Flora London Marathons

Blog Move

2009-05-11T23:08:00.002+01:00

Dear friends and followers,

due to the new sponsor and new name of the London Marathon

this blog has now moved to

http://virgin-london-marathon.blogspot.com/

Hope I am going to meet you there.

See you

Recovered and enjoying

2009-05-05T20:44:00.003+01:00

stats of the week: cycled 110K

It took a very long time for my muscles to recover. Today I did my first jog since the London Marathon. It was so enjoyable! Running through the spring time woods in a light drizzle reminded me of what is really important. One doesn't need to run a marathon. Just moving through nature keeping your eyes open is definately enough to be happy. Speed doesn't matter. Medals don't matter.

Er - this might be the moment to admit that I have entered another marathon not too far away. In fact it is just 10 days to go! I had to enter, there was no choice. I would have prefered to do the Half Marathon through my hometown again. But organisers changed the route. Now I have to go for the full distance to run through Bochum. Luckily it's the first 15K which I love to run. May be I will retire after half way. Alas - I have finished 301 races and not given up once. I would rather walk the second half than quit the race.

My London Struggle

2009-04-29T22:21:00.014+01:00

Definately this couple did better than me! Samuel Wanjiru didn't worry about the high temperatures and won by course record of 2:05:10.

Irina Mikitenko (GER) defended her title and surfed to a safe victory after 2:22:11.

After 11 miles I managed to show high spirits but I already knew that this wasn't going to be the best of my days.

Finally having received my medal I was looking content - and I really was. The main target was to finish my 10th consecutive London Marathon. Shouldn't I be happy about this achievement?

Until 35K I was still on target of running 3:30. But right from the start I felt something wrong. With 5K into a marathon one should feel completely fresh like just started. But I felt tired already. Nevertheless I tried to stick to my time schedule. There was a refresh after half way and new hopes emerged. But after 30K I got slower and felt sick. With just 1 K to go I got a strong and sudden cramp at my right hamstring. I lost 2 minutes to get over it. Finally I was lucky that my sickness didn't get worse before I reached The Mall but only 3 meters behind the finish line where I was ashamed to have to vomit repeatedly. A tough finish!

3:35:31 still makes my fastest marathon since my PB in 2004. And just 11 seconds slower than my very first marathon in 1991 - when I was 18 years younger. The longer I analyse last Sunday's result the happier I get...

Finished - 3:35:31

2009-04-26T18:38:00.002+01:00

I'll tell you later how tough it was. One of my toughest, so I am happy with my result which is the best marathon since 5 years ago.

Race number 54897

Greetings from London

Perfect weather?

2009-04-22T22:37:00.003+01:00

The forecast has now changed to heavy rain and 15°c. This kind of scenery would be perfect. I performed my PB in 2004 in constant rain.

I am off to London tomorrow. Unfortunately I don't yet know my race number. Hopefully you can follow me by LIVE results along the race.

Honestly - I will be happy to reach the finish line. It would be my 10th London Marathon in a row - enough to be proud of whatever the time.

Whether you run in Bonn or Bielefeld, in Hamburg or London, have a good race and great fun.

Vienna and before the final week

2009-04-19T22:12:00.004+01:00

stats of week 2: run 58K, cycled 73K, 1 gym

Greetings from Vienna where I guide a group of runners around the 26th Vienna Marathon.

One of the town's famous landmarks: The old big wheel

The very typical residents' view of the world: (And you should hear them speaking ...)

The pasta party is a "Kaiserschmarrn Party", held in the town hall:

A half marathon runner in high spirits shortly before the finish:

I now nearly finished the best marathon training I have done since 2004. But I very much doubt that I will be able to run 3:30. I think I can do something around 3:40... but I'll try anyway. The weatherforecast promises a rainy race day what would be the best case for me.

56 and very tired

2009-04-12T20:47:00.010+01:00

stats of week 3: run 56K, cycled 4hrs, 2 gyms

I am 56 now. FIFTY-SIX! When I was 24 my father died of a double heart attack. He was aged 56. Since then I always have imagined myself to pass away at 56.

However, I don't feel like dropping dead tomorrow. In fact I feel like 40! Okay, there is lost hair, a weak sight, wonky teeth, arthritic knees, a deaf ear. Er - I have to admit this doesn't sound like 40 ... but most body functions are still working! Come back in April 2010 to see if I still will be alive.

Once again I missed a running workout this week. I did a tough cycling tour instead, so I am not concerned. But today I had trouble to get through my urgent long run of 30K. I got so tired I don't think that I would have been able to finish a marathon today... It will be really important to recover satisfyingly until race day.

The Beauty and Berlin

2009-04-08T22:25:00.006+01:00

stats of week 4: Run 46km, Cycled 30min, 1 gym

Due to travelling to Berlin I missed a running workout but there is no reason to worry. Berlin Half Marathon was a very good speedy run (1:48:02) what makes up for the lost mileage. I was happy to be tolerated as B's pacemaker - in fact it was just sort of escorting.

German readers might enjoy my photo report, B's fans will definitely like the gallery, and finally there are some videos.

Recovered by record week

2009-03-29T22:15:00.006+01:00

stats of week 5: run 65K, 1 gym

As you see I once more managed to beat the schedule! Nevertheless I got some recovery by cancelling the cross training workouts: no cycling, just one gym session, so I had rest days on Monday and Wednesday. Finally I found today's long run of 20 miles easier than 18 miles last Sunday.

Just a short look back at Hastings. I was really happy to receive the Hastings Observer, a weekly local newspaper the organisers sent as a nice surprise. And I proudly will show the Hastings award on my presentation desk in the guests' loo. The Brass depicts William The Conqueror banqueting after his famous victory over King Harold at the Battle of Hastings in 1066:

Next Sunday I will be part of the Berlin Half Marathon, a really big and attractive event with more than 20,000 runners taking part. I hope to have some fun as I will once again be allowed to work as a pacemaker for B who always guarantees enjoyment.

German Humour - unintended

2009-03-27T21:35:00.006Z

Off topic

Find of the day in local newspaper "RuhrNachrichten":

It may be sort of a try to implement English black humour to serious Germans. At first glance one can be amused by naming the club's shooting after the most important Christian festival.

The above clipping shows an invitation to the "Easter Shooting" of the local gun club. What turns it into a morbid event - it is "open to all friends of the sports gun from 12 years on". I am not sure whether it can keep us calm that it doesn't take place in a school.

Hurting legs and 5 weeks to go

2009-03-22T18:22:00.004Z

stats of week 6: run 58K, gyms 1

Once again I managed to put more miles into the box than I had scheduled. But I have to admit that I am close to my limits now. Calves are hurting, legs feel heavy, the overall state of fitness seems to drop down significantly. My body is crying for some days of recovery. I think I'll have to rest for one or two days now. My most important target still is to get to the start in London, overdoing would set this on risk.

Perfect rehearsal

2009-03-16T21:46:00.011Z

training stats: run 46K, cycled 1hr, 2 gyms

Apart from visits to London I haven't been to Britain since 2005 which is really a pity. Coming to England is like coming home. Setting foot on British ground let me feel better. Logically my Hastings Half Marathon turned out to become a big success!

After having a look at the route profile the evening before the race I was totally frightened. I knew that there was a climb at the beginning ... But I didn't expect the organisers to put in every hill around Hastings they could find. It is a really tough race.

However, conditions were perfect with sunshine and 13°c. Frightened as I was I started carefully and later I got more and more surprised by my own performance. Still able to smile on the promenade stretch I set a new age graded PB of 1:36:50 (= 1:23:22 = 71,6% perf.grade)!

The theory suggests that I would be able to run a full marathon well below 3:30... Alas I know that the longer the distance the weaker I run - but be sure I will try.

Photo: Kiplimo Kimutai of Kenya made the lead right from start to finish and cut off nearly 3 minutes off his own winning time of last year. He clocked an impressive 1:02:50 and crossed the finish line more than 3 min ahead of the runner-up.

Photo 2: The winning lady, Caroline Hoyte, had only 26 men in front of her at 1:16:56.

Photo 3: No 716 is a very happy finisher.

See complete gallery at http://picasaweb.google.com/uli.witten

7 weeks to go

2009-03-08T22:40:00.002Z

stats of week 8: run 62K, 2 gym workouts

It was high time to do my first proper longish run. On Wednesday I completed 26K thereof the final 10K at increased speed. Everything was fine but I ended up so tired that I had to cancel the indoor cycling course on Thursday. However, once again the week's mileage was higher than scheduled. So far I would call my spring training the best I have had since 2004.

I feel very sorry for Paula Radcliffe who is once again out of the race. I was looking forward to seeing her competing with Irina Mikitenko. The crowds will be less big now. I reckon it was Paula's last chance to run the ordinary London Marathon. Next year she plans to have another baby year, and then she'll have to build up for the Olympics London 2012.

Now it's a week of short tapering for the Hastings Half Marathon on Sunday, March 15.

Lanzarote Gallery

2009-03-02T23:03:00.004Z

Please refer to the following page to view some photos of our Lanzarote cycling week:

http://picasaweb.google.de/uli.witten

Surprisingly fit

2009-03-01T22:30:00.005Z

stats of week 9: run 44K, cycled 450K (4800 hm)

I regard the recent week on Lanzarote my toughest week of training ever. The island is really perfect for race biking with good roads, few traffic, and hills that are just high enough to be a challenge while beeing not too steep. We did daily rides between 67 and 120 K with average height meters of more than 1,000. I was surprised that I was able to keep up with F. who usually is a tough biker but I am not sure if the reason was my strength or his weakness. Anyway, it was a great and successful week! I will come up with photos shortly.

The upcoming target now is to do some longer runs to build up endurance for London. Next highlight is my taking part in the famous Hastings Half Marathon which is one of my dreams since very long.

Canarian performance

2009-02-23T22:31:00.007Z

stats of week 10: run 52K, cycled 1hr indoor and 73K, 2 gyms

Hi Folks,

greetings from the Canarian island of Lanzarote where hundreds of triathletes meet to get fit for the upcoming season. I am here for a week with friend F to do some biking. We did a 73K and 93K tour yesterday and today and I have to admit I am somewhat proud not to be overtaken by any of these fashionable very fit looking people.

We even managed to run short distances after biking - until my muscels were close to cramp. Unfortunately the hotel has the best buffet I have ever enjoyed so we are not in danger to lose weight. The all inclusive tariff lets us also have some very good vine and cocktails... The eating and drinking performance is developing much better than the biking performance ...

Due to our after bike runs the week's mileage ended up even higher than planned. I hope my good old knees won't complain later.

Longing for Summer

2009-02-16T19:47:00.003Z

stats of week 11: Run 40K, Cycled 1hr, 2 gyms

I know what I said last Sunday. I promised to go for a week of recovery. Well, finally I was forced to do. After tough workouts on Thursday and Friday my body's defences got so weak that I caught the second cold of the year. Luckily it's not a really bad one so I hope to be back to planned mileage soon. I have to - because from Saturday on I should be able to keep up with F.'s speed. We'll be cycling on Lanzarote and I am looking forward to enjoy summerlike temperatures just for a week.

Too motivated?

