fitter and therefore faster

quote of the day: “running longer distances in training makes a 6k race seem quite easy.... At the start of today's race I thought, run faster, there is only 6k to go.” - Helen Larmour

On Wednesday Helen, in her 36th run in the BBQ Stakes, set yet another pb.

This was just three days after her great silver medal in the Vets half marathon! where she ran a 9 minute pb for the distance, breaking 98 minutes.

The moral of the story is: train for longer distances; and race shorter. Particularly if longer distances suit you!

I am so looking forward to see how our fittest and improvingest athletes go on the track this year.

One tends to improve in fitness more in winter, when distances increase, than in summer, when one tends to focus on trying to run faster.

Perhaps this is wrong; should we let summer distances drop away as much as we do?

For 800m runners one must reduce distance in summer; but for 3000m runners and up?

Specially considering that we are not highly tuned elite athletes by any means. We have yet untapped abilities that more distance running would reveal.



WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD
The Sphinx: You tell me.


Helen now fitter and faster and stronger.

identity

Running quote of the day: "It's the road signs, 'Beware of lions.'" - Kip Lagat, Kenyan distance runner, during the Sydney Olympics, explaining why his country produces so many great runners.

"Once a king or queen of Narnia, always a king or queen of Narnia".
"Once the President of the United States, always the President"
"Once a marathon runner, always a marathon runner".


WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Ronald Reagan: I forget.

Creativity is putting familiar things together in a new way, showing connections that haven't been obvious before.

much better

I am feeling much better today thank you.

quote of the day: "When you run like I do, top tens are hard to come by and it usually means a lot of good runners don't show up."

Saturday's Pinnacle results. Top Ten finishes all round.
4k women. 9. Sarah Pau W30 20:00
4k men. 10. Ewen Thompson M45 24:22
8k women. 6. Caroline Campbell W60 44:58

For Carolyne Kramar aka Flashduck...

Canberra Times 10k Fun Run.
Final composition of "Speedy Geese", mailed in today.
Tony Booth
Gary Bowen
Katie Forestier
Jeni Greenland
Carolyne Kramar
Helen Larmour
Geoff Moore
Cathy Newman
Amanda Walker

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Hamlet: That is not the question.

National Cross Country

Two final bits of information out of the National Cross Country.

The Men's Australian Open Club Team Championships was won by my club, North Canberra Gunghalin; second was Weston Creek (also an ACT club), and third Box Hill from Victoria.

The Men's state team results were Victoria first (20 points) , ACT second (25 points), and Tasmania third (51 points, just pipping Queensland).

Anyone interested in full results can find them here.

Hot Rod

quote of the week: “The difference between the mile and the marathon is the difference between burning your fingers with a match and being slowly roasted over hot coals.” - Hal Higdon

My training progress
last week's target: 80k actual 75k

this week’s target: 95k and 120 mins on the stepper
weight: 62kg and falling
song of the week: Running – Evermore, from "Real Life" - “let my feet hit the ground, running”

I have had a shocking cold since Thursday and couldn’t breathe too well in the half marathon. It was still the fastest of my three Canberra halves this year, but three minutes slower than at Doomben. If not for the cold, on current form a realistic expectation was sub 1:29, probably still short of my 1:27.30 target I had for 2006. However I will have to be content with 1:32.50 on a day when I was crook and felt like death not warmed up.

Now for some decent training; only three weeks to a shot at a fast 10k. No more halves until next year.

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
David Hume: Out of custom and habit.

I might have had a cold but Rod was hot.
Rod Lynch ran his maiden half marathon yesterday and was the fastest from the training group.

Half Marathon

Team Moore results in today's ACTVAC half marathon.
M45 Rod Lynch 1:26:09 74.19%
M50 David Webster 1:28:11 77.24%
M45 Richard Faulks 1:28:34 72.71%
M55 Bob Harlow 1:31:26 77.85%
M55 Geoff Moore 1:32:52 75.96%
W50 Maria O'Reilly 1:37:00 77.26%
M45 Gary Bowen 1:37:31 67.07%
W45 Helen Larmour 1:37:32 74.12%
W45 Cathy Newman 1:38:21 72.23%
M60 Kevin Chamberlain 1:38:28 72.95%
W40 Charlie McCormack 1:40:11 68.57%
M55 Alan Green 1:40:53 69.30%
W55 Kathy Sims 1:45:22 73.90%
M60 Geoff Barker 1:45:29 68.77%
M60 John Alcock 1:46:21 67.54%
W40 Gabrielle Brown 1:52:36 61.52%
W45 Pam Faulks 1:56:49 61.34%
W55 Margaret McSpadden 2:01:54 66.58%
W40 Carolyne Kramar 2:26:54 47.15%

problems

running quote "If it hurts, make it hurt more." - Percy Cerutty


coming events
Mon 28 August 2006
5:30 pm Parliament House Team Moore weekly training, or 4:30 pm for early starters who would like a longer run. Meet at the underground car park; no cost.

Tue 29 August 2006
9:00 am Veterans weekly Tuesday group, Black Mountain Peninsula. Most participants walk, jog or run for about an hour. Morning tea, and celebrations of any birthdays, follow. A friendly and informal group.

12:10 pm Monthly Ginninderra Handicap. Bella Vista Restaurant, Belconnen

Wed 30 August 2006
12:15 pm weekly BBQ Stakes 6k, Woden (park at Chappell Street Lyons). One of many good lunch time runs. Bring $1 entry and enjoy a hilly handicap race.

Thu 31 August 2006
5:30 pm Dickson Oval Team Moore weekly training, or 4:30 pm for early starters who would like a longer run. Training is under lights, on a fully marked 400m grass track; no cost.

Fri 1 September 2006
12:10 pm weekly Customs 5k, Stage 88. A $1 entry fee, handicapped start, flat and fast 5km course.

