Trying Hard in Tokyo

2008 Mitake 15km Mountain Marathon RR

2007-12-13T16:54:00.000+09:00

Sunday December 9th

1:30:26 - 104th out of 930.

Had no intention of doing the Mitake 15km Mountain trail race again this year. But due to a communication mix up with the race organizer when I tried to enroll Jay after the deadline and ended up getting enrolled as well, I found myself on a 6:16 train the morning after the bonenkai. And there was some early panic as even though Jay had left the party early, he missed the train that we were going to link up on and arrived at the foot of Mitake-san only 30 minutes before the start.

I went 1:30:27, which was only 18 seconds slower than my time from last year. But I was very content with this time in a tough race that I had decided just to cruise through, and it felt much easier than last year. And due to the large number of entries this year they broke the field into two waves of 500 (10 minutes apart and non-seeded) and unfortunately for Jay and I we were in the 2nd wave. This meant that after about 1km we had to continuously thread our way though back markers from the 1st wave. With the trail being very narrow and rough in sections, it was difficult to pass others which slowed us down greatly.

All in all It was a perfect, cool and clear day in a very scenic mountain area. The race organization is impeccable and the hot bath after the race at a mountain minshuku only adds to the experience. Very glad that I did the race again, but the clash with the bonenkai makes it hard to commit.

My next races are the Kanagawa Half Marathon in early February, followed by the Tokyo Marathon on the 17th.

Coming Soon! - A wrap up of my triathlon season.

Did it! And I am happy.

2007-10-15T11:20:00.000+09:00

12:04:25. Maybe a little bit slower than I had hoped and 36 mins off my my PB of 11:29, but I am still very happy. It was bloody tough, especially on the bike where the head wind on the last section totally demoralized me and I slowed right down. Have never experienced that before. The run and swim were fine, and I picked up 138 places on the marathon by steadily passing people and only having a handful pass me. My final positon of 1205 out of over 1800 starters was about where I thought I would finish. It really was all about finishing and soaking up the atmosphere of the amazing support on course. And I could not wipe the big smile off my face on the run to the finish in front of a huge, cheering crowd.

Am a bit leg sore today and sun burnt in some places, but after a trip to the official IM race merchandise store and the purchase of some special finishers gear I am very content. Will have a few beers tonight and then spend my last two days on the Big Island visiting friends in Hilo and doing some sightseeing. Will have to come back here again one day for a real holiday.

Last thoughts before the race

2007-10-13T14:26:00.000+09:00

It is now 7:30 pm on the night before the race and all my prep has been completed. Had a great pasta dinner and a glass of wine and am feeling relaxed. The whole experience so far has been amazing, we are being treated like pro athletes and have been meeting and talking to famous people in this sport. The whole set up is of course, very professional and way beyond what I have ever experienced at any race before. Now I just have to finish the darn race to make it even more memorable.

The swim is ideal and I am looking forward to it, I really feel good in the clean, clear ocean. You can see lots of fish and live coral, plus some resident turtles. There was some swell over the last couple of days, but it dropped off nicely this morning. But when 1800 hit the water in the morning it will be a whole different story. The ride holds my worst fears, especially the threat of strong cross winds. But we did ride the most exposed section on Wednesday and it seemed to be ok. The run will be hot, but as it has been clouding over in the late afternoons and cooling off a little, so it might be ok. Anyway, I will find out tomorrow! Kona, here I come!

And thanks to everyone who has wished me good luck, this support means a lot to me. And I will have a good cheer squad here in Kona with a bunch of ex-Saipan folks living on the island of Hawaii, as well as some people from Japan.
Keren

All over bar the racing

2007-10-07T20:15:00.000+09:00

It's show time! Well, it nearly is. The Iron Man is on next Saturday the 13th. I fly out to Honolulu and on to Kona on Monday night and I am as about as ready as I will ever be. My training went well and I am injury free, so I am looking forward to a good race. At 62kg I am probably the lightest that I have been for over 20 years, but not that much lighter than the past few years. Everyone tells me I am thin, but it just body fat that I have shed. I have the right bike and wheels (thanks to Chris F and his Zipp 404s) to race Kona on so it is all up to me and how I can handle the conditions that Kona will throw up. The mass swim start, the heat and humidity, the strong trade winds and the lava fields are all to be reckoned with, but I think I can handle the worst. Anyway my goal is just to finish, hopefully with a smile on my face!

As I have been tapering over the past few weeks I have had a nagging feeling that I have not trained enough to finish strongly. After IM Japan my ex coach told me to concentrate on intensity and not to do much long stuff. but when I look back over my training log, I think I have pretty much accomplished what I set out to do since I started training for Kona from the start of July. How soon we forget!! Anyway, here are all my training stats -

July
Swim:27km
Bike: 539km
Run: 150km
Time: 50 hours

Aug
Swim:35 km
Bike: 707km
Run: 218km
Time: 65 hours

Sept
Swim:44km
Bike: 832km
Run: 272km
Time: 75 hours

Oct
Swim:8km
Bike: 128km
Run: 33km
Time: 12:20 hours

My preparation has been better than it was leading up to IM Japan, where I did not feel fresh when I got to the starting line. So I hope I have self coached my taper better this time around. As for a prediction for Kona, I will just say that my number one aim is to finish the race under the 17 hour cut off. This is one finisher's medal that I really want! The variable and possible extreme conditions make a real time prediction difficult, but I will be very happy to finish in around 12 hours (My PB is 11:29)

My race can be tracked live on Sunday (Japan time) on - http://ironman.com/worldchampionship

Race number is 573. And I will have three friends who will also be racing. All of them have faster PBs than me.

Stephan Samoyloff 838 Canada (ex Saipan and who I will share a condo with in Kona)

Mitsu Shippee 1581 Japan (from Tokyo)

Brigitte Niederberger 1610 Swiss (ex Namban Rengo member from Hong Kong)

With a bit of luck and some computer access, I will try to update my blog after I get to Kona. And it is jsut starting to hit me that my next race will race at the fabled Iron Man World Championships in Hawaii!

Suzu Half Iron Man (well sort of) Race Report

2007-08-31T17:41:00.000+09:00

Suzu is a tiny town on the east coast of the Noto Peninsula, Ishikawa Prefecture on the Sea of Japan. The race was a little longer than the usual official Half IM (2km/90km/21.1km), being a 2.5km swim, a 100.2km bike and a 23.3km run. For this race I was joined by team mates Mika, Stuart and Jay from Namban Rengo. The photo above was taken at 5:30am on race morning before we rode the 8km to the race start. As you can see by the photo, Jay's bike was already trying to escape from him so as not to be abused by him any more!

Total time: 6:20:49
Swim (2.5k) 46:50
Bike (100.2k) 3:26:26
Run (23.3k) 2:07:33
34th place overall out of 380
5th out of 60 in 45 - 49 men.

I had targeted this race as one that I could probably do well in and as an ideal tune up and training race for my attempt at Ironman Kona in October. By looking at the slowish times from last year's race it was hard to work out if the race was really tough, or if the competition was on the weak side. Well this race turned out to be tough, especially the bike leg. Had really no idea what sort of time I would do, my estimate was between 6 hours and 6:30 hours so I am happy with my 6:20:49.

My swim went ok, but a little slower than I would have liked (target 45 mins). I raced one guy practically stoke for stoke for the last 2km and as we slogged it out to the beach I was surprised that he just stopped dead when we both got out of the water. One small victory!! Ended up as 53rd overall after the swim. A quick transition of 3 mins got me out on the road on to my bike.

This was probably my best ever triathlon bike leg as I picked up 30 places to finish 23rd on the bike. It is usually a case of dropping down the field by about the same number or worse, so it seems that the extra bike training that I am doing is paying off. And I spent a lot of time with no one around me, so I picked off riders that I could see in the distance in front. Overall the course was scenic and fast and I was able to spend most of the time in an tight aero position. The 5km climb that we did twice was another story, but I was able to hold my own and even pass others on the way up each time. One strange feature of the course was that just after the big climb we had to dismount and run 25 meters so as to cross on to a main by-pass road. Both times here I cramped up in my right leg but I was able to spin it out on the long, fast high speed decent (my max speed was 67.8km/hr). My average speed for the bike was 29.1km per hour and it must have been tough, as at Ironman Japan I managed 30km/hr over the full 180km. My bike computer time was 3:21 (target 3:30) and after a quick 2 minute transition I hit the road for the run.

The run was uneventful and I was cruising along at a comfortable pace until I saw Jay with 9km to go. As it was an out and back course he was 9km into his run and looking good, but I was over 5km in front of him. This woke me up and I tried to run the final 9km at 5km per hour pace to finish under 6:20, but I just came up a little short at 6:20:49. Had no real plan for the run as my current training has all been LSD for Kona's taxing marathon, but was pleased that I managed a decent negative split here. All in all it was a fun, low key race. Had hoped for a top three finish in my AG, but my 5th was still pretty good considering I did not taper and did 10 hours of training in the race week. Went to a nice, slow paced part of Japan that I probably have would have not gotten to. Congratulations to Mika for her AG win, a truly great result for a non swimmer and in only her second real tri. Jay's "sort of" trip to the medical tent was the weekend's only drama.

My next race is a 10km road race around the National Stadium on September 17th, then it will be a case of "Kona here I come!!"

Nariki Hill Climb Bike Race Report

2007-08-20T10:44:00.000+09:00

Yesterday I did my very first bike race, and it was a blast! As a below average cyclist, I realized a while ago that I have to focus on improving my bike riding and racing skills if I want my triathlon bike leg times to drop and to be more competitive. So when I heard about the first Nariki Hill climb bike race that was being put on by my friend Onishi-san of the KFC Triathlon Club, I was keen to sign up. This is the same club that does the popular Ome Mt. Takamizu mountain trail race every April.

The Nariki hill climb was 2 stages of 5 km with an elevation gain of 430m. The course was up a closed and very scenic river valley road that was about a 40 minute ride from Higashi Ome JR station. It was your typical western Tokyo country road, but it was one of the prettiest that I have seen so far. After the first 1km or so of winding past some old farm houses, the road followed the river and headed upwards though a lush, green forest. Too bad that I could not talk any of my fellow Namban Rengo member triathletes to join me yesterday, as it really was a great day out and a fun race.

The first stage was a qualifying stage that had a generous 45 minute cut off that I managed to do in a solid 22:30. I really had no idea what sort of time I would do, I took it out hard but tried to keep a little up my sleeve for the second stage. And the second stage was the race stage. Was surprised that I started to pass riders from earlier waves (due to the narrow road, we started in waves that were two minutes apart and I was in the the 40's veteran's 7th wave) who were pushing their bikes up the hill from only about the 500m mark. I continued to pass riders all the way to the top, even some of the young ones from the first wave.

My goal for the second leg was to try and break 20 minutes; gave it all I could but I finished in a gut busting 20:20. This time again I managed to pass even more riders (and walkers), and all those that I saw ahead of me from my wave. One guy in my wave shadowed me all the way up on the first stage and tried to do the same on the second, but I was able to drop him easily at about the 3km mark. And I passed four more veterans that had probably gone out too fast about 500m from the the finish. Was very happy with this effort as there were some very serious looking bike riders out there. As a fairly strong climber but a first time bike racer, I thought that I was able to hold my own with a top ten finish in my age group. And this also gives me great heart for this coming Sunday's Suzu Half Iron Man triathlon that has a reputably tough and mountainous bike course.

Result of Second Stage:

20:20 - Overall 68th out of 314 - 8th out of 61 men in the 40's

BTW - the winner was a Japanese professional bike racer who finished in 14:42! And about 180 did not make it past the first stage.

As mentioned above, next up for me is Suzu on the Noto Peninsula over in Ishikawa-ken next weekend. Looking at the times recorded there at last year's race, this race is going to be tough with a 2.5km swim, a hilly 100km bike and a flat and exposed 23km run. And Mika-san informed me that there is once section on the bike where we must dismount and walk so as to cross a busy main road! With a bit of luck I think I can do well at Suzu, but will have to be carefull so as not to pick up an injury that may cause problems on my lead up to Kona in October.

It's official! Kona here I come!

2007-06-27T11:25:00.000+09:00

Aloha Keren,

Thank you for sending in your race results. Congratulations on your great race at Ironman Japan. You have now met the validation requirement of your 2007 Ironman Lottery selection. Your results are on file in the Ironman Kona race office.

The Athlete Information Guide will be posted on www.Ironman.com after August 1st, 2007. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.

We look forward to seeing you in Kona in October. Train safe.

With Aloha,

Linda Jane Kelley

Athlete Liaison Ironman Kona Race Office

IMJ Race Report - The heat was on!

2007-06-24T18:13:00.000+09:00

My belated race report from IM Japan last Sunday.

I feel humbled after reading Adrian Mok's report (who I did not meet down there), as I now think that did not perform as well on the day as I expected to, or had trained for. Iron Man racing is very tough and I am still learning the tricks of the trade. Thought I had it all covered with a plan A (normal cool conditions) and a plan B (wet weather with raincoats and dry socks), but I had no plan C for heat. I tend to cramp badly when it gets hot did I did not bring enough salt pills or electrolyte drinks with me, I dropped my entire supply of salt pills on the bike leg.

It was a tough day; just about every one who raced felt sick at times on the day, pros and AGers alike. Kate Major (Aussie Pro) told me that she felt sick the whole time and that it was a very tough day for her, so maybe my result was pretty good. But I still would have liked to have gotten closer to, or have broken the magic 11 hours. One of my training partners (Adam York) collapsed at the 18km aid station on the run and got carted off to hospital. Luckily he was fine after the race. Adam was not that far ahead of me over the first few kilometers of the run, and I was hoping to catch him as the run went on. It was only when I went to congratulate him after the race that I found out that he had problems and had to DNF.

The day after the race I spoke to a bloke who did the live updates from out on the course and he told me it hit 35C and 85% humidity around the 14km mark on the run. I was simply not prepared for what turned out to be and sunny and hot day. The two previous days were raining and cool and the race day on Sunday was forecast to be cloudy and 25C with a high chance of rain.

Here is how my race unfolded-

3,800m Swim -1:09:46 138th place (6 mins faster than 2006) Swimming is my only strength and I had a good swim and kept passing others the whole time. The conditions where great and much better than last years "washing machine" effect where I had a disappointing swim. This was five minutes slower than my best time of 1:04, but most agreed after the race that the swim was long.

Bike - 6:08:30 176th place (actual bike was 6:00:30; the leg time includes two transitions). This was 22 mins better than 2006, and was my IM bike leg so far and just a spit over my target time 6 hours. This was a decent improvement on a tough and hilly course, but I still need to drop my time by at least another 10 or 15 mins to get closer to the front of the pack. I seemed to hold my own and did not get passed by swarms of riders like I usually do, but I need to work on being more far more aggressive.

Run - 4:11:25 180th place Not a great run; it was only average under the conditions. Was right on time for my target time of a 3:45:00 marathon at the 15km mark, but then the heat started to get me and I faded. At halfway I thought that there was no way I could negative split, so I just decided to cruise it in to make sure that I finished. My pre-race strategy was to stop at every second aid station, but due to the heat I was forced to stop at every one and pour water over my head, take ice and drink water, coke and sports drink. This cost me a lot of time. But I did have a good final 5km and was able to pass many runners before the finish, but still not enough in my AG to make it into the top 10.

Total - 11:29:41 Finished 156th over all (170th last year) and 13th in my AG (14th last year) . This was a Iron Man PB by 16 mins and I finished a very happy man, safe with the knowledge that I had validated my slot for Kona in October. I needed to do at least a half IM before September, so it was mission accomplished here.

Overall it was only an average result and I still like to think that I have it in me to go sub 11 hours one day. If I can put my three best times together of a 1:04 swim, a 6 hour bike and then run well under 4 hours (best IM is 3:56), I can go close. One of the only positive things to take out of the day was that I was able to beat all of my training partners and friends from Tokyo. The heat was kinder to the little guys on the day.

My main training partner, Mary, had a good race and managed to do a 10 minute PB, but unfortunately did not grab a Kona slot, only missing out by a short time.

Work, train, sleep and repeat. And repeat and repeat!

2007-05-28T14:38:00.000+09:00

Been just too busy with work, life and training to post anything here lately. As way too much as happened since my last post, I will just go with a quick summary of my training and racing.

Week 7

Hard Build- 19 hours

Week 8

Hard Build -2o hours.
TELL 10km race PB of 39:12 on a hot morning at the Imperial Palace. And, best of all, I beat Steve!

Week 9

Easy Recovery -14 hours

Week 10

Hard Peak - 19 hours

Week 11

Hard Peak - 21 hours

Only three weeks of training now left to IMJ. All of the hard work has now been done, this week will be moderate, race specific training followed by two weeks of tapering. I am ready!!

Rest and Recovery! Well not really.

