Just a theory

Speedygeese results
Sunday 1 September Dubbo Stampede “Zebra Zoom” Half Marathon
57. Kym Chisholm 1:39.15
76. Liz Bennett 1:42.43 first W50

Friday 13 September Customs 5k Handicap
Peter Burke 20:22
Bronwyn Calver 23:19
Caroline Campbell 30:48

Saturday 14 September Ginninderra 5k Parkrun #73
53 Thea ZIMPEL 25:28 W3
82 Ruth BAUSSMANN 28:45 W60
87 Margaret MCSPADDEN 29:43 W65
107 finishers

Saturday 14 September Tuggeranong 5k Parkrun #30
118 finishers

I am hoping to get to Customs this week; last week I felt "under the weather" and didn't go.

Speaking of the weather...

No science portfolio in the new government's ministry? Can't be having those nasty scientists telling us what we don't want to hear?

Reflektor

Song of the week. Arcade Fire – Reflektor.
From http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7E0fVfectDo

This week's top story

This week's top story would have to be about my grandson Josiah, whose team won the U14 Grand Final! Go Tiges!

wanted - nice long steady grassy downhill to train on.

I am quite keen to try some downhill training this year. The following is a really interesting article which has whetted my appetite.

"Damaging muscle fibers with eccentric contractions makes them heal back stronger, protecting them from future damage. A study published in the Journal of Applied Physiology in 1985 found that just a single 30-minute run downhill at 10 percent grade had a prophylactic effect on muscle damage and soreness for up to six weeks. Therefore, while you can expect your muscles to be sore after the first time running downhill, subsequent downhill workouts will cause less soreness. Add downhills to your training a little at a time. Start with a short, gradual slope of about two to three percent grade, and progress to steeper and longer descents".

Read on at http://running.competitor.com/2013/04/training/downill-running-workouts_70437


If downhill running isn't your thing, you could try walking 5k every day.

Three events I am particularly interested in.

1. The YCRC Goorooyaroo Off Road Half Marathon – 7am Sat 19th October. I ran this last year and that was the start of my serious setbacks and injuries. My time was shocking. I want to "exorcise my demons" as they say; I am sure "they" don't realise what they are saying; and demolish the time I ran last year. I hope Craig, Warrick and others who ran last year will run again so that I can set my pace accordingly. [Edit: This is not correct, I have totally mis-remembered. Instead it was the Bush Capital Half at the same venue in 2012 where I got injured running 2:05. The YCRC event in 2012 was a reasonable run, 1:41.]

2. RUN Y'ASS OFF Saturday October 26 2013. A brand new event I really want to run and support. http://www.eliteenergy.com.au/runyass/index.html. I will run the half marathon. There are other shorter events.

3. YCRC Spring Series 2013. The spring series 2013 will get under way with a run at 6.15pm on Tuesday 5th November (Melbourne Cup Day); the first event will not be in Weston Park as advertised due to uncompleted construction work. It will be the Stirling Ridge 5k and start near the intersection of Alexandrina Drive and Hopetoun Circuit, Yarralumla.

On top of all that I plan to make a fool of myself this coming season and run the ACTVAC track in incredibly slow and not record breaking times.

In the meantime I will be down in Geelong competing in the Australian Masters Games in the M65 5000m track, 8k cross country, and half marathon, still very confident of one medal. After that I will be very pleased to be visiting my son, daughter in law, and four of my grandsons, then watch with camera in hand the Melbourne marathon and half marathon down on St Kilda Road. Incidentally my dear (not cheap) wife will be with me, hurray. But PLEASE let me know if you are running so I can watch out for you, cheer you on, and take a photo if I am quick enough.

In summary, there is great running coming up, be involved, it is oh so good for you and guarantees you will live an extra 30 years. I am thoroughly enjoying it and I hope you are too.

Australian Election 7 September

Thursday is now "commentary day" - usually about fitness and sport, but not necessarily - so here goes. We train at Parliament House Canberra, making this post vaguely relevant.

The current Australian Senate election system does not work, because it can be exploited by minor parties set up as fronts for each other and exchanging preferences with each other. The large number of Senate candidates in each State and Territory means that a very high proportion of voters vote "above the line" and therefore are not determining where their preferences go. Preference deals between parties make the situation worse. As a result, some people being elected to the Senate are there despite very few voters actually wanting them there.

What can be done?

(a) Scrap above the line voting.

(b) Change what is now "below the line" to a system of optional preferential voting. In states where six candidates are elected, voters could enter 1 - 6 on their Senate ballot paper or more if they wished. In the Territories where two candidates are elected, only 1 - 2 need be entered.

(c) Register political parties well in advance of elections, require a much larger member base than at present, and with office holders being office holders in no other registered party.