2009-02-08T18:11:00.008Z

stats of week 12: run 55K, cycled 3 hrs, gym 2 workouts

As the graph shows it was a week of highly motivated training. I am slightly worried it was already too much for my body so I will make up for the busy start with a week of recovery.

Even more remarkable is the fact that I continously did some kind of sports daily for the recent 3 weeks, a streak of 21 consecutive days of activity. Of course this was only possible by doing regular cross training like cycling and weight training.

I couldn't hesitate to do a short race today. It was my 26th appearance at this nearby event and I was still hoping to win my age group for the first time here. I like the short distance of 5K as you are close to the finish shortly after the first couple of miles. My time - 21:17 min - was sort of disappointing but I was still hoping for the much sought-after cup. Until I had to recognise that there was one much faster M55 who clearly deserved the victory. So I ended up placed second once more.

Scheduled Reluctance - 12 weeks to go

2009-02-01T21:56:00.009Z

stats of week 13: run 30K, cycled 5 hrs, gym 2 sessions
(week no. counting down to London Marathon on 26/04/2009)

Reluctantly I have now set up a rough training schedule for my final 12 weeks up to the London Marathon. I have to admit I am still dreaming of 3:30 marathon. The planned mileage does not fit to this target. It can only work with cycling and weight training added and it is not suitable for anyone new to running. Usually one would recommend to do around 70-80K per week and at least 5-6 long runs to be able to run a 3:30 marathon.

On Monday I was out for the first ride on my new hardtail mountain bike. I was really crazy about it and inaugurated it by a fabulous overturn! Luckily I didn't break my arm again... Once more I was reminded of my former motto not to do any cycling before the London Marathon... Nevertheless I will go to Lanzarote for a week of cycling end of February (week 9).

A Late Start

2009-01-25T22:54:00.007Z

Stats of the week: run 31K, 1:20h indoor cycling, 3 gym sessions

Germany's new marathon star, Irina Mikitenko, lately said: "Runners have to be patient." She is right I had to experience.

I wasn't able to do any kind of sports for nearly a fortnight due to a very bad shivery cold. And like it often happens - when trying to start running again the knee wasn't really happy with it. I had to throw in some of my stored Diclo pills to get me back to the woods. Finally I am content with my first weekly mileage of the year. But I hesitate to put up a training schedule for London. The regular 12-week-training period will start in early February. Still a little time to get fit again.

Running away and coming back

2009-01-12T20:25:00.006Z

stats of 2008: Run 1,705K / Cycled 4,527K / Gym 64 sessions

All important decisions I made during my life were wrong. All but taking up running. Initially I didn't expect running to become important but it did - especially as it was my only good decision.

So there were 1,705 mostly happy kilometers last year. And that's where we get to the downside of running: it is limited. There is always a moment when you will have to stop. Even worse you have to come back where you started.

To be able to cope with this makes you being not just a happy runner but a happy man. Enjoy every kilometer in 2009!

Just happy

2009-01-01T22:57:00.006Z

High spirits after new-years-eve-race from Werl to Soest:

What a day! I call it my one-day-come-back. Because I can't imagine that this kind of performance will last longer. I beat my own bold expectations and ran a fabulous 15K within 1:05:27 hrs. And enjoyed every second. And I was certified 8th man in m55 of 218 who have finished.

One's target can only be to collect happy moments as many as possible. This was one of the most memorable.

This is how I was crossing the finish line:

2008 insights

2008-12-30T22:06:00.006Z

On my regular visit to Pyjammy, I came across the habit of answering an end-of-year-questionnaire. I find it rather tempting to fill in my responses. However, I fear to publish too personal stories - esp. mentioning thirds' ones - and will be reading my text several times before going online. With 38 items the list is too long in my eyes, I will simply ignore some sort of boring ones. Have fun reading and be warned: You will not be able to avoid thinking about your own 2008.

1. What did you do in 2008 that you’d never done before?
I did by first ever bike race. Even more exciting, it was the Alpine race "DreiLaenderGiro", crossing Stelvio Pass at 2,757 meters above sea level.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I don't make resolutions any more, I just have aspirations.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
None, and no signs to become grandpa.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
Uwe. Do I need to say more.

5. What countries did you visit?
In order of visits: Spain (Gran Canaria), Spain (Mallorca), Netherlands, England, Sweden, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, Iceland, Ireland, USA, Canada. As you see I am retired.

6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
Reach the top of a really high mountain (> 5,000m).

7. What dates from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
31/05/2008: Day of Stockholm Marathon - my funniest race ever.
22/06/2008: Alpine Bike Race DreiLaenderGiro, 168K, 3,500 height meters.
13/07/2008: Uwe died at Zugspitzlauf.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Successfully and regularly helping J with her school homework.

9. What was your biggest failure?
Let Uwe run to his death.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
Arthritic knee, very high cholesterol level. But there was much more to suffer.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
The most exciting thing is my new mountain bike. It is still unused due to the cold weather.

(12. Whose behavior merited celebration?)

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
There is a row of persons leaping into my mind. They all won't be surprised to be recalled in this way - but I'd rather not name them.

14. Where did most of your money go?
Travelling - as you guessed.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
J's first ever mark "2" in maths.

(16. What song will always remind you of 2008?)

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? changes even more frequently
b) thinner or fatter? + 2 kilos
c) richer or poorer? lost 30% of all the money I saved during my life, but had a number of worthy experiencies

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
Long-distance walking, high level trekking.

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
Crying.

(20. How did you spend Christmas?)

21. Did you fall in love in 2008?
Me? I won't tell you anyway.

22. What was your favorite TV program?
In German TV? You're joking.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn’t hate this time last year?
There is at least one I above mentioned in no 13.

24. What was the best book you read?
The Cholesterol Myths, by Uffe Ravnskov

(25. What was your greatest musical discovery?)

26. What did you want and get?
Really not for the public!

27. What did you want and not get?
Better: What did I get and not want: My first ever penalty points (for driving too fast).

(28. What was your favorite film of this year?)

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
Do I have to say?! I got 55! But I don't remember how I did.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
Come on, let me save my dreams. Writing down would let me face that is impossible.

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008?
Desperately trying to occure younger.

32. What kept you sane?
Moving and laughing! Perhaps crying, too?

33. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Obama is too far away to fancy and I reckon he can't meet all desires. -
I would like to mention biker Jan Ullrich who has my sympathy as he was not able to defend himself properly. He has made the same faults as everybody else did. It is an error to think of the best sports performer to be the most perfect personality inevitably.

34. What political issue stirred you the most?
Hundreds of billion Euros spent to save crashed banks but no money to renovate schools and buy books for the local library.

35. Who did you miss?
Whenever I race nearby I miss fellow runner Uwe.

(36. Who was the best new person you met?)

37. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008.
You can't avoid deep valleys between high mountains.

(38. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.)

Thanks for reading right to the end.

2008 Finish

2008-12-28T16:45:00.013Z

stats of the week: Run 51K, 1hr indoor cycling, 2 gym sessions

My home town Witten is situated in the Ruhr area, Germany's most industrial and densly populated region. Luckily there are places like this within running distance from my doorstep.
The photos were taken during an afternoon stroll on Boxing Day.

Traditionally I will again take part in the New Year's Eve race of 15K from Werl to Soest. It's my 19th time, with the first race in 1985 still being the slowest one, clocking 1:08:33 hrs. My PB is 1:02:14 run in 2000. These times are gone, I have to accept. My target now is just to beat my slowest performance which is an increasing challenge with the years going by.

Record week

2008-12-21T22:10:00.006Z

stats of the week: run 67K, 3 gym sessions

Watch the chart (yellow dots): This week ended up to sum up the second highest mileage of the year! It wasn't intended to develop like this, of course.

Like many runners I use sports for cheering up myself if needed. This week it was needed as it can be seen. I did a getting-away run of 20K on Tuesday, a quite fast one with a race-like speed. My mood required another long run of 23K on Thursday which I made as a jog-walk workout because I was frightened to put too much load on the knee.

You wonder if it did help? Anyway I reckon it would be even worse without running.

Decorated Santa Claus

2008-12-16T19:13:00.010Z

stats of the week: run 43K, 1 hr indoor cycling, 2 gym sessions

The local newspaper entitled: The Christ Child and Santa Claus.

Taking part in the local Christmas City Run was great fun. Beforehand I was worried if my costume would be too silly or too simple but it turned out to be a big success - with children and adults. May be the true reason was my company.

A fellow runner called us: Uli and his tinsel... quite fittingly described. My Christ Child was highly content with our race result. I refrained from telling her that the distance was even shorter than published by the organisers ... But it was still a really good performance - in every respect!

Dreaming of come back

2008-12-07T21:45:00.004Z

stats of the week: run 42K, 1hr indoor cycling, 3 gym sessions

logo by rc-herdecke

How much the world can change within one week! I'm speaking of the world of running. Another race, a new luck: Santa Claus Run in Herdecke has 9.6 K (exactly 6 miles) and although it is longer than last Sunday's race I was able to run faster! Don't ask me why - I don't know.

start photo by blogger Marcus

I enjoyed the race right from the start all the way to the finish. One key might have been that I avoided to get off too fast. First K was 4:12 min, slowest was 6th K with 4:20 and my finish was one of the best ever. Albeit I resorted to swearing heavily when crossing the line after 40:44.4 min as I was overtaken by a fellow age grouper by 0.4 seconds.

Now I'm dreaming of a come back next year. Still speaking of the world of running.

Late Truth

2008-11-30T22:29:00.009Z

stats of the week: run 30K, 2 gym sessions, 1hr indoor cycle

This was a weekend of facing the truth. I had to face that there are numerous senior runners faster than me. And I had to realise that there are far too many younger lads being more attractive than me. You are right I should have known that before. However, it is still very painful to be confronted with it in reality.

I didn't recognise before that I commemorated an anniversary today. After a break of 4 years it was my 25th race at Herten-Bertlich, which is a highly traditional meeting place of hard core runners. I ran my most loved distance of 7.5K and finished after 32:35min. The most depressing point is: I was content with my performance - until I noticed that I was more than a minute slower than ever! I hoped to win and I finished 4th out of 6 in my age group. Shouldn't I think about giving up?

Regarding the younger lads I should have given up long ago. You know I am a fighter. I should better say I was.

Runners talking

2008-11-23T22:32:00.007Z

stats of the week: Run 46K, 4 gym sessions, 1hr indoor cycling
(Wow! What for is this number of workouts?)

Regular readers might have recognised that getting old is one of my most loved issues. Most times I try to pass it off as a joke but you will know better. It is too serious to be a matter of fun.

Using "Du" and "Sie" in German language is a constant mystery to native English speakers. However, it's quite easy. Between adults Du is for familiy and friends. Growingly often Du is a Must between colleagues who don't have to be friends (that's annoying).

To come to the point: Du is absolutely common between runners. Because runners are friends in principle. A runner using Sie talking to another runner shows a sign of an exceeding difference between the two persons.

Now I can't stop thinking what kind of difference it is that made a runner calling me Sie at yesterday's party. You know the only reliable answer: The difference of age was so big that I seemed to live in a different world, too far away to say Du.

Advanced German, lesson learnt: Politeness can harm ...

