City 2 Surf Race Report

Long overdue I know, but a bout pre & post race flu has knocked be about, leading to dire neglect of this blog. Apologies.
Preparing for the C2S was like fumbling around in the dark. I had never run the race before, I had nothing to compare the race to, and the unique topography of the course makes predicting a first off time difficult. Heartbreak Hill plays havoc with your times, as does any race that is not flat.
Add to the above the terrifying prospect of a race with 63,500 other runners! After submitting race times I managed to get a prized preferred start just behind the seeded runners. The race starts at a 4 way intersection at Hyde Park and heads hell for leather down the road to a tunnel at Kings Cross before turning left towards the harbourside suburbs and some great views.

In the week preceding the race I filled the equivalent of North Pine Dam with run off from my nose [snot], a 7km cross country on the Wed before, a 12 hour drive to Sydney, and more rivers of the lemon curd to fill half of Sydney harbour.
Having a preferred start saved me from lining up for too long before the start. I was able to warm up in a park before taking my place 15min before the start. I filled a few bins in the park with tissues trying to get as much mucus out of the orifices of my head before the start so that I didn't share it with fellow competitors.

Making my way to the start down Oxford Street was a culture shock. As I'm walking down the road in my running gear ready to flog myself others were pouring out of bars and lining up outside nightclubs [early morning clubs]. I guess both cultures revolve around punishing your body? I would like to think my form of flogging results in good?
Near the start I chanced upon Adro's Army [he of Biggest Loser fame], a group of oversized runners getting ready to take on C2S. Yo respect! At least they were having a crack. Adro has fashioned a faux military uniform with camouflage style hat and T-shirt.

It became clear to me after lining up at the start that staying alive was the first priority of the start. Falling meant certain death, either that, or 60 odd thousand footprints all over your face and torso and barely alive. Once the gun went off the mad dash was on. At one point 50m down the road the bloke behind me stumbled and grabbed onto my right shoulder and started pulling me back. If its you reading this I hope my elbow didn't do too much damage!

Once we reached the tunnel things got a bit more orderly as the hills always sort out the wheat from the chaff. Talking of hills, much of the focus is on Heartbreak Hill, which is aptly named. However, there are more than a few hills on the way to Heartbreak which achieve the same purpose: lactic & terror!

By the time I reached the base of Heartbreak I realised that I was in for a fairly neutral day: not very fast, not too slow, nothing to write home about other than a half decent 56 minute finish and a first C2S under my belt. Now that I have my first under the belt I can plan on a return to avenge my ordinary day and at the very least get in under 55min preferrably further down into the early 50's.

The view from halfways up Heartbreak across the harbour is worth the climb. Once Heartbreak is over its pretty much downhill, and the body needs to adjust to stopping gravity rather than struggling to overcome it. The run down into Bondi is spectacular and even though the finish seems so clos but so far its a great way to end a race.

For a race that has so many competitors the logistics are superb. Not sure my racing calendar next year will fit this race in. I will never drive to Sydney again for a race, that is for sure, its not good for your legs! If I was to choose between Bridge to Brisbane or C2S I think I would go for C2S, just a tad more exciting and beautiful!

Kokoda Challenge Report

Well it was about time I finally got around to writing this report but you'll be pleased to know I've narrowed this down to a few paragraphs rather than the 22.20hrs it took our team to finish.
Kokoda was a 98km cross country / mountain / mud challenge which I started with my team of 4 and finished much (much) later still intact (well almost) with the same team of 4 and a much greater appreciation for mateship and teamwork. We had 36 hours to finish it but our goal was 23.

We arrived at 5am on the Saturday morning ready for the 7am start and the rain arrived at the same time. We had been warned all week of the impending rain forecast for the entire weekend, yeah right it hadn't rained solidly in months... until then! Cold, dark and wet we joined 96 other teams from all over the country, checked in and got nervous. The rain was constant as we threw on our back packs, gave last minute instructions to our support crew, listened to the ode and the Last Post, and then the gun went off.

