overtake only when other lanes are clear

We had a good trip to Adelaide. (Elizabeth actually). Absolutely nothing on the road from Canberra to Balranald on Thursday, and a great meal at our favourite halfway restaurant at the Balranald RSL; a little more Friday (early long weekend) traffic on the road to Elizabeth (just North of Adelaide). Interesting to have a fruit check between Euston and Mildura. The fruit fly police are serious again as they should be. It's all very dry; dusty sheep abound.

The sign on the main highway (as in today's title) is exactly what we need in Canberra coming out of Higgins/Hawker towards Glenloch. I have see one horrific accident there, due to cars being allowed to pass down the hill where there is one downhill lane and two uphill.

A few posts ago I prophesied Elizabeth would have more sun, more magpies, more dogs. So far one run this morning produced two out of three of those items: today is a fantastic sunny day, I didn't experience any magpies in the seventy minute run; but for the first time in over 44 years of running I was savaged by a dog.

Yes a large dog attacked me at the back of some houses, its stupid owner saying "she only wants to play" and failing to control it. So I limped home bleeding. I am rather cross.

It is strange being a Canberran in Adelaide the weekend of the Melbourne Grand Final between Sydney and Perth, and of the Sydney Grand Final between Melbourne and Brisbane. I am feeling very national today.

I will be off for another run tomorrow, then off to see the lead singer of the band Newsboys whom I have discovered is in town.

It was hot in 1985

Does anybody remember how hot it was in 1985? This is another old photo of a club race in Canberra. As it was taken in February it must be from a Summer Series race. I'm not sure which one - looks like somewhere in Stromlo Forest. There don't appear to be many women. You might notice the lack of shirts. I can't spot Geoff, but I know there are some people from this photo who are still running.


Customs on Friday
I ran my first Customs Joggers 5k handicap on Friday. Unfortunately it was the alternate 'Floriade' course. When you're not fit, even speedbumps feel like hills. On the Floriade course there are three hills. The infamous 'Hospital Hill', the museum hill and the hill running back to the finish. On this last hill I was caught by a large number of runners including Allrounder. Although it was a PW for 5k (27:13), I was happy as my calf felt totally normal during the run. This Google Earth image shows a good view of the run and the Australian Museum. I wasn't quite as wonky as the blue line suggests. That's just Forerunner Man doing his thing.

Man and Woman

Geoff is on his way to the place where crows fly backwards to keep the dust out of their eyes. Before he left, he emailed me this photo. It could be his new stereo. I'm not exactly sure what it means, as I've never had any problems turning women off. My remote control works quite well. However, doing the reverse is another story.

no more winter

quote of the day: the sooner you fall behind, the more time you'll have to catch up.

Spring, when a young man's fancy turns to track. And if you know anyone who used to train with us regularly but hasn't been seen for a while, now is the time to invite them to rejoin the training group and get fit again!

I am off to South Australia for two or three weeks. Warmth at last!

In Adelaide I will be running around in Elizabeth - more sun more magpies more dogs

Don't worry, I (or my apprentices) will keep updating this blog while I am away. See you at the track in October.

Catch-22

quote of the day: “Où sont les Neigedons d'antan?” (Where are the Snowdons of yesteryear?) – Joseph Heller, Catch-22.

Training is all about putting the body under stress, and adapting to that stress. We aim to push our body in training right to the point of self-destruction, achieving maximum efficiency, training the necessary kilometers to run PBs, but not so much that injury, illness, or staleness, occurs.

Adaptation requires a gradual build-up.

Hal Higdon – “There's a catch-22. You have to train hard to be able to train hard. But if you train too hard, you no longer will be able to train hard. Too many [kilometers] too soon result in injuries: strained tendons and ligaments, stress fractures, chronically dead legs.”

An endurance base is easily the single most important factor in getting fit. People worry about speed, but if you concentrate first on distance and improving your strength, you can move to the speed phase later.

Prevailing wisdom states that to improve your fitness and general endurance, you ought to move through a gradual progression in increments of less than ten per cent a week, and every third or fourth week drop back close to the starting point to recover.

If you build constantly week after week, you get stronger, but you also find your break point. It's best to approach your break point without reaching it. You advance in steps. Rather than facing ten percent more every week, you should build in frequent recovery weeks. Go up two or three steps, drop back one or two steps, then go back to where you were and start stepping again.

I think ten percent is too large. Anyone with a history of injuries (isn’t that everyone?) should be more conservative. Rather than ten percent, I suggest a weekly increment should not exceed five kilometers.

A weekly kilometre build-up plan could for example take a fifty kilometre per week runner to eighty over three months. Weeks of 40, 50, 55, 60; 50, 60, 65, 70; 60, 70, 75, 80 achieve that. Initially it may seem to take a long time to build up distance, but once you are there, you have a very sound base.

