tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-82863148131507824902024-03-13T12:17:00.564+02:00Blaze Trail RunnerSharing the adventurous journey of trail running. Join me!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04192396054678736564noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8286314813150782490.post-7483935076051880372014-05-29T10:10:00.001+02:002014-05-29T10:10:32.357+02:00Lesson 4 | Brrr!<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Icy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That’s what hit me when I got out of the car at event number
three of the <a href="http://www.trailseries.co.za/" target="_blank">Trail Series</a>. I walked to the registration and coffee van in two
layers, with a scarf. It was the Winter Trail Series after all. Even though the
sun is up the air is still icy. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As it got closer to start time I realised that the weather
hadn’t really warmed up. What to do? If it never warms up it would be a pain
running in the cold, and I get colder quicker than I get hotter. My running kit
at the time was very basic: road running shoes, shorts and a t-shirt. Nothing
fancy. :) I decided to take my apple jacket and buff. My apple jacket is a
lightweight water and wind shell. Not proof of either, but good enough. It can
also fold up to the size of an apple, hence the name, and therefore not too big
to carry.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Implementing all my previous <a href="http://blazetrailrunner.blogspot.com/p/fork-in-road.html" target="_blank">lessons</a>, we started out. Around
1km I pocket my buff, which I was wearing as a scarf at the time. Five hundred
metres later I wriggled out of my apple jacket, while running. Folding it into
the apple I wished it to be, while running wasn’t possible as the material is
too light and got swept up by the wind, so I had to stop. Fortunately my shorts’
pocket was big enough to stuff my apple jacket in it, and I continued. This was
very uncomfortable, as it banged against my leg. Eventually I ran with the
folded jacket in my hand.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This time round the uphills were quite steep and I tried
doing <a href="http://blazetrailrunner.blogspot.com/2014/05/lesson-3-what-goes-up.html" target="_blank">lesson 3</a>, knowing that the downhill was coming, but eventually I had to
walk. This also proved to be another lesson. The downhill was awesome and we
got a beautiful view of the Hartebeespoort Dam.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Lesson learned:</b> <u>Pick
the right gear for the distance you’re doing.<o:p></o:p></u></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Firstly, I’m relieved I didn’t take more warm gear on the
run, as it would have been frustratingly awkward to have had to run with more
stuff. It was only a 7km run and the skies were clear, so it was bound to get
warmer. Add to that I do get hotter when I run. From then on for short distances I
just suck it up for the initial cold start, because I know after 1km it’s going to be
fine. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is just the tip of the iceberg (excuse the pun) when it
comes to gear for runs, and as I gain more experience I will share it with you.
Longer distance runs obviously require more planning and more gear, but short
distances can be easily done with minimal gear, which makes entry level trail
running awesome!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Feedback:</b> </span><u><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Are
you easily affected by the cold? Do you wear specific gear in the winter in
spite of the weather or distance?</span><o:p></o:p></u><br />
<u><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></u>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQgFYrEfIfhGcdBqigM-6YjiTry8QFvmdILuIcRbrsbgQH5hHAcTB_iduaHUz8cCLCI0bNlprfKRxRxv7oZue7xicg45M7HuY78Pa9h0dVlFaazsaO6JNAqinuO-HFEYK1gbsTOL7a6K4/s1600/youwall+com+-+sunset.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQgFYrEfIfhGcdBqigM-6YjiTry8QFvmdILuIcRbrsbgQH5hHAcTB_iduaHUz8cCLCI0bNlprfKRxRxv7oZue7xicg45M7HuY78Pa9h0dVlFaazsaO6JNAqinuO-HFEYK1gbsTOL7a6K4/s1600/youwall+com+-+sunset.jpg" height="480" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">OK, it wasn't that cold! There was no snow. / <a href="http://www.youwall.com/?ver=ODAz" target="_blank">Youwall.com</a></span></td></tr>
