Sorry it’s been a while. Last update was Brighton Marathon. That was over a month ago.
Recovering after Brighton took a little longer than expected. I’ve been experiencing something that I’ve experienced before. The first big event takes longer to get over than you think. Yes you are able to get back out there and do things again, but recovering from the second thing seems to take a long time, but that’s because you haven’t fully got over the first.
I have been getting more personal bests. Got a PB at the third Yarmouth 5 mile run race. My previous best was set in 2005 when I also set PBs at 5km and 10km. With all the distance work over recent years I’ve not been close to these times. Whilst the difference was only 14seconds it is still an improvement and proof that whilst I’m finding the running a chore that I’m going better than ever. I still don’t think I’ve got good technique and I’m trying to work on it. That 5 mile / 8km PB goes with the 20k and 30k ones already gained this year.
The PBs have also been coming on the bike. I’ve done three 10 mile TTs in the last 5 weeks and gained PBs at 2 of them. My time for 10 is now a minute quicker than the previous best set a couple of years back. It is now 25:21 and I’m sure that I’ll be under 25 minutes before the end of the year.
I’m now in Durban preparing for Comrades. Coach has a number of running sessions on the schedule, but I’m being naughty. Or perhaps I’m being good. My foot has hurt since a recovery run in the peak district on the 15th May. As the foot, or more accurately heal, hurt from the first foot strike I suspect the damage was done prior to the run. That means the finger of blame points to 5x 1 mile efforts on the Friday, and the trainers used on that run, or to a very very cold night camping prior to the run. I’ve either got compound fracture of the heal or I’ve bruised the layer of fat under my heal bone. I suspect the later as I’m pretty sure I’d have felt the bone being fractured. www.sportsinjuryclinic.com recommends a few days rest for the bruised heal, which is hard to do with getting in and out of work and needing to move about at work. Certainly the flight helped and the pain is now a periodic ache. Perhaps I should have taken a couple of days off work to rest properly – but no chance of that. The fractured option requires 6 weeks off. With Comrades this Sunday that’s not going to happen.
So, as I was saying I’m here in Durban. Getting here was a bit traumatic. The journey itself was easy enough, the hassles were with tour operators not doing their job. Was given details of flights and itinnary back in December, which I signed up to and paid the deposit and was told I’d get the tickets two weeks before the trip. When I rang 1.5 weeks ahead to point out that I was still waiting they discovered they’d booked me on the wrong flights. That was sorted 2 days before flying. At that point I discovered that they had omitted to book me accommodation for the overnight stop over in Johanesburg, so had to sort that myself, and I got told off for requesting to pick up my race details from the wrong registration details – well, if I’m not sent details telling me which of the two I’m supposed to select then there is a 50% chance I’ll get it wrong.
But as I say here now. The country seems to have gone World Cup mad. Yes they are hosting the event . Yes they have had to build some stadiums and yes it is a very big event. Four of 8 sports channels here seem to be dedicated to the event which doesn’t start for another 3 weeks. Yesterday I went to the Moses Ma.... stadium which is an awesome site and adds to the Durban skyline. There is an arch that goes over the ground which has a cable car on it. I was up for a trip on that, but was denied. Whilst having been open all weekend, come the Monday morning, yesterday, it was all closed off. I had been planning on combing a trip to the stadium with a trip to the Kings Park Olympic swimming pool across the road. The Swimming pool boasts an outdoor 25m training pool, an indoor competitive 50m swimming pool plus diving pool etc. That was also closed for the World Cup. It is now a Fifa registration centre for the month. If I was living here I think I’d be looking forward to the world cup being over.
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