Wednesday already?

Shall I leave this space intentionally blank? Oh, too late, something's in it so I may as well continue.

Twenty-two hours straight of torrential rain seems to have stopped - maybe. Tropical rain in fact: vertical and heavy with lightning and thunder. Spring ended the same way last year you will recall, when the drought broke just in time for the November Vets Handicap.

"Territory and Municipal Services is advising that two roads have been closed in the ACT because of flooding. Sunshine Crossing and Angle crossing have been closed. We are also getting reports from Twitter that Cotter Dam Discovery Trail is closed." - from RiotAct. Drive safely.

There are some great pictures at http://www.canberratimes.com.au/multimedia/32225/404272/a-view-of-lightning-striking-from-mt-ainslie.aspx?Start=0&page=1. For example:

Photos I took this morning of a flooding Ginninderra Creek are on my Facebook page. I managed 15k this morning of a planned 26k and only got soaked to the skin once.

On the subject of Facebook, here's a cute picture I stole from a friend of a friend on Facebook:

Remember to RSVP to the December speedygeese dinner  invitation; four going so far!
7:00pm Tuesday 13 December
At Belluci’s, Woden (corner of Launceston & Irving streets)
I have booked for 20.
We will be ordering off the menu; see
http://www.bellucis.com.au/_pdf/woden/bellucis-woden-main-menu.pdf
RSVP Friday 9 December.

And there is a 6k Fun Run in Bungendore this Sunday; or at least I assume it is still on, I have been given no details, so please contact Heidi if you are interested.

I have found some new inspiration which I will share through December. For example:

cardio

Lucia turns 30 today! Welcome to the "Vets"!

At Parliament House last night I ran early, then guided Abi, Cookie, Andrew, Andy, Bronwyn, Caroline, Cathy, Christopher, Craig, Helen, Lucia, Mick, Neil, Peter, Rae, Ruth, Warrick & Yelena in a cardio session, 30 minutes of running interspersed with exercises, mainly push-ups, dips and a chin-up or two, some stretching, using the western 950m loop with its exercise circuit.

Song of the week. One – by U2 – I think this is a better video than the more common ghostly buffaloes one.



Announcing the December speedygeese dinner 
7:00pm Tuesday 13 December
At Belluci’s, Woden (corner of Launceston & Irving streets)
I have booked for 20.
We will be ordering off the menu; see
http://www.bellucis.com.au/_pdf/woden/bellucis-woden-main-menu.pdf
RSVP Friday 9 December.

Final five weeks of 2011
With less than 300k to go to, I am fairly confident of reaching my 2011 target of 4000k.

And finally ... my new bright green Kinvaras arrived yesterday via Wiggle and fit perfectly!

on the road again

Coming Events Week 48 of 2011:

Mon 28 Nov	4:30pm	*Parliament House 8k jog
	5:30pm	*Parliament House speedygeese training
Tue 29 Nov	12:10pm	Lake Ginninderra 7k handicap
	6:15pm	*YCRC Spring Series 5k Stromlo Forest Park
Wed 30 Nov	12:15pm	BBQ Stakes 6k handicap
Thu 1 Dec	6:00pm	*ACTVAC Track (3000m)
Fri 2 Dec	12:15pm	Customs Joggers 5k handicap
Sat 3 Dec	7:00am	*Metro Runners Acton Ferry Terminal
Sun 4 Dec	8:00am	*Stromlo Forest Park run

*=events I expect to attend.

Only five weeks left in the year, we had better start training for next year before it's too late!

