Cross country training at Marly

What happened to the usual Corra run today? Saturday is reserved for running to Corra lake and back with Nico unless there is some major world crisis that means that we can't manage it. Until now earthquakes in Japan, bushfires in Australia and the current world economic crisis have not influenced this weekly ritual so it was with some surprise that I received a reply to my text to Nico suggesting we run at Marly instead.

Marly is reserved for corss country training sessions with Miguel and the last time I looked at the training schedule, there were no more Saturday sessions before late 2013. However, since I'm not an avid reader of the training schedules, I was prepared to admit that I'd overlooked this session and would accompany Nico and the others nonetheless. I then listened to my voicemail. In fact, the session was just with Yoan, Nico and Jean-Marc and possibly Sébastien. I felt worse now. Training with the best athletes from the club and knowing that I'd be struggling behind on my own was not motivating and a long lie-in in bed was looking infinitely more preferable.

We arrived at Marly park and Jean-Marc and Yoan turned up just after accompanied with the plan for the morning. 5 hills to begin with (roughly 100m), then 12' threshold, 6' threshold, 6' threshold and 5 hills to end off 2' recovery between each block. An easy warm-up around our usual cross-country training route and then we began. The 5 hills were straight-forward but I could already feel a little tension in my hamstrings from forcing up the slope. We then attacked loops of the pond, heading down through the trees to begin with before turning left across the grass and then back along the conifers in the long grass and then a couple of short slopes to end the loop.

The first interval saw Yoan loping away in front, Nico being gapped behind and me being gapped by Nico. Jean-Marc had run off to do a couple of slopes instead. I was running slightly under 4' pace due to the uphill slopes at the end of each loop. They were taking their toll on my legs and I'd end each loop in trepidation of the uphill to finish. A couple of minutes recovery and Nico and Jean-Marc (back from his slopes) ran back to me so that we could start on the next interval. This was exactly the same story and the following 6 minutes I'd run at the same pace as the first interval. Bis repetita for the next interval too and it was a huge relief to finish this and to just have the last 5 hills to complete the session.

Nico said that we were late for the interval. Sorry ???!! It was now he announced that we still had another 4' of threshold to run before we attacked the hills. I'd missed this completely and I now ran the last loop using sheer willpower uniquely. My legs were shot, my achilles was aching and I was hungry to boot. What a session. The last hills were hard but quick and we then warmed down to complete the 16.5k run for the morning in 1:29. Give me a fast run to Corra anyday over this...

Marly cross country training

Laurence agreed somewhat reluctantly to come with me for the annual cross-country training sessions that take palce in Marly park prior to the start of the cross-country season. The improvement in form of the girls (Laurence, Sandra and Katia) has encouraged a healthy pressure to be put on them to take part in the races this year to represent the club. I encouraged them to do some specific training as, even if the cross-country season is not a specific objective as such, these races do help in general performance with the hills and cardiac work in training.

We arrived in Marly to find a smaller turnout than the usual track sessions (thank goodness as the track is very crowded at the moment). Miguel was there to encourage everybody on and to make sure that there was not too much slacking. I chatted to François, who was there for the first time, and we spoke about the benefits of this training. We warmed up around the course, showing the newcomers the difficulties: the first long slope lasting 440m with an average gradient of around 8 - 9%; the second stepper slope lasting 200m at 15% and then the final 1.5k with it's fast downhill and then the long slog in the tall, wet grass before the final bumps to the end of the loop.

Miguel had decided that since it was the first session that we'd only be doing 2 loops instead of the usual 3. Yoan arrived at this point and ran to the front with Ilyes. We set off up the first hill and they both distanced me immediately. A new guy, Stéphane, comes past me up the first slope but I'm closing on him towards the end and I catch him up again on the recovery. I resolve to stay with him and on the next slope I can see that he's suffering already, having gone into the red too soon. On the last section of the first loop, he passes ahead again but I catch him in the grass and overtake, gaining the satisfaction of finishing the first loop ahead of him.

We set off on the second and this time I'm in no-man's land. Yoan and Ilyes are way ahead on the hills, Stéphane is behind. I ran at my own pace and am slightly slower than the first loop, going up the first slope in 2:00 compared to 1:55 for the first time around. I missed the competition from José was was taking it easy before a half-marathon race tomorrow.

I ended the session by running the last section again behind Laurence and Sandra and could see that Laurence was enjoying herself and finding it easier than she had imagined.

13.3k all up. With a long run tomorrow morning, I should hit the 100k again for this week.

LIFA cross country - Les Mureaux

I didn't want to run this and I wasn't disappointed. I'll keep the story short as I was unhappy with my run, unhappy about the pace and unhappy by beaing beaten by Mr Moustache from Houilles.

I turned up for the veterans race and was surprised to see that there were only 3 of us from the club: Eric, Robin and myself. José, Bruno, Thierry and Olivier had all pulled out, leaving us without a team (4 runners necessary). I warmed up feeling fairly lousy as I had a heavy stomach from breakfast which had not worn off. I wondered if this would disappear as soon as the race started.

I lined up and it was a fast start from the gun. My stomach was ever present and I was heavy in my legs, just not in the race at all. We had 2 medium laps to run and then 2 big laps. I was ahead of Mr Moustache from the start and Nico warned from the sidelines that he was just behind me at the start of the second lap. He overtook me shortly afterwards and I never had the capacity to pull back the ground he made at this point. The distance didn't grow as the laps went on but I couldn't pull up the energy to accelerate and chase him down.

