Those Moments that Made my Year

For the Carthorse and friends, 2013 has been quite a year of running. This year has seen many of us in my training group significantly improve. Personally, my season was probably summed up by three outstanding races in July (Mile), August (5000m) and September (HM), each better than the last. But that hasn't been complete story of this year which has just been made up of moments of hilarity, unbelievable happenings and fun. Now seems like the opportune time to recap some of my favourite moments. In chronological order of course. 

10^th April, Villamoura, Portugal:

Villamoura was a fantastic two week 'holiday' with friends in the sun at a time when the UK was still getting snow. It was great training aboard, although some of the routes got a little repetitive.  This Wednesday, I remember Nick 'Nandos' Howard showing me the beach cliff trail route for the first time. The weather was amazing, there were fantastic views of the ocean, and the steep trails were a real breathe of fresh air.  I ran that same route later that day too.

18^th May, Yate:

Summer had arrived in force and it was the first of four Track & Field League fixtures. We were pushing for promotion this season, but unfortunately we had a depleted team, meaning we were all doubling, or tripling up in the events. By the time it got to the 4x400 relay, the last event, we had only a disparate crew of exhausted distance runners left able to run.

I volunteered to go first leg as I had prior experience of holding a baton. The start line was hilarious; amongst five serious teams in blocks, I took a standing-start position and had only managed a single step by the time my competitors had sprung away and managed three….I was 50 metres behind by 100m. Dan, with a 1500m and a 5000m in his legs, finished the third leg just ahead of the leaders completing the event. This ensured we didn’t get lapped, meaning Ed, the anchor, was so jubilant that he performed a double Mobot as he eventually crossed the line.

25^th May, Leicestershire & Warwickshire joint County Champs finish line, Leicester. 

Having narrowly missed it in Yate the week before, it was widely known that I was attempting to run my maiden sub-16 minute 5000m. After one of the most physically painful races I can remember, I crossed the line, collapsing almost immediately to all fours, unable to move or do anything but hope the lactate would clear.

'What did you do?' would have been a polite way for a recovered-Ed to have enquired as to my result. But probably not convinced I would’ve been able to respond, he instead simply grabbed my watch arm from where it lay limp on the floor and pulled to his eye level. I subsequently found out I’d come second in the county, but recalling Ed's violation of my watch/arm is what I smile about when I remember that day. 

June 23^rd, My bed. 

In June, Dan was the athlete in form. The previous day had been the Midland 5000m champs which has been a disaster. The conditions were miserable, and even though Dan and Ed had PB-ed, no one was over the moon about it. 

In uncustomary fashion we hit the town to drown our sorrows, and after stumbling in at 4am, I managed to drag myself around an ‘easy’ 90 mins with Ed, in a massive struggle of hangover and sore legs. 

Dan, in contrast it turned out, had used his hangover to positive effect. I got a phone call as I lay in bed post-run trying to recover. He had somehow gone out and done a 9 mile race, finishing third in an unbelievably quick time. I do not know how, only that I could not have done that. 

July 20^th, Iffley Road track, 15 metres from the line.

The opportunity to run at the famous Roger Bannister track in Oxford was too much to pass on, even though I didn't consider myself to be in good shape to race a Mile. Dan and Mark were in the heat before mine and both ran 4:40. Not a chance I thought.

Somehow I found myself still in it coming down the final 100m, and with my friends ecstatic with jubilation on the sidelines, my legs beginning to burn, bend and wobble, I was starting intently at the finish clock which was slowly ticking up, and not getting any closer.

The winner crossed the line two seconds ahead of me, stopping the clock, but fifteen metres away I was so out of it I didn’t really absorb this. I just remember thinking I has managed to stop time, and that I'd now exist forever in a sea of painful purgatory at 4:32.

This mile was probably my breakthrough race this season, and my 1500m split probably a good 6 or 7 seconds faster than a race over the same distance just four days earlier. 