So it's off for a jog this morning to wake up the body and mind. Then Parliament House training this afternoon, I always look forward to that. See you on the road, if not today, then this week sometime.

cake

Recent Speedygeese Results
Vets Track 24 November
3000m
M50 Rod Lynch 11:11.02 75.6%
W55 Kathy Southgate 11:26.31 91.5
W45 Katie Forestier 11:39.51 79.0
W60 Kathy Sims 12:26.87 90.2
M40 Craig Davis 12:32.50 63.3
M50 Roger Pilkington 12:35.13 67.7
M55 Ken White 12:43.22 70.4
W45 Janene Kingston 12:50.35 73.5
W60 Ruth Baussmann 15:27.75 73.7
W60 Margaret McSpadden 17:41.68 67.4

1500m - breakthrough run for Heidi
M50 Gary Bowen 5:10.38 80.4%
W40 Heidi Johnston 5:15.74 78.6
M50 Rod Lynch 5:16.84 76.7
M50 Roger Pilkington 6:06.36 66.9
M50 Ewen Thompson 6:13.60 66.8
W45 Janene Kingston 6:07.56 72.5

Vets Handicap 27 November
Weston Park 7k
4 Roger Pilkington M50 32:52 70.3% *bronze*
10 Kathy Southgate W55 29:36 91.6
12 David Baussmann M60 33:28 74.8
13 Ewen Thompson M50 41:00 57.5
18 Bob Harlow M60 32:31 77.8
23 Rod Lynch M50 30:12 75.8
25 Helen Larmour W50 32:44 80.6
29 Charlie McCormack W45 32:54 73.9
35 Michelle Wells W40 32:37 71.1
36 Jennifer Bright W35 38:53 58.1
38 Alan Duus M65 37:41 67.4
39 Craig Davis M40 36:34 58.9
40 Ruth Baussmann W60 42:54 67.7
53 Christopher Lang M60 39:42 62.8
58 Mick Charlton M55 42:05 58.7
85 Margaret McSpadden W60 53:19 57.0
92 finishers

2011 point score
1 Roger Pilkington
2 Geoff Moore
2011 Age Standard
1 Kathy Southgate

Weston Park 3.5k
5 Cathy Montalto W55 19:05 73.2%
6 Graeme Patrick M55 16:25 73.3
10 Katie Forestier W45 14:17 83.3
23 Noeline Burden W55 20:31 67.1
24 Garry Maher M65 20:12 61.9
32 Tony Booth M70 25:03 56.2
39 finishers

2011 point score 
=1 Katie Forestier
2011 Age Standard
3 Katie Forestier

A happy year of Veterans Handicaps is over once again.

Summer is nearly here!

A piece of celebrity trivia: Prince Frederik of Denmark has run six marathons, his fastest being 3:06

kitten chaos

How to draw the kitten (and the cat)



Foreshore
“Lake Burley Griffin will be lowered 200mm overnight in anticipation of increased water inflows over the coming days.
“Lake users are urged to exercise additional caution and be aware of submerged objects.
“The National Capital Authority reminds the public to stay away from the area downstream of Scrivener Dam while the water is released.
“The water level will be lowered without the operation of flap gates.”

Road Closures
"Tidbinbilla Rd btwn Cotter Dam and Tidbinbilla Nature reserve is closed due to water over rd at Murrays corner. Angle Crossing closed."

Speedygeese results
YCRC Spring Series #4 Black Mountain Peninsula 5k cross country.
I wasn't expecting to run this but they had enough officials so I pulled on the running shoes and did the 5k. It was three laps exactly; my splits were 8:00, 7:45 and 7:40. A pleasant tempo run, on a good course when rain-softened. Surprisingly it was my course pb by 35 seconds.
19. Geoff Moore 23:24
20. Ken White 23:56
21. Ewen Thompson 24:05
26. Elizabeth Mountbattan 25:14
28. Geoff Sims 25:28
35 finishers

2012 STROMLO Running Festival
February 17th – 19th
www.stromlorunningfestival.com.au
Early Bird entries close this Wednesday, 30 November.

We regret any convenience…

Sports administration in the ACT.
I have just noticed that Andrew Barr is no longer the Minister for Education in the ACT. This is something of a relief. Sadly the sport and recreation portfolio remains his responsibility. And he is still the Deputy Chief Minister, logically the next Chief Minister down the track. I would rather have Katy Gallagher stay Chief Minister for the next forty years. Which could happen.

Canberra sunset

At the skate park on lake G. By Edlang. Pretty good for an iphone photo!

My grandson Jackson is crazy about Angry Birds.

