Muddy Mo

26th November 2011

Muddy-Mo at Swinley Forest.

https://www.mo-running.com

According to my Facebook Post - http://muddy.mo-running.com/results/ - 1st in age group - 4th overall - more track training required for those sprint finishes.

I went here with Rachael and Zoe in a new pair of trainers, and did pretty well.

Do not seem to have any photos and the results are not online any more sadly, as with many races.

Ironman 70.3 Pays d'Aix 2011

looking too happy on the run

Suddenly decided that I'd do a Half Ironman. Some friends were going, and I was feeling quite fit, so it seemed like a good idea. I entered on 31st July 2011, less than two months before race day on 25th September 2011. It's nice to be race-fit and to be able to do things ad-hoc like this. Not only would it be a race, it would be a long weekend in the sun when the British summer was over. For my friends Scott and Joanne this was their first long distance triathlon, and part of their ramp-up for Ironman Austria next year. I think it was more just some fun for Amy, Mark and Jo who made up the rest of our party and were doing it together as a relay.

I arrived on Thursday and after finding everyone we had a nice dinner, with just a few glasses of red wine. Joanne's parents were here too, with a campervan, and they very kindly took us on a tour of the bike course the next day. This was really useful, and also a nice trip around the region.

Unusually, the swim and the run route were far apart; we would be exiting the swim and cycling to the run start 20km away. So we packed everything in our transition bags and cycled over to the lake to stretch our legs. Quite a lot of hard thinking was required to make sure nothing was forgotten - it wouldn't be good to pick up your run bag and find no shoes in it. It was warm and sunny, and we had some time, so we tested the water - it was really nice to have a swim. We then had quite a tough time getting back to town as the buses promised didn't materialise and we had to try and get taxis.

Another nice dinner, some carb loading, and definitely some more relaxing red wine.

Race day arrived with thunder and heavy rain. Coaches were lined up in Aix to take us to the start and we trudged the 15 minute walk over to them at about 5am. I hadn't packed for wet weather, but I wasn't worried for some reason - I probably should have been. But the rain stopped, and the sun came out and everything was fine in the end.


Swim 00:43:16 - 963rd

I actually didn't mind the swim. The lake water was clean and warm, and my wetsuit helped with buoyancy. 1900m is only a bit further than Olympic distance 1500m, and I knew I'd have no trouble finishing. We waited on the beach in a huge crowd listening to the music, the announcer, and trying to stay calm. After a rather shambolic start, lots of confusion with ropes and people jumping the gun, we were off and I kept to the back as usual. It is a long thin lake, and we swam to a buoy near the far end, across the lake to another, and back to complete the third side of the rectangle. I fell further and further behind and by the end there were not many people near me. This is borne out by the result - I only beat about 25 people - I didn't mind too much, 43 minutes is good for me, but there was a lot of work to do.

T1 00:05:25

Even the fastest people were taking 3-4 minutes here. I stopped at the loo so that I wouldn't be uncomfortable on the bike.

Bike 02:56:52

I was hoping to beat three hours on the bike, but the previous day's course review revealed quite a lot of hills, so I wasn't sure if I could make it. I saw someone at the side of the road after only a few minutes, not realising it was Scott mending his first (of two) punctures of the day. Climbing a hill a short while later, which was beginning to get quite tedious,  I came across Joanne and Mark talking together. I said 'Hi' as I went past, and Mark decided he would join me.

We spent the next hour or so leap-frogging each other. My most fun descent to date is this one, where we raced for ages trying to gain an advantage, swerving across to left and right, not caring about cars and just using the entire traffic free road.

Eventually we hit a flat section and Mark pulled away from me. I couldn't afford to try to follow, as I had a half-marathon coming up. Mark was doing the relay, so wasn't running. The final third of the course had quite a tough hill but we were soon descending into the town of Aix for transition two. I managed to beat my target, very pleased with my time here.

T2 00:03:58

Another loo break means my transition is slower by about a minute than it could be. I'd rather lose time here though than at the side of the road during the bike.

Run 01:29:11

Some nifty watch manipulation was needed to get my Garmin 205 restarted for the run, but I managed it (you can see links to both activities below). The course is three laps around the town, and was supposed to be flat. I ran well but it was very hard work, and very hot in the Provence afternoon sunshine. We ran as far as a park where there was some shade, and I took on some water there. on the way back to town there was a hill, not much to look at on the elevation chart, but I hated it. This section was two-way, so a chance to see my friends occasionally.