2007-04-27T14:45:00.000+09:00

Week 6 of my IM program was slated to be a rest week. But due me staying over on Ishigaki after the triathlon, I grabbed the opportunity to bump up my bike mileage by doing two long road rides. The ride on Monday was an easy one, with Tuesday being intense, fast and mainly aero. Ishigaki was great to ride around, with beautiful scenery and very quiet roads once out of the city/port part. Nearly rode around the whole island, just missed out by doing it all due to running out of time.

Last Sunday's work out was particularly taxing. In the morning I did a 2:15 hour LSD run in Yoyogi with the Namban crew, then a 2,000 easy swim followed by a 40 minute recovery run just on dark. It was really tough to get myself up for the second run, but it was done this way so as to lessen the chance of me picking up a running injury. After the run I finished the day off by doing an easy 30 min spin. And I slackened off a little from the 90 min spin on my program but I thought that the rides that I did early in the week would be more than enough. And I have promised myself that I will not slacken off with my training even though I have already won a slot at Kona in October. I must break 11 hours at IMJ!!

Week Ending April 22nd

Swim: 2 hours (2 swims - 2,700m + 2,000)
Bike: 14 hours (5 sessions- 2 x 3hrs road at Ishigaki + 90 min spin + 6 hrs Arakawa + 30 min spin)
Run: 5 hours ( 5 sessions - 40mins recovery + 10km intervals + 30 min brick + 2:15 LSD and 40 mins recovery run both on Sunday)

Total: 21 hours

This week and next will really be a bike focus weeks, with two long rides of 3 hours plus planned for the coming weekend. Running will be bricks/transition runs. And next week has the "Golden Week" hols which will allow me to get in some more solid training hours.

On my way to Kona! The easy way!

2007-04-20T13:28:00.000+09:00

Ok, this is the easy, peasy way but as it is in the rules and I was lucky enough to win a spot, I will grab the chance to do Kona with two hands. The "pure" way is to obtain a slot by qualifying at an official IM such as IM Japan. But even this is open to chance. Sickness, a kick in the face during the swim, a flat tyre or worse during the bike and blisters or cramps etc during the run are just a few of the factors that may decide if a slot is won in a race or not. Another is that some "uber-triathletes" may target this race to qualify and fly in from any where in the world and take all the slots. But I will still aim at sub 11 hours and a top 5 placing at IMJ and earn my slot anyway.

And I have decided to give it my best shot and "try hard" at Kona, as I may not get another chance. I still can't believe that I am going to this tough and hallowed course and will compete in this storied and famous race along side World Champs. Kona is the Wimbledon of triathlon and most triathlete's goal. Why? Watch this clip and find out.

2007 Ironman Lottery Winners

On October 13, 2007, these lucky 200 athletes will have their lives changed forever...
Published on Sunday, Apr 15, 2007 at 10:59 AM.
Thanks to the vision of Ironman founder John Collins, who insisted that a system be maintained to allow the "common man" a chance to compete in this great race, 200 far-from-common age-groupers will join the rest of the 1,800 strong in Kailua Bay on October 13, 2007 for the Ford Ironman World Championship.

64412 MIERS KEREN AUS

There are only 50 International slots out of the 200, so I was very,very lucky to have a chance at being being a "common man" an Kona.

Second! Glad I did not come in first.

2007-04-19T16:36:00.000+09:00

Two years ago Jay and I decided to do the Olympic distance triathlon (1,500m swim/40km bike/10km run) on the sub-tropical island of Ishigaki, after hearing a glowing report about it from Stuart. But bad luck and incompetence (mainly) caused us to miss the entry deadline by a measly one hour. No amount of begging would make the organizers change their mind and allow our late entries, so we missed out on going. And we skipped it last year to focus on training for Iron Man Japan (IMJ) that was held in May. But due to IMJ’s change of date to this year to June, the mid-April race date of Ishigaki worked in perfectly with our training plans for this year’s IMJ. With my main focus being on doing well at IMJ, I designated Ishigaki to be only a “C” race; only for training and to get used to my new hi-tech triathlon bike. I trained though all of last week and right up to the day before Sunday’s race and did not taper at all. In the back of my mind was a top 100 finish, but I was not overly concerned with a main aim of having fun. This year’s race had 806 individual age groupers, plus 200 teams of three, meaning it is a big race with 1200 people in total.

To my great surprise, the race went very well for me. Came 2nd in my age group - the over 40's males (they only did 10 year AGs). The winner was a local who is 41 and beat me by nearly 7 minutes. I would have easily won the 45 to 49's, if they used that system like most other triathlons do. Did not push too hard in the swim as it was my very first wetsuit swim of the year. It was raining heavily during the bike, and when I saw one guy go down hard on the slippery road right behind me at the 3km mark, I decided on a safety first approach and dropped my speed right down. I think this would have cost me about 5 or 6 minutes here, but I still managed to pass more riders than who passed me. The bike course had many rolling hills and it was my first time over hills on my new bike, so I did not use the gears effectively. It was a great learning experience. But I did a solid run of 43:26 and passed about 10 or 12 and was only passed by two team runners. I even passed some teams. I was the 23rd male (27th overall) so it was a solid result for me that shows that I am on the right track for IMJ. The picture shows me at the finish (I just can't make the photo bigger), where I was surprised that there were so few finishers there!

2:24:26 (27th overall) : Swim 25:28 (57) Bike 1:15:32 (65) Run 43:26 (24) 23rd male.

I enjoyed the whole Ishigaki experience and would recommend this race to others. The island is quiet and beautiful (as Gareth has also pointed out) and I also enjoyed a relaxing long ride and some sightseeing with Motozo and Kanako on Monday, as well as a hard training ride on empty roads by myself on Tuesday. An other bonus was that the triathlon also had professional races for men and women as part of the ITU circuit, which I enjoyed watching after my race was done. Thanks to Mo and Kanako-san for a nice weekend. And Jay? Well due to a business trip, he hard to pull out of the race.

And why was I happy to come only 2nd? Well the winner got a 5km bag of salt! I would have had to carry it home with me.

Last Week's Training (Week 5)

Swim: 4:15 hours or 8,800 m (4 swims - 4,000m + 3,000m + 300m warm up and 1,500m race)

Bike: 7:30 hours

Run: 5:15 hours or 65km

Total: 17 hours

And I am going to IM Hawaii at Kona for sure!!! I was very lucky to win a spot via this year's lottery and I still can't believe it!!!. So the pressure to qualify is now off, but I am still aiming for a PB at IMJ, by going sub 11 hours.

http://www.ironman.com/events/ironman/worldchampionship/athleteinfo/lottery/on-october-13-2007-these-lucky-200-athletes-will-have-their-lives-changed-forever...

This is a whole new ball game for me, and as Adam York pointed out, it could be a life defining experience. Time to amp up my training even more.

Week four of Iron Man training

2007-04-12T17:40:00.000+09:00

Just finished my first month of training for IM Japan in June under my coach's training plan. So far so good, but it has been a little harder than I expected to forget about my old training habits and to follow Scott's plan. He recommends quality over quantity, which goes against my old gung ho approach. But I believe in what he tells me and and have now changed my mind set to follow his plan with its steady build up to race day.

Last Week (Easy/Recovery Week)
Swim: 8,000m (3 swims - 3,600m + 1,900m + 2,500m)
Bike: 9 hours (3 spins of 60+ 40+90 mins, 2 rides of 2 hrs and 3 hrs)
Run: 3 hours (3 runs of 90+40+60 mins) about 32km
Total: 16 hours

I will have my first triathlon of the season at Ishigaki-jima on Sunday. It is an Olympic distance race (1,500m/40km/10km) and part of the ITU World Cup circuit. So I will be able to see pros race and maybe steal some ideas from them. But the whole weekend will be something of an IM training camp and I am not taking this race too seriously. Am not tapering for it and am training through the week, with the idea of using this race to try out my new bike and to just have fun racing again. And of course to beat Motozo! Too bad Jay had to pull out of this race as I need to seek revenge for when they both beat me at the Sado Half IM. (and I msut add that I was sick at the time!) Another thing to look forward to there is that I have friends from Saipan living on Ishigaki.

Ome Mt Takamizu 30km Trail Race report

2007-04-04T09:49:00.000+09:00

I lined up at the 8th Ome Mt Takamizu 30km trail race last Sunday morning feeling slight dehydrated, and with a fuzzy head after a few beers and some stodgy German food the night before with some visiting friends from Osaka. Not ideal preparation for a gruelling race, but I was still fairly confident of doing an good time and getting a PB. Could I go under 2:50 for the first time? My best time was 2:56 and I first did this race with some friends from Saipan in 2003.

At the around the 5km mark I was called as being 42nd, and on the return leg the same oji-san said I was in 48th place. So I was then determined to stay in the top 50. Had thought that I had maintained my position until the finish, but I ended up just outside in 53rd place. Like Yuka says below, the oji-sans on the trail can’t count!! But this was still a 6 minute PB and an improvement of 41 places over last year. As they had added another sneaky hill on the return leg (I was surprised by this, but I have now seen that it was marked on the map that they sent us), I am very happy with the result. Going down hill at high speed over trail is my big weakness. I would get passed then, but I would pick them up again on the hills. Overall this is a great race and is one of my favorites in Japan as it is always nice to get out of the city and straight road running and into the countryside to run trails.

A keen group of ten Namban Renego members fronted up at Ome. Nine were up for the 30km race with one, Yuka-san, doing the 15km. It was a glorious day up in the mountains west of Tokyo, with clear skies and a forecasted temperature of 22C. Conditions were near perfect for trail running with a dry course, but hydration would be very important under the warm conditions. Many opted to carry drinks along with them as there are only three aid stations on trail, one every 5km. The big question that was asked before the race was will our avid trail runner Jay turn up and run? There were rumors going around that he was away on business, but he has a well known habit of turning up for races at the last minute so anything was possible. As it turned out, Jay was in Sydney on race day so he had a good excuse not to turn up. Thanks yet again to Teruyuki, our post race Hanami party organizer, for the nice picnic and for allowing us to use his car to keep our gear in. And thanks also to Yuka for these photos. And also a big thank you to Onishi-san of KFC for putting on a great event again this year.

Last Week's Training
Swim: 4 hours 7,500 meters (3 swims- 3,200 + 2,100 + 2,200)
Bike: 4 hours (2 spins of 60 mins and 1 road ride of 2 hours)
Run: 6 hours (5 runs of 20 + 40 + 70 + 60 + 170 mins) about 66km
Total: 14 hours

This week will be recovery/easy with a focus on the bike. Just as well as my legs are sore from the trail race.

Another hard week down

2007-03-26T17:51:00.000+09:00

My training last week was very demanding and tough, but I was able to make it through my training program in one piece. Still eating down the house, but as I have actually dropped 1kg in weight in the last month, I think I am doing ok. A decent sleep in and a lazy day would be good, but early starts are needed to fit in the day's training and to do interest things. E.g. Tamako ekiden last Wednesday with Namban Rengo, and a long ride at Sagamiko last Saturday with Mary and Motozo.

The Tamako ekiden was a fun event held on a public holiday on a nice day and is one of my favourite ekidens that we do here. I managed a 40 second PB over a hilly course of just under 6km, which I think was a good effort considering the volume of my IM training. (Time 23:04) My team was the winner of the inter club race out of three teams. And two of our ladies teams came in first and second!!

Last Week
Swim: 10,200 meters (3 swims- 3,500 + 4,500 + 2,700)
Bike: 8.5 hours (3 spins of 80 mins + 90 mins + 120 mins and 1 long road ride of 3.5 hours)
Run: 4 hours (5 runs of 40 + 30 + 30 + 120 + 40 mins) about 45km
Total: 17.5 hours

This week will be very bust at work and it will be hard to follow my program. But it is scheduled as a recovery week with less volume and intensity, so it just might work out OK. Sunday will see the 30km trail race at Ome, where I will aim to finish in less that 2:50)

Now this really is serious stuff! (Or- How did I get myself into this?)

2007-03-19T18:34:00.000+09:00

After my first week of training following my coach's plan, I was surprised to find that I did so much training! This is how my week went.

Swim: 4hrs (3 swims of 3,200 + 4,100 + 2,200 for total of 9,500m)
Bike: 7.5hrs (3 x spins plus one 85km ride from Oji to Oifuto and back)
Run: 5.5 hours(5 runs in total with the main run being 3.5hrs over the trail at Ome)
Total: 17 hours

Finished the week with sore quads, but overall I feel good and not too tired. This will be the first of many big weeks leading up to IMJ, but there will also be recovery and race weeks to come. And I am now as hungry as a horse, just can't seem to get enough food into me. But I am still maintaining my weight, so everything is good.

This coming week has public holiday on Wednesday, so I will join the Namban Rengo team at the Tamako Ekiden. I did this race last year and it was a lot of fun. What competitor's gift will we receive this year? It will be hard to top last year's combined whistle/pen combo! But it has two serious hill sections and it will be a good replacement for the track work out that I will now skip.

For the coming week my plan has me doing 3 swims, 4 rides and 5 runs. There is now only 13 weeks to IMJ!

Ohyama!! My favourite running race in Japan

2007-03-13T13:53:00.000+09:00

Here is my race report about the Ohyama Tozan race that was held last Sunday. It will be sent out to the Namaban mailing list soon. The picture here was taken at the race and came from yesterday's posting on "Japan Today"

51:09 - 17th place out of 420 in the 40’s age group. (PB by 2:24 over a slightly longer course). After wishing all morning that the race would be called off due to the heavy rain, I decided to do it with a plan of going hard on the road section and then taking it easy on the stairs as the footing was probably slippery and dangerous. But luckily the rain eased off to a light drizzle at the start, and when I reached the stairs I found the footing to be ok, so I was able to keep going at pace. Was not passed by anyone at all from the about the 2km marker onwards when the race settled down, and I was able to steadily pass dozens of runners until the finish. The last 1km was difficult and slow as the way was blocked in narrow sections by the back markers from the older age groups until a few yelled “sumimasens” cleared the way for me. This is definitely my favorite race in Japan! Thanks go out to Gareth, Jaynie and Adam as our meeting time of 7:00 am prevented me from me being a wuss and going back to bead on a cold and rainy morning.

Tri Training Weekending March 12th.

Swim: 5,500m
Bike: 5 hours
Run: 38km
Total: 12 hours

I now have my personalized training program for IM Japan all mapped out. Looks tough, but doable and should see me to my goal. Below is what my coming week's program looks like, I will have no life until mid-June!! But this is what I live for!

Monday - 12th Mar AM:

PM:RUN - 20 MINS EASY / BIKE - SPIN SET 60 MINS, keep in zone 2, work some hard gears
8 mins 110rpm 75% - 2 mins big gear 70rpm 85%
Comments:

Tuesday - 13th AM:RUN - 40 MINS EASY RECOVERY

PM:SWIM - 4k set, lots of strength - sprint work
STRETCHING / SWISS BALL / CORE WORK !
Comments:

Wednesday - 14th REST MORNING (or light gym - core - strength work)

PM: RUN - Track Interval, group

Comments:

Thursday - 15th PM:BIKE - 90 MINS (alt, 20mins easy, 10mins big gear 80rpm or less, 75-80%)

PM:SWIM - SQUAD or SET / 1k fins 50 slow, 50 1arm, 1k 100 fast-easy, 1k paddles-pull-band
1k fins kick
Comments:

Friday - 16th AM:REST DAY !

PM:

Comments:

Saturday - 17th AM:BIKE - ROAD / LONG, include 3x20 min aero efforts, big chain 75% - rest is easy spin
RUN - 30 MINS EASY OFF

PM: SWIM - 2k (500 easy, 1500 paddles-pull-band)
Comments:

Sunday - 18th AM: RUN - 2HRS (group) EASY

PM:BIKE - 2 HRS SPIN EASY
RUN - 30-40 MINS hold even pace & tempo 80%
Comments:4 HRS +

Notes SWIM - X3
BIKE - X4
RUN - X6

Belated Tokyo Marathon Race Report

2007-03-05T15:42:00.000+09:00

Here is my race report that I shared with the Namban Rengo mailing list-

3:25:32 (PB)Everything went to plan for me yesterday and I came in under my target time of 3:30 , for a 17 minute PB. Could I have gone faster? Probably; but this was basically a training run to check my program for my next Iron Man in June. Felt in total control here and am confident that I can do a decent IM marathon June. Overall it was a great race, even with the bloody cold and rain, but I was disappointed that the weather made a mess of our pre-race get together. A big thank you for the great support of Nambanners and friends who lined the course, which really gave me a lift.

Splits-
5km 25:50
10km 23:23
15km 22:27
20km 23:27
25km 24:15
30km 24:19
35km 24:44
40km 25:03
42.2km 11:45
Total: 3:25:32 (chip time or 3:26:03 clock time)

This was good enough for a placing of 1829 out of 19,523 males in the marathon. Got to be happy to finish with in the top 10% of a major city marathon (9.37%).

