Recently I was asked about the UK team for this year's World 24 hr Championships. I must admit that I hadn't given any thought as to who might be included in that team other than I hope I am ...
So, here are my thoughts:
UK Athletics usually have selection criteria along the lines of -
men ... A standard 236 km ... team standard ... 225 km
women ... A standard 215 km ... team standard ... 205 km
and, in theory, what happens is that anybody who has the A standard is automatically selected but if there aren't enough to complete a team then those with the team standard are also considered - but only if there are enough to make a full team.
For example if one man has 240 km and two more men have 227 km each then only one man will be selected.
Of course there is a time frame in which runners are expected to reach the standards and this is usually in the 18 months before selection date. For this year's World Championships I would expect that to be something like:
1 Jan 2011 to 30 June 2012
Between those dates the qualifying performances so far are:
John Pares ... 244 km
Pat Robbins ... 231 km
Steve Holyoak ... 226 km
Liz Hawker ... 247 km
Emily Gelder ... 220 km
Debbie Martin-Consani ... 208 km
Jen Salter ... 206 km
Marie Doke ... 206 km
Because there wasn't a World or European Championships last year it is possible that the qualifying period will be extended back to include the Perth race (Sep 2010) or even the last World Championships (May 2010), in which case the following should be added to the list:
Richard Quennell ... 246 km (May 2010)
Jim Rogers ... 244 km (May 2010)
Chris Carver ... 238 km (Sep 2010)
Paul Hart ... 228 km (Sep 2010)
Angie Sadler ... 205 km (Sep 2010)
As there has been no announcement yet about selection there is a possibility of a few more qualifying performances in the first half of this year.
And of course the selectors usually reserve the right to use other long ultras to help with their choices. Overall then I would suggest that only John Pares and Liz Hawker have earned their place in Poland and as for other runners ... your guess is as good as mine at the moment.
I do know that the team management were hopeful of getting selection sorted by the end of last year but obviously the people at UK Athletics didn't like that idea - probably down to funding.
I also believe that we have some very good ultra runners in this country but very few road and/or track 24 hour races. Only one at the last count. In recent years we have lost races in Hull and Doncaster for example. I know that Pam Storey is looking to stage some races but if we had a few more then the performances would only improve.
So ... who wants to organise a road or track 24 hr race in Britain ??? Count me in if you do.
Monday, 13 February 2012
Friday, 10 February 2012
training ... and other strange goings on
Still very cold over here. Not much snow but very cold ... and sunny most of the time.
Not doing much training this week as it's a designated 'easy week' in which I only do two thirds of my normal training and only one long run - which is 50% longer than usual. On Monday that was 14.5 miles (23.4 km) which was my longest training run since 1 September last year.
Felt good though on the moderate hills over towards Leeds. A few patches of ice here and there but nothing which made me worry about slipping.
Twenty four hours later I tried my first tempo run of the year. The plan was to run 3 miles (4.8 km) in about 20:50. Not done a paced run for quite a while so I was a bit unsure how it would feel ... the patches of ice didn't help either. As it happens I had nothing to worry about and I managed 20:42. It did feel quite hard but that will definitely get better and that's a good first time effort considering the mid afternoon temperature was only 4.3 C (39.7 F).
Today was 200m repeats. Not timed, just running hard but trying to maintain my form the whole time. Hard work but, like the vast majority of my training, it was enjoyable ... and rewarding.
And now for something completely different. A strange thing happened last night at about half past nine. Fay and I were watching a TV program called Eternal Law when all of a sudden we both felt somebody kick the back of the sofa. The room was empty apart from the two of us and we were both quite shocked. This isn't the first time strange things have happened in this 170 year old house though. A couple of years ago someone or something pushed past me in the bedroom as I was putting some clothes away (the house was empty apart from me), last year somebody called my name whilst I was passing Keir's bedroom door - he was at school, Fay has reported kicks to the back of the sofa a few times this year already.
Very strange ... last night's TV program was about Angels. Hmmmm
Found some very good coffee in Leeds yesterday. A peaberry from the Yergacheffe area of Ethiopia. Excellent. All the details are here.
Not doing much training this week as it's a designated 'easy week' in which I only do two thirds of my normal training and only one long run - which is 50% longer than usual. On Monday that was 14.5 miles (23.4 km) which was my longest training run since 1 September last year.