If the current farcical situation continues, one consequence is a loss of faith in the democratic process. Which unfortunately means that fewer and fewer young people would see any point in registering to vote.

GITs - geese in training

Here are the training sessions we have conducted in the last seven days

Thursday 5 September at Kaleen Ruth Margaret Clint Natalie Colin Rod and I ran 3 or 4 x 1k

Saturday 7 September at Acton Ferry Terminal, Daisy, Snow, Caleb, Elspeth and I ran easy, and we saw Lucia there as well. This is the resumption of "Metro Runners" training (And I am thinking of a new name for this Saturday running group)

Sunday 8 September Joel ran 500m hill loops at Stromlo while I looked on.

Monday 9 September at Parliament House Cathy, Ewen, Jen, Kelley, Susan and I ran 8 early, then doing hills sprint training there were Andrew, Bronwyn, Craig, Jen, Kelley, Peter and Rae. We did do three attrition sprints at the end, won by Peter, with Bronwyn and Andrew tying for second.

Tuesday 10 September at Dickson, our last training at that venue, Rod, Colin and Kym ran 2 x 10 minutes shuttle relay on the 120m straight while I jogged around and ran some stride-throughs..

Otherwise I did run Friday's Customs 5k, in a time I couldn't possibly fail to beat next time, and have been going to the gym and doing some light jogging trying to build distance again.

Cats need exercise too. Maybe not this kind.

Tuesday Results Catch-up

Wednesday 21 Aug BBQ Stakes 6k Handicap
57. Helen Larmour 30:19
62. Jennifer Bright 32:05
64 finishers

Sunday 1 September YCRC Jogalong Handicap
43. Cathy Montalto W60 36:22
46. Thea Zimpel W30 30:38
55. Caroline Campbell W70 37:14
59 finishers

Friday 6 September Customs 5k Handicap
Peter Burke 20:33
Bronwyn Calver 23:40
Geoff Moore 24:19
Caroline Campbell 32:35

Saturday 7 September Ginninderra 5k Parkrun #72
38 Jill Pearson 25:38 W55
97 finishers

Saturday 7 September Tuggeranong 5k Parkrun #29
92 finishers

Sunday 8 September Canberra Times 5k Fun Run
38 Ewen Thompson 23:56
1295 finishers

Sunday 8 September Canberra Times 10k Fun Run
260 Maria O'Reilly 45:32 2nd W50
2412 finishers

Sunday 8 September Canberra Times 14k Fun Run
83 Kylie Malone 1:00.35 2nd W40
168 Craig Davis 1:04.49
236 Liz Bennett 1:06.58 2nd W50
327 Tori Hennig 1:09.08
352 Bronwyn Calver 1:09.30
502 Rae Palmer 1:12.44 1st W60
942 Caroline Campbell 1:23.42 1st W70
1038 Ruth Baussmann 1:27.29
1076 Margaret McSpadden 1:29.19
1339 finishers

Frequentists vs Bayesians

Animal Shelter

ungraceful antics

Song of the Week: "Graceless", by The National. From the album "Trouble May Find Me". The National will be touring Australia again soon, but not Canberra so I probably won't get to see them.
From http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jpz_gUyImhw -

A week of changes

This week many things change: there was the final Metro church service at CSIRO today; there will be the final training session at Dickson this Tuesday; and on Thursday the final Kaleen training session. Sunday mornings will continue at Stromlo and move to an earlier time on the 22nd. One thing that has been pretty well unchanged for many years is the Monday night training at Parliament House; it continues this week and far beyond, although this week we will probably switch to hills there. And it will no longer be dark as in the photo above, with days getting longer, and with daylight saving approaching. And I have been focusing on getting my gym sessions happening so the running is still a bit of a struggle. But it's only two weeks in and I feel confident that there will be improvement this summer. Let's get plenty of training done is this fabulous spring weather, before a possibly dry and very hot summer arrives.

Train slower, race faster.

"Studies on the training intensity distribution of elite runners have found that most elite runners run at low intensities most of the time." - Read full article at http://running.competitor.com/2013/06/training/train-slower-race-faster_52242. So my Saturday morning run at Acton Ferry Terminal, for the most part, is slow. I enjoyed meeting four beginner runners at the Ferry Terminal today - Caleb, Elspeth, Snow and Daisy. An easier than usual run is far better than no run at all, and is also better than training too hard too often.

Sarah-Jayne before a 92 minute Wagga Wagga Trail Half Marathon, 8th overall and first woman. She trains hard only three times per week. Photo by Ewen.

Coming Events - ACTVAC Track and Field 2013-2014

Click to enlarge.
Or download using this link - http://actvac.com.au/Track/TrackandField%20Program%202013-2014.pdf

10:30am gym CIT

If you read my training diary (which at least one person does) you will see new entries this week for "gym CIT". I am planning to attend three times each week, in addition to a supervised class at Kippax, and of course all my normal running training. Other cross training is not possible as while I love swimming, swimming does not love me; and cycling is something I have never attempted and think it too late to start now thank you very much.