Upcoming plans for 2009

2008-11-19T21:20:00.005Z

Did I tell you that I bought tickets to see the Athletics World Championships in Berlin, August 2009? I ordered tickets 18 months before the event and immediately had to pay. Now I discovered that there will take place a public 10K race on the official Championships' marathon route.

The men's marathon will be run on Saturday morning, the women will start on Sunday morning. The official route is a 10K lap which will be run four times. I will run it once on Saturday afternoon. Exciting! I look forward to spending this weekend in Berlin. www.championsrun.de

On the other hand I cancelled the climbing project I had planned for January. I looked up more reports of climbers who did it and felt I am not ready for this kind of challenge. To stay determined in very big heights you have to be physically and mentally strong. Stronger than I think I am. Maybe I will be more confident in a future year but this should happen soon. Once I am sixty I think it will be too late.

Be sure I will look for a peak less challenging but still entertaining.

Run with me!

2008-11-14T23:11:00.002Z

Finally I managed to publish 3 New York City marathon videos on YouTube. Feel the unique atmosphere of running Big Apple:

A Matter of Routine

2008-11-07T03:04:00.012Z

3:41:36 ! 182nd M55 of 1,610. 6,210th overall of 37,750

Honestly, folks, I have not expected myself to run like this. I started the race to try a speed needed for a finish below 3:50 and I would have been happy to finish below 4:00. But then everything was going so well! It was a matter of routine. I had my four bottles of personal energy drink with me, together with four pieces of carbo gum. With 3 miles to run I threw in two pieces of glucose. It turned out to be the perfect nutrition to get along. After 22 marathons it now seems I have found out what I need during the distance.

I won't have wondered if had got cramps - as a result of missing training - but I felt fine all the way. It was a proud moment to cross the finish line!

I took a number of videos during the race but they are too big to publish at Yahoo and I always have problems to get through with YouTube. I will come over with it later.

At least here is a photo of your proud and happy blogger:

My favourite photo of this year's week in New York City. Youngsters enjoy playing American football on Roosevelt Island below Queensborough Bridge.

Artificial Manhattan winter in November: Ice skating in Bryant Park.

The always happy team of interAir including VIP master runners Herbert Steffny and Wolfgang Münzel (photo by Norbert Wilhelmi).

On the Run

2008-11-02T02:43:00.006Z

Kitbag is ready, race number is fixed. Please, watch out for race number 14,075 tomorrow. With my lack of long runs I am slightly worried how far I will get. You'll see. And I'll feel.

There is an athlete tracker online during the race. With chipmats at every mile for the final 8 miles. You will be able to follow my breakdown live.

Oh dear, it's my 22nd marathon, but I am more worried than before my first one.

Photo: German master runner Herbert Steffny is shown on a big poster at the expo. He came in 3rd in the 1981 race and tried again in 2003 when he got 50. Unfortunately he had to withdraw after 18 miles. Will I get farther tomorrow?

2 weeks to go

2008-10-19T17:21:00.009+01:00

stats of the week: run 64K, bike 114K, gym 2 sessions

Experts' marathon schedules usually recommend 4 to 6 long runs of at least 30K. I am happy that today I was able to complete my only 30K run building up to NYC. Therefore I have to be realistic regarding my race target.

My recent half marathon time suggests that I would be able to run the full distance with a time of around 3:30 hrs. But due to my lack of long runs I am sure this is not realistic. An experienced runner might be able to race shorter distances at a reasonable speed without proper training but it is not possible to transfer this perfomance to marathon distance. There is nothing that can make up for the necessary long training runs.

Moreover NYC has a very challenging route profile. Top level runners always finish about 5 min slower than their PBs. A middle of the pack runner will have to add around 15 min to his time. Congruesly I should be happy to finish with a time of 3:50 to 4:00 hrs.

Amazing success

2008-10-12T22:05:00.011+01:00

stats of the week: run 45K, bike 38K, gym 1 session

Yesterday's half marathon race was a personal success with a finish time of 1:37 hrs and my knee staying calm. However I have to wait for the next workout on Tuesday to learn if the knee is really happy with it.

It was a brave race and I should say thanks to A who accompanied me for half of the distance and also to JP who I desperately tried to catch up with as he is in my age group. However, shortly after I managed to get to his side after 15K we faced the first hard ascent and I had to pay for the hunt. I nearly broke down while A and JP quickly opened up a fast growing gap. I only saw them again behind the finish line.

Luckily biking B cheered me up and finally I was able to finish in style. Imagine my amazement when I recognized that JP and A were still on the route! They got lost and the detour took them 10min! Anyway I didn't refuse the prize I got for 2nd place in my age group...

photo: Almost 10K run with the speed helped by A

photo 2: Together with D we overtook the leading woman! That makes up for the Dortmund race where I was lapped by the winning lady!

photo 3: After the first ascent I was even more happy to have biking B with me to cheer me up

photo4: Happy senior drinker

4 weeks to go

2008-10-05T17:42:00.008+01:00

stats of the week: run 48K, bike 56K, gym 2 sessions

New York Road Runners have revised the start's organisation. Now there are 3 waves of 13,000 runners each, which are released every 20 minutes from 9.40am onwards. I am happy to see that I will be in the first wave so I won't have to wait as long as in recent years. And moreover I will be able to experience the start festivities like singing the hymn and playing Frank Sinatra. I doubt they will repeat this with every wave.

And I am happy that I could complete my first proper long run today. It was just the first step building up to New York but it could have come worse. The next test is pending for Saturday when I plan to run the local half marathon on a partly tough course with two or three ascents.

Count down started

2008-10-02T21:16:00.006+01:00

stats recent week: 39K run, 200K cycled, 1 gym session

I felt that New York has come quite close but I didn't recognise that it was just 5 weeks to go last Sunday! It is the same situation as it was every marathon during last 2 years. My mileage would not be recommended to anyone to try a marathon with this kind of training having done.

I have got my number. I am lucky to be able to travel to New York at no costs for myself. I will try to run. No question!
My main hope is that all the cycling I have done during summer will help me running the distance. My 10K race was much faster than I expected, finished with 43:03min. But it is a different story to run a marathon. Without proper preparation it will be VERY tough.
Next Sunday will give a first sign when I have scheduled the first of 3 long runs - 25K which I should do without too much pain to stay on route for NY.
This is my weekly emergency schedule. Not recommended as I said, it's an experiment.

Too busy

2008-09-17T23:38:00.005+01:00

Sorry folks, I am feeling too busy to post regularly. Preparing our charity run which takes place on Sunday requires most of my time.

Those who never were involved in such a project may think it is just handing out race numbers to runners and let them hurry through the woods. Actually there are more than 70 volunteers engaged to make the event being successful - hopefully.

First step is promising: We received 627 entries thereof 52 who only donated. Last year we had 485. So this is really amazing!

My own training is somewhat neglected but I worked up the courage to start at the 10K City Run in Dortmund last Sunday. I finished 43:03 min with a look like this:

Laugavegur pictures

2008-09-04T21:51:00.003+01:00

Walking across Iceland's highlands from Landmannalaugar to Skógar was simply the best walk I ever did.

Hot springs, glaciers, waterfalls, fast rivers, lava fields, volcanic deserts, coloured rolling hills, green ridges - you just walk being amazed all the way.

Please feel invited to see my "best of" photo gallery of Laugavegur

Off to Iceland

2008-08-20T21:12:00.004+01:00

Strokkur is a stop on the popular tourist route of the "Golden Circle".

The hiking trail LAUGAVEGUR is described on the NAT website. The total distance is 55 K, with an additional leg to Skogar on the South Coast which takes another full day. I will travel to Landmannalaugar - the start point - on Monday and start the walk on Tuesday morning.

I just discovered that this most popular trekking path also can be done as a RUN. It takes place in July and this year's winner took less than 5 hours to finish. I am planning to do it in 4 days!
Laugavegur Ultra Marathon

The most visited waterfall of Iceland is Gullfoss.

As last year I am the amateur guide for a group of marathon runners. Reykjavik Marathon takes place on Saturday, Aug 23. Last year's photo shows Stefano Baldini, Olympic Champion 2004, on the right.

Personal Olympics

2008-08-13T22:08:00.004+01:00

training stats: unscheduled daily workouts

My training sessions are somewhat unstructured these days. I do go out almost daily and depending on the weather I enter my race bike, do easy runs or visit the gym. There is no close target I am aiming for. So I am not motivated to set up a schedule. I am happy that my knee allows moderate running, and biking in the sunshine is what I enjoy most. This is what I call my own Olympics. So far I haven't noticed much of the competitions in Beijing. One reason is that I don't like to switch on the TV in the morning. Another reason is that TV reporters prefer news like "how did you feel while winning?" And really annoying is that German TV only seems to know German athletes and Michael Phelps. Medals are counted every day and those who don't get through to the final are regarded as failures.

My next highlight what I hopefully will be able to report is a week of trekking on Iceland. The most famous and most trodden long distance path crosses the highlands from Landmannalaugar to Pörsmörk and on to Skogar, from hot pots on the hills along vast glaciers to the South coast the walk takes 5 days, good conditions given. One has to carry all provisions along the route. I have booked accommodation at the huts but they only offer space for your own sleeping bag and a rough kitchen to use.

Long Distance Path Landmannalaugar

Documents of Zugspitzlauf 2008

2008-07-31T21:57:00.012+01:00

With a distance of 3 weeks and the media hype finally run out I feel able to publish a selection of photos which document the disaster's development.

A rainy start at Ehrwald (990m) with winner Martin Echtler already in front. Steffen Uebel (left) finished third.

Runners in the mid of the pack are clothed very variably.

This is the scene after the first ascent of 500 meters, at Ehrwalder Alm.

Me, obviously very wet, but still in a good mood at Ehrwalder Alm after 36 min of running.

Feeding station at Sonnalpin (2,550 meters) at around 11.30 am with the weather just having turned to worse conditions.

Me at Sonnalpin, around 11.45am, helped with a fleece to keep me warm on the final stage to the top (2,960 meters). Alas, it turned out to be not sufficient. At around 2,700m I got so cold that I was nearly unable to move my legs and fingers. In a flash of inspiration I managed to turn back to Sonnalpin.

Runners approaching Sonnalpin station, fighting snowfall and icy wind.

A runner moving slowly close to the finish at 2,960 meters.

This runner is finishing at 9th place overall. Temperatur is -4 degrees celsius, but the icy wind is the worst hazard.

More runners approaching the finish at the top.

About 190 participants reached the top at 2,960m, thereof tens who only survived with the help of the mountain rescue team. 2 runners died, 6 had to stay at the local hospital, an unknown number had to be cured by ambulant treatment. Nearly 400 runners abandoned the competition at Sonnalpin station at 2,500m.

No report, no blaming, just dolour

2008-07-15T23:29:00.004+01:00

Please don't expect me to publish the usual race report about taking part in the tragic Zugspitzlauf. First I am simply not able to write, otherwise it's now only time to grieve for the two of us who passed away and to feel with their relatives.

Obituaries:
Uwe Moldenhauer, Witten
Hans Pöschl, Ellwangen

Stubai Gallery

2008-07-10T21:15:00.005+01:00

A lancscape worth to be framed:
Serles - the mountain guarding Stubai Valley.