No App

with grandchildren...

... so here are the latest "Simon's Cats" to go on with. Back tomorrow.

Double Trouble



Catnap

My article in December "Vetrunner" magazine

Tempo running and racing

I thought I had better round out this year’s series on conditioning by reviewing both “tempo runs” and “races”.

Too little training: the key to good races is to train well, train often, and have a good mix of training sessions. It would be so easy to just race and to never train, as there is so much racing on offer. The wise runner is selective; plans out which races to compete in, and with a coach’s assistance gets ongoing feedback. You don’t need to race all the time to get a good idea of how fit you are getting.

Too little racing: Training isn’t an end in itself. It takes on meaning when there is a race at the end of it. Some runners, but probably few reading this, train all the time, and rarely put in a supreme effort in a race. A shame really. A race is the ultimate test of where you are at. A PB is the most satisfying outcome of all, and racing draws that out.

But in all likelihood, you the reader race too often. This can result in lots of good races, but no brilliant ones! So a suggestion is that you learn to sacrifice many of your races for the sake of better results in the few.

There was once a marathon runner who could have broken three hours, so I set out a plan for him to spend three months consolidating his training then three months of specific marathon training, including pace work and middle distance intervals as well as longer runs. However in his wisdom the marathon runner decided that racing every marathon he could find was the way to go. He ended up running them up to an hour slower than he was capable of. The quick one never happened.

There was once an 800m runner who hated losing. He won the first few 800m runs of the season, true, but by the end of the season he hadn’t improved, while his rivals who had started the season more conservatively did improve. A disappointing championship was the unhappy outcome.

But you want to go in many races, don’t you? Then I suggest you use many of the minor races as tempo runs.

Definition: A tempo run is a sustained run at faster than usual training pace.

One can use a race to do a tempo run. Before any tempo run, go through your normal warm-up and stretch routine, as if racing. Then be disciplined enough during the run to maintain the steady pace planned, ideally a good 15 to 20 secs per km slower than flat out racing pace would be on the day. Sustain that pace all the way to the finish. And follow this with your normal cool-down run. While the distance of a tempo run is not particularly important, holding back to at even pace is very important.

Some benefits of tempo runs:
1. Faster pace – You would normally, in training, do a run of a given length at a slower pace. This is a way of getting training runs up towards your lactate threshold. This has real benefits, you get fit faster.

2. Running form – Compared with races, while doing tempo runs you can focus more on form: relaxing and striding along with a spring in your step, for example. The goal is to run with good form over a long distance at reasonable speed.

3. Pace judgement – Is only learned by doing.

4. Self reliance – If you usually run in a group, which you should, tempo runs mean you alone are controlling how you run.

5. Race practice. Your preparation, hydration, running gear, warm-up, adrenalin, are all the same as in a big race.  And you get the feel of a race, without the exhaustion afterwards.

6. Recovery. You find that you recover immediately, even when you felt during the tempo run that you were pushing along at a good pace.

7. Train on as normal. You don’t have to peak for tempo runs, and you don’t need extra easy days after them. Normal training is not interrupted!

To summarise the year’s articles on conditioning, training for middle and long distance running is a combination of sessions, each single session aimed at no more than one of the following areas:  general aerobic endurance, specific aerobic endurance, speed endurance, strength endurance, and tempo running. Please read the other articles in this series as published in Vetrunner during 2011 to get the full picture. 

goose shoots eagle and Damian turns 45

Happy Birthday Damian Rutledge, 45 today! A new age-group, welcome to the M45's!