The pace was very similar to Montesson despite the course being a lot flatter and faster in theory. I averaged 3:53 over the course and just felt that I under-achieved. I was never in the race mentally and really just hanging on from the start. Very disappointing and a pathetic performance that I'll try and put behind me.

Nico ran a good race in the seniors. He set off slowly letting the leaders pull away before accelerating in the second half of the race and slowly clawing his way back through the field beating Guillaume R, a good road-runner in the process. Wish I could have done the same.

West Paris basin cross-country championships

I've stated this several times, but I'll repeat myself again: I don't like cross-country. I wasn't looking forward to this race, despite the fact that I was better rested than last time and had enjoyed more focused training and race practise compared to the last race. Nico was enthusiastic and considered that he was in good shape for the race. He was racing after me and I was looking forward to comparing our times. He had informed me that Thierry fancied his chances and was looking to try and stay with me from the gun. I might not like cross-country, but neither does Thierry and despite a recent improvement, I couldn't see him bothering me today.

We watched the girl's race to start, where they all ran a decent race. Luckily it hasn't rained recently and the Montesson course was relatively dry with only a couple of patches where the mud would pose a problem. I put my spikes on and after a quick warm-up with Eric, I lned up with the 250 others who'd made it through the first round and waited for the gun to go.

I knew from the start that eating a large breakfast at 11:00 am was a mistake. It was weighing on my stomach and for a while the thought of sticking a couple of fingers down my throat was an option. I got over this and tried to focus on the race. My main objectives were to finish ahead of Thierry and José, like last time, and to beat Mr Mustache from Houilles. After a fast start and a few falls at the first corner, not to mention the spikes grazing my legs, I managed to catch up the gold and black vest from Houilles and overtake in the first downhill section.

The rest of the race was spent trying to find a rhythm and maintain my position in the field. I knew that I was somewhere between 80 and 90th and I could see Olivier and Bruno ahead without ever managing to get them close enought ot be able to worry them. Mr Mustache remained behind and with a few discrete glances around the numerous corners on the windy, bendy loop, I was able to see that he was a good 10 places behind and not threatening to come back to me.

I suffered in the final lap and lost a handful of places. I'd given just about everthing I had and was not motivated to push any harder. In a 10km road race, there's always the watch to tell you how well you've run, in cross-country, you just can't tell.

I finished the race in 90th place in 36:56 for the 9.5km so an average pace of 3:53. I was fairly pleased with the result considering the hills, the conditions and the mud.

I watched the seniors run afterwards and Nico pulled off an excellent run where he challenged Jean-Marc for the first loop before falling back on the second and third. He finished in 35:11 so 90 seconds faster than me over the same distance. I'll be hard pushed to beat him over 10km this year.

Some photos of me over the course:

Just checked the results of the guy who finished just ahead of me and the guy who finished just behind me. Results over 10km last year were 35:49 and 35:42 respectively (Vélizy and Enghien). I can officially declare that it was a good run.

Verneuil x-country - departmental challenge

Plenty of work on at the moment and this is my first opportunity to update my blog in a while. This Sunday in question, I was taking part in the first of the cross country races planned for the Paris region, starting with the Yvelines department challenge where I was running in the veteran's race, the first of the day.

It was a cold morning with a layer of frost everywhere. Another one of those days where you wonder why you run and even on my warm-up I was suffering from minor frostbite on my fingers. I'd had two late night's out the previous evenings and I really wasn't looking forward to the event. I am not keen on cross-country even at the best of times and with the weather like this and a distinct lack of sleep, I was putting on a brave face for a difficult moment.

I met the rest of the vets team and we warmed up together: José, Thierry, Olivier, Bruno W, Charles and several others. We were 17 in total from the club taking part in this race and I was hoping to finish in front of José and Thierry for the first time ever due to my improvement and their lack of training and race practise recently. The race was around 3 loops next to the Seine at Verneuil and measured around 9km in total. I hesitated about whether to put spikes on or not as the ground was largely frozen and there were patches of tarmac around the course. After a lot of indecision, I finally slipped them on 2 minutes before the start.

We lined up at the start in a wide line and when the gun went off, I set off at what seemed a reasonable pace. I didn't want to burn myself out from the outset and I kept an eye on Olivier about 15 metres in front. He's a cross country specialist and is back in shape after a few months of taking it easy. I figured that I was in the right spot. It was only about half way around the first lap that I saw Thierry and José running together ahead and I focused on reeling them in. I passed them about 3/4 of the first loop and I knew that José had stuck with me since I heard our supporters cheering his name just after mine on the way round.

The cheers for him faded on the second lap slightly so I knew that I'd made a little break and from then on I was happy enough just to maintain my position. My motivation wasn't very high and I could feel the tiredness in my legs from Thursday's intervals. I chased Mr Moustache man from Houilles for the remainder of the race and just when it looked as though I would catch him on the final lap, 2 runners that I'd been dragging behind me went past and I didn't have the energy to follow. Mr Moustache finished just ahead (a V2 to boot!)

Splits went as follows: 3:40, 3:45, 3:58, 4:01, 3:54, 4:00, 4:06, 3:58, 3:56.

Too slow to recover from the uphills and general fatigue over the second half of the race. Nevertheless, when I checked the finishers around me, they were generally 35 - 37 minute 10km runners so I was at my level.

So finished all up in 34:24 in 38th place from 172.

