14 x 3 minutes.... Well about 1/3rd of them

Cycled into town as i had to drop the bike back in for a few minor adjustments before making my way to the NEW meeting point on Hickson Road that Mikey pulled rank on ( then preceded to be late for)
Big crowd on show with the return of Brit Olympic Boys Tommy H, Skippy Heyden and Slim Sammy Agnew, good to see Kanser, Clyde and Fats back out there as well after a few weeks in hibernation.
On another glorious day in Sydney town, i took it out fairly strong on the first rep sitting just behind front runners Tucks, Kanser and Heyden, and slightly ahead of Razor, Tom and Mikey's crew.
The next few reps were pretty much the same averaging between 3.16s to 3.20 pace, Poor Mikey Conway was shouting himself hoarse telling everyone to 'Keep Left' on the return leg each time, I must admit i did have a few problems getting past Clyde's wide berth myself ...............Looks like he's back keeping share prices up at 'Pie Face' once more.
All was going OK until about 8 seconds to go on the 5th rep, and i felt exactly the same twinge as i did last Sunday, Tried to do effort 6 but knew after about 30 seconds that i couldn't and ended up walking back to the start. Got the customary abuse from certain quarters as they went by on there 7th rep (Jeez, its a tough crowd out there......no sympathy these days it seems)
As i stood contemplating where i go from here, Andy Heyden called it a day after 8 reps so just jogged back into town with him, hearing about his Games Exploits and the HuRTS drunken behaviour that took place - More Shame :)

Looks like a few more forced days off now yet again, hope this isn't going to become a regular occurrence ?

BTW. Who was the Geezer today that was doing his best E.J impression on the start of every rep for about 60 seconds only to die on his @rse after that?  He was old enough to be Hardman J.Cs father so he should know better :)

Roll Out on the New Bike

After a big Sunday afternoon on the terps it was a slow start to the working week this morning, in fact it was nearly 11am before i managed to cycle over to the park for the first real test on the bike.
Thought i would just do a few laps and decided on 1 lap hard, 1 lap easy x 4, fairly windy out there again but pushed the pace on the first for a 6.01 lap, had an incident on the 2nd when a guy decides to veer right over the road that resulted in me giving him my best Clyde verbal volley at the poor guy as i narrowly avoided a collision and losing a bit of time
Managed to sneak under the 6 minutes on the third rep but was just outside on the 4th and final rep as i was hanging for a drink at that stage of the session and i didn't have any water aboard as i still haven't worked out how to use the New 'Bladder Bag' watering system that it has :)
Times were; 6.01, 6.15( with a torrent of abuse), 5.59, 6.04
All up by the time i got home was 45ks

Will be returning to the HuRTS fold tomorrow, not sure of the session but really need to kick start my running again..........Lets just pray its not the bloody Tempo set.

Well not the start us Red fans were looking for with Liverpool's disaster start getting thumped 0 -3, some of those players need to have a good hard look at themselves. Stoke managed a point away from home so that's not a bad start. and the Gunners with no RVP look like they are going to struggle in front of goal this year. Terrible start for Slim Sammy Agnew's Eagles as well, going down 2- 3 at home .... Oh Dear :)

Oh, Yes very nearly forgot to mention Tom's Toon Army Newcastle, ..........And what a disgrace they are, with the manager setting a very poor example to all with his manhandling of the linesman, Mind you its normal behaviour up in those neck of the woods.
For the record they won 2 - 1 (if  anyone other then Tom really cares) but expect to see the manager in a lot of trouble and a sideline ban will be on the cards i say - 4 weeks?

Getting Back into it.

Had every intention of doing nothing until Tuesday but was bombarded with late night texts from Kanser wanting me to join him for his Sunday long run. So despite a late night watching the start of the English footy i was out and about waiting (again) for the Kanser at 8am. As per usual he was late but for once i didn't mind as the 'Mermaid' Emma was passing and gave me the chance to run and have a chat with her for a flat lap, Got back to the cafe and still no sign, then J-Fen came by so tagged on to him before Davie ambles up and joins us. Johnno doesn't mess around on Sundays doing 4.05s so after one lap Kanser and I dropped off and did our own thing knocking out one of our 8k loops we do.
Pace was kept honest without killing ourselves and  i had no issues with the hammy that i was pleased with, i left Kanser to do his final lap by himself as i cruised back to the cafe for a little under 20ks for the morning.
All up 19.2k in 85 minutes averaging 4.28 per/k - Happy with that on a beautiful winters morning that had the feeling that spring is in the air and not far away at all.
Well another big block of training is coming up over the next 4 weeks - not along stint but should lead us nicely into the Sydney Festival and the Half that i will do. I did have Mikey Conway challenging me to a head to head at the next Striders 10k at North Head before that though so i best sharpen up for that race as well. I might even give Tommy H a call to see if he wants to back his boy again :)