I was hoping for a time just slightly slower than a normal half marathon - so something like 02:35. I ran a very steady race, watching my average speed, getting very tired but knowing I'd make it. I had a bit of confusion at the final roundabout on the third lap - I couldn't work out where the exit and almost ended up going round for lap 4. But I found it and was very pleased to get a time under 1:30.

Overall 05:18:44

I was 473rd out of 993 competitors. I thought I'd have done a bit better than that. My swim let me down very badly. My bike was good, but needs to be faster - I should not be content with a 30km/h average speed on a race this distance. My run was the best section for me, 232nd overall in this - I can't think how I'd improve on that significantly.

We finished at a reasonable time of day, unlike with a full IM race, which was nice. Some more food, lots of relieved chat that it was over, and definitely more red wine.


Results - Garmin Bike - Garmin Run - Ironman Site - Ironman Individual Page

Photos - Video still available at Mysports but FinisherPix photos are removed.

MDCC 10TT 09/06/2011

My first MDCC time trial of the year, out on the H10/2 course between Maidenhead and Twyford on the A4.

My time of 26.26 is 3 seconds slower than the same course last year. However, I must remind myself that I get better during the season, so this is actually not too bad.

Results
MDCC

Belfast City Marathon 2011

Having completed Reading Half Marathon, I kept on training with some friends from my triathlon club who had upcoming marathons. The training was going well, and a couple of weeks ago I saw that Belfast Marathon was still taking entries. So I decided to give it a go.

In with my other training I managed a slow 20 mile run and a fast 16 mile run in the few weeks beforehand - the 16 miler at 7:10 pace. Getting very obsessed with my pacing now I have it on my wrist with the Garmin 205 :) So I was feeling quite confident that 20 miles at pace was doable, and that if I could hang on for the final six miles and not hit the wall I had a chance of getting 3:15. 3:15 is the magic time as this is the limit for getting a "Good For Age" place in the London Marathon for next year; I've missed out on the ballot for that two years in a row.

Did a good 10 mile run about a week from the race, and a very easy 6-7 on the Wednesday and then pretty much tapered. Drank a lot of orange squash, and ate a lot of pasta. Gave up caffeine and alcohol for two weeks as well. good preparation and got to race day in good shape.

9:05 was start time, so got up at 6:30 and had some Oatso Simple porridge, a banana, and 500ml of caffeinated sports drink before 7am. Drove up to Belfast with my family and parked the car at a relation's house. This was a great idea, Frazer and Eileen gave me a cup of coffee (a mistake, it was too close to the starting time) and drove me right to the start line.

I'd been given a lot of advice about starting out easy. I knew that after about 16 miles my pace would slow no matter how hard I was trying. The only way to get my 3:15 was to go out fast and then try to hang on, so that's what I did. I watched my average speed throughout - it was 6:48 for about the first 9 miles - and I was feeling OK. I took a gel at mile 6 and a few sips from cups of water at every drink station.

Then we hit the hardest part of the race - it was starting to get hot, and we had a 5 mile climb. I watched my speed slow down, but was pretty happy it didn't go down quickly. By the top of the hill my average was still 6:54 and by the half marathon my time was approximately 1:31. Apart from a small bump at mile 25, there were only downhill and flat sections ahead, so I had my second gel and sped up and got my average down to 6:52 again.

The long coast path by the side of the motorway was probably the hardest section. I was feeling thirsty (I think I didn't get a drink for about 6 miles) and it got a bit lonely with no supporters and very few other runners in sight. I guessed this must mean I was doing quite well.

Arrived back in Belfast centre and finally got a drink - stopped and took a few seconds to down a whole cupful. Only 5 miles to go.

By this stage, I could now feel the fatigue kicking in. My average pace was dropping very slowly, maybe a second a mile. I wasn't too worried by this as the markings on my wrist said that I was well on track for my 3:15, probably even 3:10. But it was hot now and I was bored. I wanted to drink or eat more but had nothing left and didn't want to lose time at the water stations so just kept on going.

