Fairbridge Mall 15km Race 18/8/2012 and Steve's Birthday

We (Steve and I) went to Brackenfell last Friday so that I could run a 15km race nearby on the Saturday morning.  I had originally intended running the 6km fun run so that I could see if my speed was improving yet, but decided that if I was going to get out of bed at just after 5am, then I may as well make it worthwhile and do the 15km race instead!  So we dropped the animals off at the kennels on the way to Cape Town and arrived at my Dad and Celia's house in time for lunch!  The weather had been really cold and wet for a few days but it looked like it was brightening up.  In fact, the day of the run turned out to be sunny, which was great.

The next morning, we were up and out of the house by just after 6am.  It was very cold and very dark!  I sometimes wonder why I would want to do this!  The venue was only about 10 minutes' drive away and I registered, finished getting dressed (!) with Garmin, running belt and number and spent the next 45 minutes visiting the loo several times!  As we were able to use the proper loos in the mall, there were lots of them, much more comfortable than those horrible portaloo things, and no queues, which was great!

Just before the Start

About ten minutes before the race was due to start, we ventured outside where it was getting lighter, although the sun wasn't up over the mountains yet, and saw that runners were starting to congregate near the Start line.  Steve took a few photos (which we won't keep because those early morning photos are always appalling!) and the gun sent the runners off at 7.15.  We ran out of the mall car park and out to the main road, around the bend, and that was the last Steve saw of any of us, until the first guy got back 49 minutes later.  Yes, 49 minutes later!  How do they do that???

And we were off! 

It was a lovely run, although it was very cold to start with (I'm not used to that), but it was lovely to see the sun coming over the top of the mountains.  It was also good to run with other people, as I don't get to do that around Pearly Beach!  The first 5kms was fairly flat, which was good as it gave us all a chance to warm up a bit.  That took a while because it was so cold, and the middle 5kms was hard work - there were several big hills, and I struggled up the last one a bit.  However, the last 5kms was much better and a lot of that was flat or downhill so I hoped that that faster part would make up for the slower middle part.  Halfway through the run took us only about 200m from my Dad and Celia's house - I could have stopped off to say "Hi", although I didn't know that until I was going past, and I didn't know the route anyway.  They would have waved me on if they had known.  That's the trouble with not knowing the route - you can't prepare so well! (There says the expert!)

The last 150 metres

Almost there! I must keep going!

I had hoped to manage the run in 1:45hrs, going by past experience of running that sort of distance, although I thought that 1:50hrs might be more likely.  I was desperately trying to keep my pace below 7 mins/km and I felt I should be able to do this because I have spent the last month doing some speed work.  I was delighted with my 1 hour 42 minutes 12 seconds, which made my pacing 6:48 mins/km.  Perhaps the speed training is working!  So, besides the fact that I have never run a 15km race before, I have run 15km distance before, but not so fast!  Which means I got a PB!!  That doesn't happen very often!

Stepping off, totally pooped!

We were all done and finished by 9am, although the official results haven't come out yet.  I was 'home' and showered by about 10am, then we all wished Steve a Happy Birthday!  Yes, it was his birthday on Saturday and I had dragged him out of bed at some unearthly hour so that I could run a race and earn another medal!  I do hope he will forgive me.  Anyway, we celebrated his birthday with a lovely birthday meal later and he had beautiful weather for his birthday too.

Showing off my new medal! Chuffed with my PB!

We came home yesterday afternoon, picking the animals up en-route, and are back into winter again - rainy and cold!

Another week...

I seem to have done quite a lot in the last week.  It has certainly passed quickly for me anyway.  Last Friday I had a dentist appointment to check that my tooth was ok now.  I was dreading it, as if it wasn't ok, I would have to have more work done, so I went for a run in the morning before my appointment to take my mind off it.  It worked - I didn't think about the dentist at all until the moment I stopped running.  I needn't have worried though and I am pleased to say that the appointment went well and all is ok.  Went for a coffee afterwards to celebrate!