This was my first visit to the famous Tyrolian Stubai Valley. One week could only afford a first impression of very high mountains, steep rocks, beautiful alms and valleys, and don't forget comfy hotels. There are lots of challenges for mountain bikers and hill walkers as well as for more ambitious scrambles. I think I should come again.

Please feel being invited to have a look at my Stubai photo gallery.

Inhabitants of the Alps

2008-07-09T20:52:00.007+01:00

Trainings stats:
more hill walking and biking, still little running but slightly increased at least

Last Monday we had a rainy day and decided to visit the Alpine Zoo at Innsbruck. We met the following animals:

Mergus Merganser - Common Merganser - Gänsesäger

Capra Ibes - Alpine Ibex - Alpensteinbock

Rupicapra - Chamois - Gämse (altdeutsch: Gemse)

Marmota - Marmot - Murmeltier

Lutra lutra - Otter - Fischotter

Please come back on Friday to see my hill walking gallery of the beautiful Stubai valley.
Sunday will see 10 runners of Witten storming up Germany's highest mountain, Zugspitze at 2,960meters. Unfortunately the weather forecast promises snow falling from 2,200 meters onwards.

High level holiday

2008-07-04T21:37:00.008+01:00

training stats:
various hillwalking, hillbiking, very few running

photo: biking at Kaiserbachtal, Tyrolia, with ridge of Wilder Kaiser for background

The next highlight is already one week ahead, my 5th run up Germany's highest mountain, Zugspitze at 2,968 meters above sea level. Only twice so far - 2005 and 2006 - we were allowed to go to the very top due to the weather conditions. Last year the official finish was at Sonnalpin station at around 2,500m but most of us - including me - continued to the top.

Obviously I am not as fit as I was in previous years but I still hope to take part in the race. The contract with myself is that this is my last Zugspitze run. Five times should do. OK, if I will still be fit at 60, maybe I will try again.

My training schedule is somewhat unstructured these days. I do a lot of hillwalking but I haven't been running for more than 50 minutes since the Stockholm Marathon which was about 6 weeks ago. I just hope biking will help too and enable me to run 16K and 2,400 meters of height difference to the top of Zugspitze. I even dream of finishing just within the top ten of my age group. Be sure I will fight as much as I can. Race takes place on July 13th. for more information look up http://www.getgoing.de/

By the way for those of you interested in Alpine scenery I have completed my photo gallery by impressions of the Austrian Kaiserwinkl which I have visited for the first time but there is no doubt I will return.

photo: Walchsee as seen from Heuberg (can the world be more beautiful anywhere?)

Giro Photo Gallery

2008-06-29T22:34:00.002+01:00

I have published a collection of 3LänderGiro photos in a small gallery for those of you who want to have a look.

And there is also a short low-quality video at yahoo.

Still alive

2008-06-27T21:45:00.007+01:00

22/06/2008 Drei Laender Giro (3 countries Giro)
168K, 3450 meters of ascent
9:34 hours, place 565 in age group of 705

When I woke up in the morning of the race I had a well known feeling. It was the same feeling I had when I was going to climb my highest mounains. "Will I still be living tonight?" was the question I asked myself before getting out of bed.

There were so many casualties which I thought about. I had no experiences with this sort of adventure I was going to attend. My first bike race ever. Amidst a field of more than 3,000 participants. Crossing the third highest Alpine pass, Stelvio with 2,757 meters. Two more passes, combined with steep descents and high speed.

Already half way in the race I was so excited I knew I would do this again. Brilliant weather and high temperature even on the tops, we had perfect conditions. I enjoyed every mile of the race - or to be honest, there was a short stretch of real pain: I had to push my bike for 300 meters just 2K in front of the finish - with no more energy left. I would have fallen off if I had tried to go on. No joke I saw a fellow biker before me falling when he lost all his speed at a very steep part. I had cramps in my toes, my back was hurtind, I felt my heart struggling. I got off and pushed my bike - and wasn't overtaken by anybody! As you see it was pure fun! I will do it again.

One week left to meet the Alpine Queen

2008-06-15T22:53:00.004+01:00

training stats
Su 15/06: run, 9K, 0:50 hrs
Sa 14/06: hilly bike, 111K, 1200hm, 4:40 hrs
Fr 13/06: run, 8K, 0:45 hrs
Th 12/06: gym 2 hrs
We 11/06: bike, 67K, 500hm, 2:38 hrs
Tu 10/06: hilly bike, 45K, 800hm, 1:55 hrs
Mo 09/06: hilly bike, 69K, 700hm, 2:50 hrs
Su 08/06: jog/walk, 10K, 1:05 hrs

Mid of the week I seemed to have lost any motivation to do any more biking. The weather was fine but I was fed up with hills to wind up. So I end up with less mileage than I intended to do to be prepared for next Sunday's bike race. I still hope to be fit enough to climb the "Queen of Alpine passes", Stelvio Pass with a height of 2,757 meters. I have never done anything like this. Our local hills have not more than 150 meters of height difference. So I always try to collect a good number of them on my tours but it will be sort of different to climb for 3 hours without any chance to recover.

(wiki photo)

Anyway, the week's best news is that today I was able to run 9K and 50 minutes without any knee pain - and without diclo!

Fun Run

2008-06-04T14:16:00.008+01:00

We finished. We got our medals. Not a big time but we had a great time for nearly 5 hours. It was the funniest marathon I ever did.

Watch B's final lap in the Olympic Stadium of Stockholm 1912:

And getting the medal:

Facing next challenge

2008-05-25T17:42:00.007+01:00

training stats
Su 25/05: walk/jog, 9K, 1:10 hrs
Sa 24/05: hilly bike, 101K, 800hm, 4:30 hrs
Th 22/05: hilly bike, 100K, 1600hm, 4:40 hrs
We 21/05: gym 1.5 hrs and jog/walk, 7K, 0:45 hrs
Th 20/05: gym 1.5 hrs

I am happy that the arthritic knee tolerates long bike tours without mourning. After Thursday's hilly tour I was totally exhausted. But this was just half of the height meters waiting for me at the Alpine bike race in 4 weeks. I will have to fight to beat the official time limit. Start is at 6.30am and one has to reach the first pass after 68K distance and 2,000 height meters before noon. I guess it will be a really new experience for me.

However, the knee's next challenge takes place at Stockholm next Saturday at 2 pm. Once again I will try to stay close to B as long as the pain allows. To reach the finish line would be a great achievement.

Almost another Wonder

2008-05-19T22:14:00.005+01:00

training stats
Su 18/05: half marathon race, 21.1km, 1:42:48 hrs
Fr 16/05: hilly bike, 41K, 1:45 hrs
Th 15/05: cautious jog, 8K, 0:44 hrs
We 14/05: gym 2hrs
Tu 13/05: jog/walk, 7K, 0:45 hrs

As you see above I was able to finish Sunday's half marathon race. I call it my Diclo Race. Only with thanks to Diclofenac I managed to get along. This was my medicine schedule:

Thursday: 1 pill (50mg diclo)
Friday: 2 pills
Saturday: 3 pills
Sunday: 2 pills before the race and another 1 after

I only document my behaviour to set an example how NOT to do it. I desperately wanted to run the race as it is my home town where I pass my former work center and even the hospital where I was born, and lots of more places making personal history for me. It's like a promenade through my life. And there is no other race where I meet more friends, colleagues and aquantainces than here.

My knee was fine until 8 km when it started to hurt but luckily didn't force me to stop. During the final 2 km I was so enthusiastic that I didn't feel any pain at all.

The reason for my excitement was not only that I was able to reach the finish. Once more it was B who astonished me and ran to a personal best after a training schedule what can be described as rather limited.

B's new PB of 1:42 hrs lets hope for a full marathon of 3:40-3:45 what would be another PB. The only concern is: I doubt she has done enough long runs to run at this performance level for the full length of the distance. However, she always has a good surprise up her sleeve. We'll see in Stockholm at May 31.

A biker's week

2008-05-12T22:22:00.008+01:00

training stats
Su 11/05: long bike, 160K, 6:47 hrs
Sa 10/05: hilly bike, 85K, 3:24 hrs
Fr 09/05: test jog/walk, 5.5K, 6x5mins
Th 08/05: bike, 95K, 4:10 hrs
We 07/05: gym 2 hrs

If you like to follow this blog through oncoming years you will notice a change from a sports blog to one of a chap who is going to get old. You won't have to wait long!

It is not only that I run slower every year. Pain increases every year I don't stop running. No longer I can hear properly with my right ear. I have been forced to use reading glasses since 4 years. In recent two years I had to undergo surgeries at my left shoulder and my right arm with effects I can still feel. But the worst was still to come: After weeks of reluctance I went to the oculist and had to face that now I will have to wear glasses all the time.

I bag your pardon - I know there are many very successful people who have been wearing glasses since their childhood. Probably they see glasses just as part of their daily equipment. For me who is not used to it, it firstly is another handycap added to the list.

However, as long as I am able to finish a day's bikeride of 160K I should not complain. Did I tell you that I have entered an Alpine bike race? (I know I didn't) 3LaenderGiro will take place on June 22 and of course I opted for the longer one of the two offered routes.

Active Non-Runner

2008-05-06T22:08:00.003+01:00

training stats
Tu 06/05: gym 2 hrs
Mo 05/05: bike 43K, 1:40 hrs
Su 04/05: easy bike 38K, 3:30 hrs
Sa 03/05: hilly bike 108K, 4:15 hrs
Fr 02/05: gym 2 hrs
We 30/04: bike 40K, 1:38 hrs
Tu 29/04: hilly bike 38K, 1:35 hrs
Mo 28/04: treadmill test, stop after 18min

12 days to go to next half marathon, 25 days to go to next marathon.

But I havn't done a step of running... I did set up a schedule but it already is rubbish. I am still hoping to take part in both events. Next test at end of this week: It will look like the first steps of a beginner. 3 minutes jogging, 3 minutes walking and so on. We'll see. I always managed to get to the finish line in all of my 285 races. This only worked because I didn't start when I was in doubt. Now I am in doubt but I am desperate to start and I will do it. If it works it will only do with the help of Dicofenac I reckon.

I just had to learn that Diclo was one of the reasons a Werder Bremen football player lost his kidneys. He was given these pills over years. His organs probably were not working well before taking the medicine but his fate is still a cause to think about one's own behaviour. I don't take the pills for more than 4 consecutive days and not more than 2 ones per day. But I have to admit occasions increase their frequency. Therefore I will have to think about different solutions sooner or later.

The knee is back

2008-04-28T22:38:00.006+01:00

training stats
Mo 28/04: gym 1 hr, treadmill test 3K, 0:20 hrs
Th 24/04: gym 2 hrs, slow jog 10K, 1:00 hrs

Irina Timofeyeva won the Hamburg Marathon clocking a new course record of 2:24:14 hrs.

I came along with friends who ran in Hamburg and took some photos of the top runners and our local athletes. If you like have a look at my gallery.

Not so good news by myself. Last Thursday I had to stop my run after 7K due to constant knee pain. Same symptoms as I had in January and February. Tried a few steps on the treadmill today but no improvement. Looks like I have to abandon running for a while to recover and hopefully get fit for Stockholm.

