I get knocked down, but I get up again

Last night, at the last Parliament House session until 7 January, Amanda, Barbara, Bronwyn, Christopher, Ewen, Gary, me, Jodie, Joel, Kathy, Katie, Ken, Margaret, Maria, Mick, Neil, Peter, Rachelle and Yelena enjoyed 6x660 on 5 minutes in not too hot conditions. We found out that there are four more birthdays coming up soon: Roger, Katie, Barbara and Jodie, to make (at least) eight in the training group this month.

Sunday's Black Mountain Challenge (5k) result for the Speedygeese:
21. Richard Faulks M45 22:22
34. Emma Adams W35 24:35
39. Mick Horan M45 25:29
45. Roger Pilkington M45 26:20
51. Kelley Flood W45 26:38
55. David Webster M55 27:10
62. Amanda Walker W40 28:11
80. Geoff Barker M60 29:40
85. Rachelle Ellis-Brownlee W35 30:02
92. Mick Charlton M55 31:09

Note Emma's brilliant run. Note the age-group next to Amanda's name.

Friend-of-the-geese Scott McTaggart won the race outright by a minute in 18.07. Good luck Scott in the Steeplechase event at Zatopek. The ACT M30 3000m steeple record is 10.17. Ha ha. The Australian record is 10.05. Bye bye Australian record. It will be sss-mashed. I should add that many of the M30 records are very soft, compared with the older age groups. Scott will start changing that.

Track program this Thursday night at Vets
6.00 1500m Walk (PH)
6.15 Sprint Hurdles (B)
6.25 3000m (GM)
6.45 60m
7.00 1500m
7.30 400m
7.50 4x100m Relay, 2x200m Relay
8.00 Spiral 8

Photogenic Mick, "Smiling".


At Honeysuckle Creek. You wouldn't know, except by the look on the faces in the background, he'd got down on his face after finishing the deep space race, them sprang back up again before our very speedy photographer John Kennedy could snap him in the dirt.

Monday

My training progress
last week’s target: 70k
achieved: 87k
year total to date: 3,674k in 49 weeks
this week’s target: 70k
weight: 66kg ▼
song of the week: “Unforgetful You”, by Jars of Clay, from "If I Left the Zoo”.
"You never minded calling me a child
Well, i guess that's how i acted all the while
But you live through every tantrum
You see through every lie
Though they seem to be more common
I just wanted to know why"..

My targets for 2008.
The following races are penciled in as "flat-out":
03 January 3000m track
10 January 3000m track
17 January 3000m track
23 January BBQ Stakes 6k
27 January Campbell Park 3k
31 January 3000m track
07 February 3000m track
12 February 5k Stromlo
14 February 3000m track
21 February 10,000m track (first important race)
28 February 3000m track
04 March Molonglo Reach 6k
13 March 5000m ACTVAC championships
21 March 10,000m AMA championships
23 March 5000m AMA championships
08 April Canberra Marathon (not too fast!)
18 May Canberra Half Marathon (first M60 race)

If I keep to the plan, anything else I run up to 18 May would at best be a "tempo run".

Training sessions at Parliament House December/January.
10 December a repeat of last week's session
17 December no training, group dinner
24 December no training, Christmas Eve!
31 December no training, New Years Eve!
7 January start of 4-5 weeks of anaerobic training: I have mapped all training sessions I expect to be conducting in 2008, and the only anaerobic work scheduled for Parliament House during the year will be in January through to mid February.

Training sessions at Stromlo Forest Park, Saturday mornings, 9am.
This is the perfect venue for a range of interval training sessions, and the perfect surface for minimising injury while developing speed and strength.
15 December 3x1k
22 December 3x1k
29 December 3x1k
5 January 3x1k
12 January 3x1k and so on into mid February.
As perfect as the venue is, I still have a wish list: It would be nice to have some trees/shade, none of those pesky flies, an underpass to the grass circuit so we don't get collected by cyclists, and a hitching rail or at least a seat for hamstring stretches.

Well Trained

Happy birthday Amanda 40 today.
Happy Birthday Yelena 26 today.

Last night Jenny and I joined in the celebrations of Amanda's 40th birthday at Maria & Peter's house. A day early, but we did stay until midnight. I think we did, it's all a bit hazy. A few friends and a few relatives enjoyed the occasion. A balmy night, it is good of Amanda to have been born in summer.

Yesterday I trained at Stromlo for the first time. John Kennedy pushed me along in 3 x 1k reps, and Diana was also there, also Bruce and Carol not far away, and intermittently a crowd of elites flew past: Marty, Anthony, Adam among them. I was pleased to run 4:05, 4:00, 4:00 for the three intervals. I wore my Nike Frees for the first time in not-slow running and if I recover OK the plan is eventaully to revert to bare feet. It is 42 years since I regularly ran bare-footed!

I also ran bare-topped, it was so sultry. I suppose that's a longer term option out there too.

By the way, John's times were way faster than mine.

An old favourite with a new caption


This is how it feels to be sharing the running track with a large company of elite runners in the vicinity. Who could gobble you up in an instant. The runners, like the dogs here, are well trained!

The Power of the Honk

In the good old days when I used to visit Portsea, I was a teenager then but now I am not, all that is left is a very good memory, Percy Cerutty used to provoke us to “soar like an eagle”. But now-days I think that eagles are over-rated. OK, you get the odd eagle who can over-come all odds and do something extra-ordinary, and one day I shall wax lyrical on how inspiring they can be, but eagles with all their magnificent qualities tend to be loners: they are up there soaring majestically alone. Going solo.

Rather than focusing on the undoubtedly tremendous insights our life might gain were we to live, fly and soar like an eagle; the metaphor which means much more to me, the bird I can really identify with, is the goose.

For a start, look at all those goosy sayings. The ones about being silly; or about scaring (saying “boo”), or the ones about laying golden eggs. It appears that geese are as active as eagles, but are not very bright. That’s me, down to a tee. I am not very bright but I waddle around making a fool of myself, happily ignorant of the fact.

Where we really differ, we geese, from eagles, is that eagles soar alone. Eagles don’t form clubs. We geese club together and help each other out. If you see yourself as an eagle, sure, go ahead, soar alone. There are a few such isolated cases (pun intended). We read about the eagles in the back pages of our newspaper. Sometimes eagles succeed, and when they do they succeed splendidly. Sometimes eagles fail, and then they fail with a great crash. You know who I’m talking about.

But if you are like me and are a goose and not an eagle, you just might find it of value to team up with the rest of us gooses and get some mutual encouragement and support. My motto is “Fly Like a Goose”.