Getting more bored (it's a long time to be running) and just wanting it to be over, I got to Ormeau Park finally, and a fellow runner tried to overtake me, which gave me a bit of a boost. When I saw the finish I found a last bit of energy,  and gave it a good sprint to the line.

My mum and Gina were waiting for me there, and we went in search of bananas, and I ate and drank most of the contents of my goodie bag.

I was massively pleased with my time - 3:05:28 - almost 10 minutes faster than I needed - my London Marathon place was now secured.

I had another surprise when I got the final result - which was printed in the newspaper the next day - I actually came 67th overall - and as this was a special 20th Anniversary year for the race, I would receive a free commemorative t-shirt as a Top 100 finisher :)

Photos and finisher video are still available to view at Marathon photos here

Reading Half Marathon 2011

I have a semi-serious aim this year to do at least one race every month. Not only is this the March entry in that challenge, it's also my 'A' race of the year and I trained very hard for it.

I've been doing track sessions on Monday evenings to give me more speed, medium runs on Wednesday evenings with the club, and long runs of up to 15 miles at the weekend. I've never had this much preparation for a long run and though I was nervous, I did feel ready to tackle my 1:30 target time. I needed to take over four minutes off my Windsor HM personal best time. Reading is supposed to be a faster course, and I am fitter, so it should be doable.

There was a huge turnout from the Evolution club. I walked down to the club to meet and we set off in a car convoy. We parked in Jo's works car park which was convenient - and were in plenty of time to make toilet stops and get to the start line for 10:05am

With my new Garmin 205 GPS on my wrist, and the sun creeping out from behind the thin cloud, we were off.

I didn't really know how to work the watch, but had average speed prominently set. I only managed the first mile in 8 minutes. This was due to congestion and once I realised my time and the crowds thinned a little I pushed through harder. I was assuming something around a 6:55 minute mile would get my target. and even though I'd studied charts, forgot quite how small the increments were.

6:40 1:27:24
6:50 1:29:35
7:00 1:31:46
7:10 1:33:57
7:20 1:36:08

6:55 wasn't going to do it.

However, I kept running and checking my average pace and it kept going down. By about 15k I think it was down around 6:50 and I was happy - I was even thinking I was going to smash 1:30 and relaxed a little. I did actually speed up some, but should have tried even harder. I missed a lot of mile/km markers somehow so never really know where I was, and I couldn't press any buttons on the watch as I didn't know if I'd be able to get it back to the correct setting again. So I kept going. At the final kilometer mark I felt my first pain of the day - my inner thigh. It didn't slow me much, and then I was entering the football stadium and all there was to do was sprint to the finish.

Really hoping I would have beaten 1:30, I had a worried few minutes until I eventually pressed some buttons and got my answer 1:29:28 - I'd done it (official time 1:29:24). I was a little shocked at how close to 1:30 it was - I could easily have missed it when I'd even mistakenly thought I was in the 1:27 region. Note to self - prepare target speeds better.


1351 Robert Shiels M 45 01:31:51 627 01:29:24

F3 Duathlon 2 - 5k/20k/5k

Full results here  (update - results seem to be gone now)

I've done a lot of sprint run training recently, and have managed an unofficial but pretty accurate 19:40 time - on the 400M track at Thames Valley Athletics Center.

I hadn't planned to race today, but spoke to a few people from Evolution triathlon club and thought I would give it a go if the weather was nice.

The weather was very nice for February.

Got down to Dorney in plenty of time and paid my £40, registered and racked my bike. Spent a long time thinking about what gloves I'd wear - left long gloves and fingerless ones beside the bike just in case.

Met up with Kevin,Sally,Tomas and Caroline before the race and we did a warm up together - feeling quite relaxed even though I knew this was going to hurt.

This was my first race in my new Newton running shoes, so I was wearing my calf compression guards just to be sure. I also don't have quick release laces, so I left my Asics by the bike for a quick change for the second 5K run.

Run 1 - 19:59
The first 5K was a 2 loop out and back along a very dirty track covered in sheep's droppings. Very slippery on the turns so we had to slow down a lot. I managed to run well, deliberately slightly below my fastest pace, and came in right on my 20 minute target.

T1 - 0:44

Pretty fast, wasted a second or two by running down wrong aisle. Feeling quite warm from the run, decided not to wear gloves at all. This was the right decision.