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<iframe frameborder="1" height="650" scrolling="no" src="http://www.endomondo.com/embed/workouts?w=olOcVibj4W4&width=650&height=650&width=650&height=650" width="650"></iframe>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04192396054678736564noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8286314813150782490.post-61110995134309612482014-05-15T22:41:00.000+02:002014-05-15T22:43:59.189+02:00Proof that lack of gear isn't an excuse<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I came across this <a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10154115785650346.1073741979.184041215345&type=1" target="_blank">Facebook album</a>, by <a href="http://marcosferro.com/" target="_blank">Marcos Ferro</a>, who photographed the 80km trail run, <a href="http://www.ultracb.com/" target="_blank">Ultra Caballo Blanco</a>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDzaeON3ynJv6UMx1ppEexmgkRpcUmr8SBAhG3QA3oRQWsGfUGiVSRjEAKlxavAHoq8EAuic0jcwXugYFGmlRjAclBJ_9HtzXpbXpOuOJIKapgugGzevb3Txbv7yNw1OJXzDCbQKGsKA8/s1600/1956965_10154115785795346_2599322914472636662_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDzaeON3ynJv6UMx1ppEexmgkRpcUmr8SBAhG3QA3oRQWsGfUGiVSRjEAKlxavAHoq8EAuic0jcwXugYFGmlRjAclBJ_9HtzXpbXpOuOJIKapgugGzevb3Txbv7yNw1OJXzDCbQKGsKA8/s1600/1956965_10154115785795346_2599322914472636662_o.jpg" height="420" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Ultra Caballo Blanco | Copyright <a href="http://marcosferro.com/" target="_blank">Marcos Ferro</a></span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It just proves, you can't use "not having the gear" as an excuse to start trail running. ;-)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here are some more pictures of the <a href="http://marcosferro.com/?page_id=2545" target="_blank">Raramuri</a>.</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04192396054678736564noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8286314813150782490.post-36738811614842138992014-05-15T11:14:00.000+02:002014-05-15T11:43:59.344+02:00Lesson 3 | What goes up...<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The second event in the <a href="http://www.trailseries.co.za/" target="_blank">Trail Series</a> was <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="940cd709-a64f-4186-9488-6852c13b272e" id="0fcf7e90-5aac-4113-827f-2710ac523599">at</span> the venue where
my very first <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="940cd709-a64f-4186-9488-6852c13b272e" id="db9fb5d6-e430-4032-ace9-105b75595a4e">trail</span> run was. I was psyched, as I remembered the route from the
previous time, but I still went to study the map. As I studied the map it
dawned on me that either my map reading skills weren’t as sharp or the route
had dramatically changed. It was the latter, so previous knowledge of the route
didn’t help. I studied the map and saw that it started out flat and then had sharp
turn onto a long straight uphill, then a sharp turn onto a very short flat part,
which leads to a very steep and <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="b7ffc443-19d6-4555-8db2-a27bf8157366" id="9f18ec30-38be-45e9-80c4-8fcd7eb4de3e"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="b75f1bff-b925-4907-bc6d-7d824e0f7847" id="9fccd020-d34e-4dd8-9215-2dc8f1ef6c1a">windy</span></span> downhill and finally a fairly straight
and flat route to the finish. One thing I couldn’t tell from the map was what part
was jeep track and what part was single track. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Again applying <a href="http://blazetrailrunner.blogspot.com/2014/04/lesson-1-first-trail-run.html" target="_blank">lesson one</a>, with <a href="http://blazetrailrunner.blogspot.com/2014/05/lesson-2-know-route.html" target="_blank">lesson two</a> being
implemented, we set out. The first flat part was all jeep <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="5295ccf9-9b9f-42b9-9cc5-c6d4423751f7" id="89333c4d-b17e-4675-89ae-3a9817d3078d"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="87df559d-ce74-49ad-b043-0e915eb77f2b" id="c21e5782-f9d9-414a-9005-8cd4b655d330">track</span></span> and was almost
1km long. This caused a lot of people to pick up the pace, because it felt as
though this was an easy run. I was tempted to do the same, but kept my pace as
I knew the hill was still up ahead. At the turn that signalled the uphill for
me, I was a bit shocked. Fortunately the uphill was also jeep track, but you
could see it going up all the way to the top and almost everyone was walking
it. I think when you have to stare at the mountain in front of you it does
break you a bit. Most of the people that had <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="7c8fd18e-9acf-4283-b1a1-1c7649a7202a" id="635e9ea0-6efb-4cbe-953d-84dd05537948"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="d9a8a34c-ec17-410b-a4cc-8a48fbff9160" id="193b7601-f995-4ed6-8ef6-e25c6b4b27ac">paced</span></span> it on the flat were now
walking, but I just felt something in me telling me not to walk, but to keep
running or should I say jogging. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It was small steps, but I knew if I started to walk it would
be hard to start jogging again. Slowly but surely I passed a lot of runners who
decided to walk it out. It was an epic mental battle for me, but I kept jogging.
