A PB; some rain and a good off-road run

Thursday morning - swim

Another enjoyable swim. I don't seem to improve my time but I'm finding the km I swim very comfortable. I enjoyed a lovely spa after the swim. It was so good.

Thursday 6pm - track - run

The sky looked a bit murky as I headed for the AIS straight after work. The temperature became very humid and uncomfortable after the first event - a sure sign that the rain wasn't far away. I entered the 3000m, the first event at 6pm. As tonight was also the Pennington series we were handicapped according to age groups. I'm happy to report that I finally made the distance in under 15mins - yay!

Distance: 3km
Time taken: 14:58

Shortly after the start of the next event, the 3000m walk, the heavens opened and it really poured down. It was a beautiful sight but not such good timing. Those poor walkers were absolutely drenched and by the time the event finished looked like a bunch of drowned rats! However it certainly cooled the temperature suddenly. As it continued to rain steadily during the 1500m CJ and I decided to wait until the 5 lap spiral handicap event which was the last event for the night at 8.15pm. By that time the rain had eased and it was very pleasant running although all that rest between events made me a bit toooo relaxed as is shown by the time I took!

Event - 5 lap spiral (2km)
Time taken: 10:13
Handicap: Group 29
Place: 14th (32 starters)

Friday - Gym - 6.15am

This morning, after a warm-up on the treadmill, I concentrated mainly on the upper body - chest, shoulders, biceps, triceps and abs although I did spend a little time on the leg press.

Saturday - Run with the Cotter group - Molonglo Reach

I chose the 8am start which is the shorter version and although this is the Cotter Group over the summer months they are running from Molonglo Reach where there are more sheltered places to run as the weather becomes much hotter. I have never run with this group before and as neither Marg or Barb could join me today it was a whole new experience for me. When I arrived and realised who was running I have to admit that initally I felt a little intimidated. There were a number of very skinny fit-looking ladies who I recognised as also having very fast times!

The group did various lengths running off road all the time which is much easier on the legs. At the 6km mark only three of us selected to continue on around Mt Ainslie following the Vets' Handicap course and other undulations. It was good for me to run with new people. At this stage I ran with Cathy M with Debbie just ahead. Running is such a lovely way to learn about people's interesting lives and I enjoyed the run especially as we ran at a very non-threatening pace in spite of my initial fears! I will return and next month I believe we all start at 7am so I can select longer distances at that stage!

Distance: 16:42
Time taken: 1hr 41mins (too much talking obviously)
Average pace per km: 6:10
Calories: 1044
Fastest km: 5:17 (interestingly that was at the 16km mark)

After our various runs we met at the BBQ area and had nibbles and coffee and chatted. CJ, Ewen and Steve finished a little later after running for a tough 26km.