"Anything worth dying for is certainly worth living for” – Joseph Heller, Catch-22.

happy ultra runners
Ruth (winner of last Sunday's handicap) & friends

Fast Forward

quote of the week: "Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark and a large group of professionals built the Titanic."

My training progress
last week's target: n/a, actual 50k

this week’s target: whatever (on holidays)
weight: 63kg and steady

I am not supposed to be running fast while my hamstring repairs and at the Vets handicap yesterday, in a return to short course racing, I had an indifferent run due to an inability to run fast on the hilly course, uphill or down. Hope it’s OK when track starts next month. Track is flat!

song of the week: Light Surrounding You – Evermore, from "Real Life"
I see you by the water
Your toes dipped in the sand
I thought that it was over
I thought you'd understand
But the feeling is returning
Though time has made us change
And I understand if you don't
Wanna talk to me about it
Tonight
Oh, tonight

Cos I see the light surrounding you
So don't be afraid of something new

Time was overtaking me
And I guess I was confused
They were all inviting me
But I wish I had refused
Cos I'd been there before
And I've seen it all
And I believe in you

And if you never had my heart
I would've never called you back
At the start that night
And I want you to know

That I see the light surrounding you
So don't be afraid of something new
Cos I see the light surrounding you
So don't be afraid of what you're turning into

Blue-eyed sun shines on me
In the morning
Can't help but feel a little cold
Thinking of you

Cos I see the light surrounding you
So don't be afraid of something new
Cos I see the light surrounding you
So don't be afraid of what you're turning into
No, don't be afraid
Don't be afraid
Cos I see the light
Cos I see the light
Cos I see the light surrounding you

Blewitts Pines 7k
1 Ruth Baussmann W55 39:06 gold
10 Annette Sugden W40 34:42
13 Cathy Newman W45 33:30
19 Cory Collins W70 48:07
20 Kathy Sims W55 34:27
21 Helen Larmour W45 32:34
23 Geoff Barker M60 36:41
38 Jill Brown W55 42:52
40 Maria O'Reilly W50 32:34
41 Neville Madden M50 33:20
45 Rod Lynch M45 29:10
51 Christopher Lang M55 39:22
56 John Kennedy M55 31:05
58 Amanda Walker W35 37:04
67 Margaret McSpadden W55 42:20
69 Alan Duus M60 36:38
74 Geoff Sims M55 39:45
80 Peter McDonald M50 38:41
84 Mick Horan M45 34:20
86 Alice Scott W60 50:01
96 Mike Worsley M60 52:09

Blewitts Pines 3.5k
2 Deb Gordon 19:30
5 Graeme Small M65 21:53
15 Michael Roche M65 21:26
19 Maureen Rossiter W55 19:15
24 Ken Gordon M40 13:54
29 Katie Forestier W40 15:33
31 Gary Bowen M45 15:00
35 Carol Baird W55 17:23
41 Geoff Moore M55 14:58

CJ had a good run in the 7k yesterday.

coming up this week

Mon 25 September 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 26 September 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. Near Sails Restaurant, Belconnen

Wed 27 September 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 28 September 2006
5:30 pm Dickson Oval Team Moore weekly training. I will be on holidays! As of today! I reappear on Monday 16 October. But hurrah, training is still on while I am away!

Fri 29 September 2006
12:10 pm weekly Customs 5k, Stage 88. A $1 entry fee, handicapped start, flat and fast 5km course.

Sat 30 September 2006
Grand final day. The Crows *sob* just missed out. So *smile* go the Eagles!

Sun 1 October 2006
9:00 am Monthly Women's 6k Jogalong, Weston Park

strewth sells sea shells by the sea shore

quote of the day: I have amnesia and deja vu at the same time. I think I've forgotten this before.

Late Canberra Times Fun Run news

Shenanigans by other runners has resulted in Helen being the recipient of the W40 award. Congratulations Helen; a weally worthy winner.

Were three speedy geese seen screaming along in "V" formation during the early stages of last Sunday's 10k race?

