June

[Nigel]

Excellent, Sweder. I just checked in to ensure that you had duly returned home, recovered and had time to Dorney Dash off your 1,000 words of purple poetry in running record time.

And you duly have. Hooray - well done.

Yes, my Garmin gives me 1:00:00 exactly for the race. I stopped my clock a few metres over the line, so that photographer's pic would not be spoiled by my odd fumblings. I also completed the course 3m behind Andy. At an estimated peak finishing line (near terminal) velocity of 4m/s, I compute 59:58.75 for our noble leader.

Amongst other memories of the race beyond rain, champagne, quiche and conviviality, I will take your very fine 'sleeper' joke, and that unexpected view we had of the EdF Energy - James Cracknell's and Ben Fogle's tiny boat in which they rowed the Atlantic last year. It was parked up beside the course just before the 5km marker.

Andy was reaffixing his race number at the time and I think he may have missed it.

Thanks to all for a great splosh, and many congratulations to Andy.

Meanwhile I'll post some pictures and my short video clip early next week.

[El Gordo]

Hold on to those congratulations for a moment -- the provisional results say that I was 8 seconds outside a PB. Will have to wait and see if this was gun time or chip time. If the former, I might still have a chance.

[Sweder]

Oh God, it's just like Almeria all over again . . . I guess that's what we get for an obsession with time and times. Back to the sundials people . . . Luddites R Us!

Sportcam.net reports that DD photos will be uploaded on Tuesday.
Any potential apology to David Bailey's Oily Rag will be placed on hold until then . . .

[El Gordo]

Just downloaded my watch into Sportstracks which says we passed 10Km in 59:40. The total race distance recorded was 10.11 km, and time 1:00:20.

I think the provisional results are showing the gun time. Anyway, I'm taking my watch time of 1:00:20 which means I'm still very slow, but it's a PB, so I'll take it. Must get below 1:00 next time.

Thanks to Sweder and Nigel for pushing me along, and apologies for getting grumpy in the final mile, when I was a bit stressed.

[Sweder]

No worries . . . I think we (I) got rather boorish towards the end, a little too chirpy. It's a tough call when you know someone is close to a PB; there's encouragement and then there's bloody annoying; I suspect we crossed that line.

The time (and place) to stretch the envelope is out on those training runs. I'm in no doubt that your inclusion of hill reps in weekly training will pay dividends. Hills are unforgiving, relentless. They just sit there and demand to be climbed. A PB, however slight, this early in proceedings is a great start to the campaign.

[El Gordo]

Don't apologise old chap, your help and patience was greatly appreciated. Same goes for the Great Galloping Guildfordian.

I'm sure you're right about hills and training in general. I've never paid any serious attention to increasing speed, but will definitely do so over the next few months. I'm planning to run with the club more regularly, and they usually go at a pace just ahead of my comfort point. Combined with a weekly hill/interval session, I should improve my times. And if I carry on losing weight, there's no obvious reason why I shouldn't be aiming for 10Ks at around the 55 minute mark. Perhaps not a bad target for Brighton in November.

[Nigel]

Interesting computations on the time, Andy, but no dice. My time has been officially ratified by the IAAF, so you're stuck with it now.

Meanwhile, that Dorney pace clearly does me good. Two days after the great event, I ran a swift hilly five up to Epsom Downs this lunchtime. Once I had survived the awful pain of flogging my way up a mountain to reach the racecourse, I could have beaten any PB in my repertoire on the way back.

Only slightly marred by the fact that it was raining cats and dogs for much of the way, the outing developed into one of those perfect runs that you so rarely enjoy, but which keeps you going for weeks.

Mind you, it was steeply downhill for a solid two miles. But let's treat that information as marginal to the facts, shall we ?

Meanwhile, my Garmin mendaciously recorded just 2.21 miles. Unless I set it to read altitude gain by mistake, it surely proves that you can't trust those infernal contraptions to tell the truth.

Which is lucky.

[Antonio247]

Congratulations, again, Andy as well as Sweder and Nigel for helping Andy get a PB. I expect the whole RC team can finish Almería half marathon under 2hours next year.


Best of luck

Antonio

[Sweder]

Yes . . . the two-hour half. I'm still keen to run pacemaker in Almeria, though I'll have to get acquainted with some new-fangled technology well before then. Despite the chaotic start at Dorney - let's keep this in perspective, it was not a patch on Almería when it comes to not knowing what the Kinell was going on - Niguel had a real handle on where we were in the race. He knew we were on for a 60 minute finish from some way out. If I can learn from the Master clockwatcher then prospect of a well-paced Almería half will there be.

The other attraction of running a two hour half is leaving something in the tank for the almighty cascade down the Almahilla desert hills on the Monday.

I can't believe I'm getting so excited about another wet race in January

[Nigel]

It could be worse, Sweder.

You could be talking little-known facts of HD TV transmission technology.

Like you were on Saturday. Actually.

[Sweder]

It could be worse, Sweder.
You could be talking little-known facts of HD TV transmission technology.
Like you were on Saturday. Actually.

Alcohol's a terrible thing aint it? :p

[El Gordo]

I feel sorry for Antonio trying to translate this stuff.

Kinell?

I fancy he'll look through his dictionaries in vain.

But anyway, the three amigos will be making a guest appearance in Almeria in January.

Hey Antonio, we must get Carmen and her son into the pre-race meal with us next time, and even better, to the post-race celebrations. She's great, and her little boy is a star.

Hey. Stop. Way too early to be talking about Almeria.

[Nigel]

No it's not.

Kinell. Haven't heard that particular turn of phrase for years.

Marvellous. Thanks, Sweder.