Crowie Camp

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Location:Dubai

Hot, hot, hot and more hot.

Ghantoot Dirt Route:

Wow, what a couple of days. Getting back the sand pit has been great. It's been great to see everyone on the tri team and it's been great to get into some proper training again. My programme for this month is pretty steady and mostly I'm on easy stuff, getting used to the heat again and the humidity. Friday we did a time trial, as a whole group 3 lots of 13kms. I averaged 43kmph throughout, which at this stage of my off season I was happy with. Swimming wise I'm back in the pool hitting out 1.20min per 100m at easy pace and a steady 1km time trial. My running has been fun and to be honest I'm just taking it all a tad steady simply due to the heat etc. This evening I ran with the team on the Ghantoot dirt run 9km off road, then 4.7km at any pace wise you like. My splits are below, kms 1 to 9 were with the team nice and steady, kms 9 to 13 were as you like:

1 00:05:34
2 00:05:45
3 00:05:51
4 00:06:15
5 00:06:40
6 00:06:21
7 00:06:20
8 00:06:22
9 00:05:55
10 00:04:34
11 00:04:37
12 00:04:34
13 00:04:27

Back to work on Monday, still it's been a great summer and Sarah and I have loved every minute. Thanks to everyone who has made it possible from the tri team, friends back home in the UK and lastly, most importantly our families. Especially Jack the dog, we miss you boy and love you forever.

Be safe as always,

Ed

Back in the sand pit.

Yesterday, Sarah and I arrived back in Dubai after a great summer traveling around and seeing family and friends. We spent so much time with Jack, it was great and we loved every minute. The flight was an overnighter, it was good on the whole, but you never really feel great after 12 odd hours of traveling and we didn't get much sleep on the plane. All our bags (and the bike!) arrived fine, even though we had loads more stuff than we flew back to the UK with. So much so, that we had to pay £90 extra for the extra luggage in London, whoops! One of the best things about being back in Dubai is the weather I mean the weather on the way to Heathrow was awful rain, rain, we won't be seeing that for another 4months!

This morning, while I was still knackered, I met up with some of the guys from the team and rode for 100km with Wolfies Friday ride and then we ran for an easy 4km afterwards. It was great to see them all, but I struggled in the heat and I could tell that I'd been in Europe for the summer. Still I'm sure that its not going to take too long to get up scratch.



The picture above is Clint and Janey's tortoise. Clint is one of the guys I train with and his on the team. He recently raced in the Philippines Ironman 70.3, where he won his age group. The guy did super good, well done Clint, top marks and he certainly would have beaten this wee tortoise.

I'm looking forward to the coming month, I'm back on training plan and I know it'll include some gym sessions (which I was going to do extra) and a possibility of looking for a big hit out in the Dubai marathon in January - a sub 3hour crack pre-IMSA. I'm also really looking at my diet with Sarah. We are both looking kill some weight and lean down hugely before for Xmas in prep for the big sessions in the new year and IMSA. We both feel that if we both do it, it'll make it easier for for us rather than trying to lean down individually, which is always going to be difficult.

Right talking of food I'm to have some tea.

Be safe,

Ed

Just a quick picture of the bike for you.

Bike porn! :-)

Glass of red wine anyone?

It almost been 5 days since the summer challenge 100miler and I Sarah and I have been up north to see friends and we had a great time, but I have to admit that I'm ready to go home now back to the sandpit and back to training. I've had a fair bit of wine, red wine which has been beautiful, as I missed it back home and I've really enjoyed having a couple of glasses from time to time.

A number of the team have raced throughout the summer and it's been great to hear how they got on from London tri to Swanage tri, tri2aspire has raced throughout the UK. I'd like to wish good luck to my good friend Clint and training partner, who is racing this weekend in the Philippines Ironman 70.3, good luck mate. We'll keep our finger crossed you qualify.

Good luck mate.

I'm ready to get back into some real training now, none of this unstructured stuff. I'm looking forward to getting back on programme, some sun, smooth roads and going for runs where people don't give you advice on running like Forest Gump.


The worst thing about this mind, is that once again we say bye to Jack. He's been with us for pretty much all the summer and I think to honest that this is the last time that we have him with us like this. We've been all over the UK and I just don't think it's fair on him, just as he thinks he's with us again we bugger off back to the desert, poor lad. So I think, however much it hurts, from now on he'll just stay with my Mum and Dad when we come back. We can just make a huge fuss of him there instead.

Love you Jack x

Ed

Day 6 - Challenge 100, done.

I started with these legs, so I'll finish with 'em too.

When I started this challenge I started it for one reason. When I first started running properly about 5 five years ago I used read these crazy articles a out Paula Radcliffe running 100miles a week in training etc. I thought 'Jesus, how the hell does she do that?'

Well, a load of Ironman races down the line and a whole load of training, I still never could really imagine what it was like to run that far in training in a week. So I decided that as it was my off season, I could give this a real crack. Go back 6 days and I was standing on the drive of 34 Enfield Avenue, New Waltham, Grimsby ready to get started. If I'm honest with you, it was hard mentally and physically, my legs are now shot for a day or two and I'm I'm looking forward to some down time this week with Sarah and Jack, as we're popping up to Northumberland to celebrate our 4th wedding anniversary.

Today was hard going, this morning was 20km very slow at just over 5min/km pace and, then this evening I finished off with just under 5min/km pace, so all in all I'm over the moon with the week and how it's gone. There are a couple of things which have come from doing this challenge, Firstly, me 'BIG' toe, which I've had real trouble with over the last two years has been fine, no worries at all, which is great. Secondly, I always find how amazing all these challenges/race I do are mostly in the head. Most of the people I have raced against are way faster/fitter than me, but I do believe that I'm mentally stronger than most, why? I don't know, but it seems to be the case.

Over the the six days a couple of this things happened, what with Mr Shuffle passing onto the machine heaven and several visits to peoples houses on road trips that were organised prechallenge, but there was one thing that I kept on thinking about during each of my runs. That was my old pal Jonathan Peel, who passed away 2 years ago whilst on a run in Wiltshire, leaving his young family. The guy was one of the best you could meet, he was happy, always with a 'Chrissie Wellington' smile and he never had anything bad to say about anyone, also he was a huge geek with the biggest heart ever. There a are so many people out there who miss him everyday and for that very reason this challenge is dedicated to him.

Jonathan Peel RIP


Just finished!

Be safe as always,

Ed