Sat 2 September 2006
1:00 pm ACTCCC Yarralumla Relays, Alexandrina Drive

Sun 3 September 2006
9:00 am Monthly Women's 6k Jogalong, Weston Park

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Ernest Hemingway: To die. In the rain.

sponges!

National Cross Country Hobart

I will update this as news filters through. But it looks as if the mens' team results were (1) VIC, (2) ACT, with NO NSW runners in the top ten at all. Zilch. Zip. Zero. YOU GO ACT!

Men 12k CC Open
Name Age Team Finals Points
1 Lee Troop 33 VIC 36:36 1
2 Martin Dent 27 ACT 36:52 2
3 Michael Shelley 23 QLD 37:15 3
4 Erwin McRae 30 ACT 37:27 4
5 Collis Birmingham 22 VIC 37:37 5
6 Liam Adams 20 VIC 37:44 6
7 Kim Gillard 36 TAS 37:53 7
8 Clint Perrett 23 VIC 37:57 8
9 Scott McTaggart 29 ACT 38:11 9
10 Anthony Haber 28 ACT 38:13 10

Women 8k CC Open
Name Age Team Finals Points
1 Anna Thompson 30 VIC 27:45 1
2 Donna Macfarlane 29 TAS 28:07 2
3 Lisa Jane Weightman 27 VIC 28:20 3
4 Emma Rilen 23 NSW 28:44 4
5 Lauren Shelley 30 WA 28:45
6 Clare Geraghty 20 QLD 28:49
7 Kristy Villis 30 SA 28:58
8 Eliza Stewart 20 NSW 29:08 5
9 Belinda Wilsher 22 NSW 29:11 6
10 Kate Smyth 34 VIC 29:23 7

Parliament House & hazardous signs

running quote of the day "There ain't no shame looking at a good runner's back. Now, if the runner sucks, that's something else entirely…"

lots of good runners stuck close together in the ACT womens 8k cross country championships

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Sri Chinmoy: It didn't cross the road; it transcended it.

they could have used signs like this one!

Monday training at Parliament House won't be along the grassy track we used last time. First of all, roadworks of some kind or other will be taking place to turn the road into a one way, anti-clockwise circuit (how crazy can you get?). Secondly, the metallic signs they have put up along the grass are extremely dangerous in the dark; they are at throat height and difficult to see as they are at 90 degrees facing the road alongside us. I suppose the signs will be removed after there is a nasty accident, let's hope it isn't one of us who has the accident.

from Ian Clout (yesterday): “This afternoons rain will have settled the dust nicely for next Tuesdays running of the Ginninderra Handicap. In case you need any further incentives to turn up, check out the following: The Armstrong Trophy for consistent improvement will be awarded for the period January - June 2006; There is a strong rumour that the fastest ever official runner of the Ginninderra Handicap (21mins 35secs on 22/12/1987) will be at the run; and It is Rad Leovic's 79th birthday on Tuesday. He will be bringing a cake and would love as many runners as possible to share it with him after the run.
“Runners working in the Belconnen district would be aware that there is going to be a joint emergency services exercise conducted within the Belconnen Town Centre on Tuesday between 9.00am and 2.30pm, involving road closures and possible evacuation of offices etc. Hopefully, it shouldn't affect the run.”

running with ladders

quote of the day: "I run because it's my passion, and not just a sport. Every time I walk out the door, I know why I'm going where I'm going and I'm already focused on that special place where I find my peace and solitude. Running, to me, is more than just a physical exercise...it's a consistent reward for victory!" - Sasha Azevedo
WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Salvador Dali: The Fish.

The next running challenge?

Go Scott Go Marty

quote of the day "Who runs in circles never gets far."

for family members and friends, I have just updated my family album. view it at http://mooregenerations.blogspot.com/

Tuesday’s outing. Jenny and I took advantage of the sunny weather on Tuesday to drive out to Tidbinbilla, we haven't been there for decades! Sunny that is until we arrived there, when a cold wet change blew through, so umbrellas were the order of the day. Much of the area is still badly affected by bush fires, which in January 03 swept through as fireballs and destroyed everything; but we walked aroud the new wetlands area, and were pleasantly surprised at how excellent it was. Few people around, we knew most of them! e.g. we bumped into Fred & Heather Allsop, running friends of mine, near the platypus pond.



WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Buddha: If you ask this question, you deny your own chicken-nature.

This weekend is the National Cross Country. We can win the teams! Go Scott Go Marty!click on cutting to enlarge

Riddles suitable for telling your kids
1. How do you catch a unique rabbit? Unique up on it
2. How do you catch a tame rabbit? Tame way, unique up on it
3. What do fish say when they hit a concrete wall? Dam!
4. What do eskimos get from sitting on the ice too long? Polaroids
5. What do you call a boomerang that doesn't work? A stick
6. What do you call santa's helpers? Subordinate clauses
7. What's the difference between roast beef and pea soup? Anyone can roast beef
8. Where do you find a dog with no legs? Right where you left him
9. Why don't blind people like to sky dive? Because it scares the dog
10. What is the difference between a Harley and a Hoover? The location of the dirt bag.

Slowly breaking through the daylight..

quote of the day: "rapid motion through space elates one" - James Joyce

The usually unreliable Canberra Times says daylight saving will start on 1 October this year. If it does, that's great news for us! It means more options for training sessions at Parliament House, and it means it won't be quite as cold and miserable for the first one or two Thursday night track meetings at Bruce in October.

start of whinge. I still haven't seen the Vets track program. I try to plan ahead six months or so, and I am waiting to make bookings at Easter depending on when our championships are.... as well as planning training programs through summer leading up to our championships. Gee I hope I find out soon, I have even sent emails and got no replies... end of whinge.