No sign of any breaky at the House of Kane's this morning, although in all fairness he did invite us over for the afternoon as its Young Conor's 2nd Birthday and there is a bit of a party happening. Not sure if i can make it as i have an afternoon in Surry Hills planned with a few beers that i feel i have missed out on over the past 5 weeks:)

Cheers

Easy Week.

No training to report this week as i am still recovering from this Hammy niggle i have, will just take it easy over the weekend and get back into it next week, I see all the Big guns have now returned from there overseas holidays, Tom is Back, Slim Sammy Agnew was spotted running around the park on Wednesday and even Kanser's updated his Blog just to keep J- Fen happy.
Was going to do the Parramatta Duathlon on Sunday, but feel i will have to miss out as i don't want to aggravate the legs as i have the Half Marathon coming up in about 4 weeks and want to run a good run there instead.
A bit of a downer this week - what with the hammy and NO Olympics to watch, still i found a good little clip of some of our Athletes blasting out a top Queen Song from days gone by. Check it out:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vWMySZa0TzQ

Also here is a photo of ALL our medal winners - ALL bar ONE ............ Can you spot who is missing?

and finally a classic photo to finish it all off.

With the Games now over its time to start all over again with the English Premier League (EPL) beginning this weekend. Moneybags Man City will be aiming to repeat there win last year, But Timmy's Tip Man Utd i think will get the better of them this year especially now they have signed Van Persie from Arsenal. Although i still have some concerns for there midfield.
Stoke again will hold there own, just on there home form alone and am tipping they will finish above the 'Villa' As for Tom's Toon? should go OK but wont be as strong as last seasons campaign?  For Master Sweeney's 'Gooooooonnnnners' - another win less year i am predicting, although may go close in the F.A.Cup. In the absence of Van Persie , look at the big name signing they have just brought in.....

Arsenal's BIG new signing :)

Hoping Liverpool can have a good season with a new man at the helm after our 'King Kenny' was shown the door after a very poor year.

Down a league (or two) Slim Sammy's Crystal Palace will be aiming to return to the glory days (well 1982) but sorry to report mate but it could be a long 9 months ahead.

Have a great weekend
Train well and stay safe
Cheers

Missing Man - Jock Andy Murray, ..... bloody Scottish Git :)'

Olympic Games Wrap Up.

With the Marathon on Sunday evening that was basically the last of the events for the Games, i thought i would look back and reflect on the best moments over the past 16 days that brought me much joy (and Pride) as i sat and watched.
My Top 10 moments of the Games (not in any order except the first 3) were
1. Mo Farah - Winning the 10'000 (and 5000) pretty much a flawless display of running
2. Alistair Brownlee - Triathlon, sensational effort and basically won from the front and 29.07 off the bike..WOW
3. Jessica Ennis - Heptathlon, The New Darling of G.B capped of a Super Saturday night at the track
4. Rowing - Ladies pairs Grainger and Watkins, although all the Rowers take a bow, bloody tough sport that one.
5. Greg Rutherford - Long Jump, Proved that "Ginga's" can Jump , and after having his fair share of injuries was great to see ( even better relegating the skippy to Silver :) )
6. Cycling - Chris Hoy, Greatest G.B Olympian EVER, how good is this guy?
7. Cycling Time Trial -  Bradley Wiggens - Gold after also winning the Tour only 2 weeks prior.
8. Sailing - Ben Ainslie, Any guy that wins GOLD and stands in his Boat singing 'Land of Hope & Glory gets me every day - Legend.
9. Equestrian - Zara Phillipps, Not really my sport to be honest but i could watch Zara ALL day, if only she wasn't married to that 'Meat Head' Rugby player Mike Tindall
10. Boxing -  Bantamweight Luke Campbell GOLD after giving the Irish Boy John Joe Nevin a good shoeing :)

There were many more as well, and the closing of the Games brought goosebumps to me - Bloody Brilliant display from all, with Eric Idle a standout as well, and don't get me going with Young Emma from the Spice Girls.
Will go down as the 'Greatest Games' of all times............and that's without my English Hat on as well :)
England stand PROUD :)

Next Stop - Party Town in downtown RIO. BRAZIL

Cheers

Meet the NEW Training Partner.