Finally, when it started to flatten out and I could see the arrow in the
distance that pointed to the single track. I decided to reward myself by
walking the last piece of jeep track and to catch my breath. Onto the single
track the windy, steep and technical descent began. But I was in luck, because
there was no one in front of me and I could go at my own pace. As I descended I
realised that my breathing was more rhythmic. Eventually it started <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="c3a6468c-58e9-4958-a16a-e57f4f1e8a76" id="8fbee607-3ca7-4802-91b4-9d0e1fabcbdc">flatting</span>
out and got a lot less technical although still single track. I found a good
rhythm and only one guy passed me from the apex of the single track all the way
to the end.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Lesson learned:</b> <u>What
goes up, must come down, so run the uphill and "rest" on the downhill.</u></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In every trail race I’ve done, the start and the finish lines
are at the same place, which means the total ascent and descent will be equal.
By combining <a href="http://blazetrailrunner.blogspot.com/2014/05/lesson-2-know-route.html" target="_blank">lesson 2</a> with strategically running the up and down hills, you can
gain a lot of time. Had I walked the long uphill, I would probably have gotten
stuck behind some people on the technical single track and would definitely not
have done as well as I did. I jogged the uphill which (and certainly does feel
like) used a lot of energy. But running downhill uses other muscles and if you
keep the momentum you can actually "rest" on the downhill. Of course I had no
way of knowing that it would be a jeep track uphill and single track downhill.
The question is, what if it is the other way around? That would be a lesson for
another time. :-)</span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Feedback:</b> <u>Do you also feel your heart rate drop and breathing <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="6de593b4-3981-4a89-b7a6-46476ba5ffd9" id="e0a552df-0555-4d6f-99d4-916e7628269b">stabilise</span> when you run downhill?</u></span></div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9MSLqrrR1w5UdgxTdkvpwMM947g9bO-pYW1Gvg4YN8veslydenYNxDb_ItrRa817NBU5cB099T8pyEu2QvJtz1xm-VN93_Aul0AVcZARfxNlqMIMUyXpUYwDsk0vbUs6HRZLGed75J_o/s1600/rundownhill+-+ultra168.com+201202.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9MSLqrrR1w5UdgxTdkvpwMM947g9bO-pYW1Gvg4YN8veslydenYNxDb_ItrRa817NBU5cB099T8pyEu2QvJtz1xm-VN93_Aul0AVcZARfxNlqMIMUyXpUYwDsk0vbUs6HRZLGed75J_o/s1600/rundownhill+-+ultra168.com+201202.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Relaxing on the down hill.</span></td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04192396054678736564noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8286314813150782490.post-28371038892290212592014-05-08T13:42:00.001+02:002014-05-15T10:53:57.940+02:00Lesson 2 | Know The Route<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Shockingly, it took me a year after my first trail run to
return to the dust and rock single track awesomeness that is trail running.
This time round a good friend was training like a machine for the <a href="http://www.trailseries.co.za/page/gauteng-trail-series" target="_blank">Gauteng Winter Trail Series</a>. It consists of four events held four weekends in a row.