Everybody took off and headed right. We looked at each other and took off to the left. Laughing we found ourselves in the lead (not for long mind you) and heard the confusion as the teams all realised they were heading in the wrong direction. Imagine having to navigate 98km and going the wrong way in the first 50 metres. Pretty funny really!!! It didn't take them long to catch us and the challenge started.

We wanted to hit the first mountain near the front end of the field as we knew it would be difficult to get around teams on the long (40min +) climbs so we worked hard the first 5km to hit the mountains in around 7th place. Still it was early day. Up and over the first few and we were feeling good and making good time. Our strategy was to walk up the hills (and down depending on the terrain) and run the flats. All was good until about 3hours in and the wheels started to fall.

Dave (one of my team) "blew" a calf which made walking painful. Not long after this he started to develop strong pains in his gut. As he would hit the hills his heart rate would max out causing him to stop every 5- 10mins and violently dry retch. This would settle briefly and he would restart the climb and repeat this until he made the top. On the downs and flats he felt average (apart from the calf) so would push as hard as he could, but the hills were his enemy and there were an awful lot of them! We would get to hills and Pete and I would try to lighten his load and help push him up until he got to the top and then we would keep moving. Dave would almost be fainting with pain and nausea on the climbs, but he pushed on showing amazing tenacity and incredible toughness.

For the next 6 hours it rained intermittently, the wind blew and the hills were relentless. Dave just kept going! We met our support crew every 4 hours and they fed us, attempted to warm us up, we restocked our back packs and kept going. We were still sitting in about 10th place and making pretty good time but it was getting colder and wetter!!! Around 4pm the rain came and stayed for the next 11 hours varying between solid and heavy. It was dark, the wind was howling, the rain was cold... very cold, we were wet and Dave continued, unable to run but keeping up a good pace walking. Each support station was similar. We would arrive and try and warm up (almost impossible), feed ourselves with hot food and soup (very difficult to cook under a tarp), restock and take off again trying not to waste too much time. It was impossible to put dry clothes on under a tarp and you were wet by the time you started again. We were starting to lose our sense of humour, but still enjoying the challenge nevertheless. Dave was tough! We would take off into the dark, cold and wet, Merryl leading the way making sure we followed the trail, and Pete and I making sure we still had Dave. The hills were tough. The rain had turned them into a big slide and it was incredibly difficult to climb up or down without sliding or falling. We felt for the teams following us as it would have been much tougher for them!

By 1am Pete was having trouble seeing on the downhills as the mist continually fogged his much needed glasses and he found his head lamp not nearly bright enough. He slid and damaged his knee on a downhill and showed incredible toughness to continue. We would get to a hill and help Dave up the hill then turn and give Pete as much light as I could to help him get down in one piece. The last 20km was incredibly long but the boys were tougher! They could have given up any time but our goal from the start was to get our team across the line together and thats what we were going to do. At 5.20am (just before sunrise) we walked into the finish, exhausted, cold, wet but very proud of what we had done. We finished in 12th place, second mixed team but more importantly, a team of 4!

We could never have done it without our support crew who had it tougher than us. They had to find the checkpoints before us, set up a makeshift tarp and kitchen in the rain and wind, and somehow have things ready for when we arrived, whenever that was. Then they would have to pack up and beat us to the next checkpoint. They deserve a medal for that.

Thanks to Dave, Pete and Merryl for an incredible experience. You are an incredibly tough team and we learned a lot about ourselves and what it takes to get through a course like that. You were all awesome! Would I do it again? Absolutely! I'll be back next year with some newbies in toe. If you want a life experience then try it.

Mary

City 2 Surf preview

I thought last years Comrades Marathon in South Africa had a lot of competitors: 16 000. However my eyes will be opened this weekend in the Sydney City2Surf, with a field of 65 000 runners!
The start is a logistical nightmare, with three main starting groups sectioned off behind barriers and strict rules governing where you need to be standing [on pain of disqualification].
Thankfully I have a preferred start which means I can head out in front of the majority of the pack, and hopefully will not have to pick my way through hordes of walkers and pram pushers [who seem to have a thing about lining up ahead of the runners].

