Two weeks later, I'm still recovering from the 16 kilometre cross country so I've been taking it easy. Last Tuesday, I went for an easy run with Andrew H. and Belinda instead of doing 6 x 1200s - no way was I going to do that. Then Thursday, the program was 6 x 600s around Princes Park. I stopped after four. I said to Tony, 'I'm old and I'm tired and I'm over it.' He laughed.
This last Sunday, T. ran a 12k benefit race for the Mercy Hospital - a great course, started at the Coburg Athletics track and up the Merri Creek bike path to Fawkner and back. Her time was around 64 minutes, excellent time, she's improving. I minded the girls so I didn't race, we explored the creek and parkland around the track and then I ran in the afternoon instead - three laps of Princes Park in the late winter afternoon.
Tonight it's 8 x 1000. It's all a bit punishing at the moment. We'll see how we go.
8/31/2004
8/23/2004
Davey's forever house - a correction.
When Davey went off to his forever house about a few weeks ago, I posted that he was going to a house with two children and two dogs.
We visited him on Sunday and there were more in the household than I realised: two children, two dogs, two rats and seven fish.
He's doing well. He gave me a lick of recognition.
We visited him on Sunday and there were more in the household than I realised: two children, two dogs, two rats and seven fish.
He's doing well. He gave me a lick of recognition.
8/20/2004
Training notes. Dog notes. What else is there? (Apart from food, of course.)
Sunday: In the morning, it was sunny so we took Goldie on a big walk around yesterday's sodden cross country course. It was still wet. In the far corner there was a bunch of hunters training their gun-dogs to retrieve and return. GSPs and the like. Wonderful to see working dogs respond to commands and clearly having such a good time. Afternoon: ran a couple of very dodgy laps of Princes Park - feeling the effects of yesterday's race. Met afterwards at the dog off-leash section of Princes Park where dog owners socialise their dogs. Always good for a laugh. All kinds of dogs including an English Mastiff, huge great dog.
Monday: pool and spa to soothe aching legs.
Tuesday: running session around Royal Park, meant to be easy but Tony the coach pushed it out a little. At least we went somewhere different.
Wednesday: rashly promised to run with Theo and the crew. They ran way too fast.
Thursday: one of last night's crew pulled out after one warm-up lap because he ran too fast last night! The rest ran 4 x 11 minutes hard - close to 3ks each. I only managed three.
Friday: nothing. And I'm planning an easy weekend. We're going to the beach and we're going to visit Davy the foster greyhound at his new forever home!
Monday: pool and spa to soothe aching legs.
Tuesday: running session around Royal Park, meant to be easy but Tony the coach pushed it out a little. At least we went somewhere different.
Wednesday: rashly promised to run with Theo and the crew. They ran way too fast.
Thursday: one of last night's crew pulled out after one warm-up lap because he ran too fast last night! The rest ran 4 x 11 minutes hard - close to 3ks each. I only managed three.
Friday: nothing. And I'm planning an easy weekend. We're going to the beach and we're going to visit Davy the foster greyhound at his new forever home!
8/16/2004
Saturday afternoon mudbath.
The forecast was 13 celsius.
It got to like, 8. And the wind was blowing off Antarctica (I used to joke about that, but the weather guy said it really WAS blowing off Antarctica!).
Not a good day for the Victorian 16 kilometre cross country championship. (Why 16? It used to be the Ten Mile in pre-metric days.)
We arrived at Coburg at around 1pm. It was FREEZING! The rain was coming down in sheets. We put raincoats over our several layers and tried a half-hearted warm-up, leaving Goldie the Brittany toasty and warm on her rug in the back of the car.
There were several under-age races on first and due to the severe weather, the open events were delayed. Finally the starters got the women's 4k race away after leaving them on the starting line for nearly ten minutes. The poor girls were just about suffering hypothermia. Off they went, splishing and sploshing through the mud. T. had a great race and ran her best time despite the conditions. She was soaking wet and muddy but postively glowing with relief after she finished.
The men's race got away at 2.45 - four laps of the sodden course. By this time, there was the real possibility that the course would be flooded if the Merri Creek were to break its banks. By the second lap, the rain had eased slightly. The track was a complete bog by this stage - having been pounded by several hundred runners all the rain run-off was pooling in it.
I'd had the foresight to wear spikes so I managed to stay upright. Others, wearing normal running shoes, were slipping everywhere, especially on the downhill turns where the camber of the track turned out instead of in, completely the opposite necessary for balance. There were several injuries. Someone broke an ankle - one of our runners saw the guy go down and heard the ominous crack. The poor guy was carried off on a stretcher.
Amidst all of this, it was darkly amusing to hear the official course announcer talking up the event and getting excited about the inclement weather - he was saying stuff like: "Ladies and gentlemen, today we have the worst conditions in living memory for an official Victorian cross country race! None of us can remember such low temperatures! And such steady rain! It is only 8 degrees and they are half way through the open 16 kilometres as we speak - they have another two whole laps to go!"
And I'm out there slogging through the mud, thinking Great ... just another two laps! Thanks for the reminder!