With the Hamstring giving me grief since Sunday i took the past  two days off and got a massage on Tuesday to help ease the muscles.  Wednesday is the normal Brick Day with Roger but unable to do today so Roger was OK just to spin around on the bike with me for an easy 60 minutes in the park.
A bit of work to do after before i had an appointment to see my new training partner in the city.... Readers of the TRASH meet.................... USAIN (Bolt) , Yes after much deliberation i have purchased a new time trial bike, i thought after 4 years with the old trusted Cervelo it was time to upgrade and i think i can justify a new one with the a triathlons and duathlons that i am now doing.
Ended up getting the Specialized Shiv Comp, and if i can get half as good usage out of it as i did the Cervelo i will be more then happy. Been given the nickname Usain (after the great feats of the Man in the Games) , on the bases that its Fast and its Black :)

The New Machine, now just need the engine to drive the thing

Usain will be making his debut at either the Parramatta or BRAT Duathlon - lets hope PLOD is not there :)



Went back to the park at lunch and did a few easy laps to test it out - early days but felt OK, even saw the HuRTS boys lead by Mikey Conway on there longish Wednesday run in the there as well.

Will continue to rest up on the running front for a few more days , I did want to do the Parramatta Duathlon on Sunday but i will make the call for that one on Friday

Just seen the official results from City to Surf - Seems i was faster then i thought. they have very generously give me a time of 51.27 now, so I'll take that :)

Anybody seen or heard of Davie Kane of late, getting worried about him, the fans (well J-Fen)  were asking me about his BLOG and the fact that he doesn't write anything when he's not running well?
I see he didn't run on Sunday, rumour going around is that he thought anything over 9.65ks was going to be to big an ask :)
Talking of which - anyone seen Ten Pound Tommy Highnam around town - I need to relieve him of a few English notes he may have left over from his recent holiday :)

Cheers

City to Surf 51.35

After a pretty good build up leading into Australia's biggest fun run over the 14ks i rocked up with a spring in my step to meet the masses and the normal pre race greetings and banter. Even getting my 5 seconds of fame with my ugly bonce on the telly when they interviewed Lara.
After the usual frantic start i settled early and run side by side with Enda before he pushed slightly ahead going into Double Bay.
Stayed to my race plan and got to O'Sullivan Road (5ks) exactly where i wanted to be in 17.30 and prepared for the next 5ks block as i went past a badly fading Charlie Low (yet another victory over old Champagne),  Saw T.B and then Richie Palmer go past me on Heartbreak but got to the top without to much damage done and still on target time. The next challenge was to come about 9ks where you turn at the Roundabout on New & Old South Head Roads  when i thought i had run into a force 10 gale as the wind was pretty bad at this stage of the run. Got to the final bend before the 10k mark and my race was about to come to an end unfortunately when my right hamstring went out in sympathy of Mikey Conway - pulled back a little to go through 10ks in 36.40 still with that sub 50 minutes in the back of my mind but knew it was going to be close. I can normally finish the last 3-4 ks of this race well but as soon as i tried to put the foot down i had this shooting pain which was disappointing as i had reeled in a faster fading Enda (who was gone for all money). Got to 12ks and knew i was fighting a losing battle as i could only come down at 3.40 pace and Adam was the next to fly by along with about 100 others, The only one who hadn't was Pete Walker but i knew he must have been close by.
For the first time in years the last k didn't hurt as i was forced to just cruise it home as i stopped the watch in 51.35 - Disappointed but at least it was an injury that stopped me achieving the goal time opposed to just running badly so hopefully i can kick on again towards the next race which will be the Sydney Festival Half in September.
It was a fairly quick recovery due to the cold before we got the invite back to Enda's for morning breakfast and fry up on the BBQ, not to mention the 9 cups of tea ( What is it with the Irish and the lack of Sugar though ) before getting on the sauce (beer ) for the afternoon.
It wasn't long before the Irish were up to there fun and games, claiming Victory over team England  even going to the trouble of having a Medal Ceremony Olympic style with the Gold, Silver and Bronze handed out. Then to really rub salt into the wound we were forced to drink some Irish Pish that they made up specially for the victory.
Congrats to the Boys though , Even without the hammy issue i wouldn't have taken PLOD today with his 49.18 - fantastic run.
Look forward to the NEXT challenge now, i have sorted a 3 Way tier comp, England vs Australia vs 'The Mixed Bags' (Ireland/Kiwi/American/Lebs whoever) - After the last whipping care of the English we have amended the rules as well - all will be revelled but basically it will be done on a points system and you go head to head with the equivalent ranked number in the opposing  team.