So, what do I do when I attend the CIT gym?
1. 20 minutes on the hill climber
2. 20 minutes doing easy leg and upper body exercises with weights
3. 20 minutes of stretches, ab work, and balance work.

For example this morning
1. I spent 20 minutes at level 9 manual setting working up to heart-rate 120bpm on the climber, a machine which no-one else seems to use, listening to a random selection of my favourite songs on my Galaxy S4.

2. Then I did a few exercises on the machines, with smallish weights
3 x 12 x leg press
3 x 12 x seated chest press
3 x 12 x lat pull-downs to chest narrow arms
3 x 12 x horizontal pull-throughs

3. Then in the floor area
3 x 12 x lunges
3 x 12 x crunches
3 x 12 x two other core exercises exercises hard to describe!
plus hamstring stretches and glute stretches
plus several balancing exercises on the bosu ball

I will not necessarily do the identical exercises each visit. But I will do what I think I need.

Footnote: Form is important.
How not to exercise at the gym...

Training sessions

Thursday 29/08 Rod, Brett L, me, Colin, Clint, Natalie (new) ran km intervals at Kaleen
Sunday 01/09 Andrew, Joel, Lucia, me, Warrick, Jen, Jason (new) ran km intervals at Stromlo.
Monday 02/09 Cathy, Jen, me early; Craig, Peter, Ruth, Rae, me, Garry ran Rose Garden 200s at Parliament House
Tuesday 03/09 Rod, Colin ran 200m intervals at Dickson.


FOOTNOTES
1. My training is back on track finally.
2. Tuesday next week is the final session at Dickson. How many takers for the very last session?
3. And just two Kaleen sessions to go as well, this week's and next.

racing as the weather warms

Speedygeese race results:
Sunday 18 August Wagga Wagga Trail Half Marathon
8 1:32:38 Sarah-Jayne Miller First Female
50 2:00:16 Ewen Thompson
56 2:01:31 Amanda Ruffin
120 finishers

Friday 30 August Customs 5k
Peter Burke 21:06
Jen Bright 21:28
Caroline Campbell 32.47

Saturday 31 August Ginnindera Parkrun 5k
56 Jill PEARSON 24:59 W5
139 finishers

Saturday 31 August Tuggeranong Parkrun 5k
104 finishers

Saturday 31 August YCRC 10 mile
20. Mick Horan M50 1:15:51
24. Craig Davis M40 1:18:58
28. Geoff Moore M65 1:21:12
29. Kristian Pithie M40 1:22:38
30. Bronwyn Calver W40 1:23:10
58. Caroline Campbell W70 1:40:18
59. Ruth Baussmann W60 1:40:24
64. Margaret McSpadden W65 1:46:36
68 finishers
The course was a bit long – maybe 90 seconds worth.

Cairns had its first Parkrun on Saturday. I wish I could have been there. "The location for Cairns Parkrun is stunning with palm trees lining one side of the Esplanade pavement and the ocean on the other." - Parkrun newsletter. They had 57 runners. This will quickly increases as the word spreads, there are loads of runners and walkers out along the esplanade every morning.

We were there the first 4 days of August this year.

Cairns - the best place to exercise in winter.

Flying Doctor

Song of the week: "My Boomerang Won’t Come Back".
from http://youtu.be/9AyotLiqJdg



I was reminded of this song, one I have always liked, when we visited Cloncurry for a couple of hours on Monday morning 12 August, on the way from Mt Isa to McKinlay for lunch, and Winton in the afternoon.

My photos.
Information about John Flynn is at http://www.johnflynnplace.com.au/

Tony Booth

In August this year, Jenny and I spent 24 days on a tour of outback Queensland.

On our sixth day we met up with Tony Booth at Millaa Millaa Falls, just "around the corner" from Tony and Chris's property in the Atherton Tablelands.

Tony was one of the best Veteran athletes in Canberra in his day. He is still running, now 75 years old.

What ACT Vets records did Tony set over the years?
One Mile M50 5:10.2 23/02/1989
800 metres M50 2:13.4 02/03/1989
One Mile M50 5:00.0 22/03/1990 AIS
800 metres M50 2:13.0 15/04/1990 Nat. C'Ships Melbourne
One Mile M55 5:16.5 03/03/1994 AIS
4 X 1500m Relay M65 25:42.0 27/01/2005 AIS
4 X 800m Relay M60 11:26.14 23/11/2006 AIS
4 X 1500m Relay M65 24:49.77 14/12/2006 AIS
4 X 800m Relay M65 12:32.94 30/03/2007 AIS
1500 metres M70 5:53.14 02/08/2008 Townsville
One Mile M70 6:28.32 16/10/2008 AIS
4 X 1500m Relay M70 27:58.81 29/01/2009 AIS
4 X 800m Relay M70 13:43.70 05/02/2009 AIS
800 metres M70 2:50.46 19/03/2009 AIS
One Mile M70 6:19.15 02/04/2009 AIS
800 metres M70 2:48.94 02/04/2010 Perth AMA Championships
4 X 200m Relay M65 2:11.46 25/01/2012 AIS
Taken from the ACTVAC website.