Felt good though on the moderate hills over towards Leeds. A few patches of ice here and there but nothing which made me worry about slipping.
Twenty four hours later I tried my first tempo run of the year. The plan was to run 3 miles (4.8 km) in about 20:50. Not done a paced run for quite a while so I was a bit unsure how it would feel ... the patches of ice didn't help either. As it happens I had nothing to worry about and I managed 20:42. It did feel quite hard but that will definitely get better and that's a good first time effort considering the mid afternoon temperature was only 4.3 C (39.7 F).
Today was 200m repeats. Not timed, just running hard but trying to maintain my form the whole time. Hard work but, like the vast majority of my training, it was enjoyable ... and rewarding.
And now for something completely different. A strange thing happened last night at about half past nine. Fay and I were watching a TV program called Eternal Law when all of a sudden we both felt somebody kick the back of the sofa. The room was empty apart from the two of us and we were both quite shocked. This isn't the first time strange things have happened in this 170 year old house though. A couple of years ago someone or something pushed past me in the bedroom as I was putting some clothes away (the house was empty apart from me), last year somebody called my name whilst I was passing Keir's bedroom door - he was at school, Fay has reported kicks to the back of the sofa a few times this year already.
Very strange ... last night's TV program was about Angels. Hmmmm
Found some very good coffee in Leeds yesterday. A peaberry from the Yergacheffe area of Ethiopia. Excellent. All the details are here.
Saturday, 4 February 2012
cold weather and planning
Originally meant to post this yesterday but problems with the computer meant I had to wait 36 hours. So much for modern technology. Perhaps the computer has a cold like the rest of my family ...
It certainly has been cold in this part of the world for the past week or so. Below -3 C (27 F) this morning when I was out running. No snow at that time though (it is snowing quite heavily at the moment - as I type this). Still, the porridge was wonderful after my shower:
It certainly has been cold in this part of the world for the past week or so. Below -3 C (27 F) this morning when I was out running. No snow at that time though (it is snowing quite heavily at the moment - as I type this). Still, the porridge was wonderful after my shower:
one cup of oats
two cups of milk
one banana
ginger
honey
And some wonderful Yemeni coffee to drink too.
On Thursday I ran with the club for the first time in at least three months. An enjoyably easy 7 mile fartlek led by president Mick Jeffrey. Thanks to him for organising that.
At the moment my morning pulse is the lowest it's been since September last year showing that I've lost none of my general fitness despite spending thirteen weeks on the sidelines. I know that my running speed is a bit slower than I would like but that will come back over the next few weeks. Things are going in the right direction though and that's good.
I've also started to not use the heel pads in my running shoes as often now that the injury is better. It would be unwise to go directly from using then all the time to using them not at all so I'll gradually phase them out over the next couple of months.
I'm now starting to add a few shorter races to my diary and the first of these is likely to be the North of England 12 stage road relay in Liverpool on Saturday 31 March. There are quite a few others pencilled in, nothing definite yet, along with lots of possible dates for a quick 5k in Bradford, Leeds or Harrogate (ie parkrun). All of these are listed on this page.
Need to get an ultra sorted out soon though - I have a few ideas and I'll post stuff here as usual when plans have been made.
Wednesday, 1 February 2012
progression
Training going really well now, obviously at a low level but hopefully I've maintained lots of fitness through cross training so it shouldn't be too difficult to get back into full training with everything that that involves:
long runs, hill reps, tempo runs, fartlek, speedwork, cycling, weights, flexibility ...
Almost back to normal.
Yesterday I completed my longest run since 25 October last year. Only 8.8 miles (14.2 km) but it's a good start. Absolutely no aches, pains, strains or sprains. A bit cold though. An interesting thing happened at about 2.5 miles (4 km) ... I was running past St Mary's School in Menston when, with no warning at all, 30 children suddenly ran out of the gate and ran with me for at least ten minutes. Year 8 PE lesson according to the teachers.
Running with a class of 12 year olds was a bit different though and some of the conversations were interesting to say the least ...
One or two races have now been tentatively added to my schedule and over the coming weeks they, along with others, will be confirmed. More about all that later.
