post #1999

which is good, it means I won't have to dream up a title at least today, nor tomorrow, nor on Tuesday.

From the AMRA website:
World race walking greats Robert Korzeniowski of Poland and Nathan Deakes of Australia enjoyed the camaraderie of the unfamiliar experience of running up Mt Kosciuszko and finished together in 6th place in [Friday's] Kosciuszko Run from Charlotte Pass Village to the mountain summit. Korzeniowski, the four-time Olympic gold medallist, was in Australia to help celebrate the 170th anniversary of the discovery of t Kosciuszko by Polish explorer Sir Paul Edmund Strezelecki. Deakes, the former world record holder and world champion for the 50 km walk, hosted his former Olympic rival.
A Polish television crew followed the race but the National Park ranger’s vehicle with the TV cameraman could not keep up with the sizzling pace set by 4-time Australian mountain running champion Scott McTaggart of Canberra who clocked 45.33 despite a fierce headwind over the final 5 kms. So McTaggart did a few re-runs of his finish sprint for the benefit of the cameras once the crew reached the summit.
The minor placings were filled by Australian mountain running representatives John Winsbury and Stuart Doyle of Canberra in 49.29 and 50.08 respectively.
Well performed Canberra distance runner Hannah Flannery ran 56.58 to be fastest female, with Darwin professional triathlete Ali Fitch second in 1.02.31 and Bronwyn White of Newcastle third in 1.14.54.
The race was sponsored by Strzelecki Heritage Inc, the Heart Foundation and Kosciuszko National Park, and organised by the Australian Mountain Running Association. Race organisers were John Harding, John Kennedy, Diana Schneider and Kerry Muir. The wind was so strong in gusts pre-start that when John Kennedy had the rear door of his van open to get his gear, a powerful gust blew out one of his rear side windows. [those who have seen John’s van would not be surprised by this - Geoff]

Males: 1 Scott McTaggart 45.33, 2 John Winsbury 49.29, 3 Stuart Doyle 50.08, 4 Robin Rishworth 55.36, 5 Simon White 57.18, 6 eq Robert Korzeniowski 59.54, 6 eq Nathan Deakes 59.54, 8 Jared Sullivan 1.03.31, 9 Greg White 1.04.36, 10 Matthew Darcy 1.13.53, 11 Michael Burt 1.27.12, 12 Kieran O'Connor 1.28.05, 13 Geoff Barker 1.28.37, 14 Jarek Odwazny 1.29.33, 15 William Chin 1.30.17, 16 Henryk Klocek 1.35.18.
Females: 1 Hannah Flannery 56.58, 2 Ali Fitch 1.02.31, 3 Bronwyn White 1.14.54, 4 Kerri Louttit 1.15.15, 5 Colleen Koh 1.30.17, 6 Kate Kasia Swaczynski 1.34.54, 7 Violetta Kazmierski 1.38.46.

Photos from Colleen's facebook page. ("a tribute, not plagiarism")

a very happy blogger

from my blogging helpdesk:
Blogger [has just] released their new template library. Instead of a static library, though, they chose to provide

• An array of combinable choices. 
• Multiple, exciting styles.
•  huge library of theme organised backgrounds, each with an associated colour palette.
• A selection of layouts, 
• with symmetrical combinations of 2, 3, and 4 columns
• with and without split sidebars
• in both left and right variations
• Adjustable column widths.
• An updated Fonts and Colors GUI interface, with selections for new template objects like Static Pages Indexes.

From the Draft Blogger dashboard, select "Layout". From the navbar (with Draft selected), select "Customize" (This link is not yet available.) From "Page Elements", then select "Template Designer" - and check out the possibilities.

What we have, in Draft Blogger now, is an almost infinite variety of possibilities, which should keep many bloggers happily occupied for days!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Some bloggers are starting to feel confused about Blogger and their options.
Right now, we have the following options, all ordered separately.

Classic vs Layout template.

• Your blog is configured for a Classic (HTML) template using Layout - "Edit HTML" - "Revert".
• Your blog is configured for a Layout (XML) template using Template - "Customize Design".
• Your blog requires a Layout template, to have Gadgets, "Older Posts" / "Newer Posts" links, and Dynamic Label indexes.
• Your blog can use HTML content in a Layouts template, but cannot use XML content in a Classic template.

New Post Editor vs Old Post Editor.

• The new post editor and old post editor are alternately selected, using Settings - Basic - "Global Settings".
• The new post editor is required for the enhanced photo upload wizard and for static pages.
• The old post editor is required, for spell check and video upload.
• If you get the New Post Editor, it will apply to all of your blogs. If you are a member of a team blog, all members of the team will end up with the New Post Editor.

Draft (Blue) vs Production (Orange) Blogger.

• Draft Blogger is accessed directly, as "draft.blogger.com".
• Production Blogger is accessed directly, as "www.blogger.com".
• Production Blogger will redirect to Draft Blogger, if you select "Make Draft Blogger my default", from the Draft Dashboard.
• Draft Blogger is required to access the Designer Templates wizard.

So know your options, and pick what you need.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I have a calendar and a to do list which, if allowed, would run my life.
Instead of me being in charge, the calendar would be in charge.
It helps that I don't "go to work", but it is still the case my plans to get all the things done that need to be done, ot that I have committed to and therefore feel obliged to spend time on, can end up controlling me rather than me controlling them.

