Secret Blog for Killing Track and Parkrun PBs

Snow on the surrounding hills this week and still in bulk on Mount Franklin looking across the lake. The weather has been a challenge, congratulations for those who got out there. Cold, windy, rain or snow earlier in the week...plenty more to come. Only 12km day after the half marathon, then 17km+ every day since, sometimes running at lunch. I will be over 120km for the week tomorrow, then maintain that as best I can until I head for France in 3 weeks. Next set tomorrow, 3 x 2500m XC efforts at Stromlo.

Cool windy morning after early rain. Venue mostly bike path around the lake, some off and on road sections and navigating puddles and pedestrians. After the first kilometre sitting in a chasing pack out of the wind I jumped across to solo M30 Jacob. From there on were were together until Jacob skipped away in the final 2-3 kilometres. I thought I had a near flawless run. My splits: 3:30,3:30,3:21,3:34,3:25,3:29,3:32,3:38,3:37,3:44,3:36,3:33,3:37,3:40,3:38,3:39,3:37,3:44,3:34,3:43. All the splits over 3:40 had a hill in it. That's my last race until City2Surf in August. I'll be in France very soon, continuing base training in a calm and warm environment.

Perfect morning again for running. Weather cool, sunny, light winds. Course very hilly forest clay based trails. Mostly up on outward section, mostly down on return. I train here a few days a week, no surprises. Gabe also backing up from the session on Saturday. Splits: 4:00/km,3:45/km,3:54/km,3:21/km,3:37/km,3:38/km,3:40/km,2:51/km. I felt great throughout, caught all but 4 runners, 3rd place on handicap. My highest age standard for 2019 95.1% Next Sunday is Australian Masters Athletic Half Marathon Championships. I'll be having a light training week with reducing volume and a couple of tempo runs. I don't have any race time ambitions. Goal is to place highly and have a solid run. Course is slow, mostly on shared bike path.

Perfect morning for running at Stromlo XC circuit. Weather sunny, cool, light breeze. Same set as we have been doing on Saturdays for a few weeks. Times are coming down rapidly for everyone, form outside of training also improving at same rate. Fastest splits today from Helen with 11:27 and 11:21. Steve put together 3 good efforts again. ACT Masters XC handicap tomorrow. It's a very hilly 7.3km. A light session from me with just the middle split at full gas. Splits: 9:16 (3:38/km), 8:18 (3:15/km), 8:47(3:27/km). Fastest effort was a PB, 11 seconds quicker than last week. 2nd May 8:52, 4th May 8:37, 11th May 8:29, 8:18 today. I've started to ease off the volume with AMA Half Marathon Championships a week away. 108km this week, down from 125km. It will reduce to around 85km/week by next Saturday.

Perfect weather for the ABS Fun Run 7km at lunch. Weather sunny, light winds, cool to warm. Every year a hotly contested run. It almost always comes down to seconds. Splits: 3:12,3:19,3:28,3:30,3:35,3:28,3:20. I led from the start working solid to the dead turn at 3.5km. Saw I had only a slender lead. Backed off slightly to save for a sit and then kickdown finish. Went full gas with 600m to go, maybe 10 seconds in front of Alistair who got the better of me in 2018. Federal politician and winner Canberra Half Marathon 2018 Andrew Leigh was 3rd and couple of minutes back. Natty B won the female section. For the record: Times in 2010 24:01 1st, 2015 23:11 1st, 2016 short course, 2017 24:01 2nd, 2018 24:07 2nd

Both yesterday and today three tempo runs on the pipeline trail near home. All runs cruising along at around 4:00/km on a mostly flat with a few hills thrown in. Surface compacted sand with mud puddles. 22km yesterday (morning with Minnie and Millie the border collie 10km, afternoon solo 12km). 10km this morning with Helen. Next set early tomorrow morning, something faster. Thursday 6km ABS Fun Run. Saturday light session. Sunday 7.3km hilly ACT Masters XC handicap near home. Still running with volume just over 120km/week.

Morning session at Stromlo XC circuit. Weather cool, some wind, sunny. Track saturated due to rain yesterday. Seven of us there, slightly different start times. Steve was back first set since AMA Championships. Jen back from Boston Marathon. The set: Warm up, 5 x 100m strides, 3 x 2500m efforts on undulating loop, warm down. All up 15km for my set. Splits: 8:34 (3:18,3:24,1:51), 8:29 (3:11,3:22,1:55), 10:16 (4:51,3:32,1:52). I was chatting first kilometre of final effort, then solid. We last did this set in May 2015. I'm a few seconds quicker in the first two efforts today compared to back then. An afternoon recovery run to make 22km for the day, 122km this week (my 2nd 120km+ week this new cycle). Nothing at this volume since 6th April due to taper and racing. Next session on Monday. I have 6km ABS Fun Run on Thursday.

I've had a mufty week. 15-17km every day, longish up-tempo runs on forest trails, trying to fit in between work ends and sunsets, no sessions. It's been cold and windy...as they say in Canberra, the weather turns on ANZAC Day. This is the schedule for Australian Masters Athletics Championships: 2020 Brisbane (April)(running Marathon de Paris instead), 2021 Canberra (April?)(age 59), 2022 Hobart (April?)(age 60). This is the schedule for World Masters Athletics Championships: Toronto, Canada 2020 (July), Gothenburg, Sweden 2022 This is the schedule for Tour de France Grand Depart: Brussels, Belgium 2019 (almost always July), Nice, France 2020, Copenhagen, Denmark 2021 2022 is the end of the road I can see if I make it that far! Where there is an end there hopefully will be another beginning. Next session on Saturday 4 x 2500m XC intervals at Stromlo with 2-3 minutes recovery. Next week ABS 6km Fun Run on Thursday, ACT Masters Athletics XC Handicap 7.3km on Sunday. Next ra

With the end of track and beginning of a new championship cycle we are making 2500m threshold efforts our standard set on Saturday morning until the end of June. Helen, Gabe and myself have already been doing this set. The set: 2.5km warm up, 5 x 100m strides, 3 x 2500m efforts with 3 minutes recovery, warm down. I ran 6km on undulating fire trails with Milli the border collie in the afternoon, 17km for the day, almost back up to 120km for the week. Splits: 11:20 pacing KT, 11:25 pacing Helen, 8:17 solo. Long run in the forest tomorrow to make it over 120km for the week.

Morning session at Stromlo XC circuit. 17km all up including 5 x 100m strides and 3 x 2500m efforts on undulating loop. First two efforts untimed. Final effort at threshold in 8:52. First 2km at 3:30/km, final 500m at 3:20/km. Splits for Helen: 12:12, 11:49, 11:57. Next set on Saturday, either at Stromlo or contemplating a 10km road race in Sydney.

Next race on the agenda is the Australian Masters Athletics Half Marathon Championships to be held here in Canberra on 26th May, just a few weeks away. I pulled up well after 4 days of tough racing. Yesterday was an up tempo 15km run on bike path and trails. No break from training, I'm back into base building mode for around 6 months with very few races, lots of threshold intervals and runs. Only City2Surf 14km road race on 11th August is confirmed. I'll be in France for 5 weeks from 24th June which will include a few Parkruns.