Watching geese from the ground is a poetic, even mystical experience, they look to be flying easily and effortlessly in their V formation, they look serene, it looks very peaceful. Like the grace of a top runner in full flight, at top speed they seem to just flow without effort. But, if you were up in the flock you would find it very, very different. What would instantly startle you would be the noise the geese were making. The geese aren’t just gliding along silently; they are constantly making a loud, raucous racket, honking to one another.

These honks are simply for one purpose: they are creating an environment where every goose is being continually encouraged and supported by the other geese to do their best, to keep in formation, to succeed in their goals of speed and endurance and form. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were also being encouraged to maintain three wing-flaps per second! (training group in-joke, sorry). But just the noise, the sounds, of honking, serve as sufficient reminder to continue and persist and endure and focus.

This has been a very long explanation of why, at the track, among the old clichés of “looking good” and “just one lap to go”, you might just occasionally hear, if you listen very carefully indeed, the cry of “honk honk”. It doesn’t mean “Pull over, I am passing”. It means “Go Go Speedy Geese”.

Still hanging in

Happy Birthday Rod Lynch 48 today
Happy Birthday Joel Pearson 24 today.

Last night was my first "successful" 10k for a while, i.e. I finished. The time was OK, the relative splits good - each of the first nine kms was around 4:20, and the tenth around 4:10. And neither hamstring hurt, despite it being my third day in a row of quicker running. I am very very happy to have no niggles. It is great when you don't feel injured! So I will train on, taking it a bit easier for a while, including a few intervals at Stromlo tomorrow morning for the first time.

Last night's Vets track results
3000m
M45 Rod Lynch 10:55.38 74.9%
M50 Gary Bowen 11:54.41 70.4
M55 Neil Boden 13:09.62 67.5
M45 Roger Pilkington 13:51.50 59.5
M60 Geoff Barker 14:49.77 63.1

10,000m
M45 Colin Farlow 38:51.50 75.1%
M55 Geoff Moore 43:14.88 75.1
M45 Roger Pilkington 43:50.34 67.6
W40 Katie Forestier 44:50.10 69.8
M50 Ewen Thompson 44:54.57 67.0
M50 Gary Bowen 47:00.71 64.0
M60 Geoff Barker 53:01.49 63.4
W60 Margaret McSpadden 56:09.54 70.1

Higgins 800m results - Colin in another excellent run was a close second behind John Lamb; Ken was well up in third place.

Place	Name	Gross	Start	Net	Age%
2	Colin Farlow M45	3.22	1.09	2.13	84.4%
3	Ken White M50	3.28	1.05	2.23	84.1
7	Gary Bowen M50	3.37	1.05	2.32	76.5
9	Rod Lynch M45	3.43	1.09	2.34	73.6
12	Katie Forestier W40	3.48	1.04	2.44	71.7
15	Emma Adams W35	3.52	1.10	2.42	70.6
17	Tony Booth M65	3.59	0.51	3.08	72.9
18	Kathy Sims W55	4.01	0.44	3.17	69.8
20	Neil Boden M55	4.14	1.02	3.12	64.2
26	Roger Pilkington M45	1.09	1.02	3.39	52.2
28	Geoff Barker M60	5.04	0.58	4.06	52.5

I usually don't mention the 200m, but this result is worth noting:
W35 Emma Adams 31.21 70.6%

Prince Caspian Official Trailer

Track Ten Tonight

The Track 10k is looming - it's tonight! I might jog it if I feel like it!

Now where have I seen that singlet before?
If you thought our Kelley is the only one who wears a PCRG uniform day and night, there are others! Check out the photo in Clairie’s blog, baby and all! Leave a comment while you're there!

Wednesday’s BBQ Stakes 6k times: me 27.03, Roger 30.31, Helen 30.42, and those two DID run together this time.

Tuesday’s Spring Series #5 Stromlo 5k
[Edit Friday 7 Dec - Corrected Results]
32. Richard Faulks M45 19:10
56. Ewen Thompson M50 20:54
61. Geoff Moore M55 21:17
89. Neil Boden M55 23:47
102. Rae Palmer W60 26:00
104. Geoff Barker M60 26:44
107. Lisa Wilson W40 27:38
112. Caroline Campbell W65 28:53
113. Margaret McSpadden W60 29:01


Ewen at Innabaanya with his winner's medal


Ewen won the November Vets Handicap at Innabaanya, jogging. After showing subsequent form over 5k, he is now the hot favourite to win the next two or three Veterans Handicaps as well, setting a record for successive wins. Shhhh, don't tell the new handicapper, speedygoose Alan Duus. Photo by... yes you guessed it... Kelley.

Reyne down, reyne down

Ewen's outstanding performance
Last night at the Stromlo 5k, Ewen exceeded all (his) expectations by breaking the 21 minute barrier. A 20.54 for the 5k, with a small negative split, had him saying "I cannot believe it" several times after the run. Well done Ewen! I am sure he will post something soon on his blog. Despite all the rain, the surface was firm and fast. This is a great venue!

67km per week
I said yesterday I should try to end up with a 2007 average number of kilometres per week higher than my weight in kilograms. I am currently weighing in at an exceedingly high 67 kg, so how many more km do I need this year to exceed 67 per week average? The total would have to be 3494km or more. And I have already run 3615km up to Tuesday, so I could stop now!? Except, no more upward arrows allowed (frown).

2007 v 2006
My other target is to exceed 2006’s total of 3803k which gives me only 26 days to run 189km. I should just scrape it in by Christmas!

Speedygeese at Sunday’s Jogalong
Helen Larmour W45 26:31
Sonia Veldhoven W30 28:03
Amanda Walker W35 28:10
Barbara Tucker W55 32:49
Lisa Wilson W40 34:00
Margaret McSpadden W60 34:42

Reckless
James Reyne / Australian Crawl's classic song is featured on a new post by Scott - visit him, have a listen, make a comment.

Bronze medallist


speedy goose Geoff Barker racing at Honeysuckle Creek on Sunday. Photo by John Kennedy.

km > kg?

I agree with Ewen; if my weight keeps rising, my goal should be to keep my weekly distance (kilometres) higher than my weight (kilograms). This might have to be my new year resolution, as this year the two have been converging. In fact I might be deluding myself: if I end up averaging 65km per week, say, in 2007, I will have to pass on Christmas turkey etc to drop 2 kilos off my weight by year's end. The only satisfactory answer is to run more km: I will report tomorrow how many I need!! Then do it!!! There's no escaping the Christmas feasting.

New - A Christmas Poll.
I have added a poll to this blog, just to see how polling works. It could end up being quite a useful feature!