There is a short course, which is between 5 and 7 km’s and a long course which
is between 10 and 12 km’s. He was aiming for the short course, so I decided to
commit and join him, by entering for the whole series. I figured this was the
best way to motivate myself to partake. I was way behind on his training
schedule and not nearly as fit, but did some road run training just to get the
muscles loose. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We arrived at the event and I made sure to apply my <a href="http://blazetrailrunner.blogspot.com/2014/04/lesson-1-first-trail-run.html" target="_blank">first lesson</a>, by getting 2 <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="e8cac255-96e3-45c4-bef5-7ca6f7f3c860" id="0cd48537-ea02-44a7-a5b6-32ad6cd79040"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="a6b63806-37db-4130-b8a0-ed9695f3de32" id="ae147e0c-05f3-4ce3-b5af-851b4086d55f">metres</span></span> behind the starting line. Again, there was the countdown and off we went. This route had about 200m of slight uphill jeep track
before it hit a windy and steep single track. Some people who had bolted from
the start, started walking, but I jumped around them in order to keep my pace,
not knowing how long I would be able to keep it up. Fortunately, it quickly
turned into a single track descent with minor technical areas and the field
started opening up, but I was overjoyed that I had started so close to the
front as there was a huge bottleneck because of the quick onset of a steep
single track at the start. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I had space around me, I didn’t know whether I was going
to fast or to slow, because I had no one to measure myself against. The run was
in a park and I saw some zebras about 10m away from me. The route was an
awesome combination of slight up and downhill single track that made the
technical parts fun. The last <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="36f0940e-1888-40b7-9f5c-d53fca595a7b" id="d59c1f4e-00dd-4d9a-8eb0-47f3d38c480c"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="29283f6c-8095-40d8-ad40-aadd3809836c" id="d1cf0007-093c-45e1-ada4-d1948db36bee">kilometre</span></span> was, however, the most technical and
hectically up and down. At this point I didn’t know how far I was from the end,
so I walked most of it. No one else was passing me so I figured we were still a
bit away from the finish. Suddenly the track was flat again so I started
jogging. Around the next corner was the finish line! A hundred <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="70f80b37-a8ad-4072-b7eb-62e61d8a7680" id="2f781213-dd80-4781-807d-e0db7494220e"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="e5e0336d-5ae5-4396-af86-f079019e2abf" id="6ba9a19c-8364-4a6e-a741-92d6d5f38319">metres</span></span> away! I
must either have looked like a pro-athlete or an idiot because I shot <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="99060424-79b3-4f31-83f8-73f84f72bf3a" id="0aa7b691-a872-4806-ab97-dfeae3b31dbf"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="85644882-b4a5-45c8-88f0-b0476eebfc5b" id="6c0ef6c3-fd04-4121-992f-4ce04a9a5c0e">for</span></span> the
finish line, frustrated that hadn’t ran a bit more at the end of the race.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Lesson learned:</b> <u>Know
the route.</u></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In most trail running events the route and profile will be
put up, either on the internet or at the event. I’ve been blessed with the
skill of reading maps and having a good sense of direction. Using the profile
(ascent and descent of the route) as mental markers you can gauge how far you
are on the route. For instance, let’s say there is a sharp turn from south to
east at roughly the 3km mark, or you can see a sharp descent at the 4km mark. If
I had known how close I was to the end, I would have put in a lot more effort to
finish strong.</span></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<b style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Feedback:</b><span style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><u style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Do you a) always try to find out what the route and profile looks like, or b) don't want to know as it's part of the adventure? Please share in the comment box below.</u></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinauN-StY_gcZc38INzZCWi2818DzRSxROot7jqZnhX_MHPafU-It3qRD7wmr41qfSB8p-METBB3WQ2CRY1kPspYvbGC_AbrjLmKOsuRWY8XOf9g0wZko2iUFhWoMH0yGYgeSbnCBq_Xs/s1600/TygerbergSummerTSLong2014_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinauN-StY_gcZc38INzZCWi2818DzRSxROot7jqZnhX_MHPafU-It3qRD7wmr41qfSB8p-METBB3WQ2CRY1kPspYvbGC_AbrjLmKOsuRWY8XOf9g0wZko2iUFhWoMH0yGYgeSbnCBq_Xs/s1600/TygerbergSummerTSLong2014_.jpg" height="235" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">A typical route profile / Trailseries.co.za</span></td></tr>
