Table Mountain Challenge

The Table Mountain Challenge is getting really close now. Why did I decide to do the whole thing? Last weekend I ran Leg 3 with some runners from the club from a place in Hout bay just after Orange Kloof. My mind was not with me that day I even left my watch at home. I am glad I ran the 2nd leg of the Hout Bay Challenge with people that were training for it. It really made me cope with the mental trauma of looking up at Hout Bay corner on the way to Llandudno ravine.

Hout Bay Corner

I also was not running in boots and baggy jeans like the last time (far more comfortable).

We took it slowly and had a break at Tranquility Cracks now one of my new Great Places. We celebrated two birthdays even had strawberries.

Kasteelspoort looking down on Camps Bay

Going down Kasteelspoort was hectic we were walking down and I managed to slip a few times. Also had a few near misses. Makes me wonder what it is going to be like running on tired legs.

Random Sign

Leg 1 practice was supposed to happen today but with the weather being as it is I will give it a miss. Guess I should do it next weekend. I have raced the 2nd leg twice so I am pretty comfortable about that. Only run leg 1 in training a while ago, I remember it being tough.

John Korasie 30km Race

What a great route. You start with steep little hill which was a little shock to my system. Then run up Red Hill a few kilometers into the start and finish up the hill work round 10km. Then an undulating 10km, followed by a bumpy last 10km.

View from the huge cannon on Red Hill.

Too bad my body did not agree with me; the last 3km took me half an hour. I really had nothing left and felt really sore. The only reason I finished the race was because it was on the way to my car. It still enjoyed it though. It was my second 30km and I preferred it to the Bay to Bay 30. My reasoning is that it did not have a half way mark in my mind. I treated it like a slow 21 and by the time I went past Smitswinkel I felt great.

View of Smitswinkel from the road.

I had never run past the Cape Point nature Reserve or on the back road behind Red Hill. I also managed to get a massage at the end and that made a major difference. I even managed to have a good run on Tuesday in spite of feeling stiff. The weather was also great so that also added to the appeal.

The Route Profile:

Google Earth/Map file of the route: KMZ

Knysna Half Weekend

Ah the Knysna Half Marathon, ok I have done it. By the “West Knysna virus” (as I called it) I got the Monday following along with a whole bunch of other random people make me a little hesitant to do it next year. I was told it was going to be crowded I just never really understood. For some reason I thought it was going to chilled like the Outeniqua Half Marathon which I rate as a must do. The effort/wait and queue to pleasure ratio was not that great. I did have fun on the weekend but it was hard work. Also that down hill killed me, I thought the magazine was playing it safe by calling it a mine shaft. A friend of mine baled because of the downhill.

The concept is good. Cold morning, gas heaters, cup of coffee, strip your warm clothes and dump everything in a truck that will hopefully meet you at the end. Just it has just got really popular and it has its plus side, some people run it as their first half. Others only run the half as the only race they do the whole year.

The route profile is interesting at some points I apear to be below sea level.


KMZ of the route.

Roberson Wacky Wine Weekend

Last weekend went to Robertson for the Wacky Wine weekend. There was also a road running race called Miles for Smiles Half Marathon, 10km and 5km fun run/walk. Despite much teasing I stuck with my original decision to only run the 10km race. Comments such as you drive so far only to run a 10km ... Don't be 'woes' etc. amongst others, all coming from women I might add. This serves me right for not enlisting male support for the weekend away.

We woke up on Saturday and it was cold, then it started to drizzle. The 21km started at 8 am (a rather civilised time) and the 10km 10 minutes later. That was great for me because it gave me time to go back to where we were staying and fetch my watch, still couldn't find my Heart Rate monitor in time. I know it would have bugged me the whole race if I didn't have my watch. I had to run the start (making a habit of this) after parking the car. The sprint to the start was good thing gave a bit of warm-up. It was really cold at this point. The gun shot off just after I got to start.