Monday night training
Wet and thundery, the weather didn't deter sixteen of us from training at Parliament House, and curtailing the cool-down to share farewell champagne with Sonia. There had better be a welcoming training group near Heidelberg she can join, or else she will just have to return to Canberra! Doing six reps in thirty minutes of a longish loop including three up-hills, were Alan, Amanda, Emma, Ewen, me, Helen, Joel, Kathy, Katie, Ken, Margaret, Maria, Neil, Peter, Sonia, and Yelena. We wished Joel a happy 24th birthday for Friday, Jelena a happy 26th for Sunday, and Amanda a happy 40th for Sunday. The only regulars missing had run in "deep space" the day before. Thank you Sonia for the champagne, the lovely home made almond bread (which Jenny and I sampled last night with rock melon and caramel topping), and most of all for just being you.

Deep Space Mountain Marathon
Honeysuckle Creek ACT
18k
5 Geoff Barker M60 2.02.18

25k
8 Kelley Flood W45 2.40.48
9 Mick Horan M45 2.51.38
10 Roger Pilkington M45 2.55.59

Track Timetable for this Thursday night
6.00pm 1200/2000m Walk (PH)
6.20pm 3000m (GM)
6.40pm 100m (Daniels),100m (scratch)
7.00pm 800m Higgins Handicap (& Pennington)
7.30pm 200m
7.45pm 10,000m
plus the usual assortment of field events.

Sonia, Amanda, and Peter


Sonia is about to depart for Melbourne. Amanda is about to join the W40s, boosting the prospect of more Australian relay records. Peter is training particularly well at present, his form up the hills on Monday was outstanding. Photo by Kelley.

Golden Kelley

Carrying over her Australian relay record form from Thursday, Kelley was the fastest female in the 25k event at the "Deep Space Mountain Marathon" at Honeysuckle Creek this weekend. [So I suppose a few short hills in tonight's training at Parliament House will not hurt?]

And Geoff Barker ran third in the 18k. Well done speedy geese!

Monday Monitor
My training progress
last week’s target: 84k
achieved: 72k
year total to date: 3,587k in 48 weeks
this week’s target: 70k
weight: 67kg ▲
song of the week: “Transatlanticism”, by Death Cab for Cutie, from the "Transatlanticism" album. "I need you so much closer".

I was going OK last week until my lower back seized up on Saturday. Really badly this time. The common connection with that and other recent back soreness is ... my Friday swim. So that's it, no more swimming.

Stromlo Cross Country


Here is a group of us running on the mown grass at Stromlo last month. The Spring Series race is there tomorrow (Tuesday) at 6pm, then from Saturday this week I will be training there with anyone who wants to come along. I will arrive at 9am. I hope to establish a regular Saturday morning training session there, right through summer at least.

Beyond Words

At today's Jogalong Helen ran a near pb of 26.31, in humid conditions, and Sonia and Amanda were also very quick with 28.03 and 28.10

My Best Songs Ever Playlist as 2007 draws to a close
1 Broken - Lifehouse - Who We Are
2 Run - Snow Patrol - Final Straw
3 [*Fin] - Anberlin - Cities
4 Transatlanticism - Death Cab for Cutie - Transatlanticism
5 Death Bed - Relient K - Five Score and Seven Years Ago
6 Chocolate - Snow Patrol - Final Straw
7 You're All I Have - Snow Patrol - Eyes Open
8 United States - The Smashing Pumpkins - Zeitgeist
9 Make This Go On Forever - Snow Patrol - Eyes Open
10 It's Beginning to Get to Me - Snow Patrol - Eyes Open
11 Gleaming Auction - Snow Patrol - Final Straw
12 Open Your Eyes - Snow Patrol - Eyes Open
13 Expo '86 - Death Cab for Cutie - Transatlanticism
14 Headlights on Dark Roads - Snow Patrol - Eyes Open
15 Easier To Be - Lifehouse - Who We Are
16 Waste Another Day - Brooke Fraser - What To Do With Daylight
17 Devastation and Reform - Relient K - Five Score and Seven Years Ago
18 Shut Your Eyes - Snow Patrol - Eyes Open
19 Company Calls Epilogue - Death Cab for Cutie - We Have the Facts and We're Voting Yes
20 Storm - Lifehouse - Who We Are

The words are as important as the sounds.
The sounds are as important as the words.

Running writer Karmin for whom I have the highest respect, regard, and appreciation beyond words, introduced me to no less than three of the seven artists represented above. There was already synchronicity with Lifehouse: Jason Wade rocks. Significantly, although not represented in a list of just twenty, Coldplay too. When WILL their new project come to light? Thanks again Karmin: Snow Patrol; DCfC; Anberlin were the ones. I have been a huge fan since 1958 of the best music I could find, and it is still getting better.

Old favourites I have been listening to: Pink Floyd (On the Turning Away), Sting (Walking on the Moon), Dire Straits (Brothers in Arms), and Radiohead (Paranoid Android).

CAB123
This is the hilariously funny official video clip for Paranoid Android; still one of my all time favourite songs after all these years. The video - be warned – is for mature audiences, although not (quite) X rated. And if the sights are as important as the sounds and the words, as they seem to be these days, this must rate as the best of the best.

Open up the Heavens

Storm
54mm of rain fell in our back yard overnight, making total rainfall for the month twice the Canberra average for November. And now on 1 December, the heavy rain has resumed mid-morning. About time!!! Here's the radar at the storm's peak last night, with Holt right in the middle of it:



Thursday results

4x1500m Relay
W40 Australian Record 23:05.23
Charlie McCormack 5.39
Kelley Flood 6.06
Helen Larmour 5.45
Katie Forestier 5.34

Other Speedygeese in 4x1500m relay teams:
Neil Boden 6.23
Bronwyn Calver 6.16
Kathy Sims 6:48
Maureen Rossiter 7:23
Colin Farlow 4.41
Mick Horan 4.59
Roger Pilkington 5.37
Ken White 5.08
Gary Bowen 5.22

Medley Relay (200, 200, 400, 800)
Ken White, Mick Horan, Roger Pilkington & Bronwyn Calver were all in a team which ran 4:44.75

Helen Larmour, Kelley Flood, Charlie McCormack, and Katie Forestier decided to celebrate their Australian record by running together in the medley, and ran a time of 5:29.59

Gary Bowen was in a team which ran 4:16.43

spiral 7
4 Bronwyn Calver W35 13:16
6 Kathy Sims W55 14:02
8 Roger Pilkington M45 12:11
9 Margaret McSpadden W60 15:52
11 Adam Robinson M30 13:20
21 Gary Bowen M50 12:22
26 Neil Boden M55 13:38
28 Geoff Moore M55 13:11
30 Geoff Barker M60 16:03

Another Innabaanya Moment

Gorgeous Katie and a selection of her adoring fans. Click to enlarge if you dare. Photo by superstar Kelley.

Australia’s Best

Highlight of Vets track last night was the W40 Australian record set by four of our bestest speediest geese in the 4 x 1500m relay. Charlie and Helen were awesome, each running 4 or 5 second pbs, Kelley did brilliantly in her first track run with us, within a few seconds of her pb, and Katie brought the team home with an improving time this season and was the fastest of the four. The record was by just three seconds!