So with the marathon done and dusted, it is time to focus on my next "A" race, IM Japan on June 17th. After an easy week of recovery after the marathon and a weekend ski trip to Oku-Nikko, here is my recent tri training-

Week Ending Feb 18th (taper and race)
Bike: 2 hours
Run: 61km (including marathon)
Swim: 4,500m
Total: 9 hours

Week Ending Feb 25th (recovery)
Bike: 90 mins
Run: 5km
Swim: 2,500m
XC ski: 60 minutes (learnt that this is not a sport for me)
Total: 5 hours

Week Ending March 4th (last week)
Bike: 6 hours
Run: 35km
Swim: 8,800m
Total: 14 hours

My plan is to focus on my bike training and swimming over the next few weeks of base training. I will really crank out the laps in the pool and aim for least 9,000m per week. My next race is the Ohyama Mountain 9km race that will be held next Sunday, where I will aim to beat last year's time of 53:33. As my training was a bit of a struggle over the past weekend, I don't think that I have have fully recovered from the marathon. Hopefully another week will bring my legs back to life!

Time to hit the road!

2007-02-11T19:45:00.000+09:00

Ok, so after months of careful deliberation and research, I ended up buying a new tri bike while I was in Singapore last month. Actually, this is my first dedicated tri bike after using road bikes over my entire triathlon career of 19 years. My very first race was the Noosa Triathlon, a popular Olympic distance race (1,500m/40km/10km) , on the Sunshine Coast in Australia way back in 1988. And my new bike is only my fourth bike during this time, so I can't really be accused of extravagant spending on bikes. (I hope my wife will read this!) So with all this in mind, I decided to buy the best and fastest bike that I could afford, and one that will last me for many years. So here is my Cervelo P2C, an aerodynamic, light, carbon fibre, hi tech triathlon/time trial bike. A rather sexy beast!

It rides just as good as it looks, it is exceptionally smooth as the carbon absorbs practically all road vibration and is super comfortable when in the aerobars and it just feels fast! On my first ride I was concerned that I may not be a good enough rider to warrant such a great bike, but the more I ride it, the more I am sure that I did the right thing buy lashing out and buying it. My Iron Man bike leg should improve greatly, and a sub 6 hour ride is on the cards if I do the right training and make sure that the engine (me) is in peak condition. Another bonus is it's steep tri specific seat angle (79 degrees) that should make my bike to run transition easier and save me time, by 10 to 15 mins on the marathon if I can believe what the experts say. Most importantly, I have to go faster just to justify the expense!!

With now only a week to go to the Tokyo Marathon and with my training program seeming to go well, I feel confident that my target time of sub 3:30 is in reach. All my main training has been done and my program only has one 20 min tempo run and some other short and easy runs left on my taper this week. And I will be glad to get the marathon over and done with so I can concentrate on my main goal of going sub 11 hours at IM Japan in June. Have already started to amp up my tri training and will do even more after the marathon and the following weekend's cross country skiing trip (some R&R). After doing a lot of unstructured training over the winter with my focus on running and building leg strength for the bike, I have started a formal 21 week program. Just finished week three today and will ease back on biking and swimming next week during my taper.

Week One
Swim: 2,000m
Bike: 4 hours
Run: 56km
Total: 10 hours

Week Two
Swim: 6,500m
Bike: 5 hours
Run: 46km
Total: 12 hours

Week Three
Swim: 7,000m
Bike: 5:30 hours
Run: 36km
Total: 12 hours

Another one bites the dust

2007-01-02T09:53:00.000+09:00

So goodbye to 2006 and hello to 2007, the year of the Wild Boar (Inoshishi in Japan). While some of my fellow Namban Rengo club mates and regular bloggers VB and GPAA, have posted lengthy reflections on the year just gone, I will just list my goals for 2007.

Main Goals

Tokyo Marathon on February 18th - sub 3:30 hours for a 12 min PB.
Iron Man Japan on June 17th - sub 11:00 hours and a 45 min PB
Hawaiian Iron Man in October - but I have to qualify first!

Secondary Goals

10km time - consistently under 40mins (only managed it twice in 2006)
half marathon- consistently under 90mins (only done it the once, also in 2006)
5km - Official time under 20 mins (best was 19:30ish at 5km race at the place which is a tad short)

On a personal note my 2007 has very started well as I was promoted to General Manager from January 1st. Been doing the job for a year now, but the powers that be have just given me the official title. Besides more responsibility and probabbly added stress, this job will give me some more travel perks. Already for this year I am off to Singapore next week to attend a uni course, and have a trip to Disney World in Florida for a comference set up for late March. While I am in Singapore I will pick up a new triathlon bike and visit my sister and niece who have just moved there. Roslyn has just graduated as a teacher and has scored her first teaching job in Sing, so it is great timing for me to go there.

Last Week
Swim: 0 my local pool is closed for 2 weeks :-(
Bike: 2 hours ( 2 x spins)
Run: 60km (main run was 29km on NYE)

Two Weeks Ago
Swim: 0
Bike: 3hours
Run: 50km recovery week (main run was a 25km trail run at Mt Jinba and Mt Takao. The picture with a snowy Mt Fuji in the background tells the story of a great day out in the forests of western Tokyo)

MMT

2006-12-19T12:57:00.000+09:00

World famous Namban Rengo elder Gareth of Pughe, led a keen group of 13 runners on a "Magical Mystery Tour" 30km training run around central Tokyo last Sunday. This run was so good that it left me wanting more, so I managed to tack on another 2 loops of Yoyogi Koen for a 35km and 3 hour total run. Due to a stiff head cold that hit me on Friday on the day of my work's Christmas party, and a having to attend two networking events on Wednesday and Thursday nights with more than a few drinks at each, I missed doing one planned 10km tempo run. But I made up for this on Saturday by doing a steady 32km bike ride on the Arakawa with a 4km brick run followed by a 4 x 1,600m cruise interval work out on a running track.

Last Week-
Swim: 0 Due to my cold
Bike: 3 hours (2x spins and one ride)
Run: 56km or 5 hours

This week will be a recovery week for running, but I will do a 8x800m work out on the track tomorrow night to test my fitness, and then an easy 20km trail run at Takao on Christmas Eve (Sunday). Will also try to stick to least 3 hours of riding and one swim of at least 2,500m.

And of course I have to mention that Australia has reclaimed cricket's "Ashes" from England after losing them 15 months ago. Ah the sweet smell of victory!

Countdown to Tokyo Marathon

2006-12-11T13:22:00.000+09:00

I am one of the lucky Namban Rengo members has who won a slot in the February 18th Tokyo Marathon via the lottery. With my main racing goal for 2007 being a sub 11:00 hour Ironman Japan, I just plan to use the Tokyo Marathon as a good paced training run. Some folks tell me that I am capable of going faster than my predicted time of 3:30, but I plan to stick to my guns and use this marathon to help me train for a 3:50 IM marathon time. (which would be about a 10 min IM marathon PB).

Along with Jay and Mary, I am on triathlon super coach Joe Friels, very sensible "The Fast Marathoner" training program. This is a 12 week plan that has a focus on hill runs of no more than 3 hours to build strength, and on race paced tempo and faster than race pace interval runs. I am now into my third week on this program and I find it to the simple to follow and easy to achieve. Will still keep cross training, but on a fairly limited level until January when I will jack up both my swimming and biking. At the moment my biking is limited to heavy indoor spinning to try and build leg strength.

Week 12
Run: 48km
Swim: 2,500m
Bike: 3 hours spin

Week 11 (Last week)
Run 50km
Swim 2,500m
Bike 2 hours spin.

Yesterday I did my first Mitake 15km Mountain Trail race, which I did in middling 1:30:09, which was smack on my predicted time of 1:30. But I as did this race "cold", with no experience of the course, I was pretty happy with my time. (Namban Rengo race report to follow soon).

The coming week will a big one for me with three year end social events, so it will be difficult to fit in my optimal training. But as I have now devoted my life totally to running (as recommended by GPAA), I will try to limit the damage that partying may do to my program. Hence my non attendance at Namban's bonenkai last Saturday. I sort of boycotted the event anyway, as why should a running club position a party on the day before some of it's dedicated members plan to do a gruelling race? And I had one of the Namban faithful and fellow blogger, Bv, call me a "pisshead"! How unreasonable!!! ;-)

Edogawa Marathon (well not really a marathon)

2006-10-25T13:38:00.000+09:00

Last Sunday saw me do the Edogawa Marathon 10km for the second year running. My time was 39:58 and I came in 22nd out of 275 in my age group. It hurt a lot, proving that when I did my 39:16 PB in May, I was super fit due to Ironman training. Just managed to sneak in under the magic 40 minute mark with a late surge where I passed Nambanner Simon only meters from the finish line. Ran most of the race with Motozo and Simon at sub 4:00min pace but then faded badly at the end and had to let them go.

Maybe the 105km bike ride the day before was not ideal preparation? But I still managed to beat last years time by 1:42. Now my main target for next year will not be qualifying for IMH, but to make a top 10 finish at Edogawa so I can be part of the most elaborate presentation ceremony in Japan. I want the glory!!!

The 105km bike ride on Saturday was a good one. Only 5 other riders rocked up, but we put that down to being held on a Saturday, over the more preferable Sunday. But last Saturday was the only free weekend day that I had for the entire month. After an easy ride up to the world famous "bike cafe" for yaki soba (fried noodles), we were directed to Enomoto Farm, a dairy farm close to the Honda Airport that sells fresh ice cream. It is located on the bike path that runs along the Arakawa proper and was easy to find. And it is now our new stop over point for long rides for tasty nama icecreamu!!

Last week
Bike: 5.5 hours (1 hour spin, 4.5 hour ride)
Run: 40km (including 10km race and warm up)
Swim: 1,800m (my first swim since Sado)

Another Tokyo Running Highlight

2006-10-17T12:49:00.000+09:00

The feature event last week was the 2nd running of Namban Rengo's "Tour de Yamanote", a run though the streets of Tokyo tracing the Yamanote train line. I was one of the three finishers of last years run, along with Colin and Steve, but this year I opted to drop out when I was close to home to stay fresh for a 10km race on this coming weekend. I ended up with 29km, more than the 18km that I planned as it was all great fun and hard to leave. For a detailed report check out BV's blog. And Paddy's website for pics and a great video.

Last week
Run: 57km
Bike: 2hours spin
Golf: 18 hours (all sport counts!!)

Big news over the past few days is that the date for the 2007 IM Japan has been announced- June 17th. Am now working with Scott Penny, a triathlon coach in Australia who I met on Saipan, to set up a training plan to get me in top shape for that race. Will also factor in other big races for next year like the Tokyo Marathon and possibly the Tagaman again on Saipan.

On Saturday I will lead a social bike ride to the world famous "Bike Cafe" for the Half Fast group (say Half Fast quickly a few times). Been I while since I have ridden with this group and it will be good to catch up with them.

Next Sunday is the Edogawa 10km, where I hope to go close to running a PB. But I am not sure if I can as I am a bit leg sore after the Yamanote run and the leg strength work I am doing. Will ease right off over the next few days. And I am, of course, looking forward to the traditional after race Mexican food for lunch.

Catch up

2006-10-09T13:21:00.000+09:00

Have been very busy at work the past few weeks with hardly a spare moment to update my blog. Add this to my the start of my off season training, dreaming about buying a new tri bike and a spot of running, and time is simply flashing by.

2 weeks ago
Run: 60km
Gym: leg strength - one hour
Yoga: 1 hour at home to a DVD

Last week
Run: 40km
Bike: Spin class 25km
Yoga: 90 mins class
Gym: Leg strength - one hour
Surfing: 2 hours on the coast of Chiba on a sunny but windy day.

A week or so ago, GPAA posted his top ten running races in Japan. Here are mine -

1. The Hana Matsuri Marathon at Ikegami

Where I picked up my first and only trophy in Japan. Albeit for a lowly 5th place in the 40's men. My sort race of just under 10km and two laps and a hill. (Gotta love how most races in Japan have the Marathon "tag" attached)

2. Ohyama Tozan 9km
Up, up, up! My only strength are hills and this race is perfect for me. Probably good on hills due to running lot's of hills at home on the Sunshine Coast and when I lived on Saipan.

3. Montrail Ome 30k Trail Run
A race that I did in my first year in Japan that I helped to introduce to the Namban Rengo race calendar.

4. TELL Race 10k
Two laps around the Imperial Palace where I set my 10km PB after long giving up the thought of ever going under 40 mins. (39:16)

5. East Japan Sagamihara Half Marathon (US Army Depot)
A dull race around a waste land and army warehouse, but is the site of my half marathon PB.(89:06)

6. Fuji-Yoshida 20km
Another race that has connections to Saipan and Guam that I have introduced to the Namban group. Did I mention hills?

7. Edogawa 10km
A fast, fun course that is close and super easy to get to. Great pomp, ceremony and a cast of thousands as well.

8. Ohtawara Marathon
The race it's self is average, but the party at the Onsen afterwards was huge.

9. Kanagawa Half Marathon
Done this race two years straight and besides being a flat, two lap course; it is
straight down the Keihin Tohoku line and very easy to get to from my house.

10. Tachikawa Showa Kinen 10k
My first 10km in Japan, done a week before I joined Namban Rengo two years ago.

Up coming races-

Egogawa 10km on the 22nd.

246 Half Marathon on Nov 19th. Hope I can get it over early and then cheer on the brave ladies in the Tokyo Ladies Marathon.

Tokyo Marathon in February, 2007. I won my slot out of 90,000 entries in the lottery!

How long will you stay at my house this time?

2006-09-24T15:06:00.000+09:00

The words above came from Yukie-san when I returned home from my trip to Beijing. Since I last posted in mid August, I have spent 2 weeks in Pune in India, then a long weekend at Sado for the Astoman triathlon followed by a 3 night trip to Beijing for a conference. Wow! Where did the time go? I am glad to be back and settled again after covering a lot of ground traveling and returning home from India with a dose of Delhi Belly. (I am right off Indian food at the moment). The Sado race was a bit of a disaster as before the race I still had the runs, had hardly slept and could not really eat or drink properly. This was far from ideal prep for an endurance race. But I did manage to finish it, and all in all I am happy that I was able to do so.

As for training, my plan is to treat the next few months as my triathlon off season and to concentrate on running and building up for the next season and my next go at an Ironman. (either China or Japan) Will keep doing yoga and also start doing some gym work with the aim of building up both my core and leg strength, so as to help my bike. Will also buy a top notch aero tri-bike, but I still have to work out how to get one without having to overly compensate Yukie-san. My wife said I can get a new bike (my budget is about JPY450,000), as long as I send her on a trip to Mexico!

Started training again this week after a two week break, managing to run 68km in total. The highlight was the Yasso 800s at the Namban workout on Wednesday night. But I regret my wimpy decision to go around at 3:30 pace instead of a solid 3:15 pace. But I was still a bit leg sore on Thursday. My next race will be the Edowaga 10km on Oct 22nd, with a possible 1/2 marathon in November (only in the draw so far). Have decided not to do Ohtawara this year so I can concentrate on my triathlon pre-season. Hope to get a start in the Tokyo marathon in February, along with 75,000 others fighting for the 30,000 places. Got my fingers crossed!

This week
Run: 68km
Yoga: 1 hour (at home)

Flogging a dead horse

2006-08-14T09:35:00.000+09:00

My India trip has been put off by a few days. Will now depart on Wednesday Aug 16th and return on the 30th, only a couple of days before Sado. Again not ideal preparation for a race that I think I can do well in, but I will fit in my taper around the trip. The delay gave me an additional weekend to train, so I made the most of it and really went all out. Even did a ride at the world famous Oifuto, a place that I normally avoid like the plague. But as everyone cheats in Sado by drafting on the bike leg, I decided join the "Westy" crew and to go down to Oi to get in some drafting practice. It all went pretty well, was able to stay with the peleton for 3 and half laps before I got dropped. Did the last lap hard by myself in the aero position, to get in some true triathlon training.

Monday
Swim: 3,000m at Sendagaya with the squad

Tuesday:
Run: 5km run on treadmill at home before work (was raining hard)
Bike: 30km spin class at Y's

Wednesday
Run: 10 x Yasou 800ms at 3.05 with 400m recovery in same time between each lap = 12km for a total of 17km with 4km arm up and 1km cool down. (was the hardest track work out that I have ever done. My legs were gone after 8.5 reps, just jogged the rest)

Thursday
Bike: 30km spin class at Y's

Friday
Off

Saturday
Run: 21km with last 5km as "fast finish" at 90% HR.
Swim: 2,000m (500m warm up, 500m kick, 500m pool buoy, 500m cool down)

Sunday
Bike: 90km (22km to Oi from home, 5 x 9km laps = 45km, 23km home)
Run: 8km brick off the bike
Swim: 2,200m (400m free warm up, 400m kick, 400m mixed sprints, 800m free, 200m free cool down)

Totals
Swim: 7,200m
Bike: 150km
Run: 51km
Time: 13.5 hrs

Was just too tired to make it to yoga on Saturday. For the rest of the week until I leave on Wednesday, I plan to swim with the squad on Monday, do spin on Tuesday and get in a 10km run. My hotel in Pune as a lap pool and a gym, so as long as I can get on a bike I will be fine. Just hope that the monsoon will let off and let me get in a couple of long runs.