The route for the 10km was rural with not many tall buildings (unless you count the Klipdrift factory). There were some stretches with gravel and a little mud. We passed cows and farmers with their skottle braais out having a damp breakfast with “Chariots of fire” blaring some a small sound system. Rather flat especially in the 2nd 5km. It drizzled the whole way this made it a great temperature for running.

As I finished and went to the car it began raining. While I was in the hot shower I thought of all those nasty girls getting wet and cold. I ran the race I wanted to run and it was great even did a PB for my 10km distance.

Here is the kmz of the 10km route:Miles for Smiles 10km

The route it basically flat highest point to the lowest is 44 meters.

Miles for Smiles in a great a non-profit organization that raises funds for corrective surgery for children born with cleft lips or palates.

From the wine tasting point of view the weekend was also great. The tasting glasses proper size wine glasses, [that gets a two thumbs up]. The weekend only saw one broken wine glass (1 of 6) which it really good considering the transport to each wine farm. Each winery that we went to had a different feel. For me Zandvliet was the best. It is a wine farm that actually feels and looks like a farm as commercial as some others. All the wineries had one thing in common that was to get people to have great time.

Table Mountain 16km race

On Saturday I managed to run the route for the Table Mountain 16km race that is going to be run on the 1 June 2008, with a group of friends. Entries/invites are closed so running to route to see if it was safe for next week was a bonus.

The route is mainly dirt road and cement with a short stretch of very rocky path.

Here is the kmz to open in Google Earth: Table Mountain 16km


View Larger Map

Route Profile:

Running in the dark

One thing I have noticed is when I am running in the dark with my uber-nonfashionable reflector vest people driving cars love to put their bright lights on. I think they like the way it looks all lit up. That would be fine except for the immediate blindness that follows. I have also assumed another possibility that they might think that I have a death wish and will jump from the pavement and damage their car as they ride me over.

Sometimes when cars see you running in the dark it can be a bad thing. Last night we where running in the dark all reflector-ed up. Towards the end of the run we needed to cross a busy road near an intersection. We crossed to the painted island in the middle of the road and were waiting until it was the right time for us to cross. A car then decided to do us a “favour” and just stopped (in the middle of an intersection while the traffic light was green) to let us cross. This was so unnecessary. Clearly the reflector vests were a distraction and prevented the drive from noticing the 4 cars behind him. The horrible sound of breaking in busts as cars slammed on breaks and swerved. Fortunately none made contact with each other. I am sure the cars in the back assumed we were the culprits and must have muttered “Stupid runners” or something along those lines under then breath.

Garmin Forerunner 405

I am still happy with my Forerunner 305 but the Forerunner 405 does look sexier. The difference is not as great as the style improvement between the Forerunner 301.

Damn there is catch – it has a few less features from what I can see. Then the heart rate monitor is extra and has a shorter battery life. The only reason I got the 305 was because of 3 things:

1. Being able to upload my run data to my pc – (something that for other sports watches end up being quite expense).
2. Heart Rate Monitor
3. GPS route tracking

Now with the heart rate being separate it is becoming a bit of a hard sell. Now I wonder how long Garmin is going to continue support the 305.

I think Garmin is pulling a Vista. The situation is like me and XP it works. I think I will stick with the 305 and save up for the 505 whenever that comes out.

After thought:
Selling the Heart Rate monitor as an extra make sense because the previous models 201 and 205 did not have it as a feature. Now there is one model that should allow you to buy a heart rate monitor later on. Also not everyone can or wants to use heart rate monitor.

The Forerunner is what it is. It is not a GPS device for navigation geo caching and missile guidance nor is it a stop watch for a 100 meter sprint. It is the first real “toy” I have ever had. I don’t need it – maybe, but now I associate it with running and feel naked when I run without it.

Comments:

Megan commented that you can use the Forerunner 305 heart rate monitor with the Forerunner 405 and you can save some bucks. Wonder if that means that they have not changed/improved the HRM.

You can go here to compare the each of the Forerunner models by their features.