How they prove that all odd integers higher than 2 are prime?
Mathematician: 3 is a prime, 5 is a prime, 7 is a prime, and by induction - every odd integer higher than 2 is a prime.
Physicist: 3 is a prime, 5 is a prime, 7 is a prime, 9 is an experimental error, 11 is a prime,...
Engineer: 3 is a prime, 5 is a prime, 7 is a prime, 9 is a prime, 11 is a prime,...
Programmer: 3 is a prime, 5 is a prime, 7 is a prime, 7 is a prime, 7 is a prime,...
Salesperson: 3 is a prime, 5 is a prime, 7 is a prime, 9 -- we'll do for you the best we can,...
Computer Software Salesperson: 3 is prime, 5 is prime, 7 is prime, 9 will be prime in the next release,...
Biologist: 3 is a prime, 5 is a prime, 7 is a prime, 9 -- results have not arrived yet,...
Advertiser: 3 is a prime, 5 is a prime, 7 is a prime, 11 is a prime,...
Lawyer: 3 is a prime, 5 is a prime, 7 is a prime, 9 -- there is not enough evidence to prove that it is not a prime,...
Accountant: 3 is prime, 5 is prime, 7 is prime, 9 is prime, deducing 10% tax and 5% other obligations.
Statistician: Let's try several randomly chosen numbers: 17 is a prime, 23 is a prime, 11 is a prime...
Professor: 3 is prime, 5 is prime, 7 is prime, and the rest are left as an exercise for the student.
Computational linguist: 3 is an odd prime, 5 is an odd prime, 7 is an odd prime, 9 is a very odd prime,...
Psychologist: 3 is a prime, 5 is a prime, 7 is a prime, 9 is a prime but tries to suppress it,...



Get Speedy Stay Speedy. News from our Speedy runners group. Strewth won the gold medal at today's wind-and-rain-swept Thomas series race. You can say this, Strewth she is surely is a tough sheila!
You may not be able to say this ten times quickly.

Oh! Gravity

We might all run faster if gravity were to ease off a bit.

"Oh! Gravity" is the title of the next Switchfoot album and single release (due 26 December).

Yesterday I entered the ABC's "favourite album of all time" poll. My favourite is of course "X&Y" by Coldplay. Closely followed by "Nothing is Sound" Switchfoot, "Lifehouse" Lifehouse, and now one I am getting to really like, "Real Life" by Evermore.

This month's Vets handicap is at Blewitts Pines tomorrow morning. I expect to start off group 42 in the short course (only 3.5k). If the hamstring is OK. It will be the first short course run after doing the longer option for many years. I well remember Blewitts as a venue where I once turned up and got to the start line and did not start because of injury. The biggest worry there is that I find it too hilly. The hamstring was good on Wednesday but sore on Thursday, I rested it Friday.

always tapir for your races

Team Moore’s 10k Canberra Times Fun Run results

quote of the day: "Not one shred of evidence supports the notion that life is serious"

maths joke
A mathematician went insane and believed that he was the differentiation operator. His friends had him placed in a mental hospital until he got better. All day he would go around frightening the other patients by staring at them and saying "I differentiate you!"

One day he met a new patient; and true to form he stared at him and said "I differentiate you!", but for once, his victim's expression didn't change. Surprised, the mathematician marshalled his energies, stared fiercely at the new patient and said loudly "I differentiate you!", but still the other man had no reaction. Finally, in frustration, the mathematician screamed out "I DIFFERENTIATE YOU!"

The new patient calmly looked up and said, "You can differentiate me all you like: I'm e to the x."

CTFR results
63 Kathy Southgate 39.10 1st W50
68 David Webster 39.28
100 John Kennedy 41.13
103 Tony Bond 41.19
103 Bob Harlow 41.19
113 Ken Gordon 41.28
152 Helen Larmour 42.58
159 Maria O’Reilly 43.07
183 Geoff Moore 43.33
188 Kevin Chamberlain 43.40
190 Katie Forestier 43.44
191 Gary Bowen 43.45
218 Cathy Newman 44.20
234 Charlie McCormack 44.45
246 Annette Sugden 45.05
264 Thea Zimpel 45.23
290 Kathy Sims 45.59
336 Tony Booth 46.58
378 John Alcock 47.30
387 Amanda Walker 47.40
485 Mike Worsley 49.17
497 Charmaine Knobel 49.30
562 Rae Palmer 50.21
593 Geoff Sims 50.51
619 Christopher Lang 51.20
624 Ruth Baussmann 51.27
642 Roy Jones 51.49
647 Caroline Campbell 51.58
741 Maureen Rossiter 53.33
822 Barbara Tucker 54.55
839 Margaret McSpadden 55.16
1167 Michael Roche 60.38
1374 Cory Collins 65.50
1431 Rod Gilchrist 67.15

Team Moore Teams: Athletic Clubs
1. Speedy Geese

Women 50-59
1. Vetro Runners
2. Moore or Less

and also…. John Kennedy’s wife Diana Schneider won the W60
division in 49.55

along with Kathy Southgate's victory in the W50 division.

and…. Parent & Child 14-19
1. Speedy Legs (Kathy 39.10 & her daughter Anne 45.27)!

Kathy Southgate, winner of the women’s 50-59 division

Photos are available on the Canberra Times website, but other than two or three of Southy (above) finishing, not a goose to be seen.

For comparison, last year's results. An advantage of posting the results here is you can view them a year later!