So here are seven principles which should be the real priorities in my life.

• Family is always first
• One day off each week
• Leave email/facebook/blog alone when engaged in important tasks
• Get out for a walk/jog/run/drive whenever possible
• Start the day with devotions
• Put together a "stop doing" list
• Plan the next holiday when the previous one finishes

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Finally, speedygeese at the Jogalong on 7 March
Emma Adams 25:50
Michelle Wells 26:49
Caroline Campbell 33:32
Sharene Hurnen 39:46
Thea Zimpel 44:24 (ran with a friend)
134 finishers

Milton Valentine

Honest John Award

Helen at BBQ Stakes

Helen receives her Honest John award for 2009. Photo by Emma.

speedygeese in the six foot track

Ewen, Cathy, Graeme, Ewen, Graeme. Photos at http://www.marathon-photos.com/

second chance

Fat Chance 2

Superbly muscled

Summer Series Race #7 - Lake Ginninderra 7.1k

35.     Maria O'Reilly          32:57

43.     Cathy Newman        35:07

49.     Roger Pilkington     36:44

58.     Susan Sturgeon       38:40

59.     Neil Boden              38:57

63.     Caroline Campbell   40:41

68.     Margaret McSpadden 42:18

74 finishers

Milton Valentine

Dear Friends

On Wednesday last week Milton felt that his body was deteriorating, he asked me to call Cass, Dylan, Ryan and Kasey to talk to them and let them know that he felt that things were changing.  On Thursday I contacted his mother, brother and sister in Melbourne to ask them to come up to Canberra.  They arrived Thursday evening and Milton was sitting up and talking to all...we shared a lovely evening together with all of his family at the hospice.  Milton had very little energy and conversations were short.  That night was very disturbing, Milton coughed consistently and his lungs were filling up, he felt an enormous pressure in this area as well as the persistent pain through his body.  Quentin arrived at lunch time Friday and Milton had very few conversations of only a few words during Friday, it was clear that he was declining.  Milton did not really gain consciousnesses on Saturday, however he was aware of the people around the spoke a few words which took some much energy from his weak body. 

The family left late on Saturday night and Cass and Dylan stayed in a spare room at the hospice.  At 4am I woke and the night nurse said that ”it was getting close’’ as Milton’s pulse was almost non detectable.  I sat with him  and held his hand and watched his breathing slow down -  he slipped away at 5:40am and seemed very much at peace.  Cass and Dylan and I then sat with Milton for a while and then the rest of the family came back out to the hospice.

It was a beautiful crisp autumn morning over the lake and we watched the hot air balloons rise and pass the hospice.  Peace in the world again.

-  Ann-Maree McTaggart

================================================================

Milton’s funeral will be held on Thursday 18 March at the Norwood Park Crematorium, Sandford Street Mitchell commencing at 1:30pm.   Notices will be placed in Wednesday’s edition of the Canberra Times and also the Melbourne paper. To celebrate Milton’s life please wear something PURPLE or ribbons will be available at the service to wear. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Cancer Research Council (envelopes will be provided). We’d love you to record a brief memory of Milton that touched your life. A memory box will be available in which these may be placed. 

===============================================================

"God bless this tiny little boat, And me who travels in it. It stays afloat for years and years, And sinks within a minute. And so the soul in which we sail, Unknown by years of thinking, Is deeply felt and understood, The minute that it’s sinking." – Michael Leunig.

================================================================

Weston Creek Half Marathon 2010

A very big turn-out of  speedygeese at the annual Weston Creek Half Marathon saw speedygeese win two (or three if you count Liz as a speedygoose) category prizes and nine barrel draw prizes - it was worth hanging around afterwards! There were many big PBs as well.

Official results -
22. Elizabeth Bennett W45 1:30.51 second female, first W45
39. Mick Horan M50 1:33:30
45. Nadine Morrison W40 1:34:08 fifth female, first W40
54. Geoff Moore M60 1:35:44
64. Andrew Matthews M50 1:37:18
67. Debbie Cowell W50 1:37:52
78. Warrick Howieson M35 1:38:59
82. Brett Morrison M40 1:39:38
92. Kylie Malone W35 1:41:05
93. Jennifer Bright W30 1:41:06
96. Janene Kingston W45 1:41:31
98. Helen Larmour W50 1:41:58
113. Maria O'Reilly W55 1:43:45 first W55
117. Craig Davis M40 1:44:13
119. Bronia Rowe 1:44:23
150. Suzie Gye W30 1:50:42
156. Bronwyn Calver W40 1:53:16
169. Alan Duus M60 1:55:58
171. Colleen Koh W30 1:56:05
189. Miranda Rawlinson W55 1:59:20
193. Ruth Baussmann W55 2:00:24
254 (individual) finishers

Weston Creek Half Marathon Relay Teams
1. RUN FAT BOY RUN MFF 1:31:36
Ken White M55
Katie Forestier W40
Amanda Walker W40

2. UN-SPEEDY FEMS FFF 1:33:01
Rachelle Ellis-Brownlee
Melissa Clarke
Heidi Johnston

22. TWO SLOW GEESE FF 2:01:06
Caroline Campbell W65
Margaret McSpadden W60

43. ROBBO AND SON MM 2:15:44
Adam Robinson
Laurie Robinson M60

49. MELANIES FF 2:41:24
Melanie Tait
Melanie Brooks

54 relay teams finished! Our relay teams did extremely well: I managed to get a minute (?) clear of Heidi and Ken on their first leg; then stay about a minute (?) clear of Rachelle and Amanda on their second leg; then my wheels fell off and I almost walked the last few kilometers as about 15 people passed me including the two final relay runners Katie and Melissa, who were probably running sub 4 minute per km pace for the first part of their run. We usually win the relay section; the times this year were faster than previous years.