Some of the HuRTS times that i gathered from yesterdays race:
First home was Tucks, after a pretty ordinary year to date and with Tom away he was keen to get back and get a decent run under his belt. Tough day for many with times down in general.
Timmy's run of the Day though goes to Sultry Sonya who PBed with a fast 58.3x? - great effort

Andrew Tuckey    47.24
Terence Bell          49.08
Richie High            49.10
Jason Ibrahim         50.14
Richie Palmer         50.35
Enda Stankard       50.50
Adam Conquest     51.20
James Everitt          51.27
Timmy Lindop        51.35
Dom Jackson         51.35
Michael Killicoat    51.50
Mike Race             51.53
Pete Walker          51.59
Paul Lynch             52.30
Angus Boyd          52.31
Anthony Briggs     52.50
Hamish Mountford 53.40
Anna Fitzgerald     54.33
Jono Woodhouse  54.49
Indrajeet Aich      55.26
Elvis Costello       55.51
Max Dahl            57.05
Craig Wiseman    58.00
Sonya V Beek     58.33
Christian Ellis      59.10
Greg Cassis       66.01
Mark Causer     86.00 (run with son)
There were many more but i do not have the offical list at the moment


DNF
John Bartles ( somewhere on Heartbreak Hill)

DNS
David Kane ( little bit of Jetlag - bless him)
Mikey Conway (Sneezed once and doesn't like the cold weather - who can forget the North Head Episode:)

Oh for the record - i WON TEN English Pound care of Tommy Highnam after he backed his boy Mikey to roll me .............when will he ever learn :)
And had a collect from Kanser after we agreed to race of scratch for a tidy $20  :)

No training for me this week - will give myself some time off and let the Hammy repair itself , tune in though tomorrow when i will show you my new SPECIAL friend i have ( settle down Kanser, no i am not going to show you Saucy Sue again, its not her this time)

Photos from yesterday
cheers

Team Ireland's winning Beer with own label - it tasted shocking :)

Team Ireland the Winners - very gracious in victory .............Yeah Right .

Lindop (Bronze) , PLOD (Gold ) and Enda (Silver) ,

... and One Enda didn't want published, on the couch with his shrink Sparksy for yet another session on what went wrong AGAIN. Even Sparksy looks bemused :)

Thanks to Enda and Angel Angela for hosting yesterdays activities - great day out, although could have done without the clog dancer in my head today :)

Cheers

No Comment

Failure.........
Blog will return in about 4 weeks :)
PS , Congrats to PLOD

Crystal Ball Time.

As i sit here doing my best Mystic Meg impersonation i delve into my crystal ball to predict some of the HuRTS members times for Sunday's City to Surf.
With many of the boys away, still in England watching the Games , Team G.B is decimated this year so it looks like Team Aussie with Tucks and Bartles will take line honours, although our Americano Friend J- Fen wont go down without a fight. As for our Emerald friends they have stacked  the big guns for this one.
Some of the team as i see it.
Tucks, Former #1 and having a pretty ordinary year so far, will be looking to redeem a few spots here in Tom's absence. Should be first to line up for the beers in Bondi
Est Time. 46.03

Bartles, One of the best trainers in the team but doesn't really have the runs on the board when it comes to the races. Think he could go well here though
Est time. 47.01

J-Fen. Mr Consistent and barely runs a bad race, doesn't like the downhills mind so could stop him a little on the final few ks of the race
Est Time. 47.15

David Kane. One of Ireland's high hopes although not sure of his form of late only managing a few 9.65k runs on his travels overseas.  Of course will go in with confidence but i think will struggle on a very honest 14ks
Est Time. 50.09