On my way to India

2006-08-07T09:58:00.000+09:00

I only found out last Monday that I will be going to India for work on the 12th for two weeks. This is just too good of an opportunity to turn down as I, like most people, have always want to travel there. Will fly in to Mumbai, overnight at a hotel on the beach near the airport, and then fly 180km south to Pune assist with the opening of a new serviced apartment residence. Not ideal for my preparation for the Sado triathlon, but the timing is sort of ok as I will just work my taper in to this schedule. Should be able to run a bit while I am in Pune, and hopefully I can find a pool and a gym with stationary bikes to top off my training program. Plan to keep my bog updated while I am there, and to post some pictures as well. And as an amazing coincidence, Stuart from Namban Rengo will also go to Pune for 10 days on the same day that I leave Tokyo. So I will have a ready made running partner.

With the trip in mind, I did a big week of training last week and will do the same this week right up until I fly out on Saturday morning. Highlight of the week was a long hill ride that I arranged yesterday (Sunday). Could only get two others of the group to join me on such a hot day, Mika and David R. We did a couple of serious, long climbs and we had to stop and nearly every vending machine we saw to buy a lot of cold sports drinks. And we had to put up with some crazy Japanese motor bike riders who were out on Sunday joy rides. Was very disconcerting to have them roaring past us, seemingly only inches ways, while we were climbing the first steep hill.

Monday
Off

Tuesday
Run: 8km
Bike: 25km spin class at Y's

Wednesday
Run: 12km Namban Rengo work out. Main set 6x 1000m - 1st 4 timed at 3:40 to 3:44, 5th 3:50, 6th 3:34.

Thursday
Swim: 2500m with squad at Yoyogi pool. Main set all free - 3 x 100m, 4 x 50m, 4 x 50m with hard first 25m. All on minimum rest X 2. It was a super tough work out!!!

Friday
Bike: 15km spin at home

Saturday
Run: 25km long run at 80% HR in the morning heat.
Yoga: 90 minutes
Swim: 2,500m at Metro gym. 500m free warm up, 500m pool buoy, 500m kick, 500m mixed sprints of 50m and 100m, 500m cool down

Sunday
Bike: 80km hills at Akigawa/Okutama area
Run: 5km brick/transition run off the bike.

Totals
Swim: 5,000m
Bike: 120km
Run: 50km
Time: 15 hours

For this week I plan to do as much as I can and will start my taper from next weekend when I am in India. My plan is to do two swims, two spin classes and one spin at home, and to run about 35km. Yesterday was my last bike ride on the road until Sado!

Over training?

2006-07-31T13:03:00.000+09:00

Last week I felt like shite all week. Was it a case of over training or just some big weeks at work, a few late nights with reduced sleep catching up with me? I just felt bad all over, sometimes feeling dizzy and disoriented, as well as being very tired and with some muscle soreness. Tend to think it was over training, as I have been really pushing myself and training at high intensity to get ready for Sado. When I was training for my Ironman races I would have one easy week a month, but I have been really pushing hard lately. This week was my first easy week for a long while and by Sunday afternoon, I felt good again. And this could have also had something to do with going to yoga again on Saturday, the first time I had been since May. Yoga seems to be very beneficial for me to increase my core strength and to stretch.

Monday
Off

Tuesday
Bike: 15km spin at home

Wednesday
Off

Thursday
Bike: 20km spin at home

Friday
Run: 10km before work
Swim: 3,000m. Warm up - 200m free, 200m pool buoy, 200m kick, 2 x 100m sprints. 2,000m free in a good 40 mins. (target time for Sado is 35 mins), 200m free cool down.

Saturday
Bike: 80km on Arakawa at steady pace
Run: 5km brick/transition off the bike
Yoga: 90mins of "Yoga for Athletes"

Sunday
Run: 16km in neighborhood at Ave of 78% max HR
Swim: 2,700m. 500m free warm up, 8 x 100m free sprints on 20 sec rest, 500m kick, 500m pool buoy, 400m cool down.

Time
Swim: 5,700m
Bike: 115m
Run: 31km
Yoga: 90mins.
Total: 11 hours

This week I am trying to get a group hill ride organized for Sunday. Really need to practice on some big hills to get ready for Sado. Hopefully I will also make it to spin class on Tuesday, Namban Rengo on Wednesday and swim squad on Thursday. Will also try to get my running mileage up to around 50km for the week, with a long 25km run planned for Saturday morning before yoga at 2:30.

------- __o
------ _\ <,
-----(X)/ (X)

Back on track

2006-07-24T10:06:00.000+09:00

With only 6 weeks to go to the Sado triathlon, I decided to have an "all out" week of hard training over the past week. It must have worked, as today I am a bit leg sore and tired. Therefore, the coming week will be an easier recovery week.

Had a fun day at Kamakura yesterday with the Namban crew. A swim, run, a body surf, a few beers and some nice Thai food on the beach with friends, made for a great day out. Just needed to bring along my surfboard and to have hooked into a few of the decent waves that were on offer, to have made it a truly perfect day.

Tuesday
Bike: 25km spin class

Wednesday
Run: 12km to and from the sento to Oda Field and then a tough Namban ladder work out.

Thursday
Off

Friday
Off

Saturday
Bike: 105km on Arakawa with some hill repeats using progressively higher gears.
Run: 8km brick/transition run
Swim: 3,000m. 500m free warm up, 500m kick, 600m pool buoy, 5 x 100m free hypoxic breathing every 5 stokes, 8 x 50m free on 15 sec rest, 500m cool down.

Sunday
Swim: 1,500m open water swim at Kamakura with GPAA
Run: 19km trail/temple/shrine/big Budda/beach run at Kamakura with Namban Rengo

Weekly Totals
Swim: 7,000m
Bike: 150km
Run: 44km
Time: 14.5hrs

Close, but no cigar.

2006-07-17T21:22:00.000+09:00

Got smashed again at work last week. My new boss, a nice chap who is Swiss, is a true workaholic and I have to follow suit. Last week was over the top, but I think it will be better from now on. My previous boss, an Aussie like myself, knew how to work hard, but did not let that get in the way of going home on time. Hopefully things will settle down soon and I can get back in to training again. But that being said, even though I had to miss a spin class and Wednesday's Namban Rengo workout, I still managed to fit in a solid 13 hours of training.

My high light of the week was giving Namban Rengo's glorious leader, Bob Poulson, a close run in a 5km race around the place on Sunday morning. I was surprised that after the start and when the race settled down that I was able to keep Bob in my sights. I actually passed him going up the last hill at around the 4km mark, but when I noticed that he was still with me when we turned the last corner and headed to the finish, I knew I was gone as Bob would finish over the top of me. But I managed to finish at 19:26 (probably a PB on a true 5km course), which for me was a great time. It was hot and humid and I did not get much sleep the night before as well as having done a hard run on Friday with Jay and a big ride on Saturday. Bob took 3rd and all the glory, I came in 4th in the over 40's (Jay won of course). Never imagined 2 years ago when I joined Namban, that I would ever go close to beating Bob in a race. Next time!

Last Week

Monday
Bike: 15km trainer at home

Tuesday
Off

Wednesday
Run: 7km hill repeats before work

Thursday
Swim: 1,200m at Yoyogi pool with squad (had a crushing head ache and had to stop)

Friday
Run: 15km Azabujyuban to Palace for 2 laps with Jay and return

Saturday
Bike: 115km Arakawa in very hot, stormy weather

Sunday
Run: 20km - 5km "Race for Africa" around Palace plus another 3 laps for 15km
Swim: 3,300m - 500 free warm up, 2,000m free, 500m pool buoy, 300m free cool down
Bike: 10km trainer at home

Weekly Totals
Swim: 4,500m
Bike: 140m
Run: 42km
Time: 13 hours

This week

Monday (A Public Holiday):
Swim: 2,500m - 500m fee warm up, 500m kick, 500m pool buoy, 800m free ladder (200,100,50,25 x 4,50,100,200), 200 cool down
Brick: 20km bike, 5km run - 5km bike on trainer at home, 1.25km run on treadmill X 4.

Too much sport is barely enough

2006-07-10T19:45:00.000+09:00

What a HUGE week for sport, was the week just gone. Besides the FIFA World Cup, the highlight of my sporting week was my home state of Queensland (Aust) clinching the annual State of Origin Rugby League series against the bad guys of New South Wales. (Hi Steve!) Then there was the start of the Tri-Nations Rugby with Australia V's the All Blacks. The Wallabies lost, but there are signs of improvement over last year's debacle. And to top off the week, there were the Wimbledon finals. Watched the ladies final on Saturday night and then most of the men's on Sunday until I crashed. Well done to Federer, but Nadal will give it a good shake in years to come.

With all of this sport, combined with a busy week with three late nights out for work dinners, I was a bit short in all the training targets that I set myself. But with a Public Holiday on Monday the 17th, I will have an extra day to do long training. Also, on the possibility of bad weather on Sunday, I switched a possible hill bike ride to a long trail run. (With no mention of me swan diving down a slope for no real reason)

Monday
Off

Tuesday
Bike: Spin 25km

Wednesday
Run: 7km hills before work

Thursday
Swim: 2,000 with squad at Yoyogi Pool

Friday
Run: 5km tempo on tread mill

Saturday
Bike: 75km on Arakawa
Swim: 2,500m (500m free warm up, 500m kick, 500m pool buoy, 1,000m free)
Run: 13km

Sunday
Run:16km trail run at Kamakura

Weekly Totals
Swim: 4,500m
Run: 41km
Bike: 100km
Time: 12:30

The long, hot road to Sado Island

2006-07-02T20:54:00.000+09:00

I have taken it easy during the month after IM Japan. Recovery is important as well as the need to re-charge my batteries and refocus on my next race, the Sado Island Astroman 1/2 IM. We had a week in Hong Kong and Macau, where I managed to fit in four runs. Highlights were a run around the old town of Taipa Island in Macau with it's old brightly coloured Chinese houses and runs around the Happy Valley race track and along Victoria Harbour in HK. I am following Jay's lead in combining sightseeing and fitness. Back in Tokyo I did a couple of Namban workouts, bike rides and swims, but they were all not to intense.

A couple of friends have tried to talk me into doing IM Korea again in August as they think that I would go very close to qualifying for the Hawaiian IM. This is my goal, but I would rather not have to train hard again over the heat of summer and if I did manage to qualify, I don't think I can afford a trip to Hawaii this year to race. Have decided to stick to my plan of aiming to improve over the next couple of years, with a focus on one IM race each year that I think I have a good chance to qualify in. Will do Sado again in September, did it enjoyed it in 2004, as I think I have a great shot at a podium finish. In my first tri in fours years, I managed 8th out of 65 and I know I have improved a hell of a lot since then.

Have started my serious training program for Sado this week and will crank it up over the coming weeks. Thank god that it is only half the distance of a full IM and that if I plan my long rides and runs well and do them early in the day before it gets too damn hot.

Monday
Swim: 2,200M with squad

Tuesday
Off

Wednesday
Run: 6km before work

Thursday
Ride Spin 30km at Y's

Friday
Run:10km

Saturday
Ride: 100m along Arakawa

Sunday
Swim: 2,800 drills and speed work
Run: 20KM LSD

Weekly Totals
Swim: 5,000m
Bike: 130km
Run: 36km
Time: 11 hours

I have a super busy work and social week coming up with nights out planned for Monday, Wednesday and Friday along with a BBQ on Sunday at Ome. Will try and work in my preferred schedule of 2 or 3 swims, 3 rides and 4 runs but it will be tough to do so!!

Ten foot tall and bullet proof

2006-06-05T13:57:00.000+09:00

Already more than one week after the race. Where did the all time go? Well, here is my report, better late than never.

170th over all (Category F Males 45 to 49 years old - 14th out of 97)

Total time - 11:45:13
Swim 1:15:48
Bike 6:30:28
Run 3:58:57

This was one of my best triathlon experiences ever and I was reminded why I love this sport! The race was superbly organized with many aid stations and well thought out and set up transition areas. The local support was amazing with hoards of locals lining the entire course, with many carrying a list of competitors and calling out our name as we flashed past. This really gave me a huge lift. At the top of a long hill on the bike leg that we needed to do three times, some school kids wearing bright red t-shirts would hold up a sign with your name and race number on it. All in all, a memorable day out on a beautiful island. (Fukue, Goto, Nagasaki-ken)

Was slightly disappointed with my swim as I wanted to improve or at least match my 1 hour 05 min swim in Korea last year (my first IM). But the conditions were not that great with an overcast sky, choppy seas and a strongish current towards the end. I figure it was probably about 5 mins slower than it should have been. Never really felt comfortable out there even though I seemed to be steadily passing other swimmers . In the lead up to the race I did feel under done, which I now put down to not doing enough strength and speed work. Also, I just bought a new full wetsuit only two weeks ago and only managed to fit in one short practice open water swim.

My bike and run legs were strong and were spot on my projected times and big improvements over my first IM. Took 20 minutes off the 180km bike leg, on what is dubbed a "deceptively tough" and hilly course, and a big 50 mins off my IM marathon. Really enjoyed the bike course and the challenges that it threw up on the day Ã‚– rain at the start that caused the roads to be slippery, the many bends and turns, the strong head wind in some sections, and a long up hill part that we repeated three times. It was a completely closed course, which meant that you could just concentrate on riding and not need to worry about traffic. The two lap run course with its "rolling hills" was also great fun, I felt good throughout, did not walk and was able to pass other runners. Managed to finish fast over the last 5 km when I realized that I could break 4 hours for the marathon and take one hour off my IM Korea time of 12 hours 46mins. Was very happy with my 1 hour 1 minute improvement.

My finishing time puts me with in touching distance of qualifying for the "holy grail" of the sport, the Hawaiian Ironman in Kona. Now need to trim 15 mins off each of the three legs and finish in around 11 hours to be in with good chance of qualifying. In this race I missed out by 45 mins and 7 places, and with some more focused training think I can go close to getting there. But I do need more racing, as doing just one triathlon a year is simply not enough. My next race will be the Sado Island "Astroman" in September.

Thanks to my training partners Jay and Stuart for joining me, as it is was great to have these two friends along to share the experience with. I did see Jay out on the course twice, once on the bike leg when the course looped back on it's self and then when I was 8km in to the run and when he was on his bike and heading to the bike/run transition. It was the thought of him blitzing me on the run that really kept me going and prevented me from walking! Also commiserations to Akira-san who was unable to finish, as this happened to me during my first half IM race and I know the empty feeling that this causes. Cheers to Mitsu and Paul Shippee, especially for Mitsu-san's assistance on setting up the trip and sharing her knowledge and IM triathlon experience with us.

It is now time to set my next race goal, and I have decided to do the Sado Island Astroman on Sept 3rd. I did this race in 2004 and came in at a respectable 8th out of 60 in my age group. If I can maintain my focus and training, I am looking for a podiumnn finish there. Will aim for sub 5 hours 30 mins for the 2km swim, 105km bike and 20km run.

After taking a week off, it is back into training again. Will stick to pretty much the same program as I did for the IM, but of course the distances will not be so long. Should be able to enjoy my summer and get some surfing in.

And the title of this post refers to a magazine article by Australia's No. 1 IMtriathletee, Chris McCormack (Macca) that I read last week. This explains how you feel after you complete an IM race.

Starting to feel it now.

2006-05-22T13:40:00.000+09:00

I always take a look at the IM Japan countdown clock every time I log on to my blog. When I set it up there were 14O odd days to go to the race, but now as it is in to single figures, the tension and nerves are starting to build up. These questions are now running through my mind - Have I done enough training? Why didn't I do more long runs and more hill climb sessions on the bike? Did I swim enough? Of course all of these questions will be answered on the weekend, but I do think that I am in good shape as I have done a lot more training than I did before IM Korea (last year and my first IM). But it was not only just more time and kilometers; but I have also added swimming coaching, spin classes to improve my bike and shown big improvements in my running with recent half marathon and 10km PBs. Time will tell, but I think I will give the race a good shake and go better than I did in Korea

My targets are -
1. Beat the 15 hour cut off time (just finish by 22:00)
2. Finish before dark (around 19:00 or 12 hours)
3. Under 11 hours 30 min. (my main goal!)