Then on Monday some of us backed up again for training, but numbers were down a bit because of the Half. Present were Andrew, Caroline, Christopher, Craig, Emma, Garry, me, Helen, Jennifer, Joel, Katherine, Kim, Leanne, Maria, Melanie, Neil, Noeline, Richard, Ruth, Sindia, Tim, & Warrick (22 runners). We ran our final speed-endurance session for now, short sprints on the grass in teams of three, over and over again for thirty minutes.

Sad news: I learned yesterday that Milton Valentine passed away on the weekend, after a long illness. If I hear of funeral arrangements I will post them here tomorrow.

flock of geese at launch

What's on this week: (updated Mondays)
Monday 15 March Parliament House 4:30pm jog, 5:30pm speedygeese interval training - speed endurance #6 of 6.
Tuesday 16 March 6:15pm Summer Series race #7 lake Ginninderra 7.1k
Wednesday 17 March 12:15pm BBQ Stakes 6k handicap
Wednesday 17 March 5:45pm Parliament House, easy run.
Thursday 18 March: nothing this week; Dickson oval training under lights will resume on 1 April.
Friday 19 March 12:15pm Customs weekly 5k handicap, Commonwealth Park
Saturday 20 March 7:00am Pack Runs at Molonglo Reach
Saturday 20 March 5:30pm ACTVAC 1500m track championships, Bruce
Sunday 21 March 4:30pm ACTVAC 800m track championships, Bruce

Six Foot Track
People I know who completed the six foot track. The speedygeese are highlighted as usual.
9 Martin FRYER 3:46:36
13 David OSMOND 3:54:13
29 Trevor JACOBS 4:03:57
33 Angela BATEUP 4:05:57
69 Louise SHARP 4:26:44
166 Steve APPLEBY 4:51:50
181 Pam MUSTON 4:55:23
227 Carol BAIRD 5:04:00
300 Kerrie MUIR 5:17:32
303 John KENNEDY 5:17:35
333 Michael THOMPSON 5:21:05
449 Kerrie TANNER 5:40:08
509 Graeme PATRICK 5:49:02
544 Michael CORLIS 5:54:03
646 Catherine MONTALTO 6:13:41
733 Diana SCHNEIDER 6:35:17
750 Ewen THOMPSON 6:39:47
807 finishers. Full results here - http://www.sixfoot.com/results.php
Sharene Hurnen was going well at 4 hours plus, pulled out with some trouble breathing.
Vanessa Haverd – had entered but did not start.

Weston Creek Half Marathon

Colleen and William at the start. From Colleen's facebook page.

Geese at Book Launch

In today's Canberra Times, page 10 of Times2, there are eight pictures from Melanie's book launch. A flock of geese flew in and settled down to be part of the photo shoot. The geese flew off with at least five of the books.

Andrew19

Highlights of this morning's Weston Creek Half Marathon
There were many outstanding performances, and none as outstanding as Andrew's Half Marathon PB by 19 minutes!

Liz who ran with us for the first time the other day was second female overall, and Nadine was fifth overall.

Maria won the W55 division.

Nine of the speedygeese won barrel draw prizes! The first name out of the hat was Ruth's, and they just kept coming; Margaret, Nadine, me, Andrew, Brett, Caroline, Suzie, and the last name out of the hat was Victoria, who won the major random prize. There were other people who won random prizes too. There were a lot of prizes! But it was also a record number of entrants and a record number of starters and a record number of relay teams as well.

And we had a very enjoyable breakfast/lunch afterwards - thanks to Heidi for organising it!

Happy Birthday to Gary, 53 today. Which could explain his absence from the Half Marathon!

Gary53 and friends

Andrew19 at his favourite sport

Andrew's secret isn't the drugs, it's the three months he spent fishing when the rest of us were training.

call me crazy

Call me crazy, please do if you want to, but I am still going to race 21k tomorrow. Non-runners have no idea.

Happy Birthday Christopher, 59 today! But you are still younger than me. And younger than certain others I won't mention (yet).

Pennington Series final results
1 Bruce Graham 149 points
2 Ken White 136
3 Ian McDonald 133
4 Tony Booth 132
5 Katie Forestier 125
6 Amanda Walker 103

Other speedygeese results from Thursday
100m
M60 Garry Maher 14.30 83.3%
W40 Emma Adams 15.20 73.1
W35 Rachelle Ellis-Brownlee 15.77 67.2

100m (Heat 2)
W35 Rachelle Ellis-Brownlee 15.88 66.8%

200m
M60 Garry Maher 28.92 84.6%
W40 Emma Adams 30.53 75.0
W35 Rachelle Ellis-Brownlee 31.64 68.7
W55 Noeline Burden 34.90 77.8

4x200m Relay
W40 Nadine Morrison, M40 Brett Morrison, M50 Angel Marina, M50 Gary Bowen 2:00.9
W60 Jill Brown, W60 Margaret McSpadden, W60 Susan Archer, W60 Margaret Taylor 2:36.14

Crazy? > I AM going crazy seeing the continuing proliferation of inappropriate apostrophes in other people's posts and comments! Or, should that be, apostrophe's in other peoples' post's and comment's? AAAAARRGGh!

