Following some good training recently I'm now confident that the old legs can withstand the demands I'll be placing on them for the rest of this year.
Apart from the usual array of shorter races - mainly for speedwork, etc - the first important race will be the ULTRArace 100 mile in June. I know I ran this last year but for a number of reasons I decided to go to Stratford-upon-Avon again (2011 race report here):
- I really enjoyed my time in the Cotswold's last year and hopefully the weather will be better
- last year's race worked very well as preparation for a 24 hr race in September
- after quite a serious injury last October, a 24 hr race this Spring may be a step too far
- Rory Coleman (race director) invited me back to "smash the course record" - that's a challenge worth pursuing
- after last year's mistake I feel I have a point to prove to myself
I'm also lucky to have Hugh Pearson crewing for me. He's an experienced competitor in IronMan Triathlons and also the club's senior coach and junior co-ordinator, we've already been planning a long practise run and talking about nutrition, medical stuff and the logistics of crewing. I'm very happy to be working with him.
Following that I hope to be running in the World & European 24 hr Championships in Katowiche, Poland. This takes place on 8/9 September and I know I haven't been selected yet ... but I believe I will be in the team primarily because of my win in Perth (Sep 2010) but also because of my relative consistency. The average of my best six 24 hour distances will probably be above the required 'team qualification standard' ... that's something I'm quite proud of actually.
After that - well I haven't decided yet but maybe Barcelona to make up for last year's disappointment of not being able to make it because of a clash of dates with Keir's visit to Rome University. And then being injured anyway.
See here for the full list of planned races.
All in all ... I feel good right now.
1 comment:
Good to see you back in full swing Chris and with the schedule building up nicely.
That is amazing that you have that kind of average over the course of your 24hr performances. I am going to give a track 24hr race a go next year I think and would appreciate some of your advice / recommendations relating to it.
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