Training Log Archive: ToddO

Parked just below Whinlatter main carpark with Neild.
Was guided around the Lord's Seat race route including Barf and Lord's Seat (very strong wind with some drizzle in) to bag 2 more Wainwrights.
R) glutes not happy today, especially when trying to stride out. Uphill was fine though...
R) Achilles sore today too.

30x eccentric Achilles

Event: Mid Lancs XC #1
 

Team recce of the course (Mike McIver, Phil, Bob At, Bobby Grant and Ross).
Bit less boggy than last year but pretty much as remembered.

Up and down the start slope at tempo.

Drill, jog, stride and walk: butt kicks and high knees.

Mid Lancs Cross-Country League, race 1, Towneley Park, Burnley.

The plan was to try starting pretty hard and try to hang on. This based on the fact that I tend to always have a fast finish and in the early xc races of the season I finish feeling like I should have pushed harder. That has meant, in the last two seasons, that it's taken a few races to be able to perform at my actual level.

Took off quickly up the slight slope and found there were an awful lot of guys doing the same. Considering I was used to being well into the top 20 last year there were probably 40 guys in front of me. Still, I didn't get carried away. Phil and Bob Atkinson we both just in front and I was intending to stay with whichever one of them was off in front today.
Strode out as we went down the gradual slope towards to bandstand and took plenty of places. Had Bob just in front as we set off on the first of 3 big laps. Phil was pulling away but I didn't feel able to go with that pace.
Kept the "elastic" on Bob as we progressed and gradually overtook the too-fast-starters. Bob (whose guts had only come right on Thurs after nearly two weeks since the National Road Relays) came back to me as we headed for the far field on lap two.
By this time my R glutes were not happy.
Had Ben Johnson of Southport Waterloo and Mark Chippendale of Bowland up ahead. Ben went past me after I'd overtaken Bob but Mark had been there since early on. Mark forged a decent gap through solid running.
On the final lap Ben was about 10m in front for ages. I went through the short single-track section aggressively only to lose my gains on the final little climb. We both sped up as we hit the final descent to the bandstand and I had to make a concerted surge to get past.
As we turned for the finish Mark was clearly not as fast but had a defensible gap if he could up his pace. He did this and I realised I wasn't going to get past. Still had to sprint a bit as Ben tried to come back at the end.
2nd counter for the team but 110 seconds behind Phil's 10th place.
Pos Name Cat Club Time
1 Mathew Shirling U20 Liverpool 32:48
2 Alasdair Russell Kendal 33:27
3 Chris Fell Rossendale 33:29
4 James Douglas Border 33:34
5 Luke Minns Blackpool Wyre & Fylde 33:37
6 Joe Johnston Rossendale 33:52
7 Daniel Jarvis U20 Liverpool 33:55
8 Chris Farrell Horwich RMI 34:21
9 (non-ML) Ben Riddell Salford 34:22
10 Phil Waite Barrow 34:31
11 Joe Vis Southport Waterloo Ac 34:40
12 Jamaine Coleman U20 Preston 34:42
13 Matt Thompson V40 Southport Waterloo 34:42
14 David Rigby Preston 34:50
15 Robert Webb Rossendale 34:52
16 Matthew Grieve Border 35:12
17 Rob Danson Wesham 35:18
18 Ben Harrison Kendal 35:23
19 Richard Evans U20 Liverpool 35:39
20 Malc Eadie V40 Blackpool Wyre & Fylde 35:48
21 Jamie Webb U20 Liverpool 35:52
22 Spencer Riley Clayton Le Moors 35:59
23 Daniel Bebbington U20 6 Preston 36:00
24 David Hamilton V40 Southport Waterloo 36:02
25 James Hilton Wigan Phoenix 36:07
26 Raymond Edgar Lancaster & Morecambe 36:11
27 (non-ML) Mark Chippendale V40 Bowland 36:19
28 Todd Oates Barrow 36:21
29 Ben Johnson Southport Waterloo 36:24
30 Nzimah Akpan U20 Liverpool 36:25
31 Gethin Butler V40 Preston 36:28
38 Luke Ingham U20 Kendal 36:48
40 Ross Campbell U20 Barrow 36:53
41 Bob Atkinson V50 Barrow 36:58
62 Pat Miller V40 Barrow 38:14
85 Christopher Howie V40 Hoad Hill 39:34
87 Mike McIver Barrow 39:44
100 Mark Saunders Hoad Hill 40:10

C • result 2

The 5 guys who set off for a warm-down lap of the course picked up Pat in the far field to reconvene the "A" team.
R) glutes sore.

30x eccentric Achilles

Good stretch-out afterwards.

30x eccentric Achilles

Really nice day so I decided to shoot out after work for a fell run.
Met Neild at the end of the lane on the road between Great Mell and Little Mell Fells.
Up Great Mell Fell in just under 14:30. Bit odd having patches of trees most of the way up.
Through Brownrigg Farm to cross the valley before climbing Little Mell Fell. Had to crouch through some gorse bushes on the way.
Head torches on at about 6:30pm.

30x eccentric Achilles

30x eccentric Achilles

Feeling tired today.
Headed down to Eden Rock alone and bumped into Tom and Nia. They did Woods whilst I tried Whites.

30x eccentric Achilles

Met Neild at the Latrigg carpark.
Up the main Skiddaw path and then veered off to bag Lonscale Fell. Windy and stinging drizzle with less than 100m visability up there. Talked about the FRA relays yesterday.
Went W along the fence to Jenkin Hill and hit the main Skiddaw track. Glad I was wearing tights, Icebreaker, OMM jacket, gloves and hat... even put my hood on (for the first time ever whilst running) but mainly because it wasn't velcroed down and had started flapping.
Had I realised how close we were to Skiddaw Little Man I'd've been very tempted to bag that one aswell.
Followed the track all the way back so I wouldn't slip in these shoes. The light was failing.
Several physical gripes but I was determined to use the daylight before the clocks change at the w/e...
L) patellar tendon a bit achey on the descent. Sore R) Achilles. Think it's because I forgot my exercises Fri and Sat.
L) lower back and L) side of neck sore today- not really whilst running though. May be from some of my falls yesterday. Discovered a blood blister on my R) knee and bruising on my R elbow last night!

30x eccentric Achilles