Over the hill

Obersulmer Volkslauf

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Location:

Baden-Württemberg,Germany

Member Since:

Oct 29, 2007

Gender:

Male

Goal Type:

Age Division Winner

Running Accomplishments:

Started running in 2004.

PR's

10k 37:44 Sülzbach May 08

Half 1:24:22 Bottwartal Oct 06

Marathon: 3:06:18 Antalya Mar 08

Short-Term Running Goals:

Train consistently.

Sub 37:30 10k

Finally break that longstanding 1/2M time

Run a sub 3:00 marathon.

Have a crack at a 5k, an uphill only race, a 50k.

Long-Term Running Goals:

2:55 marathon

37:00 10k

1:22 1/2 marathon

Place 1st in my age category.

Personal:

I'm a Brit living in a small town in the south west of Germany, on the edge of a nature park, the Schwäbisch-Fränkischer Wald. The landscape is very hilly with vineyards & orchards on the lower slopes merging into forest above. 42 years young, married since 1997 to my lovely wife.

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Miles:	This week:	0.00	Month:	0.00	Year:	0.00

Sun, May 18, 2008

Race: Obersulmer Volkslauf (6.2 Miles) 00:38:33, Place overall: 6, Place in age division: 2

Easy Miles	Marathon Pace Miles	Threshold Miles	VO2 Max Miles	Total Distance
0.00	0.00	0.00	6.20	6.20

A lonely race.

2^nd 10k race this week and I wasn’t sure what was going to happen, would it be good, average or bad.

My idea had been to place well on the hill race on Monday, then PR on this race which had a wavy but flatter course profile, up and round a lake before returning to the startpoint. As it was my plan turned out arse about face with the PR on Monday and the placing today.

I started in front with a group of five runners, they gradually strung out and pulled away from me after the 1k point and then the rest of the race I ran on my own in no man’s land. I had n’t raced this course before so I paid special attention to the markers to stay on course but it still felt a little strange sometimes with no one else in sight in front or behind. Round the lake was a soft gravel trail which absorbed some of the energy. I hit the 5k point in 19:31, and made an extra effort to get a grip and push it harder. 2^nd 5k was 19:02, it was an average race with mixed feelings, a good position but back to just an ok time which was disappointing. The question I ask myself is why can I not repeat Monday’s peformance, the drive to push myself to the limit just wasn’t there today. In retrospect my error was to lose the leading group of 5 so soon, I should have gone all out to keep the last guy in sight. Then I wouldn’t have raced alone and the instinct to chase down the guy would have been there.

Comments

From Benn on Sun, May 18, 2008 at 10:55:53

Ian - don't get yourself down man. A 38:33 is a really great time, and it sounds like you already figured out why you felt "slower" than perhaps you expected. 1. you already had 1 race this week, 2. you had some killer miles already this week leading up to the second race, 3. you are a fierce competitor - you are like a tiger, you set your sights on the runner in front of you and you run them down. Without the prey in front of you it is hard to be the hunter. But good news is you've already concluded that you could have probably run faster had you maintained contact with the guys in front of you.

Running is very much like the hunter-prey scenario. You must put yourself in contention if you want to run them down for the kill. However, likewise, the runners in front of you will do everything they can to stay free. I have found that naturally as a slower runner, I do better towards the end of the race as I can see which runners I have in my sights and can pounce on them before the tape. You will do fine. You are learning a lot through your races, and I mean come on you must be doing something right, considering you set a PR earlier this week. You can't get a PR every time, but you can certainly learn somethign that will help you become not only a better runner but a better competitor. Set your sights on the next race and remember that as the stalker/hunter you actually have the advantage.

From josse on Sun, May 18, 2008 at 11:27:47

Two 10k in one week that is crazyness. But looks like both were great races. Great job on both.

From MichelleL on Sun, May 18, 2008 at 14:56:55

It's a good race, but you nailed it on the head. You did a negative split, and let the leading pack go. In retrospect not the best strategy for the race. But it is a great workout. I agree with Josse that two 10k's in one week is crazy. In college I was a 10k'er on the track, and we wouldn't even return to full volume speed workouts until 10 days after a 10k, let alone racing 6 days after. So, don't sweat it.

From Dale on Sun, May 18, 2008 at 19:28:18

Okay, so is it polite to accuse someone of being crazy on their blog? Two 10Ks in a week? Ironman it is!

From MichelleL on Sun, May 18, 2008 at 19:39:05

Politeness is a virtue, but there are other virtues that must be balanced with politeness. Besides there is good crazy and bad crazy. I'd rather see someone do two 10K's in one week (good crazy!) than go to a chinese buffet twice in one week (bad crazy!).

From Dale on Sun, May 18, 2008 at 19:58:33

You're right. Crazy it is!

Fortunately, we've got the perfect support group: Hi, my name is Dale and I've been crazy for almost 2 years now.

From Ian on Mon, May 19, 2008 at 01:26:11

I thought the FRB was one big support group for crazy people.

My wife made a good comment, she said the more you improve the more you will have to learn to race alone in these smaller 'Volkslaufs'. The first few positions are usually well strung out.

From Tom on Mon, May 19, 2008 at 14:55:03

Great job Ian. Back-to-back races can be killers, I'm still paying the price for racing a hilly 10K the week after racing a hilly 1/2 marathon.

I've also noticed what you mention especially in smaller races...that is the realization that with getting faster it also gets pretty lonely during the race since there just aren't very many folks that can run your pace. It's super tough for me to race hard without other runners close enough to provide motivation as "targets".

From Kelly on Tue, May 20, 2008 at 08:11:48

Wow. Two separate 10K races in a week and nice finishes in both. While I understand your disappointment I think you have to step back and view your accomplishments objectively occasionally, and this is one of those times!

Tschoos!

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