Bronwyn Calver - Inductee to the ACT Sport Hall of Fame

A huge congratulations to Bronwyn. What a tremendous achievement!

YCRC news

YCRC News – 28th August 2013
1. Kingston Physio 10 Miler/5k – Saturday 31st August
2. Jogalong – Sunday 1st September.
3. Canberra Times Fun Run – Help Needed
4. Invitation to manage major events in 2014
5. Upcoming events
6. Club event managers/helpers
7. Club website new link/club administration
8. YCRC Committee
9. Winter Series – Survey of members

1. Kingston Physiotherapy & Sports Medicine Centre 10Miler/5k – 8am Saturday 31st August

The last event of our winter 2013 season will be the Kingston Physio 10 Miler on Saturday 31st August from John Cardiff Close, Black Mountain Peninsula. The 10 Miler (16.1km) is a lap of West Basin Lake Burley Griffin. The 10 Miler starts at 8am and a 5km run will start from the same location shortly afterwards. Free to YCRC members and one day registrations for all others on the day for $10 and juniors $5. Entrants in the 10 Miler must be over 16 years.

All participants in the Kingston Physio West Basin events 10 miler and 5k will be eligible to win barrel draw prizes for participants presented and donated by Craig Wisdom of Kingston Physiotherapy & Sport Injury Clinic Centre.

We are in need of a couple more helpers for this race. If you can help out, please email David Osmond at davo.osmond@gmail.com

2. Jogalong Sunday 1ST September

The Jogalong continues at Grevillea Park, East Basin Lake Burley Griffin this weekend and looks likely to stay there until 2014 due to uncompleted work in Weston Park. At 9am the 6k Jogalong commences with a non-handicap 3k. The 1.6k Mini Jog will start shortly after 9am.

3. Canberra Times Fun Run - 8th September 2013

A lot of club members run in this event. In 2013 the events are 5k, 10k and 14k. The 14k brining the Fairfax events around Australia into line with the 14k City to Surf distance.

The club has been asked to provide Fairfax with some assistance in the staging of these events. We need some club members to take on the following roles, lead car drivers (I think in your own car), lead cyclists and drink station helpers. We are hoping to provide drink station helpers and combine and share a station with the ACT Veterans Athletics Club. I will coordinate this drink station, so all I need is helpers. If you can help in anyway please let me know ASAP.

If you can spare some time to help on Sunday morning 8th September please contact me @ kene@incanberra.com.au or SMS 0407 201 078.

Our club will receive a small payment from Fairfax for each official provided. The club sees it as very important to be involved with the major community events.

4. Invitation to manage major events in 2014

The Club conducts a number of major events during each year and is a partner in others. To do this it needs members to undertake management roles as outlined below. Please note that we do have volunteers for some positions.

5K Training Group (Feb and March) - leading up to the Women and Girls’ Fun Run, the Club runs a training program to enable participants to reach a level of fitness where they can comfortably complete 5K

Women and Girls Fun Run (6 April) – Joy Terry has agreed to be race manager for this event but she needs a small group of people to assist. This would be a great opportunity for a novice race organizer to learn what is required in such a role.

Australian Running Festival (12 – 13 April) – as a strategic partner of Fairfax, the Club assists with the conduct of this festival. We need someone to coordinate our volunteers.

YMCA Half Marathon (18 May) – We may have a race manager (to be confirmed) but this person will also need a small group to assist.

Half Marathon Training Group (Feb to May) – our most successful TG is an ideal way to prepare for the Half Marathon while assisting others to run the distance.

10K training Group (July to Sept) – Leading up to The Canberra Times Fun Run this group is for people who are already running but wish to increase how far they can run.

Although members who undertake these roles are volunteers, the Committee will provide some compensation for the use of personal resources such as transport, communications and other costs, plus out-of-pocket expenses.

If you agree to undertake one of these roles, the Committee will provide some assistance and support will also be available from corporate staff in the YMCA office for marketing, race approvals, etc.

Expressions of interest may be sent to the Club at admin.ycrc@ymca.org.au. If you would like to find out more about any of these tasks, please call Geoff on 0438 408805 or talk to one of the current committee members.

