56:31) giving me a target of 56 mins 15 secs.
My half marathon pb set as a 24 year old (72:22) is 81.83 WAVA age grade - I never did get that distance right! My recent best is an 82.49% set at the Chester Half Marathon in 2011(74:38) so that's one back to me.
So am I quicker now than I was then? The jury is probably out on that one but the targets for 5km, 5 mile and 10 mile do all seem within reach. At the moment its 3-2 to the old me so I need to hit one of those targets as a 43 year old to snatch it!
Three races since my last blog post Manchester Marathon.
New Marske Harriers Mermaid 10km finishing 5th overall and 2nd Vet 40 in a time of 34:48.
New Marske Harriers Coast Road 5km finishing 19th in a fully loaded field in a time of 17:02.
Locke Park 5 mile pie and peas race (and they were delicious!) finishing 1st in a time of 27:39.
Its always nice to get a win and what made this one special was that it was first over the line and first in the age graded list. Another race in the race calender that Im sure will become a regular fixture thanks to New Marske Harriers. http://www.new-marske-harriers.co.uk/
I'm enjoying a few shorter runs over this early summer period before knuckling down to Chester Marathon preparations which will begin in earnest mid June.
I thought it would make an interesting comparison. My peak at 24 compared to now at 43 years old. It was also prompted by a question someone asked if I was running as quicker than ever before. The answer to that on first thought is a resounding no but maybe the age grading might tell me otherwise.
As a younger running I never raced upwards of the half marathon.
My 5km pb set as a 24 year old (15.11) is an 84.96% WAVA age grade. My best as a Vet 40 is 83.98% set at last years Middlesbrough 5km. My WAVA target therefore is 16 mins 26.
My 5m pb set as a 24 year old (25:17) is an 84.38% WAVA age grade. My best as a Vet 40 is 83.50 set at Locke Park 5 (27:39) giving me a target of 27 mins 22.
My 10km pb set as a 24 year old (32:26) is an 82.79% WAVA age grade. My best as a Vet 40 is an 84.74 set at last years Leeds Abbey Dash (33:58). Thats one to the new me!
My 10m pb set as a 24 year old (52:26) is an 84.65% WAVA age grade. My recent best as a Vet 40 is an 83.54 set at the Thirsk 10 this year (56:31) giving me a target of 56 mins 15 secs.
My half marathon pb set as a 24 year old (72:22) is 81.83 WAVA age grade - I never did get that distance right! My recent best is an 82.49% set at the Chester Half Marathon in 2011(74:38) so that's one back to me.
So am I quicker now than I was then? The jury is probably out on that one but the targets for 5km, 5 mile and 10 mile do all seem within reach. At the moment its 3-2 to the old me so I need to hit one of those targets as a 43 year old to snatch it!
Three races since my last blog post Manchester Marathon.
New Marske Harriers Mermaid 10km finishing 5th overall and 2nd Vet 40 in a time of 34:48.
New Marske Harriers Coast Road 5km finishing 19th in a fully loaded field in a time of 17:02.
Locke Park 5 mile pie and peas race (and they were delicious!) finishing 1st in a time of 27:39.
Its always nice to get a win and what made this one special was that it was first over the line and first in the age graded list. Another race in the race calender that Im sure will become a regular fixture thanks to New Marske Harriers. http://www.new-marske-harriers.co.uk/
I'm enjoying a few shorter runs over this early summer period before knuckling down to Chester Marathon preparations which will begin in earnest mid June.
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Start of the Locke Park 5 mile race |
Thursday, 17 April 2014
Post Marathon Reflection
All the marathon talk in the last week post London has been around Mo Farah's debut in the event with a 2:08.21.
Just reading the BBC website about Farah...
"Mo Farah finally struggled for answers"
"Farah's 2 hours 8 minutes 21 seconds on his London Marathon debut on this sunny Sunday morning may have seen him finish down in eighth place, not just among the elite also-rans but more than a minute off Steve Jones's 29 year old British record and almost four minutes off winner Wilson Kipsang.
To be fair to the author (Tom Fordyce) he does go onto put the performance into some perspective talking about the hype that was built up around Farah and an admittance that actually he didn't do much wrong.
The early pace in the race meant Farah, running sensibly in the first 6 miles, found himself cut adrift and forced into pushing hard in the second quarter. The tracking tool (where there is no hiding!) shows the section between 20km and halfway was the quickest section of the race. Slowest section between 35k and 40k. I think most marathon runners can relate to those stats! Oh and he messed up a few drinks stations.....
I'm sure Farah will be disappointed but for many people to write him off then really I think they need to take a reality check....
Only the great Steve Jones has run quicker than Farah from a GB perspective and this performance puts Farah as the fifth quickest performance on the list of British men's marathon times and breaks the English record held by the great Charlie Spedding.
