I've done a reasonable amount of running this weekend after a week off due to work: last weekend I was working two 14 hour shifts, and then four overnight shifts during the week. I never get much quality running time in when I'm working nights, despite best intentions: the pattern usually goes work overnight, come home, sleep, get up, sit on the couch, eat tea, go to work, and repeat. This means by the time of the weekend I'm chomping at the bit to get out, usually with, at least initially, some disappointing results.
Yesterday I headed back out to Kahutarewa Recreational Hub, to run up the Back Track. This starts with a thirty minute climb up an old road through mature native forest, curving in and out of a big valley as it makes its way up the hillside. The track is also open to mountain bikes, and is one of the more popular rides in the Palmerston North area. Unfortunately, having just emerged from a nocturnal existance for the previous five days I struggled a little with the climb to start off with, but managed to keep going, despite two mountain bikers parking right behind me for fifteen minutes, and not overtaking me until we reached a slight downhill! Up towards the top of the track, the forest turns into predominantly tree ferns, before opening out into felled pine plantation.
After yesterday feeling a bit lethargic through 90 minutes, I was hoping for a decent blow out today. Unfortunately it was two hours through the town paths around Palmerston North of misery. The weather was muggy, wind was up, and I couldn't really fet into a decent stride.
Despite my problems this weekend, it could have been worse... Last week I was bemoaning being unable to enter the Goat Alpine Adventure Race. This took place yesterday, however given the risk of eruption on Mt Ruapehu, and more s[specifically I assume of lahars down the western slopes, the course unfortunately had to be changed to 19km up the Ohakune Mountain Road. Having had to run the last kilometre of last year's race up this road, I could not think of a worse way to spend a couple of hours on a Saturday morning! The Kepler Challenge was also this weekend, however, and the pictures on TV3 news of helicopters soaring along behing runners along the main ridge were simply spectacular! Definitely a race for the years to come.
Back to normal work hours tomorrow, and hopefully this will allow for some more reasonable running behaviour during the week. Of course, I imagine my whole training schedule will go out the window at some point in the next couple of weeks, when the new arrival/support crew member arrives!
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