Toral de los Vados 2007. The training starts today.

[Riazor Blue]

The title says it all.

Actually, it has already started with 8 kilometers freshly run half an hour ago. I've drawn up my plan, fourteen weeks and 990 kilometers in training, there are three half marathons in this period, perhaps a fourth because the Galician championships are held in May, the week before one of my favourite half marathons.

This week my plan is to continue getting the miles back in my legs, the last year has been sporadic, I'm 3 kilos heavier than I would have liked to be , ie 6 kilos heavier than I would like to be by race day at the end of June. I calculate that I'm also five minutes slower in half marathon than two years ago. If all goes well this week I should have run 65 kilometers including nine in a race.

[sampedro]

Good luck with your plan, see you in the many halfs coming up the next months!!!!!!!!!: Vig-Bay; Vilagarcia, Ferreirua and Betanzos, high season, isn't it?

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Excellent, another marathon campaign to follow! You got a time in mind RB?

[Sweder]

Hola! RB. Great to see you back in the saddle.
990 kms in 14 weeks . . . blimey.
I had to sit down just to read that.

[El Gordo]

Good news, RB. As you well know, it makes a big difference having something to aim for. Although I'm still feeling positive, I'm finding that without a target I'm being a bit indisciplined about getting out there. With something to aim for, you tend to be more motivated. When is the race?

Edit -- ah, 14 weeks.

FOURTEEN WEEKS??

Actually, I'm sure you'll be OK as you obviously have plenty of residual fitness, even with a few extra kilos on board.

[Antonio247]

I´m glad you´re here again and preparing a marathon.

You´re going to do in 14 weeks nearly what I did in 2006. I did 1316 kms. You´re really strong.

Best of luck! ¡Suerte!


Antonio

[Riazor Blue]

Thanks for the encouragement guys. I have to say that although I've been rather quiet on the diary front I have actually been running. It's not exactly 'training' but it still adds up to just a shade under 500 Km this year so far. The stepping up in kilometers I don't see as a problem, finding the time to run them is where I have difficulties.

I have tried a few different strategies for finding the time, being a new dad and all that... last year we changed flat so that I now live 6.5 km from work. Before last year's marathon I was running to and from work but this ended up not being training as I was always a couple of minutes late leaving the house in the morning or there were customers just before closing. I was always running to get somewhere, not to train for a marathon. Things have ended up back as either very early in the morning or very late at night. I enjoy the runs at around 11PM. Where I live now I run from Santa Cristina to Santa Cruz (for Sampedro) and back. During the week this run is heaven. OK so it's on the road but there is little traffic at that time of night. One can catch glimpses of the sea, which you can hear all the ime on the run and what's more one can smell the fresh air, the sea, the eucalyptus, the lavander, the pines and the roses in someones front garden.

I have negociated a few free lunchtimes to train aswell, these need negotiating as lunch is an important meal in our house, but three days a week I'll be able to do eithe speedwork or the long run and apart from the days when there are races I've managed to keep Sundays run free.

Actually for me fourteen weeks seems to be about right to get me into form, perhaps even less. anything longer and my achilles start to play up. These first two weeks are really just adding two more days running per week. The actual schedule is 12 weeks.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

500 kms already?

RB, you're a legend. If I could match your average monthly km's just once, I'd be bloody happy! :o

[Riazor Blue]

MLCM, regarding time, at the moment I'll have to see how the training goes. Two years ago a similar training plan yielded 3h13. Looking back I probably ran quite conservatively and given my level of fitness, could probably have run 3h09 more or less. Last year on a complete shambles of training, ie no speedwork, the vast majority of training done as 6.5km runs to and from work, I managed 3h18 . The interesting thing about last year though was that I ran hard.

What I'm looking for this year is a fitness level somewhere near to two years ago with proper training and then to run the marathon at the same intensity as last year. With luck and good training I'm hoping to be around the same as two years ago.

As an aside MLCM, there is a tiny little bar here in Coruña called El Inglés. A few years back I gave the owner a couple of bottles of London Pride. One he drank and the other was put up on top of the bar as decoration. Two owners on, the bottle remains in it's place. The two previous owners went into parnership and opened up a new bar called The Dog's Bollocks. The owner, to my surprise and delight told me the other day that as from April they will be having London Pride on tap. ... Can't wait!

[El Gordo]

As an aside MLCM, there is a tiny little bar here in Coruña called El Inglés. A few years back I gave the owner a couple of bottles of London Pride. One he drank and the other was put up on top of the bar as decoration. Two owners on, the bottle remains in it's place. The two previous owners went into parnership and opened up a new bar called The Dog's Bollocks. The owner, to my surprise and delight told me the other day that as from April they will be having London Pride on tap. ... Can't wait!

Good old London Pride. In London, there's always been a rivalry between Fuller's and Young's. I was always a Fuller's man, perhaps because I went to school near the brewery. One of the pubs here in my village is a Fuller's pub, and I regard regular quality assurance sessions as an important community duty, particularly when there's a big game being shown on the plasma screen.

The only drawback RB, is that I presume the draught Pride will be keg rather then cask-conditioned. Still, even a pint of keg Pride would be a relief from endless small glasses of lager.

Please keep us informed of significant developments in the Dog's Bollocks.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Make the most of it RB! I can only very occasionally find Fullers in this part of the world, and it's bloody expensive when it is around.

The Dog's Bollocks reminds me of a Jasper Carrot story he delighted in telling, about the ex-pat Englishman who took great pride in driving his immaculate Rolls Royce around his new home town of Los Angeles with the registration plate BOLLOX. The nice part was that nobody in America knew what it meant. But a side trip to The Dogs Bollocks in Coruña will definitely be on the cards when I traipse over there for Almeria... (you listening SP?).