In reality the field at London was one of the best assembled and Wilson Kipsang is world record holder, course record holder at London and more significantly in his 9th marathon. His debut in Paris in 2010 shows 3rd place in 2:07.13. Other than a 3rd place in the 2012 Olympic Games where he ran 2:09.37 Kipsang has an exemplary marathon record which includes the World Record mark set in Berlin in 2013 where he ran 2:03.23.
Let's hold the verdict on Farah as a marathon runner once he has done a second or third marathon. And for all those people who have a view on Farah but have never run a marathon before put your money where your mouth is. Lace up your running shoes and go out there and bang some miles out in preparation for a marathon and see how you do in your debut 26.2 miles.
I've had some time to reflect on my own Marathon in Manchester and definitely feel there were some learning points that will springboard me to a quicker time.
1. Training and the build up - no major changes needed just more of the same, avoid injury and just tweak the mileage up a little.
2. The race - again no major changes just quicken the pace by a few seconds a mile and keep the pace consistent.
3. Final stages - really only struggled in the last two miles. Mentally I was strong but physically I was on the edge. A few more long runs in the bank and some specific marathon pace work should help. I was running from just before half way to about 24 miles with Emily Wicks who went onto record 2:38.21 exactly a minute in front of me. That's almost 30 seconds a mile taken out of me in the last 2.2 miles.
4. Race Nutrition - think this is where I made errors on the day. I didn't feel in control of my nutrition. Carried a couple of gels which I used as planned. I then missed the first official gel stop on the course then relied on the product provided later by the organisers which was shot bloks. I've never used them before, they were difficult to chew and not something that I would use in future. That was an area I was complacent with as I have never had a problem with gels affecting me. That said I don't think it made too much of a difference to me but to make the small gains you need to look at all aspects.
Ultimately I would like to master the marathon distance and whilst as runners we are never happy with our pb (there is always more to come off!) I would be more than satisfied with a marathon pb of under 2:34. That's a good five and a half minutes away yet so I know I will have to work hard to get there.
Marathon performance of London for me has to be Steve Way. Check out his highly entertaining blog here... http://www.steveway.co.uk/
Just reading the BBC website about Farah...
"Mo Farah finally struggled for answers"
"Farah's 2 hours 8 minutes 21 seconds on his London Marathon debut on this sunny Sunday morning may have seen him finish down in eighth place, not just among the elite also-rans but more than a minute off Steve Jones's 29 year old British record and almost four minutes off winner Wilson Kipsang.
To be fair to the author (Tom Fordyce) he does go onto put the performance into some perspective talking about the hype that was built up around Farah and an admittance that actually he didn't do much wrong.
The early pace in the race meant Farah, running sensibly in the first 6 miles, found himself cut adrift and forced into pushing hard in the second quarter. The tracking tool (where there is no hiding!) shows the section between 20km and halfway was the quickest section of the race. Slowest section between 35k and 40k. I think most marathon runners can relate to those stats! Oh and he messed up a few drinks stations.....
I'm sure Farah will be disappointed but for many people to write him off then really I think they need to take a reality check....
Only the great Steve Jones has run quicker than Farah from a GB perspective and this performance puts Farah as the fifth quickest performance on the list of British men's marathon times and breaks the English record held by the great Charlie Spedding.
In reality the field at London was one of the best assembled and Wilson Kipsang is world record holder, course record holder at London and more significantly in his 9th marathon. His debut in Paris in 2010 shows 3rd place in 2:07.13. Other than a 3rd place in the 2012 Olympic Games where he ran 2:09.37 Kipsang has an exemplary marathon record which includes the World Record mark set in Berlin in 2013 where he ran 2:03.23.
Let's hold the verdict on Farah as a marathon runner once he has done a second or third marathon. And for all those people who have a view on Farah but have never run a marathon before put your money where your mouth is. Lace up your running shoes and go out there and bang some miles out in preparation for a marathon and see how you do in your debut 26.2 miles.
I've had some time to reflect on my own Marathon in Manchester and definitely feel there were some learning points that will springboard me to a quicker time.
1. Training and the build up - no major changes needed just more of the same, avoid injury and just tweak the mileage up a little.
2. The race - again no major changes just quicken the pace by a few seconds a mile and keep the pace consistent.
3. Final stages - really only struggled in the last two miles. Mentally I was strong but physically I was on the edge. A few more long runs in the bank and some specific marathon pace work should help. I was running from just before half way to about 24 miles with Emily Wicks who went onto record 2:38.21 exactly a minute in front of me. That's almost 30 seconds a mile taken out of me in the last 2.2 miles.