Video of the first lap here after 800m. You can see me at around the 29" mark.

Marly - X country training

It was decided Thursday evening after a discussion on Tuesday at the club that we'd organise a last cross country training at Marly park for Saturday morning. The cross country season starts next weekend for me with the departmental challenge in Verneuil. It was the last possibility to get some hills in before the weekend as I'd missed most of the x-country training sessions with the marathon preparation. Nico was off skiing and little chance of him attending, but a last minute sms from the train coming back from the Alps and he was on too, despite being apprehensive following a week of no running and feasting on tartiflette.

The plan was great. The execution was slightly more difficult. A night on the town with Nick and Paul, a slight excess of alcohol and a distinct lack of sleep all conspired to make the exercise harder than initially envisaged. After the first lap of the park for the warm-up, I really wondered what I was doing there and why I hadn't accepted Nico's first suggestion of an easy run to Corra. There was going to be no respite either as there were only 6 of us: Nico, Ilyes, Jean-Marc, José, Jean-François and me.

We set off up the first hill and I started the Garmin. My legs failed me towards the top and I let Jean-Marc, Ilyes and Nico gap me. 1:59 was the verdict by the end of the slope so 5 seconds slower than last time I was here. The rest of the session went the same way. My legs were too tired still suffering from Thursday's session and an excess of beer. Although we'd said from the outset that we'd run 3 laps of the park, Jean-Marc stopped first on the second slope, Nico next after his second lap and only Ilyes, José and I completed the plan. I wasn't proud though as my times up the slope that I use as a reference suffered: 1:59, 2:03, 2:02 some 10 seconds slower than usual.

15.4 km all up in 1:18. Tough session and it firmed up my New Year's resolution to reduce my alcohol consumption.

Hill training - Marly

I had forgotten to tell you that I'm entered for the Ecotrail from Versailles to Paris next Saturday. 50km of trail running in the Paris area with 1000m of ascent to be negotiated. It's not quite 6 foot track but it's not bad for around here. And it's 50km long. Whether I forgot or whether I've been trying to put it out of my mind is also another question that needs to be answered. I didn't enter the event. Laurence entered me when she decided that she wanted to run further than a marathon. I can hear you now : further than a marathon you must be going mad - probably.

Well the race is fast approaching and I'm nowhere near to being race ready. Laurence and I decided that we needed some hill training for our final preparations and so we headed off to Marly, for the cross-country training route to hone our hill-climbing skills. Laurence had never run here before so we ran together easily for the first lap and I showed her the 3 different phases for the circuit.

Phase 1: the long hill slog. This is a very steady gradient of around 8% which rises for 440m. My aim is to try and run up here as close to 2 minutes as possible before recovering on the downhill and the next phase.

Phase 2: the short steep hill (aka green carpet or 'tapis vert'). Whereas the first phase is a wide track heading uphill, this is a path, or rather 2 paths with grass growing in between both path, hence the name. When we're cross-country training, we run 2/3 of the distance up this hill at top speed. With Laurence, we run to the top but at a slower speed and then recover coming down the path on the opposite side.

Phase 3: the speed section. We run down a shallow gradient between the poplars and then around the lake to run back along the opposite side, ending up 2 short banks. Unfortunately, there is some conservation work going on at the lake so we have to continue up to the equivalent path on the far side running back up a shallow gradient between the trees.

This completes the circuit and I tell Laurence that having warmed up we're now going to run this 3.75km circuit 3 times at our own speeds.

I set off steadily up the first hill but, as always, the effort makes itself felt about 2/3 of the way up and the lactic and pain begins to set in. I make it to the top in 2:10 before the recovery. I struggle to the top of green carpet, wondering why on earth I didn't admit to Laurence that we only usually do 2/3 of this hill and then push the last section, imagining Mireille on my shoulder and Nico just ahead to keep me going.

One lap down and 2 to go. I watch Laurence as she runs down the shallow gradient on phase 3 and set off on the second loop. It's harder now and I run the hill in 2:12, the steep hill is slower but the last section is roughly the same speed. Laurence is just coming down green carpet this time.

Last lap and I comfort myself that I won't have to do this again. Hill in 2:14 this time, green carpet and my legs and thighs especially are crying for mercy and the fast section where I coast a little, happy to finish. I see Laurence coming down from the first hill and I run to catch her up back up green carpet. I could have waited at the bottom - I must be mad but convince myself that it's doing me good. We run the last section together and finish.

17.5km all up in 1:34 or an average of 5:24, not that this means much over such a hilly circuit. Garmin reckons that there was almost 500m of ascent in total.

Ankle held up nicely, but thighs sore from the exercise.

Cross training - more hard work

Lot of people turned up today for the cross country training session at Marly park. I gave Anne a lift to the meeting point where we were met by José, Thierry, Jean-Marc, Miguel, Jérémie, Laurent (x2) and then at the last moment Nico. There were almost as many women as blokes today, with Mireille, Pascale, Anne, Delphine, Aude, Murielle and Catherine.

Miguel announced that we were reverting to the old, standard cross-country training sessions. No more of the 3 ' intervals but back to the old course, pushing it hard up the 2 hills and then the acceleration down the path and around the lake to finish the lap. 3 laps were programmed.

We set off easily on the warm-up and had a banter as to how Thierry was feeling after Thursday's session and whether he would be able to keep up with me snapping at his heels. I was feeling lousy and the front of my thighs were still sore from the intervals 2 days earlier. I've definitely been feeling the increase in the intensity of the training. I'm just hoping that it's going to pay off sometime.