It might seem strange to have three targets , but over such a long race and with so many things that might go wrong (flat tyres etc), it is best to leave my options open. The first target in a IM is always just to finish and anything after that is a a bonus. Of course my unpublished target is also to beat Jay!

As planned, I did reduce my training over the final weekend before the race as part of my taper. Did a couple of good sessions with TRD and had GPAA join us both for Open Water swimming practice yesterday. For a great report about the swim - Jay's blog. After the OW swim, Mika and I did an easy 8km run in the heat around the beach area.

Monday
Swim: 2,800m with squad

Tuesday
Bike: 30km spin

Wednesday
Day off

Thursday
Bike: 25km spin

Friday:
Run: 9km on treadmill at gym at work. (a solid 5km at race pace)

Saturday
Brick: 55km bike, 6km run (5 x 1,200m on track with 4 x 5km bike in between)
Swim: 2,800m (100m warm up, 21 x 100m on 2:15, 600m drafting practice and 100m cool down)

Sunday
Swim: 1500m OW swim
Run: 8km

Weekly Totals
Swim: 7,100m
Bike: 110km
Run: 23km
Time: 10 hours

Not much planned for thee rest of the week until Sunday's race. Will swim with the squad tonight, do a light spin on Tuesday and some 1km race pace intervals on Wednesday. That will be most of it until I leave Tokyo on Friday for the IM on Sunday.

Big congratulations to Satohi-san who by running 2:27 in a marathon in Hokkaido has qualified for the Tokyo Ladies Marathon. Now I really do have to match Satohi's time!!!

Counting down..........

2006-05-15T13:06:00.000+09:00

Even with the wet weather over the weekend, and a lot of football (went to see Japan Vs Scotland at Saitama Stadium, then watched mighty Liverpool win the FA Cup in a cliff hanger until 02:00am at home,) I pretty much stuck to my training program and got all of my training in. But due to the rain, I had to switch around my schedule of a long ride on Saturday and a run with Namban in Yoyogi on Sunday morning. On Saturday I did 25km on my bike trainer at home, then a long swim in the arvo at the taikukan. Rode yesterday morning when the rain eased off, and ran in the evening. My ride was strong, and was one of the few times that I was not passed by other riders. Was actually passed by two at different stages, but I stuck with them for a few kilometers then burnt them off.

With less then 2 weeks to go to IM, I am feeling good and confident that I will improve over my first IM in Korea last year. My only problem is that I am still waiting for my new long sleeved wetsuit to arrive, hopefully before next weekend so I can get in an open water swim to try it out.

Monday
Swim: 2,700m with squad

Tuesday
Run: 8km tempo run

Wednesday
Off

Thursday
Bike: 30km spin

Friday
Run: 12km (4 km warm up, 5 x 1,000m at 3:45 ish pace, 3km cool down)

Saturday
Bike: 25km spin at home
Swim: 3,800m (3,200m free in 60 mins, 600m drills and free to cool down)

Sunday
Bike: 100km along Awakawa River, maintaining 30km per hour race pace.
Run: 16km run at IM race pace in 90mins

Weekly Totals
Swim: 6,500m
Bike: 155km
Run: 36km
Time: 12.5 hours

Golden Week training camp and a PB

2006-05-07T17:17:00.000+09:00

Ah, Golden Week! You have gotta love such a long break from work. Was able to make the most of my five days off by getting in some solid training sessions. The timing of this break was ideal for my IM training as this is my last hard week and I will start my taper from next week. As the duration and intensity of my training drops, I will focus on nutrition, hydration and rest and will ease off on drinking. Normally stop drinking alcohol a few weeks before such a big event, and I am not sure if it helps on the day but I think that it can only help. Would stop from this weekend, but I have a wine tasting party at work on Tuesday night and my boss' farewell dinner on Wednesday at a Mexican restaurant. But I will try not to over indulged on these nights but with some fine Oregon wines and Mexican beer on hand it will be tough!

My best two training days this week were on Thursday and Saturday. On Thursday I did an excellent training ride around Okutama along with Dennis, Mika-san and fellow Ironman, Stuart. On a glorious sunny day, we did 5 big hill climbs, the last one being 12km to the top of a mountain that peaked at 1150 meters. While I am strong going up, I need to ease off the brakes coming down and to get aero and fast. Gotta work on this aspect as it is a great way to make up time on the bike. Hope to do the same course at least once more before IM.

Saturday saw me post a big PB in the "TELL" 10km race around the Imperial Palace. This race is two laps of the pathway around the palace grounds and as it was a hot day and there is a long uphill section, I was stoked to break 40mins for the very first time, coming in at 39:16. Had actually given up on ever going under 40mins as my best time was 40:19 that I set way back in (I think) 1992 on the Sunshine Coast. Since then, the best I had done was 41:20 at the Edogawa 10km last year. Had set my self a goal of breaking 40 mins before I turned 40, but as I never even got close to the 40:19 mark in my other races, and I had just given up. It was a really good feeling to do this PB and break 40mins three days after I turned 46 last Wednesday.

Monday
Swim: 2500m squad

Tuesday
Bike: 30km spin

Wednesday
Swim: 2500m (500m free warm up, 500m kick, 500m pull buoy, 6 x 100m at 1:30 pace, 400m cool down)
Run: 16km (11km in park, 3 x 1000m on the track 3:39, 3:35, 3:32 and 2km warm down)

Thursday
Bike: 108km with 5 hill climbs

Friday
Day of Rest

Saturday
Run: 10km PB at TELL 10KM 39:16
Bike: 82km on Arakawa

Sunday
Run: 22km LSD
Swim: 3700m (100m warm up, 3200m long swim in 60 minutes, 400m cool down)

Weekly Totals
Swim: 8700m
Bike: 220km
Run: 48km
Time: 18hours

This coming week will be a tough one to fit training in, but luckily it is the start of my taper so I can ease off. I already know that I will have to skip Tuesday's spin class at Y's and Wednesday's Namban Rengo work out. But will try to make it up by spinning and running from home over those days. And hopefully my new full triathlon wetsuit will be delivered this week so I can test it out.

Now that was a tough weekend

2006-05-01T15:49:00.000+09:00

Here I was thinking that I was on track in my training, but this past weekend nearly killed me. Not sure what happened, but the training was not fun in any way shape or form and was a really hard slog to get though it all. Ended up doing a little less than planned, 145km bike instead of 150km (it was raining at the end so I just cut it short and headed home) and ran 32km yesterday instead of 35km. But at least I managed a great swim, did a long swim of 3,200m in one hour that I was really happy with.

Yesterday I had a headache all day that I tried to shake off and I was actually surprised that I managed to eke out a slow and steady 32km run. But, gee whiz it was tough! And I had forgotten to have lunch due to an afternoon nap before the run, so this also must have contributed to my lack of energy. But with the coming three working days off for "Golden Week", I should be able to recharge my batteries a little as I head into my last full week of training before I start my taper.

Friday:
Bike: 15km spin at home (intervals)

Saturday
Bike: 145km along Arakawa River
Swim: 4,200m. (800m warm up of 400m free, 200m kick & 200m pool buoy, 3,200m free continuous in one hour, 200m free warm down)
Run: 5km to pool and back

Sunday
Run: 32km LSD

Weekly Totals
Swim: 7,200m
Bike: 190km
Run: 55km
Time: 16 hours

As mentioned, with a 5 day work free long weekend coming up, I will be able to get in some good, long training sessions. My main focus will be on a half marathon time trial planned on Wednesday, a 100km hill climb bike ride on Thursday and a 10km running race on Saturday around the Imperial Palace. Plus there will be more!

Normal service is resumed

2006-04-28T10:01:00.000+09:00

Work has been very busy lately and I have just been keeping my head above water there and with my training. My boss has been promoted and will be transferred to Singapore and I will assume his duties, but without all the cushy expat benefits as I am only a "local hire". Not sure how this will effect me, but in theory my working life should become easier as I will be the boss and can step back from being the "hands on" manager that I am to become more of a figure head. Hopefully I can spend a more time at home and training for such time consuming events as Iron Man.

Monday
Swim : 3,000m with squad

Tuesday
Bike : 30km spin

Wednesday
Run: 14km in Yoyogi with Namban crew

Thursday
Off

Friday
Run : 6km tempo run before work

For the coming weekend, my training plans are as follows - 20km spin tonight, 150km long bike ride with some fast intervals and a 4km long swim on Saturday, ending with a 35km long run on Sunday. (might this at the Palace in the morning, but as I will have a late dinner and a few beers on Saturday night with a visitor from Saipan, an late afternoon run along the Arakawa is more likely.) We have a hill climb bike ride set for May 4th out in Okutama, here's hoping that we have good weather.

Recovery is a wonderful thing

2006-04-23T19:50:00.000+09:00

My training schedule for the past week was based on "recovery". After the last couple of tough weeks, my body has been crying out for a bit of a break. As periods of recovery are just as important as weeks of heavy training, it was time to ease off on distance and intensity. The week ended really well, am now refreshed, relaxed and ready to go long again. With only 5 weeks to go to IM Japan, the next two weeks will full on and will then start my taper three weeks out.

A bonus for this recovery week was that I managed a small PB at today's East Japan Half Marathon. I did not taper or spend much time thinking about this race at all, was only looking at it as a fast paced training run, with a "fast finish" final 5km. After doing this race last year in warm conditions, and with it looking earlier in the week that similar weather would occur today, I did not think I would get close to a PB. But today turned out to be cool and cloudy with a forecast of rain, so I changed my race plan to go out at a pace for a 90min finish and see how I felt. Happy to say that I felt strong, and I cruised (for me) to a time of 89:06. My PB was 89:55, and I am very happy with this time considering the volume of my IM training.

Monday
Swim: 2300m swim squad

Tuesday
Bike: 30km spin

Run: 5 km brick from work to spin and after spin to Yotsuya station.

Wednesday
Run: 13km mix of park run and 400m to 1,200m ladder on the track

Thursday
Off

Friday
Run: 11km at Imperial Palace (1km warm up with GPAA, 10km with Satohi-san)

Saturday
Bike: 80km. 70km TT at ave. speed of just over 26km/hr (it was windy) and 10km to Arakawa River and back home, with GPAA and TRD.

Swim: 3000m with TRD (plus and a few swimming tips)
Warm up: 250m free, 450m kick, 300m drill with pull buoy, 1600m long swim, 300m cool down, 100m mixed strokes

Sunday
Run: East Japan Half Marathon 89:06 PB

Weekly Totals
Swim: 5,300m
Bike: 110km
Run:50km
Time:10.5 hours

As BV was a no-show today at the half, I will accept this as a moral victory. "Take 'em when you can get 'em" is my motto! And my plan to tire out TRD yesterday worked as I was able to beat her today as well. (Never mind that her 1/2 time in a recent full marathon is better than my PB!)

Grinding out the kilometers

2006-04-16T21:44:00.000+09:00

After a mad, out of control week at work, the last thing that I felt like doing was spending all of this weekend training. While I do enjoy training for triathlons, doing an Ironman requires a huge commitment in time. Would have rather had a good sleep in, a few cold beers and a lazy time lounging around the house, but with only 6 weeks to go to IM Japan, I need to stay focused and put in some intense, long and hard sessions. Did every thing that I planned for the weekend and got through it all, but only just.

Monday
Swim: 2500m squad

Tuesday
Bike: 30km spin

Wednesday
Off: (worked late and needed an early night)

Thursday
Bike: 30km spin

Friday
Run: 21km (from work in Azabujyuban to the palace for 3 laps, 1 with Motozo whom I saw by chance, and return)

Saturday
Bike: 140km along the Arakawa with GPAA, TRD and Stuart. Jay and I did the full 140km return to Shinrin Koen, the official end of the pathway. Mika and Stu stopped and enjoyed a delightful brunch at the world famous (along the Arakawa), "Bike Cafe".

Run: 5km transition run straight off the bike

Sunday
Swim: 4000m (500m free, 500m kick, 300m drill for warm up. 2500m free long swim and 200m free cool down)
Run: 35km LSD. (5 km from home to the Arakawa, 25km down river and back, 5km from river to home.

Weekly Totals
Swim: 6500m
Bike: 200km
Run: 61km
Time: 16 hours

Should be less of a mad house at work this week, so I think I can get back to my usual schedule. My next race will be on next Sunday the 23rd, and it is the Sagamihara Half Marathon. This will be a week of recovery training with less intensity and with no taper for the half.

Rare podium finish

2006-04-09T20:32:00.000+09:00

A grand total of 3 Nambanners turned up for today's 29th Ikegami Honmonji Hana-Matsuri Marathon (was only 10km!) under clear blue skies. There was Stefan, Yamada-san and myself. The run consisted of 5 x 2km laps of the precinct around the Honmonji Otera (Buddhist temple); under cherry blossoms, though a cemetery, past jinja (Shinto shrines) and parks, along narrow and windy suburban streets, a couple of short steep hills and back across the Otera's gravel court yard. I signed up for today as the race sounded different and interesting and I wanted a shorter, fast paced race after doing two half marathons, two 30km races and the Ohyama Mountain 9km race since January. Also the promise of running under cherry blossoms was appealing. This is a low key race with only a few hundred runners, compared to the thousands that usually compete in races in Tokyo. It turned out to be a good choice!

The race was fun and not too challenging. Started at a steady pace as the runners around me seemed to go off too quickly. My plan was to work my way through the field over the first 4 laps and to go hard with a fast finish on the 5th and final lap. It all went to plan and on the last lap I set myself the task of catching two runners in my age group who I had been following by about 200m since the 2nd lap. I reeled them both in at the top of the 2nd last hill and kicked away from them when they tried to get me on the last long down hill. One had a final go at me at the base of the last hill, but I quickly burnt him off. My stamina was good and as was able to finish strongly and hit the tape in 40:39. This was a better time than expected after a week of having sore legs from Ome and doing a 140km bike ride yesterday. After the race finished I had thought about leaving as I planned a swim, but decided to wait around to see how Stefan did, as he came an excellent 4th overall.

Stefan scored 1st place in his age group (under 30s, the lad is fast!) and to my big surprise, I managed 5th in the 40s men. In Australia, the USA or just about anywhere else, 5th gets you little more than a pat on the back, but here in Japan they seem to give trophies out down to 5th, hence the photo below. My wife's first comment after congratulations was: "there must have been no good runners". Well she was right, it was a fluke, but the trophy is a nice souvenir of Japan that I can add to my tiny trophy case. It was a grand day out!

The trophy

Sunday
Run: 3km warm up before race
10km race (the race distance was actually a tad shorter at around 9.5km)
3km jog home from one Metro station before my usual stop
Swim: 3000m (400 warm up, 2 x 100m at 1:35 pace, 2000m endurance and 400m cool down, all freestyle)

Saturday
Bike: 140km (Tamagawa, Hachioji, Yamanashi-ken, Okutama and return via Tamagawa. With GPAA, TRD, fellow Aussie Phil Ryan and two other blokes)

Friday
Off

Thursday
Bike: 20km spin (at home watching "The Simpsons")

Weekly Totals
Swim: 5200m
Bike: 190km
Run: 40km
Time: 14hrs 30mins

Spin until you drop

2006-04-06T10:12:00.000+09:00

Had a hard spin session on Tuesday night on fairly sore legs. Towards the end of the session I started to get dizzy, but was able to hang on and it did end up in helping to burn off some of the gunk that had built up in my legs after Sunday. Also did a very pleasant 8km recovery run around my neighborhood under the cherry blossoms before work. It was a all too rare warm and sunny morning and was, I hope, the start of many more such days now that spring is here.

Last night was a longer than planned 16km run in Yoyogi Park. I ran with Satohi, Steve, Stuart, Colin and Mika-san until she headed off to the track work out. I finished off the run with Satohi and she helped me run an extra 4km than I was going to do. My legs were still sore and I had started off a bit too fast with Stuart and I got tired from around the 8km mark. With Satohi's support, I was able to do the extra few kms at the end.

Tuesday
Run: 8km recovery sakura run
Bike: 30km spin

Wednesday
Run: 16km park run at 5:05 km/hr average

Redemption!

2006-04-04T09:46:00.000+09:00

My first race of any type in Japan back in 2004 was the Ome Montrail Takamizu (High Water) 30km Mountain Trail race. I did it with some running friends from my days in Saipan who came over just to do this race, and an ex-Saipanner living in Tokyo. My training before the race was a grand total of two 5km road runs, so to say that I was unprepared for a gruelling 30km trail was an understatement. The race day was cold and raining and I had a fairly miserable time, it was only the fact that I stuck together with two of my friends for the whole 30km that made it bearable. After this race, I vowed that I would regain fitness and set the Sado "Astroman" Half Ironman triathlon was my major race goal for the year. I did the Astroman in 5:55, just under my goal time of 6 hours, and I met Nambanner Stuart on the return ferry and then joined Namban Rengo in order to improve my running. (which sucked)

Anyway, last Sunday was all about erasing my 2004 race's terrible finishing time of 4:25 from my memory. Glad to say that I accomplished this, finishing in 2:56 for a near 1:30 improvement. The training run that I did over the course two weeks also helped me greatly in coming in well under my pre-race goal time of 3:20. And as an extra bonus, as the sort of bloke who can trip over and twist an ankle on a flat street, I had no falls and got through the entire race with no great difficulty. But always in the back of my mind was the need to be care so as not to injure myself with the Ironman coming up next month. So it was mission accomplished and as an extra bonus for the very first time in a race, I finished ahead of sensei VB. Not that I am one to gloat over this fact!