I saw sun rise, I saw sunlight
I am nothing, in the dark
And the clouds burst to show a daylight

This Sunday I will try and run the half marathon about six minutes faster than I managed on a similar course (above) earlier this year... it will be my last shot in 2006 at a fast time. p.s. that's David behind me. A rare event indeed. I had caught him from a long way back. He passed me again soon after this.

And are both my feet firmly on the ground?

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Aristotle: To actualise its potential.

Round and round the rugged rocks the ragged rabbit ran

quote of the day: "If the hill has its own name, then it's probably a pretty tough hill"

Yes we saw a rabbit last night, running on the hill we trained on the last two weeks! hence the mis-quote in today's heading.

Team Moore duathletes in the Australian Duathlon Championships:
M55 2 Bob Harlow
W60 1 Caroline Campbell
Both have been selected in the Australian team to compete in Hungary.

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Albert Einstein: Whether the chicken crossed the road or the road crossed the chicken depends upon your frame of reference.

Our youngest daughter Mon and her two youngest children (Liana and Amelie) made Sunday's Canberra Times. That's her second adult from the left. Click on picture to enlarge. Oh no, my daughter is a walker!

happy wedding anniversary: Jenny and I celebrate 36 years today. It's off for a drive in the Canberra sunshine! Bye.

niggles or no niggles

quote of the week: "No doubt a brain and some shoes are essential for marathon success, although if it comes down to a choice, pick the shoes. More people finish marathons with no brains than with no shoes." - Don Kardong

Urambi Hills 7.0k result from yesterday
1 Geoff Barker M60 37:49
7 Kathy Sims W55 35:14 bronze
16 Helen Larmour W45 33:21
20 Colin Farlow M40 28:15
22 Margaret McSpadden W55 41:38
23 Neville Madden M50 33:39
24 Amanda Walker W35 37:00
31 John Kennedy M55 30:36
36 Maria O'Reilly W50 32:50
37 David Webster M50 31:13
39 Rod Lynch M45 28:57
43 Barbara Tucker W55 39:47
53 Amanda Chew W45 46:00
55 Charmaine Knobel W50 38:03
60 David Baussmann M45 35:37
71 Alan Green M55 34:12
72 Jill Brown W55 44:15
77 Roger Pilkington M45 32:40
80 Barbara Williams W60 41:33
84 Roy Jones M60 44:40
91 Tony Booth M65 41:45
92 Peter McDonald M50 40:37

Urambi Hills 3.5k
3 Michael Roche M65 21:53 silver
14 Ken Gordon M40 14:12
19 Katie Forestier W40 15:45
26 Gary Bowen M45 15:14
32 Carol Baird W55 17:59
37 Graeme Small M65 23:43
38 Ken White M50 18:26
39 Sarah Pau W30 17:35

My training progress
last week's target: 100k actual 83k

this week’s target: 80k, fast half marathon
weight: 62.5kg and steady

song of the week: Say I – Creed

The dust has finally settled on the field of Human Clay

Just enough light has shown through

To tell the night from the day...

Despite feeling a bit tired and having a few niggles, as a final test to see if I really am ready to attack the half marathon next Sunday, I ran a Customs 5k pb on Friday – 19:35 which was 9 seconds faster than the previous week and 8 seconds faster than my previous Customs pb which dates back to March. So I passed the test! I will throw caution to the winds and try for a fast time in the half, niggles or no niggles. In good weather, anything is possible!

speedyJenny, speedyMon and I took two grandchildren (speedyJosiah and speedyLiana) to the Geoscience open day yesterday and they had a ball. It was fascinating stuff. Despite that, when I joined the guided tour and listened to the explanations of the how the air conditioning system worked, and what was in their library, etc, I found myself yawning and nearly asleep. I really am not very good at standing still and just listening, I have to be doing something!

4x400 result
Lauren did run in the Australian team which contested the heats of the 4 x 400, but their team failed to qualify for the final; just. As I predicted, 3 teams from the first heat and five from the second got through. If Australia had been in the first heat, they may have got through.

Snail

Coming Events
Mon 21 August 2006
5:30 pm Parliament House Team Moore weekly training, or 4:30 pm for early starters who would like a longer run. Meet at the underground car park; no cost. A new training program starts today.

Tue 22 August 2006
9:00 am Veterans weekly Tuesday group, Black Mountain Peninsula. Most participants walk, jog or run for about an hour. Morning tea, and celebrations of any birthdays, follow. A friendly and informal group.

Wed 23 August 2006
12:15 pm weekly BBQ Stakes 6k, Woden (park at Chappell Street Lyons). One of many good lunch time runs. Bring $1 entry and enjoy a hilly handicap race.

Thu 24 August 2006
5:30 pm Dickson Oval Team Moore weekly training, or 4:30 pm for early starters who would like a longer run. Training is under lights, on a fully marked 400m grass track; no cost.

Fri 25 August 2006
12:10 pm weekly Customs 5k, Stage 88. A $1 entry fee, handicapped start, flat and fast 5km course.

Sat 26 August 2006
1:00 pm ACTCCC Pinnacle 8k

Sun 27 August 2006
ACTVAC Half Marathon at Commonwealth Park
8:00 am half marathon start for people slower than 2 hours
8:30 am half marathon start for people between 1:40 and 2 hours
9:00 am half marathon start for people faster than 1:40.
Yes I know the start times make no sense at all, but such is life I am afraid.
This event is open to all "people" of age 30 years or more.
I am always annoyed when I see anyone starting in an earlier group than they reasonably should.

