Mixed Bag

It has been a mixed week. Last Sunday night I started getting a very bloated feeling in my stomach and cramping. I guess it was some sort of virus as for the next three days I still had the stomach problems, headaches and lethargy. I slept a lot.

By Thursday I felt recovered enough to resume training but I guess I still wasn't 100% as the times were way down on last weeks.

Thur 20th Mar
11k 54:31 (4:57 HR 152) Last week I did this in 52:19 at HR of 153!

Fri 21 Mar
15.3k 1:21:29 (5:19 HR 145) Last week I did 1:17:27 at HR 145!!!!

Sat 22 Mar
11k 51:57 (4:43 HR 153)

Sun 23 Mar
31.5k 2:58:54 (5:40 HR 136) Last week I did 2:50 at HR 137.

Still managed 68.8k for the week.

Here's hoping this week gets me back on track.

The upside to last week was that as I was lying in bed feeling sorry for myself I decided I would go down to Canberra for the marathon. So I have booked the flights and will go down Saturday and return Wednesday night, so should be able to see a few sights as well as catch up with everyone. I am taking the marathon as just a training run and suspect a time around four hours will be on the cards. Even contemplating making it a Personal Worst and going for something over 4:10.

Spot the Easter Bunny

Can you spot the Easter Bunny in the picture below?
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Listen Buddy - the end of the cricket season

Mon 10th Rest. Recovering from heat of Adelaide.
Tues 11th 11.0k 52:19 (4:45 HR 153)
Wed 12th 15.3k 1:17:50 (5:05 HR 148)
Thu 13th 11.0k 55:23 (5:02 HR 143)
Fri 14th 15.3k 1:17:27 (5:03 HR 145)
Sat 15th Rest
Sun 16th 31.5k 2:50:12 (5:25 HR 137)

Week 84.1k

Another solid week. Saturday was the end of the cricket season for Kewell, so I maybe able to get a run in on Saturday mornings now. Hopefully when soccer season starts in a few weeks the games won't start as early as the cricket!

Womadelaide - a hell of a time

Fri 7th March

15.3k 1:17:49 (5:05 HR 148) a good solid run only soured by a back twinge that hit after about 100m.

Later that morning flew to Adelaide for Womadelaide.

It was another great weekend of music, only slightly spoilt by the Adelaide heatwave. It was actually the dust on the site more than the heat that made it unpleasant for me and especially My Wife who got hayfever from the haze.

Highlights

Toumani Diabate's Symmetric Orchestra. I took in both their shows. Each was magnificent. The Satrurday night gig had an extended number where various band members (balafon, guitar, ngoni, synthesiser) traded solos with Toumani's kora. Even the audience got a go with a vocal rhiff! On the Sunday afternoon, they replaced the duelling with an absolute killer dance groove that just went on and on. Sounding more Congolese than Malian, I will always treasure it as one the live music highlights of my life.

As I complete contrast about an hour later on Sunday, Toumani shared a different stage with his cousin Mamadou Diabate for a kora duet which was much more sombre but no less entrancing.



Mavis Staples did here soul/gospel/protest songs to perfection. She was backed by a three piece band (all while guys) who were fantastic. They got to do a long solo which took them from Born on the Bayou, through to some really heavy rock blues a la Cream.

Taraf de Haidouks, a ramshackle collection of middle aged to elderly (and some portly) gypsy musicians, played with the energy and drive of a bunch of teenage punk rockers.

The Black Grace dance company from New Zealand showed great originality and energy in their dance set.

Martin Hayes (Irish fiddler) and Dennis Cahill (American guitarist) played an astonishing set of Irish music that started slow and built to a wild crescendo.

A few Australian acts really caught my ear. Mojo Webb from Brisbane played a very enthusiastic blues set and really got the crowd worked up. On one song he roamed all round the park amongst the crowd while belting out a stunning guitar solo.

Victor Valdes and The Real Mexico Mariachi Band from Sydney were another revelation. He had a great voice and played the Mexican harp expertly.