Bronwyn shot her first ever eagle! We are talking golf here, and she did it yesterday on a par 4 4th before speedygeese training!

lazy me
Why not steal borrow my training writeup from Bronwyn? Last night at Parliament House...
attendees (16): Abi, Andy, Cathy M, Cherie, Cookie, Craig, Ewen (early & warm up), Helen, Lucia, Maria (early & warm up), Miranda (early & warm up), Ruth, SG [that's me], Thach, Warrick and me [that's Bronwyn]...

warm up: 2.98k (usual big lap + jog around old Parliament House)

lower grassy square...2 x 12mins with 5mins break

2 teams of 3 + 3 teams of 2...teams swapped after 5min break...
relays - teams of 3:
runner 1 - diagonal downhill sprint, tag runner 2, jog/walk short side
runner 2 - uphill sprint, tag runner 3, jog/walk short side
runner 3 - diagonal downhill sprint, tag runner 1, jog/walk short side
repeat!
relays - teams of 2:
runner 1 - diagonal downhill + uphill, tag runner 2, walk short side
runner 2 - diagonal downhill + uphill, tag runner 1, walk short side
repeat!

warm down: 2.10k (reverse loop of Parliament House from lower grassy square)

phew!

Thanks Bronwyn!

What I am watching: Voyage of the Dawn Treader, only the second time through. Can't wait for the Doctor Who Christmas Special with Narnia themes this year!

So no song of the week, instead, "preview of the week"

Doctor Who goes to Narnia


“What do they teach you at school these days!”

One daughter plus grandchildren (4) arrive tomorrow. Yay! They will have to make their own beds but. No rest for "jennygran", they arrive here before she returns home after a week with grandchildren (another 4).

Thinks: that's me in trouble when my good lady does return...

yep, not much we can do to impress them.

white fluffy things

Coming Events Week 47 of 2011:

Mon 21 Nov	4:30pm	*Parliament House 8k jog
	5:30pm	*Parliament House speedygeese training
Tue 22 Nov	6:15pm	*YCRC Spring Series 5k Black Mountain Peninsula
Wed 23 Nov	12:15pm	BBQ Stakes 6k handicap
Thu 24 Nov	6:00pm	*ACTVAC Track
Fri 25 Nov	12:15pm	Customs Joggers 5k handicap
Sat 26 Nov	7:00am	*Metro Runners Acton Ferry Terminal
Sun 27 Nov	8:30am	*ACTVAC Handicap Weston Park

*=events I expect to attend.

I am feeling better today after yesterday's headache, yesterday's day off running, and no pain killers as I avoid the latter if at all possible. I had put the headache down to a longish run in Saturday's heat, but thinking about it, I did drink regularly and I hardly ever have such problems; I think it was an allergic reaction the the white fluffy things floating around in the air.

Cottonwood blossoms in the air at the ANU last year.

Checking back in this blog, sure enough, 13 months ago I had the same problem. The blossoms were worse last year, in the ANU and along the cycle path between Commonwealth Avenue Bridge and Black Mountain Peninsula

It's Monday and I really must do some washing and cleaning around the house ... even though computer is working quite well today. It's the penalty of having the house to myself for a few days...

at last the rain has come

Recent speedygeese results
Barrenjoey Drive 5k Tuesday night
25. Craig Davis M40 21:48
27. Kym Chisholm W30 22:13
28. Maria O'Reilly W55 22:19
29. Ewen Thompson M50 22:22
35. Kelley Flood W50 22:46
43. Mick Horan M50 23:59
45. Elizabeth Mountbattan W50 24:25
48. Geoff Sims M60 25:10
49. Graeme Patrick M55 25:32
57. Bob Harlow M60 26:47
59. Mick Charlton M55 27:05
65. Cathy Montalto W55 27:48
75 finishers

Track Thursday Night
800m
M40 Damian Rutledge 2:13.21 82.8
M60 Geoff Sims 2:25.76 88.6
W40 Emma Adams 2:30.83 78.6
W40 Heidi Johnston 2:33.34 76.6
W60 Kathy Sims 2:57.07 82.3
W45 Janene Kingston 2:58.25 69.5
M70 Tony Booth 3:49.06 63.3

One Hour Run
W50 Helen Larmour 13:488.9
M50 Roger Pilkington 13:212.3
M55 Graeme Patrick 12:714.8
M50 Ewen Thompson 12:568.5
W40 Bronwyn Calver 12:118.4
W60 Margaret McSpadden 8:952.1
M65 Geoff Barker 7:100.9

Training yesterday in the heat really knocked me about, so a headache all day today meant a rest day. But despite the soaring temperature yesterday, there were many friends out and about around the lake. There was Leanne, Deb (new), Zainab, Miranda, Lucia & me (the six of us started off and ran >=12k together), Terry & Helen (said hello), Barney & Li Chen (said hello), Liz and Kerrie (said hello), Suzie (Miranda and I ran about 8km with her), Kelley & Mick (said hello). Karen and [I should remember who he was!] (I ran to globe and back with them).