Another good thing about this event is that it is a very friendly and relaxed race and that I have managed to generate some interest about it with in Namban Rengo. We had 14 runners from the club this year, all of who seemed to enjoy this change from regular road running. And with Terry-san's great help, we enjoyed a beer and pizza "hanami" after the run where we were able to toast Stefan, the race winner in his debut race in Japan. An excellent effort by him!

Friday
Swim: 3000m (1000m warm up, 1000m free, 8 x 100m free sprints at 1:40 pace, 200m free cool down)

Saturday
Bike: 30km warm up at average 30km/hr pace, 4 x 5km as part of run/bike "brick" workout on a running track on the banks of the Arakawa, 15km warm down on return home)
Run: 6km (5 x 1200m track work out as part of run/bike brick.)

Sunday
Run: 30km mountain trail race 2:56

Weekly Totals:
Swim: 5200m
Bike: 125km
Run: 58km
Time: 15 hours 30 mins

Monday
Swim: 2200m squad

This week my focus will be on swimming and biking, with a long 140km planned for Saturday followed by a transition run and a long swim. Running will be in recovery mode to get over DOMS from Sunday's race and to have a short taper for my 10km road race on Sunday.

And did I mention that I beat Steve at Ome?

Ohanami

2006-03-31T11:13:00.000+09:00

Did a longish run in Yoyogi Park on Wednesday night along with Stuart and fellow Aussie, Colin. Had to dodge and weave through "ohanami" revilers, as Yoyogi Park has many cherry blossom trees that are in full bloom. But it was not as bad as I expected, was still have to average 5:10 pace making it a good stamina work out.

Spin last night was tough, the Thursday night leader sets a way more difficult program than the bloke on Tuesday. We focused on intervals and I think these spin classes are starting to pay off for me as when I started doing them my legs were still a bit wobbly on the way home, but now at the end and after doing a much harder session, my legs are fine. Hope that this will translate to a big improvement in my times on the bike.

Wednesday
Run: 13km

Thursday
Run:3km
Bike: 30km (spin)

Friday will be a day off with a small ohanami party after work, and for Saturday I plan a bike/run brick workout on a running track on the Arakawa River pathway and a 3000m swim. Sunday will be the 30km trail race.

The three Amigos carefully plan their assault on Ironman Japan

2006-03-29T13:19:00.000+09:00

Well, it looks like GPAA will now join Stuart and myself in doing IM Japan in May. As of today, with entries fast closing on this coming Friday, none of us has actually entered or even gone as far as arranging flights, ferries or accommodation. There is nothing like last minute planning but the good news is that Stuart and I have been training for it and Jay, the 1/3 Ironman that he is, can easily slip back into training. We will sort it all out at tonight's Namban Rengo workout.

On Monday, we had five swimmers at the pool for the swimming squad training. If we don't get kicked out for breaking all of the silly pool rules, we will have a good thing going and a serious work out.

Monday:
Swim: 2200m squad

Tuesday:
Run: 5km total (2km to spin class and 3km afterwards for a sort of brick workout)
Bike: 30km

One backward step

2006-03-27T13:39:00.000+09:00

One thing that seems to happen to me when I increase my training load is the chance of getting sick. I think this is normal for most people but as I rarely get sick anyway, I notice it more. On Saturday I awoke with a bad cold; could not breath properly, felt very cold and with my muscles hurting. Therefore, I scraped my planned ride, transition run and yoga session. Felt better by the end of the day, but still was a bit dizzy.

Sunday was a different story, I woke up feeling good so I headed off on a long ride. Saturdays is my preferred riding day as the Arakawa pathway is a not less crowded than on Sundays. But I headed off fairly early at 08:00 and was able to do a hard 120km ride. I should start keeping a count of how many near misses that I have when I am out riding on the Arakawa, yesterday I had three. One old bloke who got confused by approaching riders and nearly walked in front of me and a couple who were "drafting" me. Was doing about 35km per hour at the time and had to hit my breaks hard so I could miss. But I was more worried about being cleaned up by the two behind me who decided to tag long in my draft at high speed. Close miss number 2 was a little girl who was told to wait when both her parent saw me coming, but decided to run out in front of me anyway. Luckily I had slowed right down, as is my policy for oldies, kids and dogs. No 3 was a cream coloured cat, wearing a collar and bell, that jumped in front of me as well. Once again I saw it coming so I was able to evade it. Must have been out for a walk with it's master, but I did not see any one close by. This is why I avoid Sundays if I can!!!

Got home drained from my ride and after a briefing shopping trip along with Yukie-san to buy a new suit for work, I did a endurance run. Planned 20km but only managed 18km at 75% heart rate. So as it turned out, I had dropped one session of swimming planned for Sunday and my normal 6km transition run after my long ride. Not too bad considering I lost a whole day of possible training.

Friday
Swim: 2700m

Sunday
Ride: 120km hard
Run: 18km endurance

Weekly Totals
Swim: 2700m
Bike: 200km
Run: 42km
Time: 15 hours

This week I will ease off on my running and biking to prepare for the Ome 30km trail run next Sunday. But I plan 3 swims to make up for the session lost from last week.

All the usual stuff

2006-03-24T10:48:00.000+09:00

At the Namban workout on Wednesday night, I did a 15km long run in Yoyogi Park. Started from the sento with Steve, Gareth and Peter and we picked up Colin, Stuart and Satohi-san on the way. It was a wet night and not much fun and I am pleased that I was able to hang in for the full 15km, which was my initial plan. Satohi-san and I made a blood pact to do long runs together so as to prepare for our May races.

Last night, Thursday, I dragged my tired bones along to spin class. Just arrived there before the start and found that I could not do the session very hard as my legs were very sore and tired. So I did it at a more reduced pace and cadence than normal and was very glad when it finished.

Even though this week should be a recovery week according to my schedule, I have ended up turning it in to another big week of training. With the holiday last Tuesday, I was able to fit an another full day of training. So I will go long over the weekend and take next week a little easier and taper for the Ome 30km trail run on April 2rd.

Wednesday
Run: 15km

Thursday
Bike: 25km spin

Will swim tonight and on Sunday, do a long ride followed by a short transition run tomorrow and top it all off with a 20km fast finish run on Sunday morning.

The Tama-ko ekiden

2006-03-22T13:29:00.000+09:00

At yesterday's Tama-ko ekiden (relay), I did a fairly good time of 23:42 for the 5.75km (approx), hilly road course. Had actually ridden out to the race by bike, with along with TRD, a distance of 38km from my house. It was a good ride out, except that we found that there were way too many annoying barriers on the bike pathway for our liking. You could not get up to a decent speed before you had to slow down and weave through some gates across the path. Frustrating, but still a good way to get out to the start. And we got there a little later than planned, but luckily for me, Gary slipped in to my Captain role and organized our team of 4 runners. Gary, Paul, Renald (a late sub for Mark Freely) and myself. As punishment for getting there late, but more due to me being supposingly the fastest runner of the 4, I was given the #1 lead off runner's race number. But this was fine for me as I was all warmed up from the ride out and rearing to go, and it would be a sort of "brick" work out.

The ekiden was a small one as was promised, and everyone started and finished at the same place, so it was easy to support every one from Namban. The course was a little more hilly for about the first 2km than I had though, but as I like running hills I enjoyed running the course, even though the last leg was uphill to the change over point. With the depth of running in Japan, our men's teams were well back in the pack, but the No.1 ladies team took the silver medal for coming second. After the race was finished, and after the obligatory team photos, we had a good lunch at a soba restaurant just down the hill. Mika-san and I then rode to our respective homes, but this time sticking to the main roads. We both made it home in one piece!

One small footnote: One of my staff, Yoshiko-san, was there to support her "friend", a tall American called Matt, who was in one of the two "ring in", non Namban teams that Fab arranged to join us there. I don't know who was more surprised to see each other out there and away from work.

Monday
Run: 3km to calibrate my foot pod on my racing flats

Tuesday:
Run: 5.75km 23:42 (Ave 4:08 p/km)
1st km: 4:15
2nd km: 4:20
3rd km: 4:19
4th km: 3:56
5th km: 3:52
.75 km: 2:59

Ride: 75km (38km to ekiden from Oji, 37km home on different route)

For my run, I had hoped that I would go under 24 minutes and was happy with the time. But now wish that I had gone out a little harder over the first three km. I think that I had a faster time in me.

The hills are alive!

2006-03-20T14:22:00.000+09:00

As planned, yesterday I did a training run over the course of the Ome Montrail 30km Mountain race that will happen on April 2rd. Six of us headed out to Ome on an early train, Nambanners - Takeo, Ma, Satohi and Terry, and Mike from my spin class. The weather looked iffy with I woke up but for once the forecast was spot on that the clouds lifted and it turned out to be a sunny and clear day. Would have been perfect except for the gale force and cold wind that came through at lunch time.

The idea yesterday, for me anyway, was to re-scout out the trail as I have only done this race once before and that was when I was totally unfit and cold, wet and miserable as it rained continuously the whole time. My time from two years ago was a very sad 4hour 20mins (but I did stay with two friends the whole time) and this time around I want redemption! All in all it was a good run and the only drama, besides of not being sure whether to go right or left at a fork in the trail (it was right, which was my guess). And I only rolled an ankle once and luckily did not cause any damage. The course is as hilly and as challenging as I remember it to be, but is fun to do.

Satohi had problems with her knee, could not finish, and took a train back to Ome. Everyone else pulled up well but I do think that Takeo-san is wondering if this race is a good idea or not as she did it a little tough. My time yesterday was 3:15, but that was based around some rest stops, especially a long one at the mountain top shine, the halfway goal and highlight of the race. It was good to have some time to look around there as during the race you rush in and out after praying at the shrine's alter and grabbing some refreshments and even a shot of sake.

Also, I managed to get in a swim in the early evening, and was happy that I did a little longer, 2500m, compared to the 2000m planned. Could have run more, and will need to crank up the distance over the coming weeks if I want to get close to a 4 hour IM marathon..

Sunday
Run: 32km (Ome trail race course plus an extra 1km to and from Ome Station)

Swim:2500m

Warm up: 500m free, 200m kick, 100m free
Drills: 300m pool buoy, 500m breathing exercise free (only breathing on every 5th stroke)
Sprints: 5 x 100m free at 1:40 pace
Cool down: 400m free

Weekly Totals:
Swim: 6,500m
Bike: 145km
Run: 55km
Time: 13 hours

The coming week has me doing one leg of a just under 6km ekiden on Tuesday, with the rest of the week is as "recovery" with less intensity and distance.

Big day out

2006-03-18T22:01:00.000+09:00

I took Thursday and Friday off, as I was still knackered from last Sunday's run and the hard training earlier in the week. On Wednesday, I did an interval work out on the Oda field track, the first time it has been open for one month. A party at work on Thursday with the accompanying late night, left me drained on Friday. I barely made it through two meetings in the afternoon and by the time I was ready to leave work, I ditched my planned swim and just headed home. My body was crying out for a rest, so I had an early night.

Today went to plan, I spent most of in training. After a needed sleep in, I headed off on a 115km ride. Today was a weird one, with the head wind in the opposite direction to the usual. It is normal for a strong headwind when I head up river, and this is ok as it is easier to get the hard slog over with and then fly back with the wind at my tail. But today it was in reverse, which sucked. It was not much fun doing nearly 60km hard on the way home. But I figure it must be good training as it forces me to stay tucked into an aero position and to turn my legs over strongly.

Wednesday
Run: 15km (warm up in Yoyogi Park, then "ladder" intervals on the track, run back to the sento via the park).

Saturday (Today)
Bike: 115km
Run: 5km transition (straight off the bike)
Swim: 2100m
Warm up: 400m free
Kick: 400m free
Ladder: 500m free (50m, 100m, 200m, 100m, 50m. All fast)
Speed work: 4 x 100m free at 1:40 pace
Between sets : 200m (100m breaststroke, 50m back, 50m fly)
Warm down: 200m

For tomorrow, a 30km trail run is planned for the morning over the course of the coming Ome Montrail Mountain race, and a 2500 swim in the evening.

No rest for the weary

2006-03-14T22:21:00.000+09:00

Monday is my usual rest and recovery day. After doing a lot of kilometers of training over the weekend, it is a good day to for me take it easy and have a quiet night at home with the wife. But due to my busy schedule of spin classes on most Tuesday and Thursday nights and the Namban work out on Wednesdays, I am running out of nights during the week that I can swim. There goes Monday! Along with Stuart (who joined me at IM Korea last year), we have arranged a swimming coach to lead a squad at the Sendagaya pool on Monday nights. Last night was the first and there were three of us there with Stuart, Fabien and myself. We hope to drag Jay and a few others along next week to keep the costs down. Greg, the coach, will do stroke correction, provide feedback and set programs for us to follow. Last night was tough for me, coming off the Ohyama race and a long swim on Sunday night. But I ploughed through it and had a good session. You way work harder in a group than when you swim by yourself.

Monday (Yesterday)
Swim: 1900m (coached sets)

Tuesday
Run : 3km recovery
Bike : 30km spin

My legs are still sore from Sunday, but the spin class tonight should help burn off the toxins. And tonight for the first time, I ran from work in Azabujyuban to the spin class in Tameki. Was shorter and quicker than I thought, so I will plan out a better route to get the distance up to at least 5km.

A big weekend

2006-03-12T22:03:00.000+09:00

For this weekend my focus was quality not quantity, as I wanted to keep a little energy in my legs for today's Ohyama 9km Mountain Marathon (once again, a race under 42.2km that carries the marathon tag). I thoroughly enjoyed the race today, going as far to say that it was the best race experience that I have had so far in Japan. It was very well organized and for the price of the entry fee you received - one Mizuno runners back pack, a t-shirt and soup and mikans (mandarins) at the finish. Also, the race was very well supported with people lining the course all the way up the mountain to cheer you on.

The 9km starts fairly easy, but up hill, then starts to climb steeply from between the 5km and 6km marks. After 7km the fun really starts when the course is mainly steep stairs leading up to a mountain top Shinto Shrine. The stairs are broken, rocky and uneven and a real challenge to run up quickly. The last 2 km took about 20mins and my strategy was to go out hard over the first 7km to try and pass many runners so that the stairs on the last 2km would be less crowded. And also to just hang on when the course slowed to a walk due to the steepness of the stairs. This is how it panned out, and I was also able to pass many people on the stairs, especially as I tried to take them two at a time. Finished in 53:33, 42nd in my age group out of 419. Also, I was only 20 seconds behind VB, who is a much stronger runner than I am. Hills are one of my only strengths. After we finished and ate the mikan and soup, we ran back down to the start.

Friday:
Swim : 2200m
Warm up : 400m free
14 x 100m free at around 1:40 to 1:45 pace
Warm down : 400m free

Saturday:
Bike : 60km
Run : 5km transition
Yoga : 1 hour 30 mins

Sunday:
Run : 9km race 53:33 (up)
Run: 9km 54:07 (down)

Swim: 2800m
Warm up: 500m free
Kick : 500m
Drills : 500m
6 x 100m free at 1:40 pace
Between sets : 200m (2x 50m back, 50m breast stroke, 50m fly)
Warm Down: 500 m

Weekly Totals:
Swim: 5km
Run : 40km
Bike : 105km
Time: 10:30

Big congratulations to Mika-san, who competed in today's Nagoya Womens Marathon. She came in a just under 3:11, which was a huge PB. I would have had no hope of keeping up with her!

Just so damned hungry.

2006-03-09T22:31:00.000+09:00

A last minute work related thing prevented me from joining tonight's spin class. But I was secretly relieved as a am very tired at the moment due to the cranking up of my training from last week. And on another note, I am hungry all of the time! Just can't seem to stop eating. Anyway, the work thing did not take as long as I thought to complete so I decided to squeeze in a workout at the gym at work. It is good to have this back up venue, were I can use exercise bikes and treadmills.

Today (Wednesday)
Bike: 15km easy spin
Run: 5km at 5:20 recovery pace on treadmill.

Will ease a bit over the coming days so as I don't crash and burn (read as get beaten by Gareth) at the Ohyama Tozan on Sunday. Will swim on Friday night after work, and on Saturday will do a 80km bike ride followed by a transition run. Not sure if I will do yoga, but probably will. On Sunday, unless I am hurting badly, my plan is to run back down the mountain to make the run a decent 18km and then do a swim on Sunday night when the pool is deserted.