Anyway, it was too late to think about anything now. I dropped my jacket in the car and started the session with the others. I attacked the first hill forcefully, but not too fast. Thierry was just alongside and Nico wasted all his energy providing running commentary. "Be careful James, Thierry is 20cm behind you and moving fast" etc, etc, ad nauseum. I felt easy for at least 200m up the hill and then the thighs began to tighten. What had previosuly felt easy became a slog, legs were hard to lift, and feet dragged. Nico, Thierry, Jérémie and Jean-Marc left me here and I struggled to the top of the hill as the wind started blowing directly into my face. A huge relief to get to the top and to press the lap button - 2:02.

Recovery down the hill before attacking the next hill: a short sprint to the top of this one before coming back down again. José comes past me here and this is the last that we see of him as he reduces his recoveries and pushes on. Thierry, Jean-Marc, Jérémie and Nico are just in front and Mireille is just behind me and it stays like this for the rest of the session. It's only on the downhill section and then the flat around the lake that Mireille pushes me, threatening to overtake. I manage to hold her off, especially on the far side of the lake where the grass is longer and wetter and the going tougher.

We do 3 loops and my leg muscles ache, my stomach muscles are tightening and I'm tired. We all feel the same and nobody has eased off. We warm-down chatting to Mireille and telling her how easy it must be for her: 30kg of weight less to carry around and a cross country race that is half as far in perspective. Piece of cake ...

15.5 km all up in 1:26. Tough going. Should be easier tomorrow, but I'll run over to the club to keep the distance up.

Bis repetita X-country training

Second week of cross-country training this morning and Nick and Anne very kindly picked me up to take me to Marly for the session. Nick has been suffering from a bad back lately with both neck pains and lumbago causing him pain and to ease off on the running recently. I know just how frustrating this type of injury can be and the tension that it causes within the family. When Laurence and I have been injured, after a week of not being able to run, the partner just avoids confrontation totally as any disagreement turns into a row within instants.

So I was intrigued by how Nick had been managing this week to treat the problem and his explanations were a real eye-opener for me. Firstly, treatment by the osteopath (nothing too unusual here), then massages and electrode treatment on the buttocks (now we're getting kinky!), followed by an in-house yoga session with a class of females only and a female instructor. Apparently, the instructor (a young, dark, foreign beauty by all accounts) was not satisfied at Nick's attempts at suppleness and proceded to force him to the floor by pushing with her hands then treading on his back. It was only Nick's male pride (and the fact that he was overwhelmed by the instructor) that stopped him from crying out in pain at the treatment. Anyway, this might not have done the trick to heal him completely, but he seemed determined enough to want to return for more punishment next week. He was ready to come to training at least.

A far larger crowd at the training session this week with the runners from last Saturday joined by Bruno, Jérémie, Mireille and Delphine amongst others. Nico turned up on time for once and even looked as though he'd managed to have a decent night's sleep; so either his poker friends were away for the weekend; or, more likely, he'd burnt through his pay-packet again and was waiting for next month's salary. Whatever the reason, it had done him some good and he was fresh and eager to start the session. Delphine was back from Les 4 Chateaux race, flushed with success and the fact that she'd been chased around the course by 2000 men.

Miguel had planned the same session as last week (3 blocks of 3x3') and after a warm-up lap, dictated by the trail runners who insisted on finding the muddiest, steepest tracks in Marly park, we set off on the session proper. Nico and I started the first flat session and I stayed with him, closely followed by Jérémie until the first slight uphill when I fell back slightly and Jérémie came past. The second interval was uphill and Jérémie showed both Nico and I the power he has, leaving us for dead up the steep hill as we finished our interval about 2/3 of the way up. He paid for this from then on though as he hadn't realised that there were 3 blocks to do and he was already in the red. We then attacked the next hill where I stayed with Nico until about 3/4 of the way up and he pulled slowly away from me again.

This was the pattern for the rest of the session but I was a lot closer to Nico than last week and I felt far more regular in my effort. We finished the session with a warm-down around Marly park, chatting about the session and how we both did better than the previous week's efforts. I could feel the improvement already and I am convinced that a few more sessions like this and I'll be able to maintain far higher speeds up the hills. The flat sections are not a problem and I can hold my own with Nico and Jérémie but as soon as we hit the hills - I'm useless.

15km all up so a good long session in the cold. Snow/heavy frost/hail on the ground and the park was absolutely beautiful to run around. A real pleasure this morning. My only regret: that the kind runner who brought along the Thermos with the tea for the stretching at the end of the session didn't do the warm-down and so ther was none left by the time we finished!

Cross-country training

Cross-country season is looming on the horizon and approaching quickly. I can feel the atmosphere already: cold, frosty mornings with a thin layer of ice over waterlogged fields that crack underfoot, plunging your feet into pools of icy water. Fields that are rapidly churned into full-blown mudbaths with clods that cling to your soles as you try to plow through the ruts without twisting your ankle. Courses designed to take you up the same steep bank 14 times in the space of one loop and where 10km races last well over 40 minutes. Delightful.

This was the first session of training for the cross-country organised by the club and coached by Miguel. The same Miguel who had prepared any potential candidates for training very carefully by basically informing everyone on Thursday that if you weren't Superman, it wasn't worth turning up. It was with a little trepidation that I waited to be picked up by Nick and Anne this morning to head to Marly park where the ordeal would take place.