Heres another one of John Kennedys' good photo's:

Margaret @ North Curtin

running scared

Happy Birthday Melanie, 30 years old today. You now qualify to join the "Veterans"!

Best wishes to everyone running the Six Foot Track tomorrow. It was great that Ewen amongst many others got in at the last minute. Great except for the fact that many would not have trained properly for it. And great except for the suggestion that a block booking in the first few hours after entries opened may have forced many to miss out initially. If that is what happened, I hope that next time the race organisers give everyone else a couple of days to register before allowing anyone from this selfish group to do so, and then only one at a time.

The 1500m handicap was run last night and here are our approximate times (actual times may be around a second faster) as taken on my watch:
Ken White 5:09 (season's best)
Gary Bowen 5:09 **PB by 8 seconds
Katie Forestier 5:22
Nadine Morrison 5:32 **PB by 11 seconds
Brett Morrison 5:36 **PB by 7 seconds
Amanda Walker 5:39
Janene Kingston 5:53
Kathy Sims 5:59 (equal season's best)
Tony Booth 6:11
Rachelle Ellis-Brownlee 6:19

The official spiral 7 results:
7 Ruth Baussmann W55 14:30
8 Margaret McSpadden W60 16:01
9 Brett Morrison M40 11:51
11 Katie Forestier W40 11:23
13 Gary Bowen M50 11:28
17 Helen Larmour W50 12:22
24 Bronwyn Calver W40 12:53
26 Tony Booth M70 15:13

The official final spiral point scores
Women:
1. Ruth Baussmann 252
2. Bronwyn Calver 226
3. Sherryl Greathead 223
(4. Helen Larmour 221)
Men
1. John Donovan 269
2. Dale Moore 267
3. Gary Bowen 253

An excellent women’s spiral report is at at http://all-rounder.blogspot.com/2010/03/adler-run-won.html - although the best Helen could have done would have been to finish second behind Ruth. Congratulations to Ruth, who says she has been running scared, so thanks to Bronwyn and Helen for pushing her!

cool down

Gary and Ken have got down to sub 5:10s in the last 1500m race before the ACT championships.

Safety Tips for Runners

After the confrontation last Monday, I thought I might raise the topic of safe running. What do you think of these points? Should we in Canberra be more safety conscious than we have been in the past?

You could be taking a risk if you:
Run by yourself
Repeatedly run the same course at the same time of day
Carry an ipod which drowns outside sounds
Run on deserted streets at night
Run with traffic, so that you don’t see cars are coming up behind you

Instead you should

Run in a group and stay together
Vary the route and the time of day that you run
Turn the ipod down if you have to have it, or better still, don’t wear one
Run in familiar areas with other people around
If the same car cruises past you more than once, take down the license number and make it obvious that you are aware of its presence (but keep your distance)

If Confronted

Keep moving, keep running
Run towards other people
Use discretion if someone in a car asks directions

If Attacked
Keep as calm as possible
Try to fix a description of the attacker in your mind
Do not show fear or plead
Try talking while looking for an escape opportunity
Do not fight or struggle unless there is no other option

Canberra is a lot less safe than it used to be, and it only seems to be getting worse. This could happen here -
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-missing-girl3-2010mar03,0,7095226.story

Here is a story which contains references to the same person who threatened on Monday to kill us "by sticking a knife in [our] head"; I have removed the expletives. Apparently he has been there for at least twelve months endangering anyone who goes near "his land"!
http://the-riotact.com/?p=11138

A rather bland version of the story is here:
http://abc-for-kids.com/news/stories/2009/03/07/2510111.htm
Note the year - 2009.

So there you go. We are not alone in being harassed and threatened by this half-wit. But take care wherever you run, there are plenty of dangerous people about.

Speedygeese at Tuesday's Summer Series Race 5: Acton Ferry Terminal 5k
24. Nadine Morrison 20:43
33. Brett Morrison 21:07
35. Michelle Wells 21:10
38. Geoff Moore 21:35
43. Jennifer Bright 22:12
47. Maria O'Reilly 22:30
52. Janene Kingston 23:16
67. Ewen Thompson 24:33
68. Cathy Newman 24:35
74. Graeme Patrick 25:25
81. Miranda Rawlinson 26:09
82. Neil Boden 26:17
86. Ruth Baussmann 26:52
88. Susan Sturgeon 27:29
94. Mick Charlton 28:00
96. Margaret McSpadden 28:24
105. Sharene Hurnen 32:00
108 finishers
+ Acton Ferry Terminal 2k 36 finishers

nice!

Melanie Tait invites us all to DALTONS at 6pm tonight for her book signing. Cnr of Rudd and Marcus Clarke Street, Canberra City. Please come along - there will be nibblies!