The course is 14km long, winding its way from the CBD to Bondi. There are a number of hills along the way, with Heartbreak Hill being the most feared. Having done lots of hill sessions I now find myself looking forward to hills, even if that is merely a psyche trick on myself!

It's difficult to work out what your target time is first time around, as you have nothing to compare it to. Let's face it, how many other 14km races are there around with similar topography?

I think my goals will be to enjoy the spectacle of running in such an incredibly huge race, and not taking it easy on the big hills!
Race report will follow soon.
Stan

Striders Sessions Update

Striders sessions have been continuing through the winter, although numbers have dropped on the mornings. Many people consider a 5am rising for a 5:30am group run to be a bit more than they are prepared to commit to during winter. Fair enough, the spoils after all go to those who count the cost. For those of us who were preparing for races continuing to train was a no brainer, and there is a higher satisfaction level to your accomplishements when they are off the back of a few months of cold, dark early mornings.

Tuesday mornings at 5;30am, Lake Samsonvale have continued, with a nucleus of 3 runners. We have kept off the tracks due to the darkness and we run a range of different routes along the road, averaging about 40min per run.

Tuesday nights have up to about 6 runners, meeting at Eatons Hill and doing a range of routes taking in Eatons Hill and sometimes Albany Creek. During summer this group will grow and we expect to split it up into two different groups, one fast one normal.

Thursday mornings have a nucleus of 2 and sometimes can reach up to 5. Hopefully our morning groups can grow in the summer.

GCM pictures

the pictures never quite capture the pain!

35 and over?

Congratulations, you are now a Masters Athlete. And there's more! You can keep competing well into your 90's!!!
Lets be honest, if you are 35 and competing in Masters there is more than a whiff of try hard about you. Go and play with the Open athletes until you are 40 and then come strut your stuff!
However, if you insist, come along cos 50+ athletes just love putting it over 35+ athletes when they can. And let me tell you, there are some 60+ athletes who kick my rear at running!

The Queensland Masters Athletics crowd are a friendly bunch. There is an average of one meet per week, catering for people of all ages and all disciplines. You may be a bit of a sturdier build, in which case swinging a hammer around your head and letting it go with an ox like bellow may be the thing for you. Doing the high jump may be your thing, although I'm always up for the high jump with my missus! [no matter how hard I try to be funny it jsut doesn't work does it?!]

If you are a regular runner or walker QMA provides valuable competition experience on a regular basis. If you are trying to get quicker there's nothing quite like racing to sharpen you.
The new season starts in September, with most meets on Saturday's, some on Mondays and some on Fridays.
Another attraction in November is the Pan Pacific Masters on the Gold Coast.
Check out their website here.

Race Report - Gold Coast Marathon

This year's GCM loomed large on my calendar, and in many ways was the centerpiece of my running goals for the year. The simple [yet hard to achieve goal] was to join the sub-3 club. In other words, break the 3hr threshold for the marathon. In days gone by roughly 10% of marathoners would achieve that. Thesedays marathon demographics are changing. The number of participants is growing, but the average finishing time is blowing out to 4:30 and sub-3 runners constitute 2% on average.
If you want to have a crack at a marathon PB, the GCM is the place to do it. Brilliant weather virtually guaranteed, excellent organisation, flat course, heaps to look at and plenty of support on the road.

My last marathon was the Melbourne Marathon in October last year. An atrocious day for me, atrocious weather, and memories that I have tried to bury lest they haunt me! Coming off the back of Comrades Marathon in June 05 [90km], and a prolonged period of illness, I journeyed to Melbourne and foolishly attempted a sub-3 without the necessary form in training. I held the pace until the halfway mark and then suffered unimanigeable torment until I eventually breasted the line at 3:10. Had I set out to run 3:10, I would have had a much better day, but instead I bit off more than I could chew and paid the price.