We were only a small group (not surprising after Miguel's prep talk) comprising of Nick, myself, Philippe, José, Miguel and a couple of other male runners I didn't recognise. The ladies were better represented with Anne, Christelle, Pascale, Catherine and Aude. We weren't prepared to hang around as it was chilly so without wasting too much time we set off on a warm-up around the circuit. We reached the far end of the lake when we saw a familiar figure running towards us: Nico who'd obviously slept in, judging by his dishevelled look. Another rough night apparently.

We finished a first loop and then began the session proper: 3 blocks of 3x3' off 90 seconds recovery. The aim was to attack all of the hills at the beginning of each 3 minute acceleration so as to work out the legs good and proper. I set off with Nico for the first interval which was mostly along the flat. I was able to stick with him until the first slight uphill and then off he went. My problem is definitely on the hill work where everytime we hit an uphill, I would fall off Nico's shoulder and José would come past. José advised me to take smaller paces up the hills at a faster rhythm. This worked to some effect but it wasn't sufficient to stay with the 2 of them.

By the end of the session I was well and truly knackered and coughing my lungs up due to the effort involved. It was good to see Nick run all the session, bar the last hill, following his recent back problems. He was sporting a nice new pair of trainers which looked about 2 years old by the end of the session.

14 km all up in 1:26 but a really good workout and one which I'll try and keep up over the next few weeks.

Cross Toto Vermet

It was the annual club cross-country race again today and I had decided that although I wasn't in the mood to take on a full-blown race so soon after the Toulouse Marathon, that I should still defend my unmerited title as 1st vet from last year's race.

The race plan was clear, I wasn't going to try and hold on to either Gérald or Nico but to run my race and to follow either Bruno or Thierry around the course and just push it at the end to win and retain my title. So much for the plan, what actually happened ?

We ran to the start of the race at an easy jog and having picked up my bib, we all set off for a survey of the course and a 3km loop both to warm-up and see how much mud was present. I'd put on my trail shoes since it had rained really heavily yesterday and I was convinced that the path back up to the start would be waterlogged and muddy. This was probably a bad shout as the path was relatively dry with only a few pools of water on the final stretch.

All the main players were there: Nico, Jean-Marc, Gérald, Bruno W, Thierry but no sign of Bruno P (Nice-Cannes marathon next week) so that was one competitor less and I only had Thierry to worry about. Thierry had struggled at training on Thursday night on the track and I was fairly confident that I could beat him if I stayed close.

We lined up at the start, all 71 of us, and unlike most races there is no jostling as to the position on the line. Since everyone knows each others abilities, there is a natural order which establishes itself and it is one of the most courteous races in which I've taken part. We set off moderatley and I let the front runners gain a few metres from the gun. It was only after 300 metres of downhill that I started to pay attention as to what was going on up ahead and then Thierry came past. I latched onto him as he did and we passed Mireille on the first uphill section. Nico wasn't too far ahead and he'd let a little gap grow between himself and the front, with Gérald ahead of him here. I stuck to Thierry closely and as the course flattened out towards 2 km and juts before the start of the uphill back to finish the 3 km loop, I felt really easy and overtook him as I thought that he was tiring slightly.

In retrospect, this was probably a mistake and I should have hung longer on his shoulder before making an effort. As it was, I passed him and didn't make sufficient effort to make a break and another 200m later, he came past me again. I hung on tight now but mentally, he'd been saved and I could see that his stride looked more fluid. We ran past Nick who'd come along to support us. I really appreciated his words of comfort as I passed him: "Come on James. Make an effort" - thanks mate!

We finished the first lap in 11:05 and this was faster than last year for me but I definitely felt easier. Mireille finished behind beating her own record by 2" and there was a bigger gap between us than last year. The front group had made 20 seconds on us by now and I could see that Nico had caught and passed Gérald and that on the second lap that both Thierry and I were starting to reel him in. We ran up the short hill for the second time and I began to tire at this point, having run 4k of the 6k race. Thierry was running smoothly and I could see that bar an explosion on his part, I would have difficulties catching him now. Gérald maintained his distance at this point as probably both Thierry and I slowed down our pace. These positions stayed like this until the end of the race and it was only afterwards that I was cross with myself for not having made a bigger effort to catch Thierry.

I finished 6th overall in 23:04 beating last year's time by 2" but a minute down on Nico who ran a superb 21:58, despite complaining about the 15k we ran yesterday which tired him out! Gérald finished 17 seconds ahead of me and Thierry 9. I was pleased with my time and the shape I'm in despite still suffering the after-effects of the marathon. Looking forward to running at Montfort l'Amaury and the night trail.

14,2 k all up in 1:12.

LIFA Cross country - Aulnay sous Bois

This was the moment I'd been dreading: arriving at the Parc Départemental at Aulnay to see plenty of runners, loads of mud and hills galore. I wandered around to begin with looking for the St Germain tent, in vain, and it was only when I thought that the others hadn't yet arrived that Miguel came up to me and showed me the base camp, hidden behind the sausage and chips wagon !

The smell of a good sausage and chips was far more tempting than undressing and getting my running kit on, so I hung around, waiting for the race to be cancelled so that I could go home. Unfortunately, this wasn't to be so I chatted with the others from the club: Eric, Bruno W, Thierry, José and Régis. We all knew that this was to be our last race of the cross-country season as none of us were talented enough to get through this round and onto the nationals afterwards.