Stretch/Skew

quote of the day: Experience is a wonderful thing.... it enables you to recognize a mistake when you make it twice.

A project manager, a computer programmer and a computer operator are driving down the road when the car they are in gets a flat tire. The three men try to solve the problem. The project manager said: "Let's catch a taxi and in ten minutes we'll reach our destination." The computer programmer said: "We have here the driver's manual. I can easily replace the flat tire and continue our drive." The computer operator said: "First of all, let's turn off the engine and turn it on again. Maybe it will fix the problem."
Suddenly a Microsoft software engineer passed by and said: "Try to close all windows, get off the car, and then get in and try again."

Charlie "stretching out"

Have you noticed how distorted Vetrunner photos are sometimes? There are some classics in the October issue.

Canberra Times Fun Run results (and maybe some photos) out tomorrow. Stay tuned. (Well tuned.)

The Good, the Bad, and the Awesome

Yesterday was international “talk like a pirate” day. I went to see a pirate movie, but I didn't go in when I saw it was rated arrrrrr!

aother geat isue
Otober Vtrunner i nw aailable o te ATVAC wbsite.
Se yu a te BQ Sakes tday? – seedygeoff

group dinner

World Cup Wrap

quote of the day: "I'm not 40-something. I'm $39.95, plus shipping and handling."

more track information
ACTA summer track program here.
ACTA timetable here.

Aussie Champ

Craig Mottram has created history by becoming the first Oceania athlete to defend a World Cup title, and in doing so produced the best run of his career to dethrone one of the best distance runners of all time – Ethiopian Kenenisa Bekele.

If that wasn’t enough - Steve Hooker won the pole vault to reclaim the number one ranking in the world from training partner Paul Burgess, and Sarah Jamieson clinched a spot on the podium, finishing third in the 1500m.

To add further encouragement ahead of next year’s World Championship in Osaka, Sally McLellan produced a personal best – to race under 13 seconds for the first time in the 100m hurdles to finish fourth, Vicky Mitchell finished fourth in the steeplechase, as did Bronwyn Thompson in the long jump.

But it was the performance of Mottram that has the athletics experts gathered in Athens still talking long after the race. The defending champion produced a stunning run – racing to a personal best, Australian, Oceania and championship record time of 7min 32.19sec, smashing the previous meet record of 7min 41.37sec he set in winning in Madrid in 2002.

For his troubles, Mottram collected US$30,000 for his win – although stocks in Mottram Inc. will rise considerably more than that in morning trade – such was the manner and decisive nature of the win.

The race quickly became a classic man-on-man encounter that clearly showed who the better athlete was on this particular day - with no pacemaker and no other athlete to run interference.

When Bekele, the world record holder at 5000m, took the field through 800 metres in 2:01.34 it was already a three man race, with Jesus Espana, desperately trying to cling to the two leaders. By the time the clock ticked just over four minutes at 1600 metres the Spaniard was 60 metres adrift and fading.

Mottram’s race plan worked a treat. He and coach Nic Bideau had been forced to change tactics dramatically after the African superstar switched on Friday from the 5000 metres to the shorter race. They determined that Mottram had to go with 800 or 900 left to run and that is exactly what occurred.

For a brief moment after a further 200 metres it looked as though the man now known to all as "Buster" he might have gone too early as for a split second Bekele seemed to come back. But Mottram continued to surge and never looked anything but the winner from then on.

Mottram crossed the line in a new championship record, leaving Bekele in second in 7min 36.25sec. Driss Maazouzi from France was third in 7min 47.80sec.

"We have been looking for three years at ways we could beat this guy and now we have done it. It has turned out to be a great year," an excited Mottram said after his win.

"It's fantastic to have won the same event at a meet like the World Cup twice in a row. I will be aiming to make it three in Croatia in four years time."

In the 29 years of the existence of the World Cup before today, Oceania had tasted victory on only four occasions. Yesterday in Athens that statistic was nearly doubled in three hours of athletics.

In addition to Mottram's initial success in Madrid in 2002, the only other winners have been Kiwi Beatrice Faumuina in the discus in the same year and prior to that, Aussies, javelin thrower Joanna Stone in Johannesburg in 1998 and long jumper Lyn Jacenko at the first edition in Dusseldorf in 1977.

Joining Mottram on the top spot of the podium today were team co-captain Valerie Vili (NZ) in the shot put and Steve Hooker in the pole vault.

Hooker, like Vili a Commonwealth champion from the MCG in March seemed more relieved than excited after his slightly dramatic victory.

Hooker went into the competition a clear favourite but failed his first attempts at both 5.60m and his eventual winning height of 5.80 metres to put a slight flutter through his own mind and those of his support team.