4. Race Nutrition - think this is where I made errors on the day. I didn't feel in control of my nutrition. Carried a couple of gels which I used as planned. I then missed the first official gel stop on the course then relied on the product provided later by the organisers which was shot bloks. I've never used them before, they were difficult to chew and not something that I would use in future. That was an area I was complacent with as I have never had a problem with gels affecting me. That said I don't think it made too much of a difference to me but to make the small gains you need to look at all aspects.
Ultimately I would like to master the marathon distance and whilst as runners we are never happy with our pb (there is always more to come off!) I would be more than satisfied with a marathon pb of under 2:34. That's a good five and a half minutes away yet so I know I will have to work hard to get there.
Marathon performance of London for me has to be Steve Way. Check out his highly entertaining blog here... http://www.steveway.co.uk/
Tuesday, 8 April 2014
Manchester Marathon - The day I joined the Sub 2:40 club!
You reach a point in your marathon build up when you know the work is done and you cant really do much more. The miles have been logged and the preparation is done. The start line cant come soon enough and the taper becomes a drag, every niggle is a race threatening injury, every sniffle is man flu and the doubts convince you that you are losing fitness every day and you just need one more run to be ready!
Actually I felt some of the above but it wasn't over consuming. There was an air of calmness in my taper. The last week's runs were planned out and each run went to plan including a few short runs at marathon pace where I tuned in easily to the intended pace of 6-06 per mile (2:40 marathon pace!).
Manchester is a great marathon to do. The location at Old Trafford was easy to get to and plenty of parking etc so all those pre race issues were easily dealt with. To the start line.....
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| Today...we race! |
The legendary Ron Hill started us off. Ron has run 115 marathons. 112 of which have been under 2:50 and has a best of 2:10. He is also famous for his long running streak of running every day since December 1964. He is a true running hero and still looks amzingly fit!
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| I only came out for a paper! |
The first 10km of the race went according to plan. Holding myself back I completed the early miles in 6-01, 5-59, 5-59, 6-05, 6-02 and 6-02 clocking 37.41 for the first 10km going through in 39th place. The race was going perfectly at this point and despite a headwind the times were going in my favour.
10 miles in 60-10 I had picked up 8 places into 31st. It was a case now of keeping this pace going and counting down the miles. I felt comfortable and had the leading lady in my sights. Just before halfway I caught the leading lady Emily Wicks and we ran together then for the next 10/11 miles. I seemed to have found someone who was banging out an even more consistent pace than I could and despite a "quick" 5-50 mile at Mile 14 we set a consistent pace around 6-05 minutes per mile.
20 miles was logged in 2 hours and 23 seconds. Over a minute ahead of my recent pb over 20 at Locke Park. Now it was down to the business end. This is where the doubts can come in and you wonder at what point in the next six miles is it going to go from comfortable to not so comfortable down to downright horrible!
Mile 21 - a solid 6-02 we were going well still and managed to gain a place or two.
Mile 22 - 6-12 and it was starting to get tough.
Mile 23 - 6-16 this was crunch time. My running partner of the last 11 miles was pulling away from me. She went onto win a a solid 2:38.21.
Mile 24 - 6-21 starting to think about the finish. This was getting hard!
Mile 25 - 6-24. Legs were aching. The stadium was just in sight!
Mile 26 - 6-35 and the slowest, hardest mile of the whole race....
Finish - 24th overall in 2 hours 39 minutes and 21 seconds. In my pre-race vision I would savour this moment.....its been a long time coming. Ive put the work in now I'm going to enjoy it! In reality my effort had been a real tightrope job...I wobbled as I crossed the line and spent the next ten minutes emptying the contents of stomach unable even to keep the bottle of water the finish marshall's gave me! It was certainly the worst I had ever felt at the finish line of any race !
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| I might look like I'm smiling but I'm not! |
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| Ian Bloomfield - Vet 60, 2-44 and UK Record holder! |
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| Do I want a massage, a coffee or just a lie down! |
So that's another marathon done and dusted. The marathon is more than just a one off race. The real battle is getting to the start line in one piece and not falling off the tightrope that is the high mileage. Now the dust has settled I'm over the moon with my result and even more chuffed that at this moment In time my 2:39.21 sits pretty at the top of the UK rankings for Vet 40 to 44.
Manchester - you were fab! Highlight of the day was most definitely the youth choir who belted out... "I predict a Riot!....I predict a Riot!" as I ran past. That was the most surreal and amazing experience of the day!
I'll sit and enjoy watching Mo run next week at London but I'll be keeping an eye on those vet 40 to 44 times!
Monday, 24 March 2014
Thirsk 10 and Negative splitting!
I can count the number of times I have enjoyed the feeling of a negative split on one hand! I just don't tend to do them. I would like to but I always think that maybe I'm just not that kid of runner.