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<iframe frameborder="1" height="650" scrolling="no" src="http://www.endomondo.com/embed/workouts?w=q0_NPZqfn9U&width=650&height=650&width=650&height=650" width="650"></iframe><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Please ignore the elevation of this one. It was my old phone.</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04192396054678736564noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8286314813150782490.post-48208095611555696112014-04-30T13:19:00.001+02:002014-04-30T13:45:44.999+02:00Star Struck<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">On Saturday morning I woke up at 6:00. Not great for a weekend, but I was happy to feel rested and getting into an earlier rhythm. Still lying in bed, I checked my Facebook, and saw that a new <a href="http://www.parkrun.co.za/" target="_blank">parkrun</a> was starting that day and it was nearby. Keen for a change of scenery (and hoping it's a bit flatter than my local one), my friend and I headed out for the new challenge.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As we pulled into the busy parking lot, with parkrun banners everywhere, a lady parking next to us asked what race it was. I said it's a new parkrun, and she was quite surprised. She shared that she had actually come <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="662ad708-1a88-4e44-a70c-adc5414e2153" id="1f066ae8-9406-4ca9-884d-a29331fc431a">for</span> a boot camp, but was reconsidering it for the parkrun.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We were just in time to catch the welcoming speech from the parkrun director, who then proceeded to introduce <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Fordyce" target="_blank">Bruce Fordyce</a>. He is the ambassador for parkrun in South Africa. If you don't know who he is, I'd encourage you to check out the link. He gave a great and concise introduction to parkrun.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Soon we set off and I was thankful for the park being broad, so that passing was easy. Also, we were running on grass trail mostly, which I love. The first section was a slight up hill and it filtered the front a bit. It's a double loop, so once you've run the loop, you know what's coming. On the second uphill, <a href="http://www.southafrica.info/about/sport/greats/fordyce.htm" target="_blank">Bruce</a> passed me, but I kept on his shoulder. I stayed with him on the downhill and then passed him again on the flat section. On the second loop the same thing happened. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I was a bit star struck, as I realised I was running behind South Africa's most acclaimed ultra-marathon runner. A deep sense of gratefulness filled me. </span><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://scontent-b-lhr.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/t1.0-9/10256498_700438600020771_4179542543911130970_n.jpg" style="height: 364px; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; width: 520px;" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">On Bruce Fordyce's (right) shoulder<span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="fef84f32-ac21-49c5-8e8e-b0b0a63d3ad7" id="bb5542b9-c8a4-4b39-980c-cbf6bd1153ea">.</span></span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/parkrunSouthAfrica/photos/a.700432960021335.1073741864.497264627004837/700438600020771/?type=1" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small; text-align: start;">Post</a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small; text-align: start;"> by </span><a href="https://www.facebook.com/parkrunSouthAfrica" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: x-small; text-align: start;">parkrun South Africa</a><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small; text-align: start;">.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With 500m to the end I kicked and went to another place mentally. The world faded a bit and everything was burning. I made it to the end and beat mister Fordyce by 10 seconds. I also ran a new PB for 5km. A good day indeed. Below is my <a href="http://www.endomondo.com/" target="_blank">Endomondo</a> tracking.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<iframe frameborder="1" height="650" scrolling="no" src="http://www.endomondo.com/embed/workouts?w=l-eyugJgS8s&width=650&height=650&width=650&height=650" width="650"></iframe>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When my friend and I got back to the car, we saw the boot camp lady, and I asked what she did in the end. "I did the parkrun." she said with a smile. :)</span><br />