I was also impressed with the fire show each night by La Compagnie Carabosse. Hundreds of huge candle-pots lit up the eastern side of the gardens. I do like a good fire and all the more impressive given that I thought there was a total fire ban!

I had scheduled to go for a run Monday morning before flying home but the three days of hot weather and completely dessicated me so gave it a miss. It is such a different heat then we have here in Brisbane in summer. Rather than a sauna it is an oven and if you turn the temperature up high enough the oven can be mighty uncomfortable.

Music to rule the world by

The training is now back on track and I am at last starting to be able to focus on the Gold Coast.



Mon 25th Feb

4k - Recovery Run with Kewell at about 6:00 pace. Hopefully this will become a feature for Monday as my easy recovery run. It is just the right pace for the boy.



Tues 26th Feb

11.0k 52:33 (4:46 HR 150 80%Max)

Starting to incorporate some upper aerobic runs into the schedule.



Wed 27th Feb

15.3k 1:18:40 (5:08 HR 140 75% Max)



Thu 28th Feb

11.0k 53:30 (4:51 HR 146 78% Max)



Fri 29th Feb

15.3k 1:19:14 (5:10 HR 141 75% Max)



Sat 1st Mar

Rest



Sun 2nd Mar

31.5k 2:53:42 (5:31 HR 139 74% Max)

First run over 30k since Melbourne Marathon in October. Still taking it at an easy pace but the legs had no trouble going the distance or probably more relevant had no problem with the the close to 3 hours on the go.



Week 88.1k



A very solid and pleasing week.



Mon 4th Mar

10 * 200m with 30 seconds rest. At Kewell's school they have started a running club in the mornings from Mon - Thursday. Today was the first session and I anticipated that they would start with some easy laps of the oval so even though my legs were a bit dead from yesterday's long run I agreed with Kewell that I would come along. When we get there, the teacher says the session will be ten laps of the oval in around 60 seconds with 30 seconds rest. Now the lap is probably around 200m but for kids 8 to 11 years it is a pretty tough session. I didn't really want to be running too hard either. The first lap, the kids all shot off too quickly and I trailed well behind but of course they tired so I wasn't far from them at the end. After the rest, they all shot off again and I trailed again but I caught quite a few by the end this time as they tired. And they were all sucking in the air in the rest now big time. I suppose you can imagine where it went from there. As I warmed up the laps got easier for me and harder for them. For the final lap the teacher told them to go flat out but this time I shot to the lead and held it all the way. Seems I can't keep the competitive instincts in check even if it is against a pack of school kids.



The down side was that it was way to hard a session for a recovery day for me.



Tue 5th Mar

7k 40:00 (Easy ) Running club again and Kewell was keen for me to go again but I told him I would only be jogging around the oval today. No fast stuff. We were the first to arrive , so we just started doing some slow laps. As more kids arrived they would join us. After about ten minutes the teachers arrived (different from yesterday). They were happy to let them just jog around. So I basically ran around the oval for 40 minutes with the fifteen kids who turned up. They would drop out for a rest now and again but I just kept going. I think some of them were rather stunned to see someone run for that long and not be the slightest bit puffed.

The recovery day I should have had yesterday!



Wed 6th Mar

15.3k 1:19:08 (5:10 HR 143 77% Max)

It was a bit cooler and made for lovely running conditions.



Thu 7th Mar

Rest - I have felt like I have been fighting off a cold all this week. Delta and Dory both have got it. So decided to rest today. I certainly don't want to be sick for Womadelaide this week end.



I am planning on doing 15k Friday morning before jumping on to the plane to Adelaide with My Wife . Should be grand week-end.





IHateToast

We must live in separate parallel universes. I have no idea about Arrested Development other than as a funk-rap band from the 90s and I can't believe that I would need to explain double live as two LPs in one package of a live concert recording along the the lines of Frampton Comes Alive or in the case of Garth Brooks he even called his double live album Double Live.





I know our election has come and gone but wouldn't it be great if we could have Kevin and Little Johnnie being the inspiration of some great election tunes like they do in the US. Check out these for Obama and Clinton.