Morning wake-up

The walks proposed for today at Les Chavannes didn't interest either Laurence or myself, so we decided we would take part in the morning muscular wake-up with Laureen instead.

After a little discussion, we finally settled on a 'footing' to begin with to be followed by a little workout for the abdominal muscles.

The morning jog consisted of a run around Onnion at an extremely easy pace: 3.5km in 24:17 so that everyone could follow and enjoy a little warm-up.

The hardest part of the morning was the stomach muscle workout at the end. I think I'll still be suffering from that tomorrow.

Latest news: official results of the Taninges - Praz de Lys race are just available here. I finished 37 out of 85 in 1:27:31. My only claim to fame is that I was the first foreigner to finish !!

Mad dogs and Englishmen ...

Very hot and humid here today at Onnion. Sun was shining and only a few clouds hanging over Mont Blanc visible to the horizon.

Set off on a training run up the valley past Megevette and along the course I did last Saturday. The climb up to Megevette went well since I told myself from the outset not to push the pace too hard since general fatigue was setting in with all the exercise that we've been doing since we arrived here. The road was mostly shady with a nice cool breeze coming up the valley channelling cool air for the first 2.5 km of the route. The valley then opened out before Megevette and the trees disappeared. The sun was beating down and the going became laboured despite the cap to protect my own personal solar panel !

I ran to the intersection with the main road for a distance of 6.3 km in 29:39 or an average speed of 4:41 per km and then set back along the main road towards Onnion.

The descent was obviously easier but the heat was getting worse and I was seriously tempted a number of times to stop running and walk instead. I soldiered on and struggled up the final hill before Les Chavannes, our holiday centre. The downhill was a total distance of 5.9 km which I managed in 24:37. So a total distance of almost 12.3km in 54:16 or an average of 4:26 per km.

Hard work in the sun. Roll on Winter for the improved performances !

Rest day

No running yesterday after the race on Sunday. Cycling with Laurence instead.

We signed up for some road cycling at the centre yesterday. This was the first time that I'd been on a road bike for some years so it was with pleasure that we were given some good lightweight bikes (Vitus Stalion I believe) for a morning ride with Claude and Vincent, our guide.

It was a beautiful, sunny day as we set off past Megevette and up to the Col de Jambaz. It felt really good to be on the bike again but most peculiar to get out of the saddle and to push up the hills, having been used to a mountain bike. The old sensations returned quickly and I was soon finding a comfortable rhythm with the pedals and following Claude up the climb. At the top we turned left and climbed up to the next col at Les Mouilles to a height of 1100m, some 300m higher than the start. A long descent into Lullin followed and then a climb back up past Bellevaux and back up to the Col de Jambaz. Claude and Vincent left me behind on the long climb but I kept a steady pace and enjoyed myself, taking time to enjoy the scenery.

A rapid descent back to Onnion to finish the 35 km in 1:42:00 for an average of 20.5 km/h including 600m of ascent. Both Laurence and I thoroughly enjoyed the ride. Bikes were extremely comfortable to ride and felt great quality.

Uphill struggle

I asked yesterday at the tourist information centre in Taninges if it was still possible to enter the Taninges - Praz de Lys hill race, half hoping that the inscriptions were closed.

No problem. Just bring a cheque and a doctor's certificate tomorrow before the race and we'll sign you on. So that was settled, I was going to take part in the race, and had to get up early for the first day of the holiday, something which Laurence very much regretted.

I arrived at 8:00 am in Taninges and sized up the competition. There were about 100 people in all of whom 50 would be taking part in the run. There were a large proportion of women runners which surprised me considering the difficulty of the course and my experience of races in the Paris area. Everyone looked very fit, well equipped and I began to wonder what I had let myself in for.

Ten minutes before the start, we had our last race instructions. The running course was over 11.6 km with a total uphill of 1164m, exactly 10% average gradient over the course. All the climbing was over the first 6.5 km with the last section either flat or downhill.

The barrier was lifted and we set off. I stayed well to the rear, happy to take it easy over the initial sections, knowing what lay ahead. My plan was to keep it steady over the climb and then stretch out over the last section and to pick up as many places as I could then. The plan was very theoretical and the reality totally different. I managed the first kilometre in 7 minutes but my performance went rapidly downhill. The steepness of the course over an old paved track used by the Chartreux monks in the 16th century was too much for me. I walked a large part of this as when I ran, there was little or no effect on my speed but it was far more tiring. I spent this section battling it out with a determined runner who ran steadily up the whole section. When I ran on the less steep sections, I would catch him up and overtake him, and when I walked he would come past me again.

Photo of the race in 2005 (Thanks to Serge: http://serge.courseapied.net/billet.php?idbillet=399)


The path eased at Le Pontet and I was able to trot again. We left the trees behind now and began the last climbs to Le Belzic and then on to the Chalet du Roy. The places were virtually static for the moment with runners walking in the same section and on the flatter sections, running at similar paces. Towards the end of the uphill a runner came past me and I focussed on staying with him as he showed some reasonable speed down the hills. Together we passed around ten runners and soon the last signs were posted showing the distance to the finish: 3km, 2 km. I profitted from a slight uphill to push the pace and to drop my "pilot fish" and he never caught me after. We hit a last section of road and the 1 km sign appeared. I was pushing the pace now and running at around 15 km/h. A final flat section and I saw the arch for the finish, a last burst and I stopeed the watch: 1h27:40 for 11.6 km. An average speed of 7.9 km/h for what must be one of the most tiring runs that I've ever done.