5. Upcoming Events

Memory Walk and Jog
The Memory Walk and Jog will be held on 21 September 2013 during Dementia Awareness Week.
The Memory Walk & Jog to raise awareness and much needed funds for Alzheimer's Australia.
Alzheimer's Australia ACT is the peak body representing the interests of people affected by dementia in the ACT. For more information, visit our website www.fightdementia.org.au
More details from Eileen.McEntee@alzheimers.org.au or phone 6255 0722

YCRC Goorooyaroo off Road Half Marathon – 7am Sat 19th Oct – more details later. Free to club members, one day registrations for all others, sign up on the morning.

RUN Y'ASS OFF Saturday October 26 2013]
Yass Runners and Elite Energy (http://www.eliteenergy.com.au/) are hosting a 2km, 5km, 14km and Half Marathon on *Saturday October 26 2013.* Hope you can send a team and RUN Y’ASS OFF. Details at http://www.eliteenergy.com.au/runyass/index.html

YCRC Spring Series 2013
Our spring series 2013 will get under way with a run at 6.15pm on Tuesday 5th November (Melbourne Cup Day); the first event will not be in Weston Park as advertised due to uncompleted construction work. It will be the Stirling Ridge 5k and start near the intersection of Alexandrina Drive and Hopetoun Circuit, Yarralumla.

6. Club Race Managers/Helpers – Non- Major events

Our club holds events almost weekly during winter on a Saturday and events on Tuesday evenings during spring and summer. To do this we need volunteers to either manage events or help officiate at the events. The tasks are not onerous and assistance will be provided. If you can help please provide your details to David Osmond. davo.osmond@gmail.com

7. YMCA Canberra Administration/Runners Club Website

YCRC Members should be aware that the YMCA Canberra has moved from Sports House, Hackett to the YMCA Sailing Club, Alexandrina Drive, Yarralumla Bay, Yarralumla.

The new link for the YMCA Runners Club website is http://www.canberra.ymca.org.au/runnersclub/Pages/default.aspx

8. YCRC Committee/Club Future etc.

This item has been left in from last week and will continue as we get closer to our Annual General Meeting. The club will be holding the AGM in the coming months and we will be looking for some new committee members. If you would like to be involved with the club please feel free to nominate, when we call for nominations. A strong and healthy club needs a strong and vibrant committee and your assistance would be most appreciated. If you need any further details please contact one of our current committee or me at our events or via email. I can certainly put you in contact with someone on the committee who can explain or help. It must also be remembered that the YCRC has the backing of the YMCA Canberra, and received great assistance from CEO Jenny McCombe and her staff in everything that we do.

9. Survey -Winter Series

Despite the best efforts of your committee to improve numbers at our winter events, numbers continue to fall. If you are interested in having your say for improving the Winter Series for next year, please fill in the survey via the link below. It should only take a couple of minutes. Note, if you are unable to access the survey location due to internet restrictions, please answer any of the following questions that are relevant to you, and email to davo.osmond@gmail.com. http://tinyurl.com/pdyx7ga
1. Do you prefer morning or early afternoon for Saturday Races?
2. Preferred start time for the long event (8am-2pm)
3. Preference for winter series at Stromlo Forest Park, or different locations each week
4. Course preference (road/bike path, grass or trail)
5. preferred race frequency (most weekends, or every 2nd weekend)
6. At Stromlo, do you prefer having 3 or 4 events?
7. Preferred race distances
8. Any other comments

R for "Mo"

I only have half a mo to write my daily post so here's a joke. A runner went to see a doctor. The doctor said, “I’ve seen the results of your hospital tests, and you’re going to need an operation on your gall bladder.” “How will this affect my performance?” asked the runner, “Will I be able to run sub-3 hour marathons after the operation?” “Yes of course” the doctor replied. “That’s great!” exclaimed the runner. “I never could before”.

Anyway the next "little problem" is here and I went to the Doctor today and now have more things to take. When will I get better? Thank goodness it has been only one thing at a time. Unlike the following.

Spring has sprung

... four days early. No complaints from me.

Recent training sessions
At Dickson training last night, Rod showed up, and he ran some 300m intervals while I took an early mark.  The previous night there were eight of us enjoying the mild evening - I ran 8k early, then supervised a set of "Rose Garden" 200s on 2:30. Running were Tori, Kelley, Garry, Rae, Craig, Jen & Peter. And on Sunday Andrew and I jogged around at Stromlo Forest Park, and watched the first leg of the ACT Duathlon championships; I think Andrew liked the look of it and decided he might have a go next year.

Future Training
A heads up that all ACT Government Sportsgrounds will be closed from mid September for routine maintenance. Therefore our training sessions at Dickson and Kaleen will cease then.

I am wondering if there would be interest in a training session at Kippax, my local area, for one or two people who would commit to it, for a few months perhaps? Please discuss.

