I’ve always found that a week can be a very long time with
so much changing and happening during its course. This week I was determined to
establish a solid running routine, being that I’m quite a creature of habit.
With so much going on in our running world it’s hard not to escape. I love it, so escaping, well most of the time,
isn’t necessary. Over the weekend there was the Transvulcania Ultra, on La Palma, Canary Islands, Spain.
The build-up for this race was unprecedented and from all reports/blogs it
seemed to live up to the expectation. Perhaps largely down to home grown Anna
Frost, who destroyed the women’s field on her way to smashing the course record
by nearly two hours.
Here’s a
pre-race interview with her from Back Country Runner http://backcountryrunner.co.nz/2012/05/08/anna-frost-pre-transvulcania-interview/
And here is a taste of what the race video will look like
Now this
weekend, more close to our home, is the North Face 100. 100km set in the Blue Mountains.
Likely Canterbury based lads Grant Guise and Vajin Armstrong are going to be at
the tight end of the race showing those Aussie battlers how it’s done. There’s
also a strong international contingent on hand, so this one has the makings of
yet again being wicked tracking for the heads.
Which you
could do via:
Fully back
in our area now and I popped up to Blenheim over the weekend and did the Saint
Clair Vineyard Half Marathon: http://www.vineyardhalf.com/
I was
supporting Rose through her first bid at half marathon glory, which she
achieved without difficulty, including a massive sprint finish leaving me in the
middle of a dust cloud. As I mentioned before, the run was sold out, and it was
a true event. A weekend away which appeals to a variety of people leading to the
success. The course is stunning, matched by the time of year to make the
colours of the vines and surrounding trees take me back to New England in fall.
On course
they have a variety of bands, banjos and food stalls. I indulged in Regal’s
finest Salmon, Gelato and some super sweet honey chews which were tactically
positioned one km out from the finish to give runners a much needed boost! The
atmosphere is very relaxed and social with all competitors smiling their way
around the scenic course. After crossing the finish line you walked en-route to
get a bottle of wine for taking part. On collection some people had decided to
reward themselves and get stuck into it straight away, fair enough I say!
For me this week I managed to get that routine sorted with 12 positive sessions, rounding the week out with 165km’s at around 13 hours. My highlight would have to be heading back up Worsley for the first time since the good old days of the ‘Sunday Session Sutherland’ loop and noticing some nice little single track (Mountain Bike) just on the verge of the trees. My downhill was loads more fun with some tight and twisting trails while rapidly descending. Funny how you think you know a place so well and then all of a sudden a new area opens for exploring!
Out and
about this week and weekend:
Wednesday:
Leeston Wednesday Night Road Runners, Leeston, Canterbury.
http://www.ellesmereroadrunners.co.nz/index.php?page=wednesday-handicap
http://www.ellesmereroadrunners.co.nz/index.php?page=wednesday-handicap
Saturday:
Wanaka
Riverrun Trail Series
Sunday:
Sri Chinmoy
Sumner 10km, Christchurch
Photos to follow, currently locating the missing camera lead!
Enjoy!
No comments:
Post a Comment