Training Log Archive: shanel

Wanted to do some faster stuff today although the legs weren't too keen when I started. Just short efforts and recoveries which were probably longer than needed. Happy to get speed up to 3min/k momentarily on my last effort then took it easy the rest of the way home.

Byford to Claremont

On the old bike again but lubed the chain this time so it ran a lot smoother. Still didn't use the big ring due to a lack of proper adjustment except down Princess Rd where I held the gear lever in the stop the derailleur rubbing.

Started out cruising, someone caught and passed me around Armadale Rd so worked with him and a couple of other randoms all the way to the South Perth detour.

Only a few hundred meters behind par near the old brewery had that down to about 100m near UWA, so pushed hard along Princess Rd to just make par.

Claremont to Byford

Favourable wind and plenty of help along the way. Had someone up ahead after after the South Perth detour, was contemplating if I could catch him. Churchills who'd been behind me at the Mill Pt Rd lights came up behind me, so I went into chase mode, hoping he'd pick up the slack when I wouldn't be able to catch backpack guy up ahead. Sure enough he did and I still had to work hard to hold his wheel, so was hoping he'd ease up after we caught backpack, but he went past, so I just sat behind.

Backpack turned off at Canning Bridge, but another guy who'd been on his wheel went ahead and we got back on Churchills wheel as he'd eased up by then. Worked with those two for quite a while I think till past Roe Hwy.

Before the other guy turned off just after Russell Rd, he did a heap of work, keeping the pace just too high for me to take a turn. I didn't have to work once I was on my own as I was well ahead of par.

Pretty sad to see a bunch of people/mourners across the other side of the end of Tonkin Hwy where the guy got hit by the truck on Tues. I'd seen the ambulance heading up there, then the helicopter circling around as I finished my run on Tues. Was talking to my neighbour when I got home and he said he'd died :'(

Up into the hills. New Speedcross felt nice and grippy.

Got up onto the road that comes from the always locked gate near the dam wall and two cars with elderly occupants drive past heading the same way I was, then they disappeared before I got to the presumably locked gate at the other end.

By the time I got back out of the hills the 25km in 2.5hrs was looking pretty tight. Was pretty hard work to do the last 6km in 30 mins and the last couple of k's were really hard. Completely destroyed getting through the last 500m.

False start as Paula failed to clear the kerb across the road on her bike. So took her back home and went off by myself.

Over to the old neighbourhood, had to work pretty hard for the last few k's to get 12km in under an hour. Obviously need to fit in more of these runs.

Got the old bike out to avoid getting the good bike all grubby after getting it serviced last week. No rain just a little wet on the road so bike didn't get too dirty afterall

Probably should have lubed the chain since the bike has been sitting in the garage for quite some time. Got a couple of big chain sucks and change gears was pretty dodgy, ended up sticking to one gear most of the way home.

Round some trails with Paula

With Paula on her new bike for her first ride in many years.

A few heavy showers along the way and had to cover pretty much every corner of Byford to pad out the distance.

Event: 12th World Rogaining Championships
 

Event: WA vs WA
 

Event: WARA Spring 24 hour Rogaine + Schools Champs
 

Yeah, I did it, gpx file seems OK now.

Planned 105km with Dave and had options to get everything if all was going extremely well. And planned to do river crossings in the south at the end. And planned to do 5kph for the first 10hrs and 4kph for the rest.

Straight out to the east side of the course with no one in sight by the time we got to our first control and didn't see anyone else for a while till we came back across the NE corner of the map. Generally fast terrain early, except some canola.

We were close to an hour up as we cleared out the NE quarter of the map, passing back close to the HH after about 6 hrs. Still travelling well as we looped through the middle of the map, but slowly losing our hour margin. So we left 12 and 13 and before too long we got into the diabolical NW corner.

Wasted 20 mins hunting for 61. I wasn't feeling too well by then so maybe I was already loosing the plot, we were pretty much at the control, it was just the other side of some thick vegetation and we went the other way. Got it eventually and finally found a cereal box in the old car body.

Then into impenetrable bush which we bashed and crawled through and I lost my map :'( Eventually got through to 41.

More thick crap towards 81 and we decided we were near the spur north of the control so we headed south towards where we thought the right spur would be but couldn't see it, looking at the GPS track now it looks like we must have been right on it and pretty close even when we first approached.

Eventually gave up on it and 11 and headed for the water drop at 44. I was feeling the worst I ever had in a Rogaine by now, very sleepy and not wanting to eat or drink anything. It felt very much like the point when I pulled the pin during Expedition Africa (maybe I get round to writing about that soon).

I really wanted to stop for a 20 min snooze but I didn't really think it would help that much as I probably wouldn't feel much better and we were already at the point were it looked like we might have to cut our course and make a long pointless walk back, since our planned course had stupidly left us with a long run from the NW corner down to the SW corner across to the SE corner and straight back in the the HH with all the other controls already cleared out.

So approaching the water drop we could see Marks flashing green light emblazoned ute pull into the control as we were approaching and he was there quite a while but was about to take off as we got closer so I flashed some narrow spikelight beam around him and he waited.

Very glad to see Mark and Tash with some cake and I had a mandarine and a good chance to express how crap I felt before we headed off to what we new would be more diabolical thick crap and 93 and 71 definitely met those expectations.

Back into the farmland and we stuffed up 35, in looks like we were put off by a fenceline which we took to be the edge of the out of bounds but was probably west of the dam above the control.

Gave up on 35 and got 86 then did a quick assessment of the shortest way back without having a dead run back, I think I worked out 18km in 5hrs 20mins, so doable as long as we didn't get slowed down by anything.

So ran as much as we could, got some more cake from Phil and friends (including broken Ann). Another mandarine and I was feeling much better than I had earlier. Then into a control in the middle of some nice spikey rushes.

Kept a close eye on how much distance we had left in the last few hours and kept it under control the whole way in so we didn't have to push too hard in the end.

Very happy with the result coming back and finishing off a good end to our course after feeling so bad halfway through. Dave was at the front through that horrible middle section and kept pushing the pace and definitely earned his first win. And finally my first 24hr win, hooray.

C • Motivation 29

Another exploration over on Juffy's side of the Hopkinson Rd.

Aimed for the eastern side of the main drain this time but soon found that there's no trail from Abernethy Rd, so slow going through the long grass/watsonia/weeds along the narrow strip beside the drain until I reached where there is a trail along the drain.

Had to slow down again with a horse rider coming the other way whose horse was looking a bit jittery, so walked till I'd passed her.

Some nice tree lined trails in this area, might be good for hot summer runs.