Good luck to TRD as Mika-san competes in the Nagoya Ladies marathon on Sunday.

Stand by your band

2006-03-08T22:44:00.000+09:00

At last night's spin class, the leader switched the music from glam rock to a mix of techno and thrash punk. (I gotta find out who sings the punk version of the classic "Stand by your man") Was getting used to the music that had been the same week in and week out, but last night's music was a fast and furious change. It is the pumping music that keeps you powering on. I got there early as I took my bike in for a service, and did some extra kms before the class started. Will go again this week on Thursday night as well and hope to pick up my bike after it's service.

Tonight's Namban work out was a fun one. After the initial 2.5km from the sento to Yoyogi Park, a select few of us set off on Gareth's magical mystery tour of Yoyogi and Shibuya. Gareth made up the route as we went along and it was a lot of fun. The Yona Yona Ale (Namban's official beer) went down a treat at the end of the run as it was a warm night. We did a LSD run, keeping in mind the Ohyama 9km hill run that is upcoming on Sunday. VB finally got his new Polar HRM, hopefully he will enjoy using it as I do mine.

Yesterday (Tuesday)
Bike: 30km (spin)

Today (Wednesday)
Run: 12km

Bike ride from hell

2006-03-04T22:56:00.000+09:00

My usual bike course is the pathway along the Arakawa River. Except for a few barriers here and there, some insane people who like to do stupid things when they are on what is basically a road and with it's often severe headwinds, I do enjoy riding along the Arakawa. But on Saturday, just to break it up, I decided to head over to the Tama River to a change. I much prefer the Arakawa over the Tama as the pathway is wider (mainly two lanes) and is flatter and straighter, where the Tama path is less than a single lane wide and has many twists, bends and unsealed sections. And of course it takes me about 90 minutes of cross city riding in heavy traffic (which I hate) to get to the Tama, compared to the 12 mins of fairly quiet streets that lead to the Arakawa from my house in Oji.

Was due to meet Fabien (from spin class) and Richard (his usual riding partner) at 8:00am at the junction of route 246 and the Tama. But due to sleeping in and a miscalculation of how long it would take to ride the 246 from Roppongi, along with my phobia of traffic, I did not hit the river until 8:25am. The two riders, with my blessing, had already headed off and it was my job to catch up with them. I headed off into a cold head wind and finally caught up with them 25 km up river. After a brief stop, Richard headed back, so Fabien and I did another 12km up river. When we turned around, the "fun" for me started. Firstly my bike computer froze up for no apparent reason. After a brief stop and some fiddling around and readjusting I got it to work again. So off we went again.

Only a couple of more kilometers along the path, and just when I was about to accelerate up a slope, I heard a loud snap and I looked down to see that my chain has come apart. A pin had popped out of a link. As I was not carrying any real tools or even a chain breaker tool, I was in big trouble. After some messy (due to grease) work, I sort of put the chain back together and thought that I could risk riding back in an easy gear. I only rode for about 20 meters and the chain seized up. My only option now was to walk, so I decided to get off the pathway to try to find a bike repair shop to get the chain fixed, which are fairly common in Japan. I was both right and wrong in my thinking.

After about 10 minutes of walking, I thought that I had hit pay dirt when I found a bike shop. But I went inside to find that the shop was only manned by a little old obaa-san, who then proceeded to show me the door. I politely asked for help and if there was a repairman, but she just told me to leave. I then asked if I could just use the tools that where just sitting outside the front door to try to fix the chain myself, but she just keeping on telling me to leave. The only decent thing that she did was to point up the road and tell me there was another repair shop back past the way I had come from. I did think about simply ignoring her and using the tools, but thought it more prudent to just try the other shop and see if they would help me. But I was wrong again!

Arrived at the next shop to find it manned by middle aged oba-san as her husband was out on a repair job. She told me to go back to the shop that the old lady had kicked me out of. My now this sort of treatment was wearing thin, and I begged and talked her into her letting me use some tools. After about 30 minutes of trying to fix the broken chain link and after lots of cursing and swearing (by me at myself), I then buggered the chain up even more and damaged another link. Well I had to try to fix it so I could make my escape. Anyway Oto-san (husband) finally came back and very begrudgingly fixed the chain. When he finished he asked me for 4,000yen for the repairs, which besides being outrageous for the effort that he put into fix the chain, was 2,000yen more than I was carrying on me. And I had actually taken double the amount of cash that I usually take with me on a ride. So after an heated discussion with him expecting me to pull the money out of my bum, and a lecture about fixing chains and not riding with a lot of cash, I made a call to Yukie to translate for me. We arranged to send him the 2,000 yen on Monday. He was a right arsehole and I did not receive the kind of help that is so normal in Japan. I probably should not send him the money just to spite him, but as he confiscated my business card that has Yukie's phone number on it, it would be less hassle to just pay him.

The whole episode took 2 hours a killed my whole day. The only good thing about it was that I had planned a ride out to Mt. Takao on Sunday with a group, where we would have done some big climbs. It was better for me to have the chain break when I was on
a flat and not riding very fast. I had planned to take my bike into Y's for a service on Monday anyway and as it was making some strange noises by the time I finished, I will be sure to do it. I cancelled my ride out to Takao, which was a bummer as I was one of the instigators. Next time!

Saturday
Ride: 110km (62km before chain, 58km after it was fixed.
Run: 4km (easy transition)
Yoga: 90mins

Sunday
Run:21km (at 5:18 McMillan's endurance pace, with a 4:40 pace "fast finish" for last 5km.)
Swim: Warm up 500m free
Kick 500m
Drills 400m
Sprints 200m (4 x 50m)and 300m (3 x 100m at 1:40 pace)
Back 200m (4 x 50m (between sets)
Cool down 4OOm free
Total: 2500m

Weekly Totals
swim: 5000m
Bike: 135km
Run: 40km
Time: 11 hours

Swimming in Australia

2006-03-03T13:42:00.000+09:00

Australia has a rich tradition in competitive swimming, producing many famous Olympic and world class swimmers over the years. To name just a few of the more famous ones - Rose, Fraser, Gould, O'Neil, Perkins, Hackett and the current #1 Thorpe. All are household names in Australia, where swimmers are held in high regard. I have meet two of the group above, the first being Dawn Fraser(Dawnie), who got into big trouble during the Tokyo Olympics for stealing an Olympic flag from the Imperial Palace. I actually had a beer and a chin wag with her at a bar on Hamilton Island and she blind drunk at the time. A real Aussie larrakin! The other being Suzie O'Neil, a Queenslander like myself, who I helped set up a private training session at the Hyatt Coolum's lap pool when I worked there.

My first swimming hero and the first famous female that I had a crush on (as least as far as I can remember), was Shane Gould. As a 15 year old in 1972 (when I was all of 12 years old so she was an older woman!), she held EVERY world record between 100 meters and 1500 meters freestyle. She eventually won 3 Gold, one silver and a bronze (all individual events) at the 72 Munich Olympics and then abruptly retired a year or so later at age 16. The pressure got too much for her.

As kids we are taught to swim at primary school and from then on school swimming carnivals where a major highlight of the school year. I was actually an average back stroker, and the best I ever did was to represent my high school at district carnivals. I did not really train for this swims and as my local pool was only 25 meters long, I remember struggling during my first attempt at 100m back stroke in a full sized 50 meter pool. Thought that I would never get to the end! Needless to say I finished at the tail of the field.

With this rich swimming heritage, I now find that during triathlons my best leg is the swim. I am very comfortable in long distance swimming in all sorts of conditions E.g. open water in surf, lagoons, rivers or canals etc or in the pool. I also have a background in surfing, diving and other watersports, so I am pretty much a "waterman". This is my strongest leg, and I just need to make my bike and run legs shape up!

Last night I did my first real swim session of my current IM training program. I swam at the Arakawa Sports Center Pool, a short 5 min bike ride from my house. It is indoors (they can open the roof in summer), well heated and is never jam packed and crowded like most other pools that I have been to in Japan. It also is more casual with less of the silly rules that all public pools have here. (more on this at another time, one of my pet hates here!). I got there at 7:30pm and was very surprised to find a empty lane which I made the most of during the next 75 minutes. I have not swum there at this time since last summer, so I hope this is a trend that will last while the weather remains cold.

Yesterday (Thursday)
Swim: 500m freestyle (free) warm up
500m kick
5 x 100m free sprints at 1:40 pace on 90 seconds rest
300m drills
4 x 50m back stroke (back) between each set
500m free warm down
Total: 2500m

A little bit more than planned (2200m) but I felt good and it was very quiet. But I am tad sore across my shoulders and in my biceps today and more swimming will fix this. My coach on the Sunshine Coach, Rob McBroom, told me that to swim a sub-one hour IM swim leg (3.8km), I just need to go out and swim 40 x 100m at 1:40 pace for every training session. So I plan to work my way up to this over the coming weeks, but I will do some other sets just for variation.

Wet, wet, wet

2006-03-02T13:51:00.001+09:00

Last night was one of those nights where I was undecided to head over to the Namban work out or not, due to the forecast of rain. The forecast was for light rain from 6pm that would get heavier as the night progressed. But I decided to go anyway, as in Gareth's words, "I am a wuss". The forecast was spot on, we met up outside of the sento in steady rain that got heavier and then headed over to Yoyogi Park for the work out. Surprisingly for the cold and wet conditions, a crew of around 12 male runners turned up. We all agreed that no females would run on such a miserable night but were proven wrong when TRD came along and did a pace run. Once again, I followed Gareth and BV over to the hill repeats, along with two others. And this week I took them fairly easily as I am still a little leg sore from skiing. And the only thing that kept me going when I was soaking wet and cold, besides a beer at the finish, was the thought of the hot ofuro (bath) waiting for me at the sento.

Yesterday (Wed.)
Run: 11km (hill repeats)

Survived my ski trip in one piece. (a big improvement over last year)

2006-03-01T13:43:00.000+09:00

My long weekend ski trip to Hakuba over the weekend was a good one. Had a real mixed bag with the weather with warm sunshine, slush, rain, snow, sleet, clouds, powder snow, strong wind and ice at various times. But all in all the skiing was good for me, a once a year skier. Spent the first two days at Happ-one, the site of the downhill and slalom courses at the '98 Nagano Olympics (I did manage to ski the entire downhill course, albeit in short sections and very slowly). The last morning was spent at Iwatake, and was most enjoyable as the runs where wider and a little gentler in gradient. Most people are amazed at I, an Aussie, can actually ski, as they don't relate Australia with skiing. I learnt to ski at Falls Creek in Victoria and also skied a bit in Europe in the mid '80s. Japan has great skiing and I always plan to do at least one trip per season. Since I have lived in Japan, so far I have skied in Fukushima-ken, Gunma-ken, Hokkaido (Niseko) and now Nagano-ken. In my humble opinion, the skiing in Niseko, with it's deep powder snow, is world class. Also I am not such a great skier, but I can do all the runs and have a good time doing it, which is the main appeal to me. And luckily for me, this year I did not "bang myself up" like I did last year in Niseko and can keep on training.

With the ski trip over, this week I will commence my 13 week training program for IM Japan in late May. I think that I have a good base and I just need to work on my bike speed and my running endurance. Have also changed my swimming stroke and will need to become more comfortable with it. Many, many kilometers of training to come over the next 13 weeks.

Yesterday (Tuesday)
Run: 4km (tempo run before work)
Bike: 25km (spin class)

Good luck to GPAA as he tackles IM NZ this weekend. He will do very well at his first attempt at an IM.

Hills, hills and more hills

2006-02-23T09:47:00.000+09:00

At last night's Namban Rengo weekly workout, I once again followed Gareth in doing his hill repeats. This week we were joined by VG and about 10 others, leaving the rest of the group to do 6 x 1000 intervals in Yoyogi Koen. Rie-san turned up just when we had finished.

I did the 10 hill repeats trying to build up speed on each one, but not really succeeding during the middle of the run. But I managed to finish strongly by doing the last two hard. This is a good work out and will help me get in hill running shape for the Ohyama 9km and the Ome 30km trail race.

After the work out and over a beer in the street near the sento, I passed on a few last minute IM tips to GPAA. (Yeah right! Like I am a qualified IM expert with my huge total of only 1 IM under my belt) He seems to be less stressed out than a few weeks ago and is looking cool, calm and collected. He will do just fine and I would not be surpised that if he does not drown during the 3.8km swim (only joking Jay!!), he will blitz the bike and run and probably beat my slow time of 12:45 that I did in IM Korea. Break a leg Jay!!

Wednesday:
Run: 11:85km (4km warm up, 3km hill repeats, 4.85km warm down)

Spun out for a golden duck

2006-02-22T09:18:00.000+09:00

My luck finally ran out at last night's spin class at Y's. My name was well down the waiting list and there was only one cancellation. I thought it would be hard to get a place in the class, but as Y's is on my way home from work, I thought I would just turn up and see if I could get in. GPAA was number 1 on the list, and as I was there early before he was, I was tempted to impersonate him and take his place in the class as "all gaijin look the same". But Jay turned up just before I could launch my evil plan.

Lucky for me that I have a magnetic bike trainer at home, so I headed straight back and did my own 20km spin class by following a similar format to what the class does. But instead of getting down to pumping rock and techno music, I watched an ice hockey game at the Winter Olympics. It was Switzerland v's Italy and it was a good game, not that I know much about hockey. Still gotta find out who won.

And yesterday morning before work, I did a 5km recovery run. Not too hard, as my legs were still a bit sore from Sunday's 30km.

Tuesday:
Bike: 20km (spin)
Run: 5km (recovery)

A quiet Sunday run with Q-chan and 9,999 others

2006-02-20T09:50:00.000+09:00

The Ome 30km marathon really is a huge event, even much bigger than I expected for the "most famous marathon in Japan". I had done the Okutama ekiden for the past two years which follows the same course and I thought that I knew what to expect. But that all went out the window when we arrived at Kabe station to be caught in a flood humanity heading to the race. And this years race promised to have even more runners and spectators due to the appearance of the amazingly popular Sydney Olympics Gold Medalist, Q-chan (Naoko Takahashi). She ran the 10km race and was the official starter for the 30km. We went to the Kabe gym to get changed and to leave our stuff there when we ran, only to find the normally (during the Okutama ekiden anyway) quiet gym packed to the rafters and overflowing. Every square centimeter of floor space was taken. So after leaving the two ladies with us who were able to find ample space in the ladies changing area, we blokes found a little clear area outside the gym, behind a hedge and near some sodai gomi (rubbish).

After we claimed our piece of dirt, we were surprised to have some other Nambanners, namely Mark, Jay and Martin find us and join us in our little patch of filth. In reality, our chosen area was a good one, being located just outside the finishing area where they handed out sports drinks and onigiri (rice balls).

As for doing the race, well once is enough! I always tend to say this, but this time I mean it. While it was a good experience to be part of such a huge starting field of about 10,000 runners and it was overwhelmingly well supported with cheering spectators lining the entire route, I tend to get frustrated when I can't run the race I want to. Even though I knew it would take a long time to get the starting line with my race number of 5563 in a field of 10,000 (it actually took over three minutes) and that the course would be slow and crowded due to the narrowness of the roads and the sheer volume of runners, I was disappointed at the stop start nature of the first 8 or so kilometers. And how everyone stopped and waved to Q-chan when they reached the start. But I must say she is cute. There was lots of slowing down at bends in the road and on uphill sections, so I found it frustrating not to be able to settle into a steady pace as I had planned. But on reflection, with so many doing the race, it could not have been any other way.

After the slow start I caught up with Martin (who started in a section in front of me) at the 2.5km mark and I ran with him until Jay (cursing and swearing like a banshee!) caught us at around the 8km mark. I then ran with Jay to around the 13km mark until he DQ'd himself by turning around and running in with Mika-san and Steve who where on their way back. I then completed the rest of the course by myself. I hit a problem with my Polar HRM just after 20km, when the battery in the footpod died and I must remember to always put in a fresh battery before a race to prevent this happening. My plan was to use the pace function on the HRM to keep me going when the extra distance began to tell on my legs. I hit the wall at the 24km mark and just managed to hold it together for the last 6km to finish with out stopping to walk. Was also disappointed in this part of my running as I really want to finish my races strongly.

To sum up, overall I was disappointed that I could not finish under the 2:30 time that I had set myself, coming in at around 2:31 or 2:32. I had tried to restart my HRM to make the pace function work again but it didn't and therefore I lost track of my elasped time. My finishing time is based on the time that the clock showed at the finish, less the time it took me to reach the starting line. Will have to wait to get the my official race time. Based on my finishing time, my race pace was 5:04, just over my target pace time of 5:00. I just wanted to use this run as my first long training run for my upcoming Ironman race in May, but had secretly wanted to run around 2:22, a comparable time to my recent big 1/2 marathon PB of sub 1:30.

