Week 14 - Mountain Running Championships

Running:  Year to Date

Distance:  1,291.35 kms in 14 weeks at ave  92.2 km ( down from 94.9 kms at week 13)

Last week:  56.85 kms

Elevation:  Garmin:  45,666 metres in 14 weeks at ave  3,262 metres ( up from 3,040 metres at week 13)
                  Strava:  48,654 metres

Last week:  Garmin:  3,118 metres

This week was not about me. It was checking & rechecking the two courses to be used today ( Sunday) for the Australian mountain running championships on Mt Wellington behind Hobart in Tasmania.
Good weather during the week allowed for a jog check on Tuesday followed by a very slow ( over 6 hrs) to marking both courses on Friday. Really had to make sure everyone knew where to go on race day.
Today, the nice weather disappeared at race time. But with clouds & a bit of wind, temps were great for running even if the views were somewhat lacking.
I was on officials duties today, so no running.
I have Convicts & Wenches 50 km race to do in 2 weeks time, so need to find some flat speed.
Otherwise, all good on the running front. Summer has gone so we now just wait until winter weather brings some snow. Hoping for as good as we had last year.

Week 13 - Neverest Challenge

Running:  Year to date

Distance:  1,234.5 kms in 13 weeks at ave  94.9 kms ( down from 98.2 kms at week 11)

Last 2 weeks:  154.15 kms

Altitude:  42,548 metres in 13 weeks at ave  3,040 metres ( up from 3,021 metres at week 11)

Last 2 weeks:  19,314 metres

The last 2 weeks has been about getting the Neverest Challenge done. It's not a race, but a challenge to do the vertical height of Mt Everest ( 8,848 metres).
I travelled to Canberra to be part of this & to do as much as possible on the day. I was unlikely to get it all done in one go but did manage to do 30 laps up and down Mt Ainslie ( one lap was 2 kms) with 4,900 metres of vertical on the Friday night & Saturday morning.
Rested on Sunday, then up and down Mt Tennent on Monday ( 800 metres of vert). Travel home on Tuesday. Wednesday a trip to Launceston getting a walk done around the city for another 220 metres ( they all count ).
Thursday back at home added another 1070 metres with a trip half way up Mt Wellington. Friday I did 5 repeats on my local hill getting 565 more metres to the total. Took that day very easy as Saturday was going to be a tough one.
Bigger local hill was the final day. Nice sunny day, no wind as I managed to do a triple repeat of Goat Hill with the 1,355 metres of vertical enough to get me over the line.
While it took me 8 days in total, 6 run/walk days to hit the target, it was all in the name of a good cause raising money for the Australian Himalayan Foundation for repairs to schools & kids education in Nepal.
Today, headed to the river to soak the legs in the getting colder waters of the Derwent River. Water temp down to around 16 degrees at the moment, so really nice.
Next event is Convicts & Wenches in 3 weeks which is 50 kms flat along beaches on the north coast of Tassie. Something different, although I did it last year & loved it.

Week 11 - After Gone Nuts

Running:  Year to Date

Distance:  1080.35 kms in 11 weeks at ave  98.2 kms ( down from 107.5 kms at week 8)

Last 3 weeks:  220.5 kms

Altitude:  33,235 metres in 11 weeks at ave 3,021 metres ( down from 3,647 metres at week 8)

Last 3 weeks:  4,060 metres

Ran, enjoyed & finished Gone Nuts 101 kms 2 weeks ago. Amazingly scenic run over the Nut at Stanley on far North West coast of Tasmania, along beaches, through outgoing creek flows over the sands,farmland tracks, bush & rocky outcrops to finish at Wynyard.
For all the training I had done, especially the vertical metres and plenty of time on feet, I felt I ran out of " running legs".
With around 3000 metres of up hill in the race, I had heaps of solid walking pace & climbing, but after around 65-70 kms, just didn't have the legs to run. Combined with darkness & some rough tracks carved out of farmland, liked this last section of the race, I finished walk strong, just not enough pace. Final race result was 17 hrs 47 mins for 101 kms. Would have liked around 14 hours to finish in the daylight. So, I'll work on that aspect for next time. Overall, a fantastic event.
After race day, we had a week on holiday near the beaches of Port Sorell near Devonport where I spent 2-3 times a day in the sea to help the legs recover. No problems at all, just a bit tired.
The past week, back to some gentle jogging. On one very easy, going slowly, run I felt a twang in my left Achilles. Walked home, booked a massage.
The wonderful Jodie found several deep down sore spots, one of which was the cause of the Achilles ache. Massaged out the soreness, all good now although very careful.
Neverest Challenge in Canberra is next on the plan. Seems more like my scene now with steep up hill, power walk, and steep down hill where I can gently jog.