After a short warm-up with Régis, we lined up at the start, in starting block number 3, all 6 of us, joking around and waiting for the gun. The marshalls checked that nobody's toes were over the start line and then the gun went. The gun went again - false start !! Marvellous, just when I hoped it was going to be all over with, back we went again to line up in our box. The gun went again, for good this time, and we were off.

I settled into an easy rhythm, not wanting to tire too early, knowing that I would be towards the back of the race anyway. The course was well mapped and involved a large circuit of the park (3km around each loop) to be run 3 times. There were 2 large hills to be negotiated on each lap and we hit the first at the end of the sprint start. I was about 30th from the back of the race and a couple of runners ahead of Régis. I could see José just ahead and Miguel was there on the side of the course to tell me that I'd made a good start and to keep it up.

After the initial burst at the start, the race settled down quickly and there wasn't much changing of places as we went around the first lap. I was listening to the breathing of the runners around me and I could tell that they were suffering as much as I was. This continued into the second lap and then towards the end of the second, Régis came past, just before the second hill of the lap. I couldn't match his speed up the hill and having made the break I wasn't able to get back to him again. My motivation dropped at this point and I only wanted to finish, but there was still a lap to do.

Miguel encouraged me as I passed him again. He told me to chase the 2 runners ahead and to take them before the end. I focused on this task and closed them down and overtook them and on the back straight of the third lap and then I just concentrated on running hard until the finish.

I sprinted to the line and finished in 37:11 in 163rd position (out of 189 finishers). Régis had made almost 30 seconds on me and Thierry was only 6 seconds in front of him. Overall I was pleased with my race and my performance was in line with expectations. Régis just showed again what a great cross-country runner he is. Thank God all of that is over until next year now.

Cross-country

Liked this photo of me in action at Antony. I can see the determination on my face and the fact that I'm trying hard. Régis is in the background, a good 40 metres back at this point. Don't be deceived by the lack of mud in the photo. This was one of the better spots !

Area cross-country championship

Last year this race was held in Franconville and I suffered defeat at the hands (or rather feet) of my closest rival in cross-country racing, Régis. Today the same scenario looked to repeat itself as Régis beat me again 2 weeks ago at St Quentin and is in good form, especially over cross-country routes.

I arrived with plenty of time to spare, having missed the others at the meeting point in St Germain, I drove by myself to the mecca of cross-country running, Antony. Actually, Antony is a Parisien suburb just south of Paris and is well known for its local specialities of ... high-rise blocks of flats. There was nothing exciting about this course as when I looked at the aerial photo of the course its course was basically designed around the 3 playing fields in the centre of Antony. In fact, if I hadn't been part of the St Germain team, I don't think I would have bothered turning up in the first place.

Too late, I had arrived now and the first good news was that the course wasn't half as bad as I had expected. It was full of twists and turns, plenty of mud and some nice little short hills and technical areas. The ladies race was first for the off. Mireille ran well finishing in the top ten, followed by Gaëlle, Françoise, Catherine and Aude. I warmed up with the other veterans: Thierry, Régis, Bruno, José, Eric, Olivier and Bruno W. My plan for the race was simple: since I wasn't worried about my time or qualifying for the next round, the only aim was to beat Régis. I decided I would stay on his shoulder and pick up the pace in the latter half of the race.

The gun went off and I set off slower than usual, just tagging alongside Régis. Actually, I discovered afterwards that it wasn't as slow as I thought: 3:46 for the first kilometre, then 3:45 for the second. I pushed on past Régis between the first and second kilometre as I felt good in my legs and I thought that I could keep it up. With all the twists and turns in the course, I was able to see my progress over him and I quickly built up a lead of 20 metres or so.

The race was over 9.65 km and when I got to 5km, I could feel I was beginning to tire slightly and Régis began to close the gap between us. He had said beforehand that he would accelerate at this point and I feared the worst. I maintained the pace and was running at around 4:00 per km now. The gap stayed constant at around 10 metres and I watched closely around every corner just to see how he was fairing. We got to the final lap and I was determined that he wasn't going to overtake me now. I pushed a little harder and began overtaking some runners in front of me. I must have gained at least 10 places over this final lap and Régis was still there.

At 600 metres to go, I looked at the watch and decided that it was now or never. I lengthened my stride again and headed for the finish. I gave everything and was bent over double at the end. Régis finished about 5 metres behind me, 2 seconds afterwards. I was delighted to have held him off and feel that I'm getting back some form, thanks to the interval training with the club.

The bad news ... both Régis and I qualified for the next round. We've got to go through this all again and the only motivation will be not to finish last.

9.65k in 38:08 or an average of 3:57 per km. Pretty chuffed.

Week 3

This week started with the departmental cross country chamionships in St Quentin en Yvelines.

Sunday morning saw me at the Parc de Loisirs running over the embankments in the wind and the mud. I warmed up with Nick and the other veteran runners from the club: Fabrice, Régis, José, Thierry, Nick B etc. My aim was to stay (well) ahead of Régis and to get as close to Thierry as I could. I honestly thought that I was in with a fighting chance of beating him over this sort of distance especially through the mud. Thierry is still probably untouchable on the road, but a nice muddy, hilly course would discourage him and I thought that I might be able to sneak past.

