Training Log Archive: Leon

Warm!

Hanley parkrun - 1st, 17:37

More progress, certainly this was harder than last week, very warm (parkrun vest, anyone?) and park sloped from top to bottom. Course was a sort of B shape where you did the small top loop, and then two large loops, with all the descent in one go down the back of the B, but luckily a flat bit halfway when climbing back up.
Took it fairly easy to begin with but still found myself clear after the small lap, kicked on up the hill start of big lap and then it was me against the clock. Glad the improvement is tangible.

Have now officially lost count of the number of different parkruns I've done, as I got it wrong when asked at the end!

POTOC Summer Series event, Hanley Forest Park - 1st, 46:24

Too convienient not to attend!

Still in parkrun run kit, so the two hills were tricky, was slipping all over the place. Some of the controls seemed to be placed a little cunningly (to be polite) compared to the map. Lots of seasonal undergrowth! Good sprint area though. Was quite pleased with my navigation. But my legs were knackered. Two main mistakes, path didn't seem to exist to #12 and I ended up on a path back to #7, and ran 5m away from #15 but never saw it at all until I took a slow walk round the area. Good fun, deserved a higher attendance.

Future double Wednesdays
28th May - Millthrope (EBOR) & Rothwell (AIRE)
11 June - Pannal (CLARO) & Nunroyd (AIRE)
18 June - Hob Moor (EBOR) & Holt Park (AIRE) - Hookstone (CLARO) for the Triple, if I had a car.

Humid, not too pleasant loop along the river

EBOR Summer Series (Superstars course) - Fulford Ings - 19:50ish

The double of EBOR & AIRE events was well and truly on tonight, so with this event a mile from the office arrived for the first start at 17:30

Ran hard and fast and navigated quite well though over shot #6 and #9 from running too fast, however quickly realised this. It was announced it was nettley and this was a bit of an understatement, as first round I was reduced to wading/jumping on the approach to a few controls.

Farce at the penultimate control as I couldn't find it, saw a control the other side of the clearing bit but assumed it wasn't my course, faffed around a bit then struck me the nearby might have moved the control, went over to check and it was indeed the right code, however being 10ft up in a tree I couldn't reach it.

Good fun and a real sprint course.

Up the big hill

AIRE Summer League - Prince of Wales park - 1st, 20:20

Legs were a bit tired but this was a well planned course with plenty of route choice. Managed to keep going and got near to most controls with a quick map check for the final bit. Think I missed a couple of optimum route choices and was a bit hesitant in the school grounds too. Pleased with the final wooded section where often gone wrong in the past. Scraped in 5s ahead of George Stevens. No nettles!

Down the big hill

First track session back

Was meant to be 8 x 800 off 90s jog
I ended up doing 6 off about 70s jog

As I was so far out the back door recovery was less which didn't really bother me, the fact 80s laps felt right at the limit did bother me/
Scraped 2:39s for the most part
Felt hard from the off, but was always going to, got to start back somewhere

Little twinge in knee afterwards, so heavy foam roller action tonight

Given the stellar session I did the night I got injured, 2:31s in a bad wind, I'd say I'm 5s per lap away from where I was, i.e. 20s per mile.

Lets see how long this takes...

Lovely evening for an easy run round the back of Highroyds.
I say easy, it didn't feel that easy

Event: STAG Urban Race (NUL4 and SOUL4)
 

Glasgow City Race - 5th, 47:55
A good run really, with Murray out front it was quite close from 2nd to 5th and it was good to see I was in a competitive group, shame to come 5th but still lacking a bit of fitness for this duration.
Really good event, hope it is repeated, great map and event centre.
Interesting course, perhaps could have done with a few more short legs (in the more complex estates perhaps) but there was plenty of route choice and I found it hard to plan more than one leg ahead.
That said I thought navigationally I was decent, so close examination of the splits needed to see where I lost time:

1) Straightforward
2) Perhaps should have taken first street on left heading away from control but took path after 2nd street, then cut across to main road. Almost missed turning to right to allow me to cut across car park. But 2nd fastest split though easy to be held up by traffic here
3) Came back out of 2 which looks to have cost me about 10s
4) To north of square, not that it made any difference
5) Round to north to get good entry to control
6) Went straight across road out of 5, then followed road round to east staying south of railway and over bridge at east edge of map. Will be interesting to see what route others took. Was blowing hard at this point but running this allowed some planning ahead
7) West down road then struggled up grassy bank to left of flats, then went to go between building and uncrossable wall to be faced by 15ft drop (mapping error!), so followed to east of wall, lost 10-15s checking what was crossable and what wasn't
8) Straightforward
9) Straightforward though almost ran into churchyard
10) Straightforward
11) round to east of building
12) cut through northerly path in university, held up a bit ny traffic and a bit slow crossing fences - lost maybe 6-8s
13) straightforward
14) got 3rd quickest leg, and was held up by traffic, but don't think it was the best route. tricky to cleanly run west through estate, got drawn onto road to north, and then road to NW and approach control from north. with that route could have improved by cutting direct through estate. Better route I think to go west and approach from south, still not sure if you could cut through buildings to east of 14.
15) south past subway, should have gone right left left but went right left 2nd left, the right. Had to stop and check map after checking church as had not clocked one further road to cross, so lost 10-15s
16) straightforward, got lucky with traffic
17) a right slog, crawled up the hill and stayed on paths in park
18) decent route out to northernmost corner of OOB building site, then down path to east, across road and approach control from north. Overshot it slightly
19) weaved to north of building, needed a magnifier!
20) straightforward, put my foot down, but held up a bit
21) cost myself at least 10s by overcomplicating leg, cutting down ginnel to east of #15 then north of church and in from east. should have simplified more
22) easily through ginnels but got to site and did not clock it was on the Tardis!
23) straightforward
24) straightforward
25) managed to resist urge to go up centre main path
26) a long run in!
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