Gorgeous Geese and Speedy too.


Charlie, Kelley, Helen, Katie after their Australian record run. Click to enlarge.

Coo-coo-ca-choo
Congratulations to Adam Robinson, getting married today.

New Games to play
I can recommend the “submachine” series of games - here’s the first - a very easy one to start with. You will have time if (a) you are retired like me, or (b) December arrives and work gets to be very slow. Turn the sound up and fill in some time!

Justified and Ancient

They're Justified, and they're Ancient,
And they like to roam the land

I feel silly because twice in the last few days I have sent out emails with incorrect dates. Sorry. Seniors moments? The 10k track date IS next Thursday 6 December. And the Banana Leaf date IS Monday 17 December.


The Banana Leaf Restaurant is booked for a Christmas speedy-geese get-together. Come along for mouth-watering Sri Lankan dishes.
Date – Monday 17 December 2007
Time – 7pm
We went there in May and everyone agreed it was great.
Please let me know by Thursday 13th December if you will be going, so that I can confirm final numbers with Banana Leaf.

They're Justified, and they're Ancient
And they drive an ice cream van

At the BBQ Stakes yesterday Roger ran 28:38, Helen 28:42, & me 28:55. Again, not a lot between us, but we never saw each other as we start at different times.

I am looking forward to the 1500m relays tonight at track. I hope you all turn up so there are plenty of teams. It is sad when there are three people there in an age group, and no fourth to make up a team. No one is "too slow"!

Innabaanya, Innabaanya


Griffin Eats Lamb

Another day another 14k

Spring Series North Curtin (allegedly 5k, actually 4.88k)
women
10. Maria O'Reilly W50 21:55
16. Kelley Flood W45 22:26
19. Annette Sugden W45 22:47
31. Rae Palmer W60 25:49

men
34. Mick Horan M45 19:59
47. Roger Pilkington M45 21:28
48. Geoff Moore M55 21:33
57. Peter McDonald M50 23:08
69. Geoff Barker M60 26:00

Just one hill to run up on the way out - it went for nearly 2k. On my warm-up I saw the course marker decide to put the turn cones down "short", to save him cycling further up the hill into the wind to where the turn was meant to be. Mr Flibble confirmed the course was short. But I reckon the times are comparable to 5k for those of us who don't do hills.

So I am back into it. Let's hope I didn't make a big mistake running in the race, as I was sucked into speeding up in the second half of the race. At least my hamstrings seem better.

At the run, Adrian Rumore thanked me for referring Strewth to his physiotherapy practice. A nice guy. Who told her she couldn't run at all until late next week. So now there's a vacancy 4:30 on Monday for someone else to slow Ewen down on our 7-8k run.

Fly Neil Fly


Another of our speedygeese running strongly at Innabaanya (don't I just love typing that name?!) on Sunday. Neil is running just fast enough to make Monika look like she's walking! Photo by John Kennedy.

Love and Kisses

On Sunday at Innabaanya, Colin gave every long-course runner a kiss before they started. Here he is kissing Amanda. Check out the anticipation on the faces of Charlie and Kevin, and especially Sonia! Colin said afterwards that he regretted kissing everyone in Movember, as many of the starters had prickly mo’s. Sonia said afterwards that she will return from Melbourne at the end of 2008 specifically to take Colin’s place as chief kisser. On the other hand, Amanda was not impressed and is suing for molestation. John Kennedy took the photo, pity, a video would have been quite a hit on YouTube.

Monday night training saw Ewen, Ken, Amanda, Katie, Garry, Helen, Neil, Margaret, Annette, Trevor, Peter, Alan, Mick H. Allegedly. Not me! I had a very pleasant 14k run at mid-day when it was still warm and sunny. In the afternoon they ran the same session as last week in light rain. Very cooling. Ewen reports the post training stretches were done standing, as the grass was too wet! Last week it was the bighty bugs that provoked complaints. Never happy, I don't know!

Thursday’s scheduled track program
6.00 1000/5000m walk
6.20 200m hurdles
6.30 100m Boag
6.45 4x1500m relay
7.20 200m Daniels, 200m scratch
7.45 Medley relay 2x200m, 1x400m, 1x800m
8.00 Spiral 7
Hmmm. Some people have been known to take an hour for a 5000m walk.

song of the week: I have added “Up and Up” to the blog “song of the week” playlist … on the side bar.

Keep On Running

My training progress
last week’s target: n/a
achieved: 37k
year total to date: 3,515k in 47 weeks
this week’s target: 84k
weight: 66.5kg ►◄
quote of the week from Kerry O’Brien, of the ABC, during the election telecast - “With 60% of the vote counted, the swing to the ABC is ...”.
song of the week: “Up and Up”, by Relient K, from "Five Score Years and Seven" - "To be content with where I am, and getting where I need to be".

After a four day break last week, normal training will be resumed this week. I will keep on running as originally planned. But slowly.

Innabaayna 7k
5 Ewen Thompson M50 41:12 bronze
7 Mick Horan M45 29:03
23 Sonia Veldhoven W30 32:27
31 Rod Lynch M45 27:32
35 David Webster M55 32:07
46 Christopher Lang M55 38:06
53 Mick Charlton M55 38:24
57 Alan Duus M60 35:58
61 Charlie McCormack W40 33:03
71 Amanda Walker W35 34:23
72 Richard Faulks M45 28:48
73 Barbara Tucker W55 39:06
82 Roger Pilkington M45 35:01
90 Geoff Barker M60 46:26

Innabaayna 3.5k
6 Gary Bowen M50 14:49
8 Cathy Montalto W55 17:55
9 Neil Boden M55 16:17
26 Rae Palmer W60 19:38

This month many of us were rostered on to help so did not compete. Ewen said he jogged it. Seeing his time I now realise that's true. Ewen, you are the early favourite for the 2008 point score.

Maria and Christopher at the end-of-year awards


Maria did brilliantly all year, averaging better than 85% in the age standards, second over-all. Photo by John Kennedy.

Bennelong Time Coming

Yes folks, we finally got to the last Vets Handicap race of the year, and were able to see presented not just the monthly prizes, but the yearly awards as well.

Who were the winners? They included:
Bronze Medallist in the Thomas event (7km) for November - Ewen Thompson.

2007's Frylink Series point score gold medallist - Ken White

2007's Thomas Series Age Percentage silver medallist - Maria O'Reilly

2007's Frylink Series Age Percentage silver medallist - Ken White
2007's Frylink Series Age Percentage bronze medallist - Katie Forestier

All wonderful results and worthy winners. A special congratulations to Ken for winning the Frylink series. And Maria's consistently high age adjusted percentages were awesome, only Peter Kallio's surpassed hers.