New start to next marathon

2008-04-23T21:26:00.004+01:00

training stats
We 23/04: hilly bike, 67K, 2:40 hrs
Tu 22/04: rest
Mo 21/04: race 5K, 0:21:28 hrs
Su 20/04: slow bike, 25K, 1:15 hrs
Sa 19/04: hilly bike, 57K, 2:10 hrs
Fr 18/04: rest
Th 17/04: slow jog, 10K, 1:03 hrs

After London I had to pay for my low-key preparation. Both thigh muscels were hurting until Thursday. And even on the following weekend I didn't feel fully recovered.

Call me crazy - you'd be right - I entered the local 5,000 m town championships which took place on Monday evening. Call me overambitious - I calculated that this is my first year in agegroup 55 and it is the only year when there is no local competitor who is said to be faster than me. Actually I have to admit there was only one competitor. I was rather slow but I was faster than he was...

Like last year my next serious event is the Stockholm Marathon. It takes place on May 31 so there are 5 weeks to go from next Saturday on. I hope to work as B's pacemaker and we haven't yet decided what time to head for. However, it should be less than 4 hours. We will test her performance with a local half marathon on May 18. If she is able to finish in 1:44 we will try to complete the marathon in 3:44. A regular estimate is: double your half marathon time and add 15 minutes. This only works as long as you have done enough long runs, at least three 30K runs and another three ones of more than 20K you should have run at least I would say.

London Marathon Report

2008-04-19T22:46:00.003+01:00

May I invite you to read my photo report of this year's London Marathon. It was my 9th, and I very much hope to be back next year.

English version
German version

Your feedback is very much appreciated.

Surprised by myself

2008-04-15T21:15:00.004+01:00

Irina Mikitenko's race was the most amazing performance of the day and Martin Lel's speed was very impressive but for me my own run was almost equally surprising.

I had additional orthopedic problems all week until race day and was very worried I would not be able to finish. But the pain disappeared after the first couple of miles, I became more and more relaxed. And I just ran. Smiled and ran and ran and smiled. Right to the very finish, enjoying my day. After crossing the finish line I couldn't stop beaming. Everybody I saw was smiling at me (or about me?).

Want to know the time? HERE IT IS: 3:39:30

As usual I will publish a race report soon.

Good Luck - Have Fun

2008-04-09T21:22:00.004+01:00

training stats
Tu 08/04: run, 12K, 1:07 hrs

Best wishes to all of you running on Sunday.
Don't forget we are doing it for fun. For example:

There is Buster Martin, aged 101, father of 17, who has done a half marathon in 5 and a half hours and aims to become the oldest marathon finisher ever!

There is Iva Barr. She will be running to celebrate her 80th birthday just like she did on her 70th birthday.

There is Susie Hewer who will be attempting to break the Guinnes World Record for the "Longest scarf knitted whilst running a Marathon".

There is Jean-Yves Kanyambiwa who will be running whilst dribbling a basketball in under five hours.

And there are countless more people out to have fun. Like us!

The official website says that you will be able to track your runner as he/she is running.
Try official or mika timing website and watch out for race number 54890

One step to the start

2008-04-06T12:56:00.004+01:00

training stats
Su 06/04: hilly run, 16K, 1:36 hrs
Sa 05/04: gym 2 hrs
We 02/04: long run, 31K, 3:02 hrs

That's it, folks. That's what I could do to be fit for next Sunday. Looking back it is really a low key mileage. No expert would advise to try a marathon with that kind of training. But with legs experienced by more than 20 years of running I am confident to arrive at The Mall before 1.45 pm. What would be a time of less than 4 hours.

My brain forced my body to complete a second long run of 30K on Wednesday. It was much much harder than the week before. My thigh muscles were hurting for two days and I am happy that I was back to running today.

Remember: The only target of the final week is relaxing. Any serious training will harm our performance. So I plan to do a short jog on Tuesday and another one Saturday morning with our travel group of German runners.

I will come back to you on Wednesday with last wishes for the race. Keep calm, stay relaxed.

Record Week

2008-03-30T16:47:00.006+01:00

training stats
week's total: run 74K, gym 2 sessions
Su 30/03: hilly jog, 16K, 1:42 hrs
Sa 29/03: treadmill run, 9K, 0:55 hrs, gym 2 hrs
Fr 28/03: slow jog, 10K, 1:15 hrs
We 26/03: long run, 30K, 3:08 hrs
Tu 25/03: hilly run, 9K, 0:48 hrs
Mo 24/03: gym 2 hrs

I was amazed after recalling the week's training. I had forgotten that I ran on Tuesday and so this week's mileage adds up to 74K - more than I intended to do.

The main progress is that I finally managed to do the absolutely essential long run of 30K. Most schedules in sports literature recommend to do 4 to 6 long runs to get fit for a marathon. And the last long run should be done 3 weeks prior to the race, or 2 weeks latest. So do not take my training as your guideline to success. It is just an experiment enforced by my knee problems. I hope to do another long run next Wednesday.

Fairly fast but rather short

2008-03-23T22:32:00.008Z

training stats
sa 22/03: run, 13K, 1:20 hrs
fr 21/03: run, 18K, 1:34 hrs
we 19/03: run, 12K, 1:08 hrs, easy bike 50K, 3:00 hrs
tu 18/03: run, 8K, 0:45 hrs

Based on my last week's half marathon time of 1:38 I could forecast my London Marathon to be finished at 3:30 hrs. Alas! I haven't done any long run so far! I planned an absolute minimum of 2 runs of 30K which is only possible for legs with a long lasting running history.

First of these 2 long runs was planned for this weekend. The only problem was: I was staying on holiday on a stormy Dutch North sea coast, facing showers of rain, snow and hail. And I have to admit I am not the tough guy to go out and stand this kind of weather for about three hours.

If I still manage to do the scheduled long workouts a realistic target will be a marathon time of 3:45-3:55 hrs I reckon. Apart from the missing long run I am still on track of my very low key schedule:

Holland is one of the most densely populated countries of the world. Maybe this one reason to keep the towns like fairyland's places.

Some images of Leiden near Amsterdam:

And this is Enkhuizen, harbour town on the Ijsselmeer, formerly the Zuiderzee but nowadays separated by a 30K-long-dike from the North Sea.

Just to show how the weather was really like:

Finished without smile

2008-03-16T17:56:00.007Z

Halfmarathon CityPierCityLoop, Den Haag, 1:38:05 hrs

With a little help of Diclofenac - I have to admit - my knee was happy with running 21K on Dutch tarmac. The start of the race was quite a disaster: I queued up too far in the back, the start was even late by 15 mins and it took me 3 minutes to get to the start line after the gun shot. For the first 6K I had to run a slalom to overtake slow runners. I guess I ran a far longer distance than half marathon due to all the side steps I had to take. The first half hour of running was sort of a Fartlek training but I still managed to keep up an average speed to be able to finish at 1:40.

However, I was very disappointed at first but later in the race I was grateful that I started slowly. I was overtaking other runners from start to finish what helps feeling good. My 5K splits are: 23:29-23:05-23:30-23:04. This verifies that I was able to keep my speed all the time.

The day's best result was that the knee was okay. On the other hand this was probably my first race without any smiling because there are other parts of my body that are hurting more and Diclo can't help it. Alright, we had that before and it will be overcome as life proves again and again.

Some photos of the day: Patrick Macau (no 2) won the race clocking 1:00:08 hrs.

Passing City Centre Den Haag.

Inviting Pub in Scheveningen

Off to the chilly coast

2008-03-13T21:34:00.008Z

training stats
Th 13/03: run 12K, 1:08 hrs
Tu 11/03: run 10K, 0:58 hrs
total mileage Mallorca: bike 639K, run 48K

Tomorrow I will be off to the Dutch coast to run the famous half marathon at The Hague on Saturday. It is quite a big event with about 7000 runners taking part. The route leads out to the Pier at Scheveningen, all along the promenades and back to the city centre. I already entered this race three years ago but had to withdraw due to an injury. Now again I don't feel fit since my knee will be asking for Diclofenac to stand the distance. My plan is to keep to a reluctant speed and I hope to finish somewhere between 1:40 and 1:45 hours.

Photo shows the race 2005 with the Scheveningen's spa hotel in the background.
Link: CityPierCityLoop

Greetings from Mallorca

2008-03-07T09:06:00.006Z

holiday training stats
bike 504K, run 36K

It is the first time I tried combinated training of running and biking on the same day. The toughest day I found Tuesday when we biked 15K, had tempo runs in the stadium (6x1K at 10K race speed), followed by 40K biking and finally 6K running. I wondered that I was able to finish this kind of training - with only slight mourning by my knee. Every day I am so tired that I fall to sleep before dinner. And yesterday I was totally exhausted at the final part of our hilly bike tour and happy to be back at the hotel.

The photo shows the pass of the road leading to the coastal village of Sa Calobra. I didn't drive down because it would have meant to reascend 680 meters back to the pass.

I really enjoy biking on Mallorca. Roads are mostly in a good state and at this time of the year the traffic is not very busy on the minor roads. And as most of you will know the landscape is exceptionally beautiful. Unfortunately our group is focussed on training so highly that no stop is allowed for photographing.

Back at the Hotel - exhausted and hungry as usual:

Worn out

2008-02-24T22:40:00.003Z

training stats
week's total: 4 runs 51K, 1 bike ride 69K, 1 gym session
Su 24/02: long run, 24K, 2:16 hrs
Sa 23/02: bike ride, 69K, 2:52 hrs
Fr 22/02: jog, 5K, 0:30 hrs
Th 21/02: run, 12K, 1:06 hrs
We 20/02: gym 2 hrs
Tu 19/02: run 10K, 0:58 hrs
Mo 18/02: rest

Most runners will know the situation: You are feeling tired and worn out and you don't know any substantial reason for it. Since Wednesday eve I have been really tired. I don't feel like being ill - I am just weak. After a few steps of running I have to fight to get along.

Precautiously I monitored my heart rate during today's long run - I toiled for more than 2 hours but my heart rate stayed at a perfect level between 70 and 75 per cent of my max rate. I was prepared to stop my workout to avoid any risk but there was no forceful sign to do so.

May be it is just the unusual spring time weather we have in February. It is rest day tomorrow and I hope this will help.

On track

2008-02-17T21:39:00.006Z

training stats
week's total: 3 runs 42K, indoor cycle 1h, gym 2 sessions
Su 17/02: hilly jog, 21K, 2:07 hrs
Sa 16/02: gym 2 hrs
Fr 15/02: 12K, 1:08 hrs
Th 14/02: indoor cycle 1 h
We 13/02: gym 2 hrs
Tu 12/02: jog, 10K, 1:06 hrs
Mo 11/02: rest

This is the 3rd week I could fulfill my schedule which I regard as a success although I have to admit that my schedule is VERY low key.

The experiences along my different workouts might be of interest to those of you who also suffer from the symptoms of "Runner's knee". I found that very slow jogging - like I did on Tuesday - increases problems and causes pain after the run. On the other hand indoor cycling proved to ease these problems. I estimate that within one hour of indoor cycling the knee is bent at least 5,000 times! Common sense says that an arthritic joint has to be moved not to get worse. After one hour of constant cycling my knee seems to be stronger and more solid.