Bike - 35:19

Six loops at Dorney is quite soul destroying. As usual there is a fast wind assisted section followed by an uphill struggle into the wind. I never did feel great, and was quite dispirited to see lots of fast cyclists frequently race past me. It was impossible to really tell my place though. In the end 34km/h average is quite good - I'm still disappointed though as I wasn't actually aerobically tired - just couldn't make my legs push harder. Somewhere in the back of my mind I was contemplating the second run.

T2 - 0:34

Quite fast - even though I got the wrong aisle - again - and had to duck under the railing with my bike.

Run 2 - 20:21

My legs hurt from the bike ride and after nearly an hour I was tired. It took me 1/4 lap to get into any kind of stride. At the first turnaround I suddenly spotted Tomas right on my shoulder. This shocked me out of my mental reverie - I hadn't seen him on the bike anywhere and thought he must be quite a bit behind me, but there he was challenging. It hurt but I upped my pace a bit. This is where I started to really want to just stop and walk. Once lap done and Tomas was still right there. Started looking for people ahead who looked like they might be over 40 and in the VET category. There was a remote possibility that I was chasing a top 3 position and I didn't want to lose it by a few seconds. So I speeded up again and by the third and final turnaround I saw Tomas and knew I'd made enough of a gap between us that he wouldn't catch me. I think I overtook about six people in that final push. I always feel OK once I've mentally decided I can sprint as far as the finish line which I did for about the final kilometer. I think I should have been able to manage another 20 minute run, but I lost it all in that first bit just after the bike. Coming out of T2 I did notice a lady runner - I have finished at around the same time as the 1st place lady before and wondered if this might be the case here. However she sprinted way ahead of me right off the bike when I was just settling in - that was my worst section of the whole race. I must do more brick sessions. I've checked and she did go on to win the ladies race in a time 15 seconds faster than me (Felicity Cole)

Result: 1:17:00
19th overall out of 110 finishers
5th VET out of 34

Quite disappointed that I didn't make the top three in my category. Fourth place was over a minute ahead so at least I know I didn't lose out narrowly on the second run. But first place was seven minutes ahead - finding it hard to imagine any way I can make up that kind of time. The race was won on the bike - he did a 40km/h average - that's what I have to do.

Found out later that Tomas had punctured on the bike and didn't manage to finish all the laps, but made it back to transition in time to start the run just behind me. Wonder if I'd have run quite so fast without him spurring me on like that :)

Brutal 10 - 2010

Not many people decide to race through mud and freezing water on a January Bank holiday, fewer still do it on their birthday. Today I decided to do both.

It was all Scott's fault anyway, and he kindly gave me a lift in his car down to the venue on the M3 in Longmoor. We also met fellow Evolution Club member Will there.

With face paint applied and a very light snow starting to fall, we were ready to go.

This was the same place as Hellrunner late last year. Fortunately there were no Bogs of Doom with deep smelly water up to our necks. There was plenty of water however and it was icy cold.

I wore my birthday present, a Livestrong t-shirt, and my calf guards as my legs were feeling pretty tight. A skullcap topped off the ensemble as it was a really cold day. It stopped snowing and wasn't windy so actually it was fine for running. The course was good and I ran well - I was pleased it was 10k and my time of around 54 minutes shows how tough it was - I can do 10K on the flat in around 42 minutes.

Crossing the river was really tricky, due to the depth and the uneven footing. I really did not want to trip and go headfirst into the water, so took it very cautiously. There was a thin rope trailing across to show the way - not sure why people were holding it as it would have given zero support. I held it too though :)

I think we had about four water crossings, and all had floating ice in them. I was pretty careful around the ice, and at the finish saw quite a few people with blood pouring down their shins from cuts they had gotten from it.

I'm pleased with my result - 43rd overall out of 211 runners, 35th male. I did hesitate a bit at the start, wondering whether to have a fun run, or race it, so lost a few places before my competitiveness kicked in and I went for it. Because I didn't get to the first river crossing near the lead, there was a bit of a queue and it was single file across.

Getting used to this sort of running, but if I do any more, I think I will replace my heavy Nike trainers with something more suited to total submersion in water. Once wet, the shoes really hurt my toes running down the steep hills.
Results currently here.

Photo Here plus search for others.

Place 43 Robert Shiels Time 54:54,6 Male Category Place 35 Bib Number 233