Richie High. Mr Natural, this man can do anything , even not running for 4 months whilst O/S he still smashes all before him as well as taking there cash, We will be relying on Richie for our post race party as well.
Est Time; 48.41

Richie Palmer, Trains 78 hours a week (and that's just in the swim) strong as an OX and is always there or thereabouts for this one
Est Time; 49.50

Mikey Conway. Well...........the money has come for Mikey YET again for this one with even Chairman Tom putting up 10 English Pound on Mr Hammy. Got to Deliver in one of these races surely....is this the one ?
Est time . 50.44

And Finally the last TWO .... I couldn't write or decide on these, so i called Paddy Power and spoke to media man 'Laughing Policeman Sammsy' myself and this is what has been posted for the Big Two ;)

Betting is as follows

Enda $1.45

Has to be considered a slight favourite as he has the fastest C2S time of the two. Now known as a pure runner he is not putting on unnecessary weight in the quads from cycling or in the upper body from swimming. Recent run form has been spectacular, holder of the golden shoe and a blistering 3:05 marathon at ironman Melbourne. Been seen doing numerous hours running in the lead up to this race and has tapered to perfection. Almost impossible to conceive a defeat with a Vo2 max of 77, his race to lose.

 Timmys Est Time : 48.58

POD $1.50

Taking this race extremely seriously, has told all sparks elite members he will be unavailable on Saturday to ride and has not been seen on a bike all week. Sources say he has been on Sparksy’s couch 3 times this week and it won’t be anything mental holding him back. Although Enda is the pure runner, Pod has historically had it over him in mano o mano races. Some say he has a heart the size of pharlap, others that the pain of Enda’s girlish glee hurts more than pain on the road. The shirts are all ready, he just needs the result to wear it now.

Timmys Est Time; 49.21

For the record My $$$$$ are on Enda :)

Well guys , have a great race all those that are running , a full report and photos will be published on Monday - Lets hope its all good

Good Luck

Have a great weekend

Cheers

Oh me........Well i will just battle away and try to keep those Irish boys honest for as long as i can, and try to keep Mr Conway at bay as i like the thought of having a nice Ayrton Senna ( A Tenner) in my pocket from chairman Tom

Also Richie High has given me 60 seconds start on handicap for a few beers :)

........See you all in Bondi

Taper Time.

Thursday, Just a cruise around the park for an easy 8ks with clients to turn the legs over before Sunday, saw Paul Liam O'Doherty aka  PLOD getting in his final prep work around McKay as well - knocking out some sub 3 min ks, brief chat with him as he explained he was out to smash Enda and was just heading to the printers shop to get his latest design t/shirt ready :)
I was then off for a massage to help those legs recover before returning home to find about 100 emails again from the 'Sparks' Clan (Enda and Company) talking there TRASH talk :)

The Games have continued to excite me with more GOLDS coming our way overnight - Care of our Boxers and Taekwondo Girls , Good old Babyface Nicola Adams wins our first ever then a few hours later BRIT Katie Taylor repeats the dose - Well done girls, (Even Enda was up at all hours cheering her on )
One of the best races of the games was in the Mens 800m Final - with David Rudisha blitzing the field to record a New World Record in 1.40:91 Unbelievable. Did make me laugh though when the commentator has just said about the winner of the 800,"lovely story he was trained by an Irish Priest",......FFS ever likely he could run !!! :)

Just been in to the Town Hall to pick up a few things for the City to Surf , saw a big photo on the Wall with many familiar faces from last years race ( i presume ) ...it was like Spot the HuRTS crew, Even my Ugly bonce gets on there.
Check it Out;

Mikey Conway ( centre ), Me front with Striders singlet on the wall of SHAME :)

PLOD on his final sub 3 minute ks at McKay Oval

The Muppet's - POD and Enda, who will be wearing the bragging rights after Sunday ?