Wanted Wanted Wanted
TWO PEOPLE TO ASSIST WITH THE PRODUCTION THE VETRUNNER! THEY WILL JOIN JOHN KENNEDY (photographer), JOHN STONEY (Running/Walking Handicap report writer) and BRYAN THOMAS (Throwing Handicap report writer and other items). The first position will involve sourcing stories other than the handicap reports. The second will involve the placing of stories and pictures on the pages. Both positions will require some computer experience; more so the placing of material on to the pages. Some desktop publishing experience would be an advantage. BOTH OF THESE POSITIONS ARE NEEDED NOW because Jim O'Donnell has resigned. Contact Geoff Moore 62544753 (h) or the club Secretary Rod Lynch 62420701 (h)

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Ludwig Wittgenstein: The possibility of "crossing" was encoded into the objects "chicken" and "road", and circumstances came into being which caused the actualisation of this potential occurrence.

Apparently this is my beer personality.

You Are Bud Light

You're not fussy when it comes to beer. If someone hands it to you, you'll drink it. In fact, you don't understand beer snobbery at all. It all tastes the same once you're drunk! You're an enthusiastic drinker, and you can often be found at your neighborhood bar. You're pretty good at holding your liquor too - you've had lots of experience.

What's Your Beer Personality?

A long post happens when you prepare it on Sunday and add to it on Monday ...

Citius, Altius, Fortius

"Swiftier, Highier, Strongier."

By popular request:
WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Freud: An die andere Seite zu kommen.

Ha ha ha!

pitter patter

4 x 400
Lauren may not be in the relay team after all, at least not according to the Canberra Times, a usually unreliable source. (fight your way through the negatives if you dare)

Peter Hogan's progress
A TD post re PRB, AKI & FD.

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Jean-Paul Sartre: In order to act in good faith and be true to itself, the chicken found it necessary to cross the road.

How did Joel propose to Yelena?

IAAF World Junior Championships relays

1. Lauren should be running (but I have no names).
2. The first 3 teams in each heat and next two fastest qualify.
3. I would guess 3 teams in heat 1 and 5 in heat 2 will get through.
4. Australia should be able to qualify for the final.
5. These heats are on at about 10pm Saturday our time.

Start list 4x400m relay women.
Heat 1
2 Nigeria
3 Romania
4 Canada
5 India
6 Jamaica
7 Poland
8 Belarus

Heat 2
2 United States
3 Germany
4 France
5 China
6 Australia
7 Russia
8 Ukraine

not a chicken, not a road

quote of the day: "Somewhere in the world someone is training when you are not. When you race him, he will win." - Tom Fleming's Boston Marathon Training Motto


WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Carl Jung: The confluence of events in the cultural gestalt necessitated that individual chickens cross roads at this historical juncture, and therefore synchronicitously brought such occurrences into being.

not a chicken, not crossing a road

acclimatisation

"Most mistakes in a race are made in the first two minutes, perhaps in the very first minute." - Jack Daniels, Exercise Physiologist and Coach

Will we have to start getting used to this warmer weather! I have thrown all the doors and windows open, to let this early spring breeze into our house. It is 17 degrees in Canberra today, very pleasant.

Although, looking at the clouds now gathering to the west, will it last?

Canberra Times Fun Run - training group team
Everyone who trains with us is welcome to join the "speedy geese". But because we are entering as a team, all the forms for the team must be sent in together. So just give me your entry form, with mastercard details filled in as payment, by my deadline of Sunday 27 August. Or at the very latest, Monday 28 August at training. Any later and you will miss out. You cannot just add the team name in a separate entry.

Note also that, like last year, the race itself starts at 9:45am

Footnote. Please feel free to form and enter in other teams instead of this one, if you wish, specially if there is an age group team you are interested in forming. There are some “speedier geese” doing just that – Matthew, Tony B, Ken G I think. Go the Team Moore Sprinters!

But if not, the more the merrier, join us! Team Type is 1, team name is SPEEDY GEESE, entry forms to me

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Darwin: It was the logical next step after coming down from the trees.

Lauren Day two - 7th in semi

1. Semifinals are an hour away as I start this post; I will be updating it as it happens.
2. The equation is simple - the first four in each semifinal go through to the final.
3. Lauren appears to have a chance of getting through.
4. All eight women in her semifinal are fast. Three of them very fast; probably one second faster than Lauren; two others run about the same time as Lauren; the other two are slower but only marginally so. Thus it is a big ask to suggest she will make the final.
5. However the fastest runner is on her immediate inside and if this runner starts fast, Lauren may be able to tag on and get dragged through. Go Lauren go!

6. And she ran another very fast time in the semi, finished 7th so did not qualify for the final.
7. The eight qualifiers ran time between 56.10 and 57.52. Lauren's 58.05 means she was 12th fastest of the 16 in the semis. Not a lot in it! She is very close to the top.

Round Number

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Douglas Adams: Forty-two.

For Saturday’s run at Gungahlin - two laps of Yerrabi Pond - 7.8k - we all had a bit of a jog. It was a very nice course!! Fairly flat and on the recreation path. And I saw the "famous" pelican sculptures for the first time.
There were very few runners competing at Yerrabi; anyone who could put one foot in front of the other was down in Sydney for the City 2 Surf. And what glorious sunny weather they had in Sydney this year! Typical of this weekend, every year. Although I did hear there was heavy hail in Sydney yesterday.
Gungahlin was lovely and warm and sunny too.

women
3. Barbara Williams W60 40:23
5. Thea Zimpel 43:43
men
13. Geoff Moore M55 37:28

My playlist for Tuesday morning's long run included more of my favorites:

Blind – Lifehouse
Amsterdam (live) – Coldplay
Kite – U2
Landslide of Love – Newsboys
The Scientist – Coldplay
Mountain of God – Third Day
X&Y – Coldplay
Sunday Bloody Sunday (U2 song) – Pillar
Beautiful Day – U2
Yellow (live) – Coldplay
Daisy – Switchfoot
You and Me – Lifehouse
Innocence Again – Switchfoot
Grace – U2
Tunnel – Third Day
The Shadow Proves the Sunshine – Switchfoot
City of Blinding Lights – U2
This Time – P.O.D.
Only Hope – Switchfoot
I Will Hold My Head High – Third Day
Roots in Stereo – P.O.D.
Happy is a Yuppy Word – Switchfoot
All Slow Down – Chris Tomlin
A Rush of Blood to the Head (live) – Coldplay
Vertigo – U2
How Great is Our God – Chris Tomlin
Over and Out – Foo Fighters
..............“Chase me through the dark
..............“Ready on your mark
..............“First to reach the stars
..............“Wins a broken heart!”
I Turn Everything Over – Switchfoot
The Sun is Shining – Third Day
Running Out of Days – 3 Doors Down
..............“There’s too much work and I’m spent”.