As a footnote to this post, can anyone explain why when Keir studies in Northern Ireland he will receive less Maintenance Grant and less Maintenance Loan than if he was to study in England ? Very strange ... and unfair.
long runs, hill reps, tempo runs, fartlek, speedwork, cycling, weights, flexibility ...
Almost back to normal.
Yesterday I completed my longest run since 25 October last year. Only 8.8 miles (14.2 km) but it's a good start. Absolutely no aches, pains, strains or sprains. A bit cold though. An interesting thing happened at about 2.5 miles (4 km) ... I was running past St Mary's School in Menston when, with no warning at all, 30 children suddenly ran out of the gate and ran with me for at least ten minutes. Year 8 PE lesson according to the teachers.
Running with a class of 12 year olds was a bit different though and some of the conversations were interesting to say the least ...
One or two races have now been tentatively added to my schedule and over the coming weeks they, along with others, will be confirmed. More about all that later.
As a footnote to this post, can anyone explain why when Keir studies in Northern Ireland he will receive less Maintenance Grant and less Maintenance Loan than if he was to study in England ? Very strange ... and unfair.
Saturday, 28 January 2012
here we go ...
The trip to the physio provided some excellent news. The stress fracture to my left calcaneous has fully healed now and the achilles tendinosis in the same leg is well under control. So much that it's now easier to get fitter than it is to relapse ... so long as I keep up the good work regarding rehab.
That's ice, exercises and being sensible.
Elsewhere in the news congratulations to Lizzy Hawker who was recently awarded the title 'athlete of the year 2011' by the IAU. Mainly because of her outstanding run in Llandudno at the Commonwealth Championships where she set a new world best performance (24 hr road) of 247.076 km (153.526 miles).
The fourth issue of Nordic Ultra e-magazine is now available. Another good read, see for yourself on their website.
Yesterday Keir came home from school with the news that he and some other students have been selected to visit Auschwitz concentration camp in May as part of their history A level course. That will be an amazing experience for him and I know he'll get a lot out of that trip. It now seems very likely that he'll be going to either Queen's University, Belfast or Ulster University from next September ... so long as he gets the required grades in the summer's exams. We all know he's capable but it's just a question of proving it to the examiner.
That's ice, exercises and being sensible.
Elsewhere in the news congratulations to Lizzy Hawker who was recently awarded the title 'athlete of the year 2011' by the IAU. Mainly because of her outstanding run in Llandudno at the Commonwealth Championships where she set a new world best performance (24 hr road) of 247.076 km (153.526 miles).
The fourth issue of Nordic Ultra e-magazine is now available. Another good read, see for yourself on their website.
Yesterday Keir came home from school with the news that he and some other students have been selected to visit Auschwitz concentration camp in May as part of their history A level course. That will be an amazing experience for him and I know he'll get a lot out of that trip. It now seems very likely that he'll be going to either Queen's University, Belfast or Ulster University from next September ... so long as he gets the required grades in the summer's exams. We all know he's capable but it's just a question of proving it to the examiner.
Wednesday, 25 January 2012
tomorrow
Well ... the big day is tomorrow. My final appointment at the physio (all being well). Everything seems to be OK with the ankle and running this week has been consistently at the 100% level.
Looking forward to proper training again and planning a few races for the future.
Saturday, 21 January 2012
mixed scores this week
Last Sunday was a bad running day. The 40 minute outing could only be given a score of 95% which was a backward step after previous runs had been almost 100%. Very disappointing. Since then however things have improved every day and the last two days saw the 50 minute runs both given a perfect score of 100%.
Feeling good now as we head into a new week and hopefully things will continue to be 'perfect'. Of course the cycling and weight training has been continuing as usual and has hardly been affected by the injury.
The weather hasn't been quite a s cold over the past few days but I was interested to read an article about running in cold weather on the Sweat Science website (in brief) and on The Globe And Mail website (in full).
It seems that to avoid cold fingers ... wear a balaclava. I haven't seen one of those in Yorkshire since the 1970s though.
Maybe a hat will suffice.
Feeling good now as we head into a new week and hopefully things will continue to be 'perfect'. Of course the cycling and weight training has been continuing as usual and has hardly been affected by the injury.