24^th August, Coventry University track finish line:

Coventry BMC 5000m was the ultimate of races. Paced by super-metronomic Ed Banks, it featured four of my other friends and training partners. I crossed the line just three seconds behind Dan, and I'll never forget the scenes that subsequently unfolded....

As I crossed the line, Dan had had just enough time to release the enormity of what he'd done, and turn around, with a shocked look on his face. I simply ran straight into an embrace, and turned around to see my friend Sarah cross the line inside her PB too. Lying around on the floor and self-congratulations initially got in the way of knowing what anyone else had done, but I then spotted Mark 10 metres away. He was frozen still, a massive smile on his face, arms stretched out wide and his body language said 'just ask me' all over it. He’d taken over 20 seconds off a 20 year old PB, breaking the 16-minute barrier which he’d given up on long ago. What a hero. It's rare that everyone you go to a race with has a screamer. On that day myself, Dan, Mark, Sarah and Chris all smashed it. And Ed's contribution was a massive part of that. Those scenes may never be repeated again.

The Circle of Life

World media has been surprisingly slow on the uptake of Coventry BMC 5000m which occurred two saturdays ago, at a back-to-front - albeit it blue - track hidden away at Coventry University which drew monster crowds of former Sheffield University Athletes.

However the race, in which the highest placed finisher worth mentioning finished in a position which would rank him a toasty 340 in the National Rankings for the year, has generated a disproportional amount of column inches, with two blogs and a website article amassing almost double figures of interest between them.

Dan Robinson, who was said highest finisher, was in pole position coming in to the final kilometre, having been accidentally tucked into Ed Bank’s super tight pink racing shorts and carried round the first 10 laps.  “It was just about staying with Ed for the first four kilometres and trying to remember how many laps the race was.  I knew that Carter was on my shoulder the entire time because I could hear him panting like a Horse.”

Carter, who we have been able to confirm was also in the race, offered “I wasn’t really enjoying myself.  I knew we were going for curry afterwards, and I was getting quite hungry deciding if I could manage a whole naan myself.  I spent the first three laps deciding the best way to drop out, and whether I would need to feign tripping over in order to make it look legit.”

After reaching four kilometres in a highly symmetrical 12:40, the 3 minute and 3 second race to the line was won by Robinson in 2:59, to which Carter was incensed.  “Robinson pulled away in the final two and a half laps.  I’d already planned that we would cross the line together holding hands, but when he did that all I had left was to beat the Irish International runner.  Sarah Mac afterwards stated that her favourite laps had been “2, 5, 6, 8 and 11,” and that she was “no longer talking to Tim” because of his 450m sprint for the line.  “Where I come from [of which no one is sure], friends don’t beat friends.”

Veteran38 Mark Ince overcame a severe bout of ageing which has been afflicting him for the past 10 years, and was in the race the entire way, with only a wrong turn on the 10th lap letting him down.  He came in as the 5th Significant Person, in 3:11, just behind Chris (also 3:11).  Mark was giddy after breaking a PB that has stood for 20 years, back from his student days where he claims to have run 1:39 and 3:25 for the middle distance events.  He was reportedly “very giddy” the whole way back as he snacked on Haribo Sourmix.

BBC token pundit Denise Lewis has been quick to offer some expert insight into what might have caused this spectacle of super-human feats on this late summer evening: “The thing about the 5000m is, that it is 5000m long.”  The BBC are hopeful of not renewing her contract.

The Perfect 5000

They say that the county champs are in decline. As true as that maybe, and as sad as it is for athletics, it doesn't bother me in the slightest as with decent competition I honestly wouldn't have been standing on the second tier of the rickety podium at the Warwickshire's yesterday, second only to the ever-reliable Ed Banks in the 5000m, who now holds a head-to-head record against me of about 200-0. Mo Farah in contrast has never beaten me, which puts into perspective how much better than Mo Ed 'The Beard' Banks is. 