Nice new feature: Static Pages
"For many months, bloggers have been asking for the ability to add static pages - pages that do not contain dated posts, and that do not show up in the archive index, or in the main page display - to their blog. Before this year, only the latter possibility existed - posts that would not show up on the main page could be created by publishing posts back dated to appear before the earliest post on the main page. This created "static" pages that still appeared in the archives index - a messy workaround."

"[In January,] true static pages were added to the new post editor." --- continued at
http://blogging.nitecruzr.net/2010/02/new-post-editor-with-static-pages.html

I have just changed a number of my back dated posts to static pages. A very handy new blogger feature, and it makes a blog behave more like a real website.

The tabs along the top all link to static pages now:
About Me
My Training Diary
Articles
About the speedygeese
VENUES: where we train
and these won't appear as posts in the January 2005 archives any more!

Nice run by Nadine last night in the Summer Series 5k at Acton Ferry terminal. She has the ability to throw in hard surges early and still finish in a fast time. I couldn't summon up the energy to run hard for four days in a row and faded badly. But it doesn't matter because today starts a taper leading up to Sunday's Half Marathon. I have decided to have in mind steady 4:30 minutes per km and see how I go. Yes the old stand-by; 4:30s. Should be second nature to ease along at that pace, and I might have something left to speed up towards the end.

Nice T-shirt

It's OK Richard, Ruth's 100 run T-shirt was designed to go below the knees.

Do runners get fewer colds?

Yes. In this post I will focus on what happens with the immune system. Running helps the immune system fight off bacterial and viral infections. And running very likely decreases the incidence of illnesses such as heart disease, osteoporosis, and cancer.

How does running help the immune system function better?
(a) a rise in body temperature helps the body fight infection more effectively - as happens with a fever!
(b) an increase in respiration clears rubbish out of the lungs, reducing the incidence of air-born illness. That "400m cough" could be good for you!
(c) waste products (urine, sweat) are flushed from the body more rapidly; better out than in, especially if carcinogens are amongst the waste being flushed.
(d) blood circulation is improved; antibodies circulate better and reach sites of potential illness earlier; and the increased circulation of blood has other benefits such as the triggering the release of hormones essential to the proper operation of the immune system.
(e) There are also stress-relate hormones whose release is suppressed by running.

So even if you have a lean and trim body; one without the excess fat stores seen in most members of our lazy society; your immune system will thank you if you continue to run and/or do other physical exercise daily.

Can over-training cancel out these benefits?
Yes. Heavier training loads do not result in extra benefits, as far as the immune system is concerned. There is a point beyond which fewer white blood cells circulate in the body, and the number of stress related hormones increases.
(a) I always came down with a cold after racing a marathon. Even for a highly conditioned athlete, the stress of a marathon run flat out is too much.
(b) But I never came down with a cold because of my fairly intense marathon training. That is because the training was carefully planned with a sufficient number of easy days after the longest runs and after races.
(c) New starters need to understand that it takes time for the body to adapt to running programs, and should never attempt to copy the programs of seasoned runners, particularly in the early days of their training. Build up gradually conservatively doing less than you think is possible, and allow the body to adapt over time. Patience is a virtue when it comes to health and fitness. And a good base is essential if permanent improvement down the track is to occur.

We know exercise is good for us because we feel better during and after exercise. And it is good for us. Go on, run with it! You will never look back.

Monday training
Canberra Day: The early starters for an 8k run were Andrew, Craig, Ewen, me, Jennifer, Ruth, Yelena, and new starters David and Liz. Then we were joined at 5:30pm by Bronwyn, Caroline, Garry, Joel, Katherine, Neil, Noeline, Penny, and more new starters Geoff 2, John, and Karen. Twenty participants on a public holiday is pretty good. We ran 12 intervals of 40 seconds each (two sets of "6 on 2 minutes"), a good session on a day when it had been raining quite heavily earlier on.

Melanie Tait book signing
BE THERE and support her! Wednesday, 6pm at Daltons in Civic. We will be running then and we might just drop in in our running gear! The first speedygoose to have written a book!

Thanks Craig

Craig did both sessions at training yesterday. His presence and that of three others may have saved my life too but that is another story.

heidi ho

Heidi: Orange Half Marathon 102 minutes. Woo-Hoo! Congratulations on completing your first Half Marathon! And 102 minutes on a tough course is very good. You could expect to be at least 5 minutes quicker on Canberra courses. The half marathon was part of  the "Orange Colour City Running Festival". So make sure you wear the orange souvenir T-shirt at your next run with us; I hope the T-shirt will be orange coloured.

Some Orange Results
Scott McTaggart first 1:10.08
Heidi Johnston 1:42.38 fourth W30-39. Heidi you are so young! I thought you'd be 40 by now!
Jim White 1:45.29 won the M60s. Well done Heidi, ahead of Jim is many people's primary goal.

What's on this week: (updated Mondays)
There's always something on.
RAIN RAIN RAIN RAIN RAIN. perhaps. Our rain gauge read 81mm this morning.