Very latest news from the outside world
"Take extra-special care of your appearance when walking around Australian capital city streets this summer, as one nose pick or bum scratch could be immortalised on Google Maps forever.

"Google-branded cars with roof-mounted cameras have just begun traversing our streets, taking highly detailed panoramic street-level photos for a new Maps feature called Street View."

See the full article at http://www.theage.com.au/news/web/googles-candid-camera-snaps-australia/2007/11/23/1195753275851.html

We are all under scrutiny folks, not just the high profile types.

Keeping a Low Profile


Mick Charlton, regular competitor and quiet achiever, out there again today doing his best. Photo taken a year or so back

Come From Behind Win!

Helen surprised herself and a lot of young defense girls by winning the Bonshaw cup!

She was in fifth place for the first 2km, then second for another 2km, finally doing the 6.4km in 27.01.

So Helen's name goes on the trophy along with some very outstanding names from previous years.

And of course Helen won the Vets trophy too.

Helen at Brindabella 2007

Making a Splash
My swimming is resuming in earnest. After a five year break from swimming - and I never swum at all until I was over 40 years old - I have resumed weekly swimming sessions at the AIS, and plan to take it very easy initially and build up with an aim of achieving a six minute 400m when I turn 60. Or close to it. (As a swimmer I am a very good runner). So yesterday I did 10 x 100 on 3 minutes i.e. had very long rests between each effort; I really just need to work into it gradually. I will be doing interval swim training of various kinds and I will note here what I do.

The other new thing I have started doing is easy gym work; I have NO strength and NO flexibility! So the softly softly approach is again the go. My arms were sore from weights on Wednesday. I sure am unfit! The Charnwood gym/centre I am attending is most impressive: aimed at older people, I find I am just as useless at the stretches and lifts as the more sedentary oldies there. What impresses me most is the personal attention and catering for each individual determined by where they are at. And the latest information on exercising and strengthening is well researched and implemented.

Running Barefoot on the Grass
I ran at Stromlo this morning; John and Diana joined me, they were so inpressed (and IMpressed as well) they ran barefoot on the grass. I will later. I was so impressed I will start Saturday morning training there. Join me 9am Saturdays starting 8 December. Bring hat, drinks, insect repellent. I will work out a balance between Saturday and Monday training, depending on who comes Saturdays. We could do sprints: each 100m is marked; or we could do medium or long intervals; or we could disappear on long hilly runs up the mountain bike circuit!

Making your Mark
I vote for more games; online games are getting better and better. For example, I just loved http://www.pastelstories.com/games/daymare_town.html.

See How They Run
For tonight, see http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/pdf/electioncurve2.pdf; see how they fall. Will there be another come-from-behind win? I have the beer and peanuts at the ready.

It doesn’t matter who you are...

You just want somebody listening to what you say – Square One, Coldplay

Do you like our new promotional leaflet? Cool, eh?

Those of you who responded to the Vets Survey of handicap courses were heard! The course on Sunday has been changed. Great news! Here's a map which shows that the roughest sections of the old course are no longer being used.

And remember it's an 8:30am start this Sunday!

Last night's Vets track was washed out. The 10k that was to have been run has been rescheduled for 6 December - see ACTVAC NEWS. Good thing too because it is a pain going through all the preparations for a big race then having it cancelled. And just maybe I can run it now instead of lap scoring as originally planned?

And for all you Moms out there - it's the Mom Song.

Australia Decides

This Aussie has decided her home is in the US. Or at least the photo below would indicate so. Read her blog for fascinating stories of their trip.


What more could a flashduck want? When she has a little nest in ducktown, and flashdrake on hand?

Meanwhile KiwiBarb is planning to return to Kiwiland. Or is she? Thousands more Kiwis are making the permanent trip from NZ to Australia than are moving from Australia to New Zealand. Hang in here, Barb! And that investment in a Kevin-07 T-shirt won't mean much over the great divide, will it? As for me, I will wait until the Kevin-11 version is released before I invest in one.


WinningBarb. From the latest Vetrunner.

The last three issues of Vetrunner are on the Vets website now!

Meanwhile, the results from the Spring Series run, 5k at the National Library:
30. Mick Horan M45 20:00
68. Kelley Flood W45 22:51
71. Roger Pilkington M45 23:20
89. Neil Boden M55 24:19
97. Adam Robinson M30 25:00
112. Barbara Tucker W55 27:32

Roger is on page two too!


I don't have to tell you who they are, the names are on the shirts!

Diversion

I didn't get to the Spring Series race last night, Jenny and I were invited out to dinner. I must say the last two nights have been as warm as I remember; if it is no warmer when summer comes, it will still be one of those years when we say how difficult it has been training for the Canberra marathon through a worse than average Canberra Summer. I think my best Canberra marathons were after a mild summer, when I could more comfortably complete the long distance training required. So don't expect my form next April to be very good, should I decide to run.

Climate Change
Watched the massive storm clouds move into Canberra - and out again - last night on the BOM website map. No rain, again. Today the BOM are predicting "possible heavy rain" rather than the "possible showers" so popular this year. I wish we would get some real rain, like the good old days, instead of "possible" rain.

Qualifications versus experience
Changing the subject, if experience were the only criterion we used to judge whether an athlete should be selected in a team, or a leader should merit following, we would soon be left with tired old leaders who had run out of ideas, and athletic teams whose members were just marking time. I am attracted to the spark and energy of a bright young person who likes to see everything freshened up and renewed, don't you? The cricket team sub who thrills with impossible catches and slick run-outs; the athletics team member who doesn't just challenge the status quo but doesn't even know what the status quo is? The leader who starts out as an idealist, with a mix of truth and compassion, rather than a mix of truth and deception. Renewal is good.

Contentment versus complacency
We have brains for a reason. Discernment is a good thing. Dare I use the word, we are supposed to discriminate. Let's make our choices make sense.

Isn't it interesting that many "wise" old observers of athletics will say that the hero of yesterday was better than the hero of today. I think this is true in one sense: I think there were fewer heroes then so they stood out more! I think this is false in another sense - there are many heroes now, we can all qualify. Don't underestimate what you are capable of, and in particular, never rely on other peoples' approval or disapproval to control how you feel about what you do. Many of you are heroes; just because you don't stand out enough to be acknowledged means nothing.

Reversion
Thursday night's track events will be:
6:00 1500m Walk (PH)
6.15 100m (B)
6.30 800m
6.50 200m (D), 200m (scratch)
7.10 4x400m Relay
7.30 10,000m
I plan to lap score for Ewen and Strewth in the 10,000m.... I will be optimistic and take serious wet weather gear.

Ironic really - I am a champion of handing over the reins to the next generation, but I work hard in Veterans Athletics circles. More on this soon!

What's good...