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04192396054678736564noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8286314813150782490.post-20849139046782869802014-04-29T21:47:00.000+02:002014-04-29T22:40:15.560+02:00Lesson 1 | First Trail Run<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I remember seeing an action photo of a serious runner,
running up a steep hiking trail with a sheer drop on the one side and rolling
grasslands on the other. This was the
spark that got me into the idea of trail running, although at the time I didn’t
even know it was called that. Forward a couple of years and I’m waiting with
some friends, midway in the bunch of 200 odd runners ready to take on my first
trail run. It was midwinter and quite early, so moderately chilly! Training for
this event equalled zero, but we were all doing it for the fun. It was the 5km
route, so all ages were present, and I chuckled as I saw two 8 year old
brothers <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="c5d4f326-2b62-4df6-8650-dd3847935cc1" id="56693a61-24a4-4808-a4d0-ba09614e9ff5"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="487a31e4-36f7-474c-988d-e9e6d4410bed" id="202f22ff-e078-461d-95bc-fe598abedf2f"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="e042b443-0b46-4e6f-8c66-8ab10cbf4d4a" id="ac920424-bdc8-490b-9680-0b76461f7ef2">squeeze</span></span></span> in at the front of the starting line. There’s no gun shot,
only a countdown and off we went. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The first <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="b24cfd96-b804-4040-870d-78d04734dceb" id="4863843f-11e8-4364-b569-565bd51a52ff"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="f86c9497-29c6-4008-b66a-137e67e3b6c4" id="604ef3c1-2f92-49d5-ba6f-8de99bb778c3"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="857f54c1-6cdc-46b6-8680-17f17dfc999e" id="8b9cff30-4a33-4677-87fa-b0eac6a13429">kilometre</span></span></span> was flat jeep track of 5 <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="b24cfd96-b804-4040-870d-78d04734dceb" id="03411cd8-4739-4d53-8496-f68bf78bb294"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="f86c9497-29c6-4008-b66a-137e67e3b6c4" id="a0ccb13e-8637-4501-868a-ffad3b688536"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="857f54c1-6cdc-46b6-8680-17f17dfc999e" id="7d83ac4f-b69c-48b0-863c-a5aaae1d8354">metres</span></span></span> wide, so
I was passing a couple of people, which fuelled my motivation and I started
picking up the pace. There was a sharp turn, and then BAM!: A very rocky single
track uphill and everyone slowed to a walk. With no place to pass, it got quite
frustrating as the pace wasn’t fast enough for me. Finally, at the apex there were
more space on the side and I rapidly started passing people, but the route was quite
full and I was forced to do short bursts, by passing some and waiting for a gap
behind others. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The descent was a lot steeper than the ascent, so I gladly slowed
my pace. After the descent we ran a flat single track along a gushing river. I
tried to pick up the pace, but I had no extra energy. I started wondering if
this really was a 5km track, ‘cause it started to feel like we were approaching
the 8km mark. After a while I <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="74614713-1038-4c88-8a52-e157aa951ccc" id="0d677575-a24e-42a8-a462-cabb2fa1de4b"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="fbbbbc90-f3d8-4862-a137-94d155b97ac2" id="1c9ad01f-3350-4aef-8ff2-9f9d58953170"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="89c4471b-3314-40bf-82df-9007705525a0" id="ee638453-a2f2-4183-a9e7-1b9928bf7e85">realised</span></span></span> that the bursts I gave to pass people
had drained me, so I made peace with the pace and enjoyed the <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="74614713-1038-4c88-8a52-e157aa951ccc" id="b8beab45-4689-4e0d-af11-43d35c1d7cf1"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="fbbbbc90-f3d8-4862-a137-94d155b97ac2" id="8839d995-d934-4eb2-b4e7-91ee6ceba20e"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="89c4471b-3314-40bf-82df-9007705525a0" id="445adc93-94f8-44fc-b714-87fdc1fbec3f">mesmerising</span></span></span>
scenery along the river trail.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Lesson learned:</b> <u>Place
yourself at the start, where you think you will place at the finish.</u> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you can do this, you won’t get stuck behind someone or
hold up other runners, which does happen <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="7194260a-459c-4be0-af6b-612c957a6221" id="5efea836-22a7-4932-8de2-8a8df06c5651"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="bafc8f30-da8a-444a-b93c-66a7d8849b01" id="1467f216-dee0-49c9-aeef-df1ddc796794"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="5aaa5a29-b3dc-43ff-bbef-7f0ad4dcbd16" id="00038ba9-a67e-40ab-8711-0ba79ab962a2">on</span></span></span> trail <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="7194260a-459c-4be0-af6b-612c957a6221" id="b41b8636-a30c-448c-a788-3f46ad23d728"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="bafc8f30-da8a-444a-b93c-66a7d8849b01" id="6d2f9cf6-56b8-401e-b10c-ce6afb85e73d"><span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="5aaa5a29-b3dc-43ff-bbef-7f0ad4dcbd16" id="36457695-733b-40cd-a045-7bc41e09ea18">runs</span></span></span>. If it’s your first run