A pre-planned racing strategy with second-favourite training partner Dan Robinson was going to be the secret to us both breaking 16 minutes, although unfortunately the ultra-marathoner fell a little shy on the day.

As I stretched for the finish of the most painful race I'd ever done, the capacity crowd willed me forward. I flung myself at the line having given everything, and sunk to the ground gasping for air and willing the screaming in my legs to dissipate. 

The pandemonium on the track silenced as the words came over the loudspeakers: 'The time is Fifteen minutes....' The rest of the announcement was drowned out by the joyous cries of several people who had just witnessed history in the making. At last the barrier was broken.*

Breaking 16 was everything I dreamed. 'Tell me about your race?' said an important looking gentleman to me as I collected my medal, who I incorrectly assumed was from world media. I quickly tailed off my overly detailed description as I realised he was merely the guy who had timetabled the events. All he actually wanted to know was if an 11:30 start suited and would be fine next year as well? 'Great!' I said, after quickly mulling over if in my brief moment of power there was a more preferable time of day for me to be comprehensively beaten in 365 days time. '11:30 is great.'

* 'The Perfect Mile' by Neal Bascomb is available from all good bookstores. 

March-tastic

5000m goal : 15:50

5k PB : 16:21

5k SB (post-Sept 2011) : 16:21

It seemed like a distant dream 6 months ago, but this month has seen me break two of my PBs, and not those silly PBs like 800m, or Coop and back.  Real manly distances.

My 10k PB dated back two years, and it evaporated on a fresh spring morning 13days ago in an ungentlemanly display of positive splatting to provide me with entry to the ’33 Club’.  I was hoping that would entail a gold plated cup, a lame running belt (you know for gels and stuff) and a date with Darya Klishina, but instead what you get is a congratulatory text of Simon ‘Millhouse’ Millhouse, and a firm handshake of Mister Banks.  They were both appreciated.

Today’s epic showing at the BRAT dominated Park Run, in a time which thankfully wasn’t rounded up despite having to stop suddenly as the finishing funnel featured a 90 degree corner (contrary to my momentum), meant I have had to dust of my abacus to calculate that I’m now a gamely 31 seconds off my goal. 

But it was analysing the data afterwards that raised some (my) eyebrows: despite being more rested for the 10k, I was far more efficient today, with lower average heart rates for every single km.  Coincidently, my times at 3 and 4kms were identical in both races, suggesting there’s some Kenyan in me, and the 624 beats in the final km today meant that this was a lower effort level than its counterpart despite its rapidness. 

	Trafford 10k (11th March)		Park Run 5k (24th March)
	Split	Average bpm	Split	Average bpm
1km	3:15 | (3:15)	184	3:13 | (3:13)	178
2km	3:11 | (6:26)	193	3:16 | (6:29)	189
3km	3:21 | (9:47)	196	3:18 | (9:47)	191
4km	3:22 | (13:09)	196	3:22 | (13:09)	194
5km	3:24 | (16:34)	196	3:11 | (16:21)	195

 Comparison of the opening 5k of Trafford 10k and a 5k race 13 days later.

The verdict of this? I don’t know, but I think it’s interesting, and I am open to suggestions!

The optimists amongst you will also note that I’m now hot on the trails of my apprentice Steven Bayton, who recorded a 10k of 33:55 in March 2010, and 5k of 16:20 in November that year.  Next stop then is projected to be 32:17, give or take a couple of seconds of course.

Mirror Mirror on the Wall...

…who is the most inspirational of them all?

I’ve been struggling for the last week to write my career self appraisal: a four page document for the RIBA examiners basically informing them why I would make a good architect.  In pondering my inspiration, my mind wondered, and I decided to write my current top three list of my most inspirational athletes.

There were many contenders, including Ed ‘The Beard’ Banks whose phenomenal PBs make goals seem more attainable, Mark ‘Mince’ Ince, who occasionally knocks out impressive park runs despite mediocre blocks of training, and then of course Mister ‘Beast’ Canaway, who based his supernatural performances around mesocycles of bingeing.