Quite a long run really.

quote of the day: "Runners like to train 100 miles per week because it's a round number. But I think 88 is a lot rounder." - Don Kardong

Lauren Boden - she's through to the semis

IAAF World Junior Championships, Beijing.

Women's 400m hurdles.

1. The first 3 of each heat plus the 4 fastest times will qualify for the semifinals.
2. There are four heats. Lauren has drawn lane 3 in the first heat.
3. Lauren has just turned 18.
4. Lauren's best time in 2006 rates her seventh in the world (U20)
5. Lauren ran second in heat one. That means she has qualified for the semifinals.
6. Her time in heat one was 57.95. A very good time, close to her best of 57.45.
7. The semifinals will be on approx. 10pm tomorrow night our time.
8. Lauren qualified seventh fastest of the sixteen qualifiers.
9. She was only 0.8 secs slower than the fastest qualifier.
10. Finally, Lauren has drawn lane 6 of semifinal 1.

Gentleman John

In the 1950s, the greatest Australian athlete was John Landy. Every second week during the summer of 1952 and 1953 he attempted to break the four minute mile. He became the world champion miler in 1954, None was faster week after week in the world over the mile and three miles than John Landy. Ron Clarke already held the Australian and World Junior Mile record. As we came close to the Olympic Games everybody was looking to John Landy to set a new world record.

At the 1956 National Championships in Melbourne, 22,000 people watched the entrants line up for the start of the 1956 National Mile Championship. Everyone knew that if John Landy got a fast start in the early part of the race he would set a new world record. Everyone wanting Landy to run and win.

When the gun went off the young men each representing their states sped to the first turn and at the end of the first lap Robbie Morgan-Morris had completed the first quarter mile in 59 seconds, followed by Ron Clarke, Alec Henderson, John Plummer and then John Landy. The time was right on target for a world record. At the half mile Robbie Morgan-Morris was still leading and the time was two minutes two seconds. At the start of the third lap young Ron Clarke and Landy moved forward at a speedy pace. The world record was on!

Landy had only to go with the pace and a new world record would be in his grasp. Then occurred an event which is still etched on the minds of all those who witnessed it. Clarke was moving to the lead as they came into the corner on the third lap. John Landy was on his shoulder. Alec Henderson tried to squeeze between the two runners and the inside edge of the curb. In doing so Clarke, with his spikes, clipped his heel. Clarke sprawled forward onto the cinder track while Henderson was knocked onto the inside arena. Landy leaped over the falling body of Clarke in front of him and as he did his sharp spikes tore into the flesh of Clarke's shoulder. The whole field either jumped over Clarke or ran round him. The crowd which had been chanting "Landy, Landy, Landy, Landy" with every stride suddenly responded with an enormous gasp.

Landy then did the most incredibly stupid, foolish, gentlemanly act. He stopped, ran back to the fallen young Ron Clarke and helped him up to his feet, brushed cinders from knees and checking his bloodied shoulder said "Sorry". Clarke was all right. He said to Landy "Keep going, I'm all right. Run! Run!". Landy had forgotten everything. The Australian mile title, his bid for a world record, even the approaching Olympic Games in a spontaneous gesture of sportsmanship.

Clarke got to his feet and together Landy and Clarke set off after the other runners. They were 60 yards behind the rest of the field which had kept on running and the crowd did not expect them to continue. John Plummer, Merv Lincoln and Alec Henderson were leading the pack. Clarke and Landy sprinted off on that last half mile.

The crowd was shouting as with every stride Landy hauled in the front runners. He quickly ran round the rest of the field, came into the home straight leaving Clarke behind with the most powerful finish sprint. He stormed down the track and in the last ten yards passed Henderson and Lincoln to win the Australian Championship in four minutes, four seconds.

I doubt if there has ever been a reception given an athlete in all of history as those 22,000 people gave Gentlemen John Landy that day. The cheers and the applause would not die down. It continued minute after minute as Landy completed a victory lap. There was no question he could have set a new world record that day. Stopping and going back, picking up Clarke and then running back over his tracks had cost him eight or ten seconds. But it also unleashed in him a finish that was beyond anything that we had ever seen before. We had seen the greatest mile race in history. Landy was to go on and set new world records and become a hero at the 1956 Olympic Games but nothing compares with the race that summer night in the Melbourne Olympic Park in 1956 when he stopped, picked up young Ron Clarke and got himself into athletic immortality.

stepping up the heat

C2S ACT Blitz
ACT runner 2nd
ACT runner 3rd
ACT runner 5th
ACT runner 7th
ACT runner 9th
ACT runner 11th
We are the best.

My training progress
last week's target: 110k, 90 mins stepper actual 112k, 100 mins stepper

this week’s target: 100k, 120 mins stepper
weight: 62.5kg and falling

quote of the week: "Great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds." - Albert Einstein
song of the week: Eagles – Third Day, from "Wherever You Are" - “I will soar on the wings of eagles, I will learn to fly high above this world”

I will enjoy one more week of high intensity training, then a day off on Saturday, in preparation for easing right back next week ready to blitz the ACTVAC half marathon.