Coming into GCM I had a few indicators about form whcih is essential. My time at the Brissy Marathon Half [1:26] suggested a 3:02 marathon. This showed that there was some catch up work to be done if I was to join the sub-3 club. After the Half recovery, a solid month of training lay ahead within which I needed to lift my game.
My coach was instrumental in achieving that by stretching me with interval training, and gifting me a far superior runner at track to drag me around quicker than I thought I could sustain. Essentially, my coach allowed me to realise that the deeper I dig, the more I can find, if only I have the heart and mind to go there. He helped me discover that my ceiling was artificial, and only placed there by myself. My limitations were entirely self defined.

In the week before the race I rolled my ankle on the side of the bitumen avoiding a car in the early morning darkness. This put a dent in my pre-race taper with 4 days off the road and a great deal of swelling. I made a return to running 7 days before the race with the aid of heavy strapping and plenty of icing and compression.

The weather on the day was perfect, and although I had nagging doubts about what the strapping would do to my calf muscles later in the race, I stood at the start line knowing that I had done the work necessary to run the time I wanted to. My goal time of 4:10 per/km was printed out on a pace wristband around my right wrist. This gave me my 5km splits, but 4:10 is easy to work out on the run, especially in the earlier parts of the race, where staying on pace and not surging ahead is important. Later on in the race I have noticed that my ability to think straight is affected by fatigue.

The start was magnificent with a large field [2000], pumping music, helicopter swirling above and lots of international runners.

My initial plan was to run in front of the 3hr pacing group, as I assumed they would be pacing a bit slower, at about 4:12. By the 5km mark I discovered that they were pacing dead on 4:10. Pat Caroll and another pacer kept us well marshalled, paying close attention to slowing down the group. You always feel so strong at the start of a marathon, but every second you spend in the first half you pay for big time after the 35km mark.
The real halfway of the marathon is 33km. The real deal starts at about 35km.

The pacing group kept slightly ahead of our goals every 5km, but only marginally. I went through the halfway mark at 1:27:35 which was bang on target. A 4:10 pace if kept to will get you across the line in 2:55:50. I felt that I needed that cushion at the end, in case I was doing it tough. It's good to have a little bit of margin when you are close to shutdown!
My calves usually start to tighten around the 20km mark and this time it was no exception. Runner's have the unique ability to forget about how painful their last race was, but the downside is that you have to go through the whole realisation again in each race. At around the 25km mark I remember having a stern lecture at myself about how marathon's are supposed to be painful and that I should just shut up and get on with it. Negotiating with yourself is common for me in a marathon. I split into two personas, one is whinging, the other is positive and encouraging. Thankfully, the positive persona mostly wins out.

Things progressed to plan until the 35km mark, when the 3hr bunch started to stretch and a number of people started falling off the back of the 'pacing bus'. Up until then the 3hr bunch had pretty much stayed together, much to my surprise. I usually expect a pacing group to begin stretching out after the halfway mark. Perhaps because this was the Australian Marathon Champs there was a higher percentage of sub 3 runners in the field, not sure about that.

Pat Caroll kept up his encouragement to those around him to stick with him which I pretty much managed to do until the final km when he pulled away, or more like a slowed down. By then I was experiencing the dreaded 'wall', with a gradual shut down of physical and psychological resources. I was still negotiating with myself with only 500m to go, whcih I found bizarre.
At the last km marker I looked at my watch and realised I had 7+ minutes to do the last km, which was encouraging. I knew that I could crawl a km in that much time if I needed to.
I crossed the line at 2:58:34 for my first sub 3 and my second ever GCM.

GCM is major stepping stone to my next goal: a Comrades Marathon silver medal [90km, sub 7h30min]. The KPI for silver medals is a sub 3 marathon. My goal over the next 6 months is to keep on getting faster by racing and pushing things on the training track, whilst taking in a Half in October sometime. I need to arrive at the start of January in the same if not better form than now in order to complete the harsh demands of a silver training programme, which takes 6 months and up to 2000km.