All the best with your training RB - please keep us up to date. You're more inspiring to us lesser runners than I'm sure you realise.

[El Gordo]

All the best with your training RB - please keep us up to date. You're more inspiring to us lesser runners than I'm sure you realise.

Hey MLCM, we're all at different levels, and I suspect you expend more effort than most on here. If you're talking inspiration, some might say that your defiance of constant pain, injury and medical advice to run 13 miles up a steep mountain ranks pretty high on the RC Wall of Honour.

[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Hey MLCM, we're all at different levels, and I suspect you expend more effort than most on here. If you're talking inspiration, some might say that your defiance of constant pain, injury and medical advice to run 13 miles up a steep mountain ranks pretty high on the RC Wall of Honour.

Yeah, but I'm such a humble, self-deprecating person Andy. Let's not forget you started this whole business!

Welcome to BakPat City*.



[SIZE="1"]* Not to be confused with the famous Filipino town.[/SIZE]

[sampedro]

RB, i'll have to drop by The Dog's Bollocks and taste that London Pride. Where is this bar? I have to say I beer is one of the things i miss fron Ireland and England, it tastes different when you drink it in the islands.

Concerning the marathon i'm thinking about giving the distance a new chance after two years of rest. I'll see how I feel after the half marathons of may but Toral is one of those i have in my calendar...i heard wonderfull things about it...

[Sweder]

Hey MLCM, we're all at different levels, and I suspect you expend more effort than most on here. If you're talking inspiration, some might say that your defiance of constant pain, injury and medical advice to run 13 miles up a steep mountain ranks pretty high on the RC Wall of Honour.

I'll second that emotion.
MLCMan's battles - and victories - against ridiculous odds have inspired many of us in our own dark days. It's hard to moan about shin splints* when you see what this guy is working against. Makes you kinda proud to know the fella

[SIZE="1"]*Though it won't stop me trying [/SIZE]

[Riazor Blue]

Andy - It's true, you are either Young's or Fullers. I like both but I have too many bad memories of Young's defying gravity when I was but a lad. Fullers always seemed to stay where I put it.
In my parent's road in Croydon there is a tiny little pub called The Royal Standard which has been South London pub of the year countless times. It's Fuller's and the beer is excellent, whoever the Publican - probably my love of London Pride stems from there.

Sampedro - The dog's Bollocks is in Paseo de los Puentes. It's not very English but it's a nice enough bar. Sadly, the owner(s) who had been friends since they were little kids ended up having an argument over the bar and haven't spoken to eachother for over a year. We'll have to have a pint when they get it on tap (it'll be keg - but will still be damned good).

MLCM - you haven't seen me in person, I'm not inspiring at all. For inspiring, take a look at yourself, Andy, Sweder, John, Antonio and the rest on this site. I just wish I could write as well as Andy, Nigel, bierzo Baggie and Sweder (and perhaps run as well as Sampedro).

The running is going well apart from the fact that I am miserably slooow compared to two years ago. I'm comforted by the fact that all I'm doing at the moment is slow and steady at 75% max heart rate. Can't wait for Tuesday week when the speed stuff starts.

[Bierzo Baggie]

Where I live now I run from Santa Cristina to Santa Cruz (for Sampedro) and back. During the week this run is heaven.

Is Santa Cruz where the little island with the castle is? If so, that's one idyllic route you've got there Definitely worth a photo or two.

Are you running Vig-Bay next month? If I can find somebody else from Ponferrada who's going (it's a long hike from here) I might just try and wrangle it. I've heard that it's one of the 4 "must-do" races in Galicia. Closing date for entries is on Friday I think.
Oh, and I look forward to seeing the dog's bollocks one day.

[Riazor Blue]

There's just time for a quick update:

Sunday's race went off fine, a smaller field than usual; I blame the clocks going forward an hour. There was also a race close by Saturday afternoon, so some went to that one, others to Ordenes on Sunday. I ran slower than all but my first running of this race, but the good thing is that I felt fresh, the running was easy although the heart rate was higher than other times. I blame this on my lack of fitness. As usual the organization was great in Ordenes, the tee-shirt OK, etc... I do like this race. It's 9.5km and I finished in 40 minutes 17 secs.

Sampedro: Toral de los Vados is a nice little marathon. I like it. Last year there were only 190 finishers or there abouts. The winning time was fairly modest, but they said last year that they want to attract more quality athletes. There is lunch after the race, which consists of ham, cheese, botillo, empanada, chorizo, fresh fruit, wine and other drinks. The only thing missing was the coffee to finish. there's the fluvial beach and pool aswell in the villiage, the water was freezing last year but sure feels good. Why not give it a go? BB will be there aswell.

Bierzo Baggie: That is the Santa Cruz, one day when the sun's out and I'm running in daylight I'll take a few pics. Did you sign up for Vig-Bay then? They say it's one of the big four, there are over a thousand runners, which as you know, for our part of the world is a lot of people. The course is fast, there's a small hill at KM4 but the rest is flat or slightly downhill. The route starts from Samil beach in Vigo and heads for the main road to Baiona, there is a little diversion in Nigran to the Playa America then it's full speed ahead to finish in front of the 'Pinto' - the replica of the boat that brought news of Columbus' discovery of the Americas.

[sampedro]

Here he is!!!!!!!!! RB in progress.......with his new running kit....
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[Mid Life Crisis Marathon Man]

Here he is!!!!!!!!! RB in progress.......with his new running kit....
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Er, which one is RB?