As it turned out, I wasn't so far off. After a tough race, he finished just in front of me by 3 seconds and I lacked the mental grit and determination to make the real effort over the final loop. I set off fast (3:43 for the first km) and paid the price afterwards. I'm still lacking the endurance and VMA training to keep up this sort of speed at the moment. The biggest blow was Régis (henceforth known as Crossman!) coming past on the final lap. He's just so constant that despite my efforts (feeble and meagre due to tiredness), I just couldn't stay with him and he first went past me then Thierry to finish a good 30 seconds ahead. So much for revenge for last year's race. Anyway, I considered it as good training as cross-country has never been one of my major objectives for the season.

Wednesday, Thursday and Friday were all early morning runs (6:00am). Same course (10.1k) in 42:45, 43:24 then 44:45. The first run was good as I set off fast (4:04 pace) for 2 k then eased up for 1k before running 1k fast then 1k slow for 3 intervals. Fast intervals were run at 3:53 pace.

Saturday went back to Cora with Nick and ran 15k in 1:15. 54k for the week.

Régis just about to sneak past me !

Cross de Franconville

I didn't want to do this. I knew I didn't want to do this. And I can't say that I'm glad I did it now it's over.

I am not a cross-country runner. Some people like spending their afternoons traipsing around in mud sudden fields, getting their feet soaking wet and slogging up slopes. I am not one of them. Give me a nice road anytime, where you can find a rhythm, obtain a sense of speed, and just go for it.

The afternoon set off pleasantly enough as I watched Laurence running in the women's race. It was a 6.6 km course for them, one small lap and two medium laps (see attached photo for the laps - prize awarded to anyone who can work out what was going on!). Laurence ran steadily and set off at a more sensible pace for this race, in comparison to Montesson, and this paid off as she was within spitting distance of Aude until close to the end when Aude found a sprint finish. I wasn't able to see the end of the race as I was already lining up for the start of the veterans.

Our race was longer as we had one small, one medium and two large loops for our race for a total of 10.2 km. It had snowed heavily yesterday and despite the rise in temperature there was still a fair amount of snow lying around. Of course, all the snow that had melted had turned the previously grassy areas into mudbaths and then there were the hard forest paths that meant that spikes were most uncomfortable top wear. Well that's the excuses out of the way then so what actually happened ?

The usual suspects were lined up for the start: Eric (who I only ever see at races and is a class above), Thierry, Francisco, Bruno, Nick, Régis, Gérard, Patrick and myself. We got all of our excuses out of the way before the race started: Bruno was still suffering from his achilles, Régis hadn't been training much having returned from skiing, I had been marathon training and not tapering, etc. etc. The sun finally came out and the afternooon began to warm up a little. So shorts (borrowed from Jean-Marc as I only brought tights) and runnig top it was. We lined up, the gun went and we were off.

I set off at a steadier pace than at Montesson too. I wanted to be able to handle the extra distance and keep something in reserve for the end of the race. The Garmin clocked me at 19.8 km/h for the start so I managed this really well. Not.

Nevertheless, I felt good for the first kilometre. The path was tough but not excessively and there were stretches were I was able to lengthen my stride a little and push on. There's something about the mud though that just saps your energy. I slowed slightly and the kilometre times dropped to 4:28 at my nadir around 4km. On the first big loop, in the forest section, Régis pulled alongside me. This took me by surprise as I felt that my speed was improving now (which the Garmin confirmed). I tried to stay with him but he inched ahead and by the end of the third lap and into the last, he had 20 metres on me by now.

I was running in a group of around 6 runners and I concentrated on leading them. I feel so much more comfortable leading a group than tracking others. I tried to pull in the group ahead and was pleased since I wad passing runners in the latter part of the race compared to the last cross-country where I went backwards. Régis refused to come back though and he was stronger and stronger towards the end. I pulled off a sprint finish, just to keep the guy behind me from overtaking and ended in 43:08 in 131st position out of a total field of 224. I turned to congratulate the guy just behind me at the end and he thanked me for the pace-making I'd done throughout the race. Just a nice touch that made me feel a little better about the race. Not enough to make me want to do another though.

So 4th finisher from the club as Francisco pulled out with a sore hamstring on the second lap. Finishing positions were:

Eric (39:41), Thierry (42:14), Régis (42:33), Me (43:08), Bruno (43:44), Gérard (44:50), Nick (45:27) and Patrick (46:23)

I was pleased to be within a minute of Thierry, sorry not to have been able to stay with Régis, happy to have beaten Bruno (again) and surprised to have beaten Nick by over 2 minutes (not normal).

Good training but glad it's all over.

A few photos of my suffering:

Laurence running her race Photo of the St Germain veterans with Miguel

Me suffering

Régis beating me soundly Laurence and Christelle

Just why is Miguel pinching Eric's bum ?

Map of the course courtesy of Google Earth

Cross-country training

This was the club session planned for Saturday morning and I didn't want my last experience of this session to repeat itself so I put some boxer shorts on this time.

It was cold but just above freezing so the ground was hard but free from snow and ice this time round. Miguel was leading the session and all of the usual crowd were there: Jean-Marc, Bruno, Fred, Nick, Alex, etc. There were about 30 of us in total.

We did a warm up lap around the course to begin with and I measured the longest uphill on the Garmin just to see how long it actually is. It measures precisely 450m which is pretty measly compared to the effort necessary to get up this slope. The second shorter slope must only be about 250m long at the most but it is steeper and harder to attack.

Miguel had decided that we needed to take it easier than usual so instead of the 3 loops around the course, we were only doing 2. Oh yes, but we had to run the final loop around the lake twice instead of once - so that made it much easier. Not !