But his second vaults at each height were towering clearances, far more indicative of the wonderful form he has been in for the whole season. His second clearance at 5.80m came just as Mottram was enjoying a lap of the stadium to the ubiquitous sounds of ‘Men at Work’s’ "Land Down Under."

"It has been a long season. I am very tired now. I am glad it is all over. I can go back home, take a rest and then get back into it - because what lies ahead is something I am excited about," said the Victorian who has recently relocated to Perth to train with Alex Parnov's squad.

He has reason to be excited as he is almost certain to become the new world number one when the next edition of the IAAF Rankings are released this week, taking over from training partner Paul Burgess who triumphed in the Stuttgart World Final seven days before. The two are likely to remain at the head of the list for at least six months.

Vili, bounced back from a narrow loss in the shot put in the World Athletics Final a week ago to record an emphatic win by more than 30 centimetres over her main rivals. Her best of 19.87m achieved in round two was never seriously under threat.

"I really enjoyed the competition and it was great to see both skippers leading by example. The team performed really well today - I think we have made a few people sit up and take notice of us," the proud Kiwi said after her success.

"And the $US30,000 will come in very handy for the house purchase."

The podium finishes did not end with the three winners, with Sarah Jamieson once again demonstrating her emerging star quality with a strong third in the women's 1500 metres in a time of 4.02.82, beaten only by the dominant figure at the moment in that event, Maryam Jamal of Bahrain and two time world champion, Tatyana Tomashova of Russia.

After finishing second at the Commonwealth Games, Jamieson has produced a sensational season, twice beating her personal best, setting a new Australian record and consistently reaching the podium in the major European meets this summer.

There were four fourth, and three fifth, places also for the Oceania squad which finished in eighth spot in each of the Cup competitions, just failing by one point to better France in the men's final tally.

Queenslander Sally McLellan's effort was perhaps the most encouraging of those one spot off the medals, running a personal best of 12.95 seconds into a slight headwind to eclipse the magic 13 second barrier for the first time. She moves past Jane Flemming to the number two spot on the Australian all-time list and was just .02 outside Olympic silver medallist Pam Ryan’s national record of 12.93 set in 1972.

"I really can't believe that. I seriously did not think I was in that sort of shape. I am so excited to have made the breakthrough - and to finish fourth as well," the youngster who turns 20 this week said after the race.

"I have never experienced running that fast before - I think I had to slow down to avoid hitting the hurdles."

She will get a further chance to see whether that is the case when she competes in Yokohama, Japan on Sunday before taking a short break in early October.

Bronwyn Thompson experienced upper leg pain during the long jump but still managed another of the fourth placings, her best effort of 6.63m just a centimetre off third spot and five away from the silver medal position.

Victoria Mitchell bounced back from what she described as a disappointing performance when she finished eighth in the 3000 metres steeplechase in Stuttgart last weekend, to finish a fighting fourth in the same event in Athens, and in a much quicker time of 9:36.34.

After running with the lead group until the bell, the Albury runner who has spent the northern summer based in London, maintained a steady pace, and then managed to slip past Russian Tatyana Petrova after clearing the last of the race's 35 barriers.

US based New Zealander, Kimberley Smith finished her season with a more than creditable fourth in the 5000 metres in 15:12.15 after having to do much of the pace work for the group chasing run away leader and eventual winner, Meseret Defar who was competing for Africa.

Scott Martin completed an excellent nine days, with another good result this time in the discus with a best of 60.93m. The Commonwealth Games gold medallist, equally well known for his television commercial ballet dancing appearances, had picked up fourth spot in the shot put on day one and fifth the previous weekend in Stuttgart.

The other fifth spots were achieved by Aussies Patrick Johnson who ran 20.52 in the 200 metres and 2002 Commonwealth Games 1500 metres bronze medallist Youcef Abdi who recorded 8:36.13 in the steeplechase.

monday

quote of the week (for supporters of Victorian AFL teams): "No one ever says, "It's only a game" when their team is winning."

My training progress
last week's target: n/a, actual 50k

this week’s target: another "whatever" week
weight: 63kg and steady

song of the week: The Great Unknown – Evermore, from "Real Life"

Empty bottle cap
Lies on the counter top
It's warm but the rain won't stop
I haven't been home for days

Too much of the same thing
Heading out to the ocean, thinking
Head full of emotions
And the people are passing by

We're on our way back
From the great unknown
Today
Today

Cast my mind
Back in time
Count the reasons why you said
I've got a feeling
I've got a feeling
There's a long long road ahead

I wake up
I wake up
I've been sleeping in my bed
When I get up
When I get up
Music's playing in my head

We're on our way back
To the great unknown
Today
Today
We're on our way back
To the great unknown
Today
Today

And if the dark end of the street
Should rise to conquer me
I won't forget the words you speak
And the destiny I cheat
And the game is up I'm in decline
And I guess that only time
Will let us heal, but I can feel we're
Getting closer now

We're on our way back
To the great unknown
Today
Today
We're on our way back
To the great unknown
Today
Today

The sun is coming out
The sun is coming out now

The CTFR results will appear in the Canberra Times on Friday. How did Team Moore runners go? A brief report from my perspective: Helen finished in 42:58 (big pb), Maria just behind her, half a minute behind them me, Kevin, Katie (big pb) and Gary all close.