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Timothy Leary: Because that's the only kind of trip the Establishment would let it take.

short term pain, long term gain

..very true in sport; very true in life. Stick with it.

our Lauren
is competing at the Beijing 2006 IAAF world junior championships. The dates for this are 15-20 August. Her mother, father, and brother are over there, cheering her on, representing us. Lauren’s first event, a heat of the women’s 400m hurdles, is at 12:40pm on Tue 15 August. The program and results can be found at the IAAF website.

quote "It is one of the strange ironies of this strange life that those who work the hardest, who subject themselves to the strictest discipline, who give up certain pleasurable things in order to achieve a goal, are the happiest people. When you see 20 or 30 line up for a distance race in some meet, don't pity them, don't feel sorry for them. Better envy them instead." - Brutus Hamilton

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Hippocrates: Because of an excess of light pink gooey stuff in its pancreas.

next track season“We’re hoping with this new podium design we’ll get to see some Team Moore athletes!"

coming events
Mon 14 August 2006
5:30 pm Parliament House Team Moore weekly training, or 4:30 pm for early starters who would like a longer run. Meet at the underground car park; no cost. Last set of twenty hill sprints today!

Tue 15 August 2006
9:00 am Veterans weekly Tuesday group, Black Mountain Peninsula. Most participants walk, jog or run for about an hour. Morning tea, and celebrations of any birthdays, follow. A friendly and informal group.

Wed 16 August 2006
12:15 pm weekly BBQ Stakes 6k, Woden (park at Chappell Street Lyons). One of many good lunch time runs. Bring $1 entry and enjoy a hilly handicap race.

Thu 17 August 2006
5:30 pm Dickson Oval Team Moore weekly training, or 4:30 pm for early starters who would like a longer run. Training is under lights, on a fully marked 400m grass track; no cost. A new series of training sessions starts today.

Fri 18 August 2006
12:10 pm weekly Customs 5k, Stage 88. A $1 entry fee, handicapped start, flat and fast 5km course.

Sat 19 August 2006
1:00pm ACTCCC Dunrossil Drive 4.2k.

Sun 20 August 2006
9:00am ACTVAC monthly handicap, Urambi Hills. I and several others prefer to officiate at this one!

turn it up loud, captain

Despite all the running happening at this time of year, with the days getting longer my thoughts turn back to track athletics.

fly goose fly
Like a goose migrating to warmer climes in winter and cooler in summer, my instinct is to migrate to the track in summer and to the road in winter: an instinct developed over 45 years of training and racing to the same rhythm!

So more fast running is happening, more stretching in front of a warm fire, more imagining a fast start on a track and a flying finish through the tape.

Right through the tape without slowing! At training on Thursday we did "finishing practise" after our 20-20 sprinting work-out.

customs 5k
After my 19:53 last week, yesterday I ran the Customs 5k in 19:44, which compares very favourably with my pb there of 19:43 set last March when I was at the peak of my track season fitness. And there were no runners around me yesterday pulling me along. Turn it up, captain! There was a touch of vertigo (you too?) as I jogged over the pedestrian bridge towards civic with allrounder (see new banner photo above) after the run, speaking of whom, good luck to everyone in the C2S tomorrow! Go Marty! Go the A.C.T.! We are the best.

Today I will jog at the pool (the ACTCCC race); tomorrow a group of us including Speedy Goose and Griffin will run long at Black Mountain Peninsula (9:00am, everyone welcome).

And tomorrow afternoon I will see if the Crows without their captain Ricciuto can account for Fremantle, after which I can watch the tape of the C2S.

Thanks to Mark Edwards for this photo

p.s. for anyone who didn’t follow the attempt at humour in this post, “turn it up loud captain” is the first line from the fabulous song “Vertigo”, by U2. Now you know.

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Machiavelli: So that its subjects will view it with admiration, as a chicken which has the daring and courage to boldly cross the road, but also with fear, for whom among them has the strength to contend with such a paragon of avian virtue? In such a manner is the princely chicken's dominion maintained.

GO CJ GO

quote of the day: "It's better to burn out than to fade away" – Neil Young



When to run fast
a) after a period of long solid training, cut down the distances and start running faster in your training sessions.

When not to run fast
(a) the day after running fast, or
(b) when your legs feel heavy or sore.

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Karl Marx: It was an historical inevitability

SOTP

quote of the day: "Let us run with patience the race that is set before us" - Hebrews 12:1


BBQ Stakes yesterday I took another second off last week’s pb. But this time it was the normal clockwise course (or for those with only digital watches: we headed south and made right hand turns) so counts as a 37 second improvement. And there was a stop-you-in-your-tracks gale blowing!! An 88:30 half marathon attempt on 27 August is looking more and more achievable!

my weight over the last twelve months. Obvioulsy I lost focus there for a while. Goof one!


The jokes seem popular so they will continue.
But for slow readers, I will try and keep them simple.
Examples:

Mathematics joke 1
Aleph-null green bottles, hanging on the wall,
Aleph-null green bottles, hanging on the wall,
And if one green bottle should accidentally fall,
There’d be aleph-null green bottles, hanging on the wall.

Mathematics joke 2
Zenophobia: the irrational fear of convergent sequences.

Philosopher joke 1
WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Plato: For the greater good.

More to come!

non-running

quote of the day - "If you race merely for the tributes from others, you will be at the mercy of their expectations." - Scott Tinley

No Brakes!
A Software Engineer, a Hardware Engineer and a Departmental Manager were on their way to a meeting. They were driving down a steep mountain road when suddenly the brakes on their car failed. The car careened almost out of control down the road, bouncing off the crash barriers, until it miraculously ground to a halt scraping along the mountainside. The car's occupants, shaken but unhurt, now had a problem: they were stuck halfway down a mountain in a car with no brakes. What were they to do?
"I know," said the Departmental Manager, "Let's have a meeting, propose a Vision, formulate a Mission Statement, define some Goals, and by a process of Continuous Improvement find a solution to the Critical Problems, and we can be on our way."