Will be back on later to give ALL times and betting ODDS for Sunday's big event

Cheers

Duck Pond 1600m Efforts x 4

Promised Mikey Conway i would  to go into the city today for the HuRTS session but was to busy with work (some cynics would say i was running scared of him as he hits top form) so decided to stay in the park for one of my old sessions that i do more in the summer months and that is the 1600m around the Duck Pond in Centennial Park. Basically you run along a dirt track for 500m then just hog the Duck Pond all the way around back to the start.
Busy first up so i ended up with 8ks warm up with a client at an easy pace before getting set for the first rep, Battled on the first rep to be honest just to hold a pace and wondered then how the hell i would get through the rest of the set, Got into my stride more of the 2nd and was feeling better as the session wore on, although i was glad to get the final one out of the way.
Times for the Four were:
5.42 (3.35 pace)
5.33 (3.28)
5.30 (3.24)
5.29 (3.23)

Happy enough with that, and that pretty much is it now - Don't think any more training i do will make any difference to the time for Sunday so will just rest up and try to freshen up the legs and will have a massage on Thursday as well.
The usual TRASH has started in time for the big run - mostly coming from the Irish Corner yet again, Don't think i will get involved in all that and just leave them to it  :)

Tomorrow i will give my HONEST assessments for all the HuRTS boys and there predicted times.

Cheers

Proud to be British.

In what was being tauted as Super Saturday for the Brits on Day 8 of the Games our guys certainly didn't disappoint. I was glued to the TV for most of the evening and early morning as i witnessed our BEST day at a games in over 104 years (so i read), The Rowers were sensational last night, as were the Women's cycling team but the TWO standouts must have been "our Beauty' Jessica Ennis in the Heptathlon and Mo Farah in the 10'000, Don't think i have been that excited watching the Olympics since seeing Seb Coe win Gold in 80 and 84, or my hero Daley Thompson destroy all before him at the same games. What a race from Mo, pretty much went all to plan and never really looked troubled and what a kick for the final lap. Ennis's profile just continues to get better , she is the NEW Darling of British sports after her latest superb efforts. And just when we thought it couldn't get any better we even get a 'Ginga' (that's a Red head for our American readers) take out a GOLD as well care of Greg Rutherford's leap in the Long Jump.
Although we didn't win Gold, i also enjoyed the women's triathlon overnight, fantastic race with the Aussie girl coming 3rd and almost a dead heat for 1st/2nd. The girl Norden(Sweden) who got 2nd used to train with us in Centennial Park about 7 years back before she turned PRO so good to see her doing so well in the years since, Her running used to be her weakest leg can you believe, so she has come along way.


Tonight we have more cycling and we also get to see Andy Murray in the final of the tennis, and the sailing guy Ben Ainslie goes for Gold, Must see will be the Men's 100m and everyone will be out to see if Mr Bolt can continue his dominance or will the new breed come through?

Some cracking photos from last nights events

Darling Girl 'Our' Jessica Ennis Put a request in to Tommy H to see if he can bring her back here and join us for a session?

Mo Farah as he crosses for GOLD in the 10'000m

Our Very first Ginga and not to be outdone - Greg Rutherford after winning the Long Jump.

Oh Sorry, i know NOT British, but someone told me to look out for Fredericksen on the Ladies Triathlon, she may not do anything but keep and eye out for her.........
Lovely bike :)

And Finally - I heard Channel 9s Shambolic Coverage continued whilst the Men's 10'000m race was on, and NOT showing it live with only brief highlights, instead showing replays from the swimming ( probably Kieren Perkins swim in 1996), its an absolute joke and so happy i don't have to watch as i have FOX, Talking FOX , i am very impressed with Matt Shirvington's knowledge - wasn't a big fan of his in his running days but his presentation has won me over. Unlike Englishman Mark Nicholas on 9, this guy is normally on in the Summer for the Cricket and is possibly in line to replace Richie Benaud, He is so "In Love with the Aussies , all i can say he is either on a good wicket or is smoking someone at Channel 9 :)
Mark, do us a favour ...... and show your true colours for Gods sake :)
Oh........What a PROUD DAY TO BE BRITISH :)