But that's for later. Right now I'm just trying to get back into running, although the legs are still a bit trashed!
cheers
Stan

Gold Coast Marathon

Well I am waiting for Stan the super fast legend to give us a race report from the Gold Coast Marathon. Potentially he is still having trouble walking to the computer after such an awesome race. For those who don't know, Stan had been training extremely hard to reach his goal of a sub 3hr marathon (very, very fast). His race was excellent (but I'll let him tell us all about it) with the main result being his very first (of many) sub 3hr. His time was 2.58. Fantastic. Well done Stan. You deserved it with all the hard training you have put in. Bring on the next one.

Mary

Race Report: Spectrumfunrun

This year's Spectrumfunrun [website] kicked off on Saturday morning from the Kensington Village Shopping Centre in fine weather conditions with a field of about 300 contesting the 8km and 2km. For results check here.

The Race
The 8km route is a good fast course but with two challenging hills, the first being at the start of the race and the second at the 7km mark. The field is typical one for a fun run although the $250 cash prize for the winner attracts a handful of gun runners, as evidenced by the 8km winners, Scott Carlsson in 24:59 and Helen Stanton in 28:15. A local triathlon team has a group of very good runners in both events.

It's a good race for the runner who needs a good speed workout and a chance to check on their progress. With the Gold Coast Marathon coming up in two weeks it was ideal for me to check on my speed. I was way off the money coming in behind Helen Stanton on 29:34 in 8th, but I felt good and was able to put in a big effort on the last hill to move up two places.

I thought it was a well organised, well publicised race, and a great credit to the Council and sponsors for backing this. The info in the local paper for novices in the run up was helpful and contained good information for beginners. Next year the field will probable be bigger, especially as word spreads about the cash prize. [Runners will go a long way to win a bit of cash!]
The daughter of one of this blog's editors and a Striders running host [Mary] took out the 2km run, so congrats to Kirsty!

Great Walks #2 [run and cycle this one too!]

Sandgate Pier to Woody Point. Drive out to Sandgate, park at the pier. Head in the direction of Redcliffe, determine how long you want to be walking/running, divide the time by half and turn around when you are halfway through your time.
If you are having a leisurely ride, try and make it all the way to Woody Point pier. Treat yourself to a coffee on the way back, and have a good stretch on the end of Sandgate pier before you get back into your car. Flat, scenic, a tad windy on some days, but absoutely priceless!

Life Balance Launched

The inaugural Life Balance Seminars kicked off on Thursday night focussing on the BODY: nutrition and exercise. Great speakers, great food and great company. Catch next week's action on Thurday night at 7:30pm free admisison at South Pine Community Church on the corner of South Pine and Eatons Crossing Rds. check out the website for more details here

Kokoda Challenge

In 6 weeks time myself and 3 others (Merryl, Dave and Pete) will contest the Kokoda Challenge. The Kokoda Challenge is designed to reflect the key elements of the Spirit of our nation. The Challenge is a cross-country, running, bushwalking team event over 96kms which represents the distance of the Kokoda Track, to be completed within 39hours which symbolises the 39 th Militia Battalion, the first of our Australian troops to arrive at Kokoda, 15th July 1942.

It requires a team of 4 who must ALL complete the course together ie the 4 Team members who Start the Event Must be the SAME 4 Team Members who FINISH the Event, together. Much of the trek covers very difficult terrain in the Gold Coast Hinterland. Last years winning team finished the event in 19hours (though there isn’t any place prizes as the emphasis is on competing and completing). We hope (health permitting) to do around 24hours though our first goal is to complete the course as a team of 4, whatever that takes.

The Challenge will commence at 7am on Saturday 15th July 2006 at Mudgeeraba Showgrounds on the Gold Coast Hinterland - proceed in a south westerly direction, winding through varous forest areas and arriving at the highest point, Lower Beachmont: From here the trek winds downwards through Mt Nathan - north to Nerang State Forest then to the finish at Nerang.
Long hours have been spent in the Bunya Forest getting distance and hills into our legs, but the hills there are just babies compared to what we will have to cover in the event. To check out the website go to http://www.kokodachallenge.com/

Mary

The Tour is coming!!!