What I am watching: Saw the 2010 kiwi film "Boy" for the first time. Maybe a bit over-rated, but unforgettable. Another recommended movie: delightful acting.

The lake looks stormy

Photo by Brandi

Womboin rainbow

Photo by Neill

Are you running enough?

"The best evidence from science and the real world suggest that the more we run, the better we race". Full article here >>> http://running.competitor.com/2011/08/training/are-you-running-enough_35813. I link to this website on the side-bar, but the site is updated so often, good and interesting articles like this one appear listed there for a very short time only. Another quote from the short article: "runners keep improving as they increase their running mileage all the way until they get to one step short of the point of breakdown". But how do you know when you have reached that point? The article suggests that point moves out anyway as you get fitter, so by then you can run further. The article doesn't say what happens as you get a lot older, but you and I know that at some stage the point moves back in again. In terms of speed, I am capable of a lot less now than when I started running nearly 50 years ago. I wonder what the limits are in terms of distance? My tentative answer is, I can still run for as much time as I used to, but the speed and therefore the distance is necessarily less.

cloning

Last night's Clarke & Dawe:


“I’ll get CJ to send you one”

Another John Harding photo - the eagle at the arboretum.

Lately I haven't been reporting what I have been watching, as far as movies or DVDs go. Last night I watched Princess Mononoke for the first time. Pretty good. I like Miyazaki/Studio Ghibli films and this is among the best.

obamajam

I am a little late posting today. A few things to do, and a thirty minute obamajam on Constitution Avenue didn't help.  I will still do today's run but it will have to be tomorrow morning!

Behold the turtle goose. He makes progress only when he sticks his neck out.

Here's to the arboretum.

arboretum photos by John Harding.

measureless and strong

My Playlist during this morning's training run:
Jack Kerouac - by Brooke Fraser – from the album Flags
Marching Bands Of Manhattan - Death Cab For Cutie - Plans
Pay For Me - The National - The National
Bloom [Jamie XX Remix] - Radiohead - TKOL RMX
Your Heart Is An Empty Room - Death Cab For Cutie - Plans
Your Love Is A Song - Switchfoot - Hello Hurricane
Forget and Not Slow Down - Relient K - Forget and Not Slow Down
Charlie Brown - Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto
Apartment Story - The National - Boxer
Bloom [Objekt Remix] - Radiohead - TKOL
Someday You Will Be Loved - Death Cab For Cutie - Plans
Sin-Eaters - The National - High Violet 2
You Are Good - Bethel - Be Lifted High
Rain - Creed - Full Circle
I Can See Your Love - Leeland - The Great Awakening
Good Evening Mrs Magpie [Modeselektor Remix] - Radiohead - TKOL RMX
Bixby Canyon Bridge - Death Cab For Cutie - Narrow Stairs
Murder Me Rachael - The National - Sad Songs for Dirty Lovers
You Are My Passion - Jesus Culture - Come Away
Arms Open Wide - Hillsong United - Tear Down The Walls
Abel - The National - Alligator
Bloom [Blawan Remix] - Radiohead - TKOL RMX
No Sunlight - Death Cab For Cutie - Narrow Stairs
Red Eyes - Switchfoot - Hello Hurricane
Candlelight - Relient K - Forget and Not Slow Down
Up In Flames - Coldplay - Mylo Xyloto
Lit Up - The National - Alligator
TKOL [Altrice Remix] - Radiohead - TKOL RMX
Grapevine Fires - Death Cab For Cutie - Narrow Stairs
The Perfect Song - The National - The National
Something In The Water - Brooke Fraser - Flags
Go - Hillsong United - Aftermath
Chains Hit The Ground - Leeland - The Great Awakening
Give up the Ghost [Brokenchord Remix] - Radiohead - TKOL RMX
Jesus Freak - Newsboys - Born Again
Santa Clara - The National - The Virginia EP
My Soul Sings - Bethel - Here Is love
Love Like Fire - Hillsong - A Beautiful Exchange

Quite a long run as you can see. There's no time for a Wednesday gym session now that I am training for an Ultra!