On Saturday, I went for a cycle ride with Steve.  It was the first ride for about a month and it felt like it too!  Hard work!  We went as far as the farm just before Carruthers Hill, about 8 kms away, and all was fine until half way back when my bike started making a sort of clunking noise from somewhere, not sure where.  Oh well, it's back to the bike shop to get checked out!

Sunday was my long run day and I ran 16km with Steve on his cycle to (almost) the top of Carruthers Hill.  That was hard work too.  It is the longest run I have done since the London Marathon!  When  I got back, after stretching and a shower, I sat down with my lunch and watched the second half of the Ladies Marathon on TV!  How do they do it?  I don't run half as fast as those elites!

It was an appallingly cold day on Monday, so I was very glad I had no run to do.  Supposedly, it was the coldest day of the winter, and snow fell in many places, and rivers flooded too.  That's one advantage of living by the sea  - it doesn't get quite as cold as inland places.  Still VERY cold though!  I did some exercise just to try and warm up a bit.  'Extra fleece and hot water bottle under my jumper' weather.



I was out running again on Tuesday and I took Alfie with me.  We did a 5km jog.  Well, I jogged, he just trotted along beside me with his long legs!  He wasn't exhausted at all when we got back.  I will have to 'up' his runs, I think.

Wednesday was very windy and I wasn't looking forward to trying to do a faster run in a very strong headwind.  It does get a bit much sometimes.  I don't seem to get a run in lately without it being very windy.  Oh well, I suppose I'll be complaining it's too hot in another month or so.  However, I was pleased with the run.  After a 2km warm up, I did 15 minutes into the wind (not fast, too windy for that!) and then turned round and ran faster for 10 minutes, then finished off faster still.  Actually managed to keep my pace up for 20 minutes altogether.

Yesterday was National Women's Day, and a long weekend here now.  The weather is supposed to be really bad tomorrow, which I'm not looking forward to.  I hope we don't lose the electricity this time.

However, we made the most of the good weather this morning, and took the dogs up to the reserve at Walker Bay, just a few kms from us - and I wore my trail shoes.  Two jobs in one!  Run for the dogs and a run for me!

All the bush is growing on rocky sand dunes, so it is quite hard work running up and down the trails on them.  And, yes, I am in the picture above if you look hard!

Even Mango looks tired.

This was a hard bit - a hill!

A nice flat bit at the end.  I ended up doing about 5.6kms overall.  Alfie must have done at least 8kms and Steve and Mango probably did about 4kms each!

Another week of...

The power went off a few nights ago, so we sat playing trivial pursuit on my iphone with a few candles lit around us.  It was too windy to light the real fire, so we put the gas fire on.  All the animals came and sat with us, both dogs asleep on the floor, one cat in the dog bed and Chilli, the other cat on the coffee table next to the candle.  After a few minutes, we could smell a burning smell, like hair scorching, and noticed that Chilli had jumped off the coffee table and was sitting underneath it.  She had sat too close to the candle and had singed her fur!  She didn't seem too concerned though, and it all looked fine when the lights came back on a couple of hours later - she just smelled a bit scorched!

The next day, I had been preparing some watercolour paints in the paint pallet for my next 'work of art'!  Chilli came and jumped up beside me and walked straight through the red paint! She ran right across the desk, jumped on to the cream carpet and ran out of the room.  Steve caught her and she had a quick foot bath in the kitchen sink although she still managed to get some red paint all over the kitchen floor.  She was chucked outside with the door closed, where she sat and washed her foot all over again in typical cat fashion.

I have done a couple of runs this week, and after my 13 kms on Sunday, I have since done another 7 kms on Wednesday and 5kms this morning.  The 7kms on Wednesday was done tempo style in a bid to improve my speed.  It was extremely hard work as the wind was very strong.  Felt good afterwards though.

This morning was a gentle plod around the village, stopping off to watch the new resident of Pearly Beach being installed - a Southern Right Whale!

Dentist visit tomorrow afternoon so may just throw in another short run to 'prepare' myself!