Cautiously increased mileage

2008-02-10T23:00:00.000Z

training stats
week's total: run 39K, bike 102K, gym 1 session
Su 10/02: hilly jog, 17K, 1:41 hrs
Sa 09/02: bike, 59K, 2:30 hrs
Fr 08/02: bike, 43K, 1:51 hrs
Th 07/02: jog, 11K, 1:11 hrs
We 06/02: gym 2 hrs
Tu 05/02: run, 12K, 1:06 hrs

Received my 3rd Hyalaronan injection and the doc advised to wait a fortnight to decide if any more ones will be useful. The knee still feels sort of weak but as long as I am able to increase my mileage there is no reason to complain.

Most effects of climate change are seriously worrying but I have to admit that sunny and warm days in February are not really unwelcome. Biking in sunshine is so much more fun than indoors.
I enjoyed two bike trips in fabulous weather.

I will join a training camp of our local triathlon club next month on Mallorca. So long I thought it is just biking what we will do but now I learned that it will be a combination of biking and running! I will have to take care not to come back more exhausted than I leave.

Schedule started - views of Gran Canaria

2008-02-03T17:14:00.000Z

training stats
week's total: 3 runs 34K, gym 2 sessions
Su 03/02: hilly run, 15K, 1:28 hrs
Sa 02/02: gym 2hrs
Th 31/01: jog, 11K: 1:10 hrs
We 30/01: gym 2 hrs
Tu 29/01: run, 8K, 0:45 hrs
---
Su 27/01: run, 11K, 1:00 hrs
Th 24/01: run, 8K, 0:44 hrs

We enjoyed our week of hill walking on Gran Canaria. Here are some pics to show how different the island's landscape is.

This is what we came for. Spectacular rocks in the center of the mountainous isle.

Entertaining but easy walking routes passing old villages like El Chorillo which is built like an eagle's nest between rocky peaks.

Daily life below the West coast cliffs.

The most common picture of Gran Canaria is the one of the Maspalomas Dunes. I had to take care not to catch any naked person on the photo. Walking across the area you get the impression that 2 of 3 people are undressed, thereof 90% are male - most of them not really young - and thereof 90% are gay.

Meanwhile my 12-week-schedule to the London Marathon has started. I am already behind my targets, albeit not seriously. The next 3 weeks will tell if the odd knee is ready to cope with higher mileage.

More about Gran Canaria at Wikipedia
My 12-week-schedule (xls)

Forced rest

2008-01-18T22:14:00.000Z

training stats
Th 16/01: indoor cycle, 1.5 hrs
We 15/01: gym, 1.5 hrs
Tu 14/01: flat run, 9K, 0:51 hrs
Mo 13/01: indoor cycle, 1 hr

Some medical news: I received my first Hylaronan injection. No effect so far - improvements will show up after third one if at all. By chance I googled informations about a new cartilage therapy which is called Orthokin. Your blood is taken to produce a serum which then is injected into your knee. Before I do the next step - surgery - I think it could be worth to try this conservative therapy. Info German English

Today I am the victim of my principle saying one workout every day. Gym followed by indoor cycling turned out to be too much (we had this before...) and resulted in a strained tendon. At least 3 rest days I suppose.

I am off for a holiday week on Gran Canaria and I leave my laptop behind me! I am sorry, no posting before Feb 01.
Happy running!

Ups! I nearly forgot to post my London training schedule. Obviously that's because I am still ignoring it.

Non-scheduled running

2008-01-13T18:24:00.000Z

week's total: run 29K, indoor cycling 2 hrs, gym 2 sessions
Su 13/01: hilly run, 11K, 1:00 hrs
Sa 12/01: gym 2 hrs
Fr 11/01: flat run, 10K, 0:57 hrs

I have not yet set up my training schedule for London. I still hesitate to do it because it would be too frustrating to visualize how difficult it is to build up any fitness while injured. Confronted with a proper plan I will have to realize that I can't do sufficient workouts.

I promise to publish my schedule until next Saturday. I am sorry that my personal plan will be very special and not suitable to be copied for anyone else. Perhaps you are interested to have a look at the 4:25-schedule I just created for a friend who wants to run the Hamburg marathon in April:

4:25 marathon schedule (xls-file)

Ecuador report

2008-01-10T22:11:00.000Z

training stats
Th 10/01: gym 1 hr, indoor cycle 1 hr
Tu 08/01: flat run, 8K, 0:45 hrs
Mo 07/01: indoor cycle 1 hr

Will see the doc not ealier than next Tuesday and hopefully receive my first injection. The knee seems to wait for it.

Those of you speaking German might like to see my photo report of the recent Ecuador climbing holiday. English version still to come.

New year - old knees

2008-01-06T17:15:00.001Z

training stats
week's total: run 35K, cycle 1 hr, gym 2 sessions
Su 06/01: hilly run, 11K, 1:01 hrs
Sa 05/01: gym, 2 hrs
Fr 04/01: flat run, 9K, 0:46 hrs
Th 03/01: indoor cycle, 1 hr
We 02/01: gym, 2 hrs
Mo 31/12: flat race, 15K, 1:07 hrs

The 15K race was fine, I achieved the time I could expect and the sick kneecap played along. However, more than once I imagined that this could easily have been my very last New Year's Eve race.

All the problems didn't prevent me from entering the 2008 London, Stockholm and NYC marathons. Thinking about creating a training plan building up to April 13 - the London Marathon - I had to discover that time is rather short. I will contact the doc asap to receive Hyaluronan injections. Meanwhile I limit my running to distances of max 10K and a weekly mileage of max 30K, hopefully increasing to 40-50K in February.

If everything goes according to plans I will do my first long run at mid of March which is definately too late to get really fit for London. So my modest target will be to finish with a time of less than 4 hours.

Happy new year

2007-12-30T13:29:00.000Z

training stats
Sa 29/12: flat run, 10K, 0:53 hrs
Fr 28/12: gym, 2 hrs
Th 27/12: gym, 1.5 hrs, indoor bike 1 hr
We 26/12: hilly run, 16K, 1:36 hrs

Happy new year to everyone. Remember you are not alone, there are others who also get a raw deal:

Looking at the week's training stats you might think that I am back to perfect fitness. That's a wrong impression. The hilly run turned out to be too much stress for my knee. Running the New Year's Eve Race tomorrow will probably ruin my patella for weeks. But it's the race I have done more often than any other one and I desperately want to run it. I am too young to act sensibly. Perhaps next year but I doubt.

A better purpose to feel good next year:

Merry Christmas everybody

2007-12-23T16:50:00.000Z

training stats
week's total: jog/walk 31K, bike 2 hrs, gym 2 sessions
Su 23/12: hilly run, 8K, 0:48 hrs
Sa 22/12: jog 5K, 0:30 hrs, gym 2 hrs
Fr 21/12: slow jog, 10K, 1:06 hrs
Th 20/12: indoor bike, 1:00 hrs
We 19/12: jog/walk, 8K, 0:48 hrs
Tu 18/12: indoor bike, 1:00 hrs
Mo 17/12: gym 2 hrs

My year of running seems to end placably. The knee seems to recover slowly. At least I was able to circle our local reservoir which is a flat distance of 10 K. By a very modest speed I have to admit. But that is what an injured runners has to learn: To become modest.

There are more things to learn. Being early pensioned provides you with a big amount of freedom. (I hear you crying: "Let me have your problems!") Excessive use of this sudden liberty can cause problems - there is a sensitivity of catching injuries due to too much exercise. But there are more risks. Perhaps the most obvious and easiest solution is: Do not demand too much from your life, stay modest. A motto for next year?

Merry christmas everybody, be happy!

source: http://cagle.msnbc.com/news/ReynoldsChristmas/1.asp

Christmas walking time

2007-12-16T21:33:00.000Z

training stats
Su 16/12: jog/walk, 11K, 1:24 hrs
Fr 14/12: gym 1 hr, treadmill run 5k, 0:30 hrs
Th 13/12: indoor bike, 1:00 hrs
We 12/12: jog/walk, 9K, 0:55 hrs

My intention was to do some kind of sports every day during this week but I didn't stand it on Saturday. You might argue that walking is not a sort of sports. I am happy to agree therefore I did some running in between. I was less happy to feel that my knee did like walking more than running. Could that be MY knee?

All my attempts to avoid gaining weight are in vain. I meet cookies everywhere everytime. And most of them are tasty. It is a bad time being injured but it is even worse during christmas time.
Christmas time can be a bad time and it is even worse when injured. And all this gets worst when New Year's Eve is approaching - a day which gets me soppy every year.

Don't worry - be happy!
(provided you are not a turkey)

Outside smiling

2007-12-11T17:44:00.000Z

training stats
Tu 11/12: cross training, 1:00 hrs
Mo 10/12: gym, 1:45 hrs
Su 09/12: pacemaker race, 10K, 50 min

Being watched during the race I might have been looking happy. I was smiling all the time as I was running alongside a very pretty woman - for 50 min at least. But inside I worried about the continuing problem with my knee.

Analysing the 2007 Berlin Marathon results you see that there are 2,810 finishers in age group M50. In the next age group, M55, finishers are down by 46% to 1,519. Next year my age group is M55. Now I fear that I will have to take the same road as all the poor guys who had to stop running.

If I have to stop running I consequently will stop running the website about running. I don't think it will be fun to write about running when I am not able to run. Okay, life is not all about running but I feel I have to think about building up an alternative passion.

Don't worry - this is obviously one of those rainy cold depressive days, not just due to injuries and weather.

Same mistake as last year

2007-12-07T20:43:00.000Z

training stats
Fr 07/12: hilly run, 10 K, 0:57 hrs
Th 06/12: crosstraining, 1:00 hrs
We 05/12: treadmill 5K, 0:30 hrs, gym 2 hrs
Tu 04/12: slow jog, 7K, 0:50 hrs
Su 02/12: gym, 2 hrs
Sa 01/12: pacemaker race, 10K, 0:47 hrs

It seems that the combination of running a marathon followed by strenuous hill walking meant to be too much strain for my right Runner's Knee - a weakness of the kneecap's cartilage. One could blame me for making the same fault as last year. And yes, one would be right to do so. Alas! - I love running and I love the mountains.

Now I take Diclofenac as usual, try to ignore all problems and finish my favourite local race on Sunday, the X-mas run in my home town Witten. Certainly it is a MUST to be part of. However, today I had to stop running after 40 min when the patella caused too much pain.

Of course I will increase strength training of the Musculus Vastus Medialis. This muscle often is regarded to cause imbalances which lead to problems like Runner's Knee.

We'll see what happens on Sunday. Anyway I will pay the doc a visit and ask for another series of Hyaluronan injections. Last spring it helped but will it do again?

PS Those of you speaking German might like to read my race report: Der Diplomaten-Lauf.

Andean Experiences

2007-11-29T21:47:00.000Z

training stats: no running at all

You know I expected it to be tough. It was. More than I expected it to be.

I failed to climb Cotopaxi. Still regarding my decision to be right after I turned back due to storm and rain at 4,800m with more than 1,000 meters still to climb. But nevertheless this decision was followed by deep disappointment and severe weakness both physically and mentally. If someone had offered me a ticket to fly home instantly I would have gone.

The most depressing time I had when staying in the camp with very wet, foggy and cold weather every morning and evening. I even forgot to use the bottle of Single Malt I had taken with me to help along such phases.