...for the geese ... The last monthly handicap will be on this Sunday, many of us are taking our turn officiating rather than running... Christmas is coming... standing around in the shade sounds appealing... on Sunday it will be with food in hand... and we will be saying farewell to Sonia, one of our very fastest newest goslings, who is moving to Melbourne.

Fresh Face in Canberra

Last night's training at Parliament House, Canberra saw one fresh face in the training group - Lisa joining us after a couple of years out of action. We ran on three levels - something we were able to do again, also after a couple of years, because the "One Way" signs have been moved to safer spots.

Climate Change
Present at training were Alan, Amanda, Cathy, Emma, Ewen, me, Helen, Joel, Kelley, Lisa, Margaret, Maria, Peter, Rachelle, Richard, Ruth, Sonia and Yelena. It was very hot - the temperature has been sitting on 10 to 12 above average the last week. Will it be a hot summer? You bet.

On the Level
Lower level - bitumen path - 4 x 40 seconds on 2 minutes, alternating directions.
--2 minute break--
Middle level - gravel path - 4 x 40 seconds on 2 minutes, alternating directions.
--2 minute break--
Higher level - dirt (was grass)path - 4 x 40 seconds on 2 minutes, alternating directions.

Thankfully all three tracks were well shaded, and there was plenty of water on hand.

Once Bitten Twice Shy
The stretching session at the end in the shade will have resulted in all participants resolving to bring aeroguard next week.

Coming Event - Spring Series 5k at the National Library, 6pm today.

Coming Event - Vets track this Thursday, 800m and 10000m. Hurray, the Thursday forecast is "relatively cool" compared with the rest of this week.

Coming Event - Bonshaw Cup 6.4k, this Friday at HMAS Harman. Registration closes at: 1030; Race start: 1100 walkers, 1130 runners. Entry Fee: $10.00 per person (includes trophies, prizes and lunch)

Coming Event - Vets handicap and end-of-year prize giving, this Sunday morning, Innabaanya. There will be a sausage sizzle after the handicaps. Payment is by gold coin donation which goes to the ACT Cancer Council.


Put on your running gear, come outside and join us!

Please put a penny in the old man's hat

My training progress
last week’s target: 58k
achieved: 46k
year total to date: 3,478 in 46 weeks
this week’s target: n/a
weight: 66.5kg ▲
The hamstring injury I sustained on 14 Oct is seriously impeding me. So I am setting no targets this week until it is better.
Song of the week: Make This Go On Forever (Snow Patrol)

The Green Green Grass of Stromlo

Stromlo Cross Country

Today I ran at the new facility at Stromlo. I was very, very pleased to see Adam, Roger, Ewen and Kathy having a run there as well, and Christopher called by to say Hi. Those of you who forgot it was on or didn't make it for whatever reason missed out on a unique experience, ha ha I ran there before you.

Wonderful course
Now what? I would like to start training there; why don't we plan to meet next Saturday 24 Nov at 9:00am and have a training run? The venue is ideal for the kind of interval training we used to do at North Lyneham, but of course it is an infinitely better surface. Please contact me (a) if you will join me just this Saturday, or (b) if you want to try out the course and prefer another time, and I will see what I can do.

Start this Saturday then decide where to from here
The course is marked every 100m and has several choices of direction and gradient. Another reason for trying it on Saturday is to check who else is around, if the toilets are open, whether there are any problems using the area.

New hub for running, training and racing
It should become the main hub for the Canberra running community. A big advantage is, it is central, easy to get to. At the moment, little shade and maximum exposure to the elements is a short-coming, but in years to come the trees will grow and the surrounds will become most attractive. As it is, the views are magnificent!

You could even run in bare feet
if you wanted to. I will try out my "Frees".

I have been told it will be always open


so let's hope there are no teething troubles!

After that there will be a Spring Series race
there on 4 December, again over 5k, which will give you and me the opportunity to repeat the experience. And then I will get a concensus and decide if we will be training there regularly. Members of many other training group represented there today were raving about the course! So even if we don't end up having organised sessions there, I may just train there regardless when I can.

Amoeba



The two lap course was run in around 22 mins by Roger & Ewen, around 25:40 by me & 26 mins or so by Adam. Kathy ran about half of the elite 8k race but at that very fast pace experienced hamstring problems - I know how she feels!

"A profile of patience and persistence".

Thursday Vets track results
400m
M45 Rod Lynch 68.24 71.1%
M50 Gary Bowen 69.44 71.3
W35 Emma Adams 70.56 72.8
M55 Mick Saunders 77.69 67.6

3000m
M45 Rod Lynch 10:51.13 75.4%
W35 Emma Adams 12:08.64 71.0
M55 Geoff Moore 12:24.79 72.8
M50 Gary Bowen 12:45.37 65.7
M45 Roger Pilkington 12:50.47 64.3
W45 Helen Larmour 13:37.53 70.1
M30 Adam Robinson 13:51.61 53.8
W55 Ruth Baussmann 15:55.07 67.6
W60 Margaret McSpadden 16:31.55 68.0

4x200 Relay
W40 Katie Forestier & W35 Emma Adams in a team that ran 1:57.09
M50 Gary Bowen in a team that ran 2:07.40

Pennington 1500m
2 Colin Farlow M45 4:44 81.8%
3 Ken White M50 5:14 79.5
4 Rod Lynch M45 5:15 74.4
7 Tony Booth M65 6:11 76.2
8 Katie Forestier W40 5:36 73.9
11 Helen Larmour W45 5:56 75.8
14 Neil Boden M55 6:13 68.6
15 Mick Saunders M55 6:14 69.6
18 Roger Pilkington M45 6:33 60.2
21 Adam Robinson M30 6:42 51.3

spiral 6
2 Tony Booth M65 12:19
5 Roger Pilkington M45 11:01
9 Gary Bowen M50 10:19
12 Margaret McSpadden W60 13:57
15 Neil Boden M55 11:07
18 Ruth Baussmann W55 13:13
22 Mick Saunders M55 11:16

Track Highlights
Emma running her first ever track 3000m. A good time too, running by herself, and in very hot conditions.

Colin running second in the Pennington race, again to "newcomer" Bruce Graham, as happened in the 3000m. Could be an up-hill battle to take the series from here, but I know Colin will patiently persist!

Blog enhancement
I have completed a little project to add "no frills tabs” above the posts, "Who we are", "Where we train" etc. This reduces the number of things down the right-hand side bar. And makes the good stuff easier to access.

Tor den Tålmodige – this article just has to inspire everyone over 50!
From the article:
Secret #1: The guy really loves to run, pure and simple.
Secret # 2: "I always listen to my body. If I feel good, I run. If I am tired, I rest. Also, if I have to paint the house or work in the garden."
Secret #3: Train in a place where the land is brutal but beautiful. The terrain strengthens you heart and legs. The place strengthens your soul. You'll need both to win.
Secret # 4: "I have learned this much. Races are won in the weeks and months of training before. I don't worry about pre-race routines."
Secret # 5: If the training program is working, don't fix it! Appreciate the process and press on.