Cheers

BRAT Duathlon, 60.34 (Unofficial) ...2nd

Last chance of a hit out before next week so i was keen to give this a go and push that little harder to see what i could knock out at the BRAT Duathon (5k run/20 bike/2.5k run), Rolled up to find 'Team Sparks Number 1 PLOD in attendance again along with English Wannabe Eoin backing up from yesterdays Striders 10k. Also there was cycling hotshot and perhaps fastest guy on two wheels in the Eastern Suburbs Stewie (Computa) Campbell.
Despite racing yesterday i felt pretty good early and set a good early pace for the first 1k (3.16) settled a little after that and was happy to cross for the first 5ks in 16.50 (3.24s)
Jumped on the bike but knew it wouldn't be long before POD would fly past, and i think i held him for all of ONE lap as the usual high winds got up again around the course. Managed to hold out for best part of 8 laps before an even faster Computa came by and i just hoped he didn't put to much time into me over the last 2 laps before the final 2.5k run. Off the bike in around 34 mins, so another steady ride and set off in chase of Computa some 400m ahead. I saw POD coming back in the other direction heading for home as i caught 2nd spot just on the turn (1.25k) and kept the pace honest for the final couple of minutes to cross the line in 60.34  and a 8.30 last run (3.25 pace)
Bridesmaid again for 2nd spot for the 4th time of the season i think - although in fairness i will never beat POD as he is just so strong on the bike leg, but i do think i could give Robbie Neil a shake up now who beat me in the first two races of the season.
Beaut of a day down there and was good to chat with POD and Eoin after (even if they were talking $h!te) and looking to get a start from me for next weeks run,  :)
Will have to wait until the official results come through as they are not yet up on the website.

Eoin(aka The Leech) 4th, PLOD 1st , Timmy 2nd, and Stewie Computa 3rd after today's race.

Days Rest tomorrow
Cheers

Striders Lane Cove 10k.... 35.46 10th

In what is traditionally a very popular 10k race in the Striders series leading into the following weeks City to Surf, today's race was a much quieter turnout , Not sure if it was the Olympics been on , people obviously overseas or those just being soft but the numbers were way down today.
Still some of the HuRTS boys out there were, Macca, Razor Wareham, Walker, Christian, Dickie Green, MrAce, and English Wannabe Eoin.
I warmed up for 3ks with Chris Truscott before lining up and having a chat with Macca and the race plans ahead.  The gun goes of (well someone yells GO) and i quickly tucked in with Macca, no idea of the pace as the GPS was on one of its funny mornings with readings all over the shop, Told me i was on 4.09 for the first k?? Running side by side with Macca up to the 3k mark and then Razor joined us (6 days after running a 2.42 marathon) he was immediately looking for a chat as he cruised working at about 33% - but i was having non of it.
Got the the top of the hill (5.4ks) ahead of the two, and worked the downhill well i thought , but the buggers came down even FASTER putting 20 metres on me. Tried to close the gap a few times without any success as Razor actually dropped Macca i think as well. Kept it honest to cross some 20 odd seconds behind the boys in 35.46 for 10th overall.
Happy with that, especially on that course and hopefully i can take some confidence away from the race, as i was chatting to Macca after and he was saying how well he felt going up the Hills and yet i managed to stay with him.
Not the best run for Pete Walker, who was feeling a bit run down with a head cold , and MrAce backed up well after his recent marathon effort. Nice to stay ahead of Dicky Green for the first time in a long time, lets hope i can do the same again next week.
Results here ; http://www.sydneystriders.org.au/10k/12/TK12R07OR.shtml


No sign of Richie High, Tucks, or Mikey today - must be doing there own secret training elsewhere......Word on the street is Mikey is flying and there has been a truck load of cash being bet on him from the U.K :)
No sooner had i finished the race this morning, i then had serial pest Enda on the blower " how did you go?, what time did you do? where did you finish?................This guy is getting obsessed, must be keen to turn me over next weekend is all i will say. :)

Yet another Golden night at the Games for the Brits, especially in the Velodrome, with Queen Vic, putting Meares in her place, and the guys storming past the Aussies in the final as well
Great to see Jess Ennis getting off to a super start in the Hurdles, GOSH she has a 6 pack like mine :)
Tonight we get to see how Mo goes in the 10'000, and more to come from Victoria and the rowing i hope.

Hey , whats going on? Every time i press refresh on my Internet page the Aussies seem to drop further down the table :)


Back out for the BRAT duathlon in the morning - see if i can get within 90 seconds of Irishman PLOD

Cheers

Ps, If Enda See's you asking how i went today - tell him i run 39 minutes :)

..... but wait there's MORE

Rest Day today (unlike Enda's 8 x 1k reps) so nothing to report except more news on the overnight Olympics that brought even more GOLD for the team.  Sir Chris Hoy leads team G.B to a team sprint at the Velodrome and we pick up another as well as Silver in the Canoe Slalom.  Lady Victoria was unlucky in the cycling as well as she and teammate Varnish were DQed for an illegal change :(
The highlight though must have been watching Freak Phelps get yet another GOLD in the Individual 200m Medley, the mans a legend (although i still think Tom can take him come Biathlon time at the Boy Charlton in October, should he ever get an invite from the HuRTS team)
Most amusing sight of the games was watching the C/D Grade Rowers............My how slow are they? Even saw the Irish girl Puspure (or is that Pi$$ Poor) take out one race, I've gone faster in my Pedalo with a case of beer on board when I'm on my holidays... Fair Dinkum
Tonight's highlights will be seeing (one of my tips for Gold) Grainger and Watkins in the Rowing as well as more cycling with Lady Vic, and the first sign of Jessica Ennis as the track and field starts up.