We set off steadily and then attacked the first uphill. Jean-Marc and Fred were in front with Bruno and a new runner, Bertrand, just behind. I followed with Nick and Gérard tagging on. The hill is straight-forward to begin with and I felt that the pace could be faster but by the end I was looking at the gate at the top longingly, wondering why it was still so far away, and my thighs were aching with the effort.

We did the second slope and I caught up with Bruno and then around the lake where I was in touch with the 3 in front. Around the lake is downhill on a nice firm surface to begin with and then into the grass and an uneven surface along beside the little conifers to end. Just when you can't push on any more, there are two short slopes that have to be sprinted up to finish. A real killer.

The second lap was similar and I beat Bruno up the hill but he caught me up in the recovery section and set off faster around the lake for the 2 final loops. I was keeping a little in reserve for the final lap of the lake but once I lost Bruno at the beginning, I never made it back to him again.

As I stood panting at the top at the end, I watched Nick come in, white as a sheet, having given everything on the last section of the course and obviously close to chucking up at my feet. He put this down to all the pints that he'd drunk in the UK last week and looking at his face, I could believe this easily.

A good run in a lovely setting. 13km all up and some good hill practise.

I've found a photo of the lake with the conifers that we run alongside. The long hill is in the background going up from left to right.

Montesson

I had a lovely night's sleep prior to the race today but that didn't stop me dreaming and fretting about how I was going to manage in the race. The race strategy was to set off with Bruno and to try and stay with him over the distance.

The veteran's race was the first race of the day and there was a good turnout for the club: Thierry, Bruno, Nick and I with Alex, Philippe, Régis, Patrick, Jean-Claude et al. Some other good runners turned up for the race that we don't usually see in training such as Eric and another Bruno.

The weather forecast had promised heavy winds and rain, but most of the storm had blown through during the night so the weather was a lot better than expected. We lined up for the start after a quick warm-up and we were off. I set off fast and quickly pulled ahead of Bruno with my race strategy flying out of the window from the word go. The ground was very heavy with the rain during the night but we set off fast nevertheless. I managed the first kilometre in 3:47. The rest of the race was downhill from then on. Well actually it was very varied in terms of terrain but I struggled until the finish despite the encouragements from Laurence and the rest of the club scattered around the course.

Somewhere around half-way on the second lap, someone was shouting out the positions and I was in 45th place. From then on home though, I just lost place after place as I struggled to find the strength to maintain my speed and to push off after each little hill and bend. The mud and water were hard going too and the effort to run was intense.

I finished 62 and qualified for the next level, the departmental cross-country in Franconville in 3 weeks time. I was 4th in the team and so helped the team to 7th place. Even if I had finished 10 places higher this wouldn't have changed anything to the team's result so that helped me feel a little better.

We went back in the afternoon for the women's race and by now the course was far muddier and harder. Laurence ran a cracker of a race, just finishing a few places behind Muriel, and beating Aude who normally finish well ahead of her. I was thrilled and running all around the course to cheer her on. She said that this helped although by then end I could tell that she was fed up with me !

By the way, I beat Bruno so was thrilled with that. The fact that he was suffering from an Achilles problem might explain this however. We'll see in the next round.

A few photos of the event attached:

Frostbite

Saturday morning training had been organised by the club for those who were entering the cross-country races over the next few weeks. Nick had rung me up to organise the transport to Marly where it was taking place, but as I got up that morning I beagn to feel that it was a bad idea.

I hadn't been feeling well all week and my cold was still hanging around like a bad memory. To make matters worse, it was early on a Saturday and I felt as though I could do with a good lie-in. And to cap ita ll, having made my way down to the kitchen I looked at the thermometer and it was reading -11°C. Marvellous.

I put on some running tights, 3 tops, a hat, a buff for my neck and some gloves. That should see me through the ordeal I thought. I picked Nick up and drove to Marly park where we got out and met the others. There were a surprisingly good number of runners that had turned up, at least 20. Miguel, Jean-Marc, Thierry, Bruno, Mireille, Regis and Fabrice were there so I didn't have the excuse of taking it easy either. As we set off on the warm-up jog around the course, I could feel the chill around my legs and the cold on my face. My gloves were as good as useless at this temperature too.

The warm-up lap involved a flat stretch through the park and then a long pull of about 500m up a steep slope before going back down and then attacking a steeper slope for about 250m of uphill. We then ran back down before a 1.5 km stretch around the lake running through some powder snow on the far side along an uneven surface. That was the warm-up lap - we now had to run this 3 times pushing the uphills and the last stretch around the lake.

I managed the first lap in an approximate fashion trying to hold on to the leaders. The second 3.75km lap was a lot harder and the uphills were agony. My face was freezing and I lacked the willpower and the strength to stay with them drifting off the back only to catch them on the faster stretch around the lake. The third lap was the killer though: drifting off the back up the hills and losing touch completely, having to run by myself around the lake.

I was spent as I stood at the top of the slope waiting for Nick and their group to finish before heading back to the car. The cold was unbearable once you stopped and I could feel (or rather not) in some areas of my body, most noticeably my crotch. The pain became intense and I was almost doubled up with agony as the blood started flowing to all the extremeties once I got back into the car. It was like being hit in the testicles but permanently.

Laurence refused to help in any way, shape or form despite my pleading once I got home. So much for body warmth. I won't be going on a Himalayan expedition with her in the near future.

Asked Dad for some thermal running tights for my birthday instead !