New gym.
The gym I have been attending for years has closed and this morning I joined the gym at Bruce CIT. Excellent value. Open every day and is well equipped. Thanks to Rod for telling me about it; he goes there and I even bumped into him arriving as I was coming out of there today. I ran around Bruce Ridge afterwards and that's another plus: good training venues nearby including of course the AIS.

Glad to be back in Canberra. Beautiful at this time of year.

Tuesday Results Catchup

Wednesday 24 July BBQ Stakes 6k
Andy Matthews 31:32

Wednesday 31 July BBQ Stakes 6k
Jennifer Bright 26:29
Peter Burke 27:37
Andy Matthews 30:11
Caroline Campbell 37:47

Friday 2 August Customs 5k
Jennifer Bright 20:24
Peter Burke 22:34
Bronwyn Calver 22:47
Caroline Campbell 30:47

Saturday 3 August Ginninderra Parkrun #67 5k
11 Andrew SIMPSON 19:52 M40 New PB!
56 Jill PEARSON 25:20 W55
104 Margaret MCSPADDEN 31:16 W65
119 finishers

Saturday 3 August Tuggeranong Parkrun #24 5k
124 finishers

Saturday 3 August YCRC Dunrossil Drive 4k
16. Ewen Thompson M55 18:48
27. Caroline Campbell W70 23:06
31 finishers

Sunday 4 August YCRC Women’s Jogalong 6k
22. Cathy Montalto W60 30:09
40. Caroline Campbell W70 32:52
62. Kathy Sims W60 30:17
82 finishers

Wednesday 7 Aug BBQ Stakes 6k
Jennifer Bright 27:26
Andy Matthews 28:23
Caroline Campbell 35:34

Friday 9 August Customs 5k
Jennifer Bright 20:47
Peter Burke 22:01
Bronwyn Calver 23:31
Caroline Campbell 30:22

Saturday 10 August Ginninderra Parkrun #68 5k
35 Jill PEARSON 25:05 W55
68 Margaret MCSPADDEN 29:44 W65
93 finishers

Saturday 10 August Tuggeranong Parkrun #25 5k
88 finishers

Saturday 10 August YCRC Hackett 6k
6 finishers

Wednesday 14 Aug BBQ Stakes 6k
Jennifer Bright 26:39
Andy Matthews 29:50
Caroline Campbell 36:57

Friday 16 August Customs 5k
Andrew Simpson 19:54
Jennifer Bright 20:00
Peter Burke 20:59
Caroline Campbell 27:51

Saturday 17 August Ginninderra Parkrun #69 5k
47 Jill PEARSON 24:54 W55
97 finishers

Saturday 17 August Tuggeranong Parkrun #26 5k
113 finishers

Saturday 17 August YCRC North Lyneham 6.2k
6 finishers

Sunday 18 August Alice Springs Running Festival Half Marathon
Suzie Gye 1:47.47 10th female
Susan Sturgeon 1:52.18 18th female

Sunday 18 August ACTVAC Half Marathon
M50 Mick Horan 1:40.53
W55 Maria O'Reilly 1:41.14
M40 Craig Davis 1:42:58
W55 Tori Hennig 1:48.33
M40 Kristian Pithie 1:51.19
W65 Rae Palmer 1:57.33
W70 Caroline Campbell 2:05.54

Friday 23 August Customs 5k
Peter Burke 20:47
Bronwyn Calver 23:19

Saturday 24 August Ginninderra Parkrun #70 5k
69 Margaret MCSPADDEN 29:11 W65
71 Ruth BAUSSMANN 29:14 W60
105 finishers

Saturday 24 August Tuggeranong Parkrun #27 5k
56 Catherine MONTALTO 25:29 W60
116 finishers

Saturday 24 August YCRC Campbell Park 6k
17 finishers

Sunday 25 August ACTVAC handicap Mt Taylor 7.0k
4 Mick Horan M50 32:10 73.8%
6 Kerrie Tanner W50 tba
32 Rod Lynch M50 28:01 84.1
41 Maria O'Reilly W55 34:09 83.5
45 Kelley Flood W50 34:22 77.7
53 Ruth Baussmann W60 45:32 66.7
60 Peter Burke M40 31:03 69.2
65 Margaret McSpadden W65 46:06 69.2
82 finishers

Sunday 25 August ACTVAC Handicap Mt Taylor 3.5k
3 Cathy Montalto W60 17:40 80.2%
13 Jill Pearson W55 17:39 73.9
40 finishers

Sunday 25 August Coburg Half Marathon – Kristian Pithie 1:54
Sunday 25 August Perth Marathon – Warrick Howieson 3:58
Sunday 25 August ACT Duathlon Championships Caroline Campbell first in her age group.
===========================================
Suzie and Susan after the Alice Springs Half Marathon

FOOTNOTES
1. There are some great results: Warrick surviving the hills of Kings Park at the end of a marathon; Jennifer running 20 minutes flat for 5k at Customs; Susan blitzing her half marathon in Alice Springs, Andrew beating Sarah-Jayne's time at Parkrun, and the list goes on!
2. There will be another race update next Tuesday.
3. Q: Which member of the speedygeese is to be a 2013 inductee into the ACT SPORT HALL OF FAME? A: Bronwyn, for cricket. Truly awesome.