Snap Happy


SpeedyJenny returned from Brisbane this week with hundreds of MooreGrandChildren photos. Here's Charlie!

The highlight of this week

Thanks everyone for your friendly comments and emails; a highlight for me this week.

The BIG highlight of this week will be the opening of the new cross country course at Stromlo this Sunday. Already in continual use for most of 2007 for biking and mountain biking, the facility will now boast a 2.5k cross country circuit, after much long and careful preparation, despite the drought. Sunday's opening is simply NOT TO BE MISSED. We get to run over the course at 10:30, then stay and watch the country's best.

The latest media release: (typos left in unamended)

Media Release: Australia ’s Elite distance runners gather to celebrate the birth of a running Mecca in Canberra

Australia ’s elite distance runners will gather in Canberra this Sunday for their first taste of the Stromlo Forest Park Cross Country track, named after 1983 World Marathon Champion and Australian of the Year, long-time Canberra resident, Robert De Castella, who will be on had to start the mens elite race.

The elite womens 8km race starting at 11:30am is impossible to pick. The clash between the strength and experience of established runners with international credentials and the fearless running of a group of outstanding juniors will be captivating. Former world #1 triathlete Annabel Luxford will be out to upset the runners with her coach and former world champion triathlete/duathlet e and Commonwealth Games Marathon Bronze medallist Jackie Fairweather (nee Gallagher) keeping her honest. Local World Championship representative Sarah Salmon will have to contend with Australian Ekiden representative Sarah Lofts and top city to surf finisher Melinda Vernon. Melbourne Marathon top performers Lisa Dick and Billinda Schipp will challenge. Schipp, also coached by Fairweather, has shown a great return to form after the birth of her first child and will be strong, as will local and former Australian rep Joy Terry. The young guns will be led by Australian Ekiden representative Tara Palm and multiple national age record holder ACT’s Emily Brichacek. Can they surprise their elders and usher in a new era?

The elite male 8km race starts at 12:10pm and boasts multiple Olympian Lee Troop, Melbourne Marathon winner Rohan Walker and Australian Ekiden Representatives; Mark Tucker, Ben St Lawrence, Andrew White and local Erwin McCrae. They will have to contend with current World Mountain Running representatives Scott Mctaggart and Mark Bourne and a host of other Australian Representatives. The favourite in the mens race, Martin Dent has shown his versatility at distances from 5km to the Marathon and his 4th in the Melbourne Commonwealth games Steeplechase was memorable as he fearlessly chased the Kenyans. Dent has recently won the Noosa Bolt and Burnie ten and was second to Brett Cartwright in the Melbourne Half Marathon. Cartwright showed awesome form in Melbourne but has been hampered by injury and is in doubt for the race. The race also signals the return of former Australian representative and local Dean Cavuoto to elite running after beating cancer.

The world class facility has been integral to attracting a strong field as the athletes can’t wait to get a feel for the track that will regularly be used to host Australian Championships. However they will have to wait for the schools race at 10am and the community 5km race at 10:30am before they get their chance. It’s your chance to beat Australia ’s elite distance runners!

Contacts:
For details of the circuit - Robert de Castella 0411 182 345
For information about the events – Dave Hobson 6258 2676 or Race Day 0408 233 436

The High Life

Spring Series race Tuesday: Weston Park 5k (in fact ~4.87k)
Women
7. Maria O'Reilly W50 21:26
15. Rachelle Ellis-Brownlee W35 22:18
22. Thea Zimpel 23:43
25. Kelley Flood W45 23:56
42. Ruth Baussmann W55 27:15
43. Annette Sugden W45 27:23

Men
18. Richard Faulks M45 18:43
43. Roger Pilkington M45 22:06
44. Geoff Moore M55 22:09
48. Peter McDonald M50 22:52
50. Mick Saunders M55 22:56
55. David Baussmann M55 23:40
58. Neil Boden M55 23:55
65. Geoff Barker M60 24:49
76. Mick Charlton M55 27:56

Living at altitude – some food for thought at http://www.pfitzinger.com/hat.shtml.

Interestingly the article proposes that living at a high altitude and training at a low altitude has the most benefit! I am not sure how we organise to do that, what with the cost of fuel, groceries etc at the highest points in Australia.

Although, even a place with a less high altitude (in Canberra my training routes vary from 500m to 650m) has some of the benefits of higher places.

My positives about living in Canberra
Air – clean, relatively speaking. Less than it used to be admittedly, especially on Northbourne avenue where the Sydney traffic arrives from, but generally crisp and pleasant, particularly in winter.
Athletics – a good spirit among the clubs here, and plenty of different kinds of sporting clubs in close proximity.
Adventure – close to the mountains, close to the sea, and with oodles of local attractions.
Altitude - as discussed.
And that’s just the a’s.

My negatives
Allergies. being in the wheat belt can bring on year round allergies, and Canberra is such a place.
Attitude. Ignorant Australians from elsewhere, often Queenslanders (but not all of them!), have a stupid attitude towards us, they think politicians come from Canberra. We know that’s wrong, they come TO Canberra from everywhere else. My fellow Australians, we don’t need your hate or your pity.
ARL etc. The obsession Canberra media has with the “bully” and “thug” sports is annoying, but understandable I suppose given that all the “national” news is from Sydney.
Altitude - a down side for us outdoor types is, an increased skin cancer risk due to much higher UV levels.
And that’s just the a’s.

But as the article suggests, 600m isn’t really altitude, you start getting benefits from about 2,000m. And a negative of living at 2,000m metres in Australia is the lack of anywhere you’d really want to stay for very long. I suppose a positive is that you’d be well away from those damned politicians.

The worst scenario for fitness would be living at sea level in a highly polluted island near the equator where the temperature and humidity is forever extreme, i.e. Singapore (sorry Karmin!), which place would otherwise be an exciting and stimulating environment, the centre of the universe!

But even in Singapore where I lived for nine weeks I found some lovely places to run. We humans are after all very adaptable creatures! And could it be that the advantages of altitude are fairly minor. And dare I say it, partly psychological? I think, to do well you only need to bring an "altitude attitude" to the place where you live and train. Expect to improve where you are, with who you are, and with what you have, with what you are doing. A spirit of contentment is a wonderful thing. A spirit which many of us who are highly motivated, highly ambitious, could learn to welcome and foster. Aim high on the one hand, enjoy the levels you attain on the other.