I think a weekly Wednesday 26k run is less strain than going to the gym. But I am moving the gym session to Tuesdays. The pain must continue. The Canberra Marathon website should be up and and running soon? There are now just 150 days to the Ultra and counting and no-one is entered yet! [Sorry, just noticed that people HAVE entered already. Just that course details are "to be confirmed" according to one web page]

There is an hour run tomorrow (Thursday) on the track at Vets. 7:45pm. I probably won't run it unless I am 10k or so behind schedule..... which is possible.

running together

Sunday's City2Sea results:
Speedygeese: Bronwyn Calver 1:09.06, Caroline Campbell 1:24.31
Metro Runners: Alison Chua 1:38.06, Shane Liyanage 1:38.06

Anne Young and Caroline Campbell on the start line of the City2Sea.

At Sunday's Deep Space Mountain Marathon:
Half Marathon men:
25 Bob Harlow 64 2.09.05
28 Warrick Howieson 41 2.11.31
48 male finishers

Half Marathon women:
8 Kelley Flood 51 2.15.28
9 Elle Knight 42 2.15.28
15 female finishers

Last night's training at Parliament House:  Thach (new) and I ran 7.5k early when it was still rather warm, then we were joined by Amanda, Andrew, Andy, Bronwyn, Craig, Helen, Kym, Lucia, Mick, Neil, Ruth & Yelena for a session similar to last week's except we started & finished our 900m loops at the grassy oval where there is more water than up by the south-west water fountain. We surged 200m of every 300 with a stop of a minute or two back at the starting point, four loops in all. The west side of the House in the shade with a westerly wind blowing feels decidedly cooler than out in the open, although the official temperature was still around 27 degrees.

42 years ago today Jenny and I got engaged:

Photo taken in September 1967 of Jenny with her younger siblings. Jenny & I met in February 1969 and we were engaged on 15 November the same year.

Song of the Week: "Go Now", by Tigertown



It's 2011 and music is looking up - off the chart music anyway. Tigertown are yet another new Australian group (c.f. "The Paper Kites") with a great sound. Enjoy!

unyoung unrich unfamous FIT

Coming Events Week 46 of 2011:  Note, Saturday's run shifted to 7:00am permanently.

Mon 14 Nov	4:30pm	*Parliament House 8k jog in the shade!
	5:30pm	*Parliament House speedygeese training
Tue 15 Nov	6:15pm	YCRC Spring Series 5k Barrenjoey Drive
Wed 16 Nov	12:15pm	BBQ Stakes 6k handicap
Thu 17 Nov	6:00pm	*ACTVAC Track
Fri 18 Nov	12:15pm	Customs Joggers 5k handicap
Sat 19 Nov	7:00am	*Metro Runners Acton Ferry Terminal

*=events I expect to attend.

Well done to those running the inaugural City to Sea in Melbourne, including speedygoose Bronwyn, metro runners Shane & Alison (pictured), friends Bruce & Carol, Stephen McDonald; and others I don't yet know about. Results will be in Tuesday's Age newspaper.

Shane & Alison after the City2Sea. From Shane's facebook page.

awkward

Thanks to Thea, who wanted me to know there were runners with worse styles than her...



Today's awkward run was an easy 16k at Stromlo with Abi and Andrew. We went up an unnamed hill North of Uriarra Road first, for the scenic view at the top, before we ran down Uriarra Road, then back to circle the mountain. Despite the hill climb, the highest point was where we came out of West Stromlo onto the sealed main road.