"No, no," said the Hardware Engineer, "That will take far too long, and besides, that method has never worked before. I've got my Swiss Army knife with me, and in no time at all I can strip down the car's braking system, isolate the fault, fix it, and we can be on our way."

"Well," said the Software Engineer, "Before we do anything, I think we should push the car back up the road and see if it happens again."

Playlist
I listened to my most favourite songs when I ran yesterday:
Fix You - Coldplay
Low - Coldplay
The Blues - Switchfoot
Square One - Coldplay
Talk - Coldplay
Politicians - Switchfoot
Blind - Lifehouse
White Shadows - Coldplay
Come Back Down – Lifehouse
The Hardest Part - Coldplay
Stars - Switchfoot
Eagles – Third Day
Politik (live version) - Coldplay
Dare You To Move - Switchfoot
Grace – Nichole Nordeman
God Put A Smile On Your Face (live version) - Coldplay
Solid Rock – Delirious with TobyMac
Lonely Nation - Switchfoot
Amsterdam (live version) - Coldplay
Kite – U2

Classic Dummy Spit

Jon Drummond, non-running specialist

Come to your Census

For the Canberra Times Fun Run on 17 September we will be organising a Team Moore Team again this year.
>> ALL Team Moore members are welcome to enter with the team
>> ONLY the first four count, but hey, the prizes are very token, last year we won (easily) and you can still consider yourself part of the winning team even if you finish well back
>> ALL team entries must be sent in together; I will collect them
>> Team Type is "1" (Athletic Clubs) and Team Name is "Speedy Geese"
>> You can only enter in one team, so if you prefer to organise an age group team, do that instead
>> You may fill in the form from now and get it to me, with money.

"The credit belongs to the one who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotion, spends himself in a worthy cause; who at best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement; and who at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who have never tasted victory or defeat." - Theodore Roosevelt

Not only did I major in mathematics and philosophy, and only ever worked in IT, I was employed by the Australian Bureau of Statistics all my working life.

So on Census day this seems appropriate.

An engineer, a physicist, and a mathematician, and a statistician are all staying at a hotel. In the middle of the night the engineer wakes up to find that his rubbish bin is on fire. He runs to the sink, fills his ice bucket with water and douses the flames. Then, just to be sure, he runs back to the sink, refills the bucket and dumps more water into the rubbish bin. With the fire out, he goes back to sleep.

A little while later, the rubbish bin in the physicist's room spontaneously breaks into flame, waking the physicist. He whips out his slide rule, does some calculations, then runs to the sink, fills his bucket with exactly .75 liters of water, and douses the flames. Having put out the fire, he goes back to sleep.

A few minutes later, the mathematician wakes up to see that his rubbish bin on fire. He whips out a piece of paper, scrawls out some equations, then goes back to sleep, comfortable that a solution exists.

Meanwhile, the statistician is running from room to room setting rubbish bins on fire -- he needed more samples.

There were 22 at training last night for a session of sprints on a harder hill than we have used before. We still ran 20 sprints on 90 seconds. Only one more of these sessions before we change and do something else!

Saturday’s Team Moore race results
Forest Drive 6k (original Jogalong course)
Women
17. Kathy Sims W55 31:31
19. Barbara Williams W60 32:26
20. Caroline Campbell W60 32:32

Men
53. John Kennedy M55 26:44
61. Geoff Barker M60 29:35
63. Geoff Sims M55 30:23
71. Ewen Thompson M45 32:41

Lights Will Guide You Home

My training progress

last week's target 100k, 3 gym. actual 101k, 3 gym (each 30mins stepper)

this week’s target 110k, 3 x 30min stepper
weight 63kg and falling
song of the week Fix You – Coldplay, from X&Y (this has been my favourite song for the last 12 months, and still is.)

quote of the week "A certain amount of opposition can be of great help - Kites rise against, not with the wind." - John Neal

I had a very good week with excellent runs on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, and targets achieved despite having an unscheduled day off on Saturday.
This week I plan to have an easy run at "the pond" on Saturday if I can. But more importantly, two grandchildren from Brisbane will be visiting for a week, so I will play it by ear!

a movie I would like to see, #6. Kill Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure (USA, 2002). Bill and Ted are having an excellent adventure through time, but someone wants to stop them...

Philosophers.
Werner Heisenberg, Kurt Godel and Noam Chomsky walk into a bar.
Heisenberg looks around the bar and says, "Because there are three of us and because this is a bar, it must be a joke. But the question remains, is it funny or not?"
And Godel thinks for a moment and says, "Well, because we're inside the joke, we can't tell whether it's funny. We'd have to be outside looking at it."
And Chomsky looks at both of them and says, "Of course it's funny. You're just telling it wrong."

Just one more thing.

Sunday's Sri Chinmoy half marathon results for our training group

Richard 1:27.28

Pam 1:56.51

Flashduck dnf

Flashdrake 1:32.42

Gabe 1:53.28

Speedygeoff 1:39.16

Staminageoff 1:47.41 (first M60)

and finally.... the best performance of all...

Aki 1:38.02 outright first woman, huge pb.

The official results have the mile splits, which tell the story of the race.

I feel serious today

quote of the day: "I have not failed 10,000 times. I have successfully found 10,000 ways that will not work" - Thomas Edison

Coming up:
Mon 7 August 2006
5:30 pm Parliament House Team Moore weekly training, or 4:30 pm for early starters who would like a longer run. Meet at the underground car park; no cost. Hill work today! Will it rain again??? If so, please still turn up!