I don't want to miss anyone, so I will leave it there, and make a full report on Friday when the paper arrives.

By the way, the third km was short (20 or 30 seconds), the fourth correspondingly long, and also the tenth km was long making the total distance a bit more than 10k.


You may have noticed that the look of this blog has improved recently. That’s because I was so snowed under with important things, I threw in the towel for a while and played with HTML instead. I am happy with the outcome.

Snowed Under

last words
God is talking to one of his angels. He says, "I just created a 24-hour period of alternating light and darkness on Earth." The angel says, "What are you going to do now?" God says, "I think I will call it a day."

a break tomorrow

quote of the day: “Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.”

who writes these signs?


Congratulations to all finishers in today's Canberra Times Fun Run. The speedy geese were very speedy and the speedier geese were even speedier. Many of the geese are morphing into fish via a mer-goose intermediate form. I must get some photos soon to show you. The ganders are not changing similarly, but if they start making "run like a girl" T-shirts which fit men, and darn it, that is who they should be making them for, the process may start very soon.

Some of us ran PBs in the CTFR despite it being a warm sunny day when runners' times on average were a bit slow because of the warmth. I will publish all our training group's times when they are known.

I jogged the uphills because of my injury, and raced the downhills. A disappointing end to the winter season, but I am very pleased that my injury (torn hamstring) did not get any worse and I will be able to continue training. (This is all very déjà vu! Been there, done that, got the T-shirt, discarded the massage vouchers.)

Lauren was 9th in the world cup 400m hurdle race in 58.22. A taste of competition among the very best in the world. Knowing Lauren, she will benefit enormously from the experience. See the result here

coming events
Mon 18 September 2006
7:00 pm Team Moore is having a break! Our group dinner is on tonight. Bookings essential, deadline last Thursday! No training.

Tue 19 September 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 20 September 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 21 September 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 22 September 2006
12:10 pm weekly Customs 5k, Stage 88. A $1 entry fee, handicapped start, flat and fast 5km course.

Sun 24 September 2006
9:00 am ACTVAC Monthly Handicap, Bluetts Forest 7k/3.5k

another odd sign.


Final WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
COLONEL SANDERS: Did I miss one?

sleeping grass

quote of the day: “A synonym is a word you use in place of one you can't spell.”

World Cup Preview
"The Women’s 400m Hurdles features the second face-off between Russia’s World champion Yuliya (Pechonkina) Nosova, and U.S champion Lashinda Demus. Since finishing second to the Russian in Helsinki last year, the American has become the event’s dominant force. Nosova, the World record holder at 52.34, returned from injury in good form last month with a 53.14 performance, this year second only to Demus’s 53.02".

sleeping grass

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
BILL GATES: I have just released eChicken2006, which will not only cross roads, but will lay eggs, file your important documents, and balance your cheque book. Internet explorer is an integral part of eChicken. The Platform is much more stable and will never cra…#@&&^( C ….. reboot

another view

thought for the day: Alcohol doesn't solve any problems, but then again, neither does milk.

dangerous people #1


ACT Athletics program
Hot on the heels of the ACT Vets program is news of the ACTA interclub program for October. I found it in the ACTA newsletter; well worth a read.

11am – 1pm Sunday 15 October registration day, restricted program
3:45pm Saturday 21 October interclub #1 (should include the 400, 1500)
3:45pm Saturday 28 October interclub #2 (should include the 800, 3000/5000)

IF
Another item worth a look is Strewth's "sixty seconds' worth of distance run".

dangerous people #2


WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Constable: To get a better view.

ACTVAC track program is now available

The ACTVAC track program has appeared on the Vets website.

The program features

• the Adler Spiral Handicap series, over ten events;
• the Boag Sprint and Hurdle Series over eight events, where competitors must complete one each of the set 100m, 200m, 400m, and one of the hurdle events;
• Relays each week, 4x100m through to 4x1500m;
• the Pennington middle distance handicap series run over six events, two 3000s, two 800s, two 1500s, where runners complete at least one of each of the distances, with the best of each distance to count;
• the Quentin Anthony Jumps handicap, twelve jumps spread evenly over High,Triple and Long;
• the Perry Walks handicap series over six events with five to count;
• the Geoff Moore 3000m Championships Series run over fourteen events with the best eight to count; and
• the Daniels sprint handicap series of eight events, with the best six to count.
  