Victory!

Song of the week.
From http://youtu.be/AP2NkCkQGhQ


We were there! Along with more than a few other people.

back into a routine

With minor variations from week to week, here is a plan:

Running:
Mondays I will jog in the morning and run at Parliament House in the afternoon, 4:30pm for an early run and 5:30pm to meet the speedygeese for a training session.
Tuesdays I will run long at Dickson at 4:00pm then meet the speedygeese for a training session at 5:30pm again.
Wednesdays I will spend an hour in the gym and then go for an easy run.
Thursdays I will meet the speedygeese at Aranda at 5:30pm. In due course that will morph into Vets track.
Fridays I will spend an hour in the gym doing circuit work, then go on another easy run.
Saturdays from next week I hope to resume running at Acton Ferry Terminal, a long run. This Saturday is a 16k race instead.
Sundays I will continue meeting the speedygeese at Stromlo Forest Park and run intervals. From 22 September this will probably be moved from 8:00am to 7:00am.
Other gym attendances are also a possibility as summer approaches.

Blogging, trying to organise better, a rough plan:
Mondays I have been saving time by posting a "song of the week".
Tuesdays I will attempt to list new race results that have come to hand.
Wednesdays I intend giving an update on our training sessions.
Thursdays I might write something.
Fridays is a chance to publicise future events.
Saturdays could be a day for linking interesting articles and posts from other sources.
Sundays could be a day to post photographs and to summarise the week.

In addition I intend developing a blog describing what we encountered during this month's holiday in FNQ!

Let's trust that injury and illness will stay away.

Canberra Times Fun Run 2 weeks away

A highlight - there is now a 14k event as well as the 5k and 10k.
The cost - the 14k costs more than the 10k. Naturally.
Entries at http://canberratimesfunrun.com.au/default.asp?PageID=21892

Apparently we have missed the early bird entry.

 A chance to be silly.

hamlet

Just another palindrome.

Hamlet's last lines, early draft:

Rot, cadets! I - oh - drat!
Epitaph; pat?
I, petard hoisted actor ...
[dies]

Another early draft

On that note, hopefully I am alive and well and celebrating our 43rd wedding anniversary at the Gold Coast with Jenny. Always a risk, a series of advance posts. We fly back tomorrow!

It is probably not safe to exercise with a cat

Not long now

sweet sweat

Apparently exercise helps you think.
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=why-do-you-think-better-after-walk-exercise
Although have you noticed, people who frequently exercise think mostly about exercise?
Think about it.

redemption's song

Song of the week: "We are the free", by Matt Redman
from http://youtu.be/lweUGdKRFeI



We’re the forgiven, singing redemption's song
There's a fire that burns inside
A fire that burns inside
Nothing can stop us
We’ll be running through the night
With a fire that burns inside
A fire that burns inside

more old photos on a Sunday

He got bigger....

flexbilty tests

I totally fail the hamstring flexibilty test. New decade resolution: fix that! See...
http://running.competitor.com/2013/05/training/flexibility-tests-for-runners_72760

How about you?

yo, banana boy!

"speedy signs"!

Panda had nap

Enjoying my holiday I expect. Away from everything.

Dubya won??? No way, bud.

Oops politics. No wait, just palindromes. That's OK then.

do not ask

how to breathe

There are many conflicting opinions about “how to breathe” when you run.
“Just breathe naturally”
“Breathe in for four, out for two”
“Breathe in for two, out for four”
“Breathe in through the nose, out through the mouth”
“Breathe deeply to maximise oxygen intake”
“Breathe from the diaphragm, not the chest”
.... and so on.

An article which fails to “clear the air”:
http://running.competitor.com/2013/06/training/how-should-i-breathe-when-i-run_75131

Here is what I know.
1. If you are training properly, most of your running is at talking pace. Just breathe naturally!

2. Whenever you think of it, practise expelling air for as long as possible. Relax the vocal cords when you do so. Use both the abdomen and the chest. Most of the air is expelled from the mouth. Then inhale as quickly as possible. You don't have to inhale for as long  a time as you exhale. The reason is quoted in the above article... “the atmospheric pressure is greater than the pressure in your lungs, which means you need to push the air out to let it rush back in.” Finally, inhalation takes place via the diaphragm, which rises, and the chest, which expands; it's both,

3. If you are running hard with relaxed vocal cords you will make a lot of noise! As people tell me when we are racing. If I could talk, my response would be, “golly, you don't make any noise, are you running hard enough?”