The Tour de France is simply the greatest cycling spectacle there is. France is a beautiful backdrop to the most inspiring, painful, tactical and insane sporting event around.

The tour still boasts the biggest audience at any sporting event ever when in 2004 over a million spectators crammed the Alpe de Huez time trial course.

This year the race becomes even more exciting for Australia. We have a genuine contender in Cadel Evans. He showed last year that he had what it takes in the mountains and he has always been strong in time trials so that gives him General Classification possiblity. He kept on saying that it was just a fact finding mission last year and then he finished in the top ten. This year his team have bought a few riders to support him, not just the powerhouse sprinter Robbie McEwen. There will be a lot of other riders there for Australia as well. Michael Rogers will play wing man to the great Jan Ullrich (if Cadel can't I hope Jan can). Stuart O'Grady will be a key supporter of Ivan Basso (the clear favorite at this time). Matt White should be there as well as probably Matt hayman and a few others as well.

My tips for watching the tour are:
1. When it comes out in a few weeks go and purchase the RIDE magazine guide to the tour.
this publication will inform you about the difference between The Yellow, Green, Polker Dot and White Jersey.
2. Look carefully at each stage map so that you can understand the agony the riders are going through and know which stages are most important.
3. Get a general understanding of who controls each stage and why certain teams push to the front so that it all makes sense and then becomes more exciting.
4. Sleep at work so that you can get enough energy to stay up most nights glued to the screen.
5. Read updates on cyclingnews.com
6. If you can't watch the whole stage on SBS its acceptable to watch the 30min nightly wrap up (probably 6pm or 6:30pm on SBS)
7. Make sure you have a few cycling buddies along side in the best stages
8. If beer is your drink stick to the lights or you'll sleep through the finish.

Keep an eye on the Aussie's and have a great time watching one the most exciting and gruelling events you'll ever see. Will power at its best!

STEVE

Great Walks #2 Clear Mountain

This is a good run too, but lets stay with walking..
Drive out to the base of Clear Mountain Road, by turning left at the Ira Buckby roundabout onto Samsonvale Rd which becomes Winn Road. There is a little parking bay at the intesection with Clear Mountain Road. It's 7km in total up and down, a good walk, with steep inclines on the way up, and steep downhills on the way down. Concentrate on your posture on the way up and keep those legs pumping. Your heart rate will rise, keep it up there and you will get maximum benefit!

On the ay down control your descent, your quadriceps will get a good workout. Brilliant views to the north on the way up and down, across to Glasshouse. At the turnaround point just after the Hotel at the top, you get excellent views south down past the city towards the Gold Coast.
I've only ever run this so I estimate it will take you an hour all up - a well spent hour!

This is obviously good for running and cycling, although I'd hate to ride up. Running usually takes 20+min for an experienced runner to get to the top and a bit less down.

Striders Session Update

All our sessions are still running as advertised on our schedule [click here and follow the links].
Tuesday and Thursday mornings Lake Samsonvale sessions [5:30am] are still happening. We are no longer running on the lakeside gravel trails due to the darkness. We have a number of routes we follow including a run to the dam wall and back thru the waterworks Big Dipper.

The Mon & Wed mornign walks [Mums on the Move] at 9:00am after mornign school drop off is still going. Tuesday nights at 7:30pm was growing until the cold snap, but a number of timid souls missed out this last week. Once harassed they will return!

I am doing a Wed am [5:30am] 10km fartlek run from Lilley Road Park over a fantstically undulating course which takes in the new link road from South Pine to Kremczow Road. There are two of us at the moment, all are welcome. 'Fartlek' is Swedish for 'speedplay'. Our strategy is to sprint all the uphills and run neutral on the downs and flats. Its a great workout! It is a training run rather just a run.

Steve is still fronting up for 5am Wed morning Bayside runs, and won't give up for winter lest he becomes lazy and bitten by the Doona Bug. Don't let the Doona Bug bite you, its worse than having an injury. Well it is an injury of sorts - its a serious tear of the heartilege, a condition which can affect people for the whole of winter and into the summer, making them lazy and and unfit.