Happy Australians enjoying running in Cool Canberra

Run first then stretch

Optimal training means you stretch at the end

"Is stretching before running harmful?" Thus begins an article in http://askcoachjenny.runnersworld.com/2007/09/posted-by-amber.html which contains the following advice:

"For the sake of time efficiency and getting the most in with the least amount of risk, I believe the best stretching strategy for runners is the following.
"Warm up with 5 minutes of brisk walking. It gradually diverts circulation to the working muscles, increases heart rate and breathing. It is the best way to prepare your body for the upcoming run.

Take the next 5-10 minutes and run at a very easy pace continuing to increase heart rate, breathing and circulation.

Then work into your planned running regimen [easy, long, speed...]

Cool down with easy 5 minutes of running and then 5 minutes of walking. This is the exact opposite of the warm up. The cool down is very important as it returns your body back to its resting state.

Finish with flexibility exercises to improve/maintain range of motion in your muscles, joints and tendons."

As followed in my Monday routine:

4:30pm very very slow warmup

5:30pm very slow warmup

6:00pm interval training

6:30pm slow cooldown

6:35pm stretching

6:40pm very slow cooldown

Know your limits when you exercise

Just what were the Crows thinking?

Races of interest this Thursday

Time	Event
6.40 pm	3000m
7.00 pm	400m
7.20 pm	1500m Pennington
8.00 pm	4x200m relay
8.15 pm	spiral 6

Monday night training
Adam, Amanda, Barbara, Emma, Ewen, Helen, Joel, Kelley, Ken, MickH, Neil, Ruth, Sonia, and Yelena joined me on a sultry evening at Parliament House to run four intervals over 700m each with a bit of a jog in between, and some stretching afterwards. Annette passed by, I also spotted Prue in the distance on one occasion, walking home from work. Back to shorter/faster next week?

ACTVAC
Have you noticed that the ACTVAC website now makes more than just the latest Vetrunner available for down-loading?

Currently October and November are there. December is due to be added about two weeks from now.

And I have improved and simplified Vets NEWS. Does anyone have items they would like me to add to Vets News? Get them to me anytime at all. I regularly make updates and changes. And you can also pass on to me any comments and observations about the website and I will SEE WHAT I CAN DO.

Adelaide Crows
I have just discovered the inspiration for the uniform used by my footy team, the Adelaide Crows. Via a bit of a detour, I am pretty sure this post is the true source: it contains excerpts from a 1977 clothing catalog including the photo in question. I refrained from commenting on the post as there are over 450 comments there already. Mr Bob Saget is wearing the uniform. He looks like a friendly fellow.



Clearly it was such an attractive look that the Crows couldn't resist adopting it as their permanent uniform.

Snappy Time

Weekend results - Mt Majura
One-Peak 15 km run
Males
6 Roger Pilkington 1.23.07
9 Peter McDonald 1.32.16
15 Peter Hogan 1.42.19

Females
3 Helen Larmour 1.17.45
5 Charlie McCormack 1.23.07
6 Maria O'Reilly 1.23.07
11 Bronwyn Calver 1.31.55
12 Caroline Campbell 1.33.26

Two-Peaks 26 km run
Males
21 Mick Horan 2.34.43
24 Geoff Barker 2.44.46

Females
4 Emma Adams 2.26.30
5 Kelley Flood 2.27.54

Also on Sunday, the “Ben Donohoe” Fun Run; Barbara Tucker was third woman veteran. Well done!

My training progress
last week’s target: 76k
achieved: 72k
year total to date: 3,432k in 45 weeks
this week’s target: 58k
weight: 65.5kg ▼
song of the week: “Headlights on Dark Roads”, by Snow Patrol, from "Eyes open".

I can't really see where I am going; I seemed to do OK this week despite my back causing trouble. I don't seem to be able to predict from week to week how Thursday's track races will go; some weeks I am way faster than others, for no particular reason. This will be week four of my new training régime, and I will keep hanging in there. In theory, I should start noticing some results soon. Let's hope the results are positive ones. I will be easing off slightly and looking for a snappy time in the 3000m this week.

Kelley snapped snapping.


A quick return to form saw Kelley run a great "Two Peaks" race yesterday. Well ahead of two speedyganders! Peter who ran one-peak is in the photo too, and some other old geezer. And look, there's the other twin peaker, Emma, in the background.

Events and Results

Still catching up on events from around the Territory:

ACT Athletics
Track season is underway on Saturdays with three weeks of interclub competition having been completed.

27 Oct
100m Thea Zimpel 16.20
400m Thea Zimpel 1:17.40
1500m Thea Zimpel 6:01.36

3 Nov
100m Thea Zimpel 15.92
3000m Kathy Southgate 10:42.87 (Australian W50 record)
5000m Thea Zimpel 22:15.98

10 Nov
60m Thea Zimpel 10.06
300m Thea Zimpel 52.50
1000m Thea Zimpel 3:42.87

There are two more interclub competitions before Christmas. The middle distance races at these are

17 Nov
4:40pm 800m
6:00pm 3000/5000

1 Dec
4:15pm 1500m

Then on 3 and 10 January, ACT Athletics and Vets will be combining as they did this year.

Relay preview
There are no ACT W35 records for 4x800m or 4x1500m, and the W45 records are soft ones. The first opportunity to set a new record is on 29 November when the 4x1500m relay will be held. I know there are a number of speedygeese who are in those age groups. There's a 1500m this coming Thursday when you can try yourself over the distance and stake a claim for a team!

Race Report - Mt Majura Vineyard Two Peaks Classic and One Peak Challenge, 10 November (by John Harding)

Scott Imhoff of Weston Creek and Narelle Patrick of Yass took advantage of the cool overcast conditions to break the course records in today's Mt Majura Vineyard One Peak Challenge. Imhoff clocked 62 mins 25 seconds for the 15 km circuit up and down Mt Majura to finish almost 5 minutes ahead of runner up Travis Haslam with 67:10 and third placed Brent Rebecca with 67:53. Patrick finished fifth outright in running 71:08, with former champion Judith May next with 75:38 and last minute entrant Helen Larmour third in 77:45.

Stuart Doyle of Hackett took out the 26 km Two Peaks Classic for the second year running in 1 hr 48 mins 25 secs, defeating 2007 Brindabella Classic winner Damian Green who ran 1:54:40 and world M55 mountain running champion Trevor Jacobs who clocked 1:56:04.

There was no fairy tale 40th birthday victory for Jackie Fairweather in the women's field as Angela Bateup of Yass produced a scintillating performance, running 1:54:44 to be only a minute outside the course record of former world champion Emma Murray. Fairweather was runner-up in 2:01:46 and immediately headed out for extra kilometres to chalk up 40 kms for the day to mark her birthday. Orienteering international Jo Allison was third in 2:16:56.

Helen in very good company


Another day, another race, Charlie, Amanda, Helen and Maria

Go Helen!