Luckily I made my come back when fighting my way up to the top of Chimborazo. With three tops successfully climbed I can finally regard the trip as an achievement. There were Rucu de Pichincha (4,684m), Illiniza Norte (5,126m) and Chimborazo. At the letter one I have to admit I climbed just the second highest of its 5 peaks, Ventimilla which is recently measured at 6,225m. The main summit is only 42 meters higher (wiki).

photo 1: Looking from the ridge of Illiniza Norte to Cotopaxi. Note that Illiniza Norte was expected to be a walking summit free of snow and ice.

photo 2: Flying close by, a condor at the Illiniza hillside.

photo 3: Ornamentally placed alpacas in front of Chimborazo Mountain.

photo 4: We started our ascent of Chimborazo at 10pm. At sunrise we already had been walking for nearly 8 hours. With the verb "walk" playing down the sort of movement.

photo 5: Whereever I went - my mountain of disappointment was there to remind me, Cotopaxi, seen from the top of Chimborazo.

photo 7: Easy to notice that I was at the limit of my capabilities.

It will take some weeks to publish the complete photo story on my website. I will let you know when it's done.

Off to the Andes

2007-11-09T22:21:00.000Z

training stats: nothing, just rest

Thanks, Heike, your guess is right. I am heading for Ecuador and its chain of volcanoes. I am part of a group of 12 guys who have a tough programme of peaks to do:

Rucu de Pichincha, 4,784 meters
Illiniza Norte, 5,126 meters
Cotopaxi, 5,897 meters
Chimborazo, 6,268 meters

These mountains are technically not too difficult. The only thing concerning is that we will be ascending by a rather high speed. We arrive at Quito (2,800 meters) on Sunday. Climbing Pichincha is scheduled for Tuesday and Illiniza for Thursday and Cotopaxi for Saturday night.

Heading for high mountains you never know what happens. Altitude sickness can catch everybody - you can be fit enough to run a marathon but this is no guarantee you will be able to survive at high altitude. And of course always there is the weather you have to respect. Therefore I would be happy to get to two of the four planned mountain tops.

For those of you speaking German: I have booked with the German Alpine Club's agency, effectively called the "Summit Club", our detailed schedule is published here.

I regret I will have no internet access during most of the time. So you will have to wait for any news until end of November. Sorry about this incovenience. Don't worry.

In case you like to read my German race report of last Sunday's New York City Marathon, here it is.

3:39:44

2007-11-04T23:51:00.000Z

OK, it is not the time to beat J's result at Frankfurt last Sunday. But honestly I am very happy with my run. NYC has a very tough route indeed. I lost the two needed minutes along the final 3 miles when I had to fight strongly to keep running.

Now I will need a full week's rest to get recovered for the next trip. It starts on Sunday and I would call it the toughest project I ever intended to do.

First of all I look forward to today's After-Marathon-Party, where I will enjoy more than one pint of Sam Adams.

Greetings from NYC - race number 11202

2007-11-03T17:14:00.001Z

training stats
Fr 02/11: 10K, 0:56 hrs
Mo 29/10: 11K, 1:04 hrs

This trip is my third one to NYC within three years. First time I was totally excited about the abundance of human life. Second time I enjoyed the classic highlights the City offers. Now I feel sort of horrified by moving through the tarmacced gorges of Manhattan. I guess it would be easier to survive in the rain forest than in the hustle of Big Apple. And I reckon people in NYC are so friendly because they know how hard life is in this place.

photo: sunset on Friday afternoon

Regarding tomorrow's marathon I don't feel to be really fit. My legs are more tired than they have been for months. All the guide business might have been a bit too much. Even worse I caught a cold. So I have to think about cutting my goal back to 3:45 or even 4:00. I will decide after having run the first couple of miles.

Today the US Olympic men's marathon trials took place in Central Park. The photo shows winner Ryan Hall waving to the crowds with half a mile to go to the finish line. The two more places to qualify for Beiing went to Dathan Ritzenhein and Brian Sell. Sadly the sudden death of 5-time-US-champion Ryan Shay had to be announced. He collapsed after little more than 5 miles into the race.

Follow tomorrow's race tracker along the New York City marathon and look out for race number 11202.

Greetings from Dublin

2007-10-28T14:54:00.000Z

Training stats
week's total: run 69K
Su 28/10: run, 17K, 1:32 hrs
Sa 27/10: run, 11K, 1:02 hrs
Tu 23/10: long run, 30K, 2:55 hrs
Mo 22/10: hilly run, 11K, 1:02 hrs

Greetings from a weekend trip to Ireland where I am the tourguide of small group of runners who intend to do the Dublin Marathon tomorrow. Dublin promotes its event to be the "friendly marathon". And they prove to be right. Everything is easy and relaxed.

We joined the International Breakfast Run this morning. Everybody can show up and take part, without any qualification. It is a very short jog, around 4 K, and the real event is what follows. A decent t-shirt by sponsor adidas, food and drinks in the hall for everyone, Irish music and dancing. Very relaxed indeed.

An unfamiliar habit for guests from Germany is to trade with t-shirts. I was asked by a French runner to change the shirt I wore. As it was far too big for me anyway I was happy to get a long sleeve french one instead. Later everybody I met thought I was from France.

Framed by running before and after, I managed to complete 90 minutes of running this morning. After Tuesday's long run I was not happy as my old right knee moaned about the stress. So I had a rest of 3 days and it seems that this was the right decision. Now I hope to be fit for NY next Sunday. Training mate J has finished 3:38 today in Frankfurt, so this is the challenge. We'll see.

(sorry I forgot my card reader and can't post any photos)

Cautious Running

2007-10-21T16:17:00.000+01:00

training stats
week's total: run 54K, gym 2 sessions
Su 21/10: run, 9K, 0:46 hrs
Sa 20/10: gym, 2 hrs
Fr 19/10: run, 17K, 1:32 hrs
Th 18/10: rest
We 17/10: treadmill, 10K, 1:00 hrs

I cautiously shortened today's run to 9K. Schedule was to do a long run of 30K. But I felt a light strain at my right thigh so it was wise to cut down the workout. As it was a cold and rainy morning I was not too disappointed. The muscle seems to have recovered, so I hope to make up for the missed distance on Tuesday. Mid of next week is the last chance to do a long run with sufficient time to recover until marathon day at Nov 04.

Once you have set up a schedule it is always hard to fall behind your planned workouts. It needs some years of running experience - at least for me - to get strong enough to withstand and take the required rest. Though it is already the second time I am not able to fulfil the weekly mileage. As long as I can complete the final long run I stay confident that I will be fit to finish below 3:40 hrs in NYC.

Day out with the local running family

2007-10-16T21:05:00.000+01:00

training stats
Tu 16/10: run, 18K, 1:44 hrs
Mo 15/10: gym, 2 hrs

week's total: run 71K
Su 14/10: easy jog, 10K, 1:02 hrs
Sa 13/10: slow HM race and warmup, 30K, 2:48 hrs
Fr 12/10: rest
Th 11/10: easy jog, 18K, 1:50 hrs

The weekend's highlight was the first ever marathon our little town has seen. One of the two local triathlon clubs, PV Triathlon Witten, successfully established the new event on a perfect day with brilliant sunshine. 35 male and 8 female runners completed the classic distance. A rather small field having in mind that there were cash prizes offered for the first 3 males and females. 500 Euros each for the winners! There are a lot of marathon races in the area, so this is still a good start for a new race.

The half marathon was more popular with about 200 participants. Together with the 10K distance there were more than 400 sports people at the venue.

One good thing was that the weather was perfect. I even more enjoyed the family like atmosphere. Most of the people knew each other. Everybody was relaxed and nobody moaned about the too short distance of the marathon. It was shortish by at least 2K so that the times are not qualified for rankings.

As I urgently needed a long run to get fit for NYC I did a 10K warmup and then joined the half marathon race accompanying B and her friends S and P. Their pace was a bit speedy for a long run but I was fine and could stay with them right to the finish.

Green, green my valley is. Running the banks the Lake Kemnade.

Facing the sun in the Ruhr valley.

Still smiling - not yet realizing the oncoming hills.

Please feel invited to visit my picture gallery.

Not disappointing

2007-10-10T21:05:00.000+01:00

training stats
We 10/10: run, 13K, 1:14 hrs
Tu 09/10: rest
Mo 08/10: rest

week's total: run 60K, hill walking 25 hrs
Su 07/10: hm race, 21K, 1:36 hrs, plus afternoon hill stroll, 4 hrs

As expected the Suedtirol Half Marathon had a strong and fast field with international runners at the top. The winner was more than half an hour quicker than me, the first 8 men were professional overseas runners from Kenya, Morrocco etc. Conditions were perfect and the route really flat with the exception of 3 ascents of 10-20 meters.

And as expected I could not manage to run a PB but it was still a proper race. A brave one, indeed. Until 13K I was on course for a finish at 1:35. Then I had to fight very hard and lost not more than a minute. At 20K I was still convinced to finish below 1:36, but then there was this long and high bridge to cross and the final stretch seemed to be longer than 1.097 meters. Finally I clocked exactly 1:36:12.

I have a range of photos showing me finishing but the pictures are to be censored. I just look too beat-up. As always Angelika shook her head seeing my condition. I admit it might have looked worrying but it only takes 5 minutes to recover. Outsiders will not understand but we know that all the toil is really fun. I love the moment beyond the finish line when I smile at other runners while gasping for breath together.

Relaxed start in the South Tyrolian village of Neumarkt:

A slightly less relaxed finish at the same place, 1:36:12 hrs later (chip time):

20 minutes before, synchronous gestures by the winning lady and her pace maker - not gentlemanlike:

Some Photos from South Tyrolia

2007-10-06T16:51:00.000+01:00

Training stats
Sa 06/10: rest
Fr 05/10: morning run, 13K, 1:12 hrs, plus hill walk 5 hrs
Th 04/10: easy hill walk, 4 hrs

We'll see if all the hill walking was too much to stay fit enough and run a decent half marathon tomorrow. The route profile offers no excuse. It is totally flat, there is only one ascent of mere 10 meters. And weather will be perfect. No excuse, we'll see..

Some pictures taken during the week:

Apples are the main business here besides wine and tourism, of course.

In calm Ultental you still find a lot of old farm houses, still working in the old fashioned way, with the modern SUV car in front, and all electronis staff inside you can get nowadays.

The gardens of Trauttmannsdorff in Merano offer a modern attraction: Airy outlook above the valley.
Downtown Merano is touristic and mediterranian.

On the top of Hochwart (2.608 meters) looking North to the Ortler. In good conditions it is an easy hill walk up there but with lots of snow it was even more entertaining.

The village Tirol is nicely situated on a hillside above Merano and enjoys sun all day.

Finally lucky me on the top of Lauwandspitze (2251m) with Ifinger in the background.