Reckon you can beat a steam train?

If you do, this race is for you! An 18.5 km foot race against the famous 'Valley Rattler' Steam Train. Includes an individual run or team challenge. Teams are made up of 4 competitors and each member completes approximately 4.5 km.
Where: Gympie
When: Monday 12 June
Train departs Gympie Station for Dagun at 8.00 am with the first 300 runners to register. Other runners and supporters are taken by bus to the start of the race. The race begins at 9.30 am from Dagun.First runners cross the finish line shortly after 10.30 am and competitors and supporters will enjoy entertainment throughout the day at the old Gympie Station.
11.30 am - Course timing closes.
12.00 noon - Presentations and random draws.
Buses will transport the team challenge runners to their changeover points from Dagun.
Food will be available at both Dagun and Gympie Stations

I'm thinking of going to this, sounds like a whole lot of fun for me and the kids. The missus will have to grin and bear it....
Stan

A walk this weekend could Work Wonders!

This Saturday you can walk and help raise funds for the Royal Children's Hospital [Working Wonders Foundation]. Check our the details and register here
The route is fantatstic, lots to look at. The atmosphere is festive and the cause is great!

It's never too cold to run!

This morning we had our first taste of winter, and a sharp reminder it was! Many runners go into hibernation during winter, imagining that it is too cold to run. The alarm is greeted by simply pulling the doona cover higher and settling in for that last hour or so.
These days though there is some excellent gear available to keep you warm enough, without making you sweat on those snappy winter mornings.
From the bottom up here's some tips for keeping warm:
TIGHTS - you can wear either basic running tights or compression tights whcih are all the rage. Compression tights help reduce muscle vibration, aid circulation and are used generally for recovery as opposed to actual running. The most popular brand of compression tights are made by SKINS. Other brands are cheaper but don;t offer the strength and compression of Skins.
Other running tights simply help keep you warm If you are strapped for cash, head into Kmart and purchase some basic black tights from the ladies section, no one will very know. The only disadvantage is that they are cotton and not wicking. Another problem is that some guys are self conscious about wearing tights. You may also notice that other people haven't gotten over tights. My famliy fall about in fits of laughter when I appear in my tights!
Well, get over it everyone. Men have been wearing tights since before Shakespeare. If its good enough for Robin Hood its good enough for me!

LONG SLEEVE TOP: Must have for winter. Make sure it is a wicking material, COOLMAX is best.

GLOVES: White cotton gloves for $2.50. Just right for keeping your fingers warm without making your hands sweat.

EAR WARMERS: $15 from cycling shop, keep your ears warm and toasty

RUNNING JACKET: only for when it is VERY cold, get them cheap at aLDI ofr $20 or spend up big on a Asics one for $120.

Go on then, get out there and enjoy yourself!

Great Walks #1 - Bullocky Rest, Lake Samsonvale

This has to be one of the best places for a walk in the shire. Beautiful scenery, good walking paths, lots of shade along the way, good amenities and parking.

Where: Forgans Road, Joyner. Head west from the Ira Bickby roundabout on Samsonvale Rd, turn right into Forgans Road. Bullocky Rest picnic area is 1km on the left.
UBD pg 90 4M
Distance: The actual Bullocky Rest peninsula walk is 3.5km. You can double back for a 7km walk, or do a loop walk following Joyner Road back from inside the fence at the Forgans Cove causeway. I estimate the loop to be a 5km walk, start to finish.
Features: No traffic, beautiful scenery, flat trails, lots of trees, peace and quiet.
Check out the SEQ Water weblink here

Double Amputee Reaches Everest Summit

Sir Edmund Hillary has hailed double amputee Mark Inglis's conquering of Mt Everest a "remarkable effort".
Inglis, who lost his lower legs to frostbite 23 years ago, reached the summit of the world's highest peak overnight - the first double amputee ever to do so.
Wow, awesome story - check out the rest here