The weather hasn't been quite a s cold over the past few days but I was interested to read an article about running in cold weather on the Sweat Science website (in brief) and on The Globe And Mail website (in full).
It seems that to avoid cold fingers ... wear a balaclava. I haven't seen one of those in Yorkshire since the 1970s though.
Maybe a hat will suffice.
Saturday, 14 January 2012
newspaper article ... weather ... good news
Well ... all was good at the physio last Wednesday and I'm now able to run continuously for about 40 minutes and gradually increase that to 60 minutes over the next two weeks or so. The ankle has been feeling better by the day and now I have no problems at all although I am still icing the area three times a day and will continue doing so until the end of January.
Then I'll gradually phase that out along with the eccentric stretching exercises although the latter will take about six more months.
The time I spent with Lee Sobot and a photographer (Bruce Rollinson) on Tuesday was very enjoyable and productive. Their work appeared in today's Yorkshire Evening Post. The article can also be read on that newspapers website - here.
Also this week the weather here has been very strange. At the beginning of the week I was able to run wearing only shorts and a T shirt but only four days later I found myself with tracksters, two tops, a hat and three pairs of gloves (and still had cold fingers). This week all my training runs were at the same time of day yet the temperature ranged from 9.4 C (48.9 F) to -0.6 C (30.9 F). The mean for Yorkshire at this time of year is about 7 C (45 F). Very strange.
Then I'll gradually phase that out along with the eccentric stretching exercises although the latter will take about six more months.
The time I spent with Lee Sobot and a photographer (Bruce Rollinson) on Tuesday was very enjoyable and productive. Their work appeared in today's Yorkshire Evening Post. The article can also be read on that newspapers website - here.
Also this week the weather here has been very strange. At the beginning of the week I was able to run wearing only shorts and a T shirt but only four days later I found myself with tracksters, two tops, a hat and three pairs of gloves (and still had cold fingers). This week all my training runs were at the same time of day yet the temperature ranged from 9.4 C (48.9 F) to -0.6 C (30.9 F). The mean for Yorkshire at this time of year is about 7 C (45 F). Very strange.
Monday, 9 January 2012
things still improving
Just a brief update on how the injury's progressing before my next visit to the physio on Wednesday afternoon.
Well, today was a 'no running' day but the previous four runs were all done in the morning and I would give them marks of 96%, 96%, 98% and 99%. So things are definitely still improving and the early morning aching has also abated.
Very good indeed. Stretching three times a day, icing three times a day and doing the eccentric contraction exercises twice a day seems to be helping enormously.
These runs have been increasing in length but still alternating running with walking. I'm very confident that the physio will give me all clear to begin running non-stop again. Obviously not very far at first and, I guess, if all goes well, I'll be able to start training properly again at the end of the month.
And then I can start planning my races for this year although that could be a bit difficult with Fay's job being in danger at the moment - local authority cuts.
Still ... things are beginning to look good at the moment. And there's a reporter visiting tomorrow from the Yorkshire Evening Post ...
Well, today was a 'no running' day but the previous four runs were all done in the morning and I would give them marks of 96%, 96%, 98% and 99%. So things are definitely still improving and the early morning aching has also abated.
Very good indeed. Stretching three times a day, icing three times a day and doing the eccentric contraction exercises twice a day seems to be helping enormously.
These runs have been increasing in length but still alternating running with walking. I'm very confident that the physio will give me all clear to begin running non-stop again. Obviously not very far at first and, I guess, if all goes well, I'll be able to start training properly again at the end of the month.
And then I can start planning my races for this year although that could be a bit difficult with Fay's job being in danger at the moment - local authority cuts.
Still ... things are beginning to look good at the moment. And there's a reporter visiting tomorrow from the Yorkshire Evening Post ...
Wednesday, 4 January 2012
injury updates ... stats ... other stuff
Quite a bit to get through today so ... here goes ...
My rehab from the calcaneous stress fracture and achilles tendon injury seems to be progressing very well at the moment. Until Sunday evening I was a little unsure as to whether the ankle was actually getting any better. But then, from Monday morning, things seemed to click into place and I'm now confident that my rehab is going to plan.
It appears that the many hours spent massaging, icing, stretching, etc are finally paying dividends and that got me round to thinking about 2011 ... and then 2012.