Not being able to do what I thought I could, proves that I really need to do a lot of work on my running over the next few months so I can do the strong 4:00 marathon that I want at IM Japan. Serious IM training will commence next week after my weekend ski trip to Hakuba in Nagano. Pre-season is over, time to get serious!

Yesterday at Ome:
Run: 30km
Time 2:32 (approx)
Pace 5:04

Weekly totals:
Run: 46km
Bike: 105km
Swim: 0m

Nice day for a ride

2006-02-18T21:17:00.000+09:00

After last night's sleet/snow that was blowing around town, I did not hold up much hope for nice weather for this morning's planned ride. And I got up a little later than I planned due to the after effects of Thursday night's "deadly trio" of oysters, beer and karaoke that I had indulged at a farewell party at my work. Want I really wanted was a decent sleep in, but I dragged myself out of bed to get in a long ride in before this afternoon's Yoga for Runners class.

I have purchased a full range of high-tech winter bike wear to keep out the cold on these winter rides. Coming originally from sub-tropical Queensland in Australia, with time spent working in the tropical Whitsunday Islands on the Great Barrier Reef and, most recently spending 5 years on Saipan in Micronesia, my blood is thin and I don't care much for doing summery sports in cold weather. (Skiing is just fine as you dress for it). But since I joined Namban and have run in Yoyogi Park and at Oda Field in all sorts of miserable and cold weather, I can now put up with it. Today was cold, at around 3C when I started my ride, but except for the fingers on my right hand going numb with cold until I had warmed up, it was a pleasant ride with not much of the horrible Arakawa headwind that is so normal out on the bike pathway. If someone had told me a couple of years ago that I would go riding in winter in Tokyo, I would have said that they were mad! Now it is normal for me, and having arm and keg warmers, thermal undies, head band, wind stopper gloves (until this morning!) and a decent wind proof cycling jacket really helps.

I did a steady, not too strenuous ride of 85km, keeping in mind that I have the Ome 30km marathon to do tomorrow. I usually try to race anyone who tries to pass me, but today, with tomorrow's run, I let them go. But I was only passed by two riders, one of who was a gaijin mountain biker who I would never have let go past me on a normal day. When I got home, I followed Jay's advise and did a 5km brick run. After a mad dash to get ready, grab a bite, and get to Hiroo, I joined Jay and Bob and his wife at yoga. Tonight will be an early one to rest up a little for tomorrow. My plan is to use the race as a training run, and I hope to spend some time running with Mika and Steve and also Jay. This is if I can find them in the field of 15,000 runners!

Bike: 85km
Run: 5km

Ode to Oda Field

2006-02-16T09:42:00.000+09:00

With Oda Field, an outdoor running track, closed for a month for so called renovation, (my local pool does this every year as well and when it re-opens it looks exactly the same), last night's Namban training session was conducted in Yoyogi Park. There were three groups conducting different types of programs. One group went with the regular 6x1000m work out, another group did a long pace run, and the group I joined did hill repeats. Gareth lead us on a 4km warm up out, 10 hard hill repeats (about 3km in total) and a 4km warm down. I choose this group as I want to work on my hill running for the upcoming Ohyama 9km next month and the 30km Ome Takamizu Trail run in April. It must have worked for me, as I awoke this morning with slightly sore legs. And I have decided not to try and race the Ome 30km marathon on Sunday, but to use it as a long training run. On Saturday, I plan a long 100km plus bike ride and will also attend the "yoga for runners" class.

Nothing planned for today as I have a work party to attend tonight. After a couple of hours of nomihodai, tomorrow will probably we a write off for training. But I will try and fit in at least a 10km tempo run, depending on how I feel.

Yesterday-
Run: 11km

Y's on Valentines Day

2006-02-14T22:08:00.000+09:00

Tonight I fronted up for the spin class at Y's Bike Academy in Temeike. (Who or what is Y?) I did not have a place reserved, but thought that I would go anyway as there may be a spare bike or two due to no-shows. Luckily for me, this was the case as there were actually seven spare bikes tonight! This is very strange, as these classes are always so popular that they run waiting lists and you need to book two weeks in advance. Jay,who was also there with an official spot reserved, suggested that the lack of numbers was due to Valentines Day. As married men, we are both past celebrating this day with our other halfs and did not feel guilty as we joined in the class. It was a good, strong work out, but I must say that the guy who leads the class on Thursday night does a better job of explaining what will happen next.

I managed to book myself into the next two Tuesday night's classes, as my plan is to do this workout every week as part of my training for IM Japan. Might do the odd Thursday night, but I do find it difficult to fit in swims due to the limited opening times of swimming pools here. In Australia, pools open at 5:00am for early morning before work or school training, but in Japan they don't open until 09:00 and close at
20:00 or 21:00. With my work, it is hard for me to make it during the week.

Today-
Bike: 20km (Jay goes with 30km but I will be more conservative)

Hard slog TT, brick and back in to the swim

2006-02-12T22:03:00.000+09:00

I woke up early this morning, keen to go out for a long bike ride up the Arakawa, only to hear the dreaded sound of the howling wind. It really sucks to ride up river in a strong headwind, as it takes all the fun out of the ride. So as an alternative ride to my planned steady 80km ride, I followed a program that I remembered reading in an Aussie triathon magazine. It suggested an into the wind time trial (TT) of 0 to 20km. While the 0km distance sounded very tempting, I decided to do about 15km up river into the wind in my aerobars, in a gear two lower than I would normally use. The idea here was to work on leg strength. So after the 5km warm up ride from my house to the bike path way that follows the river, I pretty much followed the plan. It was really hard going, I could barely break 18km/hr and was nearly blown off my bike a couple of times. But it was a good work out, and sticking to the aerobars really helped. I even tried a trick that the article suggested, to drop one shoulder so as to create a type of "aerofoil" to get some extra forward momentum. And it seemed to work!

After I turned around it was very easy going, averaging 30km until my turnoff. I did bump into two Nambanners along the way (who shall remain nameless), who where out for a long run. I was asked to join, but as I was only wearing cycling shoes and cleats, I couldn't even if I wanted to. After getting home, I set off straight away on a steady 5km run, trying to stick to 5:00 pace. But after the workout that I put my legs through during the TT, I could only manage 5:30 pace. Still, it was a good and steady run.

Just after dark I headed over to the Arakawa ward swimming pool for my first swim since my trip to Australia. My aim was just to roll over my arms, to practice what I learnt in Australia from my friend who is a swimming coach and to work on my technique. This all went to plan and after a shaky start, I was able to get my stroke to feel very smooth.

Today-
Bike ride: 65km
Run: 5km
Swim: 1600

Weekly totals-
Bike: 90km
Run :30km
Swim:1600m

The coming week will be a fairly easy one for training, as I am not booked in for a spin class at Y's and I will taper a little for the Ome 30km run next Sunday.

Gosho and yoga.

2006-02-11T22:46:00.000+09:00

Today I did a fartlek run with Mika-san around the Gosho (Akasaka Palace). It has been at least two years since I ran there and I could hardly remember the course. Lucky for me that Mika-san is an old hand at running there and she showed me her "Mika special" original run. After a one lap warm up, we did 3 x 3.3km loops with one long fast section and hard two hills in each loop. It was tough, but very enjoyable, especially the hills which are lacking in Oji, my home area. Will help a little in doing the Ome 30km marathon next Sunday. (For some strange reason, every race over 10km in Japan seems to have the "marathon" tag stuck on it.

Distance: 13.5km
Time: 1:03:30
Ave Pace: 4:35
Ave HR: 155

Afterwards, we again attended Michael Glenn's "yoga for runners" in Hiroo. After three classes, I am starting to notice small improvements in my flexibility and core strength, but I have a long, long way to go. It has gotta help my running. Jay was there and as he is in full Ironman training mode, was barely with us at the end, looking very tired. He had already done a 150km bike ride and a long run (we must have just left the Gosho before he arrived) the class. Oh, how I remember training days like that! My IM training will start in earnest at the end of the month.

An abject failure

2006-02-09T13:14:00.000+09:00

Last night I participated in Japan's first ever official "Beer Mile". This high profile, internationally recognized event was the Japanese National Championships and was run in Tokyo's Yoyogi park, with a slightly disappointing turnout of only five members of Namban Rengo. There was myself, the lone Aussie, American Pete, English Gareth, Canadian Matteo, along with the only local and only female starter, Satohi-san.

After a 5km warm up jog, we prepared for the main event. For details, go to Nambanner Steve Lacy's blog and his report.

Having just done a big PB in a half marathon and having performed well in the gruelling Ironman Korea last August, and being an experienced HASH HOUSE HARRIER, I was confident that I would prevail in this race and take top honors. But, holy batsh*t, was I wrong! Dead last out of a field of five runners, one of whom was female. I started strongly but was then passed by the entire field. My problem was that I could not burp and get rid of the gas when I was running. My gut was so extended I simply could not run. I did not feel like chucking, and I did not get the wobbleys, I just could not get the gas out!! My experience in Ironman Korean and the pain in my legs during the marathon there, was nothing compared to this. It has been said that beer miling is an art and that only the chosen ones can perform in this event. Looks like my training focus on half marathons was all wrong and I need to prepare better for my next attempt at a Beer Mile.

Congrats to Gareth, who is now ranked 4th in his age group (50+) in the world!. With more training and dedication, the world record is his for the taking! As a consolation, I still managed to sneak into the top 100 in the world in the 40+ age group in 94th position.

It's back to the drawing board for me!

Sub 90!! It's official!!

2006-02-08T09:05:00.000+09:00

Thanks to Gary Chandler, I just received the official results for last Sunday's Kanagawa half marathon. As I expected, my chip time (the time when I crossed the start and finish line mats) was sub 90 mins at 1:29:55. My goal was to crack 90 mins, so I am very happy to have finally achieved this. Will now have to work on my 10km (break 40 mins), full marathon (break 3:20) and my Ironman times (in 11 hour range).

ハーフ男子 497/2638 6148 Ｋｅｒｅｎ　Ｍｉｅｒｓ 01:30:15 01:29:55
ハーフ男子 498/2638 7170 山口　辰馬 01:30:15 01:29:45
ハーフ男子 499/2638 4536 細野　浩之 01:30:16 01:29:39
ハーフ男子 500/2638 6440 佐藤　昌孝 01:30:19 01:29:53

Yesterday (Tuesday) was a day of recovery training. As it snowed on Monday night leaving the roads near my house icy, before work I did a short 3 km jog on the treadmill that I have at home. In the evening I did a 20 min easy spin session on my bike and mag trainer. Nice to be able work out in the warmth of home.

Not counting tonight's Namban "Beer Mile", my next race is the Ome 30km marathon on Feb 19th.

Magic socks and undies.

2006-02-05T18:50:00.000+09:00

Today I ran the Kanagawa Half Marathon for the second year in a row. This race is held at Isogo, which is on Tokyo Bay and down the JR line from Yokohama. It is very easy race for me to get to as it is straight down the JR Keihin Tohoku line from my station in Oji. The road course is two loops through some stark docklands and is flat and fast, suitable for PBs.

What to wear on a cold day? That was the big question leading up to the start at the generous and reasonable time of 11:30 am. Today was fine and sunny but with a forecast high of only 5 degrees C and with a cold northerly wind. I did not want to wear too much and over heat, but I did not want to feel cold either. A last minute decision to switch to running shorts from tights was a good one, as with a long sleeve t- shirt under a Namban singlet and I was very comfortable.

After deciding what to wear, I moved to the start with Nambanner Steve. We found a break in the starting pack and positioned ourselves fairly close to the start. The course announcer said that there were 3 minutes to the start and then, for me, PANIC! I looked at my new Polar Heart Rate monitor and it showed an error message. It was a huge problem for me as I was counting on using it's pace function to help me during my race. Steve calmed me down a little and we where able to reset it and get it working again, albeit that I had lost some of the data, but luckily for me the important ones such as pace, heart rate and stop watch functions were ok. The worst thing was that it showed today's date as 3/25/5, but I did not have time to set it up fully before the start.

The gun went off and then to cut a long story short, I ran a PB by 6:05!!! Hit the finish strongly to finish at 90:11 (gross), but I am pretty sure my final chip time was under 90 mins. I regretted my decision to start my watch with the starting gun, as my usual way is to start it at the first mat to match up with the chip time at the finish. With 2 km to go I realized that I had a chance to go sub 90, so I picked up my pace. Reached the final turn to the finish and the clock showed 89:50, but my dash to the line was in vain and I just missed the magic (for me) sub 90.

Why the big improvement today? Can only think of the following reasons-

New socks and undies. Wore new pair of socks that Jim Wisemann gave me before he left Japan and when I was home in Oz, I bought a special pair of sports underpants that were way too expensive for me.
A can of Red Bull energy drink 10 mins before the start. Must have helped to perk me up!
Some hot weather runs back in Australia when I was there on vacation two weeks ago. Even though I did a lot of socializing with family and friends, I still managed a few long runs between trips to the beach to go surfing.
The major fear of getting beaten today by Rie and or Yuka. Both Nambanners who have improved greatly recently. As it turned out, Rie went 94 mins and Yuka came in at 102 mins.
Michael Glenn's "Yoga for Runners" classes. Yesterday I went to my second class, along with Mika-san and Satohi-san. I felt really good and flexible this morning when I woke up.
A proper and planned taper. I followed a plan to get to today rested and in good running shape.
Stuck to a race plan. (for the first time) A few weeks ago I bought at Polar RS200 HRM that has a foot pod that can track distance and pace. Even with its pre-start failure, it was very important for my race plan to run 4:22 pace and to aim to finish in around 92 mins. As it turned out, it was not calibrated properly when I put it on my racing flats and my real pace was actually faster than the read out. But I was able to stick to 4:22 pace though the whole run, but in reality I ran slightly faster at 4:17.

I have learnt a lot about running since I joined Namban, especially running with Gareth, Steve, Colin and my arch enemy Mika-san. (she usually beats me on the track and would thrash me over a marathon as she is a great marathoner). This year, my motto is to "run smarter" and so far, it was worked. I hope to do more many PBs this year and run some times that I had thought were impossible for me.

One major regret from today was the last minute withdrawal of Gareth. I usually try to follow him in these halfs to try draft off him to a good time, but on the two occasions that I tried this I failed miserably and he beat me by minutes. With my time today of 90 mins, I would have turned the tables!! Next time Gareth, revenge will be mine!

Blocks of ice

2006-02-03T20:58:00.000+09:00

Tonight's run was part of my taper for Sunday's Kanagawa half marathon. I decided on doing 3 x 2.5 loops at race pace (4:22), on a straight and quiet road near my house. A cold front hit Tokyo tonight, bringing with it a bittingly cold wind. I dressed for the wind, but it cut right through my shoes and socks and numbed my toes. Was like running on blocks of ice until I had warmed up.

1st 2.5km @ 4:37 (cold toes!)
2nd 2.5km @ 4:22 (spot on race pace)
3rd 2.5km @ 4:16 (better than race pace)

So, hopefully I am on track for a good time on Sunday. For Saturday, I plan an 5km easy run and then in the avro I will attend my second "Yoga for Runners" class in Hiroo. Would also like to get to the local pool to do 1500m or so, but I will wait until after the half on Sunday.

A wash out

2006-02-02T09:03:00.000+09:00

I skipped last night's Namban track workout due to rain. At 6pm, it was raining heavily with big, cold drops of rain. Not a pleasant night for a track workout. Anyway and I am tapering for my half marathon on Sunday, so it was not critical to miss out on the planned 6 x 1000m work out. Instead, I went with plan B and used a treadmill at a small, but well equipped gym at work that I have access too. Did a 9km total run at race pace of 4:20, with the last 2km at 4:00 flat to see how I would go. Having done no speed work for a nearly month while I was on vacation in Australia, I was pleasantly surprised that this fast paced run felt good. I hope it will translate to a fast time on Sunday. Am shooting for around 90 mins, which will be a big PB for me.

Spinning

2006-02-01T09:42:00.000+09:00

Last night I joined Jay at Y’s Bike shop in Tameike for the Tuesday night spin class. It was my 4^th time to join the class and I now really enjoy and look forward to these workouts. A good way to work the legs hard and to sweat heaps, all to the beat of up tempo 80’s glam rock music.

Coming soon.........

2006-01-30T14:48:00.000+09:00

This blog is a work in progress. I will use it as motivation as I train for my next big race, Ironman Japan on May 28th. Still in "pre-season mode" but I am already doing a lot of running and some cycling. My next races are on Feb 5th, the Kanagawa half marathon, and on Feb 19th, the Ome 30km marathon. So I am not being lazy at all. Just got to start swimming now. Will get into serious IM training very soon, 14 weeks out from IM Japan.

And I need develop to my role as "triathlon guru" to Jay. Maybe I should charge him for my services.