The Gate Fee has been reduced to $3 this season.

The events of most interest to most of us are

• Thu 19/10 3000, 1500
• Thu 26/10 3000, 800, 4x400, 3000/5000
• Thu 2/11 3000 Pennington, 1500
• Thu 9/11 800, 3000/5000
• Thu 16/11 3000, 1500
• Thu 23/11 3000 Pennington, 4x800, 10000
• Thu 30/11 3000, 1500
• Thu 7/12 3000, 800 Pennington, 4x400
• Thu 14/12 3000, 4x1500, 2000
• Thu 21/12 ‘twosome’ 2000

It is good to see there is always something for the serious distance runners, e.g. when the steeplechase is on the program, there isn’t a spiral as well!

running quote of the day: "I love controlling a race, chewing up an opponent. Let's get down and dirty. Let's fight it out. It's raw, animalistic, with no one to rely on but yourself. There's no better feeling than that." - Adam Goucher, Winner 1999 US Nationals 5000 title

Our Lauren will be racing the best in the world this weekend in Athens. She is representing Oceania in the IAAF World Cup, women's 400m hurdles. See today’s Canberra Times for an article about this.

and of course WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Donne: It crosseth for thee.

beautiful

running quote of the day: "When you win, say nothing. When you lose, say less." - Paul Brown

Yesterday when I read this post by Tuggeranong Don on "lady runners", I was prompted to dig out the words of one of my favourite songs to publish today. Soulframe are the artists; I have been listening to their two albums for many years now. The normal lyrics websites didn’t have soulframe listed so I went to the soulframe site.

Imagine my surprise to discover that my favourite Australian singer, Mutto (Guy Mutton), the lead singer of Soulframe, has been on Australian idol this time round. He has made the last eleven, stay tuned...

Now I don’t bother watching Idol but I wish somebody had told me, although how would they know? Anyway, here are the words to “beautiful”, off the album “escaping entropy”: I ended up copying the words from the cover notes. It is one of the best songs ever written, and sounds awesome too.

you feel like your hands are tied
with the binds of the marketing machine
you feel so immature and naïve every day
and everybody’s saying
it’s just the way things are done around here
and if you don’t like it you just have to change
but you feel like
you still need ‘time to play’
to forget the adult world where they won’t say
be yourself
be beautiful

I wanna go
with the soul
with the colour of innocence
just to be
beautiful

you wanted to find your heart in this
to be yourself and express
to say what you want to say, and dress how you want to dress
but everybody’s saying that
you’ve got to show just a little more skin
if you wanna catch their eye and be feminine
but you feel like
you want room to breathe
to forget the exploitation where they can’t see
to be yourself
is beautiful

I wanna go
with the soul
with the colour of innocence
just to be
beautiful

for the sake of being beautiful
not to sell or gain
not to manipulate
just to be
beautiful

you wanted to show your heart in this
and it’s beautiful

Guy Mutton of Soulframe

I hope this exposure on Idol creates a new audience for soulframe. They are the best Aussie band around. And totally unknown except by a small group of fanatical followers. “Beautiful” got a huge amount of airplay around Australia, BUT on only a very small handful of radio stations; those few that picked it up, loved it.

Let’s keep living out what’s in our heart!

By the way, WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
JOHN LENNON: Imagine all the chickens in the world crossing roads together - in peace

heroes and villains

Heroes - inspiring, exciting, motivating, energising

running quote of the day "I felt my throat start to close up, and I didn't think I was getting enough oxygen. I was scared, and I thought about quitting. But you don't want to quit when you've trained so hard and long for one race." - Deena Drossin describing the effects of having been stung by a bee in the back of the throat 100 meters after the start of the World Cross-Country Championships in Portugal. Despite blacking out and falling during the 8k race she finished in 12th place.


WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Steve Irwin – “Crikey, Mate. It ran away when I told my son we would feed it to the croc.”

Villians - annoying, distracting, time wasting, tiresome

click to enlarge

Ignore the villains (hang up on them). Let the heroes inspire us (Emulate them).

Are there any more takers for ACTVAC sub-committees? Several sub-committees have vacancies. More ads are appearing on ACTVAC news as you read this....