And when I think of it, I practise “in for two, out for six .” The more bad air exhaled, the more good air you can inhale.

black spiders

Song of the week: "Milk and Black Spiders", by the Foals.
from http://youtu.be/fN9_lzLlCqc

old photos again

Jenny a long long time ago

Jenny with baby #3.

My latest Vetrunner article - Goal setting

Goal Setting and Delayed Gratification.
If you want to motivate yourself to train, you need to set some goals. These goals need to be realistic and achievable.

Case 1. An unrealistic goal.
A runner wishes to run a 20 minutes 6k. Maybe her friend can run that time and she has decided to get as fast as this friend. She wants to stretch herself, good, but the goal time she has chosen is well beyond her capabilities, bad. So every time she trains, if she feels strong enough, she pushes far too hard. When she competes in a race, she starts off way too fast. Because of her hard training, she makes some initial progress. But because she works so hard, her rest and recovery cycles are compromised, which means her times stop improving and it takes more and more effort to sustain what little improvement she has made. In due course, the inevitable outcome is exhaustion, burn-out, injury, and disillusionment.

On the other hand, if the goal isn’t much of a challenge, there may be reasons for the coach to suggest something a bit more difficult and long term. Perhaps the runner races all the time and has come to expect their plateau to continue indefinitely. A bit of a focus might help the runner to be training more consistently and more to a plan.

Or perhaps the runner simply has a short term outlook, without terribly much commitment.

Case 2. A realistic goal achievable straight away.
Here we have a second runner who has not broken 45 minutes for 10k and is set on achieving this. It has become her life goal. She sets out on a 16 week plan to build a decent base and to get fitness levels up; the plan is to make a sub 45 minute 10k relatively easy for her. However 4 weeks in her first time trial – which for this runner just has to be 10k – she achieves her goal, and celebrates, and promptly gives up training.

The problem here was that the runner couldn’t see that she had much more potential for improvement. If that didn’t interest her, at the very least she could have gone into maintenance mode to keep her fitness levels up until a new goal comes to mind.

Setting a specific goal like this is good, but training and racing with just the final goal as the focus is not. There is a problem if every run, just about every day, is an attempt to achieve the goal. Much better is the approach that sees each day’s run as part , an important part, of the process which will eventually lead to the goal being achieved.

Case 3. Step by step improvement.
A third runner has a goal in mind, but the focus is on what running or other training is to be achieved today. She is happy to keep on laying the foundation by following the plan day after day and being patient about achieving her ultimate goal in due course. She has faith that when the day comes it will all come together and the goal will be achieved. So she is content to work on her training and ensure that her recoveries are such that she keeps building her fitness from week to week until she is ready. And when she comes to the big test, she is fresh and confident.

I see all these behaviours in the athletes I coach. And we probably think and act like any one of these three from time to time. Try and be “Case 3”! Get a plan, check it out with and be accountable to a coach, stick to the plan, have infinite patience, and know that with good goals and a good process you can do it. Today is but a stepping stone in preparation for tomorrow.

don't fast to lose weight!

Doc note: I dissent. A fast never prevents a fatness. I diet on cod!

It's a palindrome.

Do cod!

check

A Time for Everything

I have been reading. This obsession with food? For goodness sake get over it. Compulsive over-eating, compulsive under-eating? Instead just eat normal nutritious food 3 times daily, don't snack much, don't worry over food at all, if you have allergies then eat sensible substitutes, make sure you use the calories you have taken in by exercising in a variety of ways. You are made to eat a little more sometimes, and a little less sometimes. Nature has designed us for hard work at times, and rest at times, in the same way that nature has designed us for feast and famine, but not for on-going gluttony nor for on-going starvation.

1 There is a time for everything,
and a season for every activity under the heavens:
2 a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3 a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
4 a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5 a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
6 a time to search and a time to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7 a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8 a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.

I do weigh myself regularly. Why? I like to monitor my weight because a sudden change in weight, up or down, can indicate that something is very wrong. Also I guess because I collect statistics about everything.... It's the mathematician in me.

Be careful about choices. Deciding it is always better to take one particular course of action. Remember, there are seasons.

Demiregular tessellations

There are six different polygon arrangements: around vertex 1 is 3.6.3.6, around vertex 2 is 3.4.4.6, around vertex 3 is 3.4.6.4, around vertex 4 is 3.3.4.12, around vertex 5 is 3.3.3.4.4, around vertex 6 is 4.4.4.4. We could call this tessellation 3.6.3.6 / 3.4.4.6 / 3.4.6.4 /3.3.4.12 / 3.3.3.4.4 / 4.4.4.4

Song of the week: "Tessellate", by Mumford and Sons.
from http://youtu.be/fnEk9qa0yjY



That's a very different version!