Thirsk 10 on Sunday I had a game plan. First three miles or so fairly steady then pick up in the middle section and finish strong. Negative splits are so far out of my conscience I didn't even consider this.
Thirsk 10 has been in my race diary now for four years.
2011 - Finished in 58.01. 2nd half was two minutes and twenty five seconds slower than the first half. A fast first half turned out to be too fast and the last five miles were a painful experience with splits of 5:41, 5:49, 6:00, 6:09 and 6:30! Ouch!
2012 - A much improved Thirsk 10 performance in the middle of marathon training with a 27:52 first half and a 28:04 second half gave me a solid 56:06 which remains a Vet 40 pb. Missed out on a negative split by 12 seconds but it was a solid run
2013 - In great shape for this but the weather defeated me (and most of the field apart from Alyson Dixon who effortlessly cut through the wind I recall!) in the second half. 1st half of 27:56 was followed by 30:13
2014 - a first half of 28:23 was followed up by a second half of 28:09 (Yes you read that right - a negative split of 14 seconds) gave me 10th place overall in a time of 56:31. Splits were: 5:43, 5:43, 5:41, 5:39, 5:37, 5:31, 5:39, 5:42, 5:35, 5:40.
Thirsk 10 on Sunday I had a game plan. First three miles or so fairly steady then pick up in the middle section and finish strong. Negative splits are so far out of my conscience I didn't even consider this.
Thirsk 10 has been in my race diary now for four years.
2011 - Finished in 58.01. 2nd half was two minutes and twenty five seconds slower than the first half. A fast first half turned out to be too fast and the last five miles were a painful experience with splits of 5:41, 5:49, 6:00, 6:09 and 6:30! Ouch!
2012 - A much improved Thirsk 10 performance in the middle of marathon training with a 27:52 first half and a 28:04 second half gave me a solid 56:06 which remains a Vet 40 pb. Missed out on a negative split by 12 seconds but it was a solid run
2013 - In great shape for this but the weather defeated me (and most of the field apart from Alyson Dixon who effortlessly cut through the wind I recall!) in the second half. 1st half of 27:56 was followed by 30:13
2014 - a first half of 28:23 was followed up by a second half of 28:09 (Yes you read that right - a negative split of 14 seconds) gave me 10th place overall in a time of 56:31. Splits were: 5:43, 5:43, 5:41, 5:39, 5:37, 5:31, 5:39, 5:42, 5:35, 5:40.
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| All smiles pre race! |
The race itself was great. The windy first few miles was just a case of tagging onto a group, realising they were slowing a bit too much and then moving onto the next group. The final group I settled with were some way ahead at the start but I caught then at around 3 miles. This was the last big group and the rest were individuals in the distance. I decided that being at the front of this group and pushing the pace from the front would be better rather than running behind and having them dictate the pace. After a couple of miles of this there was only three of us pushing each other along at a nice steady pace. Michael Joyeux (Quakers) was on his way to a storming personal best and did his best to drop me at the turn into the "lane" but I managed to stay in touch and we both managed to drop the third runner in our "pack". I was more than happy to put some space between us to allow me a clear run home. The "chimp" on my shoulder was telling me to take it easy and think big picture but had MJ come alongside me in the final 200m I would have found it hard to not give it my all!
Michael Joyeux has an excellent and informative blog called Run Michael Run! its well worth a read and I get a mention #consistency #outofreach #experienced !!! Its always great to hear about someone who clearly loves his running and is making some great progress!
It's just under 2 weeks now until the big one. Manchester Marathon. The work is done now and I've just got to trust in the taper gods to get me through and on the start line in one piece.
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| The business end! |
The race itself was great. The windy first few miles was just a case of tagging onto a group, realising they were slowing a bit too much and then moving onto the next group. The final group I settled with were some way ahead at the start but I caught then at around 3 miles. This was the last big group and the rest were individuals in the distance. I decided that being at the front of this group and pushing the pace from the front would be better rather than running behind and having them dictate the pace. After a couple of miles of this there was only three of us pushing each other along at a nice steady pace. Michael Joyeux (Quakers) was on his way to a storming personal best and did his best to drop me at the turn into the "lane" but I managed to stay in touch and we both managed to drop the third runner in our "pack". I was more than happy to put some space between us to allow me a clear run home. The "chimp" on my shoulder was telling me to take it easy and think big picture but had MJ come alongside me in the final 200m I would have found it hard to not give it my all!
Michael Joyeux has an excellent and informative blog called Run Michael Run! its well worth a read and I get a mention #consistency #outofreach #experienced !!! Its always great to hear about someone who clearly loves his running and is making some great progress!
It's just under 2 weeks now until the big one. Manchester Marathon. The work is done now and I've just got to trust in the taper gods to get me through and on the start line in one piece.
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