Shrinking Depots

2007-10-03T20:58:00.000+01:00

training stats
We 03/10: brisk hill walk, 4:20 hrs
Tu 02/10: touristic run, 14K, 1:23 hrs, plus day walk
Mo 01/10: flat run, 9K, 0:52 hrs, plus day walk

Things are going well, my fat depots around my hips are shrinking and I felt reasonably fit on my morning runs and walking to the top of Hochwart - 2.608 meters - today. It was a detour by leaving Angelika on our alm walk. But the route turned out to be longer than expected, so I left her for most of our day but enjoyed the lonely walk. It developed to become a decent hill walk with much snow on the ridge and some steps needing concentration. However, I was able to keep up my speed for the full length of the walk and I feel fit to run the half marathon on Sunday.

I will try to do my best. OK, not a PB - those times are gone. But conditions seem to be perfect and it is a fast course, so I would be happy to finish with a time under 1:40 hrs.
Südtirol Marathon

Setback

2007-09-28T21:29:00.000+01:00

training stats
Fr 28/09: rest
Th 27/09: easy jog, 10K, 1:04hrs
We 26/09: rest

Realising the newly set up schedule starts with a setback. I was happy to finish the urgently needed long run on Tuesday. But my muscles were not ready for it. The result is that my left thigh is hurting so badly that I had to cancel today's workout what sets me back significantly within the first week of the just picked up new schedule.

I hope to meet my plans on Sunday again. I am looking forward to running in the sun of South Tyrolia where we are heading for to have a week of holidays tomorrow. As ususal I have selected a B&B offering broadband access, so please come back at beginning of next week.

Countdown Schedule

2007-09-26T22:29:00.000+01:00

To confront myself with the thruth I have setup a plan to fit in the final workouts during the remaining weeks to the NYC marathon on Nov 4. It sums up to an average mileage of 61K per week for the last 6 weeks.

NYC schedule (excel file)

State of training affairs

2007-09-25T20:55:00.000+01:00

training stats
Tu 25/09: long run, 31K, 3:00hrs
Mo 24/09: gym 2hrs
previous week: run 22K
week before: run 34K

Our charity run is made history now. It was a big success with glorious weather and record entrants of active runners and passive donators - 688 persons!

The other side of the coin was that I had not enough time to train properly. Noting that there are only 5 weeks left until NYC marathon day I have to admit that I will not be able to get fit in time to finish inside 3:40 hrs.

As you might guess I will try to do it anyway. My schedule is to do at least 3 long runs thereof the first one I completed today. At least a good start. What let me stay optimistic is: After 28K I met a group of fast local runners and joined them for the final 2K. They pushed me to a speed of 7:10 min/mile (4:28 min/K). A good pace at the end of a long run!

Too busy

2007-09-21T23:30:00.000+01:00

Sorry, folks, currently I am too busy to post. So much work to do with all the preparations for our charity run on Sunday: www.sterntaler-lauf.de .

I reckon I will come back to you mid of next week. Please visit again.

A Different Week

2007-09-09T22:03:00.000+01:00

training stats
week's total: run 26K
Su 09/09: hilly run, 16K, 1:27 hrs
Mo 03/09: eays jog, 10K, 1:12 hrs

The week turned out to be rather different than it was planned to be. Schedule was to travel to France on Wednesday and to run the famous Medoc Marathon on Saturday.

My body had different plans and held me back to my local bed to cure a sudden flu. To be honest I was not disappointed too much as I was horrified by the 15-hour-bus-trip from Frankfurt to Medoc. If I ever try to do it again I will opt to travel by plane.

I was very happy to be back to running today. I suspiciously watched my heart rate monitor but everything was okay and I was able to complete a decent workout. I clocked an average heart rate of 116 b/min what might look rather low for you but my maximum HR is 158, so this is a level of 73% what is an ordinary rate for an everyday's workout.

Sorry that you have to do without any photos showing me running Medoc costumed.

Busy Week

2007-09-02T22:25:00.000+01:00

training stats
week's total: run 67K, gym 1 session

Su 02/09: slow run, 16K, 1:36 hrs
Sa 01/09: short onion relay race, 600 meters
Fr 31/08: fast run, 17K, 1:23 hrs
Th 30/08: rest
We 29/08: gym 2 hrs
Tu 28/08: long run, 24K, 2:15 hrs
Mo 27/08: easy jog, 10K, 1:06 hrs

This week saw my second highest mileage this year! It didn't plan this amount of training as I don't have an ordinary training plan these days. My target is to get fit for a decent marathon in New York City and to put in 3 or 4 long runs until then to build up my performance.

On Tuesday a long run with J and U came across and then on Friday I developed a spontaneous speedy run to compensate for my bad mood and frustrating thoughts.

You are invited to see my commented (in German) little photo gallery of the local onion relay race. By the way my team finished last but our ladies won their weight group!

Good Race - Good Fun

2007-08-27T21:44:00.000+01:00

Training stats
Mo 27/08: easy jog, 10K, 1:06 hrs

week's total: run 44K, bike 129K, gym 1 session

Su 26/08: race 8K, 0:37 hrs + 2K warmup
Sa 25/08: rest
Fr 24/08: hilly bike 88K, 3:37 hrs

Did another short race this weekend: 8K consisting of 8 laps of 1K each on hilly roads of the small town of Wetter on the Ruhr. As expected it was a neck-to-neck-race with my former college J. We both were close to our limits when we approached the final climb to the home stretch. Activating the endmost power I could find I was able to gain a lead of about 10 meters. Moaning and groaning, turning and looking back several times, I managed to rescue 1.2 seconds to the finish where I was 9th in a small field of 44 runners. Behind the finish line there were some people looking at me rather worrying since I was looking close to collapsing. But that is the usual impression I give after a good race. And this was a really good race and very good fun.

Flooded my green valley is

2007-08-23T21:29:00.000+01:00

training stats
Th 23/08: bike 41K, 1:51 hrs and easy jog 10K, 1:09 hrs
We 22/08: gym 2 hrs and treadmill run 5K, 0:30 hrs

Today's jog around the local reservoir let us watch some of the highest floods ever our valley had.

Photo 1: Lake Kemnade has been dammed in 1980 and I can't remember that its banks have ever been watered by floods.

Photo 2: Egyptian geese seem to be quite common around the local lakes this year for the first time. They breed widely in Africa mostly in Nile valley (hence the German name: Nilgans), and there is also a population in East Anglia, UK.

Photo 3: Usually the dam separates different levels of water with a difference of about 5-7 meters. Today it looks like the river (left) would be higher than the lake.
Photo 4: After passing the dam the river Ruhr spreads out in the valley.

A Taste of Iceland

2007-08-21T21:13:00.000+01:00

training stats
Tu 21/08: fast run, 9K, 0:42 hrs
Mo 20/08: easy jog, 10K, 1:06 hrs

week's total: run 33K, bike 39K, gym 1 session
Su 19/08: rest
Sa 18/08: race, 10K, 0:42 hrs, +2K warm up
Fr 17/08: rest
Th 16/08: rest

The weekend let me just acquire a taste for the wonders of Iceland. Reykjavik is a nice little town but on its own it is not worth the long journey. It is the island's nature what makes Iceland so special. A bus tour on Sunday could only give a short impression of what the country has to offer. Obviously one has to leave civilisation and trek across the highlands to experience the unique nature of active volcanos, spitting geysirs and spacious glaciers.

Some pictures of the day show...

... no man's land between American und European tectonic plates

... Gull Foss, the waterfall which is reported to look golden in sunshine

... Strokkor, currently the only Geyser throwing hot water regularly

You are invited to look up the complete photo gallery.

Yes, there was the marathon, too. It was a very nice event with 500 marathon runners, 1100 doing the half marathon, 2800 running 10K and thousands enjoying the 3K fun run. Race day was an unusual warm and sunny day with Icelandic hot summer temperature of 16°c, a perfect day for running.

I managed to do the 10K between caring for my group of marathon runners and I finished with the fairly decent time of 42:10 min. Age graded this is my best for the recent 3 years!

Photo: Olympic Champion Stefano Baldini (right) finished the Half Marathon runner-up to winner Benjamin Serem of Kenya.

Off to Iceland

2007-08-15T22:23:00.000+01:00

training stats
We 15/08: gym 2 hrs and easy jog, 9K, 0:55 hrs
Tu 14/08: hilly run, 12K, 1:04 hrs
Mo 13/08: hilly bike, 39K, 1:39 hrs

On Monday I received confirmation to go on a sudden journey next weekend: On Saturday the Reykjavik Marathon will take place and I'll be there to care for a small group of runners. Hopefully I will be able to run the 10K race which starts at 10am after the marathon and half marathon runners start at 9.10am. So I can be ready in time to welcome my group at the finish of the marathon.

I have never been to Iceland. There will be no time left to do extensive excursions but I look forward to have a bath in the Blue Lagoon and to see the nearby wonders of nature on a Sunday tour along the Golden Circle.

Exciting Activities

2007-08-12T22:05:00.000+01:00

training stats
week's total: run 39K, bike 133K, gym 1 session
Su 12/08: hilly run, 16K, 1:28 hrs and easy bike, 39K, 1:51 hrs
Sa 11/08: rest
Fr 10/08: fast run, 10K, 0:48 hrs + 2K slow
Th 09/08: gym 2 hrs

Most exciting day of the week was Saturday when the staff of interAir had their day out. We made our way along the paths of a high ropes course and - even more exciting - we got the chance to enter a sailglider and had a short but terrific flight.

Balancing along the ropes was more difficult than I expected. I have done a fair number of Klettersteige in the Alps but this is a different thing as everything you try to stand on is moving!

Soaring was one the most exciting things I ever did. The start was great fun with the plane beginning to rise with the first move. It felt like a vertical rise! High up one has a view all around and it is great to hear the wind streaming along the plane. Unfortunately the flight lasted only a few minutes as we failed to find an thermal lift.

Flora London Marathons

Blog Move

Recovered and enjoying

My London Struggle

Finished - 3:35:31

Perfect weather?

Vienna and before the final week

56 and very tired

The Beauty and Berlin

Recovered by record week

German Humour - unintended

Hurting legs and 5 weeks to go

Perfect rehearsal

7 weeks to go

Lanzarote Gallery

Surprisingly fit

Canarian performance

Longing for Summer

Too motivated?

Scheduled Reluctance - 12 weeks to go

A Late Start

Running away and coming back

Just happy

2008 insights

2008 Finish

Record week

Decorated Santa Claus

Dreaming of come back

Late Truth

Runners talking

Upcoming plans for 2009

Run with me!

A Matter of Routine

On the Run

2 weeks to go

Amazing success

4 weeks to go

Count down started

Too busy

Laugavegur pictures

Off to Iceland

Personal Olympics

Documents of Zugspitzlauf 2008

No report, no blaming, just dolour

Stubai Gallery

Inhabitants of the Alps

High level holiday

Giro Photo Gallery

Still alive

One week left to meet the Alpine Queen

More Stockholm Marathon Videos

Fun Run

Facing next challenge

Almost another Wonder

A biker's week

Active Non-Runner

The knee is back

New start to next marathon

London Marathon Report

Surprised by myself

Good Luck - Have Fun

One step to the start

Record Week

Fairly fast but rather short

Finished without smile

Off to the chilly coast

Greetings from Mallorca

Worn out

On track

Cautiously increased mileage

Schedule started - views of Gran Canaria

Forced rest

Non-scheduled running

Ecuador report

New year - old knees

Happy new year

Merry Christmas everybody

Christmas walking time

Outside smiling

Same mistake as last year