Monday 8 March Parliament House 4:30pm jog, 5:30pm speedygeese interval training - speed endurance #5 of 6. If it is wet we will still be there, with adjusted training as appropriate to the conditions.
Tuesday 9 March 6:15pm Summer Series race #6 Regatta Point Acton Ferry Terminal 5k
Wednesday 10 March 12:15pm BBQ Stakes 6k handicap
Wednesday 10 March 5:45pm Parliament House, easy run.
Thursday 11 March Vets Track
6:00pm 2000m steeple/3000m steeple
6:15pm 4 x 200m
6:20pm 200m
6:40pm 1500m walk
7:00pm 100m
7:15pm 1500m age handicapped ("Pennington")
7:40pm short hurdles
8:00m 7 lap spiral
Friday 12 March 12:15pm Customs weekly 5k handicap, Commonwealth Park
Saturday 13 March 7:00am Pack Runs at Molonglo Reach
Sunday 14 March 7:30am Weston Creek Half Marathon, Black Mountain Peninsula
I will be tapering for the half marathon and hope to run sub 95.

Heidi at North Curtin. She will be pleased with her time at Orange. I hope she hasn't over-celebrated with too much red wine and pizza! [When Heidi comments, it will be "there can never be too much red wine and pizza!"]

old stock

Uniform Specials: There is a sale of old stock taking place, various items of club uniform clothing, various prices. See Sue Archer at one of our Vets events, or email her at this email address

Windows 7. 

I upgraded from Vista yesterday. It will be good to have a stable computer. It "only" took me 9 hours including three lots of my own backup just in case the upgrade went pear-shaped and I needed a clean install. Can't be too careful. All OK though. But as a result I didn't get much sleep before this morning's 6:30am long run!

Nice rain

Keep it coming. Cooler weather would be nice too but that's on its way.

Time Team pacers needed

Time Team

Pacers Needed for the National Capital Marathon.

The National Capital Marathon is seeking experienced distance runners who want to give back to the sport by serving as pacers in the “Time Team” pacing group for the Marathon on 2 May 2010.

Time Team pace goals will be 3:00, 3:15, 3:30, 3:45, 4:00 and 4:30.

Some of the Time Team pacers will have paced a marathon before, and some will have not.

Qualifications:

(a) Can run the marathon at 15 to 30 minutes better than the time that you plan to pace.

(b) Able to maintain a steady pace with respect to the terrain for the entire distance.

Responsibilities:

(a) Commit to maintain your pace and complete the full marathon with a time between your goal time and 2 minutes ahead of your goal time.

(b) Carry a helium balloon displaying your goal time during the entire race.

(c) Wear a Time Team singlet during the race.

(d) Act as a "moving coach" by creating a team atmosphere and offering encouragement and advice throughout the race.

Rewards:

(a) The entry fee for the 2010 National Capital Marathon will be waived.

(b) Time Team Mizuno singlet will be provided.

(c) Lots of fun, memories, and a great way to make a new friend or two.

How to Apply:

If you are interested in serving in the Time Team, please email Geoff Moore or call on (02) 6254 4753 and provide the following information:

• Pace time you wish to apply for
• Name, email address, phone number
• Personal best marathon time, where run, what year
• Recent best marathon time, where run, what year
• Pacing experience, where run, what year(s), what pace group(s)
• Other comments in support of your application.

All applicants will be advised of the outcome on or before 12 April.

Further information and instructions will be provided to all Time Team pacers once the names are finalised.

Geoff Moore

Time Team coordinator.Bottom of Form

news, views, shoes, goos, blues, zoos, snooze

The Scott Brown story: http://petemagill.blogspot.com/2010/03/guest-blogger-scott-brown.html
Be amazed at how Scott improved his times so rapidly.
And read his plug for the two best running groups in Australia; PCRG, and the speedygeese.
Thanks Scott! Or, should I say, Scott!

Weston Creek Half marathon entry clarification. It is the on-line entry that closes on the 10th. Mail entry closes on Monday 8th. I am now entered.

Training at Dickson oval
We will resume training there at the beginning of April, because Vets track finishes at the end of March. The first training day will be Thursday 1 April, even though some will be away because of the Easter break.
Start time is 5:30pm as usual. Anyone for an early start for a long run first?

Parliament House training will continue as usual this Monday even though it is "Canberra Day"

End of season speedygeese dinner, when and where would you like to have it?

Vets Track and Field results from last night
400m
M60 Garry Maher 65.0 82.9%
M50 Gary Bowen 66.0 76.0
M50 Rod Lynch 68.9 71.9
W55 Noeline Burden 79.0 77.9

800m
M55 Ken White 2:22.1 86.0 season's best by 2 seconds
M50 Rod Lynch 2:36.4 74.4 season's best by 2 seconds
M40 Brett Morrison 2:38.1 67.9 personal best by 2 seconds
W40 Amanda Walker 2:44.8 71.9
W40 Nadine Morrison 2:49.5 68.7 personal best by 2.5 seconds
W55 Kathy Sims 2:57.0 80.0
W40 Bronwyn Calver 2:58.1 65.4
W50 Helen Larmour 3:06.8 68.0

1 Mile; some of these would be personal best times as the mile is not run that often.
M50 Rod Lynch 5:30.5 77.0
M50 Gary Bowen 5:37.6 76.6
W40 Katie Forestier 5:43.4 80.9
W40 Emma Adams 5:48.9 76.9
M40 Brett Morrison 5:55.7 66.7
W40 Nadine Morrison 6:02.4 73.3
W45 Janene Kingston 6:20.4 73.9
W50 Helen Larmour 6:32.2 76.2
W40 Bronwyn Calver 6:32.7 67.7

