Swan Trophy by kyisis at Garmin Connect - Details

The Swan Trophy is a race held yearly but the local Athletics Club. It is 10kms and caters for runners and walkers. Today they even put on a 5km for the newbies.

As per the Club rules, walkers start 30mins before the runners. So we were to all line up at 2.30pm. There was only a small group of us today, about 15 I think (results are not up yet) with about 5 race-walkers in that group. The day was a cool calm day. Bit of wind here and there and when the sun went down behind the hill it got very cold very quickly. I opted to keep my long sleeve top on and wished I hadn't. lol

So we started off. I was not here to race, it was a training walk for me and to see how my calf/Achilles held up. Wendy and her father bolted from the start and Pete and I ambled off after them. I was feeling really good and was testing out the new style and was very surprised to pass the first km in 5:51 as I had not intended on being that fast. I said to Pete that he could head off as I was going to reign it in a little as I had not walked 10km in a few months and didn't want to shatter myself to fast. Plus its up hill the whole way up. (69 metre gain over the 5kms) I was happily ticking along at just under 6km pace and I caught up with Wendy's dad, Roger. We stayed together for about a km and then I decided to pass him. It was a little hard climb and my time had dropped a little (4km mark) but it was just here that I smacked my toe on a rock that was sticking out of the tarmac. I thought I had broken it and I nearly fell. Lucky for me I righted myself as Roger would have walked clean over the top of me haha, but he did get past me again. So that slowed me down pretty quickly dropping to 6.30 for the next Km. The turn always looks so good as you know on this course that its pretty much down hill from here. I had a pretty good walk back down but had run out of gas and honestly felt like I was flogging my self the whole way. I stumbled again on the uneven ground which set my toe off and it throbbed the whole way back. I passed Roger again and stayed in front to the finish. I was pleased with my time as I was quicker than my training pace set for that day and on the whole my fittness was not too bad. I was not breathing too hard at anytime. My coach still feels I am dehydrated and that is why I run out of gas half way through a race.....he is probably right as I know I don't drink enough water at the best of times.

I cant believe that two years ago I did a 58:20 on that same course....but it was just after I got back from the Oceania Masters so was still on my peak. So being only a couple of minutes of my best time during my lay off is not too bad.

I am not sure of the finishing times of the others. Wendy's time was 57:?? and Pete I think 58 or 59

For those interested here are is my data from my GPS...on an interesting note....this would be the first race my watch actually got the km marks as marked and the distance perfect. So I must have walked on the line they mapped out.


Swan Trophy by kyisis at Garmin Connect - Details