Easy 10km part 2

Mid-run swim

Easy 10km part 1

Cycle back from Mentone beach

Recovery swim

I was actually quite happy with that run today coming from how I felt doing this exact run just over 2 weeks ago. Ran almost 10 minutes quicker with the heart rate virtually the same. A minute quicker than last year too and within 40 seconds of my 3rd quickest time out of 6 total runs.

So with that considered I think I maximised what I was able to do coming from a fairly unconditioned background for this sort of hard running on this terrain with the short preparation time.

Made a last minute decision to race in the Altra superior 7 rather than the Altra mont blanc carbon and I think it paid off in the end. Feel mechanically smoother on trails especially when I’m closer to the ground and felt more agile which is what you want here. Didn’t get any areas feeling too sore which was another pay off too. In the other option due to my various current weaknesses I likely would have got some significant soreness in the second half. But didn’t have anything that limited me which was nice.

I just felt the legs weren’t strong enough to push much harder with all the ups and downs and changes of direction. Aerobically I was comfortable and was thankful for the cooler conditions. Heart rate average was only 172bpm which was right in the controlled zone. I was feeling pretty fresh and energetic well into the last bit of the course which is unheard of for me here. I’m usually just surviving by late Greens bush. Didn’t take any gels or hydration which I thought I’d got away with until the last 1.5km or so when Kurtis Scott flew past me to pick up 3rd place. He had a seriously impressive run having done a long run the previous day having thought this race was next week and also had to stop a number of times throughout the race! He’s one to watch in the future.

Didn’t have anything to respond to this move unfortunately which was a bit sad at such a late point of the race. I wonder if taking one gel could have given me that extra boost.

Had been sitting in 3rd since around the 12km mark prior to that having been in 4th or 5th for large sections of the first half. It was so good to see such strong competition today. I’d much rather be finishing 4th and seeing a quality field like this than winning in a 1:50+ time. I don’t feel it’s worthy of the win running that time. Hopefully the race continues to grow in quality from year to year. It was certainly the strongest competition I’ve seen yet today. Well done to Toby Sparkes on the win over my training partner Michael Tosin. They had a very tough battle and it was raced in good spirits. 

A great day all round, and looking forward to starting to build with a bit of a different approach this year (once I have recovered properly from this). Hoping to come back next year much stronger and in a position to attack the course. 


Top Sports

Michael Kernahan

Two bays 28km- came 4th in 1:50:48

34 Comments

Splits

Sign up to view more activities from Michael Kernahan

Easy 10km part 2

Mid-run swim

Easy 10km part 1

Cycle back from Mentone beach

Recovery swim

Want to see more?

The #1 app for runners and cyclists

Sign Up for Free. Track your progress and reach goals. Join 100 million active people on Strava.

See More from Michael