The run home down the Mt Stromlo Road is most enjoyable. At one stage we were passed by Christopher hurtling down by bicycle. The cycle home would be appreciated too I imagine.

On the RHS of the map is the 2k cross country loop at Stromlo Forest Park which we did at the end to complete the 16k. For both my companions, I think, this 16k was their longest ever run. So far.

It's amazing how lethargic I feel at the start of such runs, and how much better I feel from halfway and on.

occupy 26.2

Today I ran 10k+ with Leanne and then 10k+ with Natalie. Why? Because I can.

Speedygeese track Results
10 November 3000m
M50 Rod Lynch 11:28.24 73.7%
W40 Emma Adams 11:41.64 76.2
M40 Craig Davis 12:49.94 61.8
M60 Geoff Moore 13:10.57 71.1
W45 Janene Kingston 13:12.54 71.5
M50 Roger Pilkington 13:18.74 64.0
M50 Ewen Thompson 13:19.98 65.0
W55 Cathy Montalto 15:11.13 72.9
W60 Ruth Baussmann 16:15.86 70.1
W60 Margaret McSpadden 18:18.44 65.2

10 November 1500m Pennington
1 Kathy Southgate W55 5:29 89.8%
3 Kathy Sims W60 6:06 86.6
5 Ken White M55 5:19 80.9
6 Damian Rutledge M40 5:01 75.7
9 Rod Lynch M50 5:26 74.6
10 Helen Larmour W50 5:59 79.1
11 Emma Adams W40 5:32 75.6
13 Heidi Johnston W40 5:37 73.7
15 Geoff Sims M60 6:07 73.3
26 Roger Pilkington M50 6:46 60.4
27 Geoff Barker M65 8:25 55.0
28 Tony Booth M70 9:50 50.6

10 November Spiral 5 lap
2 Margaret McSpadden W60 12:53
3 Geoff Barker M65 12:34
5 Kathy Sims W60 9:02
12 Roger Pilkington M50 8:43
14 Cathy Montalto W55 10:13
15 Graeme Patrick M55 8:49
20 Geoff Sims M60 9:47
23 Helen Larmour W50 8:38
25 Janene Kingston W45 9:27
27 Damian Rutledge M40 8:44
30 Ruth Baussmann W60 11:11
32 finishers

achilles heel

Happy Birthday Rachelle Ellis-Brownlee 39 yesterday
Happy Birthday Colleen Koh 34 today
Happy Birthday Jill Pearson 54 today.

Arch of Victory: My wife Jenny took her mother (May Lowes) to Ballarat on the weekend for re-opening ceremony, and May was interviewed on the local radio station! Story and audio of the complete interview here: http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2011/11/06/3357413.htm

Clarke & Dawe: "Slaves rowing ships around the Mediterranean"



Paula Radcliffe: According to the IAAF, Paula Radcliffe's world record will now stand. 
"Some good news for British runner Paula Radcliffe on Wednesday: The IAAF reversed its stance on how it was to award world records. It previously ruled that since Radcliffe set her world record alongside men (in London eight years ago), it was not a valid mark.
"“The record will stay. Nobody will cancel the record of Paula. That is sure,” said IAAF council member Helmut Digel via telephone after an IAAF meeting in Monaco. “Her record will never be diminished.”
"After the IAAF changed how women’s world records were to be awarded, it received an enormous volume of protests. Digel noted this surprised the governing body. He said the rule wasn’t to diminish the old records.
"“It was not against old records at all,” he said. “We realize that these performances were excellent performances.”
"Radcliffe’s time that was set in London is a blazing 2:15:25. It is a mark that is still over a minute faster than the second-best clocking."

Fancy attempting to disallow women's records because of men in the race!

Vanitys Crossing to be closed to vehicle traffic.
“TAMS’ decision to permanently close Vanity’s Crossing follows advice from ActewAGL and is a precautionary measure to reduce the risk of contamination or an event which would make the Cotter Reservoir unusable as a source of drinking water.
“Gates will be installed on either side of the crossing on Tuesday 15 November 2011. These will remain open until 6 February 2012, when they will be permanently locked to prevent vehicle access. People will still be able to access the area on foot or bicycle however we ask that people be mindful of how their behaviour may impact on the water and surrounding environment. Signage will be in place to inform people of the closure and of the water quality issues at the site."