Soon it was all over and we went to Nellie's for afternoon tea. She had an open fire! and hot food! We ate and talked about the race, staring out the picture window onto Nellie's garden, the rain pouring down once again.
It got to like, 8. And the wind was blowing off Antarctica (I used to joke about that, but the weather guy said it really WAS blowing off Antarctica!).
Not a good day for the Victorian 16 kilometre cross country championship. (Why 16? It used to be the Ten Mile in pre-metric days.)
We arrived at Coburg at around 1pm. It was FREEZING! The rain was coming down in sheets. We put raincoats over our several layers and tried a half-hearted warm-up, leaving Goldie the Brittany toasty and warm on her rug in the back of the car.
There were several under-age races on first and due to the severe weather, the open events were delayed. Finally the starters got the women's 4k race away after leaving them on the starting line for nearly ten minutes. The poor girls were just about suffering hypothermia. Off they went, splishing and sploshing through the mud. T. had a great race and ran her best time despite the conditions. She was soaking wet and muddy but postively glowing with relief after she finished.
The men's race got away at 2.45 - four laps of the sodden course. By this time, there was the real possibility that the course would be flooded if the Merri Creek were to break its banks. By the second lap, the rain had eased slightly. The track was a complete bog by this stage - having been pounded by several hundred runners all the rain run-off was pooling in it.
I'd had the foresight to wear spikes so I managed to stay upright. Others, wearing normal running shoes, were slipping everywhere, especially on the downhill turns where the camber of the track turned out instead of in, completely the opposite necessary for balance. There were several injuries. Someone broke an ankle - one of our runners saw the guy go down and heard the ominous crack. The poor guy was carried off on a stretcher.
Amidst all of this, it was darkly amusing to hear the official course announcer talking up the event and getting excited about the inclement weather - he was saying stuff like: "Ladies and gentlemen, today we have the worst conditions in living memory for an official Victorian cross country race! None of us can remember such low temperatures! And such steady rain! It is only 8 degrees and they are half way through the open 16 kilometres as we speak - they have another two whole laps to go!"
And I'm out there slogging through the mud, thinking Great ... just another two laps! Thanks for the reminder!
Soon it was all over and we went to Nellie's for afternoon tea. She had an open fire! and hot food! We ate and talked about the race, staring out the picture window onto Nellie's garden, the rain pouring down once again.
8/09/2004
Running with the 'roos.
The running group had a Sunday morning run at Oaklands Park, about twenty kilometres from Melbourne.
It's a great spot for running, a public open space that was Melbourne's last volcano about six thousand years ago resulting in much of the north west of Melbourne having a rocky surface - apparently that's why growth spread south and east instead of north and west where getting to the 'bush' now is consequently much quicker.
We set off at 8:15 with late winter sun just up and shining. It was undulating and damp, with patches of old forest remaining here and there, old gnarled gum trees that looked thousands of years old.
There were kangaroos everywhere, small bunches of them standing about in the weak early-morning sunlight, some bouncing along and some even reclining on their huge haunches. Several had joeys in their pouches. You've never seen anything cuter than a kangaroo with her baby tucked into her front 'pocket'. We also saw a pair of kangaroos 'boxing' each other playfully.
With all this entertainment, we were done sooner than we realised.
Some parts of the trail had been solid rock, evidence of the original lava flows.
Wonder if the 'roos were around in those days?
It's a great spot for running, a public open space that was Melbourne's last volcano about six thousand years ago resulting in much of the north west of Melbourne having a rocky surface - apparently that's why growth spread south and east instead of north and west where getting to the 'bush' now is consequently much quicker.
We set off at 8:15 with late winter sun just up and shining. It was undulating and damp, with patches of old forest remaining here and there, old gnarled gum trees that looked thousands of years old.
There were kangaroos everywhere, small bunches of them standing about in the weak early-morning sunlight, some bouncing along and some even reclining on their huge haunches. Several had joeys in their pouches. You've never seen anything cuter than a kangaroo with her baby tucked into her front 'pocket'. We also saw a pair of kangaroos 'boxing' each other playfully.
With all this entertainment, we were done sooner than we realised.
Some parts of the trail had been solid rock, evidence of the original lava flows.
Wonder if the 'roos were around in those days?
8/03/2004
Meet 'our' donkey.
We visited the Donkey Shelter last year and sponsored a donkey, Katie. She is beautiful. You can read about her and the other donkeys by clicking on them at the website.
They're amazing creatures - and extremely long-lived, which is why many of them are in the refuge, some of them outlive their elderly owners.
This particular refuge receives no funding at all from government (yet they'll hand out 'grants' to all kinds of dubious lobbies that shout loudest) and is completely funded by contributions and the selflessness of its director, Dr May Dodd, who has given her life to run the refuge.
That's priceless.
They're amazing creatures - and extremely long-lived, which is why many of them are in the refuge, some of them outlive their elderly owners.
This particular refuge receives no funding at all from government (yet they'll hand out 'grants' to all kinds of dubious lobbies that shout loudest) and is completely funded by contributions and the selflessness of its director, Dr May Dodd, who has given her life to run the refuge.
That's priceless.
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