But the short list has been narrowed down, commiserations to all those who missed out, but you probably need to up your game.  That includes you Mo.

#3: Sarah the Snack.  Sporting quadruple nationality, ah McCormack, not to be mistaken for Sarah Snack the javelin thrower, had the opportunity to run for GB, USA, Ireland or Antartica before selecting option 3.  Listed not just to avoid making the same mistake as SPOTY, Mac’s infamous bum-wobble is rumoured to have developed from carrying a gun holster around with her University of Michigan training group.  A long term rival in my university days, I always had to be at the top of my game to avoid a loss to this powerhouse and she is now once again making great strides forward, presumable motivated by catching me up.

#2: Simon Millhouse.  Citing his long term hero and sporting idol as Emile Heskey, Millett was my true genuine inspiration to actually apply myself to running.  A man who once threatened to kiss his now-girlfriend, Milton gave up our bi-weekly Roar sessions straw-pedoing orange reef in favour of married life and running up the majority of hills at xc championships.

#1: Nick Goolab.  And here you have it.  A man I’ve seen seemingly effortlessly run to BUCS XC and 5000m victories but never actually met, Goolab went through a phase of stalking me at the Birmingham Uni track (based on circumstantial evidence).  Unlike many of his peers, Goolab combined a heavy training schedule with a worthwhile degree in Mathematics, blogged about his training with a colloquial tone, including his love-hate relationship with his garmin, and chatting about easy run mile splits starting with a five as if they were no effort at all, elevating himself to the top of my list.  Sadly Goolab is rumoured to have walked away from the sport, making a martyr of himself and meaning Steve Bayton may never reach his inspirational heights…

The Slog

5000m goal : 15:50

5000m PB : 16:29.9

5k SB (post-Sept 2011) : 16:55 (xc split)

Runners don’t like snow.  Fact.  Its just a guessing game of which sessions will be ruined, while the freezing cold means my wash bag fills up twice a week, and limited drying facilities play havoc with making sure than my training kit is appropriately colour coordinated. 

I had hoped to get in another cross county, but my new found fear for frozen courses meant I opted for the poultry approach, and engaged in a beastly tempo in Sennellys Park instead, which as luck would have it, was covered in snow, providing a whooping workout for the legs.

Since I’m no longer scribbling it on the fridge door, I thought I’d treat you to a portion of my training, as this is a fairly typical week.  The focus is still on endurance, threshold, vo2 max and being social.  Big miles and big sessions means a lot of hours in the cold winter air though, though my boxes of Sainsburys brownies and shortbread really help with the motivation.

Mon 6^th Feb:         AM: 40min swim

                                PM: 45min easy pace [needed the loo]

Tues 7^th Feb:         AM: 30min easy pace [icey]

                                PM: Drills + 8x1000m (2min), avg 3:11. [Some dire pacing by Canaway on the 4^th]

Wed 8^th Feb:         AM: 30min easy pace

                                PM: 45min easy pace + 2x6x30 simple circuits [ate cream crackers between sets]

Thu 9^th Feb:           AM: 30min easy pace

                                PM: Drills + ½ mi tempo, 12x400, ½ mi tempo. [icey so slow]

Fri 10^th Feb:          REST

Sat 11^th Feb:         AM: 6mi xc tempo [snowy]

                                PM: 4 sets of 12 circuits and jumps at track (jog between) + 4 games of fifa.

Sun 12^th Feb:        AM: 1h45mins long run [only did 1h43 as I’m a rogue]

Total: 78.2 miles / 11 hours / 2000 words of essays / 2 pub trips.

Frustratingly, there’s runners out there who are more naturally talented, who’ll run faster than me off much less training, and our place in the natural order of things was well documented by training buddy Ed a while back.  For me, like many others, it’s all about remaining biomechanically optimistic and trying to slog it out through the winter cold to hit those personal goals.