Last year began with a knee injury which limited training during the whole of January but after that things went exceptionally well apart from the two important races. In the first of those it was a momentary lapse of concentration that cost me the winner's trophy (and the course record by almost an hour). That's something that needs to be corrected in the next year or two. You can read that story on this page.
The second (and most important) race was a different story entirely. I was in very good shape for that one but, stupidly, I stuck to my pre race plans and almost everyone else was adjusting theirs to take account of the very windy weather in Llandudno. Having said that, if a very bad run produces 220km (136.7 miles) what would a very good have produced ? There's something for me to think about.
So ... two big races completed and two important lessons learned.
Now, for everyone who's interested in the numbers, here are a few from 2011:
running
over 2444 miles (3933 km) in the year ... 46.9 miles per week (75.4 km per week) ... very nearly an hour per day
cycling
almost 18 minutes per day on average
stretching
almost 14 minutes per day on average
strength training
over 25 minutes per day on average
rehab stuff
over 18 minutes per day on average (not including ice)
In total my training and rehab took over 830 hours last year ... that's over 2 hours 16 per day which doesn't include changing clothes, showering, etc.
My end of year 24 hr ranking is correspondingly a bit disappointing and the stats read:
World ... 72 (down from 37)
Europe ... 49 (down from 26)
UK ... 5 (down from 4)
England ... 4 ? (last year 3)
Full details and year by year comparisons can be found over on this page.
OK ... on to other stuff now.
I was saddened to learn yesterday of the recent death of the great coach Frank Horwill. I'm sure I've talked about him in previous posts but his wisdom and writings have been a large source of information about all thing training related. I highly recommend that all runners read the articles on his club's website - here.
Local athlete Racheal Bamford (who lives about 200m from me) recently represented the North of England in the Nos Galan 5k in Wales recently. She finished first woman on the uphill course with a time of 16:44. Fantastic ... well done to her ... and she's going to get quicker.
My rehab from the calcaneous stress fracture and achilles tendon injury seems to be progressing very well at the moment. Until Sunday evening I was a little unsure as to whether the ankle was actually getting any better. But then, from Monday morning, things seemed to click into place and I'm now confident that my rehab is going to plan.
It appears that the many hours spent massaging, icing, stretching, etc are finally paying dividends and that got me round to thinking about 2011 ... and then 2012.
Last year began with a knee injury which limited training during the whole of January but after that things went exceptionally well apart from the two important races. In the first of those it was a momentary lapse of concentration that cost me the winner's trophy (and the course record by almost an hour). That's something that needs to be corrected in the next year or two. You can read that story on this page.
The second (and most important) race was a different story entirely. I was in very good shape for that one but, stupidly, I stuck to my pre race plans and almost everyone else was adjusting theirs to take account of the very windy weather in Llandudno. Having said that, if a very bad run produces 220km (136.7 miles) what would a very good have produced ? There's something for me to think about.
So ... two big races completed and two important lessons learned.
Now, for everyone who's interested in the numbers, here are a few from 2011:
running
over 2444 miles (3933 km) in the year ... 46.9 miles per week (75.4 km per week) ... very nearly an hour per day
cycling
almost 18 minutes per day on average
stretching
almost 14 minutes per day on average
strength training
over 25 minutes per day on average
rehab stuff
over 18 minutes per day on average (not including ice)
In total my training and rehab took over 830 hours last year ... that's over 2 hours 16 per day which doesn't include changing clothes, showering, etc.
My end of year 24 hr ranking is correspondingly a bit disappointing and the stats read:
World ... 72 (down from 37)
Europe ... 49 (down from 26)
UK ... 5 (down from 4)
England ... 4 ? (last year 3)
Full details and year by year comparisons can be found over on this page.
OK ... on to other stuff now.
I was saddened to learn yesterday of the recent death of the great coach Frank Horwill. I'm sure I've talked about him in previous posts but his wisdom and writings have been a large source of information about all thing training related. I highly recommend that all runners read the articles on his club's website - here.
Local athlete Racheal Bamford (who lives about 200m from me) recently represented the North of England in the Nos Galan 5k in Wales recently. She finished first woman on the uphill course with a time of 16:44. Fantastic ... well done to her ... and she's going to get quicker.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)