This may affect some of our mountain runs if cars will need to detour to get to the far side of the crossing.

vertigo

Another reason why I am not all that keen about trail running...

Yesterday's storms, from the top of Mount Stromlo

Another quote to add to yesterday's.

why worry

“Every evening I turn my worries over to God. He's going to be up all night anyway.” - Mary C. Crowley

“When I look back on all these worries, I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he had had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which had never happened” - Winston Churchill

“Worry is like a rocking chair--it gives you something to do but it doesn't get you anywhere.”

“There is a great difference between worry and concern. A worried person sees a problem, and a concerned person solves a problem.” - Harold Stephens

“There is nothing that wastes the body like worry, and one who has any faith in God should be ashamed to worry about anything whatsoever” - Mahatma Gandhi

“Worry often gives a small thing a big shadow.”

“If you can't sleep, then get up and do something instead of lying there worrying. It's the worry that gets you, not the lack of sleep.” - Dale Carnegie

“Worry is spiritual short sight. Its cure is intelligent faith.” - Paul Brunton

“If you ask what is the single most important key to longevity, I would have to say it is avoiding worry, stress and tension. And if you didn't ask me, I'd still have to say it.” - George F. Burns

“Worry compounds the futility of being trapped on a dead-end street. Thinking opens new avenues.” - Cullen Hightower

heartbeat

Last night at Parliament House: I ran early, then joined the main bunch for 12 x 200m with a 100m jog on a west side circuit, broken up into four segments because of the sultry conditions. Training were Abi, Andy, Bronwyn, Colin, Craig, me, Lucia, Neil, Ruth, Warrick & Yelena. In the next couple of weeks if it is not too hot a few more will come out and we can set up some relays again.

Fargher lager

The pub we visited at Parachilna during our October travels up north in South Australia is run by some of Abi's relatives. They sell beer brewed in the Fargher name. One better than marrying into a family who owns their own pub, is to marry into a family who brews their own beer. I sampled the beer and souvenired the empty bottle. Note the Isle of Man symbol on the label; telling us where the family originated.

Song of the week: "Heartbeat", by The Fray. “We got to keep on running 'til we see the sun…”

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big apple

Coming Events Week 45 of 2011:

Mon 7 Nov	4:30pm	*Parliament House 8k jog
	5:30pm	*Parliament House speedygeese training
Tue 8 Nov	6:15pm	*YCRC Spring Series 5k Weston Park
Wed 9 Nov	12:15pm	BBQ Stakes 6k handicap
Thu 10 Nov	6:00pm	*ACTVAC Track
Fri 11 Nov	12:15pm	Customs Joggers 5k handicap
Sat 12 Nov	8:00am	*Metro Runners Acton Ferry Terminal
Sun 13 Nov	8:00am	*Stromlo Forest Park run
	+	AMRA Deep Space Marathon
	+	Melbourne City to Sea

*=events I expect to attend.

Michelle Wells New York Marathon 3:28.52

Who are these speedygeese?
I keep 100 names on my current speedygeese list. When new people join I usually drop someone else off the list to keep it to 100: someone who came along once or twice for example but hasn't seen seen since. I have just done a check and 50 of the 100 on the speedygeese contact list have been along to training this year, and 50 haven't for many and varied reasons. I do encourage weekly attendance; obviously consistency in training is important, I also emphasise that runners may come along to training sessions whenever they would like to. In fact it is good that there are many running groups and running opportunities around Canberra, there is a lot of choice. We speedygeese like training together when we are able to. But we are found all over the ACT doing all kinds of training and competing. If you're a "speedygoose" and haven't been along for a while, please drop in to our Monday training session sometime and say hello. We'd like to catch up and find out how you're doing and what your plans are.

New runners welcome! We meet in the underground car park at Australia's Parliament House Canberra, 5:30pm every Monday.