Heroes help others.

weight: rising. mood: sinking

Sometimes ignorance rings true
But hope is not in what I know
It's not in me; it's in You
- Switchfoot – You – from Legend of Chin

My training progress
last week's target: 110k, 120 mins stepper actual 84k, 40 mins stepper

this week’s target: “whatever”

last week:

felt great on Monday

felt great on Tuesday.
felt great on Wednesday
felt very tired on Thursday
felt exhausted on Friday
couldn’t face running on Saturday
couldn’t face running on Sunday.
I forgot one of my important rules of thumb – feeling good for three days in a row is a warning sign!

weight: 63kg and rising

my weight target is sub 60 by 1/12/06.

quote of the week: "You're really Frank Shorter, eh?...What happened to you at Montreal?" - A Charleston cab driver upon learning he was driving Frank Shorter who won Olympic gold in Munich in 1972 and silver in Montreal in 1976.

Bones sinking like stones
All that we've fought for
All these places we've grown
All of us are done for
- Coldplay – Don’t Panic – from Parachutes

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Grandad: In my day we didn’t ask why the chicken crossed the road. Somebody told us the chicken crossed the road, and that was good enough.

Stay tuned, everything will be better tomorrow.

running out of days

Running quote of the day: "Hard things take time to do. Impossible things take a little longer." - Percy Cerutty

Member Services Sub-committee vacancies
I chair this sub-committee of the ACTVAC, and we are looking for three to five more members. Our sub-committee's main areas of activity are

1) Marketing & Promotion. Position filled. Next main task is the stall at Belconnen Community Festival (if it is still practical to go ahead with this).

2) Website & IT. Position filled. Next main task is to liaise with IT subcommittee and club members re website content.

3) New member focus. Position vacant. Next main task is an overdue overhaul of the New Starters kit.

4) Existing services. Position vacant. Next main task is to organise membership cards.

5) Vetrunner representative. This has been advertised for a year and now that Jim has finally resigned, is vacant. The urgent task is to get a team together to produce Vetrunner.

Do we have any volunteers? Please contact me if you are available to help out. The period of time could be short-term, for the life of a particular task, or long-term.

Year of the Crow:
Yes we won over Freo, 10-16 to 7-4, Finals games are more exciting to watch, since the standard and intensity has risen one more notch – or two notches in the case of the Crows! The last quarter 5-4 to nil. Freo might struggle against Melbourne next week.

More deaths
With the Steve Irwin tragedy this week, Peter Brock as well, you may have missed another news item, the death of Colin Thiele, author of Storm Boy. see http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200609/s1736764.htm. He was one of my heroes, a South Australian from Eudunda.

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Macbeth: To have turned back were as tedious as to go o'er.

Coming Events
Mon 11 September 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 12 September 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 13 September 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 14 September 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 15 September 2006
12:10 pm weekly Customs 5k, Stage 88. A $1 entry fee, handicapped start, flat and fast 5km course.

Sun 17 September 2006
9:45 am Canberra Times 10k Fun Run

Mon 18 September 2006
7:00 pm Team Moore is having a break! Our group dinner is on tonight. Bookings essential, final deadline last Thursday 14th!

practise your starts

running quote of the day: "When I was about 14 or 15, and running in a pretty muddy cross country race, one of my shoes stuck in the mud and came off. Boy, was I wild. To think that I had trained hard for this race and didn't do up my shoelace tightly enough! I really got aggressive with myself, and I found myself starting to pass a lot of runners. As it turned out, I improved something like twenty places in that one race. But I never did get my shoe back." - Rob de Castella

African Cross Country championships. Now that's how to mark a course.

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Oscar Wilde: Why, indeed? One's social engagements whilst in town ought never expose one to such barbarous inconvenience - although, perhaps, if one must cross a road, one may do far worse than to cross it as the chicken in question.

The track season is nigh ... and the program will be coming out soon for both Vets and Open athletics. Warmer weather is here. Very soon it will be time to practise our starts.

no mean feet

running quote "Did I worry about him? I never even heard of him." - Ron Clarke, on Billy Mills 10,000 victory in the Tokyo Olympics, 1964.

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Kafka: Hardly the most urgent enquiry to make of a low-grade insurance clerk who woke up that morning as a hen.

Year of the Crow

I said I wouldn’t mention the Crows again until the finals, well here we are. And we won the double chance – we are in second place after the minor round games. On Saturday afternoon I will be watching the Crows thrash Freo. The best other result should the Crows win is West Coast to win also, which gives us guaranteed home finals. Should the Crows lose to Freo, West Coast must lose too or we will be playing them in a Preliminary final in Perth, which would be rather tricky. Much better to meet them in a Grand Final in Melbourne!

It will be no mean feat for the Crows to win their third Premiership, given their illness and injury concerns.

just do it

The Vets track program will be out very soon - stay tuned.

running quote of the day: "There's no such thing as bad weather, just soft people." - Bill Bowerman

WHY DID THE CHICKEN CROSS THE ROAD?
Dr Johnson: Sir, had you known the Chicken for as long as I have, you would not so readily enquire, but feel rather the Need to resist such a public Display of your own lamentable and incorrigible Ignorance.