Tue 8 August 2006
9:00 am Veterans weekly Tuesday group, Black Mountain Peninsula. Most participants walk, jog or run for about an hour. Morning tea, and celebrations of any birthdays, follow. A friendly and informal group.

Wed 9 August 2006
12:15 pm weekly BBQ Stakes 6k, Woden (park at Chappell Street Lyons). One of many good lunch time runs. Bring $1 entry and enjoy a hilly handicap race.

Thu 10 August 2006
5:30 pm Dickson Oval Team Moore weekly training, or 4:30 pm for early starters who would like a longer run. Training is under lights, on a fully marked 400m grass track; no cost.

Fri 11 August 2006
12:10 pm weekly Customs 5k, Stage 88. A $1 entry fee, handicapped start, flat and fast 5km course.

Sat 12 August 2006
1:00pm ACTCCC Yerrabi Pond 7.75km.

Sun 13 August 2006
I think a few people are going to Sydney to run the City to Surf, but this is one "race" I tend to avoid.

Is this somebody you know?

No I don’t feel so serious after all

And have you heard about the new super computer? It's so fast, it executes an infinite loop in 6 seconds.

A funny day today

quote of the day "I find that the harder I work, the more luck I seem to have" - Thomas Jefferson

I am feeling funny today.


A computer joke. Two bytes are in a bar. One says to the other, "I'm not feeling that well. I think I have a parity error". The other byte responds, "I thought you looked a bit off!"

Q: Why are there no aspirin in the jungle?
A: Because the parrots-eat-them-all.

“Your speed has been checked”.

Quote of the day: "DO or DO NOT. There is no 'Try'" - Yoda (The Empire Strikes Back)

The other hand holding incident.

Robert and I

It appears the quality of hand holders has improved markedly since then.

Training Thursday: Not a large turn out; we formed four groups who each did surging practice over 3 laps, then 2 laps; then we merged into 2 groups and completed the session with 3 laps.

Those laps are wide on the track, so are a bit more than 400m. Surging practice consists of a whistle being blown about every 100m, when the last runner of the group of 3 or 4 surges to the front and leads the group.

Unlike most of our training sessions, there is always some attrition in this one. IT MUST BE QUITE HARD!

This blog has had lots of new visitors recently, so soon I will have to update my vistor list on the sidebar!

Lauren Boden, as well as representing Australia in the World Junior championships in Beijing this month, has just been selected in the Oceania Team for the World Cup in Athens in September – this is the meet where there is only one representative per region per event! I will keep you posted on both lots of results.

Movies I would like to see #5. 2 Fast 2 Furious 2. 2 men - 2 cars and 2 tracks. Fun for all of those with '2' fetishes.

Today I will see what I can do in the Customs 5k run. Tomorrow is a day off, for a well earned rest or recovery jog!

Twentieth BBQ Stakes

On my twentieth BBQ Stakes run yesterday, I was rather pleased to have run a BBQ Stakes pb, and on the hardest course variation too.

Previous BBQ Stakes pbs
25:13 for 3k out- 3k back (the easiest variation, only run when the usual path was closed. Avoids the biggest hill.)
25:40 for the 6k clockwise version (the normal course)
25.58 for the 6k anticlockwise version (the hardest variation, used once a month)

My new pb – 25:03, and it was on the anticlockwise course.

I just missed out by three seconds on winning the handicap, but for the first time I was in the winning team (the “retired” team). The BBQ Stakes handicaps are fair, as they are based on actual times, unlike say Customs where they seem to randomly swing from over- to under- handicapped.

Helen ran a one second pb as well, also beating her “out-and-back” time.

And Flashduck seemed to be running better than usual when I saw her in the second half of the run.

BBQ Stakes is good Wednesday lunchtime training, but I'm not sure how that is going to work when Thursday night track starts later on this year.

Movies I would like to see #4. Podcast Away. (USA, 2002) A man stuck on a desert island vents his frustration after his iPod battery refuses to hold a charge.

Quote: For those who didn't see it, Ewen’s Extension: "As you lose fitness, it never gets easier, you just go slower"

Run Charlie Run

In full stride: (click on photo to enlarge)

Movies I would like to see #3: The Grue who Ate Christmas. (USA, 1979). The popular story of how Santa got stuck in a cave. He had exits to the north, the south and the west.

Control Theory
If this line looks blue...SLOW DOWN

Training Thursday
It's on rain or shine. I will be there at 4:30pm again for a 7k run. Or meet us there at 5:30pm for our normal warm-up. Then if the ovals are closed again at 6pm we will run 5k like we did last week.

Last Gasp

As a student who majored in mathematics and philosophy many moons ago, I am seriously attempting to amuse somebody out there with jokes I laugh at. Laughter from readers has been scarce, I don't know why. But I will keep trying. There has been *some* response.

An engineer, an experimental physicist, a theoretical physicist, and a philosopher were hiking through the hills of Scotland. Cresting the top of one hill, they see, on top of the next, a black sheep. The engineer says: "What do you know, the sheep in Scotland are black." "Well, *some* of the sheep in Scotland are black," replies the experimental physicist. The theoretical physicist considers this for a moment and says "Well, at least one of the sheep in Scotland is black." "Well," the philosopher responds, "on one side, anyway."

Yet another attempt at a joke:
A biologist, a physicist, and a mathematician are sitting in an outdoor cafe. They watch two people go into a building across the street. Shortly thereafter, three people come out.
"Hmm," says the biologist. "It looks like they reproduced."
"Nah," says the physicist. "There was obviously error in our initial measurement."
The mathematician looks up from his coffee. "Who cares? If another person goes in, it'll be empty."

Running quote of the day: "As you get fitter, it never gets easier, you just go faster" - Greg LeMond

As planned I am starting to run better today. After three hard days in a row I had a thoroughly enjoyable 19k run this morning. The best I have felt since late June. And isn't it nice to get some sun?