Week 8 - Easing Back

Running:  Year to Date

Distance:  859.85 kms in 8 weeks at ave  107.5 kms ( down from 115.2 kms at week 7)

Last week:  53.45 kms

Altitude:  Garmin: 29,175 metres in 8 weeks at ave  3,647 metres ( down from 3,929 metres at week 7)
               Strava:  31,694 metres

Last week:  1,674 metres

It's taper time, which I'm not good at. You feel really good, fighting fit as best you can be, ready to go. But it's still a week or more until race day.
I'm all set to go. Bought the last of the compulsory gear, a pea-less whistle from BCF. Why does it not need a pea ? Who knows ! But now I have one with & one without.
A good last solid run today over my local hill. Felt great, no worries at all about the 17 kms with just over 1100 metres of up.
We will head up north early next week to settle in, explore part of the course & rest.
Biggest problem will be attending the race briefing on Friday night, then getting out of bed at 3:30 am to catch the bus to the start line at 4:30 am for a 6 am start. Not much sleep that night. May be nana nap on Thursday afternoon, problem solved.
Next problem, getting 101 kms done before sundown. That's an incentive to keep going.

Week 7 - A Little Easier

Running:  Year to Date

Distance:  806.4 kms in 7 weeks at ave  115.2 kms ( down from 117.7 kms at week 6)

Last week:  100.25 kms

Altitude:  Garmin  27,501 metres in 7 weeks at ave  3,929 metres ( up from 3,890 metres at week 6)
                 Strava   29,806 metres

Last week:  Garmin 4,164 metres
                    Strava   4,455 metres

With only 2 weeks to go until Gone Nuts 101 km, this was the last week of training before easing back. My longest run has been just over 40 kms, most vert in one run was 2323 metres with plenty of long runs in the 5-7 hour time range.
I hope I've done enough, not only to get through the race, but to have a reasonable run and not struggle over the final stages. I would like to be able to run most of the way and only walk up the steepest climbs.
Not much else to be done now except keep moving, may be a short quick session on the oval one day. Also need to book a massage.
The training plan based on 10 days has worked well. Much of the time I have been just in front allowing for plenty of easy days. Always running fresh, no injuries or tiredness.

Week 6 - Right on Plan

Running:  Year to Date

Distance:  706.15 kms in 6 weeks at ave  117.7 kms ( down from 117.9 kms at week 3)

Last 3 weeks:  352.45 kms

Altitude:  23,337 metres in 6 weeks at ave  3,890 metres ( down from 4,373 metres at week 6)

Last 3 weeks:  10,177 metres

I'm catching up after being away on a short holiday for 10 days where there was plenty of easy, but flat, running. However, most of that was on either beaches or bike paths. I did get some faster than usual tempo runs done which is normally missing.
Managed to find only a few hills that really did not contribute to keeping the averages on track.
Back home and started on Saturday with a solid 40 kms run with 2300 metres of up hill. Long day out, over 6 hours on the move with a few stops to chat & admire the views from my local mountain summit.
As mentioned in my previous post, I now run to a 10 day plan instead of a 7 day plan. Although, the figures above are the normal Mon - Sun as a full week this year ends on a Sunday.
My 10 day plan allows more flexibility, now I don't need to work, to run longish during the week if necessary. Rest or real cut back days, walking, can be had anytime.
It's now 3 weeks until Gone Nuts 101 km. A couple more long runs this week, then start to ease back the distances, freshen up and hope I have done enough to get to the start line, then the finish line.

Week 3 - New Plan is Working

Running:  Year to Date

Distance:  353.7 kms in 3 weeks at ave 117.9 kms ( up from 116.65 kms after 2 weeks)

Last week:  120.6 kms

Altitude:  Garmin - 13,160 metres in 3 weeks at ave  4,387 metres ( up from 4,373 metres after 2 weeks)

Last week:  4,414 metres

Altitude:  Strava - 15,013 metres

The new training plan is based on 10 days. However, the figures above are based on a normal 7 week. Now that week days & weekends kind of mix, I can run long or short or easy or rest any day.
It's all based on averages over 10 days. Started the year with distance at 12 kms per day, so 120 kms over 10 days. Vertical started at 350 metres per day, so 3500 metres over 10 days.
A good long run, a good medium long run means I can have plenty of easy days. These are more likely to be double walk days incorporating some river recovery sessions. No pressure to meet daily targets.
Averages rise a little each 10 days, distance up to 15 kms, vertical up to 500 metres. After 20 days, averages rise to 18 kms & 600 metres with the last day of the month, a complete rest day.
With Gone Nuts distance at 101 kms and around 2500 metres of up hill, I should be on the start line reasonably trained up, but also fresh.
At this stage, I'm ahead of target. But I know at the end of the upcoming week, we will be away on a short holiday. That's fine, no pressure to do much except go for relaxing short runs followed by a swim in the sea.
Finally, note the big difference between Garmin & Strava vertical. Got me confused.