Not many of the HuRTS boys about with many deciding to head to London, Tom been the latest to leave us. Although Slim Sammy Agnew has been on a 3 month vacation already, after first following the Tour before he headed home to S.E.London.
The Trash has just had news of Slim Sammy's latest - and it appears he's gone all 'Dave Kanelike' Starstruck and is getting in every photo with EVERY star walking around London.
Check out the Two photos to see for yourself :)

Wiggo on the Way to GOLD in London - Look closer and see if you can spot HuRTS member and Wiggo Stalker  Slim Sammy Agnew in the Crowd :)

Slim Sammy with Another Champion - Chrissie Wellington, Mmmmmmm looking a bit cosy there :)

Out to Lane Cove in the morning and with Tom, Kanser, and Sam away, and Conway, Bartles and J-Fen refusing to race (preferring to stay fresh for City to Surf) .........soft i say, It looks like there will only be former HuRTS #1 Tucks who will be out there so could be a quiet morning.
Who knows what the Irish Lads are up to? Probably trying to come up with ways to topple the English in some manner..... For the record - Enda's 1k reps this morning were all done in 3.15s , fastest done in 3.07 but he'll still tell you he's doing bugger all.

cheers

Its Raining Gold

Late night watching more of the Games meant i was tired again before work this morning and with limited time decided to stay and do my training early opposed to joining the boys in town.
2 x 3ks reps was the go today with a floating 700 metres - Lovely morning despite it being bloody freezing out there before the sun came up. A lap warm up then it was straight into it, pace was solid although never really felt that fast and struggled to even hold 3.30 pace stopping the watch in 10.42 (3.34 pace), A nice long recovery before the 2nd effort and purposely went out harder to see how long i could hold it for. I was blowing pretty hard but happy for a quicker return time wise when i clicked 10.25 (3.28s).
Despite doing some pretty solid training over the past 3 weeks, I am still some way OFF my times that are required for a sub ~50 mins at City to Surf i reckon, although i will get more of an idea after this Saturdays 10ks at Lane Cove. Enda has constantly been on my case about how much training i do and that my times are shocking even by doing that much ................ I agree, that's why i need to train that much harder then you naturals out there. i just wish i was like Enda who can train (supposedly) one day in 5 and can still run sub 35 min pace (re: see Sutherland to Surf) - Unbelievably :)

Well it was a GOLD rush last night and it had to happen, England's first GOLDS of the Games coming our way, As predicted yesterday our 'Pairs' in the Rowing got us on the board then Tour Winner 'Wiggo' continued his excellent form for another.
Happy Days, and lets hope there is more to follow - I think tonight Lady Victoria ( Pendleton) and Hoy hit the track on the bikes, and look out for the Men's Lightweight 4' in the Rowing.

Funniest moment of the games so far was in the Badminton when South Korea and China were involved in a 'We Dont Want to Win' scandal so they could get an easier game in the next round. Outrageous
behaviour, and i was half expecting Enda to come out dressed as the Chinese Coach at one stage :)
The names of the Chinese girls has just been released and will bring shame to there families for years to come, they are - 'Bin Chee Ting' and 'Wi Dun Wong'.
Full report here.  http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/olympics/19072677

Tomorrow - A Slim Sammy Agnew rundown on his England journey so far and how Wiggo had taken out a Stalking Intervention Order against Sam who is now getting obsessed with our New Gold Medal Legend :)
...and guess who else he meets on his travels, (No, Its not Dave Kane)

Rest Day tomorrow , and might even jump in for a swim.

Cheers

It's GOLD

Latest.

Our first GOLD on the board for our Rowing Pair , Take a bow Heather Stanning & Helen Glover.... Sensational.
C'mon Wiggo lets get the double up for the day :)