ever, not just trail run, start in the middle. From your result, you will then
be able to gauge where to place yourself next time. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<b style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;">Feedback:</b><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;"> </span><u style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px;">What was your first trail run experience like? Please share in the comment box below.</u></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Oh, and those two 8 year old brothers came in the
top 10 of the 5km and top 3 in their division!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04192396054678736564noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8286314813150782490.post-14787953099538041732014-04-22T21:30:00.000+02:002014-04-28T23:00:50.642+02:00The Gift of Timing<span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;">I went for a 10k run at lunch time. I want to get more conditioned for heat, as most of my training runs are early in the morning or at dusk. I definitely sweat a lot more, but wasn't abnormally thirsty. The route is along all the busy roads surrounding our suburb. About <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="eeecef07-4f22-4a15-b9f2-f0a56fc97f51" id="131c24a4-a55e-4c3c-9bff-ab2dc5f4e05d">halfway</span> I saw a police helicopter circling up ahead and the traffic was starting to pile up. I got to the scene. It was cordoned off with police tape, numerous police vehicles and some <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="73efaa7a-66a1-4a78-ba90-f9c4ec3d386c" id="d76c6c92-ba0a-47b3-892d-04eda154630f">bumped</span> cars lined the road. Initially I was annoyed as this accident was in the way of my route. It was also right at an intersection that would not compromise on the distance too much. So after standing around for a while I diverted down the other route, as I wanted to do a good time too.</span><br style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;" /><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;"></span><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;">Later that day, my house mate asked if I heard about the shooting on that road. I was shocked. He gave me his grape vine version. You can read the news article </span></span><a href="http://www.enca.com/south-africa/1-robber-shot-dead-2-injured-and-1-policeman-hurt-rivonia-shootout" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">here</a><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;">. One man was killed and three others wounded in the shoot out. Immediately I <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="3e07413b-32cb-493a-945c-e2700526d647" id="b88bba29-99a0-4c7f-adf3-35ededdbb067">realised</span> that if I had gone for my run a bit earlier, I might have been in the crossfire. </span></span><br style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;" /><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;"></span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;">I thought through my morning. How annoyed I was about the small admin time wasters. I <span class="GINGER_SOFTWARE_mark" ginger_software_uiphraseguid="bba37e1c-d412-4899-a16e-2bff081d892b" id="5b6b01de-e704-4ba6-8362-1889f8a8d5bf">realised</span> that those time wasters were a gift. Those things that "wasted" my time, might have saved my life or have prevented trauma.</span><br style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;" /><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;"></span><span style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;">I now try to see everything as a gift, and I'm grateful for it, even though I don't see the purpose immediately.</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04192396054678736564noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8286314813150782490.post-62383171752863477112014-04-21T22:39:00.000+02:002014-04-28T22:42:32.507+02:00WIL2D Defined<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;">Just a quick definition of my acronym tag, WIL2D. It means What I Learned ToDay. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15px; line-height: 20.790000915527344px;">I suspect I might always use this tag, as I believe we all learn and grow everyday in some way or the other.</span></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04192396054678736564noreply@blogger.com0