5000m Parlouf Relay
1. M55 George Kubitzky, W40 Bronwyn Calver , M50 Gary Bowen, W55 Kathy Sims , M60 Garry Maher 15:20.4
2. M40 Brett Morrison, W50 Helen Larmour , M50 Angel Marina , M55 Ken White 15:49.0
3. W40 Nadine Morrison , W40 Katie Forestier , W40 Amanda Walker , M45 Peter Cullen , M70 Roger Abbott 16:10.6

Tuesday's Summer Series race #5 at Weston Park
5k
36. Geoff Moore 21:07
41. Janene Kingston 21:59
47. Ewen Thompson 22:56
64. Cathy Newman 24:35
69. Neil Boden 25:05
80. Richard Frost 26:13
82. Ruth Baussmann 26:14
83. Susan Sturgeon 26:41
96. Mick Charlton 28:53
102. Sharene Hurnen 30:49
110 finishers, and in the 2k there were 35 finishers

That's enough fun for now, more tomorrow!

Rod Lynch runs towards the finish line at North Curtin. Rod and his son Brett plan to be training with us when we resume at Dickson in April.

individualism

North Curtin Vets Handicap races. click to enlarge.

Leanne and Margaret

Gary

Katie

Jill and Catherine. Methinks Catherine should and will be be starting many groups further back!

Because running is, or can be, a completely individual sport, and because I have seen athletes turn up for a race, run, and disappear without interacting with anyone else, I am always interested in the subject areas of groups, teams, clubs, families, and other organisations where people obviously are meant to interact for mutual benefit and when they don’t, they suffer as a result.

Here is a good article about our culture of Individualism by Rowan Williams the Archbishop of Canterbury. Williams writes:
If you live in a world where everything encourages you to struggle for your own individual interest and success, you are encouraged to ignore the reality of other points of view – ultimately, to ignore the cost, or the pain of others. The result may be a world where people are articulate about their own feelings and pretty illiterate about those of others. An economic climate based on nothing but calculations of self-interest, fed by a distorted version of Darwinism, doesn’t build a habitat for human beings; at best it builds a sort of fortified box room for paranoiacs.
What is encouraging is how few people seem to want a society composed of people like this. We have, to some extent, looked into the abyss where individualism is concerned and we know that it won’t do. This is a moment when every possible agency in civil society needs to reinforce its commitment to a world where thoughtful empathy is a normal aspect of the mature man or woman. And of course without that, there will be no imaginative life, no thinking what might be different.
For myself, the roots of this view are deep in religious vision and commitment. From this viewpoint, the importance of the family isn’t a sentimental idealising of domestic life; it is about understanding that you grow in emotional intelligence and maturity because of a reality that is unconditionally faithful. In religious terms the unconditionality of family love is a faint mirror of God’s unconditional commitment to be there for us. Similarly, the importance of imaginative life is not a vague belief that we should all have our creative side encouraged but comes out of the notion that the world we live in is rooted in an infinite life, whose dimensions we shall never get hold of. As for the essential character of human mutuality, this connects for me with the Christian belief that if someone else is damaged, frustrated, offended or oppressed, everyone’s humanity is diminished.
Full article here.

When I run the Weston Creek Half Marathon this year, I am going to be competing with and challenging and encouraging the relay teams which participate in the event, as well as competing against the other runners and competing against myself. Relay teams add an exciting dimension to this race. Go the Geese!
Entries for the Weston Creek Half Marathon on 14 March close next Wednesday 10 March.
See http://westoncreekathletics.org.au/modules/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=half_marathon:half_marathon

distance makes the heart grow stronger

A feature of distance running I particularly enjoy is that it gives me the chance to let off steam, to let emotions out, to laugh and cry, to express myself. That's right, running is therapeutic. Not only does running strengthen the physical heart, it also strengthens the metaphoric heart, the centre of the emotions. "I always feel better after running".

Laugh and Cry
The first of the photos from Sunday.

Click to enlarge. There might be a clue here as to why I headed Ken for the first 50 metres. Also, what is Ken holding? You can clearly see the two sticks in his hands. Changing your running style, Ken, because the alternative is a poke in the eye with a pointed stick?

I think the healthiest and happiest people are those who laugh at themselves the most. And we are in an era when the we have the most opportunities to laugh at ourselves, what with websites and blogs and Facebook pages showing us off at our best and our worst in photos and videos.

Smile for the camera!

encouragement

One of the good things I see in the blogger running community is mutual encouragement. Most of our best friends are those who encourage us. We don't have many strong relationships with those who pull us down. We avoid such people and seek out those who believe in us and lift us up. Everyone needs and responds to encouragement. People do better and try harder when there is a spirit of approval rather than a spirit of criticism. Encouragement brings out the best in people. The way to truly motivate and develop people is through encouragement and through believing in them. People tend to become what the most important people in their lives think they will become. Who can you encourage today?