Talk about an uphill struggle.

To cap it all I had to get back down to the start where I'd left the car. I ran for a while and then hitched. Who should stop to pick me up but the runner I'd dropped over the last kilometre !! Thanks Patrick for your help; it was great to meet you and your wife !

Altitude training

We arrived at Onnion safely for the start of the holidays early afternoon on Saturday.

I felt very guilty not having been for a run on Friday and for having had an easy week last week. So having unpacked all the luggage from the car, I slipped on my running gear and headed up to Megevette for an easy run along the valley. So why pollute the environment by using the car to go for a run and not start directly from Onnion ? Well, the only problem with Onnion is that it is set high in the valley and the only routes are either up or down. As the intention was to go for an easy run, a short car ride to Megevette it was.

Last year, we used to run a short 6 km route from the church in Megevette and to head up 3 km along the valley and then run the same route back. My target for this run was 27:00 then, 4:30 per km, so I used this base to compare with this year's performance.

I set off easily and found that I wasn't as short as breath as last year, despite having just arrived. This may have been due to the training in Aurillac, but whatever the reason, running was comfortable. I reached the half-way point in 13:13 so well under the target and the downhill was yet to come. A good stretch out on the downhill sections and I got back to the car in 25:51 for 6.18km. Average speed of 4:10 per kilometre at altitude (1620m).

Forest run (and more on cars...)

Alarm rang at 7:00 am this morning, calling me to fulfill my duty by putting on my running clothes neatly laid out beside the bed. I turned it off and curled up back in bed next to Laurence, telling myself that I was too tired to be bothered this morning.

So much for duty then. However, being the well-disciplined chap that I am, I came back from work at a reasonable hour and put on my running kit and left for an evening run in the forest. It was hot; too hot for me at 30°C but I had no choice as the cool morning air had disappeared at least 12 hours ago. I put on the Garmin 405 and set out slowly along the road in the general direction of the old centre of Le Mesnil le Roi.

As I turned the first corner to head up the hill towards the forest, a quick glance at my watch confirmed that, not only was I running slowly, but at the mere pace of 5:15 per kilometre. This was clearly unacceptable and I immediately pushed on up the hill to increase my speed so as to attain at least a speed faster than 12km/h. I was pondering on my pace, my stride and the heat when I arrived close to the church in the town centre to cross the road. I didn't want to slow down, having sped up for my watch and so it was with some satisfaction that I saw a car pass in front of me, having arrived at the T junction. I ran across the road, only to see a second dark grey car following the first and bearing down on me rapidly.

It's not true that your whole life passes before your eyes before an accident, but a number of things happened very quickly:

i) I put out my hand to cushion the blow against the car. What good this was supposed to do, I really don't know but this is what a million years of evolution has left as a reflex instinct in a human.

ii) I realised that I couldn't avoid being hit by the car and moved to the left in order to avoid being hit full on.

iii) The female driver hit the brakes very hard and managed to reduce her speed before the impact.

The final result was a brush against her offside wing mirror and a very startled driver asking if I was alright. In the shock, I carried on running and shouted back that I was fine. The adrenaline levels now reached an extreme and the next few kilometres of the run went very quickly as I reached the half-way point in 25:15 for just over 6 kilometres despite the heat.

The run back was more sedate with a consistent pace until the end, when I sped up down the hill to finish.

12.4 km in 54:08 so every kilometre in 4:21. Not bad for an evening run in the heat.

New toy

I took my new toy for a run this morning: a Garmin 405 Forerunner. What a fantastic piece of technology.

Having had 2 days rest since running in Aurillac, I was very motivated this morning when the alarm rang at 7:00am and I leapt out of bed. I threw on my running gear, grabbed my new watch and ran outside. I had spent the previous night configuring my new toy so that it knew everything about me: my date of birth, my weight, my sex and even what I'd had for breakfast that morning. I'd studied the instructions very carefully, and already set the pace at 4:24 per km for my virtual training partner. It was therefore a little disappointing to wait for 2 minutes outside the house gates while the machine spoke to the 6 satellites in the sky necessary before I could set off. Fully synchronised, the watch informed me that it was ready and so off I trotted.

Having benefitted from 2 days rest, I was keen to see how well I'd progressed over a flat course following last week's hill training. A quick glance at the watch at the 2 km mark, as I pressed the lap time to record my position, showed that I was running at 4:09 pace and had been running for 8:30. The pace indicator was a little ambitious as my time showed. Others had already warned me that the speed or pace indicated is instantaneous and can vary significantly over a course due to the positioning error of up to 6 or 7m. I carried on regardless, just thinking that all of this technology was fantastic but that it actually didn't help my legs to move any faster.

I carried on through to the park and took my split at 6.5km: 27:45. I was feeling fairly good and the watch encouraged me to accelerate a little every time I thought I was slacking slightly. Next split at 8.3 km in 35:12 and I knew that I was a little behind my fastest time. Another acceleration and the downhill stretch before the final straight and the rise back home to finish in 46:39 for an average time per kilometre of 4:12 or speed of 14.2 km/h.

The watch is fabulous: 762 calories burned, height gained is wrong at 495m (I must need to set the parameters somewhere), splits with average speeds, etc. The options are limitless. I've even seen a section on setting up interval training with warm-up and warm-down, number of intervals and rest periods - just need to get the legs going to use the functions!

I'm now the running statistics king and have all the graphs to show you. What, you're not interested... some other time then.