Cooler weather is here at last AND we still have four more weeks of sunshine, thanks to daylight saving being extended! Last night at Monday training Jennifer, Ewen, Ruth, Miranda & I ran up Mugga Way at 4:30pm. Jennifer had to go after that, but the others stayed and were joined by Andrew, Bronwyn, Colleen (new), Christopher, Craig, Garry, Helen, Joel, Leanne, Maria, Neil, Noeline, Penny, Rachelle, Sindia, Tim, Warrick & Yelena for the main training session.
We formed balanced teams of three, for a continuous 30 minute relay in the rectangle of grass immediately north of Parliament House, where each runner alternated running down a diagonal or up a flagpole straight before jogging straight across to the other side of the rectangle and running fast again. Phew! Simple to do but hard to devise or describe. I was “reserve” and had a few runs while two or three took a break. We managed to bemuse some tourists but not the guards, who are used to us by now.

Some speedygeese birthdays that I know of this week include Emma, CJ, Suzie, Yili. Two of the significant birthdays coming up this month, are Melanie (30), and Warrick (40)

Melanie’s book is being released very soon if not already available. See http://newholland.com.au/product.php?isbn=9781741109658.

speedygeese results for Stromlo Forest Park 5k Tuesday, 23rd February
36. Nadine Morrison W40 21:07
47. Brett Morrison M40 21:39
55. Michelle Wells W35 22:09
60. Maria O'Reilly W55 22:44
71. Janene Kingston W45 23:41
74. Geoff Moore M60 23:55
75. Mick Horan M50 23:56
86. Cathy Newman W45 25:25
94. Miranda Rawlinson W55 26:25
99. Ruth Baussmann W55 27:23
100. Susan Sturgeon W35 27:27
105. Caroline Campbell W65 28:17
112. Mick Charlton M55 29:29
126. Sharene Hurnen W40 33:37
128 finishers
Plus Stromlo Forest Park 2k, 50 finishers.

AMRA events from John Harding.
The following is an update on events coming up being organised by the Australian Mountain Running Association and some others of interest. For more details, see www.mountainrunning.coolrunning.com.au Some entry forms are not available yet.
First Tuesday each month: Mt Ainslie Run Up and Power Walk, 2.3km, 12.45pm, Remembrance Park, Treloar Crs, Campbell. Free.
Third Tuesday each month: Black Mountain Run Up and Power Walk, 2.6km, 12.45pm, Clunies Ross St, Acton (100m east of Botanic Gardens entrance).
Saturday 6 March: Mt Tennent Challenge, 3pm, Apollo Road. 6 km open power walk and run to summit + ACT 6km, 8km and 11km mountain running championships.
Friday 19 March: Kosciuszko Run, 11am, 11kms from Charlotte Pass Village to summit of Mt Kosciuszko. Run with 4-time Olympic race walking gold medallist Robert Korzeniowski to celebrate the 170th anniversary of the discovery of Mt Kosciuszko. Restricted to 50 participants who must cover 22kms return carrying compulsory safety gear.
Sunday 28 March: Great Volcanic Challenge, 9am, 11kms, Orange NSW. Organised by Goldseekers Orienteering Club.
Sunday 11 April: Kedumba Challenge, 9am Wentworth Falls, Blue Mountains NSW, incorporating the NSW Mountain Running Championships. 4kms, 8kms, 10kms.
Saturday 22 May: Australian Mountain Running Championships for open age groups, juniors, and veterans from M40 to M70+ and W35 to W70+, 12 noon, Mt Tennent.
Sunday 4 July: Shoalhaven King of the Mountain, Cambewarra to Kangaroo Valley 32 kms. Australia's longest running long distance trail run.
Saturday 31 July: Bush Capital Bush Marathon Festival, Campbell High School, ACT. 2km, 5km, 10km, 16km, 25km, marathon, marathon relay and 60km ultra off road trail runs and 5km, 10km, 16km and 25km bush walks. Entry form available soon.
HELPERS
Helpers are needed for events, especially the Bush Capital Bush Marathon Festival, which needs many helpers. Contact John Harding ph 02 6248 6905 or 0427 107 033 Email: hackettrunner@hotmail.com
International:
Sat. 21 Aug World Long Distance Challenge Pikes Peak ascent USA
Sat. 28 Aug Masters World Championships Korbielow POLAND
Sun 5 Sept World Championships Kamnik SLOVENIA

Lauren's A-qualifier

What's on this week: (updated Mondays)
Monday 1 March Parliament House 4:30pm jog, 5:30pm speedygeese interval training
Tuesday 2 March 6:15pm Summer Series race #5 Weston Park 5k cross country
Wednesday 3 March 12:15pm BBQ Stakes 6k handicap
Wednesday 3 March 5:45pm Parliament House, easy run.
Thursday 4 March Vets Track
6:00pm mile
6:20pm 100m (Daniels)
6:40pm 400m
7:00pm 800m
7:15pm Parlauf Relay (teams of 5 runners totalling 5000m)
7:40pm 5000m walk
Sunday 7 March 6:30am Long run from the Zoo
Sunday 7 March 9:00am Women's & Girls' 6k Jogalong handicap, Weston Park

Note: Monday 8th is a public holiday but we will still be meeting at the normal time and place.

Lauren's A-Qualifier
A time of 55.75 in Sydney on the weekend for the 400m hurdles has put Lauren Boden in line for selection for the 2010 Commonwealth Games team. This is her pb by 0.4 seconds, the first time under 56 seconds. Well done Lauren!

Rex Foulkes Half Marathon in conjunction with the marathon on 2 May - course map. Click to enlarge.